Why do you answer questions on Fluther?

I like to feel as though I’m helping someone out there. So far, so good.

I agree with @aprilsimnel, I like to think that I am imparting some of my knowledge. Maybe I can make some bad situations I’ve gone through easier for other people.
Added bonus, Fluther is just plain fun.

Welcome to fluther. I answered my first question here because I had quite a bit of experience both parachuting and bungee-jumping. Now I’m a lurve whore….I’ll answer darn near anything for some free lurve. See ya….Gary/wtf

I like to help. If I know something that someone needs to know I will share.

The main reason is I like to learn. I read the site to learn answers to questions I never knew I had.

And have you seen Ben in spandex? If I answer enough questions I might.

I was told that I had to answer a question every 108 minutes. that’s all I know

I like when I can help answer someone’s question. It gives me something to do at work when work is slow.

Also, I love gaining the lurve points. Haven’t reached the magnitude that some people have gotten up to yet (like the 10,000’s), but time will tell…

On Fluther, I’m able to apply the loads of useless information I collect, which, by the way, is pretty useless in day-to-day life. I’d be rich if I could figure out how to funnel that into something productive. :P I like helping people out, I like the discussions that sometimes evolve, and I like the fact that, like johnpowell said, I’m exposed to questions I didn’t even know I had.

When people write me to say thank you for an answer, I am thrilled to have been able to help. Their words make it very worthwhile.

Answering Qs means interacting with the community in the threads and that is priceless. I have made such great friends here.

I learn something almost every time I log on.

Entertainment
Self-education (being corrected by others)
Altruism
Utilitarianism (desire to make some use of all that obscure stuff I know)
Showing off
Challenge
Rarefied company
Socializing
Diversion from other stuff I’m supposed to be doing

I’ll second what @Jeruba said.

because like all procrastinators I feel less bad about it if I’m doing something semi-productive instead of what I’m supposed to be doing. Because it’s fun. Because I like helping people.

if someone need help with something, and you can provide help through a few minutes on your computer…why not?

@Jeruba….Lose an “s” and you can say you are on CRUSADES (using the first letter on each line). This revelation is certainly lurve worthy, is it not? See ya….Gary/wtf

Because I like to help other people.

plus, you get lurve, hint hint

Because I have low self-esteem and feel somewhat worthless and ineffective, and fluther gives me instant feedback that at least someone values my knowledge and/or writing skills.

Because it helps me figure out what I think about things. In the process of writing an answer, I usually learn a lot.

Because I enjoy seeking out evidence to support answers.

Because helping others makes me feel good.

Because while I don’t believe anything I say is worth much, I believe I can see things in a useful way.

Because I’m lonely.

Because I can get support and help when I’m depressed.

Because it sometimes makes me feel like others care about me (although at other times it makes me feel like I don’t matter—double-edged sword that way).

Because it keeps my mind occupied, and it makes me feel like I’m doing something that could be useful one day. Keeping my mind occupied helps me avoid bad thoughts—such as suicidal thoughts (and it works hooray, hooray)!!!

Because it provides a form of desensitization therapy. I am constantly being exposed to things that make me feel bad about myself. I can’t stay away from them. So I figure that maybe this exposure is helping me learn how to cope better with my duplicitous mind.

Because it lets me talk about things I can’t talk about anywhere else.

Because I can be crazy and a cheater and have all kinds of socially unacceptable ideas and people don’t seem to be shunning me.

Because I’m fucked so much I don’t know which way is up, but it doesn’t really seem to matter because everyone else is just as fucked as I am. Ok, almost as fucked ;-)

Because I can use adult words and talk about adult themes and I won’t get moderated.

Because I’m sad and feel like crying and no one can see.

Because I think too much.

@whatthefluther Crusades! Brilliant!

I answer questions when I have experience that will benefit the conversation.

But the main reason is that I have learned so much here that I feel obligated to give back when I can.

I do it for the lurve.

There seems to be no other explanation. I’ve been to a few other sites where people ask questions, but I don’t bother to give answers. I’m content with just browsing. What really bakes my noodle is why I spend so much time answering questions on Fluther for currency I cannot spend, even in an abstract way.

I suppose lurve puts a value on a person, based on the things he knows and the time he spends to convey it to other. And we all want to feel like we are worth something.

I answer to kill time waiting for @daloon and @dalepetrie to complete their posts, which in turn provides me with intriguing reading material that might last hours. See ya….Gary/wtf
And after reading @daloon posts, I always feel a bit saner

@whatthefluther Now only if that worked on me, too!

If I can throw in an opinion or an answer, I enjoy that. But I must confess that I REALLY like to add humorous or snide comments where ever I can. I DO know that I have to be careful with that, because I don’t want to get modded. But I just feel good chiming in with others & participating.

@daloon….I suppose reading @dalepetrie posts, which may well make you feel a bit less politically astute, doesn’t provide you much benefit, does it? But hey, you never know when another one of his butt plug sagas may surface! See ya….Gary/wtf

Problem topics? Easy to help a fellow human being out with some fresh perspective (if at all possible).
Discussion topics? Well actually, the real reason for that is all about me, me, me. Egoistic isn’t it! I answer questions because it allows me to think about how I really feel about the issue at hand. We all have something racing through our minds when we read the question (a first reaction). However only after I write it down sometimes it seems like complete and utter bullshit. I can’t post that, because other users will call me out on my shit. I guess what I’m trying to say it that by answering it forces me to really think about the question at hand, not just pay attention to it for 10 seconds and skip to the next topic (and stay stuck in my own ways/mindset).

The lurve is a nice bonus to see if your input is appreciated, but definitely not the main motivation. Even though I do feel like a dirty lurve whore everytime I congratulate someone in a lurve milestone topic.

Also you can tell that English is definitely not my first language. Answering questions in English is really helpful to me. Thinking/speaking in English is so much easier than writing it down. Like I said it’s all about me, me, me! And if you can get something useful out of my answer that’s a big bonus.

Because.

@markyy I couldn’t tell English isn’t your first language. Bravo!

Learning, discovering, sharing, helping, broadening my own and others views. Plus, the community here is fantastic.

It’s fantastic because of people like you, @augustlan!

The same reason dogs lick their genitals. Because we can.

@augustlan You flather me, but for someone who hopes to one day spend a couple of weeks in the States I could do much better :)

@AstroChuck Excuse me while I go look for that question about what animal you would choose to reincarnate as ;)

I do not answer anything , my keyboard is in cahoots with fluther.com it does everything by itself .

For fun and profit.

Ok, just for fun.

To keep tabs. You know who you are…

LOL @CIA

Oh oh – and I will keep answering questions to give lurve to @johnpowell until we push him over the 20k. Then I’m outta here.

Huge LOL @astrochuck!

At least i am under @CIA’ s radar :)

I’m naturally inquisitive and I have an insatiable desire to interact with and help others while learning things in the process. I also like to type and Fluther gives me the opportunity to do plenty of that.

I am in grad school. I talk to lots of brilliant people all day and feel stupid most of the time. When I come here and I can answer someone’s question, I feel less stupid.

Fluther helps me troubleshoot. When I come across a problem I can’t solve (how to get wrinkles out of linen? how to fix broken watch face? how to fix broken frame?) I am always amazed by the fact that someone out there can solve it.

But really, I think what keeps everyone coming back is that Fluther has a unique sense of community that you don’t see elsewhere on the internet. I would let most of you crash on my couch any day.

Because it’s my calling in life.

lurve! (: DUH!
It makes me happy thinking that I’m helping someone just by answering their question.

Destiny. I am a Fluther bot programmed specifically to respond to questions on Fluther.

@whatthefluther, leave it to you to take a list and make an anacrostic of it. You are right. (I left out “showing off,” which was the one I didn’t want to admit anyway. I’ll just pretend it’s all for the sake of others.)

Challenge
Rarefied company
Utilitarianism (desire to make some use of all that obscure stuff I know)
Self-education (being corrected by others)
Altruism
Diversion from other stuff I’m supposed to be doing
Entertainment
Socializing

@nikipedia – I can only imagine what super caliber intelligence you experience at school, if it makes you feel stupid. You are seriously one of the most intelligent people I’ve ever come across, and when you answer questions, I’m always floored at how f-in brilliant you are. You make me feel stupid, to put it in perspective. :P I definitely bow down to your giant brain.

Because it feels good.

Karma

I don’t, usually. Most of the time I just browse. Other people have said what I would have, and most of the time say it better. I answer when I have a smart-ass comment, or when I’m a little toasted, like right now.

I’m an attention whore.

2012!

I like the related neurotransmitters flooding my brain.

http://www.ted.com/talks/jonathan_zittrain_the_web_is_a_random_act_of_kindness.html

@Jeruba….Displaying brilliance, knowledge and wisdom with sincerity and thoughtfulness is never “showing off” in my mind. The very thought of you not sharing would be a crime.

To everyone else on fluther….“showing off”?! I believe that little nugget supports my theory that @Jeruba is really a group of a dozen Mensa IQ level experts who team together to give us @Jeruba responses. And @Jeruba aint “the shit”....hell, @cwilbur will casually stroll through here and in a mere moment dump a better gem in twenty words or less! Ha! (I lurve them both).

See ya….Gary/wtf (the lurve whore)

@barumonkey I just watched that talk last night. It was great! Definitely reminded me of Fluther. :)

@barumonkey – Great video, thanks for sharing that. :)

I answer questions for the awards, of course.

@Capt_Bloth Well just pushed ya over your first k. Lurve.

@Zen I feel like a real jelly :)