# Don't Just Say 'Hello' In Chat

For another article about this, see [nohello.com](http://nohello.com).

Just saying "Hello", and nothing else in a chat room is just as bad as [asking to ask](askingtoask).  Just saying "Hello" does two kinda bad things:

* Interrupts the person you're asking.
    * The person you're interrupting is likely in the middle of something.  A chat client "pings" them, and they go to check (Stopping what they are doing).
    * If you just say,"Hello", you've given them no information, and thusly, interrupted them needlessly.
* It wastes time to resolution for your problem
    * If you say,"Hello", you wait 30-60 seconds, for the other person to say "Hi back".  Then they spend 30-60 seconds waiting for you to say what it is you need.  That's 60 second to 120 seconds to even begin researching the answer.
    * If instead, you say,"Hello, I have a problem with my key.  Here is the pastebin for it, can you check, please?", instantly that person has all the info to begin answering your question.  We saved 60-120 seconds of everyone's time!

Example of bad convo:

```
9:00 Person 1: Hi.
9:01 Person 2: Hai back!
9:02 Person 1: I have a problem with my key?  Can you check on it?
9:03 Person 2: Sure!
9:04 Person 2: All fixed!
9:05 Person 1: Yep, looks good!  Thanks a bunch!
```

Example of good convo:

```
9:00 Person 1: Hi, I have an issue with my key, can you check on it?  Here is what I think it is:  pastebinurls.com/XYZZY
9:01 Person 2: Sure, hang on a sec...
9:01 Person 2: All fixed!  Give it a try!
9:02 Person 1  Yep, all good, thanks a bunch!
```

In Bad Convo, it took 5 minutes to resolution.  In Good Convo, took 2 minutes.  See why it's better?

It very well seems rude, because you don't just jam a person up with a question right when you see them face-to-face.  But face-to-face convos have a lot of nuance to them, that is lacking in IRC.  And, while maybe rude, it allows for asynchronous communication, whereas Bad Convo demands a serialized communication.  Asynch is better :)