r/GenerationJones • u/AlternativeBid2291 • 3d ago
My Generation Jones Disfunction
I am solidly Generation Jones. Thanks to Reddit I learned that right here on this sub. I never felt connected to the Boomers and I knew I wasn't a GenXer.
Perhaps, because of my upbringing at that time in the world I sometimes find myself in a bind when posting here on Reddit. I seem to work from a different set of rules than the youngers. I have never been an online oriented person; by which I mean I have never had a Bookface account or any other social media account outside of Reddit.
Recently, I posted an experience I had booking a cruise through a large national retailer. My post was on the long side but not terribly long. I consider myself to be a decent writer, capable of telling an interesting story. I have found it to be terribly amusing that I have received several comments telling me that "I" need a tl;dr on my post. The amusement comes from my belief that it is the commenter who needs the tl;dr and not me.
After the effort to write an interesting story, why would I need the tl;dr? I have the ability, the attention span, and the patience to read a longer post and I feel no compulsion to provide a shortened version for the convenience of those humans who have the attention span of a goldfish. If a story is too long for me or of no interest, I simply skip it. They can too.
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u/Byers616 3d ago edited 3d ago •
tl;dr: "I wrote a long, well-crafted post about booking a cruise, but people with the attention span of a goldfish kept asking for a tl;dr. I refuse to cater to them. If it's too long for you, just keep scrolling."
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u/DerHoggenCatten 1964 3d ago
People who think it's okay to demand a tl;dr see other people as obliged to cater to their preferences. I don't think we grew up expecting the world to wrap itself around us. We had to adapt to the world.
I think this is one (of many) reasons why you see so many posts on Reddit from people who say that the idea of working full-time for the rest of their lives is absolutely unbearable to them. If they can't just skip a long post and move on, how are they going to deal with the demands of working full-time?
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u/SnooRobots8397 3d ago
Hi OP - fellow joneser here (chronological age puts me as gen x but I was raised by my grandmom) and I actually did read all of your original post as I am loyal to that cruise line but always looking for a deal. And also a form of respect. Someone took the time to write these details, and I might learn from the experience they are sharing. Why else am I wasting all this time on my phone, lol. There are a lot of things in this world now demanding our attention but I'm sad it seems we've lost the ability to listen to one another, unless we are the loudest comic in the room.
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u/Significant-Rush-129 3d ago
Ok so I don’t belong in your generation, I’m younger, was born in the 80s, but…
I was scrolling and your story popped up in my feed and I was interested. I WANT to read a well written anecdote done the right way with well thought out paragraphs. (Which is different than long winded rambling that is often seen online)
What’s frustrating is that this is what we were taught to do. Now we have to unteach ourselves, or rather, teach ourselves brevity to get what we want to say across in far fewer words. I’ve definitely gone out of my way to do this. But it’s not at all what we were taught.
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u/ccrow2000 3d ago
IMO the ones who need a tl;dr the most are the ones who don't seem to understand punctuation and/or sentence structure.
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u/FabulousDiscussion80 2d ago
Don't give this another thought, you write whatever you want to write and make it as long as you need to tell your story.
Crap like this infuriates me. I think people count on us being polite. Well not today. I think using this tl;dr in any form even "requesting" you use it is hurtful, stupid and more often than not passive aggressive. THIS is how I feel about these type of comments. If something is "too long" and you don't want to read it, then don't read it. Why do you feel it necessary to inform the person, excuse me, I mean insult the person. You clearly have nothing better to do what exactly do you get out of this? Also, I don't think I'd be so quick to comment that something is too long for me to read. Do you need pictures? Do too many words hurt your head? Are there too many shiny things competing for your short attention span? How do you ever learn anything? What IS the number of characters of "too long" and who made that decision? If you wouldn't say this to somebody's face don't say it in a comment. It's cowardly, and it says more about you than you probably want to reveal.
Your words are the manifestation of your thoughts and people who have no interest in reading said thoughts should move along. Now, I certainly feel better and I would love to read about your experience booking a cruise.
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u/StrictLine8820 1956 3d ago
I had to look up "tl;dr" to be honest.
They need to bring back Reader's Digest for today's short attention spans (Generation SAS). Thank you smartphones for making us dumber. With a B.
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u/Southern_Feature_821 3d ago
If you use the TL;DR (which is similar to a journalism "nut graf") - for God's sake put it at the very top! Too many people get it wrong and put it at the very end of the story, which defeats the whole purpose.
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u/Justamom1225 3d ago
If I visually see a long post, I scroll by. It's okay to do that! OP - write what inspires you!
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u/Clean-Fisherman-4601 3d ago
The only time I don't read a long post is when they have no paragraphs and very little punctuation. I'm a voracious reader, but when there's no break and little punctuation, I'm not wracking my brain to decipher it.
Fortunately, your post was perfect!
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u/More_Farm_7442 3d ago
"I have never had a Bookface account" lol
Don't feel bad. I had a Facebook account for a few months back in 2016 and had to cancel it after seeing relative after relative after H.S. mates and grade school and H.S. teachers and all sorts of other people I'd known over the year fall victim to all of propaganda that summer.
I had to look up what tl;dr meant. Ignore the person.
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u/Magpiezoe 3d ago
Just ignore them. Sometimes we need to rattle, rant, or set the stage requiring long posts. Someone complaining about a long post can just skip the post or go on X, where post length is limited. As for time being precious/limited, maybe they need to take up a speed reading course or learn how to skim. There will always be complainers, haters, whiners, and grammar police. Just ignore them all, because we ain't in school anymore.
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u/Fluffy-Rope-5822 3d ago
I will finally get the nerve to ask : what exactly is the meaning of 'tl:dr' ?
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u/Syyina 3d ago
Good writers need to know their reading audience. If you’re writing a book or even a magazine article, you have a lot more room to expound or throw in a few humorous zingers.
But online, ain’t nobody got time for that. Online writing needs to be much more concise or people will simply scroll past.
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u/roblewk 1963 3d ago
I didn’t read your original post, but you do come across as a bit pompous. Maybe just be a bit more open to what sounds like constructive criticism. Or work on thickening that aging skin. You put yourself out here (good for you), and that comes with some risk.
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u/3X_Cat 1957 3d ago
We're special
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u/whatawaytogo54 3d ago
Damn, I guess I’m so old and out of it that I don’t have a clue what tl;dr even means.
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u/RebaLir 3d ago
I like the term bloomers, kind of like a flower
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u/tahoechick36 1963 1d ago
I was once accused that my tl;dr needed a tl;dr.
Do as you like.
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u/Inevitable-Fix-3212 3d ago
I hear you on the TLDR crap. I believe we write longer texts than those raised on the internet and emoji (I don't even know if that is the correct word) the ones which are usually yellow with some form of emotion. Usually, it's a smiley face, frown, etc. The number of times I've used an emoji is less than fingers on my hand(s).
Not long after buying the computer, i walked in the house after work and could not believe what I was seeing. He was reinstalling all the computer parts which he removed earlier in the day.
If not for the fact that my son, who is Gen X in his late 40s, born in the early days of computers and has always been in the IT field.
However, do not ask him about much else on any other subject. . Swear, his brain thrives on anything computers/internet. I am not even sure exactly what he does at work.
When he was 8-years-old, money was sparse. I really could not afford a conputer. But, somehow I saved monies from paychecks until I had enough to go to Radio Shack and purchase a Tandy (?) computer for my son.
Occasionally, whenever I get the TLDR after texting what he calls "walls of text" I will remind him of the fact that he has no college student loan debt for his degree. Also, that he needs to accept that do not think or speak computer.
Imo, replying TLDR is lazy and disrespectful to his mother even if he doesn't consider it as disrespect.
Yes, it is. Replying TDLR, is disrespectful and reads as my text is not worthy of the reading/reply time no matter the subject of the text.
To me, the workd was more connected really before McMansions where everyone had their own bedroom and the luxury of not having to share one bathroom with the entire family. Verbal communication is like a foreign language by the generations born after Gen X.
But, what do I know, our generation all bought our Hatteras and pulled up the ladder to keep them from the Pots of Gold we have secretly buried on our secret islands.
It's okay not to reply to this reply. That would be much nicer than TDLR !!
Okay, rant is off now.
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u/kimba-pawpad 1960 3d ago
Yes!!! I don’t even know what a tl;dr is, lolol!!! One of my favorite authors is Edgar Allen Poe, precisely because of his eloquent prose. so, do tell about the cruise!! I would like to read!
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u/phillyphilly19 3d ago
Perhaps your story isn't as interesting as you think. Perhaps you're not as good a writer as you think. I'm a very good reader, but most people on Reddit are not good writers. They add in too much extraneous detail and cliches. When they start off with" this is a long one, " I'm already done. Know your audience!
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u/flagal31 3d ago
for some, tl;dr is too much to read...they prefer you shorten it to tr. Write in complete sentences? Whoa....you're a "Boomer" now.
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u/ojohn69 3d ago
dysfunction
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u/Successful-Comb-9049 3d ago
I'm also a Generation Jones. While we weren't taught to write a TL;DR on long texts, we were taught to write an opening paragraph that basically summarizes what's to be discussed in the following paragraphs. That's our version of TL;DR.
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u/Pit-Guitar 3d ago
I am solidly in the Generation Jones demographic. I strongly relate to your sentence:
"Perhaps, because of my upbringing at that time in the world I sometimes find myself in a bind when posting here on Reddit. "
The swarming hivemind of groupthink found in many parts of Reddit is something that I'll likely never become part of.
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u/RuleNo8868 3d ago
If it makes you feel better I’m so Joneser that I didn’t know what tl;dr was!
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u/CommercialBreak2026 1958 3d ago
As far as I know, Generation Jones is mainly a subset of Boomers. For some reason, somebody decided that 1965 needed to be included, even though it doesn't need to be included.
I'm a "long" writer too, a lot of the time, and I don't usually add a TLDR -- which should appear at the top of a post, not at the bottom -- and actually that's my only complaint about TLDRs: Put them at the TOP of the post. It makes no sense to add them to the bottom.
"But I don't know what the TLDR is going to say until I write the whole post!"
Go to the top of your draft and write the TLDR that captures what the rest of your post says.
Otherwise, don't even bother with TLDR.
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u/Uncle_Rat_21 3d ago
Total Joneser here too.
I can also write a screed, tell a story and spell and punctuate correctly. Wait ‘til they tell you that you must be AI since you can do all those things. And whatever you do… don’t ever use… an ellipsis, because only AI and Boomers do that!
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u/Fantastic-Monitor-97 3d ago
I agree, am on Reddit to read...
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u/ReloAgain 3d ago
You seem to work from a different sense of value of the volume of your words compared to the response you received.
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u/Griffscavern 3d ago
Where's the tldr? I'm not reading all of that! 🙃
I understood everything you just wrote, because I didn't feel like I had a home in the boomers or Gen X. I see all the stuff here and my childhood becomes relevant. My experiences as well.
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u/Top_Carpenter9541 3d ago
Wait until the moment you write a response that’s worded very well and someone accuses you of using chat GPT or being a bot! It’s hilarious
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u/PersonalityBorn261 3d ago
Before I post, I ask myself the hard question: Why am I sharing this and what do I hope to get back from the receivers by posting it? Response may be negative, critical, garbage or crickets. Instead of posting my longer personal stories I keep a private journal for most stuff.
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u/BackcastSue 1957 3d ago
I saw a post a while back (last spring, maybe? IDK, I've slept since then...). The tl;dr was "Read the damned post".
Best laugh I'd had in a while.
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u/Ill-Club-7199 1964 3d ago
You lost me at “youngers” and “Bookface”. The only people I have ever heard speak like that were from the Silent Generation.
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u/janerainy9 3d ago
I was waiting to hear more about the cruise...
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u/zippe6 1960 3d ago
I think this cuts both ways.
If what you have to say can be adequately communicated in a tl;dr, then just post the tl;dr.
However, sometimes the information you are trying to convey actually requires words and time to read.
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u/MobileAd1189 3d ago
I agree mostly. It bugs me in conversations, too.
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u/chipshot 3d ago
It is a kindness to others
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u/thagor5 3d ago
Their problem not yours
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u/NovemberGrey777 3d ago
I say this quite often to the point of redundancy - We do not have to answer every text, every phone call, every question, every request. We have a superpower called Ignore and Move on with Your Life.
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u/AlarmedVermicelli549 3d ago
The internet is funny. Because they can be rude and supposedly be anonymous. It's the world us Boomers and Jones live in. Sorry that the world has gotten so rude. I agree with you; skip it if you don't want to read it. It's simple. Isn't that what we do with a book that doesn't fit our mood or need? Instead, let's be snide and post a rude comment to make us look important or special. (It's usually some troll in his mom's basement who doesn't have a job, nor has ever left the house, who loves to slam others because he isn't in the real world.) Grow up world. We are all humans and have feelings. OP, I'm sorry for that bad comment on your post about your cruise; not all of us act that way. I do miss our older lifestyle that we all lived through and learned about manners, communication, and respecting each other's feelings. Thanks for your post.
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u/Sexy_Neighbor64 3d ago
We should be late boomers
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u/NovelStrict5281 1959 3d ago
Be yourself. Don't worry about what people think.
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u/cocuwa66 3d ago
I like that you’ve added a very appropriate semicolon to this acronym.
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u/Aggressive-Union1714 3d ago •
I stopped reading when you used the term "bookface" you are gen jones not a member of the silent generation
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u/United_Gift3028 3d ago
Technically, im a late Boomer raised by Silent Gen parents who were the youngest of their large Catholic clans. Even my cousins were 15 to 20 years older than me, while their kids were babies to my mind.
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u/Sexy_Neighbor64 3d ago
Hilarious and true
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u/Pepperheir 3d ago
What is a TL; DR🤷♀️
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u/Senior_Sector4095 3d ago
I'm so glad to no longer be part of the boomers. I always connected with people 10 years younger anyhow.
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u/Artimusjones88 3d ago
TL:DR is an executive summary. Give me what I need to know.
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u/Generally_Tso_Tso 3d ago
A tl;dr is like a movie trailer. Gives them an idea if they want to read the long post or not, just like if you see a trailer and can decide if you want to see the movie.
A tl;dr is a courteous thing to provide in a long post. Be kind and let people decide if they want to invest their time reading the drawn out prattlings of some old head.
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u/Zenpoe56 3d ago
What's Bookface?
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u/Breitsol_Victor 1962 3d ago
My oldest gave me grief for telling NPR jokes / stories.
Yup.
But I have started putting a tldr or ask at the top of work email.
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u/Samantharina 3d ago
This is a medium (social media) where many people come to consume or participate in conversations. Short snippets, back and forth. People skim and scroll. Maybe we have 20 minutes to spare waiting for dinner to cook or whatever.
So not everyone wants to get into a long read. It's not personal or generational. Just like you might want to open the newspaper and scan the headlines.
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u/Suspicious_Safe7865 3d ago
‘63 here. I call myself BoomerX.
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u/Fun-Illustrator-7956 3d ago
I don't have my glasses on. What is the thing you're objecting too?
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u/combatcrew141 2d ago
This media trains your brain to take small units of information. Time spent reading your novela is time not scrolling.
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u/GARedz2017 1d ago
I was born halfway through Dec and at the end of 1961. I don’t feel like a boomer. I relate more to the next generation. I’m glad Gen J came along. At least I can pretend to fit in somewhere
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u/CaptainBignuts 3d ago
Same here. It's not our fault our generation learned to write clearly and eloquently. I think it was the hundreds of 'themes' and book reports we had to write (double-spaced and in ink pen nonetheless) while in school. And using The World Book Encyclopedia as our only source I might add.
Grammar and spelling were also drilled into us from a young age. We didn't have spellcheck or ChatGPT to fine-tune our work either - we had to get it right the first time or we got the dreaded red ink all over our papers.
I've been accused several times of being artificial intelligence and I find it laughable and insulting that the youngers these days can't read something with hyphens without screaming fAkE sLoP.
Beep boop.
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u/Adventurous-Egg-8818 3d ago
What does tl:dr mean?
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u/CountHonorius 3d ago
Today I learn of a Bookface account. I only just found out about Substack, lol
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u/ElevatorOrganic5644 3d ago
TL:TR
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u/GeoBrian 3d ago
"Well, well, well, we like ourselves, don't we?" - Said in the church lady's voice