I mostly agree with you, however I think that when my article is a nice and fluent follow up on the one I am reading at the moment, then this is perfectly ok to "hint" to my article in some way as long as one's personal Intention is based on the mutual sharing of wisdom or knowledge instead of Self-promotion. Of course my discernment here derives from the basis of how thoughtful and elaborate the comment on my article is and if I see the overlap to my article. I did that once and it was received very positive.

So this is the one point where too much impulsive rigidity CAN be at cost of getting to know a valuable post. 
But I am sure most display this tactfulness in discernment. :)

I read your post through and through and it is really a turn off.

But one thing i love about you is your sincerity. You weren't coming from a position of perfection, but identification. You admitted you know these are wrong because someone corrected you too.

Thanks. i'll take heed.

i try and do witty humor comments when ever possible make people laugh and good things happen

This post has the innate potential to become hilariously funny when scrolling through the comments, looking for the described spam comments. Luckily we were not  disappointed! 😂

Thank you for this post. As a newcomer, it's good to learn this unwritten rules, but I have objections in two cases.

>Also, never, ever, ever, upvote your comment and skip upvoting the post. That is simply rude.

What do you think about the following scenario? The commenter comes across a very objectionable content and the comment section is full with objectionable comments as well. The only way to stand out in the crowd and make a counterargument is to upvote the comment, but the commenter can't upvote the post, because the commenter completely disagrees with it.

>It is when one leaves a comment and then puts a link to an article he or she wrote. Do not do this.

How about writing a lengthy comment and then providing the links for reference? And what if the commenter has hundreds of posts in their blog and the referenced posts are somewhere towards the bottom of those hundreds of posts. In that case, it would be a pain to look for those posts, no?

Yeah, these are all the same things I have been keen to avoid.

Easy really, when you actually read the post at hand, think about it and leave a real comment.

I have also seen a ton of similar posts on this topic. Originality with thought.

great post, lol. just kidding. this is mine and my wife @lynncoyle1 pet peeve actually. She actualy follows you also as I do. Your guidence on this site is awesome. Thank you my friend

I try to reward people that make good comments on my blog. My upvote is worth .13 Steem reward but I only get one or two comments per post.

Thanks for sharing. As a newcomer to steem i'll definitely work to avoid these mistakes. Genuine and thoughtful comments will only elevate the platform.

Yes taskmaster4450, I totally agree with you; Although I'm still new on the platform, I think the strength of it is based on respect for the work of others; the minimum that must be done before commenting on a post, is really to read and understand it; because if you do not, the author of the post will detect it with great ease and there will break or weaken a relationship that could be. All the recommendations that you have just indicated are welcome for those who are still learning to work on this platform. Greetings.

**Very useful article. Although I'm not the most popular author on steem, I'm very tired of answering various comments that resemble spam. Comments are a great way to start interacting on Steem with other users. There is one very simple rule for commenting. Make your comment the best, and you will receive great rewards. Good luck to you and kind regards.**
>Очень полезная статья. Хоть я и не самый популярный автор на steem, я очень устаю отвечать на разные комментарии, что напоминают спам. Комментарии это великолепный способ начать взаимодействие на Steem с другими пользователями. Есть одно очень простое правило для комментариев. Сделайте так, чтобы Ваш комментарий был самым лучшим, и вы получите большие вознаграждения. Удачи Вам и Добра.

I just noticed this great post! (Sorry for this terrible joke, but it's already late here)

I actually have 2 questions.
First what is your opinion about writing a comment that contains some critics or a different opinion as the author?

Secondly, so now and then I notice people that consistently upvote their own crappy comments (which usually only contain 3 words). For me as minnow and new user this feels really unfair. As they sometimes get like  8 times $0.2 per day. While my vote value is close to zero. So they get richer without doing anything and I can't do something about it (besides writing high quality content that receives upvotes). Or is it possible to do something about it?

This is becoming an f... plague on Steemit. I've been flagging comments left and right because of this issue. If we all flag them, these bots and copy/paste commenters won't last long on this platform. Thanks for this wonderful post Task, I couldn't have spoken it better myself. I even changed my motto because of this. Hate those types of comments with a passion!

I couldn't agree more with you.  Totally right about newcomers on steemit and their commenting.  But first, they need to read article not just to write some lame one line comment.

Thank you for letting us minnows know the Dos and Donts .  It Helps us out alot to know ahead so we can learn and not look like Bots and spammers that just want votes when we comment or post

Thank you a million times for this post. I always try and leave meaningful comments because it is respectful of the time a person has taken to write a post or a comment and I also want people to leave meaningful comments for what I write. I think it is difficult for some people because they are not good at English, but for others it is only about commenting on as many posts as possible. I have received some comments that have nothing to do with my posts and know it is because of this last reason. People have to decide why they are here. If it is to provide something that can be helpful and share great stories pictures and other content, they will do well. If not, they will fall away when they don't get the attention. For the rest of us who want to do well. It takes a lot of work and attention. Thanks again for leading us in the right direction.

i like this. i try and abide by everything you put there. in return i am going to use reverse psychology on you and tell you what ever you do, NEVER look at my blog and upvote it........ just kidding. thanks for the informative post. i am guilty of upvoting myself sometimes though     :/

great post
amazing post
I agree
Have a good summer
Will you sign my yearbook?

You know it never occurred to me that those low effort comments might actually bots! I just thought they were people like you find on other social media sites saying follow for follow or whatever. Being new of course I upvoted them and my voting power has been trying to rengenerate ever since. I admit I feel kind of bad if they are real people just looking to make a couple cents. But I feel bad about everything lol

Very nic post.

Great article, please follow me!!!!
Just kidding. Commenting can make or create your reputation on Steem.
Newcommers need to understand how it works. By ignoring these comments, you don’t learn them anything and they will not correct their behaviour (if they want to).
But I almost do fully agree with your post. Don’t know if those people are after the money, in some cases it is just a cry for attention. Post are snowed under so fast in steem, it is incredible. I know I’m not the best writer in the world so not all of my posts will have a high quality level nor is English my mother tongue. I did wrote some posts on which I am proud. To bad they got away unnoticed. So writing quality posts are not enough to build a group of followers! Quality comments do!
I will resteem this post cause I really do find it important! 
Keep on going!

Something that I really appreciated about your comment etiquette tips was the beautiful, to the point simplicity of your suggestions. I always appreciate a gentle form of correction if I am a neophyte and have accidentally wrecked myself due to lack of knowledge. Although, I do have to say, when I was new to Steemit, I poured over posts from the Steemians that had been around awhile, trying to glean tidbits so as to not *"put my foot in it"* when it came to commenting on other's work. I cannot emphasize how much I appreciate posts like yours that spell it out for people who are trying!

Ah yes.... the commenting. I have written two posts in the last couple of weeks on the very same topic. I know in the beginning, I, like many others didn't know what to do on steemit. So we started slowly with the comments. _Sure_ I bet if you look back you can see where I may have say good information, thanks for sharing, etc, etc... But I soon learned, and honed in on my journalism background, and started with thought-filled comments, asking questions and even giving my own examples; all of which added to the main post and topic.

I still do; it's just now I tend to say more than normal.
While in the last two weeks there have been more than my fair share of outside distractions hindering my steemit life, I have started pulling away from the real life issues and drama and renewed my focus here.

Thank you for this post and for reiterating the importance of how the steemit blockchain and its comments need to be to take it to the next level. If everyone would take a moment and really see the long term effects of _real_ comments versus (as I refer to them as) drive-bys. 

P.S. _follow me and I'll fol_... yeah, I can't do it!!

Thank you Task, I liked reading through this. 
 I am new to posting anything online (My Facebook page is as barren as a 90 year old widow in the middle of the Sahara), 
the tips and guidelines are well received and is really a good idea. It stopped me from making at least 3 of the mistakes you mentioned. Well done and a round of applause to you.
Might I add that one must also not only up vote out of habit, but also comment  when something is of value to you, common courtesy really.

> Also, never, ever, ever, upvote your comment and skip upvoting the post. That is simply rude. Along the same lines, do not give yourself a 100% upvote while giving the article a 3% one. This is just a way of showing people how little you care about anyone other than yourself.

I never upvote my own comments because I truly believe that it is for others to decide if my comments are worthy of an upvote or not. Just like when I publish my articles.

However, what you've described above is something I haven't seen too much on my own articles, but I see it frequently on other articles I read. I figured, that I will probably not even care to respond to these people because they don't care about anything but themselves either way. It definitely looks like it at least.

There are exceptions though. Some users are upvoting their own comments for visibility and I think that's fine, as long as they don't do it 43 times per day.

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### This post has the official Steem Pope Seal of Approval.

Upvoted and resteemed. Empty compliments from people who don't upvote the content are an abomination, and more so when they self-vote. Self-promotion spam is utterly obnoxious, too. And begging for followers and upvotes is just plain rude.

Think before you comment. Put yourself in the other writer's shoes and ask yourself, "Would I be happy if someone did this on my post?"

There are way too many people spamming comments with bots, and they are so easy to spot, they don't upvote, their comments are all generic, and you see them popping up on other peoples posts. Really annoying.

They do work when people autovote their comments though, which is part of the problem. Go read @marketreport's comment section whenever he posts. He must run an autovoter and now everyone autocomments him, like he'll have 70 comments in under 5 minutes, all spam

Great information, I’m a newbie and I really need to learn about this type of things. I actually had some issues with a comment someone did on my introducing yourself post that was unpleasant and judgmental and I was trying to find information on what not to write on your comments. Your post will help me up a lot

First time I came to know about these instructions meaning:
like
 **Great post
You are the best
Thank you, I learn a lot from you.
Cryptocurrencies are going to explode.
Follow me, I follow you etc.**
Actually before this explanation, I thought that how can a minnow or new commer can use bots. But you changed my mind by explaining so well. Like someone can make multiple accounts and can do several comments at a time by using bot. Thanks dear for sharing great stuff. This is great guideline for the persons who really believe on real commenting. All the best and stay blessed @taskmaster4450!

ok, this was a great write-up, let's hope people will take your advice. I agree on the part of the comment. A meaningful comment shows that one really read through the write-up and not just commenting for the sake of doing so.

LOL This should be required reading for every single Steemian....New and old.

And I get it, people want the 'quick bucks' and will go where they hear they can make money from commenting...But there is so much more here when you dive in.

No instant fixes for this. Take this and build the relationships. The upvotes will come!

Thankyou for this informative post sir. Building good connections here on steemit will really make us grow bigger and bigger. Having a good social and writing skills is a big big impact, simple as that. :)

@taskmaster, this came out strong. Message articulately communicated. Personally, I agree with you. Comments that have no bearing with the post is a clear sign that the person did not patiently read through the post. It is not encouraging in any way. I hope the newbies on steemit get to read this and imbibe a new culture that is best for the growth of our steemit community. Kudos sir for this brave step at making this important correction.

I am kinda new on this plattform. I mean there have been about 100.000 accounts created after mine, but only because steem the number of users is skyrocking.

Back to the point. My principle is simple. As a newby keep the number of you post close to the number of you followers. I have currently 48 followers and 48 posts. (49 including this one.) This way I prevent myself from writing unnecessary comments or posts. I think about it like:

> I only create something if people want me to.

I mean this is not Facebook, where I have to post how awesome my life is to not be depressed, right?

Thank you for this very informative post...I may have been guilty of leaving 1 -word comments, ( simply cuz I'm often short of time), but I will try to improve on that...