What does “W/NW” mean?

JohnWolf

JohnWolf

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Dumb question, maybe. I know it abbreviates “Words no Words.”

But what does that phrase actually mean to a thread?

John
 
JohnWolf said:
How is that different from any other post?
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Often, an attempt at clarity is not understood.

Even though the OP (er, original poster) was trying to say that text is unnecessary and can be excluded from a post, nevertheless some didn't get it ...
... fooled me for while ... wasn't able to figure the value of "W" divided by "NW", ho ho.
 
W/NW threads are focused on images rather than gear talk. They invite to go out shooting instead of spending time on palaver.
 
I always thought is was an invitation to post images around a theme with or without explanation of gear used or description/philosophy of the photograph(s).

One interpretation:
wnwstreetphotography.wordpress.com

W/NW (aka Words/No Words)

What is it? W/NW (Words/No Words) threads are primarily a discussion conducted with images along a common theme. The thread begins with a theme-based topic. To begin a thread select a topic that ha…
wnwstreetphotography.wordpress.com wnwstreetphotography.wordpress.com

And another:
cameraderie.org

Nature - Words/No Words: Color landscapes

For those who aren't familiar with the terms "words/no words" basically it means that W/NW threads are not for critiquing of images, but rather a place of sharing. Of course it's always fine to tell someone how much you like their photographs.:cool: Please consider using this thread to share...
cameraderie.org cameraderie.org
 
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If my memory is correct (which it may not be), sometime in a land long ago on RFF there were threads intended to be pictures only, no discussions. I think people started titling them W/NW to mean “With No Words,” but then somehow the abbreviation became muddled into Words/No Words because some members couldn’t stop from commenting on pictures in a thread intended to be without comments, and some minor dispute happened over the terminology, and perhaps a moderator decided that there should be discussions on discussion forums, even on threads intended to be pictures only. And now here we are!
 
JoeV said:
If my memory is correct (which it may not be), sometime in a land long ago on RFF there were threads intended to be pictures only, no discussions. I think people started titling them W/NW to mean “With No Words,” but then somehow the abbreviation became muddled into Words/No Words because some members couldn’t stop from commenting on pictures in a thread intended to be without comments, and some minor dispute happened over the terminology, and perhaps a moderator decided that there should be discussions on discussion forums, even on threads intended to be pictures only. And now here we are!
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Ah, that makes a lot of sense and is how I interpreted the spirit of the concept.

Personally, I enjoy hearing people’s thoughts about pictures and photography.
 
JohnWolf said:
Personally, I enjoy hearing people’s thoughts about pictures and photography.
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I'm the same. I've got no issue with the W/NW threads and peruse them occasionally, but if I just wanted to see an endless stream of images, I'd mindlessly scroll through Instagram. I've always appreciated RFF for the breadth of the discourse here, and personally, I find it really annoying when people wade into a conversation and drop a photo they've taken with no context or engagement with the conversation at hand. It's no different to spam, and I wish those folks would keep it in the W/NW threads where it belongs.
 
JohnWolf said:
How is that different from any other post?
Click to expand...
I think it means the posts can have words, or no words, just pictures.

Myself, I like to see a little more information to go along with the picture. An interesting caption, for example, and some basic listing of gear. Was it shot with a camera, or an Iphone? There's a lot of photographers here I follow and learn from and I like to see what their thought process was when they took a photo.
 
Being english not my native language I used some imagination and decided it to be a thread with only images and no words, in case of necessity only a few words. But this is just my thinking...
 
Coldkennels said:
.....but if I just wanted to see an endless stream of images, I'd mindlessly scroll through Instagram....
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Agreed, but I find that energy draining. If there's no common thread, that's just a mindless waste of time; you learn nothing from it.

And if they're centered on a good topic, that's where N/NW can shine, it can be like a discussion, with points and counterpoints. True, not all N/NW achieve that, but sometimes they do.
 
Coldkennels said:
I'm the same. I've got no issue with the W/NW threads and peruse them occasionally, but if I just wanted to see an endless stream of images, I'd mindlessly scroll through Instagram. I've always appreciated RFF for the breadth of the discourse here, and personally, I find it really annoying when people wade into a conversation and drop a photo they've taken with no context or engagement with the conversation at hand. It's no different to spam, and I wish those folks would keep it in the W/NW threads where it belongs.
Click to expand...

This needs to be read in its entirety to be understood and appreciated. So, I quote it fully and completely agree with it.

Mike
 
Hmm. I always read W/NW as "either words or no words", meaning image posts in the said titled thread that might or might not have any text associated with them.

I dunno. I just look at what I think might be interesting and post a pic or a note when I feel it apropos.

G
 
Godfrey, I’ve always assumed that if W/NW threads could have either words or no words, then they’re just like any other forum thread, and therefore specifically titling them as “W/NW” would be entirely pointless and redundant (since ANY forum thread could be, in principle, either with or without words). Otherwise we might as well title ALL threads as “W/NW!”

What made the nomenclature of W/NW purposeful was specifying a thread with photos only, absent any discussion. You may also have noticed that we don’t have threads specifically purposed as discussion only with no pictures (Words Only”!)
 
As I said, "I dunno."

Perhaps my unvoiced notion is that something marked "W/NW" is about photos, not about equipment. But I've not really spent much mental energy trying to understand or define it. I just look, and post if I find something worth posting. I'm much more interested in what people see as/in photos than in all the technical minutiae of every camera ever made... ;)

G
 
Seems we have general agreement that it’s mainly about the pictures, with or without comment. Thanks, everyone.

I didn’t mean to start a trivial conversation, but I’m a former technical writer and think about such things.

John
 
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