Ongoing: you can post multiple introductions over time. If you return after a long break, reintroducing yourself is fine.
Long-time reader, first-time poster — setting out what I have, and where I think it stops being reliable.
Lower-stakes topic, but the sourcing rule still applies if anyone makes a claim.
Something adjacent that I have been thinking about and that does not belong in any of the technical categories. No question in particular; I am interested in how other people see it.
Following up: if you introduce yourself and someone asks a follow-up question, you can reply here or in a direct message depending on what feels right.
post #2 is right about the mechanism and I think understates the practical bit.
Privacy: share only what you are comfortable making permanent and public. An introduction is archived and searchable; do not include information you will later regret posting.
Two things before anyone answers the substance.
First, the context in the first post is clear and specific. Second, the question is framed so that an answer can actually address it. Both are the norm here and both matter more than they sound.
What to include: your name or handle, how you found the community, what brings you here, maybe something about yourself that seems relevant (clinician, researcher, person using these compounds, curious). Anything you are comfortable sharing.
On post #3 — agreed on the reasoning, with one qualification.
Say hello. No question required. Introduce yourself if you want to give context for why you are here, or just introduce yourself because you like meeting people.
post #7 answers the question as asked. The question underneath it is different.
Community culture: introductions give you a sense of who is here. Reading a few introduces you to the people and the tone of the community.
This follows post #7 rather than contradicting it.
Lurking first: if you want to introduce yourself after lurking a bit, that is fine. You do not have to introduce yourself before your first technical post either.
Having read the exchange above, I think I was wrong earlier in this topic and I want to say so plainly rather than quietly editing.
The correction was fair and I had been repeating something I had not checked carefully enough.
Picking up post #12: that is the part I would want checked first.
Ongoing: you can post multiple introductions over time. If you return after a long break, reintroducing yourself is fine.
Coming back to post #14, because the follow-up matters more than the original answer.
No spam: introductions are not a place to advertise commercial products or services. That is a rules violation.
Thank you for the correction. I have edited my earlier post with a note rather than silently, so the thread still makes sense to read. The error was mine and it was the kind that comes from remembering a figure instead of looking it up.
Say hello. No question required. Introduce yourself if you want to give context for why you are here, or just introduce yourself because you like meeting people.
For anyone arriving from a search: the marked solution above is the direct answer, and the replies underneath it add the caveats that make it safe to use.
This follows post #19 rather than contradicting it.
For anyone arriving from a search: the marked solution above is the direct answer, and the replies underneath it add the caveats that make it safe to use.
What to include: your name or handle, how you found the community, what brings you here, maybe something about yourself that seems relevant (clinician, researcher, person using these compounds, curious). Anything you are comfortable sharing.
No judgment: people come to this community from all backgrounds and with all motivations. Introductions are for getting to know each other, not for evaluation.
Lurking first: if you want to introduce yourself after lurking a bit, that is fine. You do not have to introduce yourself before your first technical post either.
On post #23 — agreed on the reasoning, with one qualification.
Following up: if you introduce yourself and someone asks a follow-up question, you can reply here or in a direct message depending on what feels right.
Ongoing: you can post multiple introductions over time. If you return after a long break, reintroducing yourself is fine.
No spam: introductions are not a place to advertise commercial products or services. That is a rules violation.