Threading is a way to make comments read more like conversations instead of a bunch of disconnected single replies. Now, when a comment is replied to by other commenters, all the replies will appear directly below the original comment. Each of these blocks is called a "thread". All of this will be self-explanatory once you start using the new system, but read on for a more detailed explanation of how these threads will weave together to create a new, and more plaid, commenting experience.

The first comment in a thread will have a few distinguishing features, among them, the number of replies in the thread along with the time of the most recent reply.

Clicking the reply arrow on the lower right side opens a comment reply input box directly underneath the comment. No need to scroll all the way to the bottom of the page to reply.

Replies to replies - sometimes known as second or third (or fourth) level replies - will not be indented as is the custom in most forums. Instead, second and third level replies will be collapsed.

How are the threads displayed, still in chronological order?
Each conversation will be displayed in chronological order. But organization of the conversations overall will be displayed based on popularity. The most popular conversations will migrate to the top. The most recent comment that has no replies will appear on top for approximately 15 minutes before being filtered down. If a more active conversation receives a reply within those 15 minutes, that conversation will overtake the stand-alone comment.

Where did the plus and minus go?
The plus and minus, which was used to friend or un-friend a fellow commenter, has been replaced by a heart. Friends show a red heart, and the rest are empty.

What's the deal with the star again?
Star commenters were readers who have 25 or more followers, or were designated as stars by a comments admin. With the introduction of threading, the number of followers required to attain star is increasing to 40.

Is there a way to view comments the "old-fashioned" way?
You can switch to the old style comments layout by clicking the "classic view" link in the comments bar at the top of the threads.

We also wanted to take a moment to introduce Pete Gaines. His name's over there yonder in the masthead as our Commenter Admin. You can e-mail him at pete@jalopnik.com, and his job is to handle not only any questions you may have on comments, but also to approve and deny commenters and handle any unruliness in the Jalopnik commentariat. We'd also like to remind everyone of some rules on good commenting from our good friend Al Navarro — expect to see a more updated guide to hit these pages sometime in the near-term future. We'll also have some new and — gasp — innovative features coming shortly. Or, as soon as the Gawker tech team irons out the wrinkles. In the meantime, have fun kids, and try not to break anything.

Read the comments before commenting yourself.
No really. It's one thing to be eager to chime in on a particular topic, and another thing entirely to ignore the comments logged so far in pursuit of adding your two cents ASAP.

By not reading comments before posting your own, you are showing a lack of respect for your fellow commenters and setting yourself up for the dreaded "totally redundant comment". Yes, we understand that sometimes the Gawker Media hamster slows down sufficiently so that you may miss some comments while penning your own brilliant entry — but by all means at least try to review what's been already said before adding your voice to the conversation. It generally doesn't take that much time to scan comments as long as the count is under 100, so do it.

Read your own comment several times before hitting that "submit" button.
Until Gawker Media institutes an "edit" feature, the only way to make sure your comments turn out just as you intended is to carefully proofread them before posting. Did you mean "you're" when you wrote "your"? "It's" when you meant "Its"? The little "Preview Comment" feature is very helpful for this sort of quality control, btw.

Taking this breather before submitting a comment may also save you from a case of commentarhea...there are plenty of times where I have a comment sitting there in the preview screen that I re-read and then end up deleting — no need to add that particular thought to the flow of things. And I think my commenting reputation (see that star?) has benefited from these deletions.

Do your part to make Jalopnik a club of gentlemen, not a "gentlemen's club".
It's no surprise that the readership and commenter pool of Jalopnik is predominately male. But this fact does not give you carte blanche to act like a total asshat, especially on posts that have to do with women — whether racers or booth babes trade show booth professionals.

Overly reactionary or chauvinist comments to the brave women who do chose to share their opinions here (many of them visitors from other Gawker sites) are also unbecoming. Plus they do wonders for maintaining our poor male-female ratio.

The ability to remain anonymous in commenting allows people to say things that they might not otherwise say. And many times, as when industry types comment, this is a great thing.

But if you are not an industry type (and even if you are), please do not abuse this freedom. A good rule of thumb is not to write anything you'd be ashamed to show your mother, wife, lifepartner, or child. Trust me, people who go against this guideline end up looking very silly.

So where do you stand on cursing?
I'm sure many of the readers log on to Jalopnik from their place of work. And, from what I've been told, many places of work frown on sites that contain profanity (nudity, too). Some even have filters and wheel-running hamsters of their own to police this sort of thing.

And so, in the interest of making the Jalop accessible to all, it's probably a good idea to try and limit your use of curse words when commenting. Want more reasons? See the last paragraph of the previous section.

Again, that's not to say swearing is verboten, but it should only be used if it's adding value to the substance of your comment. By the way, being childlike is not what is meant by "substance."

Racism, Classism, Sexism, and other -isms are always unwelcome. As are homophobia, xenophobia, and many of the other -phobias.
No explanation necessary.

Make every comment an opportunity to win COTD.
There are some folks on here of whom I am in daily awe. I'm a copywriter by trade, and I'm truly stunned by the eloquence of many of my fellow commenters. Those stars are well earned, dadgummit.

Touching or revealing personal stories, clarifications or corrections of posts and/or other comments, and attempts to educate readers about the topic at hand or some semi-related one, are always welcome. Articulate oppositions to opinions, too. And of course, do all you can to introduce the literary, musical, gastronomic (which I use here in a loose sense that includes beer and other fine beverages), and the obscure into the discourse.

Oh, and while I'm at it...remember that you all have the power to recommend fellow commenters for COTD. Like the power of self-restraint, I advise you use this power often.

Beware the one liner.
The temptation to dash off a clever and pithy phrase looms large. But as with stand-up comedians, it takes a very good one liner to get a laugh these days. A comment thread filled with one-liners can start to sound like a bad text message stream. Between teenagers. Poorly educated teenagers. There are exceptions to this rule, of course (like the recent Bond test driver post), but in general, I'd avoid it.

I'm sure I've opened up my very own pandora's box of haterade by penning this, but as the kids say, whatevs. Someone had to say it. BTW, when I discussed the possibility of writing this piece with Ray, he suggested the headline. Not bad for the guy in the virtual corner office.

I'm sure I'll be adding to these guidelines in the future, but feel free to add your own words of advice below.