[quote][quote]I disagree with that everyone you don't want to see is noise.[/quote] That's not what I said. You're missing an important word, [u]unnecessary[/u] noise. Each user deems what is necessary and unnecessary. Conversation is audible isn't it? It's not only the written word on forums, it's also spoken in conversation. Therefore you can get involved in people's conversations in public should you choose too. You can also just listen without responding. That would be the equivalent of lurking on the forums. The example you're using is the "echo effect". Should they choose to listen to themselves and no one else, that's entirely their prerogative, that effects no one else. That's their own opinion if it's better for themselves. No one else can answer that for that user. [quote]I think that not seeing what people say should be reserved for people who are banned who broke the rules.[/quote] Ah! And this is where we disagree. My opinion is that banning should be for users that break the Code of Conduct. That prevents them from posting in the first place. Muting should be reserved for users that I deem [i]unnecessary[/i] noise (posts that aren't breaking the rules, I just don't care to read them, based on my own reasons). I hope you understand the difference.[/quote] How am I supposed to feel when massive amounts of people are muting me? Am I really just "unnecessary noise?" Absolutely not. I'm a human being and this is just a function to make one person feel good. But when you give that one person the power to ignore that person when those people add up you're essentially taking away from the experience of the poster who's getting muted. If there were an infinite number of people to replace the people muting you that would be fine, but there are a finite number of people to talk to. People shouldn't be afraid that they're going to get muted. It ruins the experience of posting on a forum when you're only talking to the people who want to hear you. You have to weigh the bad and the ugly with the good. It all measures up to better forum experience.

[quote]How am I supposed to feel when massive amounts of people are muting me?[/quote] How do you know massive amounts of people are muting you? [quote]Am I really just "unnecessary noise?"[/quote] That's for each user to decide. As I said in my original post, you have the right to voice your opinion, each user has the right to choose to listen. [quote]But when you give that one person the power to ignore that person when those people add up you're essentially taking away from the experience of the poster who's getting muted.[/quote] Fun fact, I can ignore people with the power of my mind. I don't need a forum button to do it for me. The difference is that by having a mute button, I don't have to see it on my screen - making my experience better. ... Have you considered it from the opposite side? If you're having a problem with feeling like you're going to get muted, perhaps by being muted by some will make YOUR experience better, because you don't have to interact with those that don't like you for whatever reason. [quote] You have to weigh the bad and the ugly with the good. It all measures up to better forum experience.[/quote] Absolutely, I completely agree. My version of a better forum experience is a much different definition compared to yours. And that's perfectly fine, there is no right answer. The mute function [i]allows you to have those options[/i] and choose the experience that fits you best. By removing that button, that limits the experience (because you're removing those options) and people get frustrated and leave. BTW, I do actually enjoy these types of discussions. It allows me to see a different perspective of new site features since the update overhaul :-)