It's interesting that you say that, from my little interaction at Gophercon with him, he was a very nice and genuine person. In the parent article, he also mentions:
For example, I have learned that when I am pressed for
time I tend to write fewer words, with the end result that
my emails seem not just hurried but blunt, impatient, even
dismissive. That's not how I feel, but it's how I can come
across, and that impression can be enough to make people
think twice about using or contributing to Go. I realized
I was doing this when some Go contributors sent me private
email to let me know. Now, when I am pressed for time, I
pay extra attention to what I'm writing, and I often write
more than I naturally would, to make sure I'm sending the
message I intend.
Perhaps we should question the proliferation of coaxing more and more in smilies and pleasantries, when all that is really needed is a straightforward, factual answer.
Smilies and pleasantries are fine, if they come up naturally. But why do people get slighted when someone replies to them with a straightforward – not rude, not crass, not sarcastic, just straightforward – answer?
I've caught myself getting slighted at people I know who reply to texts or messages in a direct way. Now that everyone uses smilies for personal communication, the direct to-the-point style feels cold and dismissive. But then I realize that they might be perfectly kind and pleasant people in reality. They just have a different text/message style.
