when people read and don't reply to PMs...

[space6oy]

i hate it so much. so annoying.

it can be seen when they've been red because they move from your outbox to sent messages.
at least reply saying "let me think about it" or something like that.

[popvulture]

Maybe they just read em and haven't had a chance to respond yet?

I've been in your shoes and kinda bugged out about it, but people almost always get around to replying.

[space6oy]

maybe almost but definitely not always.

if they have time to read it they at least have time to type "i'll get back to you" or something simple like that.

[Iommic Pope]

Sometimes I check stuff and can't type even a quick message at work, so I'm guilty of this. I do my best to get back to people as soon as I can, hopefully not days later but it can be a few hours.

I know what you mean though and it can be frustrating but usually people get back to you eventually.

I'm the worst at letting a PM conversation die as well, so if anyone has even thought I was rude I wasn't intentionally doing so, I'm just socially inept and thought that's where the conversation was naturally ending.
Otherwise we'll end up in some kind of bizarre conversation about irrelevant topics like your grandmother's footwear and we don't want that happening.

Edit: for BST stuff though, I try to be on it as much as I can. Trades are important.

[Inconuucl]

When I check a message on my phone I usually wait to get to a computer to answer, sometimes I forget.

[space6oy]

I DON'T CARE YOU'RE STILL TAKING
FOREVER

[rustywire]

Now that you mention it, I recall [space6oy] once sent me a dry "you can respond now that you've read it" type message due to a smartphone delay.
It was no more than 20 min after reading the initial msg; a time when I had an HTC Incredible where I could somehow view msg but not send.
Honestly it put me off, like "am I really going to deal with this pushy narcissist?" which was an obv kneejerk reaction. 2 wrongs
Anyway, everything worked out. Best advice is lighten up, be aware Murphy's Law applies.
Effective communication is important, folks. Remember, technology gets in the way of [it] with greater ease than supposed instant connectivity.
I've even saved replies as drafts, thinking I sent them after going through the prompt and everything

When I check a message on my phone I usually wait to get to a computer to answer, sometimes I forget.

This too.
On the other side of things, I typically don't read too much into the respond-later (or lack of response). At least not without context.
What I find truly obnoxious is when you ask a direct question or send a (fair) trade offer and never get a response, but the message was read.
Even if it's a simple "thanks but no thanks"
As for expecting a reply like "I got the message" that isn't something I typically do. You have an outbox/sent folder to see if I got it or not

[D.o.S.]

Meh. It happens.

[friendship]

For things like trade offers I usually like to give it some thought before responding. I'm a slow thinker.

[Jwar]

If it's for a trade and the offer sucks or a lowball offer on a sale, I don't respond anymore. That sho gets old. If it's a hey how you doing thing, it depends on what I'm doing. I don't always have the time to respond and I'm also under no obligation too. Other people do the same thing to me, so whatever.

[Inconuucl]

My favorite is like, and this has happened to me here more times than I'd like, when THEY send you a trade offer and you ask a question about it only to be ghosted.

Also, the irony of us bitching out at each other as if we were third parties has not escaped me. Except for those fuckers that only go to ilf for the bst, fuck em.

[Jwar]

True dat. I just say fuck all you guys so I don't have to be mad at anyone ever.

[rustywire]

...unless it's when you're cutting and therefore mad at everyone, ever. Because we have pizza

[Joe Gress]

I do it all the time.

I get the email notifications, read them on my phone, and then reply to them later.

Although for trades and such I will do my homework on the trade ideas first. (prices, usefulness to me)

[waltdogg]

honestly space. i think you're making a big deal out of nothing. we get e-mails with a link directly to the pm, sometimes we click it on accident, and then message automatically gets marked as read. even if we havent read it. you could also check someone's posting activity to know if theyre ignoring you or if they havent been around.