> threads have kicked the bucket when I've posted a reply to something or other.
You think you are kiss-of-death: in another forum, Scott Mueller ends nearly every thread he steps into. His essays are so comprehensive and unarguable that there isn't anything left to say. Many folks don't even have nerve to say "Thanks!". As Bjorn says: "the silence of absorbing and understanding". Or in CJ's words: "it answers everything that the thread needed to know."
> maybe I just happened on the thread when it was about to die a natural death anyway.
There is a little of that. The high scroll-rate here means if nobody comes up with a snappy answer in about 9 hours, the thread falls to the second page of the thread-list and mostly never gets seen again.
> Do I come off as too abrasive or a smartass or a loon or something? I can be a little grumpy I know
Hell, no. Not abrasive enough for this place. "Smartass" only in the sense that you have knowledge and experience up to your butt, a welcome contribution. And some postings here deserve a good grumping, and folks know it.
Nah, you're cool. But if you want more yack-back, toss in some errors or omissions of fact and see if you get jumped-on. Big boo-boos tend to generate the most replies. Omitting inportant points invites questions.