Why do some chess players allow their game to time out?

you can call for no vacations, but then i wouldnt join them. these games go on so long that our vacations come by.  i seem to always be adding more games as others end, without a hold we would have to forfet or resign games that we are ahead in, seems  unreasonable to me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't mean getting rid of vacation time. Some people just time out their turn based games on their preset time (1day, 2day, 3day, etc)

Excellent point, Hermes3. I am a mere novice at the 'threat tactic', you obviously have had experience that can't be found in a book.

The sixteen pieces whose lives and safety you are in charge of is your "family", kyleevon, the moment you sit down to a game. The 'artificial' family you grew up with is dispensible.

When they lose from a time-out, does it negatively effect their rating just as much as any other loss?

I can answer this, or I can just let this thread to time out. Tough call. 

lol. This thread is becoming a threatening chess players who are about to time out thread.

Clearly you intended this all along, chessbeginner77. Very clever.

I've had people just sit and let the clock run out on live chess many a time.  When they do it in live, it can be that they are hoping for you to disconnect.  I had a guy who waited 10 minutes before finally resigning after I had started a forced mate sequence.  I had another guy who waited I believe 20 minutes and I won that on time.  I had a won position in both games.

Of course it could be that they just got so absorbed in thinking that they thought they had more time than they actually had and time out from that.  I've had this happen to me before, which is why I prefer 60:00 or longer games in live and 7-14 days in correspondence.

There's also other things that could keep them from their games.  One of my biggest problems is schoolwork.  I also do sometimes take on more games than I can manage and some of them expire.

My point is this: Don't automatically assume they are just being a jerk by letting the clock run out.  While this may be the case, it is not always so.

no. I intended this thread to be about ways to prevent time outs. I guess there seems to be no solution as long as the timing is as long as 24 hours/move. Only solution is shorter time controls. i guess time-outs can not be prevented unless you play opponents with no time outs after several games.

Quit playing with us, chessbeginner77, if that's even your real name. You wanted some type of justification for MURDER! Sowing the thread of discontent, you purposely charmed our base instincts into your own CARNIVAL OF DESTRUCTION AND MAYHEM!!!!

... I wish that i never started this thread now.

According to my public profile, I have timed out three times in turn-based games. I recall that I was new to this site, and was only beginning to consider it as a principal playing venue while I had many games going at other sites. I would log in every two or three days. My time-outs came when I failed to log in soon enough. Perhaps I logged in and thought I would need to look at the board a little longer, planning to log in again later in the day, but got busy, and when I logged in, it was too late--I'd lost on time.

I have opponents time out in hopeless positions while moving in other games. They did not waste my time because I had no need to look in on the game until they moved.

hmm. seems like we need more comments from people with time-outs.

Good point. I have lots of games going, The ones who "keep me waiting" are on the 2nd page, I dont even know about them till it's time.

And sometimes it cant be helped, posted in a tournament forum today:

I am truly sorry for my games that I lost on time. My job held me up today please forgive me.

Nice of him to come back and apologise, I thought.

I have only timed out in 1 game so far, and that was because my computer wasn't working on that day.  Frustrating as it was a match I was actually easily winning as well. 

I find bullet chess games to be rather quick and really tests how fast you can move.

hmm. good point Schachgeek. Few people play bullet chess games if they know that they can't move fast enough.

Food for thought.  Does it really make any difference if your opponent resigns today, or his clock runs out one or more days from now?  If you have several games in progress, you have to check on them daily anyway.

 I have timed out in several games and have never done so on purpose so as to annoy my opponent, if the game is not going my way i'll fight on and resign when there is no hope. I have timed out before because I just could not get to a computer to make a move due to other responsibilities and commitments. Some people have too many things to attend to outside of making a move in a game of no consequence. I don't see what the big deal is, how is your time being wasted when you don't have to do anything but play on in your other games and collect your victory when your opponent times out? If your opponent was down to his\her king and moving aimlessly around the board in a clearly lost position, then you could argue that he is wasting your time as you have to respond, in the other case you have nothing to do.