Saying Hi - a question

ah, the old walking down the corridor at work avoiding eye contact thing, happens all too often, there are times when only a nod and a smile will do.

I either nod or say 'hi' everytime.

Usually it's easier just to say hello, rather than suffer the psychic torment of wondering whether-to, not doing so, then walking on worrying that they think you're an unfriendly hag.

Is it acceptable to say hello to people you don't know but see frequently in public places? Or is that weird?

Generally it's acceptable to rush up and kiss them.

Why, a girl might never make it to work!

Why... a girl might never make it to work...

Oops

Don't summon the troll!

Saying hi and then not speaking is the step between blanking and small talk. It's politer than not saying anything, but avoids the potentially awkward and tedious need to discuss the weather.

It also means that you're not obliged to talk to someone you don't like, but you haven't been rude by not acknowledging their presence.

I usually nod and smile, and then keep walking, unless they somehow verbally stop me.

it depends on where you live on whether or not to say hello to the regular stranger. in new york people would think you were a freak. random people say hi to me but that's usually because they are pervy old men and i am not.

i like simply smiling or saying hi and then moving on.

Hi, Graham!

I used to think about this quite a bit. At work, I usually say "hi" and smile, or "how's it going" without a question mark, or just smile, usually making extremlely brief eye contact while doing so and them immediately turn my gaze DIRECTLY AT THE GROUND. This is intended to send a message that I wish them well but I'm not going to pounce upon them to demand time or affection they are not willing to give at that exact moment. If someone starts chatting to me when it's inconvenient, I get up and go to the bathroom.

The different between work "hi" and a friendly "hi" to someone I would actually like to talk to would be that I would not break off eye contact so suddenly. I know, it's right out of Animal Planet.

I am generally a nod-and-smiler with work acquaintances (not friends, who would get a "hi").

But a lot depends on the size of the office and nature of the work, I think. At my old job, we were constantly moving about the office from floor-to-floor, and the company itself was rather small, so the odds of passing the same person in the hallways and stairwells multiple times each day were rather high. So I didn't feel the need to go into a whole "how are you?"-type greeting, esp. after the third time running into someone on any given day.

Clarification: "friends" = work friends, in a work setting. Friends of mine would think something is seriously wrong if all I said by way of greeting is "hi"!

oh, I'm terrible at saying hello to people, if they say hi to me then I'll say hi back, otherwise I'm just a sullen git. I don't make eye contact with most people generally. Really, I'd like to say hi and be really chatty, but most of the time I can't string a sentance together. Though, I talk loads to people I know really well (ie anyone I could talk on the phone to).

I am lucky, as I only work with one other person.