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Re: Maturity and Internet Forums
Posted By: RyokoTKDate: 10/10/06 8:33 p.m.

In Response To: Maturity and Internet Forums (Forrest of B.org)

: Lots of graphics and avatars and "look at me I'm special" type of
: attention-getting space-wasters attached to every post,

In especially large forums that use systems like these (like Something Awful), avatars (and to a much more annoying extent, image-based signatures) are a much more effective way of distinguishing users than just a name.

: along with the
: "ranking" system (where your post count is displayed next to a
: special little title that depends upon your post count), encourage the use
: of the forum as a, er... forum, for social hierarchy purposes, rather than
: just as a means of communication.

To be fair to the Pfhorums (I have no idea why I'm defending them), post count is actually hidden, and special titles can just be chosen by the user. It's nothing but personalization. Different strokes for different folks, grandpa. :) I won't argue that there's some pathetic social jockeying amongst the users there, but it's hardly as big of an issue as you make it out to be. The immaturity manifests elsewhere.

: The other thing is the grouping of the forums into discrete 'boards' with
: specific sub-topics, and the lack of threading within those subjects,
: seems to conform both to authoritarian and populist ideologies and neglect
: the happy middle of allowing the individuals of the forum to direct the
: structure of discussion there. (Sorry to get all philosophical here).

Okay, thanks a bunch, Karl Marx [intentional misuse of philosopher and idealist], but that wasn't really necessary.

1. Subforums are almost a requirement for more active forums than, say, this one. To be fair, this entire message board is "theoretically" a subforum on Marathon's story. The fact that it's branched away is not the intent of the design, really. Because the Pfhorums itself is intended to encompass the entire scope of Marathon, subforums are needed just for simplicity's sake.

2. Get your "fuck the system" attitude toward topic organization out of here, it's so stupid. The flow of a particular topic changes anyway, whether or not you can immediately distinguish between any post in the topic. Again, it's a necessity of more active boards.

[snippy-dippy]

: The WebBBS-style mostly-chronological threaded format allows conversations to
: diverge in different directions, and one conversation can continue on long
: after the original message (now a completely different subject) has fallen
: off the board. Responding to that thread doesn't "bump" the
: originating parent message back to the top. (Thank god, or else Andrew's
: responses to two-year-old threads would bump those entire threads back
: onto the board). In short, having a single, multithreaded board (instead
: of a split-topic, linear-threaded board) allows for a more natural and
: organic progression of conversation here, less restrained by and impinged
: upon the popularity of a topic or by some admin's categorical discretion.

Or, because any topic on any phpBB forum only takes up one slot on the list, it doesn't really matter if the original message is re-presented to the users at large? Anyone still interested in the current topic of discussion within said thread can participate; anyone who is interested in the flow of discourse within the topic can view it; anyone who doesn't care can just leave; unrelated topics can be relegated to a new thread. It really makes a lot less mess. But then again, I'd much rather make a mess. Fuck the system. */me skateboards through the house and kick-flips to indy grind on his cat*

: That explains *why* those kinds of boards are more popular - the appeal to
: the less mature aspects of humanity (social hierarchy jockeying for the
: win!).

No, it's because it's more practical than this one.

: The fact that they *are* more popular in turn attracts the great
: unwashed masses (I'm really trying not to be elitist here, but it's hard
: not to be),

Fibber.

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Pre-2004 Posts

Replies:

yota part 4-6goran 10/9/06 1:41 p.m.
     Re: yota part 4-6Johannes Gunnar 10/10/06 11:08 a.m.
           Re: yota part 4-6goran 10/10/06 12:11 p.m.
           Re: yota part 4-6RyokoTK 10/10/06 12:32 p.m.
                 Re: yota part 4-6Forrest of B.org 10/10/06 2:39 p.m.
                 Re: yota part 4-6goran 10/10/06 3:07 p.m.
                       Re: yota part 4-6RyokoTK 10/10/06 3:36 p.m.
                       Re: yota part 4-6Johannes Gunnar 10/10/06 10:45 p.m.
                             Re: yota part 4-6Forrest of B.org 10/11/06 7:28 p.m.
                                   i'll drop by at psyjnir later today :) *NM*Johannes Gunnar 10/12/06 3:10 a.m.
                                   Is psyjnir down? *NM*Document 10/19/06 8:43 a.m.
                                         the hotline server is up at the moment... *NM*Johannes Gunnar 10/19/06 10:07 a.m.
                 Re: yota part 4-6Adam Ashwell 10/10/06 4:03 p.m.
                       Re: yota part 4-6mitchellan 10/10/06 5:24 p.m.
                             Re: yota part 4-6RyokoTK 10/10/06 5:44 p.m.
                       Re: yota part 4-6RyokoTK 10/10/06 5:47 p.m.
                             viva la story forum! *NM*Johannes Gunnar 10/10/06 10:47 p.m.
                       Maturity and Internet ForumsForrest of B.org 10/10/06 8:04 p.m.
                             Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsRyokoTK 10/10/06 8:33 p.m.
                                   Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsForrest of B.org 10/10/06 10:24 p.m.
                                         Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsRyokoTK 10/11/06 4:23 a.m.
                                               AddendumRyokoTK 10/11/06 4:27 a.m.
                                                     Re: AddendumDocument 10/11/06 7:43 a.m.
                                                           Re: AddendumCallie21V 10/11/06 6:58 p.m.
                                                                 That took you way too long, man. *NM*RyokoTK 10/11/06 7:14 p.m.
                                                                 ROFLCOPTER down! No LOL left behind! *NM* *NM*Forrest of B.org 10/11/06 7:30 p.m.
                                                                 Re: AddendumDocument 10/11/06 7:32 p.m.
                                                                 L.O.L! *NM*Johannes Gunnar 10/12/06 3:12 a.m.
                                   Re: Maturity and Internet Forumsgoran 10/11/06 12:30 a.m.
                                         Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsAachim 10/11/06 2:48 a.m.
                                               Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsRyokoTK 10/11/06 4:25 a.m.
                                               Re: Maturity and Internet Forums *LINK*goran 10/11/06 6:33 a.m.
                                         Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsForrest of B.org 10/11/06 10:43 a.m.
                                               Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsAaron Sikes 10/11/06 12:16 p.m.
                                                     Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsForrest of B.org 10/11/06 1:49 p.m.
                                                           Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsAaron Sikes 10/11/06 4:09 p.m.
                                                                 Re: Maturity and Internet Forumsgoran 10/11/06 11:56 p.m.
                                                                       Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsAaron Sikes 10/12/06 6:44 a.m.
                                               Re: Maturity and Internet Forumsgoran 10/11/06 3:02 p.m.
                                                     Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsAaron Sikes 10/11/06 4:11 p.m.
                                                     Social evolutionForrest of B.org 10/11/06 4:37 p.m.
                                                           Re: Social evolutionAaron Sikes 10/11/06 5:34 p.m.
                                                           Re: Social evolutiongoran 10/11/06 11:49 p.m.
                                               Re: Maturity and Internet Forumsxyfbzi 10/15/06 2:50 p.m.
                                         Is this a movie quote? *NM*Document 10/11/06 5:44 p.m.
                                   Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsD-M.A. 10/11/06 4:51 a.m.
                                         Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsRyokoTK 10/11/06 5:04 a.m.
                                               Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsD-M.A. 10/11/06 7:19 a.m.
                                                     Re: Maturity and Internet Forumstreellama 10/11/06 8:43 a.m.
                                                           Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsD-M.A. 10/11/06 9:05 a.m.
                                                                 *looks at thread* What have I unleashed!? *NM*Adam Ashwell 10/11/06 3:27 p.m.
                                                                       Re: *looks at thread* What have I unleashed!?Aaron Sikes 10/11/06 3:45 p.m.
                                                           Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsAaron Sikes 10/11/06 3:43 p.m.
                             Re: Maturity and Internet Forumstreellama 10/11/06 4:36 a.m.
                                   Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsAaron Sikes 10/11/06 9:26 a.m.
                                         Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsTycho 10/11/06 4:55 p.m.
                                               Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsRyokoTK 10/11/06 5:16 p.m.
                                                     I wasn't arguing your point, I agreed with it. *NM*Tycho 10/11/06 5:24 p.m.
                                                           Oops. *NM*RyokoTK 10/11/06 5:30 p.m.
                             Re: Maturity and Internet ForumsNicholai 10/11/06 9:19 a.m.
     Re: yota part 4-6D-M.A. 10/11/06 4:53 a.m.
           Re: yota part 4-6RyokoTK 10/11/06 5:26 a.m.

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