OK, listen up, no limits on posting length or I'm scewed.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Giskard
I think moderators are required as this site continues to slip from being the place to go for top notch information and technical expertise to just another yammerfest on the net.
The other day I received a PM with something like "This site has changed, I think you know what I mean." That was it. Nothing more. This from a perspective of years, not months. Yes indeed it has changed... I'm hoping we can reverse the current trend while still making this site "fun". I think we can. There is a plethora of serious talent on this site. Some have never posted and in the current climate they never will. I'm not talking about people who blow in here and make inflamatory remarks out of the clear blue and make statements as to why they've never posted here, I'm talking about the real deal. Those guys wouldn't currently waste a nanosecond blowing in here to post anything whatsoever. I know that I have spent an insane amount of time and effort trying to provide all manner of information, support, and product to those who have a real interest in such things. At this point I have to ask "Why? What the hell was I thinking?"
I'm not going to elaborate, to do so would mean I could leave this post up for about five nanoseconds before deleting it. - This site has the potential to explode in the coming months. The wealth of real, factual, technical and historical information here is already staggering. The very companies who created the information now come here to reference that information. I would imagine it could increase by an order of magnitude.
As one of the probable yammerers and one of the likely suspects in the "This site has changed, I think you know what I mean." lineup, I have a couple of observations I'd like to share. Okay, I will.
One, the perpetuation of a heritage requires two things: 1) eyewitnesses, experts, and participants in the real time heritage event who share what they saw, learned, and did; and 2) students, aficianados, and fans who are drawn to the heritage by sharing in some way the experience of those in 1) and who want to learn, see, and do the same kind of things, even if vicariously through the expertise of others.
Without both, the heritage will be lost. That's why I can read Dante today, read hundreds of books about him and his works, and talk with thousands of Dante fans worldwide, even hundreds of years after his death.
Two, new blood in a group will always tend to dilute it or at least press its comfort zone. So, I yammer away about newer stuff more than most veterans would, but IMO it helps to keep the heritage as a living thing, rather than a sacrosanct relic from a few golden years.
What can be debilitating, though, is the casual surfer who pops in with a moronic or inflammatory post, then flits out to cause trouble elsewhere; or worse, someone who's been booted or shunned off a forum and tries to find refuge on another site.
Just to be clear, I'm not taking Giskard's comments personally, but I am speaking for the new blood and the idea of growth and change, while respecting the legacy. Giskard, Earl K, Ian, Steve(s), Widget, and so many others have helped and inspired me immensely. Plus, I've reveled in the ribald humor from time to time and the general lack of prudishness.
I'd hate to see this place become another dopey forum filled with moronic comments and boneheaded questions, almost as much as I'd hate to see it become another bastion of politically correct, sanitized, dogmatic, moderated, sanctimonious, censored discussion. With the correct amount of moderation (pun intended), we can avoid both.
And Giskard, what the hell were you thinking? I hope you were thinking that sharing is a good thing and that it's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. People look up to you and respect your opinions and even trust you, in part because you're not a high maintenance prima donna. You're just a great guy.