|
Post by merkavah12 on Feb 25, 2011 22:26:02 GMT
To build on what unkleE said previously, I have noticed something on most if not all the forums I've been on in my lifetime.
Forums have a life cycle of sorts and no matter how good the intention or how pure the theme, invariably as time goes on they are afflicted with a phenomenon I like to call "Forum Rot": respectful dialogue turns bitter and vile, grammatically correct scholarly writing is overshadowed by the mad ramblings of someone's chicken pecking at a keyboard, and soon meanness of spirit overshadows the proceedings as people care less about discussing the topic at hand and more about promoting their ideology/spamming for a pornographic website.
At first, the Mods will be hesitant to ban people or step in (for fear of being seen as "oppressive") and by the time they do, there is a swarm of trolls driving people away from the Forum in droves. Those left will either be old timers who are furious at the damage done to the forum and will stay if only to seek retribution on the trolls and fight a never ending crusade to restore the forum to how they remember it or the trolls themselves who see that they have "made the forum more honest/just getting lulz" and will not budge. Soon it becomes hard to tell the sides apart, newcomers shy away after a few bad visits and lurkers refuse to make themselves known. Eventually the forum is left as but a battle ground between mad men, watched with broken, tear stained eyes by tired Mods. Another victim of the ravenous internet culture.
I've watched many great forums fall in this way. I don't want something similar happening here for awhile yet.
|
|
|
Post by humphreyclarke on Feb 26, 2011 1:54:47 GMT
I've watched many great forums fall in this way. I don't want something similar happening here for awhile yet. I suppose one way to think about it is that Dave, Gym-thingmebobie and Tim think we are all suffering from some kind of malignant mind virus. One way to think about it is that - rather than simply shrug their shoulders and walk by - they have instead decided to devote considerable time and energy to trying to talk us out of it. We might not agree with their assessment and we might speculate that partly there is some points scoring involved; but there is a partially benevolent element to it. I would like to think that if it seemed like I lost my mind someone would try and make me seem reason.
|
|
|
Post by krkey1 on Feb 26, 2011 2:01:25 GMT
I think Tim comes here to mainly do history and well Dave and Gym for reasons known only to them. They seem to think ignorance typed by atheists suddenly becomes profound by some amystical process only known to them.
|
|
|
Post by merkavah12 on Feb 26, 2011 4:35:59 GMT
I've watched many great forums fall in this way. I don't want something similar happening here for awhile yet. I suppose one way to think about it is that Dave, Gym-thingmebobie and Tim think we are all suffering from some kind of malignant mind virus. One way to think about it is that - rather than simply shrug their shoulders and walk by - they have instead decided to devote considerable time and energy to trying to talk us out of it. We might not agree with their assessment and we might speculate that partly there is some points scoring involved; but there is a partially benevolent element to it. I would like to think that if it seemed like I lost my mind someone would try and make me seem reason. Actually, I was referring to ALL posters here in general. I think we've all been a little bit more belligerent than usual. That's how it all starts.
|
|
|
Post by timoneill on Feb 26, 2011 7:12:36 GMT
I've watched many great forums fall in this way. I don't want something similar happening here for awhile yet. I suppose one way to think about it is that Dave, Gym-thingmebobie and Tim think we are all suffering from some kind of malignant mind virus. Eh? I can't speak for the other guys, but do you really think I'd think something so stupid? Sorry Humphrey, but I'm rather taken aback by that. Was this a joke? I don't think you have a "malignant mind virus". I just think you have come to different conclusions to some of the questions we both find interesting. That's it. Very surprised at that, I must say.
|
|
|
Post by elephantchang51 on Feb 26, 2011 7:40:32 GMT
Just like to second Tim's post,fora like this are for exchanging views,I never expect anyone to reach the same conclusions as I.
|
|
|
Post by unkleE on Feb 26, 2011 9:49:04 GMT
My experience on forums has been a little different. When I first started, I thought I had all the answers, so I engaged in discussion with the general feeling that I ought to be able to convince others, or at least confound them, because I had superior arguments. I soon learnt that wasn't the case, and I was for a while a little exasperated, and while never discourteous, I don't think I was always friendly either.
Eventually I realised I had to change my expectation, and so I began to approach things with an attitude of offering what I believe is truth without feeling I needed to convince opponents, and to more explicitly respect their viewpoint. This makes things much easier all round.
But I think some people (on both sides) get to the same realisation that I did, and instead of being more accepting of their opponents, they just get ruder or more emotional. And then things deteriorate as merkavah said.
I think the best way to keep a forum on a good tone is to just stop discussing if people aggravate you. If only you feel that way about them, no-one will notice, but if everyone feels the same, the person soon has no-one to talk with. No nastiness, just quietness.
|
|
|
Post by humphreyclarke on Feb 26, 2011 12:00:01 GMT
Eh? I can't speak for the other guys, but do you really think I'd think something so stupid? Sorry Humphrey, but I'm rather taken aback by that. Was this a joke? Yes - it appears to have been some kind of joke so no offense meant. The atmosphere was getting a bit fractious......and, since I had ingested quite a few of my mother in law's cocktails when I wrote it I'm not going to hold it up and defend it as my greatest posting achievement. So; if I was to type this out again I would probably say that I value the presence here of people with substantially different views than mine - even if those views are sometimes expressed a bit bluntly. The alternative would be pretty boring.
|
|
|
Post by humphreyclarke on Feb 26, 2011 12:34:23 GMT
Anyway...back to the watermills.
I think RC has misunderstood my arguments - he now seems to be saying that most of the Domesday locations surveyed were manors on waterways so the fact that the mills are located near water resources is not enough evidence to support the notion they are watermills. I don't think this is actually correct and there are descriptions of urban areas in the Domesday Book. Anyway the point is that if the mills were animal mills you would expect them to be clustered around towns and cities when in fact they follow fast moving streams in rural areas.
Secondly he thinks my argument hinges on the idea that Capstan milling had died out in England. The point was that we don't have references to them in the sources until later and when they do appear they are less visible than watermills and windmills and are used in castles, large noble households etc..
I'll probably have to go back to the regional surveys and have another hack at this. Anyone got any thoughts?
|
|
endrefodstad
Bachelor of the Arts
Sumer ys Icumen in!
Posts: 54
|
Post by endrefodstad on Feb 27, 2011 9:22:22 GMT
My first thought is that he will keep producing Ad Hoc argumentation for an hypothesis that wasn't very well grounded in the first place, even if you prove him wrong again this time. So is it really worth it, keeping up at this?
|
|