Internet Forum Culture

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My life isn't written very well.
Join Forum.

We've read it, filled out the username, password and in some cases the profile. But what is this exsistance we share called Forums. What etiquette and invisible rules do we need to follow.

I recently went to a website devoted to the topic of Pop culture. It's an interesting site with interesting articles. I am a pop culture buff. Give me some trivia on insignificant history and I'm lovin it! I searched the site and found the "join forum" button. I had to think about joining because really, what could I contribute to their site that I can't contribute here. Besides, everyone here is so wonderful. I have made some reputation points here and am somewhat well respected. I've been here more than a year, and I still stand behind the statement that this is the best forum site on the net.

I joined. I felt guilty. Have I betrayed Yoda, all my good friends at MoFo?
I soon discovered that even thought the site is mainly dedicated to pop culture, the threads and topics are as broad as ours. They talk about politics, religion, movies, cartoons, etc.

I also noticed that like us, they use smilies, font colors, font size, words like LOL, newbie--or nOOb--or something to that effect. Something else too. As a "newbie" you are subjected to slights and inside jokes that most members that have well over 1000 posts to their name use against you. They also have characters that post in a tone that defines their characters. The cynic, the slutty girl, the flirt, the intellectual, etc.

I guess the point I'm getting at is that the Internet Forum Culture, although not at the forefront of our minds does exist. Just like in reality we open the doors for the elderly, we let the person to our right at a 4-way stop go first, and we don't cut in line at the theater.

Anyway enough ranting. In fact after I posted this observation, thinking it would be a nice contribution to examine Internet Forums as a new pop culture phenomenon, I was met with a reply from an Admin who thought the topic was a bit boring.

Maybe it is. Perhaps you guys will think the same thing. So I'll make it interseting. Can you guys think of words, Icons or some such lingo that defines Internet forums as pop culture? I'll start:

newbie
smilie
post
thread
username
avatar
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r66-The member who always asks WHY?



A system of cells interlinked
Bump
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there's a frog in my snake oil
I can't think of any more public-domain forum/computer-culture words than what you've said (hmm, maybe "domain"...? ).

I've been moonlighting over at Rottentomatoes to keep my socio-political diabtribing going. And yes, i do think of it as moonlighting, coz this is my "cyber village" in the sky . Rottentomatoes is a bustling city, with a bunch mainstay characters in each of its main blocks and avenues, but it's not the same (it's just somewhere i can go and plow a wide furrow, and get a whole scatter of fertilising refrains [and more **** too ])

But i was just thinking how funny it is that i like discussing random and idealogical things on movie forums . And i was just pondering whether i should look up a general topic forum, when i saw this thread. And i've decided coz of it, there's no need. Forums will form their own little communities, and it's nice to have a place you call home, where you can appreciate the people more and take more from their words having got to know something about them. It just so happens we discuss movies a lot more here too - and that's where that empathy comes in useful as well. Nothing better than knowing where people are coming from when discussing an emotive and multi-perceivable thing.
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Virtual Reality chatter on a movie site? Got endless amounts of it here. Reviews over here



there's a frog in my snake oil
Originally Posted by Sedai
Bump
I don't think of that as one that's made its way into the day-to-day. (how would you use it? Smack someone on the head and say "bump" when a conversation tailed out? ).

Oh, wait, i'm breaking forum etiquette - double posting



Bump is a word used when you resurrect a dead thread to reinitiate discussion. Like I did in my "Describe Your Stomping Grounds" thread.

I belong to a couple other forums as well Tim, but they don't feel like home. Here, I am well known among the people that matter to me, and at the others I am just an ignored, and often stranded, fish. No matter, because the other sites don't mean that much to me as of yet, perhaps in time. One thing that's good about branching out is that you can inform Yoda of cool additions other sites use that he might want to incorporate here.

As far as forum lexicon...I can't think of other terms. Troll is universal in Newsgroups as well, so can't be attributed strictly to forums. If I think of some...
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All good people are asleep and dreaming.
This maybe a little off track, but I'll post it anyways.

The one thats gets me is "newbie."

Like there is some sort of pecking order on these forums.

Just because someone has 2000 posts doesn't mean they know anymore about movies than I do.

It goes the other direction too.

Someone may have just started posting that is more informed than I am.



There are newbies and there ar n00bs. Newbies come along and post things that are interesting and has worthwhile things to say in general. N00b comes along and posts childish things and has nothing to contribute.

You are no n00b.



My life isn't written very well.
Just checked in with my thread at the other site. Seems the topic was taken lightly--which is good, I mean better than not taken at all. But. it seems to have blossomed into a thread where the members explain why they are there: "I'm here because I have nothing else to do", "I'm here because I want to sleep with so-and-so", "I'm here on a dare", things like that. It seems that a topic about pop culture and how Internet Forums are going to be remembered as part of our pop culture is a little lost among them. But one administrator stayed on topic and said:

" Forums might have similar topics, but they don't all have the same people. Different people make for different dynamics in discussions about the same things."

I have to wonder though, are we any different here? I mean people are different, but as far as discussing similar issues aren't there just people that are pro or con on internet sites? And if a poster is niether pro nor con, doesn't he just make a joke out of the topic?

One thing that is different here than there is the use of profanity--it's allowed. I'm not sure why though. There is no discaimer upon joining that says so, thus any 8 year old can write the "F' word as many times as he wants without feeling discouraged. And that brings me to another point: even though the other site allows foul language, I have yet to come across anything...well..distasteful. It seems that there is some etiquette involved where swearing is OK.

Let me just say that I am surprised at the amount of...well..immaturity there, but it is a site dedicated to "retro" pop culture, and I thought that anything "retro" must mean that the members have to be at least old enough to remember "Davey and Goliath", or "Transformers". And they do. But I can't shake the feeling that they are younger than they seem. The word f*g is used a bit in one thread about straight men dancing with each other (gancing), and the jokes are rudimenatry.

Not that any of this matters. I have found a "home" here. I'm glad that profanity is displaced by astrisks. I'm glad that Yoda has built a site filled with opinions, but offers some of his own. I'm glad that the maturity level is above that of the other site.

I do however think that we as members of Internet Forums try to fit in with each other just like real life. And just because we haven't met in the flesh, doesn't mean we dont "know" one another. I'll still keep posting on the other site, and I'll still keep wondering about why we take the time to interact with each other through this, the internet.

So, tell me: why are you here?



Originally Posted by r3port3r66
So, tell me: why are you here?
Well first to answer that question. It's actually quite a funny story. It was like mid-december and I really wanted to listen to some of the sound clips from the 'Return of the King' soundtrack, because i had lost the link I had to the site that had it and I did NOT want to go looking through the archives at TORn, which is the site where I had gotten the link anyways. So I searched under " 'return of the king' soundtrack preview" and it so happens that Yoda had posted the link to the site and stuff. So I got my link and was happy. I started frequently coming as a guest just to use the link, and well read the 'return of the king' thread. Then one day I decided to join. And I've been posting ever since. I think it's almost been like three months though now. I admit while lurking I was very impressed at how the site was ran and I felt that the people in it were very nice and that they all had good interesting things to say. I usually take a while to decide if i am going to do something and then I am pretty dedicated to it. I've felt very welcome here and I'd like to say thanks for treating me like the little girl I am but still respecting my ideas and not looking down at me because I am just a girl.
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Around these images, and cling:
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All good people are asleep and dreaming.
Originally Posted by r3port3r66
So, tell me: why are you here?
Basically I'm here to find information on films I've haven't seen and maybe interested in.

I post because I may have watched a movie I think others are interested in.

I like this forum for finding independent and foreign films.

I lurked for awhile before I posted so I could see what was posted about and what wasn't.

I picked this forum because I liked it's style; their are some very well informed posters, and I think people running and moderating this site do a great job.



Ages ago I signed up, forgot my details, and re-signed up again a couple of months back, my main reason is, obviously because of my love of films. Also, I have an interest in other peoples tastes, other than those that fund the hollywood side of things with their never ending need for big explosions and pointless films......Im rambling. lol



I want to reply, but want to put the same amount of thought into my response as I think Tim has put into creating it, so I'll have to revisit this a bit later.



Originally Posted by LordSlaytan
There are newbies and there ar n00bs. Newbies come along and post things that are interesting and has worthwhile things to say in general. N00b comes along and posts childish things and has nothing to contribute.
I am a nOOb
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I ate all your bees.
Originally Posted by nebbit
I am a nOOb

There, There... We all have n00bish tendencies, some more so than others...
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I'm a quitter, I come from a long line of quitters....Its amazing I'm here at all.



Originally Posted by r3port3r66
So, tell me: why are you here?
I'm here, because, after skimming through several threads, I found that this forum provides me not only with info on films I haven't yet seen, but also diverse views on a wide spectrum of other topics.
I post here, because I hope I might have a thing or two of interest to say, and for the selfish reason to improve on my English writing skills.
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Forums can be, quite frankly, the most overtly political things on the Web.
THIS is something I started writing on the subject, but never finished, a couple of years ago.

Check it out, but remember that I've gotten older and better at writing since then.
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My life isn't written very well.
That is really interesting Silver. I haven't read every week yet, but honestly it's facinating. As for not finishing it--I guess it's really not over, not yet.



That makes me feel so naive.