Hi.

I'm not sure if you're talking to me here, but I got his point. He feels that it's arrogant to introduce himself right off the bat, as he sees it as presuming interest on our part in who he is.

I was responding to your remarks about this not being a friendly forum, harsh to noobs, etc. I'm saying people here, in my experience, have been extremely friendly, they just don't always respond to people who introduce themselves as intending to be a pain in the ass.

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Review: Cabin in the Woods 8/10

True enough in some respects. And maybe I've been overly fortunate in my online forum choices over the years. I tend to frequent writing forums, guinea pig forums, several specialized computer-gadget forums, and favorite game forums. In every single one of those particular forums, I hate to say it, but welcomes are friendlier and the tolerance of annoying members is higher than here. No post requirements for noobs, etc. No skepticism over motives, ever.

It may happen rarely here, but it happens virtually never in my other usual haunts. So, perhaps it's just that my experience is skewed toward the more docile elements of the Net.

I will say this: Once MoFos are convinced you're not a Django-type wacko, they are the most loyal bunch of folks around! A real community, that's for sure! And, amazingly diverse (again, compared to my other haunts). I don't think I've seen a tighter yet more widely different group of online friends than I see here.

Hope that's a little clearer.

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Linda's Author Website
Linda's Amazon Author page

hehe...sure they do....i bet Chris knew how to spell "mummy" before he could say it....hehe...man, i could go on all day with proofreader teasing....

em...*runs before Yoda gets here*

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http://www.last.fm/user/diezelpower/

ok, at the risk of instigating the wrath of many, this really isn't the most friendliest of places.edit: i should explain, it's just that i've noticed that the older members of this forum tend to stick together.... but i'll be honest and say that maybe it's got something to do with me ( *shock, horror* )...the plus side being that it's just the right size and filled with ( uber ) intelligent people with exellent tastes in films.

you must just be impeccabley lucky...almost every other forum i have ever posted on has shunned new people until they prove themselves worthy, like nobody's business. Mofo is in a league of its own, in my opinion.

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letterboxd

i think going into intro threads and saying "hello, welcome" doesn't exactly constitute extra friendly behaviour. i personally never do it here.
and this is exactly that kind of place, newbies are definetly shunned until they prove themselves, and i think it's completely natural, i'm certainly not going to adress someone that posts one sentence comments about films or writes like a moron. and i think it's everyones legitimate right to rip them apart when they say things like "omg, lolz, that movie iz kewl!" ( not that that happens often here...more so on my music forum ).

Hello and welcome Demon212!

I'm going to ignore your comments here as a sign of noobness and hope that you can fit in nicely.

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adi, when i say shun, i'm not talking about welcoming someone when they post a thread like this, im just talking about being treated as an outsider. almost all other Forums i have been to, there is such a clique of people that it makes it impossible to add your own imput or contribution and have it mean anything without a huge struggle...Mofo isn't like that. are there cliques? oh sure...but this place is always open to new people, i have never met such a welcoming bunch as i have on here.

sure, having to "prove your own worth" can be a good thing...but if you treat people standoffish or as second best all the time simply because they are a little wet behind the ears isn't going to do anything but make that person feel discouraged and less likely to want to come back...

this is where i disagree wholeheartedly. im not saying that people that type and speak like a four year old don't get on my nerves, but there are technecalities that have to be put into perspective. certainly "ripping someone apart" is not the right thing to do over something as irrelevant as grammar, no matter how annoying it can be. if i ever have a problem with someone that makes me red enough to actually want to "rip them apart" i would always take it to a PM. publicly humiliating and ripping into them only proves a few things about your own self, not them.

wow...well maybe you had the completely opposite experience with this forum, but that's exactly how it went down for me. i was treated like an outsider for a very long time, i would say much longer than on any other forum i've been on, and even though i hate to drag this up again, in my mind, people only took notice of me after that nasty fight i had with sammy and the subsequent dramatic exit and return. up until that point it was fairly difficult to get anyone to talk to me or comment on my posts.

i've expressed this opinion in another thread several months ago, and got attacked for saying it, people said they were extra friendly to me and i was nothing but an ass . i may have been one, but apart from the standard generic welcome in my intro thread, people were NOT very friendly. i said it before, i'll say it again, there are definitely cliques here into which others are not allowed....i just put it down to the age difference ( most of the respected members here are over 30 ) and moved on. i've stopped expecting any kind of more personalized contact here and am perfectly content with just talking about films and getting SOME respect from certain members about my views on them. i'm used to a very different kind of communication, and i expected the same here....but it was not to be. like i say, i put it down to demographics.






sorry, i was actually speaking about my experiences on my music forum, that kind of stuff doesn't happen here ( for some reason, this forum does not attract a slew of 12 year olds or morons ) nor would i do it here. i've learned to behave very differently on this forum. the end result being , i have a little less than 1000 posts here, and more than 3700 posts on my music forum, and i joined both forums approximately at the same time ( maybe a few weeks apart ).

so my conclusion is, if you're not uber intelligent and eloquent ( or uber humorous even ) with an exceptional knowledge of films, you're not going to get noticed very soon.

That just isn't the case. As many members have pointed out, you were strangely hostile upon first joining. Whatever isolation you may have felt early on is almost wholly a result of that. We've seen enough weirdos and troublemakers around here that when someone exhibits those kinds of characteristics right off the bat, we become wary of them.

So I'd say that first impressions matter quite a bit here, but the alleged clique-ishness around here is a lot of smoke and mirrors, in my opinion. It used to exist (quite strongly, actually), but it's more or less gone now. Things are far more out in the open.

I do agree with your last statement, though: this is by and large a meritocracy, and if someone shows up and starts posting shallow opinions, no one will necessarily tear into them, but they sure won't get a lot of positive attention. Standards for discussions are fairly high here -- at least as high as you can reasonably expect from an Internet message board.

Truly the word announced is being used or thought of in the wrong way. It is not like when a new person joins bells and whistles go off and fireworks explode and all the groundhogs come out of their holes (although this would be cool) . Introducuing ones self is not arrogant in and of itself. It is informative and lends credibility or interest in the new member. I for one do not care if you are new or been here since Holden was using tomatoe sauce in a hotel room, I like all you guys. Well most.

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“The gladdest moment in human life, methinks, is a departure into unknown lands.” – Sir Richard Burton

I agree with this. What it really comes down to, I think, is whether you judge MoFo on a curve or not. It might not be all warm and fuzzy compared to your standard message board utopia, but compared to other forums, it's quite inviting and friendly.

adi, what can i say?

your first reign on Mofo that you speak of was during a time when I wasn't around...I can't really add any imput or opinion that wouldn't be based on anything but heresay. but since you have been back, i've been present, and while i don't think you're all bad, i think you can be quite unpleasant very unessacarily...but i think you already know that, as i have told you this before.

i have seen you act hostile, make crude insults and judgements against people simply because they don't "appreciate" a movie that you think is just wonderful. there are certainly more tasteful ways to get your point across without treating people so harshly, and even you have to agree that just because a persons opinion or taste differs from yours doesn't mean they are stupid, "just didn't get it", or something to that nature.

so of course people are going to look down on you if you treat them like that...nobody wants to engage in a discussion with someone that acts so close-minded as you can be when you say the things you say. do you ever even hear yourself? or you think theres nothing wrong with treating people this way? if anyone treats you as an outsider, i should think this is the reason. and you don't have to be extremely intelligent to know that...you just have to have a bit of common sense as well as compassion.

i'm not reffering to my "rude" posts, i had many normal posts about films that were simply ignored. i have modified my behavior, but even with my previous behaviour ( that was very much frowned upon here) i still managed to make a bucketload of friends on my music forum. i don't think i'm alone here....most people here don't really communicate outside the forum right? i'm not even sure if people use pm's that often. i do both all the time, and am usually the one persuing more personalized contact with other members, but here ( and like i say, i think it's the age difference ), i don't do it.
well, i'm just sharing my views as a newbie, and with all due respect, i don't think you see things the same way we do ( newbies i mean ), you had instant respect because you're management, and you've known everyone for years. so maybe you don't really see it, but i still think there are cliques. again, personal opinion/experience.

well, you're dragging up one comment i made and it was directed at a newbie ( i agree , i could have handled it more politely, but i think i rectified the situation after that comment ), i would never adress any of the standard, respected members with that tone. and i think we've learned to get along ( me and the older members i mean ), i've even started with the friendly teasing, and i think finally, my comments about films are not being overlooked, but that's after a year of being here. it took a very very long time to get here ( like i say, i've given up on the notion that i'll make super duper friends here or even talk to anyone outside the forum ).

I find this varies greatly from member to member. I know that many MoFos talk on AIM and MySpace and the like. I'm not sure what to compare this level of off-forum contact, too, exactly, other than the other forums I've been a long-term member on, in which case I'd say there's a little more than I've seen elsewhere.

Even if we differ on this point, though, I don't see it as a negative. The focus is on the forum itself, and on substantive discussion within it. If that comes at the expense of a few pleasantries in other mediums, I'll take it. Everyone has chit-chat. Genuine, elevated discussion is one of the things that's always in short supply on the Internet.


That's entirely possible, yes. I'd argue that the site wouldn't have gotten this far if I were unable to put myself in the shoes of a new member, but I won't pretend I can duplicate the experience.

you know, you can't separate your "just movie" posts from your "non-movie" posts...you can't be one way, and then expect people to want to have a conversation with you about movies. it just doesn't work like that.

and hey, i don't know what forum it is that you are speaking of, but it doesn't sound like a forum i am in any rush to sign up for.

actually, i speak to many Mofos outside of the open forum, a couple i actually have plans to meet. shocking eh? we all love each other!

ah, but sir, one does not necessarily exclude the other ( elevated discussion vs. more personalized contact that is )

wooooeeee....okay Judas!

well damn, that kinda blows my whole theory doesn't it? *is a loser*
losers need love too you know......

edit: and no, you wouldn't like my music forum, you're far too nice and vulnerable for that place.... i still have loads of fun and have met some amazing people....and if you're into music, i haven't come across a better forum....