There is nothing that wrecks a good swimming related thread faster than getting into a discussion about message board etiquette. So here is a thread that people can use discuss topics related to what should and should not be posted on the message boards while allowing the other threads to stay on topic.
It seems to me that there is a spectrum of opinion on off-topic posting. On one end of the spectrum people think that threads are a mechanism specifically designed to allow people to carry on discussions on different topics and that we would all be well served if changes in topic were just done in new threads. On the other end of the spectrum people think that people should be able to post anything they want anywhere they want and that any suggestion to the contrary is censorship, a personal attack, or simply control freakish.
Pretty much everyone falls somewhere between these two extremes. Very few people object to a humorous quip inserted here and there in an otherwise serious discussion. Very few people would actually advocate that people be able to liberally sprinkle potentially offensive posts randomly through all the threads.
Have you ever been at a party where someone has decided that this is the right time and place to have a big argument or screaming match with someone? Has it ever contributed to the general enjoyment of the rest of the people there?
I would argue that posts that are essentially expressions of anger and/or are essentially personal attacks have no place on the board. They don't contribute anything positive and generally turn off 99% of the people reading the boards. Even if it seems that someone else has attacked you, does it really help anything to post an angry response?
I personally don't see the problem with starting a new thread when one wants to make an off-topic comment, a little cut and paste and/or a link makes it easy enough to carry the context into the new thread. Why is it essential to be able to carry on an unrelated discussion in a thread where some people are trying to carry on a discussion on a particular topic?
Parents
Former Member
Actually I think this is actually Lindsay's point. Reading the first page made me not want to read the rest. I perused a couple more pages, and it indeed had good information, although I am not going to any camps, which is probably why I did not open it in the first place.
As this thread continues, I notice some folks talking about "many" and generalizing that most people here want........
I think that "most" is actually a small group, and if there were truly a poll of the 800 posters on February 1, you would find that the more vocal posters are in the minority.
Dorothy I wasn't criticising you. I was being a little tongue-in-cheek about that thread. However I didn't want you to think it was all about a confrontation...if you read long enough to gather that I am happy.
Not to be self righteous...I'm not always right...just usually LOL
If people read my post on page 1 of this thread, they will see an admittance of fault and a hope for a little self control and respect from everyone...that was my message for this thread, and to kind of stand alongside Lindsay to show that we (the forum) are not so opposed about things, but maybe some self control is in order.
As for the "most" vs. "vocal minority" thing: most posters would be the vocal minority, right? I can't speak of, or assess those that sit lurking and contribute nothing--good, bad ,or average. Also how many of the 800 were posting in this segment vs. coaching and other segments. Curious on that.
Again I'll state the Camp thread was a wreck...but there are too many disruptors on that thread to blame any one or few. By the time it got to "lunches" we'd had a couple of personal attacks, which are always uncalled for, and the thread was dead. Jim Thornton could go in and rename it so nobody can carp on about the informational value of it any longer, and repost his original thread to try again. At least I would do that.
If anyone jumps onto a serious discussion and starts wrecking it, I think they should be called out. It WILL happen, and it will likely be me as anyone. Just point it out; PMs are less sharp and can be digested a little easier by all egos--usually.
Nobody is defending what happened on the camp thread. I only say that if the opening poster starts to go off the path and into the woods others will follow.
For me, I took some bloody hard classes at university. The "walking mummy" type teachers may as well not been there. The book was all you needed.
The teachers that cracked jokes, made anecdotal stories up to relay the information were loved and heard by the class--I did my best work in that environment. If you want to find out my academic record then PM me LOL.
Honestly, I feel if the humourous ones here stopped posting...informational value would go down too--I'd lay money on it. People would not post, and might not get so many tips from the newbs and vets alike. After all the majority just lurk right?
I think the only thing we need do is not break up informative threads a la camp thread--a quip or two is fine. We all agree on this...so why are we still debating and clarifying this?
As far as I am concerned this forum is my coach, team and locker room...there will be some that don't get along, but just respect each other is all. There needs to be room for banter as well as information.
Rich
Actually I think this is actually Lindsay's point. Reading the first page made me not want to read the rest. I perused a couple more pages, and it indeed had good information, although I am not going to any camps, which is probably why I did not open it in the first place.
As this thread continues, I notice some folks talking about "many" and generalizing that most people here want........
I think that "most" is actually a small group, and if there were truly a poll of the 800 posters on February 1, you would find that the more vocal posters are in the minority.
Dorothy I wasn't criticising you. I was being a little tongue-in-cheek about that thread. However I didn't want you to think it was all about a confrontation...if you read long enough to gather that I am happy.
Not to be self righteous...I'm not always right...just usually LOL
If people read my post on page 1 of this thread, they will see an admittance of fault and a hope for a little self control and respect from everyone...that was my message for this thread, and to kind of stand alongside Lindsay to show that we (the forum) are not so opposed about things, but maybe some self control is in order.
As for the "most" vs. "vocal minority" thing: most posters would be the vocal minority, right? I can't speak of, or assess those that sit lurking and contribute nothing--good, bad ,or average. Also how many of the 800 were posting in this segment vs. coaching and other segments. Curious on that.
Again I'll state the Camp thread was a wreck...but there are too many disruptors on that thread to blame any one or few. By the time it got to "lunches" we'd had a couple of personal attacks, which are always uncalled for, and the thread was dead. Jim Thornton could go in and rename it so nobody can carp on about the informational value of it any longer, and repost his original thread to try again. At least I would do that.
If anyone jumps onto a serious discussion and starts wrecking it, I think they should be called out. It WILL happen, and it will likely be me as anyone. Just point it out; PMs are less sharp and can be digested a little easier by all egos--usually.
Nobody is defending what happened on the camp thread. I only say that if the opening poster starts to go off the path and into the woods others will follow.
For me, I took some bloody hard classes at university. The "walking mummy" type teachers may as well not been there. The book was all you needed.
The teachers that cracked jokes, made anecdotal stories up to relay the information were loved and heard by the class--I did my best work in that environment. If you want to find out my academic record then PM me LOL.
Honestly, I feel if the humourous ones here stopped posting...informational value would go down too--I'd lay money on it. People would not post, and might not get so many tips from the newbs and vets alike. After all the majority just lurk right?
I think the only thing we need do is not break up informative threads a la camp thread--a quip or two is fine. We all agree on this...so why are we still debating and clarifying this?
As far as I am concerned this forum is my coach, team and locker room...there will be some that don't get along, but just respect each other is all. There needs to be room for banter as well as information.
Rich
