I can't speak on the case of the other poster who you say died. In the case of Fatbrit, however, many people here had a lot of interaction with him over the years in the various parts of the forum that we most frequented. This included not only lengthy discussions and debate, but also pm's, email, and in a few cases actual meetings. Hence a personal connection was formed by a lot of people. Some of those people chose to express themselves by using his avatar for a while. This was not a formal move by BE, but a spontaneous one simultaneously suggested by several members. Others then chose to join in. That was our decision, and those who choose to may use that avatar for as long as they wish, and if anyone chooses to do something similar in the future that will also be their choice, conferring no obligation upon anyone else.

His name was David. He was clever, funny, principled, and very helpful. He was seriously ill for a long time and never aired that on this site. He died in his 40s.

I miss him. Your mileage may differ.

Oh and another thing

Oh look a bouncing sheep.

What a coincidence, eh?

It looks exactly like my avi. Perhaps they are twins.

Ey up.

Clones. They are slowly going to take over the entire forum. You will be able to run, but not hide.

See? It has already started.

Not quite todays news but...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...-15-years.html

No my mileage doesn't differ. I didn't have any interaction with the guy so I am neither Pro nor Con in the matter. I am neutral. It's the precedent matter that bothers me. I'm being a little cautious what I say as I don't wish to refer to the other person who died. Would not be fair to the spouse. Anyways don't wish to deviate further from the thread. I've said my piece and I'll shuddup now

As has been explained clearly by LIW there has been no offical BE precedent set .
It would be true to say that other posters have been and are being remembered here on BE , as per Terry Pardoe and Dollylama. There are annual awards named after them. So , you see, FB is not the first and will not be the last.
If you or anyone else wishes to have a tribute or a remembrance of a valued poster who is no longer with us, then you are free to do so in a style of your own choosing , within the BE rules. You are also free to mourn the loss, that way, for as long as you freely choose to & hopefully without other posters being mean spirited about that.

Lastly. FB's wife was invited to look in to BE even if she felt unable to contribute. Part of the care and share that BE is about. Is it really OK to make such a fuss over the FatBrit avatar tribute under the circumstances of complete and utter loss for the both of them . Would you want that for you ?

Yes, certain folks definitely need to calm down on here IMHO, and maybe certain folks who should know better should look at Rule 4 on here too. Just saying.....

Well yes. Perhaps. A little.

I did write this.

Not so much Rule 4 really, as those posts are a reaction & result of the posts that were made with little regard for Rule 1 . In particular "Challenge others' points of view and opinions, but do so respectfully and thoughtfully ... without insult or personal attack." Although the first off topic post was perhaps on the very distant outer edge of Rule 4 .

Still. The best way forward is to respect that others wish to mark David's passing with the avatar tribute & to not insult or flame that by making un-needed comments that are bound to be picked up by other BE posters via the Activity Ticker or Todays Posts & who may wish to express their distaste or displeasure.

If animated avatars are truly a major issue, then that needs to be highlighted in site feedback. I simply turn the things off as and when I feel the need.

Further note: By I meant generically , not for you personally. Just in case you read otherwise.

To clear the In Today's Newspapers thread of off-topic posts, I have moved all the posts regarding David's passings and the avatar tribute.

Following my last post on this subject I have decided the thread and therefore the topic is closed. I do hope this will be respected.