Can you write yourself out on a forum?
 

All forums have a debating section to augment the pure exchange of data between members, and all forums serve a useful purpose as well as being commercial ventures for the site owners, their primary function. And forums need moderation to prevent anarchy.

I've always enjoyed debates with others, anywhere, from debating societies to rough back streets bars in dangerous slums, to various forums which interest me. This is one of them but not the only one, and my desire to join in debates is controlled by various factors, mostly other members views on subjects which interest me.

I've often wondered whether you can write yourself out on such forums. There must surely be a limit to what you have to say and what interests you about fellow posters, and of course what they think of you too.

Nastiness by others has seldom bothered me, my non cyber life has inured me to such considerations, and I much prefer a lively debate to a dead one.

In case anyone thinks I'm referring to some recent changes on this forum, I am not, but I'm interested in what others think of a finite term of membership (on any forum).

Re: Can you write yourself out on a forum?
 

Every poster and every forum is different I think H.

I've been on one small specialist forum for many years and BE and another expat forum for nearly as long but others I've joined, posted a few times and left.

What keeps me hooked are topics which interest me and a sense of community - you get to know and like (or otherwise) the people you are interacting with on some fora and not others.

I, too, like robust debate and rarely get riled. I have never been warned about my posts on any forum.

Basically, if it turns me on I stay and if not I go. This one has gone quiet of late but occasionally something grabs my interest so I stay on and make the odd post.

Re: Can you write yourself out on a forum?
 

Statistically BE always goes quiet during August and early September. It's been commented on numerous times.

Re: Can you write yourself out on a forum?
 

I like the people who make me laugh.

I don't find the debates to be of the high quality some think they are, I'm more in it for entertainment. I guess that does annoy a proportion of the membership.

There is also good practical advice to be had.

Re: Can you write yourself out on a forum?
 

It does annoy some and I'm one of them. The quality of the debate is decided by the contributors. On numerous threads people who are not really interested in a topic will just throw in some one-liner which may be picked up by another equally disinterested poster and the thread is derailed.

The Gibraltar thread that is running does not interest me in the slightest and therefore I don't contribute

Re: Can you write yourself out on a forum?
 

A change in site ownership usually signals a similar change in contributors to fit in with the new owner's 'politics'. It happened to a site I was a member of a few years ago now when an American-owned site with an international membership was unexpectantly bought by an Irish businessman who paid far too much for it.

It was soon realised that he had bought the entire site just to show off to his two young sons and to promote his own interests which were already a tiny part of the site, unbelievably a poetry section. He had posted many samples of his own endeavours which were derided by the few members who ventured into that part of the site.

I don't know enough about poetry to post a critique of new poets but found this man's stuff excruciatingly awful and stopped contributing
altogether. It seems I wasn't the only one because when I logged on to the site a couple of years later I found it had died.

Re: Can you write yourself out on a forum?
 

It's midnight, perhaps not the best time to post, but maybe the brain is more active than when wakening up in the morning. I switch on about seven each morning and after walking the dogs and some strong coffee the compulsion to get on the internet is, quite honestly, horrifying.

Why? Bombs, political lies, tragedies with our kids being hurt by perverts, all of the sad news could be prevented by not switching on.

I will be back on here at seven, ready to get depressed for another day.