You don’t need a forum, you need a blog.
Some years ago, a rather outspoken UMSF member got the unceremonious boot. A few members disagreed with that decision, but were kind enough to say ‘OK - if that’s what you think is best for the forum’. It was. A forum is a unique being, I’ve spent a lot of time on a few different ones which have covered a fairly wide variety of subjects ( motor racing, computer games, computing, spaceflight etc ) and a wide variety of rules ( from the strict, to the anarchic ). I would like to think that ten years of reading posting and moderating forums has given me the chance to develop an experience base of what does and doesn’t make the sort of forum UMSF needs to be
In some respect, it should be impossible to fail. UMSF has been made to be the forum I want to visit. I’ve picked the forum software, dictate the rules and enact them. But of course even with the best will in the world - one can decorate ones own living room in the colour, style and design of ones own choosing, and still royally screw it up.
I’m not on my own of course. I started off just about on my own, with the help of a fellow Admin, Alex Blackwell ( an enigma deserving of his or her own wiki-entry ) who had dealt with a small Yahoo group on the subject of planetary sciences. I had a small yahoo group dedicated to the Beagle 2 lander which seemed and it was through that that our paths crossed. Alex has since moved own (on good terms) but in his place a crew of half a dozen or so admins have joined me in keeping the good ship UMSF on the proper heading. If I have a decision to make about the forum and they agree, we’re going the right way. If I have an idea they’re not to sure about - then I’ll take their advice. Ultimately, it’s a dictatorship, by committee. A military junta - with a suggestion box.
After a couple of years, the member I started this post mentioning, began to post at UMSF in a way that wasn’t contributing appropriately. It was ranting, picking one subject and posting about it, negatively, again and again and again. Not a discussion, not a contribution, just moaning. Worse still, it was often a stance that was based on false information, or information that was available to all quite easily, but the member made great fanfare about bringing to the table. It was at that point I realised what a forum was and most importantly, what it wasn’t. A forum is for discussion, for discourse, for contribution and collaboration. When you just want to say something without the discussion - then you don’t need a forum. You need a blog.
A blog is home for sermons, for preaching, for the one-sided lecture. To conduct oneself in that way in a forum is not only rude, but also inappropriate. If you want a lecture, you go to a lecture. It’s not right for a lecturer to just barge into your front room and get on with it. You go to a church to listen to a vicar - you don’t expect him to start his sermon in the pub. Eventually, the landlord has to stand up and shout ‘you’re barred!’
So, welcome to my church. Please stand for hymn number 124 ‘While Rovers Rat their Rocks by Night’