Hi there,
I was wondering about a couple of “inside jokes” around here, but so far, I haven’t been able to figure them out on my own.
What does this “hi opal!” line mean?
What’s the deal with the hamsters?
Oh and while you’re at it, can someone point me to a link to the board rules? I always hear things like “According to the board rules, it’s not allowed to cross post on several forums!”, but never saw a link to those mysterious board rules.
With regards,
Kai
It’s a joke which is well past its expiry date. Don’t worry about it. It was never particularly funny anyway. About a poster who didn’t like lists of fewer than three items. Search if you want to find out more.
“The hamsters” is a joking reference to the board’s server. Because it is so slow sometimes, people joke about it being powered by hamsters running on a wheel.
Try Arnolds FAQ’s for some of the rules.
“Hi Opal” is a myth. There is no such phrase.
There are no hamsters. Move along.
Actually, “Hi Opal” is a hackneyed joke which you should avoid. It’s day has come and gone. Opal is a poster here and other places. She contends that you cannot form an itemized list of only 2 items, like so:
That in order to have a valid list, you need at least 3. Other posters, in order to fulfill the requirement, add “Hi Opal!” as the 3rd item.
The origin of the hamsters predates the internet. The Board (or anything else which runs slowly or shakily) is derided as being powered by many hamsters, running in a wheel. When the Board is slow and unresponsive the hamsters are blamed for not keeping up, not running at all, etc. They are also blamed for every other anomaly, missing posts, double posts, etc…
On this page see the forum descriptions.
For rules, look in “About This Message Board” and in the stickies at the top of most forums.
Check out the ATMB forum and the FAQ sticky threads there near the top (one of which Caught@Work provided a link for.)
You’ll find discussion about other questions to do with the board there.
Oops. Caught, how did you sneak in there? [sub]damned hamsters[/sub]
I swear, on preview, neither TheLoadedDog’s or Caught@Work’s posts were there.
[sub]::scratches head. walks away mumbling::[/sub]
The FAQ is sorta hidden, as it’s in the ATMB forum. You’d have to know to look in the forum. But it’s probably the most convenient place to put it.
Ah, thanks a bunch!
I see that I only had 2 list items as well. At least now I know what to add as #3 (Hey, I actually think the joke is funny, despite not knowing opal, heh.).
They could put a link to it from the registration page, though…
shhh! don’t criticise them! they might hear! :eek:
Not only is the “Opal” joke hackneyed, but people screw it up all the time. Like this:
If you have more than two items, “Hi Opal” doesn’t belong. Hell, even if you only have two it doesn’t belong either, IMHO.
It just needs to stop.
You see NutMagnet, TheLoadedDog and I are in Australia, so our clock is ahead of yours, so we always get in first, even if we post after you.
We only do it to annoy those from backward timezones.
Ah, but now I am going to do it too! Muhuhahaha 
While we’re asking questions, I haven’t been able to work out what the heck the term ‘wooshed’ means…
Explainations?
“Whoosh” is the sound of something going over your head. Usually used when someone takes a sarcastic or smart-ass comment seriously. In face-to-face conversations, it may be accompanied by the gesture of one’s hand flying over one’s head. At least, around these parts…
ah, yes.
I’ve figured out IMHO, OTOH, RTFM, etc. but I just can’t figure out what FWIW stands for.
For What It’s Worth
And for that you will earn my everlasting enmity and scorn.
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=162955