Even worse, I’m technically a “repeat guest.” I didn’t realize that I stayed logged in as a guest when the board switched to p2p. I didn’t post, thinking I’d save my month for a time when I had a burning question or something and then realized one day that my membership had run out and I hadn’t even been using it. :smack: I suppose it’s up to the mods to decide whether I’ve broken the rules or not. (if you want to check… or if you can… my old name was AngelOfMusic or Angel Of Music. I never posted after fees were introduced.)
you can ban me if you want.
Also, if I register as an actual member and choose a different (hopefully more creative) name, will I be considered a sock?
It’s the moderators that make this such a great place. IMHO they allow just the right level of “heated discussions” without going overboard. I’ve left some other boards because I felt it was too stifling, and others because they were overrun by trolls and personal attacks.
As for changes since p2p - I think it takes a bit longer to get GQ questions answered, especially when it’s an obscure topic very few people know about and cannot be answered by googling. But still, the board is well worth whatever I paid for it.
GQ just isn’t very good anymore. It moves too slow, there aren’t many questions, and there seems to be a very small pool of answerers. When it was free, an expert in something could post occasionally on their subject. Now it makes no sense for them to be a member unless they’re into the other forums, and the board has suffered for it.
Which is sad, because GQ is really the part of the site that’s most like the original column.
I dunno, while technically sock puppetry does posting once or twice and then coming back a year later with a new account because the password’s long gone count as being a jerk in anyone’s eyes?
It seems like a potential paying member was just lost because of too strict enforcement of the rules.
“P2P”? Folks, please tell me you’re not using the numeral “2” to represent the word “to”.
I haven’t really noticed a change since the board started requiring paid registration. I’ve been here for years, and the novelty has definitely worn off, but it’s still a good board. Elsewhere on the Internet, I haven’t found a board covering such a broad range of interests, with such a relatively high average level of literacy and intelligence.
That’s the kind of hard and fast rule that didn’t seem to apply here though, Ellabean seemed like she’d fit in well but has maybe been scared off for no good reason.
The board has always gone through ebbs and flows. I’ve always felt the quality dropped when summer vacations started, then rose again when school started again in the fall.
One thing I have noticed is that Great Debates seems more – I’m not sure of the right word, let’s say doctrinaire. Maybe it’s just nostalgia, but I seem to recall a time when someone could open a thread, there’d be some mature discussion, no one would drag out Bill Clinton or George W. Bush and the flaming would be kept to a civil tone.
Been around for almost 3 years. Back when I was a newbie, I was most impressed with the “name” posters. You’d recognize their names instantly because of their erudition, or grammar, or snarkiness, or omnipresence in certain threads. Sadly, most of them have disappeared. Can’t even remember those names, seems they’ve been gone for years, but it hasn’t been all that long. Have I grown up here, am I jaded and am not as easily impressed? Or, have the gods deserted Olympus? Pardon my jerk-tude for saying so, but I used to look forward to opening one of the forums knowing “He” or “She” would undoubtedly be there. Taking into account the various items posted, you knew you’d see the “name” posters, because they usually responded to the call of certain topics. Have they indeed moved onto fresher sites, where they are undoubtedly wowing the faithful. Maybe they got bored trying to fight so much ignorance. Who now will step into their places, and make names for themselves, whether by design or attrition.
fwiw, i lurked for a week or so, simply had to have a guest membership to post a reply, and joined shortly thereafter… not sure if this helps answer the question, but $14.95 was not prohibitive and certainly well worth a year of daily use…
I found the snopes.com board before I found the SDMB. I joined, it was fun, I was overwhelmed as a newbie, I posted tentatively. Then more agressively. My skills improved. Pretty soon, I was in the “in” group. Ego time!
I found the SDMB. Came over. Joined. Tentatively posted a stupid GQ. Read mostly. Posted some more. Posted in The Pit and got my ass handed to me. I was still posting mostly to snopes. But snopes matured, many long-time posters moved on, and the newbies coming in weren’t the same. They really weren’t. How many new Urban Legends are there? Too limited.
I posted more and more to the SDMB. This board has more range. Of course, when you’ve been here for 5-6 years, many things are boring. You’ve done that position to death.
The thing that will keep the SDMB going is the diversity of topics and fora. This is a chat board, a great GQ board, and full of intelligent people.
And moderated by some people who care for the well-being of the board and its members. At the end of the day, the mods/Admins care for the posters. Just like you care for an errant child. You still love them, you just have to step on their head with your jackboot once in a while.
you can ban me if you want.
