And indeed, most swear words have an actual meaning which is not offensive at all, sometimes related to the 'offensive' word's use, sometimes not at all.

I think the "N" word originally meant a type of fish in Africa......but I could be totally off.

As for spamming and unnecessary flamming, It's really hard since this is one of the only Oddworld forums, and certainly the largest. A lot of times people try to be funny and are really just dumb, but the most spam comes from any news being released. This creates a whole bunch of wasted threads asking the same questions that are being discussed already, mostly because people are too lazy to search. So this really reflects the person's actual lifestyle, the internewt being an extension of that. I believe that how people behave on the internet reflects their basic personality in the real world.


no easy solution really.

I've just joined another forum that has the option per user to use the censor. I think it's great, as anyone who wishes to not see such things can switch it off.

I had mine set to swear, by the way :p

It's not a vBulletin 3 thingy, though. But it'd be very simple to add.

Alcar...

THat seems like a great idea for people who don't wantto see swears.
But what about people using them for their full value, causing offence. I guess this would also fall under flamming.

IF you arn't trying to stop people using swear words altogether, then a self-option censor seams the best option.

How true. Very nice point there.

Sometimes. People sometimes act mean online because they know they can get away from it because it's the, well....internet. So chances it can go both ways.

exactly. They know they can get away with it. So they take advantage of the internet, where they couldn't do so in the real world. They are too afraid to behave like an asshole or jerk in school or the workplace, but they can do so on the internet. They have no shame on the internet, and this shamelessness is hidden and controlled in real life by the established ethics we have in the real world. Being rude is easier on the net, but being rude in public, in the real world will get you yelled at and maybe a bloody nose. You dont get yelled at on the net, just get warnings through a MACHINE.

as I've said elsewhere, the internet is reason enough for some people to act like an asshole, just as drugs and alchohol are.

It is easy to be a different person on the net. No-one can see your face or how you react to things, plus the person has time to think about what they type. In the real world some people CAN NOT come up with good witty comebacks very fast. Some not even at all. But on the internet, you think about what you want to type as long as you want............till' you get it just right. This turns the "Whatever you say to me bouces off and sticks to you!" people into big jerks. It may happen more than you think. A guy that's causing a big problem on a forum could just be a loser who failed in the real world and gets a second shot on the net. Scary! :eek:

Help, I'm scared *pulls covers over head*

Hey! You leave my failings alone, damn you!

I personally don't have any trouble with comebacks in the real world. I know my rights, I know my world, I know my vocabulary. It did take literally countless sleepless nights to teach myself all sorts of comebacks and quips, but it was all worth it in the real world.

I treat the internet as an extention of my social and intellectual life. When I am not out on the street meeting people in bars, and shopping for music in stores, I am at home on the net meeting people in chatrooms and forums, and browsing online CD stores.

Obviously I don't just buy music when I am out, but you get the idea.

This forum is much much more than "just a place to talk about oddworld" though. It's turned into a community, and from what I can see; a place to meet like minded indeviduals.

Unfortunately I agree. These are the best forums I have been to. Others have so many people you can't remember who the other members are, or their personalities.
*Hugs members here*

I'm somewhat different here on the forums than I am in real life. In real life I'm funnier, but then I'm also nastier. But my values and beliefs remain intact.

How cruel that I have to go to a Catholic School. There is absolutely no bullying! Occasionally there is a break-out between two people who will fight to the death, but that's about it. Catholic Schools are very different to State Schools... Very different...

There is hardly any structure when it comes to social status either. Sure, we have our defined sport types, intellectuals, computer geeks, no-brainers, etc. But every person is apart of each group in their own way :| It's nothing like American system, though the American system to my understanding could very well not be a total social status system. But only because I have to go off what I've seen and heard.

Alcar...

I've been to only one other forum and it was sooooo boring. I love these forums and I don't plan to go anywhere else. I'm comfortable here and know lots of nice people. Yeah!:fuzgrin:


-oddguy:fuzcool:

I only frequent two forums, and this one is my favorite because its a smaller community.(I dont care if the notice says we have 2000 members we have really only a hundred at most active users here) Plus, I joined here a couple years ago, and have only been at the other star wars forum for about a year. And that forum is gigantic. I dont plan on leaving from here any time soon, I still have plenty of room (suprisingly), and time to be here a lot even during the week to fulfill all my assigned duties.:fuzsmile:

This is the only forum I go to. I've tried other ones, but like everyone else has stated, they're just too damn big. When they're big like that, their strictness on the rules go WAAAYYY down. There's daily flaming, tons of spam topics, and a bunch of other stuff. Basically, this forum is like perfect in its size, and I hope it doesn't change once Steef's game comes out...

Abe Babe and I have decided to close the forums for new registrations when Steef is released ;)

Alcar...

what does that mean exactly. The wording was a little ambiguous. (can't remember how to spell the damn word)

You have to look at the winking motion. It means "come over here, big boy."

Are you coming on to me? I like that.:smokin:

So, that means we can stay, but no n00bs that spam for a week then forget about us won't be plauging these wonderful forums?! Whoooo! How long after Steef are you going to keep this in effect?

-oddguy:fuzcool:

Oddguy, it was a joke...:|

Uhh yeah.....I knew that. Really, I did. Yes sir....I knew it was a joke. Why are you still staring at me?! Stop looking at me!

-oddguy:fuzemb:

Personally, I like n00bs! If you don't anymore members, eventually eveyone will hate me and I'll have no friends. :(

No I think Alcar should genuinely do it, close it all off so that the forum can die in its own shit.

Hey Death, I think you need a thereputic visit to the ANGER thread. Anyway, don't close off the forums when Steef comes, you were joking, right?

Oh yeah, I think their should be a MOD that go's though everything and punctuates it and stuff. That way everything can be understood. I like it, but do you?:fuzconf:

That would be WAY, WAY too much work for anybody. It's a nice idea, but it just wouldn't work out well. Think of how many posts there are daily...

About 12. This isn't a big forum.

The other forum I post at (which I prefer) often has about 40 to 50 user on each day, and takes well over 1000 new posts every day.

Pwn.

Bah, you have a point...

I. Am. Pwned.

We could make it work! I hate looking at Abe16's posts and wishing I was able to fix it! We could have 2 Mods for that purpose in each section of the forums. I know it probably would be a really hard job, but it could be done!