Doing a study on Forums

[MitchM]

Originally Posted by -LMAO_

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any comment will be a good comment guys

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LMAO,

Since you asked,...

Your username tells me that you are not very serious here.
Your posts are mainly for buy and sell purposes.

If people did tell you what they were thinking, why would people think you really understood where they were coming from?

You asked some questions to get the ball rolling, which is a good idea but you seem to be making a lot of assumptions in your questions.
You seem to think forum members are male, married with a family and have employment with co-workers - and that we spend too much...lol.

Maybe some of us live in denial as well...lol.


For the record, I hope this forum (or any other out there) has not created problems for anyone's participation in the hobby. I don't see how it could.
If forums do create problems for the individual, there are probably larger issues for that individual that need to be dealt with.

I have absolutely benefited from forums like this because they have offered me educational programs and materials that I would not have access to otherwise.

I would like to see forums for our hobby succeed but a lot of the scientists that contributed early on have left. That's too bad.
We are only left with the research papers they have left behind.

I understand what Reef Pilot is saying about seeing is believing as far as what to use for guidance for getting the best out of your aquarium, but short term glamor is not an indicator of long term success.
I see a lot of anecdotal evidence creeping back in and being taken for as fact. That will set our hobby back again.

Thank you for your input, the first half of your response will aid me in writting about peer to peer communication. It will help me explain what can be infered from the most miniscule of things.

I appreciate your comment

[MitchM]

Originally Posted by -LMAO_

It will help me explain what can be infered from the most miniscule of things....

right....

"LMAO,Since you asked,...Your username tells me that you are not very serious here.Your posts are mainly for buy and sell purposes."

No, honestly i was serious. You stated that you read my name LMAO, and im assuming you thought it meant Laugh My Ass Off. And due to my username being that I would not take seriously what users on this forum have to say, correct?

However, what you dont know is my name stands for Live My life Against Odds. I had a few health complications when i was a child. But i understand why you would make the inference that you did.

Thats why I said it would help me understand peer to peer communication, because its fascinating how you took something so little like my name and applied such a over arching statement to my behaviour and personality on this forum. Regardless if its right or wrong.

Who knows how many people do what you just did. Hence a issue or problem that may be present on this site or sites like this. Essentially what my paper is about.

So thank you sir

[Reef Pilot]

And you have to include something in your paper about the drama and entertainment that often happens on the forums. Here is today's example..., LOL.
http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/sho...=106216&page=2

And how people are often so different when you meet them in person (for the better usually) than how they may seem sometimes on a forum.

And I think some people just take themselves too seriously...

ahah yes i will try to incorporate that somewhere :P

[EmilyB]

Originally Posted by -LMAO_

However, what you dont know is my name stands for Live My life Against Odds.

Um, I think you forgot an L.

I know :P I chose not to put it in there. I had it as LMLAO on another forum and was asked to change it, dont remeber y, so the mods on that site changed it to LMAO so i ran with it :P

Jeez louise a lot of questions about my name and not a lot for the study :P ohhh well

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by MitchM

I understand what Reef Pilot is saying about seeing is believing as far as what to use for guidance for getting the best out of your aquarium, but short term glamor is not an indicator of long term success.
I see a lot of anecdotal evidence creeping back in and being taken for as fact. That will set our hobby back again.

Hey Mitch, good comments, and coming from a long term forum member. Would be interested in more of your views as to what has happened/changed in the hobby, for better or worse, as a result of this forum, and others. You hint at previous setbacks as a result of anecdotal evidence being taken as fact. Can you (or others, too) elaborate?