Offended

[fossil]

Couple of thoughts.

Key to our forum philosophy here at Hearth.com is to always be welcoming, patient, tolerant, and helpful to newcomers. If we stop having any newcomers, it'll just leave all of us oldcomers, and the site will die. Typically, when a first-time poster shows up, he/she has a problem to solve and found this site on an Internet search, and came here hoping for understanding and help. Could well be that if the newbie gets help and it solves the problem for them, we never hear from them again. Could also be that the newbie gets help, and the problem's solved, but the newbie sticks around and becomes a contributing member eventually helping other newbies. But if the newbie immediately comes face to face with arrogance, scorn, abasement, and ridicule...we'll never see them again. That's a shame, because these forums have so much to offer for newbies and oldbies alike. My point is that how we treat first-time posters is important to our relevance (and a key factor in the site's richness and vibrancy).

Second thought is about the "Freedom of Speech" blurb. Hearth.com is not your neighborhood sidewalk, it's private property. We're all here because the website owner has given us his permission to be here. When we're here on Hearth.com, it's like being in his living room. There are standards of conduct and speech that are applied here that have nothing to do with your rights guaranteed under the Constitution out in the public domain. Rick

 

[TimfromMA]

Couple of thoughts.

Key to our forum philosophy here at Hearth.com is to always be welcoming, patient, tolerant, and helpful to newcomers. If we stop having any newcomers, it'll just leave all of us oldcomers, and the site will die. Typically, when a first-time poster shows up, he/she has a problem to solve and found this site on an Internet search, and came here hoping for understanding and help. Could well be that if the newbie gets help and it solves the problem for them, we never hear from them again. Could also be that the newbie gets help, and the problem's solved, but the newbie sticks around and becomes a contributing member eventually helping other newbies. But if the newbie immediately comes face to face with arrogance, scorn, abasement, and ridicule...we'll never see them again. That's a shame, because these forums have so much to offer for newbies and oldbies alike. My point is that how we treat first-time posters is important to our relevance (and a key factor in the site's richness and vibrancy).

Second thought is about the "Freedom of Speech" blurb. Hearth.com is not your neighborhood sidewalk, it's private property. We're all here because the website owner has given us his permission to be here. When we're here on Hearth.com, it's like being in his living room. There are standards of conduct and speech that are applied here that have nothing to do with your rights guaranteed under the Constitution out in the public domain. Rick

+1000

 

[F4jock]

Couple of thoughts.

Key to our forum philosophy here at Hearth.com is to always be welcoming, patient, tolerant, and helpful to newcomers. If we stop having any newcomers, it'll just leave all of us oldcomers, and the site will die. Typically, when a first-time poster shows up, he/she has a problem to solve and found this site on an Internet search, and came here hoping for understanding and help. Could well be that if the newbie gets help and it solves the problem for them, we never hear from them again. Could also be that the newbie gets help, and the problem's solved, but the newbie sticks around and becomes a contributing member eventually helping other newbies. But if the newbie immediately comes face to face with arrogance, scorn, abasement, and ridicule...we'll never see them again. That's a shame, because these forums have so much to offer for newbies and oldbies alike. My point is that how we treat first-time posters is important to our relevance (and a key factor in the site's richness and vibrancy).

Second thought is about the "Freedom of Speech" blurb. Hearth.com is not your neighborhood sidewalk, it's private property. We're all here because the website owner has given us his permission to be here. When we're here on Hearth.com, it's like being in his living room. There are standards of conduct and speech that are applied here that have nothing to do with your rights guaranteed under the Constitution out in the public domain. Rick

Not to be a contrary PITA but from the tone of most of this thread I got light-hearted jesting with a smattering of gentle sarcasm among friends. Not off-putting at all and very human. To my mind anyone reading it would feel as if they were among friends quaffing a few flagons of ale in front of a nice fire. Never saw anyone debased, scorned or belittled.

 

[TimfromMA]

Not to be a contrary PITA but from the tone of most of this thread I got light-hearted jesting with a smattering of gentle sarcasm among friends. Not off-putting at all and very human. To my mind anyone reading it would feel as if they were among friends quaffing a few flagons of ale in front of a nice fire. Never saw anyone debased, scorned or belittled.

I dont think he was referring to this thread in particular.

 

[fossil]

I dont think he was referring to this thread in particular.

Exactly. Thanks, Tim. Rick

 

[F4jock]

I dont think he was referring to this thread in particular.

A wise man once said "Never discipline or lecture those who do not require it." I've never seen any posts on this forum that were not respectful, helpful and thoughtful, even in disagreeing.

 

[webbie]

Besides the tone, we also try to keep threads which are in the main forums informational.....like this:
https://www.hearth.com/talk/faq/3-forum-purpose.3/

"The most important person on the Forum is the person who is there to get information (the customer).

Customers who come for information may not enjoy reading through dozens of pages of "social" comments and short posts ("I agree, etc."), so we ask forum users to try and provide the most information and least "noise" possible in the main forum rooms. These rooms include:

The Hearth Room
Classic Wood Stove Forum(s)
The Boiler Room
It's a Gas

The other rooms can be more conversational and social, especially the Inglenook - which is the area for off-topic but non-political discussions.

All forums are moderated. Please read our moderation FAQ if you have interest in why and how we moderate our forums."

So some of it is tone and a lot of it is what we call "curation" or "signal to noise" ratio. So many places on the web have a high noise to information ratio - that is, you have to wade through a lot of BS to get to the actual info.

Although I enjoy bantering and towel snapping as much as anyone (maybe more - ask the other mods!), my business side likes "just the facts, ma'am". So it's a constant struggle.

 

[velvetfoot]

I agree.

 

[smwilliamson]

You know what your problem is...

Great ice breaker to get any conversation up and running.

 

[DMKNLD]

I appreciate the Hearth.com moderators and others alike who posted on this thread, and who articulated a philosophy and a 'culture' of what is expected for 'discussion decorum' on this site. (And thank you Bob B for starting this thread - no Mea culpa necessary, brother !)

Speaking for myself, I stumbled onto this forum knowing nothing less than nothing about pellet stoves - looking for some stove advice and some operational direction - and ended up finding those things, plus allot more in the unique community and 'esprit-de-corps' that this fine forum espouses to.

'Esprit-de-corps' isn't something that a website administrator can mandate in a mission statement or demand in a user agreement Terms of Service. A forum group has it, or they don't. Moderators can certainly plant the seed for it, as they obviously have on this forum, but it's the collective membership that must cultivate and actualize it.

So, thanks to this forum for having, and being that. Especially, as fossil put it, to the 'oldbies' who remember and appreciate what it was like to be a 'newbie' in the pellet stove world.

Regards, and happy burning, (and forum reading) everybody !

 

[becasunshine]

Dammit. I missed being offended.

SOMEBODY OFFEND ME QUICK SO I CAN CATCH UP.

I feel so left out. =(

 

[becasunshine]

Still waiting to be offended.

Maybe I'll just offend myself. Pffbt. ~~

Wait. That sounds vaguely wrong.

 

[webbie]

Dammit. I missed being offended.

SOMEBODY OFFEND ME QUICK SO I CAN CATCH UP.

I feel so left out. =(

Your dog is ugly - and smelly too! And poops in the neighbors yard.

 

[Peterfield]

Dammit. I missed being offended.

SOMEBODY OFFEND ME QUICK SO I CAN CATCH UP.

I feel so left out. =(

 

[hossthehermit]

A wise man once said "Never discipline or lecture those who do not require it." I've never seen any posts on this forum that were not respectful, helpful and thoughtful, even in disagreeing.

Yer still pretty new, be patient ................

 

[becasunshine]

Your dog is ugly - and smelly too! And poops in the neighbors yard.

My dog is gorgeous. Remarkably, and I say this with all sincerity, he rarely smells "doggie" and when he does, it's usually because he's been playing all day with other dogs. I think it's because we never, ever use soap on him, so his sebaceous glands don't work overtime to replenish the skin oil. Does that make sense? We brush out the dead undercoat and he gets thoroughly rinsed on a regular basis. He's only had soap on him twice in his life and one of those times wasn't us- the breeder bathed him before he left the farm. The one time I bathed him with soap he rolled in something so smelly that he actually came to us and asked for help. Rinsing didn't even touch that smell, so he got soaped up good.

That being said, about the pooping thing, we don't call him "Three Bags Full" for nothing. <:3~ Although we do pick it up in everybody's yard- ours, yours, theirs... because, yanno, poop.

But that was a pretty darned good insult! I'm sufficiently offended and I feel included now.

 

[doghouse]

Do I want to know what started all this?

 

[gfreek]

Do I want to know what started all this?

Ditto

 

[TimfromMA]

I think I know but Im not 100%certain.

 

[doghouse]

I think I know but Im not 100%certain.

Then spil it!

 

[NHcpa]

Dammit. I missed being offended.

SOMEBODY OFFEND ME QUICK SO I CAN CATCH UP.

I feel so left out. =(

My cat does not wear a life jacket. And I have bumper sticker that reads "My cat beat up your dog". So there...!

 

[F4jock]

My cat does not wear a life jacket. And I have bumper sticker that reads "My cat beat up your dog". So there...!

My dog taught Lassie all he (Yeah. Lassie was male!) knows and my cat hunts Elk for snacks!

 

[NHcpa]

My dog taught Lassie all he (Yeah. Lassie was male!) knows and my cat hunts Elk for snacks!

Well, MY cat is a 4.0 student, but not sure what that means, he still licks his butt.

 

[DMKNLD]

A buddy of mine has a Bulldog whose breath smells as bad as his farts do (the dog that is, not my buddy). When that dog's sitting on the couch in the dark you don't know which end you're petting ! Man, now that is offensive !

 

[becasunshine]

My cat does not wear a life jacket. And I have bumper sticker that reads "My cat beat up your dog". So there...!

I have evidently reached my limit on "Likes" and I am not permitted to like this insult. Let it be said that I find this insult sufficiently offensive, and I am once again feeling included!

And I'll just bet that your cat does not wear a life jacket... and would probably make mincemeat out of you before you got him/her on the bow of a boat.