Personally I find It is better NOT to argue on some points, Me , Yes I was a little toad early days , I don't mind telling you I was very much in danger of getting kicked off this site, I had a Warning of 75% - But now am back to normal Because of Good Behaviour, So yes it can be achevied, Bascially it comes down to the Poster, And how they wish to post/Act/ Just as an aside I wonder if that sort of thing actually wears off with age if you get me ?

Kind Regards

The thing about the internet in general, and a forum such as this specifically, is that it's a great equalizer. It doesn't matter who you are, how old you are or what you look like, the only thing you can be judged on is what you say. This is great for most people, but can be a bit of a disadvantage for the very young or the mentally disabled for whom allowances might otherwise be made for. 

I generally concur with STB, a website which relies on user generated content is only ever as good as its users. Remember also that you don't HAVE to post here. It's better to say nothing than post something useless just for the sake of it. Same goes for replying to flamewars, nothing says you have to reply. Is your pride really that delicate that you can't just let it drop? Does it really matter if some random person on the interwebs thinks you're wrong? People have argued on internet forums for as long as they've existed, and this one is actually a lot better than most I visit. Take a chill pill and grow a thicker skin, I think if anyone is concerned enough about this to start a thread about it then they're probably worrying about it way too much.

Well I did start a thread but it was mainly because of the boring nature of so many posts and people going on about minor details and quibbling over very little. I was not finding many subjects that interested me when I started this thread but this one has raised some reasonable comments at least.

if he's not posting why does he retain mod status?

I believe that 574M was only relatively recently appointed a moderator. Previously, he had special moderator status for the Bogies forum, which would only be necessary if he wasn't a member of the moderators group.

If they went into their local club and talked drivel they would likely be called on it

They would not however get banned for it. I can think of more than one musical reference to good mates being people whom you meet at the pub and talk drivel.

I agree with the idea that whether someone has a mental disability should not affect a decision as to whether they're allowed to post on this site or whether a particular post by them is allowed. Drunken words at a bar disappear after a split second. "Drivelous" posts on a discussion forum have to be read by anyone who ever reads a thread, whenever they read it.

[quote="jd4980"][quote="Sir Thomas Bent"]

Secondly, people seem to be a lot more thin-skinned now than they used to a while ago.  Seriously, you want flamewars? People having full-on attacks at another?  2004-2005 saw some absolute humdingers. [url=http://www.railpage.com.au/f-t11314403-0-asc-s0.htm]This one[/url], and esepcially [url=http://www.railpage.com.au/f-t11302228.htm]this one[/url] shows that we didn't always play nice.  Also, read the early pages of The Bogies.   Some of the rather petty complaints, most of which seem to be a thin veil of people being very precious about being wrong on a minor point of rivetcounting ([b]Petan[/b] and [b]jd4980, I'm looking at your replies in this thread), point more at the people themselves needing to go to the toy aisle of K-Mart and buying a pair of balls, as they seem to lack a pair.
Someone disagrees with you on the Internet about a minor point of railway history and it's a big drama: what will happen when something that actually IS bad happens in your life?


[/quote]

It didn't take long for someone to roll up and start picking the eyes out of others opinions, and what a reply to 574M btw, not too bad for an individual judging others about being thin skinned and trying to define irony.......

Just to clarify for me personally, the other poster you selectively named can reply on his own behalf if he so desires, but it's not about being thin skinned over being attacked. Rather, a whole lot more about time being better spent sharing a beer with mates that actually have a clue and participation on civilised and constructive conversations with those mates, then bothering to correct the ignorant and stupid on an online forum.[/quote]

It would be nice, and ideally, we wouldn't be having this conversation.

However, your initial post - as well as this reply to me - is IMHO what's wrong with this site.

It's the scramble to claim the moral high ground while at the same time trying to insult the other person.  It's the online equivalent of hitting someone when they're not looking - cowardice and gutlessness.

Either call someone and leave it, or ignore it.  Carping on about how much better than them you are just makes you a lot worse.

what about persons with mental disabilities. how would you deal with someone that you banned if you found out they had a mental disability such as aspergers? or had suffered a stroke.

Does the site have a disability policy?

Don't care. If you cannot be trusted not to be a smeghead you shouldn't be on the net in the first place. Moreso if you have a disability. Why? Because people I know with mental and physical abilities know what they are capable of, and also know what they are NOT capable of, and thus design their lives around their limitations.

Rather than expecting the world to change for them.

what about persons with mental disabilities. how would you deal with someone that you banned if you found out they had a mental disability such as aspergers? or had suffered a stroke.

Does the site have a disability policy?

Don't care. If you cannot be trusted not to be a smeghead you shouldn't be on the net in the first place. Moreso if you have a disability. Why? Because people I know with mental and physical abilities know what they are capable of, and also know what they are NOT capable of, and thus design their lives around their limitations.

Rather than expecting the world to change for them.

I don't think we should be going down this path, as it is will probably end up in tears for someone, and it wont be nice 

what about persons with mental disabilities. how would you deal with someone that you banned if you found out they had a mental disability such as aspergers? or had suffered a stroke.

Does the site have a disability policy?

Don't care. If you cannot be trusted not to be a smeghead you shouldn't be on the net in the first place. Moreso if you have a disability. Why? Because people I know with mental and physical abilities know what they are capable of, and also know what they are NOT capable of, and thus design their lives around their limitations.

Rather than expecting the world to change for them.

On one hand, hiding asreholery behind whatever mental illness is loathsome and disgusting.  It not only makes you look more like a twat, but impacts on other people who also have whatevery it is they may or may not have.  They, in my opinion, are Fair Game.  (They usually get thwaacked with the Banhammer before I can really have myself a fun time)

Asperger's Syndrome is good for that one.



However, allow for people who do suffer from a mental illness, and realise they may not have a awareness of what they're doing wrong.

Knowingly being a twat back at someone who themselves is unable to control is pretty heartless. 

However, I think we've defined irony when there's been someone coming in solely to have a massive dig at someone else in a thread complaining about people coming in on posts just to have a dig at someone else.

I hope that when you wrote the above sentence it made your head spin as much as mine when I read it!

M

I needed a drink afterwards....

Single malt?

However, I think we've defined irony when there's been someone coming in solely to have a massive dig at someone else in a thread complaining about people coming in on posts just to have a dig at someone else.

I hope that when you wrote the above sentence it made your head spin as much as mine when I read it!

M

I needed a drink afterwards....

Single malt?

Hell, I live in the inner north of Melbourne.  Something pretentious and cidery.

This sort of "Dribble" Happens on the Interwebs at Large- It is just not Railpage that suffers- Heck some of the Youtube videos and comments that i have seen afterwards make this place look like a fairy garden in comparison

Kind Regards

Speaking of youtube comments, perhaps Railpage could do with something like this...
 

Just to clarify for me personally, the other poster you selectively named can reply on his own behalf if he so desires,

Just remember "jd4980", you and the rest of us did not write our messages for just one person but instead wrote it for the whole community.  Each of the hundreds recorded as reading this thread are able to make up his or her own opinion without guidance from a follow up reply from a third party.

Many here also have similar experiences to me in that widely held railway myths have caused confusion and need to be examined for cognitive content. Perhaps an interesting thread will be to list these railway myths that many believe but in reality cannot survive analyses.  Thank goodness this cerebral analyses already happens over on the Railway Archaeology forum.

Some of these myths have appeared on Railpage which is perhaps some of the dribble refered to in the thread title.
If people check my original message you will see I wrote was that we, including myself,  are all guilty of this at some stages of our hobby life.

[quote="Sir Thomas Bent"]Rivetcounting ([b]Petan[/b] and [b] xxxx, I'm looking at your replies in this thread)[/quote]

Yes, that is me    ; The term "Rivetcounting" can be a big positive as it involves the ability to dig deep and research accurate details. As I have written before, I am researching the QR steam era line to Southport and Tweed Heads south from around the Logan River. This rivet counter has recorded the GPS co-ordinates for each station including Yatala and Coombabah stations, focusing on the platform locations as the GPS reference point. Only station GPS still to do is Hawthorne.

Grammar edit; word "have" to "has".

Speaking of youtube comments, perhaps Railpage Australia™ could do with something like this...

That's true; hopefully, it ends the tendency for threads to descend into schoolgirl-like interpersonal dramas (as found on Facebook).

http://www.railpage.com.au/f-t11368444.htm

Mod posting in closed thread, denying right of reply, and changing the thread title to further have a go?

Poor form, IMHO. I expect better.

A member conducted a blatant personal attack, what did you expect him to do?

Not respond in kind.

It appears sanity has prevailed, I'll leave it at that. It's not that I support the attack, it's just that someone with mod or admin status - whomever it was - sets of themselves a higher standard of behaviour.

Whichever mod it was, who closed the thread and called it "User having a whinge" deserves a slap with a wet fish. Poor form.

http://www.railpage.com.au/f-t11368444.htm Mod posting in closed thread, denying right of reply, and changing the thread title to further have a go? Poor form, IMHO. I expect better.

[rules]Discussions regarding any moderators or admins here will end now.[/rules]

Please take this up privately with the staff of this site, contact myself if you wish a follow up. I have just noticed the thread concerned as I sit on the train home and noticed the thread title was changed when I saw the reported post follow ups.

One of the benefits moderators have is to close a thread, but if a reply is needed so be it. In this case BW has done just that and he is welcome to do so as one of his rights as a moderator. It also seems as he has pointed out when actioning the reported post that he had no idea firstly the thread was locked or secondly of the change of thread title.

As to whoever changed the thread title, this will be followed up but not via this means.

Regards,
Lionel.

Oooh, first time I got the red

Nah, is okay. BW and I have communicated. A thread was closed and title changed and it looked to me that he did it, he did NOT, and I apologised for making the error.

All good!

TRWTF here is asking for civility and socially acceptable conduct out of a group of railfans.  Take a look at it from 20,000 feet; it's got to be the top special interest group that attracts kooks, and whackos.  If you ask me (nobody did), I'd say the problem is people becoming more socially aware, rather than the conduct itself changing.  

I am sure that many will second that the strangest people they know are train nuts.
The most arrogant would be I.T people.

I am sure that many will second that the strangest people they know are train nuts.
The most arrogant would be I.T people.

Given that I work in IT and I'm a railfan, does that make me the devil incarnate?

I am sure that many will second that the strangest people they know are train nuts.
The most arrogant would be I.T people.

Oi! I resemble that remark...

I am sure that many will second that the strangest people they know are train nuts.
The most arrogant would be I.T people.

You forgot bus gunzels!

M