help me out here

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Jeff said:
Back when we used telephones on the wall and gas cost 95 cents.

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Hehehe, that was only like 10-15 years ago too. Buncha old farts that's all some of us are.

Tom

And those telephone calls cost more than gas back then. At least SOME things are cheaper. ;)

My personal (sob) understanding of Coasterbuzz and the jerks who post on here…

It took me a while (well over a year) to understand the dynamics of this forum. I guess I should have read the TOS myself, but I never did. Playa sort of hit it on the head for me with his last post. A lot of the people on this site have confrontational personalities. I do not exclude myself from this statement.

When I started posting, I found myself in arguments all the time. It seemed I was always debating this “Jeff” guy and then had to swat off hoards of defenders! I honestly had no clue Jeff owned the board or was a moderator for that matter. He was just a screen name who seemed to invite and engage argument…which fits my personality perfect. Jeff seemed to post more back in those days which is why I keep using him as the example. I could probably throw out other names, but frankly since you don’t own the board, I don’t remember who you are! :-)

I never understood why this “Jeff” character seemed to have so many personal fanboys/supporters. After an undetermined amount of time it all became clear to me that this forum, unlike any other I had ever been on was a lot like a personal playground. Jeff and those who supported him had a unique and frankly uninviting way about them, in my opinion. For the longest time this pissed me off and my argumentative personality took over. Though I must admit I had fun riling up the masses too… :-)

What was funny about this to me is that I always thought and still do think that CB is the most informative site out there (I admit I have not visited another coaster site in a few years though)! It took me even longer to realize that a lot of what makes this site “the best” for me is the fact that Jeff and the moderators indeed weed out the weaker posters. While I may not always agree with the way people (especially newbies) are treated, there is no denying that, in general, CB has more mature discussion than found on your basic message board.

So whether the owner/moderators (and those of us who post a lot) are argumentative or abrasive by choice or it is just part of their personalities is really moot for me. It keeps this place streamlined so I do not have to weed out a bunch of crap to get to informed opinions. When the board is overcome by “best of” and “Six Flag parking” threads I sleep well knowing one of you pricks are going to embarrass the fool who started such tomfoolery.

I don’t have to like any of you to enjoy your opinions and recognize the value of the information I obtain on here! For me, this is the reason I’ve hung around so long…

P.S. This does not mean I have not made a few friends on here in due time...

Actually I don't judge people till I actually meet em. Usually we get along fine and have fun. I too come from the Jeff seems snobish but we do have some mutual friends who tell me otherwise.

Face it Jeffery, Your the resident scapegoat. The beat down will continue untill Jeff says otherwise :)

I'm honored...

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Jeffrey R Smith said:

Playa sort of hit it on the head for me with his last post. A lot of the people on this site have confrontational personalities. I do not exclude myself from this statement.

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I havent seen a "playa" post in a while. The 'confrontational' post was from me, you know the *other* black guy....:)

lata, jeremy

Ok...my two cents. Or three cents. Here are some areas where issues arise:

1. Message board people vs. non-message board people.

There's a distinct split here, and I think its pretty clear to see. There is a large group of posters here who may only post here, and perhaps a couple of other coaster message boards. There's nothing wrong with that, but there's a culture surrounding what certain message boards are like in this world, and certain customs and conventions can get lost in translation when this is the only message board you know. Again, nothing wrong with that, its just the dynamic of this board with such a diverse readership.

The truth of the matter is that compared to most other boards, getting into this board is a piece of cake. Most boards I post on are absolutely BRUTAL in nature when it comes to not only hazing newbs but also pretty much everyone involved. I'm not saying in any way that having that sort of experience is necessary to be good-to-go here, but by comparison, this place is the sweetest, happiest-go-luckiest place on the web.

2. Newbs with egos. Or even non-newbs with egos.

I think this is the bigger one, and I think a lot of newbs would be better off knowing about it: nobody cares what your post count is. If your topics are getting ignored, deleted, locked, or whatever, it isn't a personal thing because you are a newb, its because your posts suck. There are plenty of people here with even under 100 or 50 posts who are wholly capable of contributing to the board as well as people with 1000 posts.

That's the thing, there's a handful of the usual suspects around here (and we all know who they are) who are instantly recognizable and everyone knows who they are. Then there are maybe 2nd and 3rd tier posters, and everybody else. Being a new poster, it may be easy to get lost in the shuffle, but this is a large board so thats how it is.

Using myself as an example, if you've posted something I disagree with, I'm not going to first reference your post count before I quote what you've said and mention what I disagree with. Getting over yourself and coming in here humbly is a valuable thing, because if you start thinking you're getting picked on unfairly because of your post count, you're not going to last.

To even SEE somebody's post count, you have to first have some sort of interest in their post count, and then click their profile to see it. It would maybe be different if our post counts were displayed under our screen names, as it is on many boards, but its not the case here. I'll set this off from the rest of the paragraph because this is getting to be a pretty long post and I want it to be clear:

If you make clear, concise, thoughtful posts that add to the discussion, NOBODY will know your a newb.

Ok, the end.

Some may have confrontational personalities....my role is to keep the "fights" peaceful.

^^ To be the "other black guy", jeremy, you'd have to show up at a park sometime... ;)

bill, gator, aka "the white black guy"... :)

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Charles Nungester said:
I too come from the Jeff seems snobish but we do have some mutual friends who tell me otherwise.

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I'm fun at parties. People that know me know better. Perhaps much of my hostility comes from the fact that I'm annoyed people think of me as that guy from CoasterBuzz. There's a lot more to me than that.

But see, it's not even about me anyway. I mean, showing up in any social situation, you need to take some responsibility for your own actions. I've used the analogy before about coming into someone's house and peeing on the floor as something you don't do, so why would you do it online? Not that anyone is peeing on the server (I hear the security is pretty good there), but in a virtual and metaphoric sense.

When I meet someone new and then in turn meet their circle of friends, I quietly observe. I get a feel for the dynamic between people, and what their boundaries are. It makes sense to do the same thing in a virtual community.

^^^Its another good point to pick up here Jeff...people project their own images and ideas of who you are onto what they see online. So if they want to for whatever reason think "Jeff is a snob" that's the tone they're going to take from your posts.

I was accused a while back of picking on someone because I disagreed with them in one thread, and then again very quickly in another. I didn't even realize it was the same guy but he sure was good at reading into things that were just not there based on what he thought my tone was.

^ "The Lesson" in there - if you MUST make assumptions about the other person's tone or tenor, assume the best. You really CANNOT know what they're thinking sitting behind their computer screen hundreds or thousands of miles away...

Plus, you'll make more friends... ;)

I am one of those 5th Tier folks matt referred to (I know he stopped at 3rd).

I visit almost everyday. I post when I have something to contribute. Usually someone else does so before me, so I am quiet.

When I do post, I find that the folks here who may disagree with me, do so in a polite and friendly manner; even when I make a mistake. But then I try to write in complete sentences, using proper grammar and spelling.

To the general point, if you make an effort to communicate clearly, little or no wrath will come your way.

I don't think CBuzz has snobs; just folks who are comfortable in their virtual playground and want to be sure the other have enough knowledge to someday be comfortable too.

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CoasterDad64 said:
I find that the folks here who may disagree with me, do so in a polite and friendly manner; even when I make a mistake.

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I disagree...that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard! What's wrong with you!? ;) ;)

OK, my lame attempt at humor is done. Anyway, I've been on here for quite some time and I can slightly sympathize with some of the thoughts of the newer members. I felt awkward here at first and I had lurked for a year or so before signing up. But, I was not starting 20 threads a day (I bet I've started less than 20 in the last 5 years!) and I didn't do and say a lot of the things which brings on the newbie bashing. After a while I got comfortable with how conversations go and find this still the best place to talk coasters on the net.

Anyway, as others said on this thread, it all boils down to intelligent, meaningful conversation. If we have a 20 page thread where everyone made a top 10 list would you really be interested? I've seen those on sites and they are a waste of space. I'd much rather read this thread than anything like that!

And if you think this is bad now, I can recall several times over the last few years that were far "worse" and a lot more noisy than now. Remember the endless Dragonball Z spam threads? The whole Cpnut saga? the CPO? What about the time when someone would constantly sign up with 4 or 5 different screen names and start lots of threads where he would talk to himself? I could go on and on.... :) *** Edited 4/27/2006 4:53:42 PM UTC by Peabody***

Oh come on, we all felt a lot better about ourselves after ragging on the Cpnut guy. :)

I have to admit, I loved the CPnut days and was probably largely responsible for a lot of egging him on. I should have counted all the times I "outed" him on a new screen name ;)

I don't know whether I should be proud of him or terrified that he's a CP ride op!

^ DO check your own restraints next time at the Po!nt... ;)

I guess I should have said "most" do so in a polite and friendly manner.

To be honest, I am somewhat entertained by the newbie bashing. But I hestitate to get involved. I will let the quick witted folks have at them.

You do realize I was kidding, Coasterdad, right? :)

And hide your face while eating those flapjacks. ;)

Hey, speaking of annoying newbies, what happened to bigboyonthesofa?

*** Edited 4/27/2006 5:21:04 PM UTC by janfrederick***

Do you even have to ask? :)

Maybe you should read your coasterbuzz 101 textbook again. Chapter 7: What happens to trolls ;)