 The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group Eddies in the Ether Dave Mitchell |
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Well another month passes by and the weight of the world continues to rest firmly on the broad shoulders of your faithful correspondent. Life is sometimes hard and the lot of Assistant Sysop-Messages is not all paved with fawning new users (well at least not every day) and so we come to another window into the a life that, in the opinion of some, should not have been allowed to happen.
He's got that Personality
The "he" in this could well be "she" so it doesn't matter what the header reads I just thought it looked snappy. What this one is about is personalities. You know we are all different and it is this difference which makes life worthwhile with all it's warts and bumps. Occasionally however you run into someone whose sole function in life seems to be to inspire you to violence. This is just part of the rich tapestry of life.
When you message on BBSs as much as I do it's almost inevitable that this will occur sooner or later and, as you can't commit physical violence, the temptation is there to commit virtual violence in the form of a war of words. Now while healthy debate is something to be encouraged I don't see that personal abuse adds much to the total of mankind's general knowledge and while it may feel good for that fleeting instant after you hit the save key, it's inevitably counterproductive.
Now, if you insist on doing this then, to be quite frank, I for one have no desire to be a witness to your angst and it may be better for all concerned for the lambasting of your hated foe to go on in private. After all, the area is not just there for people to arrange offline trysts at a later date, although the Sysops do get a laugh out of those messages.
Always remember that, in the public echoes, you are not just posting to your correspondent. The rest of the active posters and the ravening hordes of lurkers are there as well.
Speaking of which leads me onto...
The Brotherhood of the Lurker
I had an interesting thread running with John Talbot (of Boxer fame) that started off regarding the Avtek modem and wandered (as these things do) into a discussion on the ratio of Lurkers to Active posters. Now before I go any further I have been somewhat cheeky to Lurkers in the past, but I hereby state that it is an old and honourable profession which all of us have been known to do at one time or another. I was of the opinion that the ratio of Lurkers to Posters was somewhere in the 10:1 range while John held to the thought it was more like 15:1. Now considering that there are something like 150 or so active Posters hanging around in our local message areas, that would mean there is something like 1500 to 2000 people reading the average message posted on the BBS. Frightening thought? Not when you have an ego as big as mine. (Have a look at my tagline at the end.)
The biggest worry most people express to me, when I'm trying to jolly them into posting messages, is that they may, inadvertently, make an absolute twit out of themselves. So what, I say! All of us have, at one time or another, wished life had an Undo key. Me more than anyone else on occasions. Besides, if you know beforehand that twitdom is going to be your lot sooner or later then, when it happens, you can take the resulting laughter from your peers and the Lurking gallery with the best possible grace.
Support your local Sysop
Had a lot of enquiries of recent date concerning what's the best "fill in your own interest" program on the BBS. Fact is folks I don't have a clue in most cases. There are more than 4 GB online on the BBS and I hardly ever look at them. On average I would look at the file base once a week I would think, but I can tell you who does look at it all the time.
Our friends the Lurkers and the other active Posters. So if you want to know what the best Sound Blaster compatible Genealogy program is on the BBS the best place to ask is the General message area. You can ask me if you want in the Sysop area, but it's a case of the blind leading the misinformed-and what I'm more likely to do is boot the message out into General anyway.
Another option is to grab the file lists in area 1C of the file section and have a bit of a read. Still if you want first-hand knowledge all you need to do is delurk and ask. (Note: Delurk: The act of posting your first message and therefore disqualifying yourself from the Brotherhood of Lurkers for life.)
Archie, Veronica and Gopher
A sitcom? No. These are utility programs on the internet. To widen my experience of comms (and to inflict my personality on a wider range of people) I am part of the group of people who signed up for the Internet connection that Melb PC recently started.
Interesting place I've got to tell you. I thought it was great that Melb PC BBS has got over 200 message areas but on the Internet there are over 5000! Obviously you can't read them all, although some have tried, so you have to be a little selective about what you do.
There are subjects ranging from rec.pets.cats to comp.sys.unix.wizards to (don't look - it's offensive) alt.sex.bondage - and all sorts in between! I have found a home in a lovely spot called alt.flame where a flak jacket and brass knuckles is the minimum required dress. I'd post up a couple of examples but I couldn't find any that wouldn't cause me to be excommunicated.
All in all it's a most interesting activity and I recommend it to all and sundry. Currently (I'm writing this in July and the situation may have changed) there are a few logins available on Melb PC's server, and there are also others about and I suggest you Lurk or Post in the local Internet area on the BBS for more information.
Here's the tag: ... Anything found bigger than my ego, take it out and shoot it!
Reprinted from the September 1994 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia
