Message 8880 of 22774 in Behind the Bar

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> An odd touch of philosophy just struck me...It's kind of implied by 
> these last couple of posts that perhaps we shouldn't replay the same 
> old topics, threads, and arguments that took place weeks, months, and 
> even years earlier.  (not suggesting you guys are saying that, just 
> that most people are probably thinking it a little bit)

While it has been a while since I tended bar, I am far from a newcomer to 
forums, and serve as a moderator at a business forum, so I would like to offer 
the following for consideration.

The whole concept of forums is an exciting part of the internet to one 
interested in learning from others who are practitioners or users of 
something. Unfortunately, any forum can be derailed by people who are 
determined to take the forum off topic, or by flame wars. I detest either, 
because it endangers the health of the forum itself.*
> 
> If we did follow that particular thought, wouldn't these forums be 
> pretty much dead within a week or two.

The new people coming to a forum are often not committed to doing more than 
lurking or possibly posting a question because they are looking for an answer 
to a specific question. The key to attracting them into staying longer is to 
try to grit your teeth and answer a question that may appear elementary or one 
that has been answered time and again. I write this knowing it can get really 
old, and one is tempted to answer with a terse, "Use the search function". 
Unfortunately, that answer may drive them away. Some may have tried the search 
function and not found the right answer. Others may not find it. Others may 
not know how to use it.

*Forums need new blood to survive, and the more people that come and stay at 
any given forum, the better off it is. The more people can do to welcome new 
blood, the more likely they will stay and contribute themselves.
> 
> Don't get me wrong, I tend to get pretty tired with arguments like 
> this particular one is/has/could shape up to be.

We are in absolute agreement. When Jill posts to ask, "What can I do to keep 
the boss from demanding blowj@bs from me"?, she doesn't need to hear why it is 
wrong, or right in some people's thinking, for the demand to occur. What she 
wants is specific advice from people who know what they are talking about.

In the forum I moderate, I remove all off topic posts, notify the poster, and 
repost them under a new thread with a new title. That keeps people on topic 
after they understand what is going on. I also remove anything that even 
smells like a flame, because that is not in the best interests of the forum or 
the people who are trying to use the forum for the purpose it was intended. 
One thing that has helped, is a sub forum where people can talk about anything 
including their likes and dislikes with a clear understanding that people can 
rant in the sub forum, but not in the main forum.

  When I first joined 
> this forum, for some weird reason (somehow disregarding ALL of the 
> forums to which I've taken part in) I seemed to believe that some of 
> the arguments were being done for the first time.  I don't think I've 
> even been a part of this forum for all that long (maybe something 
> like 7-8 months now), and I've already been a part in a couple of 
> threads to which I was a part in an earlier version a few months 
> earlier.  Yeah, I've even linked back to my own postings a couple of 
> times to save the typing :)

Of course, that is what anyone new is going to think. I personally, like the 
practice of linking as it gives new people access to information that is often 
beyond what they asked for while teaching them that something they are 
interested in may be already answered, giving them an incentive to use the 
search function.
> 
> I'm not even saying it's good or bad that these topics are being 
> repeated...I haven't even made a conclusion on that.  I will say, it 
> does seem to take too much time to read the same book over again, but 
> I am always curious what the new people might add to the talks

Cody, you do a good job of dealing with new people. I think it was you who 
responded to someone asking if vodka had more taste than gin. Frankly, when I 
saw that question I was speechless that someone of legal age even had to ask 
that question.

People come and choose to stay for different reasons. Frankly, the forums I 
have been associated with usually keep peoples regular interest for about a 
year, and then the frequency of visits become less and less until they no 
longer come at all. A few will stay for years, but there is usually a reason 
such as self promotion for doing so. Frankly, I don't view self promotion as a 
bad thing as long as it isn't just junk posting, so that doesn't bother me. I 
use another forum that is brand and model specific to a particular sports car 
and the mfr has people they pay to monitor and post in the forum and it has 
been invaluable to everyone who uses that forum. It might be nice if some of 
the suppliers to the bar biz was doing the same here, although it appears that 
many others who post here don't agree.

On a side note, I have no personal ax to grind with Beans or anyone else. My 
response was far more general. I would like to see threads stay on topic, and 
not degenerate becaue I believe the forum will be more valuable for it. If 
someone wants to complain about the practice of generalizations, or tipping, 
or whatever, please consider starting a new thread with the appropriate title. 
Just my opinion.

Chance