Amen! Can I Get A Witness?

[RPGnet Columns]

Post originally by Matt Drake at 2001-12-14 05:34:12
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This is an incredible summation of how things work - in general, and at RPG.net. People argue for hours on end with the sole purpose of proving their point. Those that recognize the possibility of more than one 'right' viewpoint are usually ridiculed as being unable to stick to their convictions.

And that bit about 'competing' websites. What a crock. Like there just isn't time enough in the day to go to more than one website. RPG.net is cool, and so is Pyramid, and so is WebRPG. And I can go to all of them in one day! Not only that, but I could visit more sites than that! Competition between web sites is a ludicrous idea. In order to be competitive, two entities must be exclusive, and web sites are not.

Matt, who wants us all to just get along, but still flame every now and then 'cuz it's fun

[RPGnet Columns]

Post originally by S. Ben Melhuish at 2001-12-14 09:43:26
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Sandy wrote:

> Ridiculous! Everyone knows the purpose of a debate is to Win, not to
> actually reach a consensus!

On this note, there's an interesting review on Scientific American of a book on linguistics and the Internet ("Language and the Internet" by David Crystal) (http://www.sciam.com/2001/1201issue/1201reviews1.html). The relevant quote:

> He also reports on the scholarly literature of computer-mediated
> communication, including such gems as the finding that, in contrast to
> females, males on academic newslists sent longer messages, made
> stronger assertions and engaged in more self-promotion, while making
> fewer apologies and asking fewer questions.

I found this reminiscent of many forums/discussion groups I lurk on....