80 to none
 

Sometimes, I get incredibly bored...does it show?

I was perusing the members list tonight. Out of the almost 300 people that have registered here, 80 of them have not posted at all. Granted, we have a lot of lurkers out there...but I would like to encourage the 80 folks that have not yet posted to do so. Just one post! Whether it be "Hello" or "Duh" or "Why is this moron named after a tree?"...post it...right here! :)

why is this moron named after a tree?



just kiddin. i know why. i think lurkers are a very important part of any forum. and i actually enjoy people who lurk then register because at least then they know the flow of things. as opposed to some people who join and start giving everyone else hell.




so to all you lurkers, cheers!

Oh sure...I can appreciate that as well. My only complaint about "lurking" as a whole is that those that do but don't post may have some great insight or information that we're missing out on.

I think a lot of it is that many people don't really enjoy communicating this way.

For those of us who do, that seems odd. But there have been many friends of mine over the years whom I've asked to stop by and take a look, and sometimes they stay a while, but most of the time they just try it and figure it's not really for them.

Some of them, I think, are not really strong readers. I mean, sometimes we get high-falutin'. And some of it is just being intimidated by it all. I don't know how to address that, if it's even possible.

But much of it is that they just don't connect with people this way.

I don't know. I've tried the IRC thing many times, but I don't really get that... it seems stupid and pointless. I can imagine different people thinking the same way about here, and other such web communities. You talk to these people, but you don't know them? What's in it for them? Doesn't it take a long time?

i think a lot of it is intentions.


some people want to join an online community so that they can get to know people, even if they never see them. others are completely closed-minded about it all, just blowing through to prove that its not for them.



i can see why people get intimidated. there are some people here that spend way too much time and post way too much, but hey, if it floats your boat. there also seems to be a ring of peope who know each other here, mostly of the people who have met in person. i have no intention of meeting some of you guys(no offense) but that still doesnt stop me from posting. and some people are introverts. theres no explaining that.



but as always people are people and do things for their own reasons. people are different, (this is gonna make my live-in politically-correct police officer proud) we have to except that and move on.

Quite possible. For many, this is still a new medium. It's hard to sometimes get your point across in this medium.

Last summer, I did internet customer service for the company I worked for in Maryland. 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, I would just e-mail customers all day. 500 or so e-mails a week. I loved the challenge of it...because I had to come up with a new way to communicate to the customers. It was the first year that our company had done full-blown internet customer service, so I was proud of the fact that I could take the ball and run with it...make it my "baby." Most of the people I dealt with were from overseas (mostly Asia), so not only am I dealing with a new format, but a different culture. And it turned out very well. The main thing I did in setting it up was thinking of my own experiences with e-service: "Man, I've gotten some shitty customer service e-mails. They just sound boring...like they could give a fuck less. How can I change that?"

Quote:

Some of them, I think, are not really strong readers. I mean, sometimes we get high-falutin'. And some of it is just being intimidated by it all. I don't know how to address that, if it's even possible.

Some of us do come across as intimidating. But (and I am *hoping* this is the case here) the nice thing about the Cellar is that it *seems* as if we are acting "normal." That is, I am no different here than I am in real life...and I would think the same of others. And maybe that should be part of the mantra here Tony..."just be yourself." It sounds corny as hell, but there is something to that. That's why I come here. Because we can talk about things we like and dislike, and agree or disagree. I could imagine myself and tw actually talking about extremism, or jag and I debating over socialism and the first world.

Wow...I can't believe I've been here almost a year already. It went by fast...

*raises hand* guilty...and my boat is floating well. ;)

The initial reason I came to the Cellar is b/c it was a chance for me to meet some fellow Philadelphians. I've only been in this city a bit over a year, and truth be told, Rho and I do not have any friends here. But over the course of the year, this has become the first place I hit when I come online. Because I have never found a place online before where there is real intelligent talk. And I've learned so much from being on here (like Linux...I had never heard of it before coming here). It's like Tony says on the "What's The Cellar?" link: "If you like it, the time you'll have spent will be rewarded a thousand times over."

I lurked first, never having really participated in a thing like this...I was a bit intimidated, but ventured a post. I think its like any social situation... you walk up to a group of people who know each other and are talking and are you going to risk butting in? But Its been great. I found myself enjoying the insights of all you dwellars, intelligent, diverse points of view, challenging me to really define my position on many questions and a strong sense of humor. Before I knew it, I blew past 100 posts. I'm happy to be here. Thanks Tony and all.

:)