There should be an automatic ban on anyone using the phrase "lol" May 15, 2001 8:55 AM Subscribe
Fuck, I can't even post a decent link without morons taking over.
Personally, I wasn't sure what the purpose of the link was. What would the discussion presumably be around? The label showcase? The artist? His former group Whiskeytown? Your concert experience?
Perhaps it needed to be a little more focused?
posted by chaz at 9:12 AM on May 15, 2001
Perhaps it needed to be a little more focused?
posted by chaz at 9:12 AM on May 15, 2001
There should be an automatic ban on anyone using the phrase "lol"
posted by mathowie (staff) at 9:13 AM on May 15, 2001
posted by mathowie (staff) at 9:13 AM on May 15, 2001
That link was calculated to try something a tad different.
First, I wanted to add what might be a more personal link, something more indicative of the nature of single-contributor blogs. My goal was to promote a less general, more individual approach in links. Less "this was on CNN" and more "have you ever been to..."
Second, I wanted to avoid the tiresome "question" posts. As of right now, there are at least 73 questions on my version of the Metafilter home page. By and large, the questions are not evocative, provacative or stimulating, but willfully ignorant, innocently trite or largely irrelevant. My goal was to provide some key hooks and entry points (band names, a city, a club, musician names), and give people room to set the topic based upon starter info. In other words, planned thread drift.
What I didn't expect was the witless zit-poppers that showed up. Losers.
posted by Mo Nickels at 9:14 AM on May 15, 2001
First, I wanted to add what might be a more personal link, something more indicative of the nature of single-contributor blogs. My goal was to promote a less general, more individual approach in links. Less "this was on CNN" and more "have you ever been to..."
Second, I wanted to avoid the tiresome "question" posts. As of right now, there are at least 73 questions on my version of the Metafilter home page. By and large, the questions are not evocative, provacative or stimulating, but willfully ignorant, innocently trite or largely irrelevant. My goal was to provide some key hooks and entry points (band names, a city, a club, musician names), and give people room to set the topic based upon starter info. In other words, planned thread drift.
What I didn't expect was the witless zit-poppers that showed up. Losers.
posted by Mo Nickels at 9:14 AM on May 15, 2001
Failed, experiment I guess. Watch as I join the throng...
posted by Mo Nickels at 9:17 AM on May 15, 2001
posted by Mo Nickels at 9:17 AM on May 15, 2001
Mo,
I do think it was a valid experiment, and I enjoyed reading something personal and place-specific. But maybe there is a way to do it, without making it a question, because, yeah, that is getting kind of overdone, eh?
Personally I don't know what that way is... maybe it's just in the phrasing. I totally encourage you to try again! Diversity in the style of posts, and not just kind of posts is definitely welcome by me at least.
cheers, lol,
chaz
posted by chaz at 9:36 AM on May 15, 2001
I do think it was a valid experiment, and I enjoyed reading something personal and place-specific. But maybe there is a way to do it, without making it a question, because, yeah, that is getting kind of overdone, eh?
Personally I don't know what that way is... maybe it's just in the phrasing. I totally encourage you to try again! Diversity in the style of posts, and not just kind of posts is definitely welcome by me at least.
cheers, lol,
chaz
posted by chaz at 9:36 AM on May 15, 2001
You deserve points for originality, but I'm not sure what kind of thread drift you were hoping for. Out of all the things you mentioned in the link, I'd venture a guess that 95 percent of the audience had only heard of one of them: Paris, France (including me, of course, or my estimate would be much lower).
You might as well have posted:
Yo ... what does everyone think of Paris?
posted by rcade at 9:43 AM on May 15, 2001
You might as well have posted:
Yo ... what does everyone think of Paris?
posted by rcade at 9:43 AM on May 15, 2001
Let's see now. You began this MT thread with "Fuck." You called the posters to your MF thread "losers" and "morons." You called tourists "scumbags." You certainly seem to have that Parisian politesse down pat.
I have personally used "lol" when (and only when) I was laughing out loud, but generally only in a chat session, and never at my own jokes. What I don't get is people who use "lolololol." What does that stand for?
posted by anapestic at 9:43 AM on May 15, 2001
I have personally used "lol" when (and only when) I was laughing out loud, but generally only in a chat session, and never at my own jokes. What I don't get is people who use "lolololol." What does that stand for?
posted by anapestic at 9:43 AM on May 15, 2001
I liked "witless zit-poppers" myself.
What I don't get is people who use "lolololol." What does that stand for?
If you look closely, it actually contains instructions on bringing down the capitalist system (you may need Opera to zoom in.)
posted by hijinx at 9:53 AM on May 15, 2001
What I don't get is people who use "lolololol." What does that stand for?
If you look closely, it actually contains instructions on bringing down the capitalist system (you may need Opera to zoom in.)
posted by hijinx at 9:53 AM on May 15, 2001
Which opera would that be, hijinx? The Magic Flute, perhaps?
posted by anapestic at 9:57 AM on May 15, 2001
posted by anapestic at 9:57 AM on May 15, 2001
Let's see now. You began this MT thread with "Fuck." You called the posters to your MF thread "losers" and "morons." You called tourists "scumbags." You certainly seem to have that Parisian politesse down pat.
No, see, that's the Missouri skepticism combined with the New York City "Fuck You" varnished with the Parisian you-seem-to-be-a-waste-of-space-and-air look.
And, well, I was angry on fire. I cut out a bunch of the cruder stuff. I just couldn't picture what two of the posters were trying achieve; it reminded me those kind of men who blow or wipe boogers on the wall above urinals in mens rooms around the world so that the rest of us have to stare at them while pissing from an average of five to seven inches away. In both cases, what's the bloody point?
Rcade, yep, you're right. Ninety-five percent of people probably didn't know what I was talking around. That was my third goal, after the first two listed above. Not all threads should be all-inclusive. In fact, I believe making them more exclusive helps a community grow: it provides natural branches on the conversation tree, subcommittees, if you will, who discuss smaller issues that the bigger congress cannot feasibly, or may care not to, debate. The Slashdot karma/moderating system creates artificial subcommittees: unwelcome posts are voted down, leaving only selected topic committee members.
(Now abandoning unwieldy and snowballing metaphor...)
posted by Mo Nickels at 10:25 AM on May 15, 2001
No, see, that's the Missouri skepticism combined with the New York City "Fuck You" varnished with the Parisian you-seem-to-be-a-waste-of-space-and-air look.
And, well, I was angry on fire. I cut out a bunch of the cruder stuff. I just couldn't picture what two of the posters were trying achieve; it reminded me those kind of men who blow or wipe boogers on the wall above urinals in mens rooms around the world so that the rest of us have to stare at them while pissing from an average of five to seven inches away. In both cases, what's the bloody point?
Rcade, yep, you're right. Ninety-five percent of people probably didn't know what I was talking around. That was my third goal, after the first two listed above. Not all threads should be all-inclusive. In fact, I believe making them more exclusive helps a community grow: it provides natural branches on the conversation tree, subcommittees, if you will, who discuss smaller issues that the bigger congress cannot feasibly, or may care not to, debate. The Slashdot karma/moderating system creates artificial subcommittees: unwelcome posts are voted down, leaving only selected topic committee members.
(Now abandoning unwieldy and snowballing metaphor...)
posted by Mo Nickels at 10:25 AM on May 15, 2001
And while I'm rancorous and indignant, I feel compelled to add, "lol" earns instant demerits. I've learned to love simple emoticons, but most of the IRC/AIM chat jargon pipes the writer into my opinion file marked "not worth the time."
(I've been looking for an apartment in New York the past two weeks and one of the possible roommates abbreviated words like "wknd." I wondered if his ISP was charging him by the character.)
posted by Mo Nickels at 10:32 AM on May 15, 2001
(I've been looking for an apartment in New York the past two weeks and one of the possible roommates abbreviated words like "wknd." I wondered if his ISP was charging him by the character.)
posted by Mo Nickels at 10:32 AM on May 15, 2001
Hmm... morons taking over.
I don't know what the link was though, it seemed like a weblog entry, I've, and this may be my fault, haven't heard of these bands or people, and I guess am happy that you bought the cd. Hope you listen to it soon. :)
posted by tiaka at 10:50 AM on May 15, 2001
I don't know what the link was though, it seemed like a weblog entry, I've, and this may be my fault, haven't heard of these bands or people, and I guess am happy that you bought the cd. Hope you listen to it soon. :)
posted by tiaka at 10:50 AM on May 15, 2001
O come on! LOL is perfectly acceptable in chat and IM contexts. When I am especially funny I want people to be able to quickly tell me that I have literally made them laugh out loud. Without LOL and ROTFLMAO I might have to revert back to he archaic "phone" system for such affirmation.
posted by ericost at 11:22 AM on May 15, 2001
posted by ericost at 11:22 AM on May 15, 2001
That link was calculated to try something a tad different.
Every time I've "tried something a little different," I've ended up being the subject of an interminable MetaTalk thread about whether anyone should ever be allowed to try something like that.
Moral: Don't try anything different. It's not worth the trouble.
posted by aaron at 11:36 AM on May 15, 2001
A lengthy rant posted to the front page of MeFi pointing back to other MeFi discussions is different, Aaron, but it's also something that Matt had previously said he didn't want. If Mo wants to try making MeFi more like a personal weblog, more power to him; I hope he tries again with something that I feel more qualified to talk about ("I like Whiskeytown" doesn't really cut it).
posted by snarkout at 12:12 PM on May 15, 2001
posted by snarkout at 12:12 PM on May 15, 2001
"I can't even post a decent link......."
and
"Ninety-five percent of people probably didn't know..."
I think these two things sort of contradict each other.
Posting something only a small fraction of the audience will even understand and then getting bitchy about the result is a little silly.
posted by y6y6y6 at 2:56 PM on May 15, 2001
and
"Ninety-five percent of people probably didn't know..."
I think these two things sort of contradict each other.
Posting something only a small fraction of the audience will even understand and then getting bitchy about the result is a little silly.
posted by y6y6y6 at 2:56 PM on May 15, 2001
It's sort of like throwing the banana peel in front of you rather then over your shoulder.
posted by john at 3:35 PM on May 15, 2001
posted by john at 3:35 PM on May 15, 2001
Or, sorta like trying to pretend we're all alike. Bah. I post eccentrically, but carefully, I think, and I think I will continue in this vein. I've got a couple of percolating (and slightly off the main track) posts that I'm still mulling over. We'll see if I can't not belly flop on those, too.
I think these two things sort of contradict each other.
Maybe, but probably not. There was no call for the uselessness, the pathetic irrelevancies and aggravating non sequiturs. What you do is move on to something that does interest you.
I've been told I'm alone on this, but I think many of the most successful posts are those that send people off Metafilter rather than have them cackle and gossip in a text-based conversation, turning and spiraling in on themselves in a meta-meta self-referencing mobius.
posted by Mo Nickels at 4:46 PM on May 15, 2001
I think these two things sort of contradict each other.
Maybe, but probably not. There was no call for the uselessness, the pathetic irrelevancies and aggravating non sequiturs. What you do is move on to something that does interest you.
I've been told I'm alone on this, but I think many of the most successful posts are those that send people off Metafilter rather than have them cackle and gossip in a text-based conversation, turning and spiraling in on themselves in a meta-meta self-referencing mobius.
posted by Mo Nickels at 4:46 PM on May 15, 2001
I think it was a good thread, though it didn't go anywhere. (Mo, I tried.) I agree with Mo that threads that only appeal to a few people can still be really enjoyable. For one thing, people might actually stumble onto new things there, rather than some topic that everyone has their predictable position on.
posted by rodii at 5:06 PM on May 15, 2001
posted by rodii at 5:06 PM on May 15, 2001
"I've been told I'm alone on this"
I misspoke. Sort of.
I should have added that I like seeing things like this post. I just didn't get it.
My honest impression when the the post came up was, "Hey, that's different. Cool, we need that. It'll never work though."
But still.... "morons taking over".... Getting cranky because no one got it seems a bit...... dramatic.
posted by y6y6y6 at 5:17 PM on May 15, 2001
I misspoke. Sort of.
I should have added that I like seeing things like this post. I just didn't get it.
My honest impression when the the post came up was, "Hey, that's different. Cool, we need that. It'll never work though."
But still.... "morons taking over".... Getting cranky because no one got it seems a bit...... dramatic.
posted by y6y6y6 at 5:17 PM on May 15, 2001
Hey Matt, can we add "OMG" to the non-existant silly acronym filter? TY, CUL8R, TTYL, TTFN.
posted by hijinx at 10:33 AM on May 17, 2001
posted by hijinx at 10:33 AM on May 17, 2001
I've just stumbled across this discussion YO. (I'm from Philly and yo has been part of my vocab since - crimminy, it may have been my first word. Everyone needn't sound like Cronkite ok?) It would have been cool if users could be alerted by email or an icon in one's login status on the page when user specific issues come up. Often times the people who need to see how everyone else feels don't seem to know metatalk exists. Though everyone should regularly try to check out metatalk, I fear my post may not be read this late in the game.
I'm going to have a time out and a beer and think about Mo's point before I make further comment - something I wish we all would do more often.
posted by roboto at 11:38 PM on May 20, 2001
I'm going to have a time out and a beer and think about Mo's point before I make further comment - something I wish we all would do more often.
posted by roboto at 11:38 PM on May 20, 2001
Okay, perhaps I was a little blunt and my comment really should have been placed in MetaTalk to begin with. However, I still feel that pimping your favorite band's new record is akin or worse than trying to sell us on your religion. We all have vastly different tastes in music and the fact that I already own the Squirrel Nut Zippers and Escovedo and yet still made my comment should tell you something. Being user 264, I would think you might appreciate my dismay at the decrease in quality and increase in defacto adverts of posts since the good old days. I can't even listen to commercial free NPR without wincing as you can't even get on the air unless you have a book or cd to sell (or just kicked the bucket and have a book or cd to sell).
I've been reading MeFi for over a year and in April I registered 5320. I posted one front page link I thought everyone would be interested in and it bombed. I didn't cry about it, I started reading the archives (especially MattHowie's) and MetaTalk to get a better understanding of what is good form and what generates good discussion. I suggest you go to the archives yourself, read the comments you've made in the past, see if they stand up to your own harsh litmus test, and back up off me yo.
posted by roboto at 3:36 AM on May 21, 2001
I've been reading MeFi for over a year and in April I registered 5320. I posted one front page link I thought everyone would be interested in and it bombed. I didn't cry about it, I started reading the archives (especially MattHowie's) and MetaTalk to get a better understanding of what is good form and what generates good discussion. I suggest you go to the archives yourself, read the comments you've made in the past, see if they stand up to your own harsh litmus test, and back up off me yo.
posted by roboto at 3:36 AM on May 21, 2001
Also, I'm all for personal comment. I'd love to hear your stories and junk, but I don't think your post meets your own qualifications or stated intentions.
posted by roboto at 3:46 AM on May 21, 2001
posted by roboto at 3:46 AM on May 21, 2001
brav-e-se-mo roboto. the frame work of the post was great, just the content was ...nouveau highbrow?. ya draw some harassing fire, return fire or cease fire. for example i could post a Cuban travel experience from my sister in law (Future) but this could be construed as secondary experience (in its conveyance) or not that interesting (Though it was) subject matter, subject matter.
posted by clavdivs at 9:01 PM on May 21, 2001
posted by clavdivs at 9:01 PM on May 21, 2001
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posted by jennyb at 9:10 AM on May 15, 2001