What is going wrong with the Forum? | Page 6 | Fab Forum | The Beatles Bible

Holy heck, @Leppo. What was the thread? I am SO THANKFUL the experience didn’t chase you away from the forum.

One of my first posts on the forum was the beginning of a new thread. Zig gently steered me to the proper thread. https://www.beatlesbible.com/f…..g-to-play/ I didn’t let it stop me from becoming active on the forum.

I’m sad to hear that people see cliques here. I know we talk about our lives a lot. If people come in and don’t know the whole background story, is that what makes them feel like outsiders? If anyone wants to know the story behind a story, I hope they will ask.

I hope folks will feel free to PM me if I am causing them discomfort or if they feel discomfort with something else going on. Hopefully We Can Work It Out . I want us all to be one big happy Bealtes family.

Leppo said

Ahhh Girl said
Holy heck, @Leppo. What was the thread? I am SO THANKFUL the experience didn’t chase you away from the forum.

With hindsight I was in the wrong as I started a thread about “Best Beatle books” when it had been covered before. But I noticed it started a heated debate on the “Mother Superior” thread between the mods. I thought it was going to be a full scale escalation it to DEFCON 1.   

I don’t think Joe can go above DEFCON 114. He’s just too chill.

I looked back at the thread you created. I see how that the exchange that developed could make someone go or or

I do Ron Ron (that was a funny line!)

Glad you didn’t get scared off.

I would imagine that @Bongo would say that what is wrong with the forum is that it needs more cowbells.

Mademoiselle Kitty >^..^< said
Not sure if my ramble is going to add anything, but at least it’ll be another new forum post, so yay! 

Every once in a while, I’ll search for something to see if it’s been discussed yet. Often, it has, but the topic hasn’t been updated in years. Sometimes, I’ll add my comments anyway, but usually I don’t. The reason for that being, I don’t know what the general consensus on reviving dead topics is. I used to go to a forum that had strict rules about ‘necromancy’ as they called it, and it you revived ancient topics often enough, it could earn you a ban. So, not wanting to annoy the Forumpudlians any more than I already do on a regular basis, I often choose not to reply. I can’t be the only one who has qualms about digging up topics that have been dormant for years.

There are no rules to where you can post or an expiry day on threads. If you want to post in a thread 7 years old please post (within a very small reason, a few were dug up some months ago but from what I can remember they were threads that were inane at the time never mind now. The forum was very different back then. Maybe it could all have been handled better when they were.).

I also think that some of the more opinionated members, myself included, sometimes make people reluctant to post. It can be very intimidating to reply to something after one of our more controversial members has posted, knowing there’s a good chance they’ll come after you if you write something they disagree with. It’s happened to me, and I am very ashamed to realise I’ve done it to others as well. I try not to, it’s just that there are a few people here who manage to make me forget how to count to 10. I’m working on it, mainly by attempting to avoid the topics started or frequented by those members. I’m only one person, though, and not even the biggest offender. I’m not sure every one of our more abrasive members are aware of their impact. I’m not trying to point fingers, just trying to think out loud, so to speak.

I’m no doubt guilty of this and apologise now (again, for the 85th time); I willingly admit i lack tact, it’s one of my many failings. I do have the opinion however that its a public forum where differing opinions will be raised and nothing is meant personally. It’s good to be opinionated, it’s how you g about it.

Just like any forum, there are cliques on this one as well, and that may very well be the main issue why new members often don’t stay or become active. I consider myself to be at the fringe of the central group: I’m not an outsider, but I’m also not part of the in-crowd. It hasn’t stopped me from becoming active, but it does keep me from being as active as I’d like to be. There are many inside jokes that go over my head, there’s a lot of off-topic banter that can be very off-putting, and sometimes there’s some degree of bullying going on.

Now, let me stress that compared to most forums I’ve frequented, this place is more inclusive than any other place I’ve been. It’s generally a great forum, with mods who manage to keep things from getting out of hand. But the clique is very clearly visible for a newcomer, and it nearly made me give up when I first got here. So, perhaps we should all be more aware of that. We’ve got a wonderful welcoming committee in the form of @Ahhh Girl and @Beatlebug who are worth their weight in gold. Perhaps if we would all aspire to being a bit kinder to new members, more people would choose to stay.

There’s so much knowledge here, which can be terribly intimidating. Perhaps we should have some beginner topics, where we don’t go out of our way to show out Beatleclopedia skills, but rather just have some easy-going, welcoming Beatles-related chat which would make it easy for anyone to join in without feeling stupid for not knowing who played which instruments on all songs of the White Album  by heart, or for not knowing how many hairs were sticking out of Paul’s nose on 12 December, 1965. Yes, I know we have some fairly accessible topics. Let’s have some more, and keep them active. Or revive some of the older ones. You know, make people want to chat with us… 

If any bullying is going on then it needs to be reported to the mods, we do anonymity if so desired. Please contact us without hesitation as it should not be part of the forum. If it’s by a mod then PM Joe and he will deal with it. No mod is ever bulletproof or beyond reproach.

And i don’t mean to be demeaning but this does remind me of the time during the ‘White Album ‘

Ringo: While we were recording the ‘White’ album we ended up being more of a band again, and that’s what I always love. I love being in a hand. Of course, I must have moments of turmoil, because I left the group for a while that summer.
            I left because I felt two things: I felt I wasn’t playing great, and I also felt that the other three were really happy and I was an outsider. I went to see John, who had been living in my apartment in Montagu Square with Yoko since he moved out of Kenwood. I said, ‘I’m Leaving the group because I’m not playing well and I feel unloved and out of it, and you three are really close.’ And John said, ‘I thought it was you three!’
            So then I went over to Paul’s and knocked on his door. I said the same thing: ‘I’m leaving the band. I feel you three guys are really close and I’m out of it.’ And Paul said, ‘I thought it was you three!’
            I didn’t even bother going to George then. I said, ‘I’m going on holiday.’ I took the kids and we went to Sardinia.

Sadly I think the only way to really feel one belongs is to join in and post and become part of the place through interaction. I personally don’t bother with cliques and would fail to spot one. I also don’t bother with thinking of thanks before posting, tho they are nice if they come. If you want to post please don’t stop because of lack of a ‘thank you’ or because you think no one cares, agrees etc as that is total bullshit thinking. The forum only works if people post and so often its the seemingly inconsequential ones that do spark off the discussions. The forum should be all inclusive and if folk feel ‘on the outside’ then we are doing something wrong.

If ever I offend, hurt or step over a line with anything please PM and tell me or tell another mod and let them do it. I won’t be offended and actually would be far happier if you did (however it’s done).

As for thread content I’m not a fan of the ranking threads as normally it is only a list with no explanations but they do hold a purpose and we all have differing opinions on what threads are of interest and which ones should be nuked. Sometimes we mods get it wrong with our actions towards them but the fundamental basis of being here is The Beatles and that does need to be maintained and is what we do strive for.

I expect 34 “thanks” and 7 gold stars for this.