Most users ever online was 859, 11-02-2010 at 02:37 PM.

That's around 200 more than the previous high, isn't it? I believe it was in the 600 range. That's pretty amazing!

Hmmm. Too bad I missed the party...

Not many people posting in the Watercooler or politics forums though.

Why doesn't anyone use it like they used to? You don't log in for over a week and yet nothing has changed.

Where's all the friendly banter gone?

Dave

Not many people posting in the Watercooler or politics forums though.

Why doesn't anyone use it like they used to? You don't log in for over a week and yet nothing has changed.

Where's all the friendly banter gone?

Dave

One person's banter is anothers .. well I'm not sure what to call it but many seemed to get a bit hot under the collar, sure people like ColinEssex, Rich, Mike375 and even KenHiggs plus maybe others, me? could be not only a pain in the butt, but way over the top at times, but hey that is better than all being docile too afraid to speak incase you offend some over sensitive thin skinned, oops I'd better quit.

Pauldoheart and I have crossed swords a few times but we still also have friendly conversations occasionally, the latest on my birthday thread. Life is far too short to get uptight at the slightest thing much less over the comments of somebody you don't really know and who can be ignored with consummate ease.

Brian

One person's banter is anothers .. well I'm not sure what to call it but many seemed to get a bit hot under the collar, sure people like ColinEssex, Rich, Mike375 and even KenHiggs plus maybe others, me? could be not only a pain in the butt, but way over the top at times, but hey that is better than all being docile too afraid to speak incase you offend some over sensitive thin skinned, oops I'd better quit.

Pauldoheart and I have crossed swords a few times but we still also have friendly conversations occasionally, the latest on my birthday thread. Life is far too short to get uptight at the slightest thing much less over the comments of somebody you don't really know and who can be ignored with consummate ease.

Brian

I get banned every autumn - avoided it this year! Old age, I think.

Profile Warning
Reason: Inappropriate Language 04-09-2009 03:34 AM by DCrake 0 / Expired
Profile Infraction
Reason: Inappropriate Language 05-08-2008 09:01 AM by boblarson 1 / Expired
Profile Warning
Reason: Inappropriate Language 06-08-2007 06:49 AM by boblarson 0 / Expired


SAD.

Hey Paul there is still time, or is it officially winter?

I do remember you calling me a few "choice" names during one of our "discussions" so maybe i'm not surprised, but with less arguments taking place you may survive the winter. :D

Maybe I should start a discussion about Benitez. ;)

Brian

I get banned every autumn - avoided it this year! Old age, I think.

Profile Warning
Reason: Inappropriate Language 04-09-2009 03:34 AM by DCrake 0 / Expired
Profile Infraction
Reason: Inappropriate Language 05-08-2008 09:01 AM by boblarson 1 / Expired
Profile Warning
Reason: Inappropriate Language 06-08-2007 06:49 AM by boblarson 0 / Expired


SAD.

Hey, it'll be summer in the Southern Hemisphere soon, maybe we should aim for that? :p

sure people like ColinEssex, Rich, Mike375 and even KenHiggs plus maybe others, me? could be not only a pain in the butt, but way over the top at times, but hey that is better than all being docile too afraid to speak incase you offend some over sensitive thin skinned,

So why not get them back?

I see one or two of them are now banned - unban them with a warning to be less whatever. . .. Paul admits he is banned regularly, yet is still here. Others seem to be banned forever.

The way I see it is that the site here has become sterile - it seems to me that people are too afraid now to post in case they get banned. It seems the slightest thing contentious can invoke a ban now.

Those that wanted to turn down the flames of discussion have now extinguished them altogether.

What a shame. This was a good forum, way better than Utter Access.

Am I alone in thinking this?

Dave

I've noticed this in a few forums..

So I'm guessing its not Access forums specific just some kind of changing population thing going on.

Maybe we're all getting burnout

You've chucked the kettle the plates and the cups at each other once already not quite so good the second time round.

Hey Paul there is still time, or is it officially winter?

I do remember you calling me a few "choice" names during one of our "discussions" so maybe i'm not surprised, but with less arguments taking place you may survive the winter. :D


Brian

Looking at it again - it looks like my warnings are spring early summer, so hopefully I am ok this year. Damn American dates?

So why not get them back?

I see one or two of them are now banned - unban them with a warning to be less whatever. . .. Paul admits he is banned regularly, yet is still here. Others seem to be banned forever.

The way I see it is that the site here has become sterile - it seems to me that people are too afraid now to post in case they get banned. It seems the slightest thing contentious can invoke a ban now.

Those that wanted to turn down the flames of discussion have now extinguished them altogether.

What a shame. This was a good forum, way better than Utter Access.

Am I alone in thinking this?

Dave

My ban(s) were deserved - I had 3 warnings 1 or 2 of which were actual bans.

--
Is that you Col?

2 Happy Birthday threads, 2 threads highlighting Cols not here? Interest in i phone apps, online selling - all in 7 posts, with nostalgia for how things used to be, and a hint you may be British?

Hmmmmm all very suspicious. Welcome back if its you! Dont wake the plummer though.

The way I see it is that the site here has become sterile - it seems to me that people are too afraid now to post in case they get banned. It seems the slightest thing contentious can invoke a ban now.

Those that wanted to turn down the flames of discussion have now extinguished them altogether.

What a shame. This was a good forum, way better than Utter Access.

Am I alone in thinking this?

DavePersonally I think the site is excellent and has cleaned up its act a bit.

Imho it comes down to what the site is about i.e. what is its objective/purpose, target audience etc. If the objective is to generate lots of traffic then this forum (the watercooler) is great. However, if the objective is to generate a reputation as a place to come for good Access/IT advice then the Watercooler rather detracts from that. There have been several periods over the last few years where activity in the watercooler has completely overshadowed the rest of the site. Obviously it is down to the site owner what the strategy should be.

I rarely get involved in the watercooler. This is not because I think I will get banned. By far the main reason for this is because it’s too difficult to have a sensible discussion without certain people dropping it to a personal level or making inappropriate or antagonistic comments. I'm not talking about a bit of gentle ribbing here. I talking about deeping offensive comments that are simply not appropriate at a football match let along in our society in general. However, things have changed so I might take a look more often.

The Access/IT forums in the site seem to be flourishing - hence Vassago's opening post. There seem to be lots of newcomers asking questions and lots of people, old and new, always ready to answer them. I think questions are generally answered very positively and friendly and diligently. I also think that members are respectful of other members’ views (even if they don’t agree). I think these are the points that set this site apart from others - not the watercooler.

Chris

One person's banter is anothers .. well I'm not sure what to call it but many seemed to get a bit hot under the collar, sure people like ColinEssex, Rich, Mike375 and even KenHiggs plus maybe others, me? could be not only a pain in the butt, but way over the top at times, but hey that is better than all being docile too afraid to speak incase you offend some over sensitive thin skinned, oops I'd better quit.

I agree up to a point. However the problem was that it spilled over to the access-related boards and people's personal websites. When you start giving out the banter via messages through a contact form on someone's personal website and they've asked you to stop then it starts to look like bullying. Not being thick-skinned doesn't give others' carte-blanche to harrass when they've been asked to stop.


Pauldoheart and I have crossed swords a few times but we still also have friendly conversations occasionally, the latest on my birthday thread. Life is far too short to get uptight at the slightest thing much less over the comments of somebody you don't really know and who can be ignored with consummate ease.

Everyone responds to stress differently. You can't legislate for that. There's a certain intelligence required to assess the impact of one's own behavior and adjust accordingly for the common good. The onus should be on courtesy not on individual's stress thresholds.

The Access/IT forums in the site seem to be flourishing - hence Vassago's opening post. There seem to be lots of newcomers asking questions and lots of people, old and new, always ready to answer them. I think questions are generally answered very positively and friendly and diligently. I also think that members are respectful of other members’ views (even if they don’t agree). I think these are the points that set this site apart from others - not the watercooler.

Chris

Interesting point. What is the purpose of the site and in reality what part does the watercooler actually play in it. The site is showing record figures.

Are the results speaking for themselves?

I agree up to a point. However the problem was that it spilled over to the access-related boards and people's personal websites. When you start giving out the banter via messages through a contact form on someone's personal website and they've asked you to stop then it starts to look like bullying. Not being thick-skinned doesn't give others' carte-blanche to harrass when they've been asked to stop..

I didn't know that, and agree that that is certainly wrong.


Everyone responds to stress differently. You can't legislate for that. There's a certain intelligence required to assess the impact of one's own behavior and adjust accordingly for the common good. The onus should be on courtesy not on individual's stress thresholds.

I agree in part, courtesy and a willingness to apologise and withdraw material others find offensive are essential for the Watercooler to function, but some seem to get uptight so easily, does an unknown person's opinion really cause stress ?

Brian

I agree in part, courtesy and a willingness to apologise and withdraw material others find offensive are essential for the Watercooler to function, but some seem to get uptight so easily, does an unknown person's opinion really cause stress ?


I think it can, I have been a part of this forum for over a year now, and I have certainly come to see this site as a community of sorts. Not the kind where I would necessarily tell you all my personal life as I would a group of friends, but certainly a community of people I respect and admire. As such I know that things on here can effect me just as much as things out there in the "real world." Given proper perspective helps me get a grip on stressful feelings but they can be there none the less (Should this be one word?).

I didn't know that, and agree that that is certainly wrong.

Yep, people have been complaining that the 'moderators' have been overly harsh but they were working with unrepentant individual(s) who really got up to this kind of stuff. Not nice and really can you fault some kind of response?



I agree in part, courtesy and a willingness to apologise and withdraw material others find offensive are essential for the Watercooler to function, but some seem to get uptight so easily, does an unknown person's opinion really cause stress ?

I think so. That's why we all get a little 'hot under the collar' sometimes. Like you say, it's the ability to recognize and respond to the red line that is essential. If you don't have that then you can always keep pushing until you do reach someone's stress threshold.

It doesn't mean you can't have heated debate. Just that people should always be prepared to turn the heat down if the cakes are getting burnt. :p

none the less (Should this be one word?).

I think it might be hyphenated, certainly not one word, but I wont get pedantic about it. Anybody out there good at English?

Brian


Oops, in the on line dictionary it is shown as 1 word :o

well it is over half a century since I was at school.

Brian

...things on here can effect me...
Affect - not effect :D
none the less (Should this be one word?).
hyphenated -

none-the-less

http://downloads.btabdevelopment.com/smiletongueout.jpg

I think it might be hyphenated, certainly not one word, but I wont get pedantic about it. Anybody out there good at English?

Brian

I've always written it as one word, who's going to google it first?

nonetheless is correct isn't it?

nonetheless is correct isn't it?
Yes, according to dictionary.com (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/nonetheless?db=dictionary), either nonetheless or none-the-less would be appropriate.

I was busy editing my post when you all posted, Paul is correct. :mad:

Brian

Edit
I'm getting far too slow at typing.

I think it might be hyphenated, certainly not one word, but I wont get pedantic about it. Anybody out there good at English?

Brian

I just looked at the Oxford Dictionary online (http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1271834#m_en_us1271834) and it has it as one word and says underneath "also none the less" The only reason I asked is because I try to be correct, and I think I remember seeing it as one word in some books. Anyway, it's off topic but thanks about not being pedantic about it. :p

EDIT: HA! I was busy writing a response to Brian when all or you posted! @BobLarson - Doh! effect vs affect always gets me, I always got points off on papers due to it.

Edit 2: Spelling of the word "pepers" to "papers" :o

I was busy editing my post when you all posted, Paul is correct. :mad:



I know!



I googled it to be sure :-)


-------------------
Now I certainly believe Brians original post to have been edited - or I wouldn't have replied, Brian says he edited it. I know when I edit mine it puts and edited thing in the bottom.

SO why cant I see edited on Brians post? I have closed the browser and reopened ....?? Uh?

THese forums move in mysterious ways - a misunderstanding over how they work has led to 2 out of 3 of my warnings.

I see Krysts edited one too and it doesn't show up? So I'm editing this to see what happens ?

Anyway, I'll chime in briefly on the question of banned individuals. The individuals who have been somewhat referred to wound up pushing things way too far with the entire admin/mod team (not just a single person) and appeared to learn nothing from the temporary vacation. So, they were granted a permanent vacation - again not by any single mod or admin but by all of us - due to their refusal to stop the behaviour which was spilling over into other areas of the forum.

So for us it was either go completely lawless and see things totally deteriorate on all parts of the forum, or do something to halt the spread of the problems and maintain at least some decorum. We chose the latter.

@BobLarson - Doh! effect vs affect always gets me, I always got points off on pepers due to it.

Just remember that affect comes first, affect is the influence and effect the result.

Brian

Now Krysts edit has shown on the second edit, mine has shown also. Is there a time period before the edit kicks in?

I know!



I googled it to be sure :-)


-------------------
Now I certainly believe Brians original post to have been edited - or I wouldn't have replied, Brian says he edited it. I know when I edit mine it puts and edited thing in the bottom.

SO why cant I see edited on Brians post? I have closed the browser and reopened ....?? Uh?

THese forums move in mysterious ways - a misunderstanding over how they work has led to 2 out of 3 of my warnings.

I see Krysts edited one too and it doesn't show up? So I'm editing this to see what happens ?

I too am puzzled, I thought the edit didn't show up only if you completed it before any other posts were posted, but that didn't happen this time, but yes the forum does behave oddly at times.

Brian

Edit I edited posts 18 and 23 but it is not shown, does it not show if you don't give a reason for the edit?

I'll add to what Bob said above. I've been here a long time and years ago when I first became a member, there were never discussions of a political or religious nature, even by the banned individuals, yet the Watercooler was by far the most active part of the forum! We all got along great and I made about 500 posts a week easily on my own! Unfortunately, I don't know if it's the times we live in, but certain focuses on some individuals seemed to turn very personal and caused previous friendly discussion to turn to debate, which turned to insults. When it spreads to the help related forums, it shows it's gone too far.

No one was banned permanently without multiple warnings leading up to such a step. Sure, some of them may be back under different usernames, and as long as they stay away from what caused them to be originally banned, I'm okay with that. We keep an eye on IP registrations and posts and bans regularly, so it's very hard for people to avoid being caught, but we also learn to forgive and forget if someone shows change in their behavior.

It's never a good idea to see someone banned that has earned a reputation here. It's also never easy to see that reputation deteriorate because of unprofessional behavior. We never ban anyone permanently without a unanimous decision by all staff and rarely ban temporarily without the same unless it's to discuss it further amongst ourselves. I hope that clears it up.

Going back to the topic of the thread, I think the numbers speak for themselves. We are hitting record traffic. Did any of you ever think it might be because of removing the personal attacks and such that ventured to the main part of the forum?

I too am puzzled, I thought the edit didn't show up only if you completed it before any other posts were posted, but that didn't happen this time, but yes the forum does behave oddly at times.

Brian

Edit I edited posts 18 and 23 but it is not shown, does it not show if you don't give a reason for the edit?

It depends on how fast the edit occurs. If you edit it quickly enough, it won't show the edit.

Just remember that affect comes first, affect is the influence and effect the result.

Brian

That is the easiest explanation to remember EVER. Plus, it helps that alphabetically, affect comes before effect. I'll never have to take more than a second to decide which to use ever again.

That is the easiest explanation to remember EVER. Plus, it helps that alphabetically, affect comes before effect. I'll never have to take more than a second to decide which to use ever again.

Good to see you around! Don't hear from you often. :p

I visit more often than anyone is aware.
At least once or twice a week. But you are right... you don't hear from me often. :)
I just don't have much to add to the discussions most of the time.
:)

So for us it was either go completely lawless and see things totally deteriorate on all parts of the forum, or do something to halt the spread of the problems and maintain at least some decorum. We chose the latter.
Thanks for clarifying that, Bob. I was glad to see it was a collective decision and not just 1 person's.

Just remember that affect comes first, affect is the influence and effect the result.

Brilliant however not helped by the definition of an "affectation"

which is the demonstration of an effect on a person

Yes but when it comes to STDs the "affection" comes before the "infection".

That is the easiest explanation to remember EVER. Plus, it helps that alphabetically, affect comes before effect. I'll never have to take more than a second to decide which to use ever again.

The alphabetic order is the key, sorry I didn't say that, but knew the people here bright enough to see that. :)

I owe that explanation to a good English teacher, old pegleg, he lost a leg in WW1, understood boys and taught us to enjoy English.

Brian

Yes but when it comes to STDs the "affection" comes before the "infection".

........Very good

But the "infection" before the "affliction". Exception to the rule I guess.

That is the fundamental rule of English. Every rule has at least one exception.

It is a fabulous language. Comes from not being precious about the fidelity of the tongue and adopting any word we like from any language.

Thanks for clarifying that, Bob. I was glad to see it was a collective decision and not just 1 person's.
Thank god the Americans are still protecting us;)

Thank god the Americans are still protecting us;)
http://www.access-programmers.co.uk/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=34450&stc=1&d=1289838123
http://www.access-programmers.co.uk/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=34451&stc=1&d=1289838123
http://www.access-programmers.co.uk/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=34452&stc=1&d=1289838123

http://www.access-programmers.co.uk/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=34450&stc=1&d=1289838123
http://www.access-programmers.co.uk/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=34451&stc=1&d=1289838123
http://www.access-programmers.co.uk/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=34452&stc=1&d=1289838123


Just as we thought! Misplaced Americans! :D

Just as we thought! Misplaced Americans! :D

Shhh, we're secretly invading these countries!

Shhh, we're secretly invading these countries!
Not so secret with all the US tourists:D