I guess it has changed over the years.

In the early days of the internet (particularly on Usenet) It was generally a term for describing posts most people would describe as utterly worthless but yet consuming, "bandwidth." This is in keeping with the canned meat product infamous for packing extraordinary calories while providing no nutritional benefits at all.

Bandwidth was important in those early days because there wasn't a lot of it available. Some idiot posting nonsense was slowing access to someone posting meaningful content. This was in the day when most people were accessing the internet through 28.8K telephone MODEMS or even less. So the term, "spam" was coined to discourage users from posting crap which only served to slow everyone else's access while contributing nothing.

Today, "bandwidth" is rarely an issue - especially on discussion forums like this one. Some moron posting absolute crap will not impede access to someone posting meaningful content because there is plenty of "bandwidth" available to everyone.

So, "spam" seems to now be re-defined to only include unsolicited offerings of entrepreneurs offering such fine products as penis enlargers.

Now, there is tolerance of immature people posting CRAP that not only offers nothing of value to anyone looking for serious discussion but forces them to filter through multiple posts and threads of absolute GARBAGE!

Where there used to be multitudes of discussion boards like this one, there are now thousands of FUCKING Facebook groups!

Does anyone here see the value of restricting dedicated discussion forums like this one to serious posters and let the children post on Facebook? Maybe that way, we can distinguish ourselves as serious forums dedicated to serious content? Otherwise, why not just post on Facebook groups?

I believe dedicated discussion groups like this one are very valuable but ONLY if they distinguish themselves as apart from the people who most wish to discuss such minutia as who's sleeping with who. How else are we to distinguish ourselves? How do we not otherwise become irrelevant? If we are not different (better) than a Facebook group, why would anyone pay attention to us?

Food for thought.

Most people think I post crap. Sad fact is, on an atheist forum where little intelligent theistic discussion is to be had, it's either argue with trolls or create off topic threads.

Goodness knows I've made my share of theistically related threads attempting to incite debate, but those are far and between since they receive little to no attention.

My off topic threads receive attention, though.

How do we decide what is good discussion and what is garbage?

(May 17, 2018 at 1:05 am)Kit Wrote: My off topic threads receive attention, though.

Indeed. They receive the type of attention that make this forum look like Romper Room. Sorry, I don't see any value in that.

Here at AF we are known worldwide as the poop specialists!

We argue with religious people if we got time! lol

Perhaps you should put in a suggestion to have the off topic area removed. I have a feeling that offering suggestions has become quite the fad lately.

(May 17, 2018 at 1:06 am)Losty Wrote: How do we decide what is good discussion and what is garbage?

Good question.

For the purpose of distinguishing dedicated forums like this with Facebook groups, I would look for discussion which is generally regarded as more mature than what you see in a Facebook group. I realize that that would be a subjective criteria in itself but in general, I would encourage us to aim the bar higher.

I realize what I'm suggesting is not an easy task but if we don't rise up to it, there will be no forums on the web but Facebook groups and that would be such a tragedy.

I would rather go back to Usenet than be limited to a WWW dominated by Facebook.

(May 17, 2018 at 1:36 am)AFTT47 Wrote:

(May 17, 2018 at 1:06 am)Losty Wrote: How do we decide what is good discussion and what is garbage?

Good question.

For the purpose of distinguishing dedicated forums like this with Facebook groups, I would look for discussion which is generally regarded as more mature than what you see in a Facebook group. I realize that that would be a subjective criteria in itself but in general, I would encourage us to aim the bar higher.

I realize what I'm suggesting is not an easy task but if we don't rise up to it, there will be no forums on the web but Facebook groups and that would be such a tragedy.

I would rather go back to Usenet than be limited to a WWW dominated by Facebook.

I get what you’re saying, but I think we have a pretty good amount of serious discussion. It seems like you should just avoid the Off Topic forum

What a tragic suggestion.

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The humour section, photo threads, sports, mafia and many other threads would go too. Not just off topic.

That would make this place an extremely boring forum.
Are we catering for theists again?

Are we not allowed to have fun? Lots of it? Like we do?
Fun isn't meant to be serious, right?