This is FUN!

There’s this blog that popped up that was supposed to “shake up” an institutionalized forum. I find myself visiting it more often recently because partly because of the “sensationalism,” as one commenter put it (everybody loves to read about dirt hehehehe)

Another was the fact that the author managed to raise some really legitimate concerns. I respect the official forum’s rules and understand why some things are simply not discussed for the sake of maintaining order – it being an officially recognized Apple forum and all. Regardless, people are still itching to talk about some sensitive topics and quite frankly, in a sick twisted sort of way, I’m glad it was started.

I’ve been speaking my mind there too once in a while, but I didn’t choose to be anonymous – as a result, I’ve been subject to the same flame everyone was afraid of getting burned with. Do I regret it? Hell no! At the end of it all, I am secure that I my heart was in the right place… people may not agree with me, but at least I wasn’t chocolate covered horse-shit 😉

The only bummer is that everyone else is anonymous, so I don’t get to see which people I should listen to or just ignore. Everyone thinks differently and I’ve been enlightened as much as vindicated in the short time I’ve visited and contributed. I think that’s a beautiful thing. But really, there are some people there that are simply not worth one’s time.

Mga tatlo lang naman nabanggit so far. I’m thrilled to see where this goes:

At 9:20 AM, Anonymous said…

omg, nargalzius. just like your posts in philmug. wala kang sense! post ka ng post ng opinion mo, may IMHO ka pa, walang katuturan naman yung sinasabi mo. tumahimik tka nalang, nagmumukha kang tanga!

At 9:33 AM, Anonymous said…

yeah Carlo Santos, no one cares about your fucking opinions. It’s time for you to just shut the fuck up!

At 9:35 AM, Anonymous said…

yep.. sound like a philo or polisci graduate answer. Masyadong deep ka tsong! Sabihin mo na lang diretso!

I simply challenged the first commenter to explain how he thinks I don’t make sense. I would love to figure out if it was because I was vague in my posts in the official board, or because he was just too stupid to comprehend them. Either way, I want to read what he has to say so I can finally say to myself beyond reasonable doubt “Ok, this guy is a total idiot, so don’t bother taking his bait.”

Why do I think so? It may be some shred of arrogance on my part. Being a relatively new Apple user myself, I have seen my knowledge on the subject matter grow beyond even the really “old” people there – as far as the technical stuff is concerned at least. This is benefit of loving the technology and not the brand. In my early days, I remember asking the same irritating newbie questions, scouring the net for answers while I’m at it – and I see myself now, where I get the chance to help people troubleshoot their Macs (wether in the official forum, or in real life) – and contribute some stuff ¹ Ok fine, they’re only Widgets, and hacked ones at that… but still 😉 once in a while.

There are only a few posts that I can even consider meriting such comments (e.g. Shuffle, WMA vs. Palm, etc.) … and all of them are only because the people don’t agree with my opinion… not because I don’t make sense as it were. Of course nevermind the fact that they were opinions to begin with, so I don’t really see why people get riled up too much about it. It’s not like I was picketing or lobbying that people agree with me… I simply state my point of view, and explain as logically as possible as to what made me think so. As for the rest of my posts, just check them if you can find them – you’ll usually find me posting if I have an answer to person who needs help.

During my “growth” in the forum, as much as I realized that each person had his or her quirks, I know that their hearts are in generally in the right place. Moderators usually take all the heat for their actions because they are more visible (it’s their job after all). Being a moderator is like being a referee in a competition – it’s such a thankless job in general. People really have to put it through their skulls that they (the mods) have regulations to enforce – wether they believe in them or not.

They go on about practicing what you preach… but let me ask this: Do you think that schools are indoctrinating hypocrisy in general? The many, simple rules they have such as the dress code seem to violate human rights of free expression in any form. Do you mean to say that you want your kids to go to school and purposely go against these regulations, and get kicked out – just so you won’t be branded as a hypocrite?

So no, I don’t think that the mods are hypocrites at all – for as long as they state that the forum regulations compel them to reinforce values they don’t necessarily have to believe in.

However, there is also the issue of being intoxicated with power, and developing the air that exudes elitism. This is where I find the blog useful… not as much as to slam the offending parties per se, but to nudge them once in a while – reminding them that there are people who find them too strong for comfort. And it’s part of their responsibility to adjust accordingly. I don’t think its being plastik in that sense… but simply being civil… being humane.

A friend (and moderator) was chatting with me and we discussed an issue which exemplifies my previous paragraph. It was about a newbie who was kind of shunned for being too stupid to comprehend… by another moderator no less. Now as my friend explained the scenario, I totally understood how frustrating it can be – to have to deal with seemingly “slow” people. Being a moderator at http://www.bukaspalad.com, I’ve experienced the same thing over and over again – so I really can relate.

But I guess I had to take the blog’s side on the matter simply because wether in fact the n00b was stupid or not, its our responsibility as people in power to be as accommodating as we possibly can… even if it was to our inconvenience. As the saying goes: With great power, comes great responsibility. And the sad truth is no matter what you do… not matter how easy you try to make it for people… there will be a person who will eventually come along that still won’t get it 😉

I myself have talked to that very moderator on IM asking for help when I was learning the ropes on the iPod and iTunes… and as I said, he was a decent, accommodating, friendly person who helped me out willingly and patiently. So he is a good guy, really. I may not agree with some of his sentiments in other subjects… but I can definitely attest to the fact that he is generally a good-natured person.

So for me, that blog, kind of matches the ying as its yang. As I’ve mentioned there “I think it’s healthy to see the two sides in every coin” (well I didn’t say it that way, but you get what I mean)