Is being "Off Topic" a 'topic' ? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: GlennSprigg
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 04, 2018, 01:54:17 pm
content: Don't get me wrong.... I TOTALLY agree that a "General Chat" section has limitations !!!!!!'Dave' pulled me up recently when I 'delved' into a topic on Philosophy.... (And so he should!).I guess I misinterpreted the wording of 'General Chat', as opposed to general electrical/electronics.My confusion was probably the myriad of other topics, like...."What did you buy today?".... 900,000 views."Where does your username come from".... or"Post a picture of a cat".... 30,000 views,to name just a few xoxoxMy 'post' was only a 'prelude' to a (previously) forthcoming comment about why it is that we LOVEthe people that we do, which was to end with something 'deep &meaningful' as intended....If 'people' look at MY responses/questions, they will know that my 'missus' & I are but simple Folk,torn between what we know/knew, and this modern world of 'Social Media', and only want peace.

author: wilfred
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 04, 2018, 02:04:41 pm
content: It's thevibe.If the topic feels like it was started to enhance the spirit of the community and provide an enhanced camaraderie it ison-topic.OTOH if it seems the intent is to start a divisive debate destined to have the exact opposite effect, it isoff-topic.

author: metrologist
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 04, 2018, 02:04:50 pm
content: I think tolerance could depend on the particular user and their relative contribution to the site.I totally do not get the cat thing.

author: GreyWoolfe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 12:12:34 am
content: Quote from: metrologist on June 04, 2018, 02:04:50 pmNeither do I. I am a dog person.

author: JohnnyMalaria
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 12:18:16 am
content: Quote from: metrologist on June 04, 2018, 02:04:50 pmI don't but mine insist that I do and who am I to argue?

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 12:21:17 am
content: I don't mind having an off topic section for off topic chats, so long as it doesn't deteriorate into political/religious arguments which convince 0% of the people to change their mind while pissing off 100%. This forum has largely remained free of both which is nice, by and large we share some common interests and can discuss those without fighting over things some of us will disagree on.Not sure what cat thing you refer to, I've always been a cat person myself though and my anecdotal observation is that a much larger percentage of engineers are fond of cats compared to a random sample of the overall population. I don't dislike a well behaved dog, but they're too in-your-face extroverted for my taste and I've encountered far too many untrained poorly behaved dogs. I like how cats generally hang out quietly and provide company without requiring constant interaction. The self-cleaning aspect is appealing too, I wish more things in life were self-cleaning.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 01:39:00 am
content: Dave's the boss. Period.Once anything you've done has come to his attention, he and other moderators will be watching your contributions.https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/forum-rules-please-read/

author: aargee
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 02:08:37 am
content: I agree, some form of moderation is required so we don’t have wildfire outrageous threads but it may also mean the title “A Free & Open Forum For Electronics Enthusiasts & Professionals” is not exactly true either .Disclaimer: I’m also a dog person.

author: metrologist
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 02:47:10 am
content: I totally do not get the dog thing, either. I may have a soft spot for birds...nah, I'm sure I'm over that parakeet...

author: rstofer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 02:51:26 am
content: Riddle: "What has 4 legs and an arm?"Answer: "A happy K9"It is comforting to have a couple of German Shepherd Dogs around for company.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 04:04:35 am
content: Quote from: wilfred on June 04, 2018, 02:04:41 pmYep, this.A thread on philosophy is probably only a page or two away from invoking Godwin's Law.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 04:09:57 am
content: Quote from: james_s on June 05, 2018, 12:21:17 amWhich is 100% guaranteed if you have a "free for all" forum sections.The results of such a section is:a) The New Topics section just gets polluted with off-topic stuffb) New people coming to the forum and see mostly off-topic stuff and decide to go elsewhere.c) It helps create hate and division in the community which ultimately spills over into other on-topic threads.I've seen too many forums destroyed because of this. And I've also seen forum stagnant and die because to too much moderation, and this why there is not a strict 0% off-topic rule.If we are going end up with hate and division in the community then I at least want it to be over Rigol vs Keysight or something similar rather than some gun debate.Personally I could argue politics, religion, conspiracy theories and guns all day long and love it, but this isn't the place for it.QuoteWhich hasn't happened by accident, because we lock or delete off-topic or other threads when they (or before they) get out of hand, and we occasionally ban members who won't stop.

author: Cyberdragon
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 04:15:06 am
content: Quote from: metrologist on June 05, 2018, 02:47:10 amNot into small birds really. Parrots and ravens are awesome though.

author: ez24
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 04:42:13 am
content: Quote from: tautech on June 05, 2018, 01:39:00 amSince I think I am on the watch list, can you give me the quote from your link on it. There is a lot there and I cannot find it (I am tired). I wonder how many are on this list?ps - I liked the center of the earthEdit: What is the Statue of Limitations ?

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 05:58:52 am
content: Quote from: ez24 on June 05, 2018, 04:42:13 amOnly just skimmed 3 pages of that now and I well see why it was left to run as it ran seemly and as a scientific discussion. Can you call maths and science off topic on EEVblog, not likely.

author: BradC
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 07:07:04 am
content: Quote from: metrologist on June 04, 2018, 02:04:50 pmI love cats, I just can't eat a whole one.

author: Random Model Maker
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 07:35:30 am
content: I always understood off-topic as not being about a specific issue in general, but rather for some fuzzy discussions about the industry, the hobby and the life of electronics in general.Of course one does not have to talk about a specific topic all the time, and it is a free and open forum,butlet's not forget that it does say Electronics Forum on top op this page.And while I would love to discuss about keeping dogs vs cats vs mammoths, I just don't do it here.

author: GreyWoolfe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 03:56:13 pm
content: Quote from: Cyberdragon on June 05, 2018, 04:15:06 amI had a blue Quaker parrot for a few years until I lost him due to a neurological problem. He was an awesome bird, loved eating pasta off of your plate. No more birds as any bird I would want would outlive me by a significant margin and I don't want to burden any family member.Quote from: BradC on June 05, 2018, 07:07:04 amThe leftovers do freeze well, however.Quote from: rstofer on June 05, 2018, 02:51:26 amGerman Shepard/Australian Shepherd mix and red nose Doberman mix here. They are my office co-workers.

author: JohnnyMalaria
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 04:19:06 pm
content: Quote from: GreyWoolfe on June 05, 2018, 03:56:13 pm

author: GreyWoolfe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 07:40:40 pm
content: Quote from: JohnnyMalaria on June 05, 2018, 04:19:06 pmWow, 107 years old. I figured my blue Quaker was going to outlive me being that they can have a life expectancy of about 50 years and already made arrangements with my son to take him as the bird mostly got along with him. The bird didn't like anyone living in the house but me.

author: JohnnyMalaria
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2018, 07:44:20 pm
content: Supposedly, Charlie used to have quite the foul mouth and utter things like "F&*# Hitler".

author: GlennSprigg
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 06, 2018, 02:14:38 pm
content: Quote from: EEVblog on June 05, 2018, 04:04:35 amI truly understand, and appreciate what you & others have said here. (Just a few observations though...)......(Please note I'm just being light-hearted here, below !!!!!)I had only now looked up "Godwin's Law" which is interesting !, as ironically, (without mentioning what it's about),that your 'mention' of it seems to prove what this 'Law' is saying !!. (Come-on, that's ironic xox).It is also interesting that so many "Super-Contributors" also answered here, solely about Cats, Dogs or Birds !!Which of course was done in fun, in the spirit of the start of this 'thread/post'....Realistically though, there is a lot of 'Philosophy' that has NOTHING to do with Religion/Politics/Race, and is mostcertainly nothing to do with what I would start talking about, or lead in to, in my other Philosophical 'topic'.Scientifically talking about cells/parts being replaced, but we still LOVE people at another physical level...OH!!, and 'naughty' "JohnyMalaria" just said 'that' "H" word !!!!, so the 'Law' must be true !I will try to on topic from now on.... Have a good night/day...

author: JohnnyMalaria
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 06, 2018, 02:21:04 pm
content: Quote from: GlennSprigg on June 06, 2018, 02:14:38 pmHow do you think super contributors become so? Off-topic posts shouldn't count.

author: GlennSprigg
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 08, 2018, 01:21:34 pm
content: JohnyMalaria .... Your 'Catch-Phrase' at the bottom of your posts, is..."Tell me it can't be done and I'll do it".On youTube, there's a lot of comments that start with..."Hold My Beer!!", when someone want's to have a go!!I personally like the saying......"If first you don't succeed, then remove all evidence that you tried !!!"I USED to use a 'boring' but technical one, elsewhere, about a mathematical fact...." Diag. of 1x1 square, root-2. Diag. of a 1x1x1 cube, root-3 !! Beautiful !! "(A lot of people aren't aware of that)