Norman Graham wrote:PHP Builder is dedicated to sharing knowledge among those interested in PHP. This means that my opinion concerning the content of your website is irrelevant. If you have a question about PHP, then you've come to the right place. For this reason, I'm not going to make any further remarks about your website. Your questions are just as welcome here as those of any other PHP user.
Norm, i realize you would probably have been happy had no one else made off-topic comment-- however, i believe that your remark is so on the mark that i wanted to commend you for highlighting the importance of objective guidance. (if this is confusing, it's because i decided to bring this to the Echo Lounge from another thread**)
Please allow me to indulge you in a brief story. I had been an active member of a certain community forum (which will remain unnamed) whose members pride themselves on adherence to web standards and developing with compliant, valid code. when i first joined that community, i noticed no or very little subjective bias amongst its membership, no subjective criticism or remarks, and not much in the way of subjective attitude toward the thread topics (at least no more than one should expect in a public arena for, i venture, "intellectuals")-- and much to my delight and gratitude, i learned a lot there, and my very reason for participation there was satisfied time and again. of course, a community devoid of subjectivism would make for rather dull place indeed, and i'm not saying that there was a complete lack of personality-- obviously i'm trying to make a point here about objective criticism and guidance vs subjective guidance (and i'm not talking about Biblical objective guidance, so please spare any irrelevant anti/religious oppositions...hehe...) anyway...
as far as forums of the "objective guidance" nature go, i think PHPBuilder.com is among the best, if not THE best. often have I come here w/ likely the most foolish of questions, evidencing what surely must appear to the seasoned veterans as the most foolish of projects, and yet, to my recollection, never have my inquiries been chastised with sarcasm-- or worse yet-- blatant subjective commentary about the knowledge or skill required to produce; demonstrated in any work i might have submitted to supplement an inquiry. it is unfortunate that this was not ultimately the case in this other forum.
in my perception, never did i invite such a reaction by boasting of superiority or blatant disregard for forum etiquette, or any such faux pas which might otherwise deem necessary or appropriate such an aforementioned reply-- a foolish action which not only wastes my time because no learning is taking place (as the inquiry has probably been disregarded), and also wastes the time of any readers who might be searching the forum for answers, but certainly goes against the rules and the very integrity of the forum-- and the most disappointing factor of all in this circumstance is that these behaviours are being exhibited by the forum's so-called leaders and moderators.
i was once proud to be an active part of that community, but i was so disgusted for the past several weeks at the the blows to its integrity by those who i once truly respected as knowledgeable sources, and literally flabbergasted by the inconsistency of so many senior members, that i found myself so sickened by it all that i don't think i'll ever bother to go back for any reason. it somehow seems out-of-place to say it, but it really was kind of sad to watch it unfold.
oh well-- i guess no one is perfect, even if the W3 code Validators say differently... haha! but, i couldn't resist providing my commentary after reading Norm's post. My whole point here is merely to support what Norm said, and to try to illustrate the worst that might happen when an opportunity to exert one's own subjective opinion is exercised in lieu of the more globally useful; when the simple bit of shared knowledge that would hold together the integrity of the structure is passed over by ego and vacuous retort.
**norm's quote came from this thread
