10 excellent rules that make perfect sense me lovely.  The only one I think is missing is rule No 7 on my list.  Don’t be too verbose.  

It’s a rule I apply to every tweet, post, feedback form and general conversation.  Don’t say in 200 words what other people can do in just 8 of them.  Don’t labour the point by repeating yourself such as reminding everyone that you should be able to say in 8 words what you have been saying in 200.  

Most importantly, keep it to topic and interesting so as much as you may want to share your vermicomposting talents or disability advocacy work or harmonica playing or parenting skills or male modelling stories, if the post is about what F stop to use to get the right bokeh to match the iconic album cover of Boney M’s third album then leave your egos at the doors brothers and sisters of the forum family.  

Apart from the rule to keep things short, you also need to ensure that you know the c word rule.  It seems pivotal to how forums are administered.  There are those who allow unrestricted expletives to be used during the mainly polemic rants that appear on their walls.  I belong to a few of them.  Then there are the ones with the puritanical rules that mean a quote that you are “stating the bleeding obvious” appears as “stating the bl**ding obvious”.  I belong to even more of those.  

Going on to a forum just to upset people because they are different or hold opinions different to your own is neither big nor clever.  If your sole purpose of going onto the forum is to wind up the other members, then it really is an extremely tiresome activity.  I do know that on every forum I’ve been involved with there are vultures, snides, racists, homophobes, misogynists, wankers and also some lovely lovely people interspersed amongst them.  

I have to say that the main posse on the SWPP forum are the friendliest and most helpful lot I’ve encountered in over 30 years.  For that reason I agree entirely with your analogy and assessment of its value, but would urge you to take heed of rule 7 that you missed and that is to be succinct, brief, short, quick, not go on for ever – you get the picture – or at least you should given your excellent image making skills.  It’s just the forum thing I don’t think you adequately get – the most important rule (No 7 as it goes) is to not go on and on because people just get pissed of with the droning whining noise in their ears – even if it is generated by reading rather the person actually talking – now that would be irritating ( I can do that too by the way).  

So where was I – oh yes brevity is paramount to a good post.  Most people see something unwieldy and they click past it – fucking illiterates.  If you are still reading you don’t qualify for that remark therefore I should be watertight as only the literate can see that I’ve been disparaging about those who aren’t.  If you have read thus far (you sad bugger) then you clearly are a most worthy advocate.  Thank you my love.  Peace and chocolate to you and yours.

I’m done Michael.  Lovely to hear from you each day.  I’ll write something equally  brief for http://www.the2010project.com newsletter after the posse meet the publishers this week.

this may help newbies…great information you have there..

rockpaperscissors