Archive of UserLand's first discussion group, started October 5, 1998.

Re: Who is Joseph McConnell?

Author:jmcconel@slip.net
Posted:12/23/1998; 12:12:38 PM
Topic:How are we doing?
Msg #:1714 (In response to 1676)
Prev/Next:1713 / 1715

Joseph McConnell is someone who has been coming to your site for several years because it is one of the better link sites, and because he found your editorial pieces interesting and informative.

Joseph McConnell is someone who has enough respect for your opinion to have emailed you in the past to both agree and to disagree with things you wrote. One does not bother to reply to those published opinions one does not value.

Joseph McConnell is someone who is a old hand at participating in discussions in moderated forums. He learned the most important rule of posting while on CompuServe. Attack the posting not the poster. Refute the argument point, dont dismiss it. And if you are moderating a forum and one is participating in a thread make an extra effort to distinguish between legitimate dissent and ad-hominum attacks.

Joseph McConnell is someone who does not presume to know what you want. He is someone who infers likely outcome from actual actions not stated words. One sees someone who seems to make a genuine attempt to build informed discussion but one also sees a propensity to delete posts from those who differ in opinion from the sites host.

That is the hosts prerogative but the host should remember that one learns a lot more from debating with those who disagree with ones position than with those who agree. A forum were dissent is suppressed always turns into self-conglatulatory club.

Joseph McConnell is someone who appreciates all the hard work that goes into trying to set up a discussion forum. He would also like to respectfully point out that the chances for build a successful community would be greatly increased if you could differentiate better between ones role as host and moderator, and as a participant. If you can successful compartmentalize these two roles then you may have a forum were informed discussion and dissent can coexist and flourish.

- Joseph McConnell

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