Like just about everything in life, the key to a good discussion
board is moderation. Take his set-up: Bob finds a Web site about drawing
that has a discussion forum. He signs up and says hello:
WackyDoodle: Hi everyone! Great to be here!
The responses come fast and furious:
BuggedBunny: Who asked you, noob?
DaffyDrunk: What are you going to do about it, eh, WackerDawdle?
{Note: Please notice the cunning, yet juvenile insult. This will be
discussed in greater detail further down.)
HateEverythingDude: I hate you.
And on and on they go - someone manages to arrange a bunch of commas,
semi-colons, parentheses and periods into a very strong representation
of an obscene gesture, people swear at you, someone tries to sell you a
new hair-growth crème, etc.
This is why it is always smart to check out the rules of a forum
before joining. A few boards will have no moderation, and therefore, it
becomes an anything-goes Internet free-for-all. On the other side of the
coin, some boards will have moderators for every sub-forum they host.
Different discussion board owners will have different rules on
things like language and hurtful speech. A good rule of thumb is to always
stay above the fray and find a forum where you get to know and like the
regular posters.