Yes, I know that "Fora" may be more correct than "forums," depending on who you are talking to. I should really talk sometime about English Usage and Foreign Words.
But today's post is about internet forums.
I'm involved in a number of them - I'm very active on BoardGameGeek, and am less active in several other game-related forums.
Every forum has its own feel, which is handled in part through moderation. If I insult someone on BGG, I will probably get a suspension (and will be informed of this quietly). If I insult someone on RPG.net, I will receive a red text warning in that thread. If I persist or continually cause problems, I will be suspended - and the moderators will start a threat in the "Trouble Tickets" forum to announce to the world that I have been suspended.
Neither forum is immune to flamewars, but both have avoided the worst of them. And the flamewars that DO erupt follow the "Attack the idea, not the person" pattern that RPG.net explicitly encourages.
Most other forums tend to degenerate quickly into name-calling and flame wars. To the point where I just don't go there because theres no useful content.
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