Just a reminder about the comments rules.
I try to keep things reasonably civil here.
The number one rule of the combox is this:
Don't attack other posters.
You can criticize ideas and behaviour as you seem them in the combox.
But nasty personal digs are not allowed here. People are free to give their opinion without having to worry about getting defensive about things that have nothing to do with the discussion.
And, here's a rule of thumb to remember about the comments:
If you call any other commenter by a derogatory NOUN, your comment does not get published. It is entirely irrelevant whether the commenter deserves the label or not.
It's a shame to have to censor really good comments because of this kind of personal attack.
I used this rule when I ran a message board. And I found that it was an excellent rule, because I find that when the discussion deteriorates to the point of comments like "You're a ----" that's when things get personal and people get defensive.
I find that using verbs and adjectives work much better, especially when they're directed to what is being done in the combox.
The other rules are kind of self-evident. But I just wanted to refresh people's memories about this so that we can keep the discussion civil and focus on the subject matter at hand. Posters aren't above criticism, but I want the criticism to not be mean. I want everyone to be able to participate without worrying about personal attacks. It's so important to me that people be able to comment...especially since it tells me who's reading :D
