Originally posted by Ed Hurst Thanks indeed for the detailed explanation. I really do appreciate it and don't feel in the least that your intentions are bad. In fact I understand what you're saying and feel that you have a point. The trouble is that the site currently does not work as you describe (with an image section) and so, if we all did what you do, we would end up with thousands of separate image threads which, to my mind, would render the site almost unusable. I share your aspiration of clear threads of attention and discourse around a specific image, but see no way, within the current site, to let us all have that without the site disintegrating. So, in short, I think some people acting in this way, which only works as long as only a few do it, is (unintentionally) treating the site as though it is more for the benefit of some than others. I totally believe that that is not your intention, but also feel that that is the effect. For that reason, I believe the equality of the images thread, for all its shortcomings, is the fairest solution currently available consistent with everyone having a fair go and maintaining the usability of the site.
Like I said, I don't doubt your intentions or motives. Merely challenging what I think are unintended consequences of your actions, should others do what you do. And if it only works as long as others don't avail themselves of the same opportunity, I feel that should cause you to wonder if it's quite fair.
Just a personal view :-)
Best wishes,
Ed
Hello Ed,
thank you for your message, I am glad that I could make myself and my intentions clear. On my end, while I do see your point re: unintended consequences of someone's actions, I must disagree with you on your conclusions - let me try and explain with the help of a couple of hypothetic scenarios.
Scenario nr. 1. Let's say that I am, if not the only one, at least part of a very small minority of people that do not like the general image thread. In this case, your worries would be unnecessary: it would mean, in fact, that me and a couple more people will post a couple of images from time to time, with no disrupting of the forum's usability nor with any disintegration of the forum. In this case, I am sure you'd agree that I could just keep doing what I do without creating much trouble for others.
Scenario nr. 2. Let's say, on the other hand, that you are right in thinking that everyone (or at least a large majority of people) in fact feel like me and, following in my footsteps and inspired by my continued devilish example (very much tongue in cheek here
), if I kept doing things this way then everyone else would also start posting their own image threads. Well, in this case one has to wonder why, so far, nobody has said or done anything in this direction, expressing their dissatisfaction and their needs to the forum owner. If this were the case (people feeling like I do but keeping silent), there might be many reasons for people not to say or do anything, and I am certainly not going into these hypothetical reasons for an hypothetical behaviour, reasons which (if in fact present) I'd respect in principle whatever they might be; but (again, if in fact all the above is true) that doesn't mean that things have to keep working in a way that dissatisfies everyone. Perhaps, one could argue, if everyone felt like I do but everyone kept doing things as they are now, the forum owner would never hear of such a dissatisfaction or need, nor take it seriously if expressed to him in a personal message by a single person; whereas, if people would feel like I do and post their images in single threads, perhaps this would point the existence of such an issue of to the attention of the forum owner, who might not otherwise have been aware of it and therefore not been able to address it. If all this was the case, people posting would have as a final result of this (very hypothetical) chain reaction that he could get acquainted with an issue and, subsequently, take action in one of two directions: either creating a gallery section of sorts, or enforcing a rule where people had to post images only in a certain thread in the existing forum.
So, I see no harm done in keeping posting my images, in the large scheme of things
Thank you for giving me the chance to express my views on image fruition and for a very civil debate, which I really appreciated. Best regards,
Vieri