Why?

[Brendan]

Hey you know it very well could be! SolitaryWalker echoes the 'wanderer' that Zeitgeist had on the top of his icon.

Yes, well judging from the fact that zeitgeist a) never capitalized his name nor b) has he signed onto INTPc for several days so how would he have seen the announcement of this forum being resurrected.

[SolitaryWalker]

Yes, well judging from the fact that zeitgeist a) never capitalized his name nor b) has he signed onto INTPc for several days so how would he have seen the announcement of this forum being resurrected.

Maybe he has another user name on INTPc that he logs onto every now and then to read the posts?

[MacGuffin]

Well, you see, rainfall,

I can't believe you blew it that quickly! I only needed one post.

[SolitaryWalker]

You sure that I am rainfall Mac?

[MacGuffin]

You sure that I am rainfall Mac?

Dammit of course you aren't!

[Brendan]

Maybe he has another user name on INTPc that he logs onto every now and then to read the posts?

Then in that case, he'll be banned soon.

By the way, zeitgeist correctly punctuates.

[Eileen]

Since you people are all at it, I may as well start off questioning the worthwhileness of introductory threads.

Would someone try and convince me that they are not worthless and not without merit?

Aren't we a bit vain making threads with a primary purpose of bringing friendly attention to ourselves?

If we're vain, we're vain. Whatever; it's certainly not an extreme manifestation of vanity, and it's not hurting anyone.

And moreover, because you want convincing (not that I believe you can be convinced, as you seem pretty well set in your opinions), both the introductory forum and the blogs are useful in creating community. Your threads are serious and sterile, and while they may be useful (maybe) for developing or clarifying ideas, they are not especially suited for developing an atmosphere in which people want to interact and develop friendships. These threads, frivolous though they may seem, are actually really important because they give us a chance to say hello to one another, to laugh a little, and maybe to find out something about the PEOPLE on the board.

I will say, as a classroom teacher, that community-building is really invaluable for even an educational environment, because people are more likely to take cognitive risks if they feel that the environment is basically friendly and supportive. In classrooms where the students and teachers know each other and see one another as human, better learning happens.

So, there we go. The merit of introductions, spelled out. Do you get it yet?

[Ivy]

Well said, Eileen. Roughhousing with my kids is pretty meritless on a superficial level, but on a deeper level it creates goodwill, reinforces that we're on the same team, and thus tightens the bonds between us. In a social context like this one, the messing-around threads create and strengthen those personal connections.

[targobelle]

But what I have to wonder and what I have to ask is how is SolitaryWalk any different than us? I mean he started a why thread, not an intro but still a thread within the intros. He also posts in almost every welcome thread to question why the individual did it. It's not a short and sweet hi. So how then are his comments any less vain then ours?

And his post count isn't exactly low either just an FYI for those being observant of such things.......

[nightning]

Since you people are all at it, I may as well start off questioning the worthwhileness of introductory threads.

Would someone try and convince me that they are not worthless and not without merit?

Aren't we a bit vain making threads with a primary purpose of bringing friendly attention to ourselves?

Why don't you try convincing yourself that they're not worthless and have merit? I believe that would be an excellent exercise for you.

I'll help start the ball rolling. What is the purpose of introductions in general? Think about introductions in its broadest sense... in public, do you barge into a discussion with individuals you do not know? Doubtful... There are social rules out there that we as civilized human beings uphold. Somehow we extend those values towards other environments... even ones where we have complete disembodied interactions such as internet forums. That reminds me of a study of proxemics on avatar/character in virtual games... Even in the context of pixels on a computer screen, people maintain proper social distances... i.e. will not move your own character on top of somebody else's. Why do we show such curtesy towards a bunch of pixels? Are social values so ingrained in us that we can't help but do so? If that's true... perhaps that is why we have introduction threads.

Also on the topic of social dynamics... how are we to judge the atmosphere in a new environment with little social cues like an internet forum? Intro threads allow for grounds to test the water. A place to get a first impression of the members as well as for other people to get a first impression on yourself. Plus it's traditional social grace to announce your presence when you visit some place new.