There Have been Some Complaints

ravingdave · Post by **ravingdave** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 6:26 am

MSimon wrote:Any one who wants to help Famulus should go here:

http://iecfusiontech.blogspot.com/2010/ ... night.html

The meet up is at 8:15 in New York City. I have given Roger Fox a heads up. Maybe he will have a report. Or maybe I can get Famulus to say something. I'm sure he will do a blog post.

Do you think we can get some Fox news out of Roger?

ravingdave · Post by **ravingdave** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 6:44 am

Josh Cryer wrote:You can take General off of "View new posts since last visit" by modifying the permissions for that forum. I can't tell you how to do it exactly in phpBB2 because it is archaic and no longer supported by anyone, but if you look around it's in there.

I see no whining, just a functional complaint.

Sounds like a good idea to me! If the General forum is degrading the site, Disable it! If thy right hand offend thee, chop it off! If thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out. Let's see how good your stereoscopic vision works with just one eye! Especially the Sinister one! (Sinister means left in italian.) (no it doesn't. You misspelled Sinistra! That's because I don't speak Italian! So What's a matta you,? Why you no Respect ? it'sa not so bad, it's a nicea place
Ah Shuddupa ya face )

Josh Cryer · Post by **Josh Cryer** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 7:33 am

ravingdave, not get rid of it just take it out of "View new posts since last visit." If you were to go in to "General" you would find unread topics happily highlighted.

(I personally never use this feature anyway, I go by the icons.)

And MSimon, if there were a no-politics rule then you'd have a far more diverse array of individuals. You just wouldn't know that you're surrounded by people who disagree with you politically. On my site we have every spectrum. So glad I banned politics.

taniwha · Post by **taniwha** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 7:48 am

I use the "new posts" feature and I would be quite miffed in any section was removed from it. General enhances what would otherwise be a mostly boring site: the site would be interesting only when News comes in, and that's pretty rarely.

Diogenes · Post by **Diogenes** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 7:49 am

Josh Cryer wrote:ravingdave, not get rid of it just take it out of "View new posts since last visit." If you were to go in to "General" you would find unread topics happily highlighted.

(I personally never use this feature anyway, I go by the icons.)

And MSimon, if there were a no-politics rule then you'd have a far more diverse array of individuals. You just wouldn't know that you're surrounded by people who disagree with you politically. On my site we have every spectrum. So glad I banned politics.

All roads lead to Rome.

MSimon · Post by **MSimon** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 7:53 am

Josh Cryer wrote:ravingdave, not get rid of it just take it out of "View new posts since last visit." If you were to go in to "General" you would find unread topics happily highlighted.

(I personally never use this feature anyway, I go by the icons.)

And MSimon, if there were a no-politics rule then you'd have a far more diverse array of individuals. You just wouldn't know that you're surrounded by people who disagree with you politically. On my site we have every spectrum. So glad I banned politics.

That is why I keep two (well more actually) blogs.

IEC Fusion Tech and Power and Control.

But as you may or may not be aware the whole Energy question (not to mention Polywell) is in part political.

And the arguments are hard. No quarter asked or given. Which is how the best engineering is done.

Now this site was set up by engineers. It is in the main for scientists and engineers. The fact that guys off the street have a hard time here is really not a concern. It serves the purpose of the original group.

And FWIW Joe and I are not very close politically. And yet our working relationship is more than cordial and he trusts my judgment. But he is an engineer.

And note: politics is in part an engineering problem (resources, and economics) and in part an allocation problem.

The question is what allocation method expands resources at the fastest rate? The political question is how much of the future do we want to sacrifice for the present? And then there is the question of liberty.

I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than those attending too small a degree of it. Thomas Jefferson

The more government allocates resources the less the liberty. And then there is the information question. No absolute rule handed down from on high can account for the information available to 300 million individuals. We see this all the time in law. The system produces injustice to varying degrees. Which is why we have things like commutation and pardon. The system itself admits that rules can't cover all situations.

So what happens when government rules control economics? Corruption. Because such a system without corruption grinds to a halt.

ravingdave · Post by **ravingdave** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 7:55 am

Diogenes wrote:
Josh Cryer wrote:ravingdave, not get rid of it just take it out of "View new posts since last visit." If you were to go in to "General" you would find unread topics happily highlighted.

(I personally never use this feature anyway, I go by the icons.)

And MSimon, if there were a no-politics rule then you'd have a far more diverse array of individuals. You just wouldn't know that you're surrounded by people who disagree with you politically. On my site we have every spectrum. So glad I banned politics.
All roads lead to Rome.

Diogenes, Did I ever mention how annoying you are ? What's that supposed to mean anyway ? " All roads lead to Rome." ? You sound like an Italian traffic engineer. What, you don't like the roads here in America? Are Italian roads somehow better? I've heard of the Apian way. Is it paved with apians? You do know the Romans and the Greeks were the best of friends right ?

MSimon · Post by **MSimon** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 8:02 am

http://ace.mu.nu/archives/187585.php

Diogenes · Post by **Diogenes** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 8:09 am

MSimon wrote: http://ace.mu.nu/archives/187585.php

MSimon · Post by **MSimon** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 8:25 am

Diogenes wrote:
MSimon wrote: http://ace.mu.nu/archives/187585.php

A word to the wise is sufficient.

OTOH a wink is as good as a nod to a blind horse.

Josh Cryer · Post by **Josh Cryer** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 9:03 am

MSimon wrote:Now this site was set up by engineers. It is in the main for scientists and engineers. The fact that guys off the street have a hard time here is really not a concern. It serves the purpose of the original group.

I think that is one reason banning politics may not be ideal here, since the vast majority are of one inclination, and basically have a monopoly on what goes on.

If Polywell pans out and works and all that, I do hope it will be reconsidered, however, because there will undoubtedly be more from the "other side" here to discuss things. Also, you *want* lefties to be behind Polywell if it works, so that we can minimize objections to its mass production and utilization.

The site I run attracts mathematicians, physicists, stay at home house wives, libertarians, anarchists, capitalists, LaRouchians, etc, etc. The infighting occurred daily in almost every thread for trivial and obtuse reasons.

I admit that I have not thoroughly researched the physics of Polywell because if they don't work I feel as though I have wasted my effort. AGW is a light hobby that takes little of my time. Learning everything about Polywell will take months if not years and if it doesn't work probably won't be applicable to my daily life.

So I'm content with being considered a "guy off the street."

Josh Cryer · Post by **Josh Cryer** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 9:06 am

blaisepascal, ahh, here's how you selectively get rid of "General" from "View new posts since last visit." Click on the General forum, click "mark topics read" and happily, when you next go to "View new posts..." nothing from General should show up!

Sure, it requires clicking on the subforum just once, but you should be able to avoid reading topics that might offend your sensibilities!

Betruger · Post by **Betruger** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 9:17 am

Maybe make a separate sex/religion/politics forum. Those three always get blood flowing and/or temper tantrums. Those inclined to debate those topics would have free reign as ever to do so, and those who aren't would have their friendly polywell-correct forum outside of that subforum.

CaptainBeowulf · Post by **CaptainBeowulf** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 9:54 am

No no, it has to be a sex/religion/politics/AGW forum. It should have a challenge. You can post about sex, religion, or politics, but you only get extra points by somehow tying it back to your position on AGW. The prize for the person with most points is having to build your own mini-polywell and report the data you collect back to everyone else

Good one with the polywell-correct comment - it alliterates with, and even boils down to the same acronym as, politically correct

alexjrgreen · Post by **alexjrgreen** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 10:53 am

ravingdave wrote:All roads lead to Rome." ? You sound like an Italian traffic engineer. What, you don't like the roads here in America? Are Italian roads somehow better?

Rome, GA...