Only way to sort out TV Forum

Well I have to say Bruce I agree on a few key points.

The village idiot quotient has increased lately, and there have been days where the moderators have been notably absent.

But just the other week when the new member Paul2001 started multiple threads inventing fake merger news, you were the one suggesting he should be allowed to stay. It seems an inconsistent approach to take.

I'm sure though that you will say you were refering to the sheer entertainment value. Goodness knows I love the laughs I get around here; but surely if you take one, you take all?

Good point.

Think I must have had a drink that night.

Perhaps we could open a creché?

Indeed. We'll need a supply of Ritalin.

No - The comment wasn't aimed at you.

about spelling, i know of spelling checks that can be added to forums, that where it says, submit/preview post, it would also say check spelling. There is one on the Sims BBS webstie

I think I might have twigged who you are! You do seem familiar.

We seem to have one of these 'TV Forum is going downhill blah blah blah' threads every so often. However, I do see your point about the rogue posters and those tweenagers who seem utterly incapable of stringing a proper sentence together and using punctuation. It does irritate me somewhat that people, particularly a lot of the newer members, seem to lack this ability.

Is it me or do teachers seem to fail to teach the basics any more? Obviously it seems that marking someone down on the fact that they can't use grammar or punctuate properly on a piece of 'creative writing' isn't allowed any more - it might "hurt the child's feelings".

Why is it so difficult to apply such basic skills when you're posting to this forum?

For those who have difficulty in using punctuation and grammar, here is your cut out and keep guide, penned by yours truly.

---

It's I'm not "im" or "Im". They are not words - I'm is a contraction of the two words I am.

It's can't, not "cant" or "Cant". They are not words either. Can't is a contraction of the word cannot.

It's isn't, not "isnt" or "Isnt". They are not words either. Isn't is a contraction of the two words is not.

For those of you who find using THEIR, THERE AND THEY'RE difficult, remember the following.

You use THEIR when describing something or someone. For example: -

I like watching Sky News because I like their presenters.

You use THERE when directing someone or talking about a place. For example: -

The train to Waterloo is on platform 1, which is over there .

THEY'RE is a contraction of the two words they are. So only use it in situations where you would use they are. Example: -

Where are the toilets?

They're over there down the corridor.

---

When writing in proper English, one does not replace characters with numbers. That is called writing in text speak and should be reserved solely for when sending a text message on your cellular/mobile telephone. It should not be used on this or on any other forum you visit - it is bad etiquette and also annoys others. TV Forum does not charge per character and you have a full keyboard - so there is no excuse to write in text speak.

Other things you should aware of: -

When starting a topic, make the title and description descriptive. Don't do what one person did and write "does anyone know how" as the title and "im thinking of doing" as the description.

When requesting something, be patient. Not everyone is on call 24/7 to attend to your every need and want. We all have lives. Do not bump up the topic every hour or so with "please", "pretty please with a cherry from the BBC canteen on top" or phrases or words similar to that effect. It will annoy people and make them not want to bother if they have it.

Also when requesting, use your manners. Use words such as please and thank you, thanks, ta, cheers or ones similar to that effect when starting and ending your request. Remember to use the latter also when someone has filled it and given you what you require. Oh, and don't dig up a topic from 6 months ago expecting the links to be still working.

I know this all sounds obvious to most people, but some seem to be unaware of how to use manners.

Finally, because you do not agree with the content of someone's post, do not give them a mouthful of abuse.

Is it really?

Oops. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to copy and paste each sentence and change the bits!

I really think you are the only one who becomes so flustered about this particular set of grammatical rules. Although I try to use "it's", "I'm" etc, in my posts where at all possible, I think that they are the least of TVF's grammatical problems.

No-one ever reads "Im" and considers pronouncing it as "in" with an m, I think it's acceptable to omit the ' when using such words, and it really is very tedious having replies to someone's post asking "Who's Im?"

Nothing strange about it. After three and a half years, I've now stopped trying to defend us or the site in general.

If the usual suspects are going to bang on with the usual moans, let them get on with it as far as I'm concerned!

Finally someone talking some sense.

Out of curiosity, if someone is banned, how easy is it to re-register?

People mention IP addresses, whatever those are, to see where people are from, but if someone posting using, for example, a Freeserve address, who is banned, would they have to change ISP's, from Freeserve to MSN, before they could re-register, or would they be able to re-register using Freeserve ?

Just something that's puzzled me over the years!