As a relatively new poster to the site, I've become fascinated by the heirachey (I can't spell) of the place.
I was wondering if someone could fill in the history of Sciforums, as I think it is quite possibly one of the best sites on the Interwenet.

Sorry to shove my tongue that far up your arse, but there you go!

The Flemster.

I can tell you my own little bit. Dexter was the first moderator of scifi, he was replaced by Pollux V, and then I took over for Pollux. MalloryKnox was the first Sciforums troll. Porfiry's name is Dave, and his first sci-name on this site is DaveW.

Tiassa is the longest standing member, he's been here since 1999.

Free Thoughts original name was going to be Free Thinking or Random Ideas or something. Any questions?

Thanks for the info, CC. Just one question though:
What's a Sciforums troll?

The Flemster.

A sciforums troll is someone who is annoying and causes trouble and uses to much rhetorical debate. Past trolls have been MalloryKnox, Whatsupyall (AKA MuscleMan), etc. Just check out their names in the member list and read the threads that they posted in.

Tiassa is the longest standing member, he's been here since 1999.




and Crisp...he/she still posts.

Cheers. Any more for any more?

The Flemster.

The person who needs to answer that question is the creator of this wonderful place - Porfiry aka Dave. He has maintained this site for years and the fact that he still does it is amazing in itself. Moderators have come and gone. Members have come and gone.
But I think anyone who's ever joined and left will come back and see what's been going on at some time or other - it's just that good. Flemster, I think if you take a look through the archives, you'll find many threads giving this forum a very good review. I still love it.

Cheers
Teri

has anyone ever come across another forum like this on the internet?

-gw-

There is another forum similar to this ... it's www.physicsforums.com. But I'm not advertising it or anything like that ... I'm just answering the question. :p

Actually, MalloryKnox was not the first major troll. She was my personal favourite...but I'd say HowardStern was the first; he faked his own death after september 11th, and 99% of us believed him.

the history of this place would put a kid with ADD on 7 hits of sucrose to sleep. this isn't as good a forum as some of you think it is. venture out there a little more.

I think this forum is mature (overall :)) I go to other forums to have some silly fun, but I am not a forum surfer. I have this one and a couple fun ones and that's it. I think there are my kind of people here who can debate, be serious and who have twisted senses of humour.

Actually, MalloryKnox was not the first major troll. She was my personal favourite...but I'd say HowardStern was the first; he faked his own death after september 11th, and 99% of us believed him.

I constitute a troll as being someone whose been banned; also really annoying, mean, a bitch, etc. Howard is still here, Mallory is not. Mallory was the first troll, Howard was just a jackass.

The history of Sciforums was primarily about a small group of people who were first interested in pure science. . A small, somewhat rude little crowd, with not much tolerance for cut-ups, vulgarity, and sawed-off, little pug-nosed assholes of bad Science Fiction television shows! Many of the other places for the various members/points of view, were added by "Dave W" as a way to accomodate the new members/ideas, as well as a way to hopefully keep nonsense posts out of the more serious science oriented areas.

Tiassa was most likely in Porfiry's mind when the old, first religious forums were created. It was also the first thread that I landed on when I first came to Sciforums (by finding the buried link in a long forgotten search engine).

"Free Thoughts," was created almost entirely with me in mind (Porfiry's mind). Again, it was a way for me (and others) to vent/post anything, as long as I/we didn't bother the more serious members in the other threads. The newer Cesspool is a greatly exaggerated version of Free Thoughts. NOBODY used more unacceptable language than me, at the time. Nowadays, I am shocked somewhat, at the kind of language used, even/especially by moderators. I guess Porfiry still sees me as the "loose Cannon," though. I'm not sure if I ever did ask Porfiry to become a moderator...http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/bugeye.gif

There have been so many good writers here,.....but some of them that I remember...and that you should take the time to read (especially considering the crap-heads that are posting nowadays) :

kmguru I just saw that he was here recently.....tech, physics....
boris physics, math, california dude.........
cris (moderator)british immigrant to US.....dry sense of humor, general science, tech...was engineering computers the last time I talked to him....(couple years back)
Bowser India/USA....All around good dude, good humor, religion issues, never tried to make enemies with anyone. Sciforums has never been the same since Bowser left.
Banshee(moderator).............. http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif
Bebelina(CO-MODERATOR)..............http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif
wet1(moderator) general science, intelligent, level headed, good natured, put up with a lot of my BS, ...good friend.
Randolfo saw on the board tonight, good writer...
Oxygen(moderator)...religion, decent all around character, cow god....moo.. http://www.sciforums.com/avatars/avatar1057_0.gif kept trying to run me off of his forum.....http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

....and....many others that i have forgotten........

If I were looking at the Sciforums posts for the first time, I'd go back & look at the posts made from the very beginning(1999) up to 2002 (starting with the members that I have listed).

There were quite a few interesting people@Sciforums from 1999-2002. But most of them are long gone or have left in the past couple of years. The last one of the older members that I had talked to was wet1. He wrote me that the newer members were behaving so juvenille and disrespectful toward other members that he had just about had enough. That and the lack of any really serious science discussion (or science oriented posts). I don't blame wet1 and many others for abandoning this forum. It's now just a place for vulgar, hateful, small-minded fools, with an axe to grind.

Someone hacked my user ID, sometime in past couple of years, & deleted around 800 of my posts. I hardly ever post here anymore, then only to rattle the cages of the mindless animals here.

I wouldn't be a damn bit surprised if Porfiry sold the site to some large, impersonal company. If I were in his shoes, I would. Either that or just shut the whole fucking thing down, take the money saved & buy a new kangaroo belt...........or something useful.

Wow!
Cheers, Howie!
That kinda fills in some blanks. I was beginning to think I'd asked the unaskable question, or something!

The Flemster.

I want to revise some of my harsh criticisms. There are still some exceptions:

Physics & Math moderated by James R

Earth Science moderated by Tristan

Computer Science & Culture moderated by Stryderunknown

The last one of the older members that I had talked to was wet1. He wrote me that the newer members were behaving so juvenille and disrespectful toward other members that he had just about had enough. That and the lack of any really serious science discussion (or science oriented posts).

Damn...I feared as much. What great guy...put up with a lot of my early BS too. Peace Wet1. :(

The last one of the older members that I had talked to was wet1. He wrote me that the newer members were behaving so juvenille and disrespectful toward other members that he had just about had enough. That and the lack of any really serious science discussion (or science oriented posts).

Really? Wet1 told me (And other mods) that he no longer had an internet connection at work. Things went downhill in certain forums after wet1 left--because he left.

Really? Wet1 told me (And other mods) that he no longer had an internet connection at work. Things went downhill in certain forums after wet1 left--because he left.

From what I've read of you, counsler rigel, I suspect that most people tell you what you want to hear, just to avoid your nagging dribble.
Humorless jerk.

Since I haven't sent/received mail from wet!!!!!!!!!!!~1 in close to two years, I can' t (and didn't) say that it was the absolute reason that he left. I just stated that he had expressed that he was tired of silly f*uc**king morons like you. So get your F**king facts straight, ass**H*LEhttp://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/eek.gif

BTW, I have never questioned Dave's decisions in regard to moderators, since most of them have been OK people, with at least the intent of doing a decent job. But in regards to you guy, I am really wondering if Dave has been doing acid (LSD) or something to make a guy like you into a moderator.

Yeah,I miss 'em too.Cris was a great poster on intelligence and machines forums,Chagur,Wet1,Banshee,Adam.etc..Km,Stryder to me have been regular posters here for a long while...

Hey i am an olddie here too...;)

bye!

dolts

dave's excellent adventure aka history of sciforums (http://www.sciforums.com/showthread.php?t=13649)

poor fucking coffee. so intent on being somebody

one gem i remember was during the flap sci had a while back with some right wing forum. the tard referred to himself as the "foremost conservative on this board" (or something to that effect)

aint that right coffee?. oh, i need your opinion on this...

duh duh duhhhhh duh duh? duuuuuhhhhh? duh!

ummm...okay i am still new to these forums :D ;) I admit it...

bye!

Yeah,I miss 'em too.Cris was a great poster on intelligence and machines forums,Chagur,Wet1,Banshee,Adam.etc..Km,Stryder to me have been regular posters here for a long while...

Hey i am an olddie here too...;)

bye!

Heck, zion, I can't that I remember you. But my memories are getting a little fuzzy...........

Well,........ I looked at your join date......Join Date: 09-25-01.
That's why ! ! ! http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000CNY27.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpgYou joined Sciforums right after I died,http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif & Escaped From New York ! ! !http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

Oh Well, ...............................belated welcome to sciforums, zion.

Yeah, cris was a pretty good friend of mine, until I told him that I used to smoke marijuana, like Tiassa. After that, his brit ancestory got thee best of him & he would talk to me NOmore.http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/confused.gif But cris is an ok guy & pretty damn smart..................just not as much as he thinks. Spells a lot of words kinda funny too.............

chagur~~~GODAMN ! !! ! SUBMARINER, CRAZY, PIG BOAT CAPTAIN, START WORLD WAR-5 KINda Character ! ! ! !JESUS CHRIST ! ! ! ! ! I'd Give you the same advice that I gave to WET1, Watch out for this GUY ! ! !! Na, John's a pretty decent feller. Good friend.http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/smile.gif
chagur will be back.............he's just cruising around beneath the sciforums sea, waiting for a chance to bag his next commy battleship.http://www.submarineresearch.com/sub2.jpg

Geezzzzzzzzzzzz........that fuc*king* chagur used to freak me out sometimes.Dangerous.http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/redface.gif

ummm...okay i am still new to these forums :D ;) I admit it...

bye!

fuck join dates. it is a state of mind that makes sci your community.
besides, nothing changes. it merely gets recycled. (vomit!)

lol. I still feel kind of new here. I joined beginning of last year, but after 135 posts i lost the link, and for some reason, couldn't remember the name. Then i found it. and it was all changed so i wasn't sure if it had changed, but i saw sargentlard's name, and remembered where i was. I dunno if you remember sargent, but when you and i were both new here, we had some big debate over scandinavia )and i dont know why), but i remember when Xev and Adam were still posting (a lot) and wet1. cant forget WCF. how weird. seems so long ago, but only like 6 months. and that time gap really killed my posts per day. :m:

ummm...okay i am still new to these forums :D ;) I admit it...

bye!

Ah, well,

Heck, we're all birds of a feather in at least one way. We probably came to this site, in search of original science ideas (even coffee). In fact, I regret saying those things about coffee. I have been much worse than him at times, as any older member will attest. Besides, I do put out some pretty unbelievable ideas (crazy) at times. But that's what I was hoping to find at sciforums to begin with! If I want to read the same old worn out mainstream crap, I'll pick up this month's issue of Scientific American ! ! ! ! I want to know what the amateur science enthusist thinks (YOU)! ! ! That's why I am here. And let me tell ya, if there are even ten members here at sciforums that have really made porfiry's hair curl/stand on end, I am definately in that top ten! MAybe that's why he never banned me......of course, it could be out of sympathy...http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/bugeye.gif

Or maybe it's because he KNOWS that I do Completely Fucking LOVE THIS SITE, & my fellow science enthusiasts ! ! ! ! ! ! !

Come to think of the same old worn out ideas, did anybody pick up on the latest Stephen Hawking chronicles? See, science is very dynamic, & completely uncertain. Even the supposed best-of-the-best can be wrong & more often than not, is!

ANYHOW!....After being slapped down by the older members (when I was a junior member), I sorta retaliated against those with so little patience for my ideas & decided to be a pain in the ass to the boris's, Tiassa's, cris's, ect.....I didn't want to get rid of them (or anyone) or anything like that. I just wanted to be treated with some respect, or least to have my serious ideas considered and discussed without the snobbery.

I have always felt that every member here wants the same thing.....to be treated as a colleague, not as a fool.. I try not to treat anyone as a fool, but sometimes after being treated badly myself, I do strike back. It's in my nature. I also do joke around, quite a lot. I always hope that everyone here knows the difference. I have a problem with anyone, who can't laugh. That person needs professional help.

One of the things that first irritated me, was that the first members here were such great writers. Perfect punctuation, perfect use of commas, ect..................................... HAHA.....(that endless string of periods, slashes......would irritate the hell out of cris). http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gifBut he was also trying to be helpful & I DO appreciate that he was trying to help me. I guess/wish I should have told him that before he quit sciforums. http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/frown.gif It is my hope that I will be helpful, at least in some small way, to others.

For me, the really important part of sciforums was the original ideas, not so much punctuation. And mostly, I don't say anything about any other member's poor grammer or punctuation. Besides, I am no Earnest Hemingway ! ! ! As long as a member can communicate his/her science ideas, however they do it, I'm happy & don't give a shit about mispellings ! ! !


PS.........there is one last thing, in regards to posting at sciforums, that I want to address & have everyone here to read:
For anyone, who is not great at typing, spelling, or punctuation........let me tell ya bubba, it is now almost exactly 1 hour since I started this reply! ! ! ! By the time I have proof read, made changes, corrected typos, and added a little of my own HOWARDSTERN 21st century flair, it will have been at least 1 1/2 hrs. to make this one post ! ! ! Even then, I won't be satisfied with it & I will be aggravated when someone comes back & mis-interprets some point that I was sure that I had made.

So if you think that it (writing) comes easy..........at least for me.....it does not! I suspect that even, "The Great Tiassa," spends at least a few minutes proof reading & correcting, before he posts. http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/cool.gif Yeah, typing is a pain, when you are trying to communicate a few precise thoughts........maybe someone will invent a neural interface that will convert brain speech into correct text............or maybe even brain-to brain direct modem interfaces.http://www.sciforums.com/images/smilies/cool.gif

So until the brain-to-brain interfaces come along, don't feel left out if you have to put in the extra time in your posts, to get your point across. Otherwise you are sure to be misunderstood. It's happened to me more times than not. In fact, that's EXACTLY why my posts are so long. I hate misunderstandings. If I could have communicated these few thoughts with a hundred words or less, believe me, I would have. The devil is always in the details & if you don't detail, then someone won't GET IT! Seems like old cris told me something just like that, several years ago. He Was Right!

Peace...& knowledge...... :m:

Yeah,I miss 'em too.Cris was a great poster on intelligence and machines forums,Chagur,Wet1,Banshee,Adam.etc..Km,Stryder to me have been regular posters here for a long while...

Hey i am an olddie here too...;)

bye!

cris came back. i saw him post again just a few days ago. freaked me out.

Cool! I do know that he was taking on quite a bit more at work when I last talked to him in PM's. As he was being moved up the ladder, he had less & less time for Sciforums. His family came first..........as with anyone. :m: :cool: :m:

His family came first..........as with anyone. :m: :cool: :m:


Pfffttt...i'd ditch my asshole kids for this place anyday.

Gee, I wonder what I can contribute to the history other than some minor stuffs........ oh, but I merely hope one of my thread in Free Thoughts will be made monumental hee hee hee

I think that the greatest thread ever on sciforums was that of Backslash 777 :cool:

backslash777- man, machine, alien (http://www.sciforums.com/showthread.php?t=3157&page=1&pp=20)

hmm.. people are saying cris left for a while, that explains how he turned up a few days ago and had 5000 posts, i have been here 3 months and have like 600, so im getting there

I think I should be an integral part of sciforums history, because allegedly I brought immaturity to sciforums and made it the hallmark of every post since then by everybody (except goofyfish).

there is always room for a little immaturity, just keep those strange being of your forum out nad we should be fine

lol, i wrote nad instead of and *gasp* oh no, i found that funny, quick kill me before the next full moon!!