I'm not long enough on here to talk about the Ole Times, but I think one signature feature of Subsim is the familiarity the members have with each other, despite the huge amount of members.
This can be both a blessing and a curse in discussions.
a blessing:
- When scanning through the daily oxcrap, it can help you to read the posts from members who you are known to write stuff which contributes to discussions.
- You don't have to explain certain views 1000 times as it would be on a more anonymous board.
- this is the point where certainly many will disagree with: it leads to more respect for the other person than on a shoutbox like YT or the chans. The other is not just a user name, but often a person of flesh and blood from whom you already read some stuff. Often about totally different topics. Explaining views and positions makes them more comprehensible and understandable than just shouting "this is soandso!"
on the other hand:
- when you know how the other person ticks, you know where to light the fuse to bring them to explode and this can be used to stir up fights.
- people tend to be put member in categories in which they expect them to act
- long term effects of posts: "Screw you! Back in 1859 you said thisandthat!"
Now you folks can answer what you want, I have you all on my ignore list anyway!
