Assumptions of a Newbie (and other short stories)

[Doukeshi]

I don't know if this will get shut down or anything. You're welcome to because it's pointless...also, the short stories thing was a pun on my part ^_^

Anyway, I was just wondering. Is it an unwelcome thing to be a newbie? Do other more experienced users look down on newbies? For reasons best known to themselves? I'm not just talking about OB here, in any chatroom/board anywhere. Is it considered a curse to be a newbie?

What do you think when you seen someone who's a newbie, or don't you think of it at all? Do you judge people by how many posts they have under their belt? I'd like to know.

[Celia]

[color=0099FF][size=1]Well first of all... I am a newbie!

When I first joined OB, everyone was really nice to me. They didn't mind that if I am a newbie or not. Everyone HAD to be a newbie, so I don't see the point why people look at newbies in a different way.[/color][/size]

[RicoTranzrig]

[COLOR=darkblue]It's obvious that they don't really get noticed at first. Many new people don't stick around long enough to make themselves known. I consider someone a newbie if they don't have a basic understanding of whatever they're getting themselves into and they don't seem to do anything about it, like learn.[/COLOR]

[James]

[color=#707875]Well, I'll give you my honest opinion.

I notice newbies.

When I see "newbie" as your title, I notice you. And, newbies make me excited. Why? Because they are new to the OB experience. ~_^

Newbies bring so much to this site. They bring wonderful discussion to OL, all sorts of unique art to our design forums, and some really inventive and interesting ideas to our Adventure Arena.

In short, newbies are what makes OB go round. We were all newbies at one stage or another and we all brought something positive to this place.

I also like newbies because I [i]don't[/i] yet know them. I want to hear what they have to say. I want to know their ideas about how to improve this place. And I want to see what kind of interesting things they can do (whether it's discussion/art/poetry/fiction/RPG/etc).

So, you're hearing this from an "oldie". I like newbies. I find that I generally notice newbies in a positive, rather than a negative way. I'm not cynical about them at all; I see them as fresh and interesting. And I know that they can always bring something great to the community.

Of course, you do get spamming newbies and whatnot. But often, newbies just need a bit of time to adjust to the way things work here. When given the chance, many will blossom into really amazing members with high quality posts. Those who leave or are banned were probably not worthwhile anyway -- and they shouldn't cast doubt on newbies generally.

So there, that's my piece. ^_^;[/color]

[Guest Randleman]

I think I have pretty well adjusted. I just don't like the fact that I have to get to 250 posts to remove my "newbie" title. :\

[wrist cutter]

The reason there's such a negative stigma attached to newbies is because most of them are unbelievably retarded (much like myself, but I slipped through the cracks). Now you are thinking, "what a horrible thing to say!". But it's true. Everyone was a newbie at some point, but some of them were not stupid, and today they are "oldies". All the morons are weeded out before they can ever become old.

[Juu]

[color=ff00cc] [size=1]I don't think it's terrible to be a newbie at all. There's plenty of newbies here who have excellent post quality and have really intellegant posts. However, you can't expect all newbies to have the same post quality as some of the older members here, especially if they're fresh out of chats. *points to self* ^^;

And I also like newbies. It's fun to make new friends, and meet new people. It'd be kinda boring if you never got to meet new people in a forum this big. I especially love when they PM me and say 'Hi'. I'm always glad to talk to someone new. ^_^;[/color] [/size]

[Semjaza]

I spend time here and at the Gaming-Age Forums. Those are the only two forums I current bother with. At GAF, there are only two basic ranks. You're either a Member or a Junior Member. If something of interest happens, a mod may give you a custom title (I currently have one).

Really, I do base a lot of things around that Junior Member status at GAF. The vast majority of awful posts are from these people. They post old news, talk down to established members despite them obviously knowing far less about nearly everything, and so on. As soon as I see a pointless or stupid thread it's either from an established moron that people keep around for fun or a Junior Member. On the other hand GAF's active userbase is massive by comparison and there are far more problems, and far more good members to compare the bad ones to. There is also a way larger number of just plain bad members.

That's the end of that story. The point is, that generally people that fit in the Newbie category have little idea what is going on and everyone knows it. It doesn't matter what the hell you refer to it as. There's generally an adjustment period for most people. I try not to base any of my actions on someone's status here. I don't think one person here could ever give an example of me doing that either. I don't purposely pick on the new people at all, but you generally can just tell the sort of stuff a new member will post and you mostly come up right.

So yes, this is a stereotype. People here complain and complain about being called Newbie. People here honestly think that replacing that word with another would change anything? (Go see the current thread in Suggestions for an example of that). People (well, me anyway) judge you on how stupid you personally act, not on the Newbie status. The Newbie status just adds to it, and gives people more to pick on about... but that, for me, is after the fact. After I read the horribly pointless post about "Who likes Link!?!?! :D ;) :bluesweat" in the Zelda forum.

I could call new members "Savior of the Universe," but if they all turned out to be moronic, then Savior of the Universe would wind up having the same connotation as Newbie. It would be just as derrogatory because people would make it so. It wouldn't [i]solve[/i] anything.

Of course, then you have the new members that somehow slip through the cracks and really don't ever get better. They somehow wind up being Members or who knows what else. Personally, I have more problems with those sorts of people than I do with the new people still getting used to this place.

In any case, this whole title thing is incredible stupid. I wouldn't mind if they were totally ditched altogether.

[OtakuSennen]

Being a newbie is good. ^_^ People see your newbie title, take pity on you, and become your friend. I'm kidding.. But I don't think people look at you much differently.. It depends more on your post quality than your post count, I think.. Just until a week ago I was a newbie.. Nobody's treated me any differently since I became a Junior Member.

[Guest dayday]

I don't mind. Some people have been here longer than me and are still Newbies. There are a few people on here that I don't know and they just PM me on the spot. And somethimes IM. So sometimes if I see a newbie who's here I try to make friends with them sometimes. Since over half the people here don't even seem to know me. I found that out easily. So doesn't really mind me to see a Newbie on it's fine with me. I don't really check that most of the time. But yeah I do notice from time to time.

[AzureWolf]

Yeah, newbie doesn't seem to bother anyone. However, I still think the amount of posts to become something else is ridiculously large. I mean, shouldn't 100 be enough to be not considered a newbie? If you have made 100 posts that didn't get you banned, then you should be considered a junior member. Haha, maybe I'm just complaining because of my position! :D

[Ryan]

[color=orange]

I think everyone has already cleared it up. It doesn't matter if you are a newbie or not, it just depends on your post quality. When someone is new to a new place, such as Otakuboards for example, they don't know the rules about the place. They don't know "the ropes". That is why newbies are more known for messing up a bit. But once you get the hang of things around here you fit right in. :) Everyone is a newbie at one point so everyone can relate to each other.:):)[/color]

[Kwai]

Post counts really don't mean much. Someone can have 500 + posts consisting only of mindless rants, flames, insults and such. On the otherhand, someone with around 50 posts may have posted intelligent, well-thought out comments or suggestions. Post counts just indicate how long that specific member has been on otaku boards.

[Krillen]

When I look at a newbie, I dont think of them as newbies. I classify members depending on their grammer, experience, and whatnot. You seem to be a pretty good person. There are all sorts of newbies, it all depends on how well you catch on to the rules(if you read them or not -_-*), and how things go on the boards. When it all comes down to it, you are rated on your personality and knowledge of certain subjects.

But remember everyone, we were all newbies at one time. Becoming a member of OB was like being born in my opinion. I didnt catch on right away, I may have had some mistakes along the way. I dont remember much of when I was a newbie. i pretty much hung around the Dragonball section at first. I use to be in the RPG section all the time, and still am, but there has been a huge shortage of RPG's that even come close to being worth while. As of now my post count slowly rises because I am always helping people out in the Art/Design Forums, which give you no post count. But, in the end, I am all over the boards all day.

[pbfrontmanvdp]

I agree with James, everyone one on this site or towards anything was a newbie at one time or another when trying something new. I mean how can you put someone down for trying something new out, the whole idea of being a newbie is to learn from those that have been doing the same thing for years. Then once you get experience you get friends and become part of the group/hobby. So being a newbie is always a good thing since usually you can always rely on a more experienced member to help you out if you need it.

[Jubei Yagyou]

In the area of gaming nobody can be labeled a newbie, noob, or nub (something I heard on counter-strike. its supposed to be a small version of a noob. wierd isnt it?) but in OB you can by number of counts which seem wierd to me, I'm not critisizing, I'm just agreeing with everybody else on this post. And, doesnt everyone have to start as a newbie. It kinda reminds me of the skateboarding poser thing. I mean, you cant wear skateboarding apparel just because you dont skate? That brings us back to everyone has to start somewhere.

[Charles]

If you think about it, there are really a lot of stereotypes involved with message boards and their denizens in general. You know, we're all just a bunch of red-eyed Internet weirdoes with thick bottle cap glasses looking for cyber sex or some other taboo material. Instead of facing the real world, we're lurking around these parts saying things like "OMG!11" and my personal favorite "STFU n00b!11."

So, it's only natural that we, being the red-eyed, cyber sex addicted, Internet weirdoes that we are, have instinctual hostilities towards anyone who knows less than we do about a forum (or anything at all, in general) because it makes us feel good. lol

Seriously though, on quality forums, this sort of petty behavior just shouldn't (and doesn't) occur. I don't form preconceptions about a new member unless their user name is questionable. If it looks something like "CuTIeGurL20474" or "urubern00b" then I kind of whistle and hide my personal sheet of gold respect stickers behind my back.

I try to concentrate more on what people say then when they registered. That's what I care about.

If anything, I pay closer attention to what newbies have to say because they're very unfamiliar to me and I want to see where they stand on certain issues. You can only hear the same opinions from the same people so many times. *_*

[wrist cutter]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Charles [/i]
[B]You can only hear the same opinions from the same people so many times. *_* [/B][/QUOTE]

And yet James is still popular, despite his "I Love Jimmy Carter!" attitude that he's had since the start.

[Sara]

[size=1]Shy and I have conversations about this every once in a while. o0; There are some pretty long-standing members here that will always be "newbies" to us--regardless of post count or time spent here. [i]Newbie is not a post count, it is a state of mind.[/i]

I like the newbie title--it's a bit of a challenge to carve a place out for yourself somewhere where you are regarded as a "newbie." Sure, the word has some negative connotations, but honestly--

The people who respect me for my post count are people I don't care to have the respect of.

And I can say that as a supermod here with 4400 posts, and I can say it as a newbie at another forum with less than 50 posts.

If you're interested, here's one member's stance on the subject: [b]"I wanna go back to being a Newbie for a very simple and selfish reason. People tend to think of Newbies as ignorant little kids. And there are few moments more satisfying than knowing you are being underestimated. :D"[/b]

I like that quote. :toothy:[/size]

[Tasrai]

I think it's great being a Newbie here on OtakuBoards. It's always so interesting meeting new people. Anyways I classify people by their post quality also, sometimes when I see somebody's post I instantly think newbie and find out they are an Otaku or something. Then I read some newbie's post and think man they must have been here a long time.

So I would have to go along with Sara on this,[I] Newbie is not a post count, it is a state of mind.[/I]

That is my opinion as a newbie.

[James]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by wrist cutter [/i]
[B]And yet James is still popular, despite his "I Love Jimmy Carter!" attitude that he's had since the start. [/B][/QUOTE]

[color=#707875]What on Earth is that supposed to mean, Mr. Cutter? ~_^

In any case, I'm not really sure where the anti-newbie concepts come from (for those who actually really dislike most newbies automatically). But, I find it interesting that some members seem to [i]really[/i] hate the title and are desperate to have it changed. Sometimes I wonder if those people, with that attitude, are personifying newbieism. lol

And Sara...you quoted Mnemolth. It's a funny quote, because when he was a newbie, I [i]overestimated[/i] him. Shame, that. :smirk: [/color]

[wrist cutter]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by James [/i]
[B]What on Earth is that supposed to mean, Mr. Cutter? ~_^[/B][/QUOTE]

In one of your posts you were stating that you had humanitarian views or something of that sort, and it was phrased exactly how it was in a history textbook that was drilled into us (and on the final exam!). So now I always think of ol' Jimmy when I see your posts.

[James]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by wrist cutter [/i]
[B]In one of your posts you were stating that you had humanitarian views or something of that sort, and it was phrased exactly how it was in a history textbook that was drilled into us (and on the final exam!). So now I always think of ol' Jimmy when I see your posts. [/B][/QUOTE]

[color=#707875]Oh, I see. Please excuse me while I make a face in response...

[size=72]o_O;;;;;[/size]

Okay, I'm alright now. :D

In relation to the topic, I will [b]repeat[/b] once more that I like newbies and am excited by them. You know, just incase someone missed my original post. :blush: [/color]

[Raiha]

[color=royalblue]I'm sorry...my eyes must be going. Either that or my mind is deep in the gutter.

When you say that newbies "excite" you James...more than a million bad images pop into my head. *PURGE* *PURGE* *PURGE!!!*

Aaaaaaaaanyways....I don't assume much about newbies, unless their first post looks like this:

"hi, i'm new here! how do youatach somthing?"

And my days as a mod were peppered with thousands of idiotic PMs about posting and threads starting...and such flim flam. Bad memories. So, in retrospect...newbies aren't all bad, but alot of them give the group a bad name.[/color]

[Guest Crimson Spider]

*Grabs popcorn and takes bets to see if james will say it again.*

Well, I think that the post count is one of the worst ways to determin if a person is a newbie or not. Too bad you couldn't just set it up so it is the amount of time you have been here, and not the post count.

Personally, I don't even pay attention to the title each person is given. I think that their sig/avatar/post quality signifies how much of a newbie they are, and not their post count.

I really don't mind newbies myself being an elite at another board.

n00bs, however, are another story.

P.S. do you think I am a newbie? Just curios, and will not hold a grudge.