h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

One of the things that has always intrigued me is the way people can look at the same person or event and come away with such different impressions. I realize that we are influenced by our personal experiences, likes and dislikes, etc. It makes sense to me that we would all see things in varying shades of gray. That isn't surprising at all. But when one person clearly sees white when another is certain it's black, that's interesting.

In case you're wondering what has inspired this discussion, it is the departure of Rev Nick from h2g2. He has made his final post and closed his account. I know this because Nick and I are real life friends who talk nearly every day. But if there was ever a hiker who polarized folks, it is Nick.

I have mixed emotions about his departure. I'm glad that he left at a time of his choosing rather than being forced off site again. That's definitely a good thing. Not that he necessarily would have been banned again. But it's a bit sad to know that someone I enjoy found the site so unsatisfying that he didn't want to stay, especially after waiting so long to be readmitted to our ranks.

The Nick I know is a generous, kind man who is always willing to listen and can always be counted on to help whenever possible. He's also intelligent, witty and creative and just plain fun to chat with. I like him very much. He's married to a great gal who is also becoming a friend.

There are a lot of people on h2g2 who will disagree with this assessment and I imagine will be thrilled with his departure. Some of these people are friends and acquaintences of mine. I've tried not to let the animosity between them and Nick influence my interactions with them. But I will admit to finding the entire situation distressing.

There are so many people I've considered friends over the years who are no longer here or who post so infrequently that they may as well be gone. Sad situation. This site had so much potential that hasn't been realized. I can't help believing that personal feuds have contributed to the erosion of that community camaraderie that was present when I first joined the site and which I miss.

So let's break out the and raise a glass. Some of you can celebrate his departure. Some can celebrate having enjoyed his company and wish him safe landing. As for me, I'll keep in touch in real life like I have for several years now.

I can honestly say that I don't care either way. I don't know why he left, but then I'm not interested to know, really. We had our clashes here until I learned to ignore him. You know we never discussed it, because it was between Nick and me, not you and me. I never wanted to alienate good friends in what way ever.
As you know, I'm not always happy with hootoo, either, but I love the site enough to stay.
I'll happily have a with you, though, just because I like .

*hic* I'm deciding weather to become a particle hunter......

I won't drink to Nick's departure, but I will drink with you as a friend Hyp, and to the success of H2G2

lil x

Oh, that is a good reason, Lil. I'll join you.

Nick I haven't met a lot on hootoo but I chat with him at Facebook. Sometimes it is just a fast update of our respective statuses. Sometimes the chat/conversation is as interesting as the conversations in Lil's Atelier.

I'm one of the infrequent hootooers, at least for the last half year. Hootoo can be time consuming, and it takes more and longer to contribute here than to scan Facebook for a smile or a serious thought.

Originally I joined Facebook because my daughters uploaded some of their photos there. And as photos mostly are digital and not collected in books anymore, I never get to see their photos otherwise.

Also on the plus side is that I have gotten in contact with a few long lost friends...

Now I'll shut up and drink

'night

is always good and is even better when shared with friends.

I've signed in just to comment on your journal Hyp.

I could'nt have put it better myself Hyp.
I'll happily raise a glass with you, to my best friend Nick. 'chink'

I'm genuinely sorry he's gone, just as I'm sorry for the loss of site Italics who cared about what happened here and involved themselves in the interpersonal stuff in order to keep the tone high.

Facebook and Twitter have made inroads on h2g2, which is old-fashioned enough to demand the commitment of time and attention. To me Facebook is like a high school hallway in between classes, a thousand conversations, banging lockers, constant movement, a level of distraction that makes a real conversation just about impossible. And recent experiences in the salon suggest that the faster-moving internet media have lowered the level of interpersonal tolerance. Why try to work things out when you can just un-friend or change the channel?

To those who persist!

I created a list not long ago of people I genuinely enjoy/enjoyed talking to on h2g2. People still here in one column and people who have left for one reason or another in the other. I'm sorry to say the second list is much longer than the first. It is even sadder because the first list includes people who post infrequently now, but who do still post.

Sites change, people come and go, so we have to adapt. I keep hoping that some of our old friends will change their minds and come back to us.

Lil, I couldn't agree more about Facebook. The conversations there are pretty shallow. Here we can actually discuss a topic in length, actually broach serious subjects. Or we used to be able to do that. Facebook is all sound bite and very little substance.

I think one of the issues with h2g2 and researchers leaving because of other researchers is that there is no rule which allows someone to be yikes'd simply for being a horrid person all the time, most other forums have this in one form or other but people on h2g2 can simply get away with it (and then, of course, complain about being bullied when people tell them to stop acting so selfishly).

(also, rumour has it that we may be able to afford a Real Holiday this year and that it may include the United State of America in some capacity. But keep it under your hat until we know for sure )

It would be wonderful to have you on our side of the pond, Mr. D. But I won't tell a soul.

Ooh dear, I've been caught out by the Moderators...

It will come back. We had that with Terri's Post article this week. You can't post here the nickname for Richard.

Well, filters can't tell what in what context a word is used. It's just annoying that many words with multiple meanings generfally have one of those that are naughty or PI. But in this case, Mr. D's word actually was a bit naughty.

I see the new skin hasn't improved my typing. I was hoping it would.
*deletes a what, removes an f and changes an are to an is*

Let's see how relaxed the mods are, since he didn't address a specific person.

I hate the "Removed" and the "Hidden" titles what someone get the mod

I relaly (as 2legs would say) hate modded posts as almost every conversation I frequent is among responsible folks who would almost assuredly not be offended by the post in question.

Anyhoo...

Just wanted to reply to an earlier part of the convo and say that Facebook is what the original AOL would have evolved into had it lasted this long.

*(I read that in some Wired article this week and it really seemed to hit the target.)

I'm sorry that Rev Nick is gone; I know he tended to grate on some, but I never had any problems with him. I've been on Hootoo for over 11 years, now, and it's like losing RL friends when someone leaves. I probably talk to folk on here more than I do my RL friends -- sad but true. for its own sake is nice, in any case.

I can take or leave FB; it's the only way I can see pics of my brother's family, though. It just blasts by so fast, and I don't feel at all inclined to check in multiple times a day to see statuses.