What is T-Nation For You?

Off Topic
42

[quote]rainjack wrote:
I like how people who haven’t even been a member for a full year can get on here and whine like little babies.

For starters, you guys have no clue what it used to be like back in the day. Honestly, most of you would have been flamed or shamed into leaving here. It was hardcore as hell.

The T-Cell is a visit back to those days.

Secondly, the T-Cell is only 3 fucking days old, and you guys are bitching as if it should be perfect the second it hit the ground.

Grow the fuck up.

What is the main cause of the decline in T-Nation? Whiny assed, spoiled little kids who think they are owed just because they breathe. [/quote]

Now I have not been a member for more than a year, but I have been active in the effort to find a solution that would lead to a more centered discussions on body building and to minimize beginner and troll threads in the bodybuilding forum.

No, I do not know what it was like back in the day but I imagine it was not dissimilar to my first gym in college in southeast Texas that did not have air conditioning, the weights were rusty, most of the padded surfaces had holes in them and only the truly devoted would stay. It was a small community that would bear the week before Spring Break crowd because we could ensure an unpleasant enough experience that they would not be back.

Then the new gym with air conditioning, cardio and machines was built and the transfer there seems much like what is happening here, everyone is showing up and the “hardcore” nature gains minority status. In my experience there was no going back, they condemned and demolished the old gym.

With the new gym came also some new guys who would have fit in well in the old gym, who had lifting experience and the right attitude but just were not around to experience the old gym. They still had knowledge and experience under the iron and could contribute to the “hardcore” nature of the minority. And it would have been stupid for us to have said that since they were not in the old gym that they and their experiences did not count.

People’s member dates tell me very little. Why should I think a two year member whose only been working out for that long is any more knowledgeable than the new member who has been lifting for twenty years? All the member date tells me in this case is the two year member knew about this website first.

43

[quote]Tex Ag wrote:
rainjack wrote:
I like how people who haven’t even been a member for a full year can get on here and whine like little babies.

For starters, you guys have no clue what it used to be like back in the day. Honestly, most of you would have been flamed or shamed into leaving here. It was hardcore as hell.

The T-Cell is a visit back to those days.

Secondly, the T-Cell is only 3 fucking days old, and you guys are bitching as if it should be perfect the second it hit the ground.

Grow the fuck up.

What is the main cause of the decline in T-Nation? Whiny assed, spoiled little kids who think they are owed just because they breathe.

Now I have not been a member for more than a year, but I have been active in the effort to find a solution that would lead to a more centered discussions on body building and to minimize beginner and troll threads in the bodybuilding forum.

No, I do not know what it was like back in the day but I imagine it was not dissimilar to my first gym in college in southeast Texas that did not have air conditioning, the weights were rusty, most of the padded surfaces had holes in them and only the truly devoted would stay. It was a small community that would bear the week before Spring Break crowd because we could ensure an unpleasant enough experience that they would not be back.

Then the new gym with air conditioning, cardio and machines was built and the transfer there seems much like what is happening here, everyone is showing up and the “hardcore” nature gains minority status. In my experience there was no going back, they condemned and demolished the old gym.

With the new gym came also some new guys who would have fit in well in the old gym, who had lifting experience and the right attitude but just were not around to experience the old gym. They still had knowledge and experience under the iron and could contribute to the “hardcore” nature of the minority. And it would have been stupid for us to have said that since they were not in the old gym that they and their experiences did not count.

People’s member dates tell me very little. Why should I think a two year member whose only been working out for that long is any more knowledgeable than the new member who has been lifting for twenty years? All the member date tells me in this case is the two year member knew about this website first.[/quote]

Not talking about training, my post does not even address training. I’m talking about people who think they know how the site should be, but have not been here long enough to know what the hell they are talking about.

People who have been here, lost their account for one reason or another are not the issue. Most people who have had that happen to them know what the deal is, and it is obvious.

44

[quote]Tex Ag wrote:

Now I have not been a member for more than a year, but I have been active in the effort to find a solution that would lead to a more centered discussions on body building and to minimize beginner and troll threads in the bodybuilding forum.

No, I do not know what it was like back in the day but I imagine it was not dissimilar to my first gym in college in southeast Texas that did not have air conditioning, the weights were rusty, most of the padded surfaces had holes in them and only the truly devoted would stay. It was a small community that would bear the week before Spring Break crowd because we could ensure an unpleasant enough experience that they would not be back.

Then the new gym with air conditioning, cardio and machines was built and the transfer there seems much like what is happening here, everyone is showing up and the “hardcore” nature gains minority status. In my experience there was no going back, they condemned and demolished the old gym.

With the new gym came also some new guys who would have fit in well in the old gym, who had lifting experience and the right attitude but just were not around to experience the old gym. They still had knowledge and experience under the iron and could contribute to the “hardcore” nature of the minority. And it would have been stupid for us to have said that since they were not in the old gym that they and their experiences did not count.

People’s member dates tell me very little. Why should I think a two year member whose only been working out for that long is any more knowledgeable than the new member who has been lifting for twenty years? All the member date tells me in this case is the two year member knew about this website first.[/quote]

Nice analogy. But in my humble opinion, there haven’t been enough of the “new” joinees who have the experience and who could offer something worthwhile to this site (gym). Most of the joinees have been of the sort you related to the “spring break” crowd.

45

[quote]rainjack wrote:

People who have been here, lost their account for one reason or another are not the issue. Most people who have had that happen to them know what the deal is, and it is obvious.

[/quote]

I won’t beat this dead horse any longer; but in my particular case I don’t know what the deal was and it wasn’t obvious why I had lost my account in 2004.

Yes, I am still chaffed by that…but have obviously mostly bounced back. Mistakes happen.

46

[quote]buffd_samurai wrote:
rainjack wrote:

People who have been here, lost their account for one reason or another are not the issue. Most people who have had that happen to them know what the deal is, and it is obvious.

I won’t beat this dead horse any longer; but in my particular case I don’t know what the deal was and it wasn’t obvious why I had lost my account in 2004.

Yes, I am still chaffed by that…but have obviously mostly bounced back. Mistakes happen. [/quote]

I guess we should define “the deal”, then because I think you do know it.

  1. You are not the fly by night, 100 posts the first day, and gone tomorrow guy.

  2. I don’t see you making demands as if you are in a 5-star hotel.

  3. You aren’t trying to get to the top of the shit pile by posting everywhere all the time with nothing of substance in your posts.

Maybe “the deal” is sort of like porn - I know it when I see it.

47

T-Nation is a marketing strategy for the Biotest supplement company. To that end, the website accommodates many generes of high-level physical training for the deeply committed enthusiast. It may have a core focus on bodybuilding, but they’d be shutting out a large demographic of potential customers if they didn’t accommodate other athletes. If I’m buying the fish oil, they’ve done their job.

48

[quote]undeadlift wrote:
michael2507 wrote:
First of all, I see where you are coming from. I personally am against more strict moderating, though. Where exactly do you draw the line? This thread shows how hard it is to even find a basic consensus on the issue which accommodates all the different and often opposing interests involved…
http://www.T-Nation.com/tmagnum/readTopic.do?id=2113670

I think the link you posted is a good reason why mods should be more active (but not necessarily stricter). On dotaportal.com for example, the mods directly interact with the members, and the rules are set in stone. For example, you have to stay on topic all the time, or else you get warned or even banned. Regardless of whether people agree with them or not, they follow it for the greater good of DotA. I wish something like that was also happening here, but I just don’t see it.[/quote]

Dota rocks!

49

[quote]rainjack wrote:
buffd_samurai wrote:
rainjack wrote:

People who have been here, lost their account for one reason or another are not the issue. Most people who have had that happen to them know what the deal is, and it is obvious.

I won’t beat this dead horse any longer; but in my particular case I don’t know what the deal was and it wasn’t obvious why I had lost my account in 2004.

Yes, I am still chaffed by that…but have obviously mostly bounced back. Mistakes happen.

I guess we should define “the deal”, then because I think you do know it.

  1. You are not the fly by night, 100 posts the first day, and gone tomorrow guy.

  2. I don’t see you making demands as if you are in a 5-star hotel.

  3. You aren’t trying to get to the top of the shit pile by posting everywhere all the time with nothing of substance in your posts.

Maybe “the deal” is sort of like porn - I know it when I see it. [/quote]

I don’t even see why people are making a huge deal out of the T-Cell. If you aren’t in it it doesn’t really affect you at all. Besides being able to read GOOD, well written threads by knowledgeable people. Which I intend to follow.

People just need to stop bitching about stuff. Who cares if there’s a 14 year old on there? Until he degredates the board in some way, let him stay there.

50

I actually feel kinda bad for Ahzaz. No one takes what he says seriously.

This may or may not be warranted. All I know is, ProfX invited him, and if ProfX invited him after throwing such a shit-storm that got the T-cell started in the first place… He deserves the place, I guess.

51

[quote]Otep wrote:
I actually feel kinda bad for Ahzaz. No one takes what he says seriously.

This may or may not be warranted. All I know is, ProfX invited him, and if ProfX invited him after throwing such a shit-storm that got the T-cell started in the first place… He deserves the place, I guess.[/quote]

I’ve only seen two of his posts in the t-cell so far, one was thanking the prof, the other was about how he lost weight. I don’t really see why people are being assholes about it. He hasn’t taken away any discussion from t-cell members thus far.

52

[quote]dianab wrote:
LiveFromThe781 wrote:
a handful of middle aged women who arent figure competitors

I’m sorry, but can you please clarify WTF is wrong with not being a figure competitor and what does middle age have to do with anything? There was a lot of women posting here into BB and PL, but most have left, due in part to attitudes like yours. Do we have to wear 5 inch heels and swimsuits to be serious about training?
[/quote]

yeah because when i think hardcore bodybuilder i think of people like Octobergirl and Cheta. fuck outta here.

53

[quote]rainjack wrote:
I like how people who haven’t even been a member for a full year can get on here and whine like little babies.

For starters, you guys have no clue what it used to be like back in the day. Honestly, most of you would have been flamed or shamed into leaving here. It was hardcore as hell.

The T-Cell is a visit back to those days.

Secondly, the T-Cell is only 3 fucking days old, and you guys are bitching as if it should be perfect the second it hit the ground.

Grow the fuck up.

What is the main cause of the decline in T-Nation? Whiny assed, spoiled little kids who think they are owed just because they breathe. [/quote]

my problem with the T-Cell is that there was this huge build up before it where people kept talking about “the dog pound” and to describe people said it was an “elite section of a hardcore site” everyone kept talking about how they wanted it back. then the Bodybuilding Bunker is made and it seemed that most the hardcore people were drawn in to it anyway

then they make T-Cell Alpha which as describe would be the place for the vets of T-Nation and the most hardcore and elite/biggest people. the problem lies in that its first fucking day its already failed to maintain its mission to keep the elite in.

i had higher hopes of the place and was expecting to be a place for the 220+ beheamoths of this site who have been training at least 5 years. thats not how it is at all and like i said it seems that most of the inductees are just comrades of the people posting in there, not people id look to seek bodybuilding advice from.

its just sad to me that all these supposed hardcore motherfuckers want a place where they can be to discuss real bodybuilding. i just dont see why the place was promised to have such a high calibre of posters and now majority are subpar.

i was expecting the A-Team and what came out is Chuck-E-Cheese.

54

[quote]rainjack wrote:
buffd_samurai wrote:
rainjack wrote:

People who have been here, lost their account for one reason or another are not the issue. Most people who have had that happen to them know what the deal is, and it is obvious.

I won’t beat this dead horse any longer; but in my particular case I don’t know what the deal was and it wasn’t obvious why I had lost my account in 2004.

Yes, I am still chaffed by that…but have obviously mostly bounced back. Mistakes happen.

I guess we should define “the deal”, then because I think you do know it.

  1. You are not the fly by night, 100 posts the first day, and gone tomorrow guy.

  2. I don’t see you making demands as if you are in a 5-star hotel.

  3. You aren’t trying to get to the top of the shit pile by posting everywhere all the time with nothing of substance in your posts.

Maybe “the deal” is sort of like porn - I know it when I see it. [/quote]

Then I am confused on what the T-Cell is supposed to be about. I thought it was to be a location for the experienced lifters to discuss topics they found interesting and for others to learn from. It appears others think otherwise and have decided to include relatively new lifters (those still in their newbie gains stage) into the T-cell.

That is a horse of another color and I think that is a source of some of the viral discontent. I am not concerned with the strategy and commitment of those in their college years, especially when they do not understand how special those years are. The college years allow for beautiful self-centered living.

I am far more interested in the advice from those who lift with passion while balancing it with family, work, and others responsibilities, i.e., life. This also includes lifters who provide perspective gained through time under the iron and when lifting through life changes. These are those who I thought were destined to be the elite, the T-cell members. It appears, as of now, I was mistaken.

55

I don’t see any viral discontent. I see a several impatient people complaining, and attempting to rationalize their impatience.

56

[quote]rainjack wrote:
buffd_samurai wrote:
rainjack wrote:

People who have been here, lost their account for one reason or another are not the issue. Most people who have had that happen to them know what the deal is, and it is obvious.

I won’t beat this dead horse any longer; but in my particular case I don’t know what the deal was and it wasn’t obvious why I had lost my account in 2004.

Yes, I am still chaffed by that…but have obviously mostly bounced back. Mistakes happen.

I guess we should define “the deal”, then because I think you do know it.

  1. You are not the fly by night, 100 posts the first day, and gone tomorrow guy.

  2. I don’t see you making demands as if you are in a 5-star hotel.

  3. You aren’t trying to get to the top of the shit pile by posting everywhere all the time with nothing of substance in your posts.

Maybe “the deal” is sort of like porn - I know it when I see it. [/quote]

Ooops…making the mistake of one more kick on that poor horse, lol: I’ve gotten over the initial anger over losing my account for no apparent reason. I do believe it was an honest mistake perhaps in the IT department…no harm done.

The only reason why I got bent out of shape a little at that time was due to possible privacy issues with regards to identity and personal info that may have accompanied the switcheroo in my original logon name. Again, after all is said and done, no harm done there.

If the “deal” has anything to do with porn…I’m in. : )

57

[quote]2274 wrote:
michael2507 wrote:
First of all, I see where you are coming from. I personally am against more strict moderating, though. Where exactly do you draw the line? This thread shows how hard it is to even find a basic consensus on the issue which accommodates all the different and often opposing interests involved…
http://www.T-Nation.com/tmagnum/readTopic.do?id=2113670

As for “educating” the trolls, we have guys on here with over ten or twenty thousand posts who show great patience in answering questions and trying to get the message across what this site actually is about for most of the long time forum members. Tribulus, Professor X, jsbrook, Phill (haven’t seen him post here lately), Bushy, Sentoguy and many others come to mind. A troll is per definition a person who is deliberately inflammatory in order to provoke a response from other users. An increased effort to educate these people won’t account for much of a change.

Lastly, in every community, be it on the internet or in “real life”, there will be annoying and stupid people. I log on here in my free time in order to learn something new or have fun. Like everywhere else it is my choice to decide which posts and threads I read and if I answer or ignore a certain post by a troll. Granted, sometimes this means sifting through a lot of e-drivel, but this isn’t much different than in other areas of life.

Moderating by definition is keeping things moderate. If things got too strict, that wouldn’t be moderation at all. I’m against strict moderating. My advocacy is for more active moderation.

OK, I guess “educating” isn’t the right term. “Converting” would be a more accurate word. And if they can’t be converted, kick them out.

There’s a reason why there are elders, police officers, etc. in real life. If they weren’t doing their jobs, we’d see a lot more stupid and annoying people running around our streets. Of course, not all of them can be caught. They can never be extinguished, but they can be minimized. The same is true for these forums.[/quote]

Just to throw in my 2 cents.

Having been on the side of being both a forum member and a moderator at one time, it’s a tough balancing act of trying not to censor people and attempting to keep trolling from getting out of hand. It’s almost as if the ideal goal is to make everyone equally unhappy and then you know you’ve done your job. Fun times eh?

There have been a lot of valiant efforts to battle against the trolls by forum bets, but you just get exhausted with it after a while. I come to this site to learn, share what I know and enjoy myself… not engage in a pitched battle every time with some 153 lb kid with too little time on his hands that could be better spent training, but instead likes just being annoying.

That being said, I have certainly not given up on taking responsibility for pushing these forums in the right direction since I am obviously still here.