Introducing the Freethought Forum

[viscousmemories]

"The very aim and end of our institutions is just this: that we may think what we like and say what we think."
- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. The Professor at the Breakfast Table (http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/webbin/gutbook/lookup?num=2665) (1860)

The Freethought Forum aims to be just that sort of institution, only on a modest scale (and with smilies, lots of smilies :yup:). However, we have seen first hand that free expression suffers as much in a chaotic, unregulated environment as it can under a system of moderator-enforced civility.

In order to ensure that people feel comfortable expressing themselves, we have done our utmost to provide the tools for our membership to create an environment that nurtures open discussion while actively discouraging anti-social behaviors.

To this end, the Freethought Forum is inspired by the following four principles:

1. Freedom of thought
2. Freedom of expression
3. Community
4. Self-determination

Provided these principles always remain in focus, we are not only open to any suggested changes in the forum administration, structure, software or methodology, but we quite literally yearn for them. Until then, the Freethought Forum is structured as described in the following post.

[viscousmemories]

The Freethought Forum uses vBulletin (http://www.vbulletin.com) software, which is similar in style and function to numerous other forum software platforms. However, even if you are familiar with vBulletin forum software, you'll notice that we have customized it heavily for an improved style and enhanced functionality. You can find out more details about each feature and function we've added by browsing the various documents in the FAQ (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/faq.php?). Meanwhile, we have created this brief overview to introduce some of the great features we have.

Self-Moderation
One of the most exciting aspects of the new Freethought Forum is the broad control each member has over his or her experience. It is our firm belief that the people who visit here are perfectly capable of making their own determinations about what is worthwhile content and what is unnecessary garbage. We don't think we need to make that decision for you. Here are some of the features that make it possible for you to control content yourself:

Blocking Tools
In Member Options/Edit Custom Filters you will find these options related to filtering posts:

Disable Avatars, Signatures, or Images
This feature (found on the Member Options / Edit Options page, in the Thread Display Options section) allows you to block all avatars, signatures and images across the board. Avatars and signatures will simply disappear, and all images will be converted to links. Whenever you are concerned about the display of inappropriate images (at work, for example) or you are on a slow connection to the Internet, you can use this setting to prevent their display in all forums.

Disable Smilies
This last entry in the Thread Display Options section allows you to block all native smilies (i.e., the ones uploaded to the board, not ones linked to from elsewhere) in every post. If you choose this option, the smiley text will never convert to an image. In other words, instead of seeing a little smiling face when someone types :), you'll just see the : and the ).

Word Censor
The Freethought Forum provides the option to censor a short list of "vulgar" words. Simply choose "Censor posts using the forum's list of words" in Member Options/Edit Options. If you should decide you prefer to view the posts uncensored at a certain point, just turn off the filter and the posts will appear in their original condition. The words currently censored by our filter are: ass, cock, cunt, dick, fuck, shit, bitch, cocksucker, motherfucker, pussy, goddamn and santorum.

Ignore Thread
You can choose to remove any thread from view by selecting "Ignore Thread" in the "Thread Tools" menu. The list of threads you have ignored can be found near the bottom of the Member Options/Edit Custom Filters page.

Ignore Posts*
You can choose to filter any post by selecting "Ignore this post" on the post itself. The list of posts you have ignored can be found at the bottom of the Member Options/Edit Custom Filters page.

Annoying Users Options
When viewing a post, click on the member's name to find a menu of available options. Among the options displayed are:
Hide this member's avatar – You will no longer see the member's avatar in his/her posts
Hide this member's signature - You will no longer see the member's signature in his/her posts
Add this member to your ignore list* – You will no longer see the member's posts, and he/she will be unable to contact you using the FF PM or e-mail system
Disallow contact from this member – You will still be able to view the member's posts, but he/she will not be able to contact you through the FF PM or e-mail system

At the bottom of the Member Options/Edit Custom Filters page, you will find a list of the items you have blocked along with the option to remove the block. Including:
Hidden Avatars
Hidden Signatures
Members who are Disallowed Contact
Ignored Threads, and
Ignored Posts

*There is also a Show Ignore Placeholder option in your user control panel. When set to 'Yes', you will see a banner in place of posts you have ignored or which were posted by a member on your ignore list. This gives you the opportunity to choose whether to see posts on a case-by-case basis. Set this to 'No' if you prefer not to see anything in place of ignored posts.

Fun Stuff
The following three sections are available only to registered Freethought Forum members in good standing. If you are not registered here, you will not be able to access these areas. The last section, "Articles", is viewable by all.

Journals
Journals, Blogs, Diaries - whatever you call it, this is where our members can keep a personal log of their daily affairs, for perusal and comment by other Freethought Forum members. It is also possible for you to lock your journal if you should decide you no longer want it publically accessible, at which time only the Administration and you will be able to view it. Members have complete control over their personal journal, including the ability to edit and/or delete comments left on them.

Chat
Freethought Chat is where you can have real-time discussions with the other members of the Freethought Forum. Please remember that all chat room discussions are logged and archived by the Freethought Forum administration, and as with all other information we store we will turn those archives over to the authorities upon demand.

Arcade
If you've had a hard day, week or life, come kick back in The Freethought Forum arcade. We have tried to stock our arcade with some of the most popular games available, but if you know of any others you'd like to see please suggest them. The "Arcade Challenges" menu in the member information section of posts shows you that member's game championships and gives you the option of challenging that person to a game.

Articles
The articles section is a moderated repository for articles. If you have written an article or essay on any subject, you may submit it for inclusion in our Articles database. We don't currently have any formal guidelines in place for what submissions will be published, but we will of course favor submissions that are clear, concise and properly formatted. Relevant embedded images are nice, too. Comments on articles are not moderated.

Posting Enhancements

Existing Topics Search On New Threads
As soon as you begin typing in the subject field of your new thread, a small search icon (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/images/freethought/buttons/findicon_on.gif) will appear just to the right. Click on that icon to bring up a list of previous topics with similar words in the title and see if someone else has already started your thread.

vB codes
vB code is the tags you use to format your posts, for example to bold or italicize the text. We've added a few other custom vB codes to the standard offerings. Click here (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/misc.php?do=bbcode) to find out what they do and how to use them.

Smilies
If you like smilies :), you've come to the right place. We have hand-picked over 1400 of the cutest, craziest, funniest, most adorable smilies on the Internet. Even better, they are separated into topical categories and we've created a unique custom search feature to make it easier for you to find and use just the right one.

Quick Thread and Quick Reply
When viewing a forum, you'll see a Quick Thread box near the bottom of your screen. This box saves you a bit of time by allowing you to quickly start a thread without having to load the default editor page. You'll see a similar Quick Reply box near the bottom of the thread you're viewing. To use the Quick Reply feature, simply click on the http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/images/freethought/buttons/quickreply.gif button in the lower right hand corner of the post you wish to reply to; this will take you straight to the Quick Reply box.

As with many of the fields in the software, if you don't want the Quick Thread or Quick Reply boxes to show each time you load the page, simply click the collapse button (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/images/freethought/buttons/collapse_tcat.gif) in the upper right hand corner of the box. The box will stay collapsed until you click on the expand version (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/images/freethought/buttons/collapse_tcat_collapsed.gif) of that same button.

Quick Edit
Like the other "Quick" features, Quick Edit allows you to edit a post on the fly without forcing you to load the full post editor. You'll find the Quick Edit button (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/images/freethought/buttons/quickedit.gif) in the lower right hand corner of each post, to the left of the http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/images/freethought/buttons/quickreply.gif button.

Linking to a Specific Post
To link to a specific post wherever it is in the thread, first click this button http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/images/freethought/statusicon/post_old.gif in the upper left-hand corner of the post. Then go to the location bar in your browser and copy and paste the URL. If you prefer to link to a single post for display on its own - without the context of the rest of the thread - use the same method except click on the post number in the upper right-hand corner of the post.

Miscellaneous Options

User Profile
In addition to the standard profiles fields, you will also find:
Custom User Title – Create a unique title for yourself which will appear under your user ID in posts
Biography, Location, Interests, Occupation – Whatever you set in these fields gives you a chance to meet similar people. Just view your user profile and click on any of the words you have entered and a list of other people with the same item in their profile will appear.
Current Away Information - Allows you to leave a comment in your profile if you'll be away from the forum to let people know you're not around.

User Options
Here you can set the following options:
Visible Post Elements – Use this to select whether to display all avatars, signatures, and images (embedded and attached) throughout the forum
Display Thread Preview – When set to 'yes', a preview of the thread's opening post (OP) will appear in a yellow pop-up box when you hover your mouse pointer over the thread title in the forum index
Thread User Info – Here you can select whether the user information in a post (the poster's name, avatar, etc.) will appear above or to the left of posts
Forum Skin – Unlike some sites, we do not offer a wide variety of 'skins' for our forum because we want to have a consistent look and feel for all members. However, we do offer both a 'liquid' and a 'fixed' version of the Freethought Forum skin. Use this option (or the drop-down menu in the bottom left of each page) to select a style
Forumbit Layout – Version 3 of vBulletin shows the "last post" information in the third column on the forum index, whereas version 2 showed it in the last column. Use this option to choose whichever style you prefer.

Thread Tools
At the top of each thread you'll find a "Thread Tools" drop-down menu. This menu gives you these options:
Show Printable Version – Show the page without superfluous graphics, menus, and other non-essential components to facilitate printing
e-mail This Page – e-mail someone a link to the thread
Download This Thread – Download the thread to a text file on your computer hard drive
Subscribe to This Thread – Receive an e-mail notification whenever a new post is made
Ignore Thread - Select this to make a thread disappear. You'll find a list of all threads you have ignored on the Member Options / Edit Custom Filters page

[viscousmemories]

Are you new to Internet forums? If so, the Internet Writing Guide (http://members.aol.com/intwg/) gives a great introduction to writing on the 'net. In addition, here are some more tips that may help you communicate more effectively with your fellow FF'ers. :)

Some common terms (please click the term for a more detailed definition):

Flaming/Flamewar (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flaming) - Aggressive or insulting posts alone/in a series
Flooding - Excessive identical posts in rapid succession
Spamming (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spamming) - Posting advertising devoid of supporting content
Trolling (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_troll) - Posting with the primary intention of inciting hostility

Expressing actions

If you type "/me" (without the quotes) before a line of text - in posts or chat - it will be replaced with your name, allowing you to express an action. For example, if I type "/me waves hello to you" you will see:

/me waves hello to you.

The following are common acronyms in use in online discussions:

AFAIC - As Far As I'm Concerned
AFAIK - As Far As I Know
DNFTT - Do Not Feed The Troll
FWIW - For What It's Worth
IANAL - I Am Not A Lawyer
IIRC - If I Recall Correctly
IMHO - In My Humble Opinion
IMNSHO - In My Not So Humble Opinion
IMO - In My Opinion
IOW - In Other Words
OP - Opening Post(er) (the first post in a thread or its author)
OTOH - On The Other Hand
PITA - Pain In The Ass
POV - Point Of View
STFU - Shut The Fuck Up
TPTB - The Powers That Be
WRT - With Regards To
YMMV - Your Mileage May Vary

These acronyms are more often used in chat, but may be found in posts:

AFK - Away From Keyboard
BBS - Be Back Soon
BBL - Be Back Later
BTW - By The Way
CU - See You
CUL - See You Later
CYA - See Ya
LOL - Laughing Out Loud
ROFL - Rolling On the Floor Laughing
ROFLMAO - Rolling On the Floor Laughing My Ass Off
TTFN - Ta Ta For Now
TTYL - Talk To You Later
TTYS - Talk To You Soon
WTF - What The Fuck?

[viscousmemories]

A Very Brief History Of The Freethought Forum

The founders and current administrators of the Freethought Forum (livius drusus and viscousmemories) met in January, 2003 on the Secular Web's "Internet Infidels Discussion Board" (IIDB). Viscousmemories had registered a year prior, but did not really dive in until January. At that time livius was a long-time member and former moderator at IIDB.

Back then IIDB had a couple of private, hidden forums for avowed non-theists only called the Freethinkers Private Forums (FPF's). Unfortunately there was a fair amount of interpersonal turmoil in those fora, which was more of a burden than the administration wanted, and ultimately resulted in their being shut down.

In the interest of providing the members of the community that had developed there a new private forum - and to satisfy my lust for power and control - I created one in May, 2003. I enlisted livius, who by then had resumed the role of moderator at IIDB, to be my co-administrator. And with a nod to the old FPF's we called it the Freethinkers Forum.

The Freethinkers Forum was largely successful, but by the fall of 2003 livius and I realized we were unhappy with it. We had hopes that it would grow beyond being a purely social forum, and that more serious discussions and debates would take place. But moreover, we began to question the value, to us, of running a private forum which excludes people on ideological grounds.

So, after a few days of extensive and sometimes heated discussion with the membership, we decided to resign our positions there and start a new Freethinkers Forum. When we resigned we turned control of the forum over to a couple of members there, Godot and Christ-on-a-stick, and they changed the name to Godless Heathens. When COAS resigned a couple months ago, the site underwent yet another name change to its current name, Heathen Hangout.

At the same time COAS resigned the HH technical administrator, NobleSavage, stepped down as well. I then offered to step in as technical administrator to implement a number of improvements to the forum software, but with the exception of the occasional thread lock or split I remained officially uninvolved in the politics of running the forum. I resigned my technical admin role last week, shortly after opening this new forum.

At some point during the planning of this site, during a focus group we had on the subject, we established that labels are too hard to define, and often inadequate. So rather than have a name for the forum that implies identification with a particular label "freethinker", we opted to create an environment we hope is more conducive to what exactly we are looking for, "freethought".

And so the Freethought Forum was born.