The Big Experiment:

So this forum is rapidly evolving and growing. That's exactly what we want. In that vein here are a few "guidelines" to help you figure out how to use it. I hesitate to post these because I don't want to constrict people's thinking. The only thing I ask is that we remember that this is all for fun and entertainment, and we all keep anything said here in the proper perspective.

News:

The news is at the top of the front page. It's not a flashy color, it's usually not bold, and it's rarely interesting. I suppose that's my fault. It's updated regularly by BIGdis staff, mostly used as a place to announce new features and things relating to this website itself. Please read it. If you don't, there's no telling what fun you'll miss out on.

Rants:

A "rant" as it has come to be known is a comment, idea, or opinion about something. Despite the seeming negative connotation of "rant", it can be positive or negative in nature. Basically, it's like a window to the soul of the author, designed to entertain, inform, annoy, inflame, or pacify. Sound off about whatever you like. That's all. All I ask is that we kind of refrain from using the front page as a "chat" page, with everyone just posting short messages to each other back and forth. Remember, all the messages are archived and searchable - think about trying to write something that's interesting and compelling - but don't feel obligated to do so every time - just keep it in mind as a goal. Check here for a good example of a "long-form" rant. Don't think you have to be this good all the time - but strive for it. :-)

Comments:

The newest feature on the block is the ability to comment on other people's rants. Once someone has made a rant, it often inspires many responses - angry, happy, thoughtful, or otherwise. These used to be added as seperate rants, but now there's a much easier way. Hopefully ( if I've done my job right) everywhere you see a rant, there should be a "View/add comments" link afterwards. Click there to see what people have said about this rant, or if you have something to add (you must be a valid user and logged in to be able to add comments). Comments should be used to respond to ideas raised in seperate rants. I'm not so concerned if these get a little chatty, just try to make them interesting or useful somehow, to somebody.