The crap happening during Nick's normal, off-line life, and simmering programming groups is aLaRmInG.

I enjoy Nick's news announcements, as the public face of ticalc.org, they are its character. I think its character will not look as good after September.

I'm glad Nick acknowledges that his announcements discriminate against "people who have rising talent and potential to improve". I'll resist blowing my own trumpet. I finally asked another TI-83 programmer and was advised, "[ticalc] never accept anything that is written by an unknown programmer ... they really should have put it but hey you got to get noticed, make a lot of garbage programs and then you might get their attention". But this is trivial...

Nick, I'll phone your parent's home, before breakfast, and you can names-drop these weirdo's. <G>

I should add when I say, "I finally asked", that I mean after each silence -- and not a surge of emails. I'm not walking on egg-shells... I just want to prevent curiosity.

'ikle twelve-year-olds look away now.

You said that new programmers are discriminated against? Well, my first program made the news here.

Gee, as the senior news editor (meaning only that I've been doing it longer than Nick--I've always held us to be co-equal), who will be doing news whenever he doesn't have time to do so, I'm not sure I'm flattered about that "character" remark. Actually, Nick has brought a wonderful flair to the news articles that I will miss. But I hope people won't mind it if I become the one posting news items primarily again.

As far as recognizing programmers, well, we get a ton of letters from people who think their dinky TI-BASIC game is 3l33t. Signal-to-noise ratio is very bad there, so unless a programmer is polite and presents himself well (and most don't), a program that is otherwise worthy might go unnoticed.

No, not fair, but the way it is.

YES WE MIND! WE DON'T LIKE YOU!!!
GRRRRRRR!

(all hail Nick!)

damn straight

You, sir, need to re-evaluate the situation at hand here.

I am a member of ticalc.org's staff. So is Nathan. Therefore, since I am a good news editor, and I am on the ticalc.org staff, then Nathan is also a good news editor.

Please give him the same level of respect you would give me or anyone else. He doesn't deserve your mindless idiocy.

Thank you.

--BlueCalx

I'm falling, on down, again... (The Bluebells '84).

Nick has a certain hilarious, and yet, in a strange way, interesting flair - he also recites lyrics in #TI for no obvious reason other than keeping his connection alive. I am sure Nathan will keep ticalc our No. 1 site during its road ahead.

As the 3.5% of users aged "23 or above", I am senior too. A senior citizen! :) I am also a quality-motivated career programmer. I wanted that off my chest. I have uploaded a work pic of me. The curious can click on my Web Page link. It was a bad hair day :(

Libra: Your lucky ice-cream this week is Coconut flavour.
Capricorn: Your lucky over-clocking speed is 1 GHz.
Virgo: A news writer, who's surname you can pronounce, will be appearing soooon.

(Not the Nine-o-Clock News)

WE'RE MONEY MAKIN
MONEY MONEY MAKIN'
SUPER DISCO, DISCO BREAKIN'

Who says I don't do it on the comment boards too? :D

--BlueCalx

can anybody recognize these lyrics:

Spam in the place where I live
Think about nutrition
Wonder what's inside it

"Weird Al" Yankovic
"Spam" from UHF: Official Movie Soundtrack and Other Stuff

Artist and song: correct
album: I have no idea

Despite the inherent difficulty of this, it might help programmers get noticed if POTM nominations and possibly even votes were open to all programs posted that month.

It also might help to have programmer of the month polls, which could be divided into two classes: master programmers and amateur programmers. I realize that there are no professional TI programmers unless they work for TI. The master programmers would be the legendary TI programmers like Jimmy Mardell and Xavier Vassor. The amateur programmers would be everyone who is not a master programmer. Those two categories could also be subdivided into the various languages, and possibly to calculator classes or models.

Just a suggestion, but should help reunite the TI community as it would create largely objective rankings and end arguments such as the one between the basic coding groups that tried to drag Nick into their war.

"Life is inherently unpleasant." - Nick

You wrote it.
Now, I hope I won't be classified with the "nuts" you mentioned. I am trying to present this in a "mature" and logical way. You wrote of people who's names you won't mention, and who's actions you won't divulge. How would you expect them to change their ways, if they don't know that you are talking about them? "Somebody did something I don't like, and I wish they'd stop!" Hmmmm. As for the action you call for... what action would you have us take?

Here is a possible cause of problem for you:

"I enjoy what I do. I'm good at it..." - Nick
"I'd like to say that my practice has led to perfection..." - Nick

I would say two things to these quotes:
*1) Do you think an arrogant attitude might contribute you people's dislike of you? I personally don't have a problem with you, even though I do find some articles childishly written and pompus.
*2) There are many famous quotes dealing with this issue, and here's one: "Me thinks you protest too much." If you feel you have to tell everyone you're good, perfect, etc., it's probably because you know, deep inside, that they won't see it themselves. On the other hand, people that are really good don't have to state it... People see it, and recognize them.

Like I said, I don't have a personal problem with you. I'm sure you're a great guy. I believe that people won't change their (bad) ways if nobody ever points it out. I know I have lots of problems, and I try to be responsive to (constructive) criticism. I hope you can take the same attitude, and I also hope you will read this as it's intended. When I was a wee young lad, and I came home to my mother after a fight, she would always ask, "What did you do to antagonize them?" Even if I didn't start the problem, I knew I must have contributed to it. I still try to ask myself the same question, and I think it's a good approach to take to solving personal problems.

I'm sure I'll get plenty of flames for this, and that's fine. Good day.

Flame throwers ready,
Tip DS

Argh! Too early in the morning (12:15 PM) to write a rebuttal. But I'm going to do so anyway.

- I don't think I have an arrogant attitude, but I do think that a lot of people HAVE seen me as a good news editor. That's why I wrote the first line you put up there. As for the second, it's completely out of context:

"I'd like to say that my practice has led to perfection... at least, technical perfection."

I wrote that any errors I make in grammar, spelling, syntax (bolded links, etc) are almost nonexistent right now. That doesn't mean the quality of my writing is any better. It's largely not.

- I don't care if people think I'm good or perfect. I don't want to tell them that, or to give them that impression, because I'm really not. I've said this a million times before, and I'm going to say it again: If you met me in real life, you would find a very, very, very NOT perfect person. A real socially inept dork. Trust me here. Ask Chris or Stuart Bergstrom or Mike Knapp or anyone else who's met me in meatspace. I'm screwy in the brain. :)

I hope this wasn't really a blind, mindless flame, but I do feel I have a need to explain myself on some things in that post. You brought up a really good one.

--BlueCalx

I only wish I could remember to ask myself that quesion everytime somebody get's pissed at me. ;-)

Adam

"You wrote of people who's names you won't mention, and who's actions you won't divulge. How would you expect them to change their ways, if they don't know that you are talking about them?"

Think about it... would it really make a difference? would they get it trough their thick heads just by that?
thought so...
---
Cd_Slayer

"Think about it... would it really make a difference? would they get it trough their thick heads just by that?" - Paulo Marques

Well, it depends on the kind of person we are talking about. I'll admit that I'm not perfect. (Yes, that's right, you heard it here first!) Please don't tell anyone I said that, though.<G> Despite my best efforts, I sometimes do stupid stuff. If someone will point it out to me, I'll take an honest evaluation of the criticisim and try to act on it. Let's just say, for example, that I eat with my mouth open. If that bothered you, and you said, "I'm not gonna tell that dumb guy he's an irritation. He wouldn't get it anyway." Then I might keep doing it, and bothering you forever. (Or a near approximation of forever<G>) On the other hand, if you told me, I might realize that it could be gross and disturbing to others. I MIGHT even stop doing it. You gotta give people the bennifit of the doubt. If you tell them, and they still act like an ass, then it's their fault. If you don't try to help solve the problem, then you are only contributing to it. You have to at least try to fix the problem.

O.K. I just got yelled at for skipping classes. I gotta go back.

Later,
Tip DS

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA, that is the funniest crap I've seen on this entire post. Do you belive that if a person that wanted to kill someone else was simply pointed out that that was a no no, that that would help? Mr Killer person, I don't think it's right that you want to kill people, maybe you should stop. Yeah, that'd do it. Not only that but people that DO want to kill other people, obviously have thick heads or else they would have gotten the message a *LONG* time ago. Oh, man, what is this?

I'm not sure if you are trying to insult me or not, but I suppose it doesn't really matter. It seems you have taken my message out of context. It was not in reference to the "killer", but instead, to the other people mentioned (rather, unmention<G>.) Thanks for your input just the same.

Respectfully,
Tip DS

By "killer" I was only making an example of what you were suggesting. Sorry, I didn't mean to get carried away and offend anyone. Sorry =).

Homicidal maniacs and hyperactive basic coders are *usually* quite different, although their reactions to criticisms are often not far apart...

I also do stupid stuff, and i also like people to tell me. But i think stalking and death threats and, well, even boring to death with ICQ are either right away seen as bad things or not until it happens to them. It's just smtg way to personal and bad to do to someone YOU DON'T KNOW, which is another point.
---
Cd_Slayer

(btw, took a while to reply cause i'm sick... snif...)

Exactly, they know who they are. I would hope a 12 year old would know what they were doing with themselves.

(good lord, I can't get anthing right today) *that 12-year-olds know*

darn! I ran out of napalm last week and FedEx, UPS, and USPS refuse to ship it. j/k

Will fireworks do instead of a flame thrower?

Ah, someone with a REAL sense of humor. I can appreciate that.

Thanks,
Tip DS

Well, I'll have to admit that if Nick HAD let everyone know the names of the shitheads that where bugging him, it would be easier for people to help. It's like a person beating you up, asking for them to please stop, and then getting really mad that they didn't stop even AFTER you said please.

help... there would be extremists on the other line too... and that wouldn't really solve much, i think
---
Cd_Slayer

Huh, are there really that many people that are against Nick? I'd think they'd just not come back to the site. Oh well.

If there are that many Sheistkopfs against Nick, there must be at least as many on Nick's side, which sounds like it would be quite a cyberbattle...