you forgot:
9. pigeonholer with too much time on his hands.
Deterred from looking into several topics by the further unpleasantness of some, I started to consider the types of poster on this board. Moses got 10, I’ve stopped at 8.
Types of poster
1. Newbies – people with a need for knowledge; usually beginners, often posters of basic questions, frequently of the “How much is Granddads gun worth?” type. A sub-newbie is someone who posts a badly phrased question, usually without any research of the FAQ or “Search” function. Infrequently will say “thank you.”
2. Dumbos – people whose knowledge, manners and views usually find their level in the lower stratum.
3. Boarders – people who post for their own entertainment or that of their coterie of friends; often have the rudiments of one branch of the sport. Frequently post just for the company of a group discussion; often know real names of other Boarders and meet at events, etc. Provokers – a sub-set of the foregoing, often post to get an argument going. Can be entertaining fun if done without malice and with the knowledge of when to stop.
4. Questers – people with a genuine interest in a topic or specific branch of the hobby. Ask very pertinent questions on a wide variety of topics. They always say “Thanks.”
5. Specialists – people with specific interests, at times have very detailed knowledge, often of an arcane nature. Frequently their knowledge is confined to one topic and when they post outside of it, their posts betray their niche skills.
6. Experts – people who are highly knowledgeable, who for business reasons, love of the topic or as a return of an earlier favour are willing to share that knowledge with other posters.
7. Authorities – people who have too much time and too few friends. Often are “way up there” among the clouds of their own self aggrandizing opinions. Often have profound knowledge and always own the high moral ground which they regard as theirs alone; will share that knowledge only if respect, punctuation, spelling, forelock-touching, general bowing and scraping, and grovelling are sufficient. Woe betide anyone who queries them; yea, verily, they will dump on you mightily from on high if you cross them.
8. Moderator – a person who provides a medium and lurks behind a massive mess of topics, questions and frequent odious comment. Regularly – at times too regularly - has patience tried and tested; despite this is slow in coming out with a big stick to beat some of the Authorities about the head. Should be recipient of a collection, end use of which is to buy a cudgel, not a stick , with instructions in its use.
K.
