Love playing the game, too old for the population.

[Truga]

http://users.rider.edu/~suler/psycyber/overview.html

 

http://truecenterpublishing.com/psycyber/disinhibit.html

 

No need to thank me for proving you wrong.

 

Thanks for not proving me wrong. What you proved is that _some_ people _might_ get more rude over the internet. Not all, some. Just like some people get rude while in a car. And some people get rude when they drink alcohol. Does a car/alcohol give you anonymity? Does a car/alcohol cause everyone to go rude? I don't think so...

 

The matter of fact stays. It's a basic lack of human decency in some people, and on the internet you meet _all_ kinds of people. And since these people are the loudest, it ends up looking like everyone's like that.

Edited June 26, 2013 by Truga

[Grayseven]

Thanks for not proving me wrong. What you proved is that _some_ people _might_ get more rude over the internet. Not all, some. Just like some people get rude while in a car. And some people get rude when they drink alcohol. Does a car/alcohol give you anonymity? Does a car/alcohol cause everyone to go rude? I don't think so...

 

The matter of fact stays. It's a basic lack of human decency in some people, and on the internet you meet _all_ kinds of people. And since these people are the loudest, it ends up looking like everyone's like that.

 

You're deluding yourself, badly. I never said everyone did since I don't and I know of others who don't. What I said (and what countless case studies prove) is that the anonymity of the internet causes people who would otherwise be "normal" to act out in ways they would never do if faced with real life consequences to their rudeness.

 

You wrongly assumed I was making a blanket statement when in fact I was doing nothing but pointing out the obvious connection between lack of consequence and peoples behavior because of it.

 

Were there no consequences in real life you would see more and more rudeness just as you find on the internet.

[Noblis]

Many women have left the gaming community because of crude and disgusting convos

in the general channels of many games.

I believe most of the offenders are younger than 30; but they are a small, yet louder than normal group.

Most players are just playing the game. And some just want to watch the world burn.

I blame the parents.

[TheBBP]

Clearly I made the mistake of generalizing when I considered ages. I honestly should have known better because I do know younger people in-game who act excellent and people my age who are complete jackwagons.

 

I am warming up to the idea of just turning off General Chat.

 

You are wrong. In real life, there are consequences to being rude. On the internet there are no consequences. The people who are rude on the internet are quite typically the kind of people who (for various reasons) would never think about saying the same things to someone face to face for fear of some sort of consequence or reprisal.

 

There are a few case studies on the topic that are pretty interesting reads:

http://users.rider.edu/~suler/psycyber/overview.html

 

http://truecenterpublishing.com/psycyber/disinhibit.html

 

No need to thank me for proving you wrong.

 

I have to agree with this. I go into public a lot. And while there are some overt idiots now and then, it is not nearly as bad as people make a presence on the internet. In public, these jackwagons run the risk of ticking the wrong person off. Not to mention that their mothers, fathers or significant others would put handle it.

 

Even the jacjwagonest of the jackwagons have enough sense to not run around public running their pie holes like a disrespectful and uneducated git.

[AlienEyeTX]

Thanks for not proving me wrong. What you proved is that _some_ people _might_ get more rude over the internet. Not all, some. Just like some people get rude while in a car. And some people get rude when they drink alcohol. Does a car/alcohol give you anonymity? Does a car/alcohol cause everyone to go rude? I don't think so...

 

The matter of fact stays. It's a basic lack of human decency in some people, and on the internet you meet _all_ kinds of people. And since these people are the loudest, it ends up looking like everyone's like that.

 

Anonymity absolutely plays a role. No, I don't feel like looking up studies, but there's research on that topic dating back to well before the internet was a thing.

 

Also, don't forget mob mentality. Once a couple of people join in, it makes it easier and easier for others to follow suit. Anonymity plays a role in this, too.

[Capt_Beers]

/ignore "player name"

[Truga]

I have to agree with this. I go into public a lot. And while there are some overt idiots now and then, it is not nearly as bad as people make a presence on the internet.

Ah, but how often do you converse with 500+ people at the same time? Which is exactly what happens on fleet chat/coruscant/DK/etc. I'm sure if you could do that in real life, you'd find the ratio of douche/non-douche to be not too far apart, because the douches are the loudest ones.

Were there no consequences in real life you would see more and more rudeness just as you find on the internet.

Anonymity absolutely plays a role. No, I don't feel like looking up studies, but there's research on that topic dating back to well before the internet was a thing.

Yes, I'm sure some people use anonymity as an excuse to be rude. Yes, anonymity plays a role, no doubt about that. But it's still not anonymity that's to blame, it's the people. Edited June 26, 2013 by Truga

[Grayseven]

Ah, but how often do you converse with 500+ people at the same time? Which is exactly what happens on fleet chat/coruscant/DK/etc. I'm sure if you could do that in real life, you'd find the ratio of douche/non-douche to be not too far apart, because the douches are the loudest ones.Yes, I'm sure some people use anonymity as an excuse to be rude. Yes, anonymity plays a role, no doubt about that. But it's still not anonymity that's to blame, it's the people.

 

People are always to blame for their rudeness, regardless of the reason behind said rudeness. It doesn't matter if it is alcohol, the internet, drugs. Anonymity is an enabler of action, as it allows action without reaction of consequence.

 

Edit: And anyone who has gone into a large public gathering knows what it is like to converse with a few hundred people at one time. Just like General chat in fleet, what you say in public has the possibility of being overheard by anyone in your vicinity and if you say the wrong thing in real life you may have adverse consequences that are not shared by people conversing on the internet.

 

Someone giving a speech in an auditorium will most likely avoid words with consequence such as racial slurs and profanity (depending, of course, on the target audience) but the same individual anonymous on the internet might openly voice said speech because no one is going to walk up and arrest him or assault him.

Edited June 26, 2013 by Grayseven

[branmakmuffin]

I prefer the alt-f4 jokes, the endless "Lies!" and "It's a trap!" comments. And bacon references. Not to mention all the other thread-bare internet memes (including the word "meme").

 

General chat's originality cup runneth over.

[Dfrac]

So, I still enjoy playing quite a bit. However, the chat in fleet and just about every populated planet is so crass and juvenile that it is a turn-off to be around. Tonight I log into some junior high discussion about panties. No joke. I have gotten to the point where that sort of thing is no longer even remotely humorous.

 

If I turn off General Chat, I miss out on being able to help newer folks with their questions (helping folks is another fun part of the game for me) or any other legitimate discussion. I don't want to ignore all the folks, because I am sure that they aren't bad folks, I just don't want to be party to their public and juvenile idiocy.

 

I guess I am not really looking for a solution. Just venting.

 

Enjoy your night!

 

Thicken thy skin, my friend. This is a public place and as such we cannot select those with whom we care to associate.

[iamthehoyden]

Clearly I made the mistake of generalizing when I considered ages. I honestly should have known better because I do know younger people in-game who act excellent and people my age who are complete jackwagons.

 

I am warming up to the idea of just turning off General Chat.

I like the idea of keeping a 'repeat offenders' permanent ignore list. I usually /ignore the worst ones, which has helped a lot. *hoping for legacy-wide ignore and friend lists someday*

 

One thing that has worked well for me is to make a new chat tab that is everything except trade and general. That way when general gets too obnoxious I can switch to "Not General" easily and still be able to have general available if I need to find a group or answer/ask questions or whatever. Setting up my "Not General" tab has actually become one of the first things I do on a new toon.

[evodude]

Oh I'm pretty certain those idiots haven't been in junior high since '87.

 

This is just how people act on the internet. Juvenile, childish idiots with foul mouths and no morals.

 

One of these days, a mad scientist is going to create a lethal pathogen that wipes out humanity for good.

 

And I will point him to the water supply without a single second thought.

 

i like you

[Truga]

Someone giving a speech in an auditorium will most likely avoid words with consequence such as racial slurs and profanity (depending, of course, on the target audience) but the same individual anonymous on the internet might openly voice said speech because no one is going to walk up and arrest him or assault him.

 

Yes, of course.

 

Another person also might also seem like a nice fellow most of the time. But when you put them behind the wheel of a car they _literally_ change personality. Also known as road rage.

 

I don't see why we should would blame the internet for internet trolls. Do we blame roads for road rage? Or cars? Nope.

 

Anyway, this is the point I've been trying to make. Internet/anonymity isn't the thing to blame here, just like we don't blame cars for road rage. The people that do these bad talks on the internet should be reported, processed and banned. Unfortunately, EA doesn't seem to be fast enough with banning these people. I'm on red eclipse, and twice already have I seen a random person saying he's gonna kill all swedes, yet he still wasn't banned.

 

In gw2, the general chat is A LOT nicer. In the first couple days of the game, this happened (danger, some nasty language there): http://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/yxx3m/suspensions_for_offensive_names_and_inappropriate/. Now, people are acting normally.

[TheBBP]

Thicken thy skin, my friend. This is a public place and as such we cannot select those with whom we care to associate.

 

With all due respect, telling someone to get thicker skin is cop-out and is one of the real problems. My skin is plenty thick. The simple fact that I do not enjoy the idiocy rampant in general chat doesn't mean that I need thicker skin. Instead of holding the crass and rude members of the community to a higher standard, we are supposed to lower our standards and deal with it. That is a problem.

 

That said, I fully realize that the dredge of the internet will never consider such a thing and that my battle outside of ignoring all the jackwagonry, is a losing one.

[CosmicKat]

I concur with the OP.

 

This game is really the bottom of the barrel as far as community goes.

 

Thank you Bioware for designing a game that concentrates all of the bored teens in one area!

[TheBBP]

I like the idea of keeping a 'repeat offenders' permanent ignore list. I usually /ignore the worst ones, which has helped a lot. *hoping for legacy-wide ignore and friend lists someday*

 

One thing that has worked well for me is to make a new chat tab that is everything except trade and general. That way when general gets too obnoxious I can switch to "Not General" easily and still be able to have general available if I need to find a group or answer/ask questions or whatever. Setting up my "Not General" tab has actually become one of the first things I do on a new toon.

 

These are all great ideas. Thank you for sharing.

[TUXs]

Don't like it, quit. Isn't that the standard reply these days for any form of complaint/criticism?

[TheBBP]

Don't like it, quit. Isn't that the standard reply these days for any form of complaint/criticism?

 

If it came to the point that I felt that I needed to walk away, I would do exactly that. However, I still really enjoy playing this game and have several solutions worthy of trying out in order to solve my issue.

[TheBBP]

I concur with the OP.

 

This game is really the bottom of the barrel as far as community goes.

 

Thank you Bioware for designing a game that concentrates all of the bored teens in one area!

 

This is not a blame BioWare thread. It's not game design. As discussed earlier, it is anonymity and lack of consequences for behavior. Also, much of it comes from "adults" as pointed out several times here in this thread.

[TUXs]

If it came to the point that I felt that I needed to walk away, I would do exactly that. However, I still really enjoy playing this game and have several solutions worthy of trying out in order to solve my issue.

 

Ah!!! I see. Your complaint was "valid", therefore it's more acceptable? Hence, you're not "complaining", you were eliciting feedback? Is that why it was OK for your concern to be voiced?

 

I'm honestly trying to figure out the difference - I mean no offense to you.

[TheOneWag]

However, the chat in fleet and just about every populated planet is so crass and juvenile that it is a turn-off to be around. Tonight I log into some junior high discussion about panties. No joke. I have gotten to the point where that sort of thing is no longer even remotely humorous.

 

Hmm. Guess I shouldn't roll up to an intense RP session on Ebon Hawk with something like"

 

/em winces painfully, then blasts out a devastating fart that quickly permeates the room and invades the senses of all surrounding life with a horrifying, revolting putrescence.

 

It really has a better effect when I do it as I drive by on a speeder...

 

Or stealthed!

[CosmicKat]

This is not a blame BioWare thread. It's not game design. As discussed earlier, it is anonymity and lack of consequences for behavior. Also, much of it comes from "adults" as pointed out several times here in this thread.

 

Game design compounds the problem.

 

Mob mentality is a real thing.

[TheBBP]

Ah!!! I see. Your complaint was "valid", therefore it's more acceptable? Hence, you're not "complaining", you were eliciting feedback? Is that why it was OK for your concern to be voiced?

 

I'm honestly trying to figure out the difference - I mean no offense to you.

 

I am just expressing an opinion and some thoughts brother. I don't need validation, but the feedback has been great.

[TheBBP]

Hmm. Guess I shouldn't roll up to an intense RP session on Ebon Hawk with something like"

 

/em winces painfully, then blasts out a devastating fart that quickly permeates the room and invades the senses of all surrounding life with a horrifying, revolting putrescence.

 

It really has a better effect when I do it as I drive by on a speeder...

 

Or stealthed!

 

That would be up to you. You may find folks that partake in that RP. I do not play on that server so I have no real gauge on how they would respond to phantom flatulence.

[Tatanka]

I turned off the global chat channels on the default chat tab and created a spam tab that included them. That and switching to the lowest pop planet instances whenever possible makes the game 100% more enjoyable for me.

 

This community is a perfect storm of community nightmares... rabid Star Wars fans, fanatical MMO players, F2P throwaways, and internet anonymity. Add in the various PVP, PVE, RP, raider, and casual factions, and you have a gunpowder filled Twinkie the size of a Death Star.

Edited June 26, 2013 by Tatanka