keeping the community informed…

This month the moderation team, all volunteers who help keep DaniWeb running smoothly for the benefit of everyone simply because they love being part of the community here, would like to ask for your help.

Help, that is, to help them make the best use of their time. In order to achieve this it would be really cool if members old and new could take a few minutes from their schedules and re-read the community rules. New members are encouraged to check out the Welcome Guide as well.

Spam, intentional or otherwise, and a lack of code tags are probably the biggest culprits when it comes to eating into moderator time, so let's look at those two in more detail.

A small minority of people join DaniWeb simply in order to promote their own services or products. These forum and blog spammers are a fact of life; every successful online site has to deal with them and we have implemented a number of strategies behind the scenes which filter out the vast majority of spam attempts, but inevitably some do get through. We thank our community for continuing to use the bad post reporting tool to inform us of any that they spot so that a duty moderator can deal with it pretty much any time day or night.

However, you can also help even more by thinking twice before posting something in the forums or blogs which might be considered advertising or self-promotion as these are not allowed under DaniWeb rules. While we encourage open and unbiased discussion, we do not allow members to refer to sites they own or are affiliated with outside of the Business Exchange forums. Hiding your affiliation with a site or service and then recommending it in response to another members questioning is not allowed, nor is using a 'fake signature' whereby you add a URL after your name within a posting. You can, however, promote your own site without incurring the wrath of the DaniWeb moderators and administrators by using the proper signature facility which can be edited via the Control Panel.

When it comes to code tags, these are covered in the 'keep it organized' section of the DaniWeb rule book. All we ask is that for easy readability you "always wrap programming code within posts in [code] (code blocks) and [icode] (inline code) tags." Unfortunately, this is not something that everyone does and it is causing our volunteer moderators, especially those who look after the software development forums, all sorts of headaches as they have to jump in and clean up the code in order that other members will be able to read it and so help answer your questions. There really is no excuse for not taking the little bit of extra time to use code tags, doubly so considering that the Queen of DaniWeb has made it such a simple process.

Code tags, also known as code bbcode or code vBcode, are nothing more than wrapped around programming code in the editor window when typing out a post. They tell DaniWeb to output the code all nicely formatted, in a fixed-width (monospace) font, while preserving whitespace, so that it looks just like it would in your favorite code editor or IDE. Another advantage to using code tags is the Toggle Plain Text link, which puts the code into a textbox where it can easily be copied and pasted. This is very useful to quickly test out programming code that has been posted on DaniWeb while trying to debug errors. you can check out the full code tags FAQ here.

every month one member makes the DaniWeb hall of fame…

Please welcome our newest member of the DaniWeb hall of fame, cohen who has hit the DaniWeb Hall of Fame in record time having only been a member of our community since November 2008. Yet in that time he has proved himself to be a friendly and helpful member, and caught the eye of our moderation team which is how he ended up being nominated and ultimately featured here. In just three months cohen has contributed more than 700 postings and started to build himself a solid reputation, not bad for someone who is only 15.

You can find him most in the Viruses, Spyware and other Nasties and Windows NT/2000/XP/2003 forums where he will be offering advice and asking questions. However, his social side comes to the fore in the Community Introductions and Posting Games forums where he is also a regular contributor. Let's find out a bit more concerning this rising star of DaniWeb.

Where do you live and how old are you?

I am 15 years of age and live in Melbourne, Australia.

What is your current occupation, ever done anything unusual in the past?

I am a student.

What is your favorite area of computing?

Both Windows and Mac, laptops and desktops, because I just enjoy those areas: they are interesting and fun.

What first brought you to DaniWeb?

I arrived via a recommendation from a moderator, Jbennet, who I am good friends with.

What makes you stay here?

Good advice, big forums, nice people and quick replies!

What is your favorite forum and why?

Viruses, Spyware and other Nasties because it is awesome at helping people fix viruses!

What are your interests outside of IT and outside of DaniWeb?

Amateur radio, it is like an advanced version of CB radio. I have had my amateur radio license for 3 years, it is just awesome speaking to people around the world.

Name the best thing about DaniWeb, and one thing you would change if it were in your power?

The best thing about DaniWeb is the layout, the categories and the forums. I would not change anything about the forums.

Any fascinating facts about yourself that you would like to share with the DaniWeb community?

Only that I am 15 and started building computers for friends when I was 14. I have built 5 or 6 so far.

by khess

Someone commented on one of my posts the other day, stating that Linux is a tool and not a religion. Can this be true? I would hate to think that for the past 15 years that I've invested in Linux, it would turn out that Linux is merely a tool, a--dare I say it--a monkey wrench?

Say it ain't so.

I was about to put forth a new calendaring system to the International Standards Committee based not upon the movement of the earth, the appearance of a deity, or the calculations of long-forgotten tribes of ancient South America but upon the emergence of perhaps the world's greatest monkey wrench: Linux.

Now that does make me feel foolish indeed.

O woe is I when I think of the wasted hours I've spent pondering ways to enrich the lives of others by prophesying coming Linux-related events or the efforts I've put into proselytizing--bringing new blood into the fold.

Linus, have I mistakenly deified the creation and not the creator?

I realize that Linux is an operating system and not some sort of idol to be worshipped or deified. As fans, we do become somewhat obsessed with our passions and beliefs. If it sounds, at times, that I am attempting to start some religious war or that I'm off the deep end with my Linux fanaticism--just let me know and I'll reel in the reins a bit.

I am passionate about Linux, its capabilities, and its future so don't judge me too harshly. Linux isn't a religion but I have a hard time admitting that it's a monkey wrench.

Ok, I'll compromise. It's a very, very intelligent monkey wrench.