In the mid-2000s, Community was racking up a lot of off-topic threads that were constantly pushing the actual
on-topic content off page one. We were reluctant to
force posters to use the actual Off-Topic
Forum - as back then, it was, at times, an admittedly intimidating place (particularly for newbies and our more soft-spoken members).
The first attempt at a solution was a two part rule:
1) Put "OT" in your thread title.
2) No more than 3 OT threads will be allowed to hover around page 1 at the same time.
This rule was a royal pain in the butt to enforce. Fortunately, there was another avenue to explore. Shaperla had been maintaining an OT sticky - just like this one - in the West Trade Forum for quite some time. I was a daily lurker and occasional poster. I used to read it for pleasure every morning over coffee, usually just after finishing my first mod chores of the day (at least until OT was discontinued there) and the regulars there were a great, fun-loving bunch of weirdos.
We decided to try the "OT sticky" idea here and it turned out to be just what the doctor ordered (most of our subforums have one of their own, so obviously it worked out very well for everybody in the end).
I don't remember if I had actually joined the staff yet when the first Community OT went up, but I do remember being its custodian for virtually my entire tenure here. The general practice was to put up a fresh thread seasonally (3000 page threads are untidy IMO) and dedicate it to whichever poster we felt like ribbing a bit. The purpose of these threads, as you all probably already realize, is to provide an informal, agenda-free spot for posters to mingle, bond, tease each other, let off some steam, plot shenanigans and just have fun. I'm happy to see that it's still fulfilling that function.
So there's a little forum history/trivia for you ladies and trolls. Yes, I'm bored this morning.
You've obviously not met our dear mermaids. There's one in particular ya don't wanna be messin' with! :grin:
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