This message is being posted as the first message in the new "chat board."

What this Chat Board Is

The intention of this chat board is to provide a separate place for the community to be able to converse on topics that are not strictly 8052-related. This is being done in recognition of the fact that the 8052.com memberbase is a community and, as such, from time to time may want to discuss other topics just as any group of friends, coworkers, or colleagues is bound to do.

Threads that are considered off-topic in the main forum may sometimes be moved to this area by the moderators rather than closing the thread. Likewise, members are encouraged to post messages to this thread if they recognize beforehand that the topic is not on-topic for the main 8052.com forum.

What Can Be Discussed Here

This forum will be less strictly moderated than the main forum. While I would suggest avoiding the topics of politics and religion due to their inherent divisiveness, I will not automatically close those topics down. The idea of this area is for it to be "the pub" or "the lounge" where members of the community can relax and discuss other non-8052 topics.

I'm frequently asked if someone can post a message offering a few dozen ICs for sale that they no longer have no use for. Those kinds of messages may be posted here, as may messages soliciting candidates for employment or contracts.

Topics regarding how 8052.com is run or moderated may be discussed here.

Blatant advertisements or commercial messages are still not appropriate.

Is This Forum Moderated?

Yes, but it is my intention to be a lot less strict in this forum. I hope to only intervene if a message or thread is blatantly illegal or if it is clear that a discussion has become nothing but a flame war or is causing very increased tensions among members. Flame wars aren't welcome anywhere just like bar brawls aren't welcome in a bar.

Experimental Status

This chat board is currently in an "experimental" status. Over time we'll see if this chat board is a good idea or a bad idea.

Messages posted to this chat board will not be included in the nightly mailing list.

How to Use the Chat Board

There are two ways you can read messages in the chat board. The first way is to press the button on the sidebar that says "Chat Board" and read the messages normally. This way the chat messages are in a different area than the messages of the main forum.

If you'd prefer to see all messages from both boards in the main forum, you may go to your "My Account" settings and look at the bottom of the "FORUM SETTINGS" section. You'll see an entry that says "Show threads from General Chat in main forum?" If you set this to "Yes" then messages from both the main forum and the chat forum will be displayed together in the main forum. That way you don't have to visit two forums to read all the new messages.

However, to post a new thread you must click on the "Chat Board" button on the left sidebar and be in the chat forum when you create the new thread--otherwise it will be created in the main forum.

Feedback and additional ideas are, of course, welcome.

Regards,
Craig Steiner
8052.com Webmaster