I am presentingly watching a thread unfold on JavaLobby regarding a discussion surrounding how we might continue to improve JDJ and I am very disheartened at how we (as humans) transact ourselves online. In my roles at JDJ I have witnessed the whole spectrum of human interaction. There is a wide disparity.

On the one extreme you are treated as a 'celebrity' (and I say that with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek) by the few, those that generally wish a favour of sorts from you. On the other extreme you get the ones that dispise anyone in the public eye for whatever reason. No matter what you do, the fact you are doing it and they are not, is enough for them to have it in for you. In my years at JDJ, I have had much abused thrown at me through email and even had a death threat. On the whole though many people that email are courtesy and while they may not agree with everything are polite enough to enter into a conversation without descending into personal insult.

But I guess that's all part of our character we have begun to refer to as our 'online persona'.

Now, I am fortuate enough to have done a lot of travelling in my time to various corners of Java hangouts. Met a lot of people and got to know a wide range of personalities. I often meet face-to-face those very protagonists that lurk in every forum or mailing list. This is when the whole human-experiment gets very interesting. Let me see if I can break it down into broad categories.

1. The Rebel without a clause

   Online Persona: Has the sort personality that rants the loudest and makes sure they are heard in pretty much every discussion. This one is easy to spot in forums, particular those forums that list the number of posts they have made online. If they have amassed more than 1000 posts; beware. Should be avoided at all costs and will generally never say anything agreeable. On the whole, they are someone that believes volume of posts equates to extreme knowledge. An authority on everything, but rarely offers any real practical advice. Always quick to tell you how not to do something.

   Offline Persona: When met in real life, you would happily walk past and ignore. They are not very good at articulating verbal communication and are very nervous in large groups of people. However will not offer any challenging statements or call you to task on anything in fear of them looking a fool in front of every one.
   

2. The Rebel with a clause

   Online Persona: Very similar to the 'Rebel without a clause' except this person when transacting in one-2-one email will come over all very nice and try to explain that they only do it to satisfy the masses. These are people are generally more dangerous as they are caught up in their own hype.

   Offline Persona: If they are talking to anyone of significant importance, they are their bestest buddy. Will attach like a leech to the offending person so they may then brag online how they met with the great Mr/Mrs XX, and how they get the inside skinny on a particular thing.
   

3. The Quiet Man

   Online Persona: These people are very intelligent and will offer advice where they can. They will not feel the need to parade their intelligence on every post nor will they feel the need to show-off by putting others down. Their posts are generally well thought out and offer lots of small snippets of useful advice. They will not disparage you for going down a certain route. If completely removing your root partition is what you want to do, they will happily discuss the options on 'rm' to make sure you accomplish your goal. Will rarely get involved with political discussions. They trade on facts.

   Offline Persona: Very well spoken and articulate themselves in conversation as well as they do online. Will happily offer their political view point.
   

4. The Green Monster

   Online Persona: Will happily jump on a character flaw and publicly ridicule you. Don't have a lot to add except to stir things up. Will not let facts or proof get in the way of a good rant. Has generally no basis for their apparent character assassination attack. No matter what you do, they do not like it.

   Offline Persona: Has the sort of face you just want to slap. They are equally obnoxious in real-life and will at some point come out with a line that will silence a room as people try and figure out if they are for real. Best avoided at all costs.
   

5. The President

   Online Persona: Rarely enters into any technical discussion. Any technical question directly asked will generally be answered with a series of buzzwords that don't actually give any real direction. Ironically, they rarely enter into political conversations after their initial stance has been stated. Any sign of rethinking would show weakness.

   Offline Persona: Never travels alone. Always has an entourage following them to step in and defend where necessary. Doesn't like to be challenged on his views in a crowd which is probably why he brings his own supporters to intimadate any would-be challenger. Will attempt to control any group conversation. That said they will never talk down to any one publicly as this would be considered a vote lost.
   

6. The Frontline troops

   Online Persona: Not interested in the political side of technology, more interested in getting their job done and keeping up with the latest trends. Have very little shame and will happily ask for help when required. Should they offer help back it will be from experience, while may not be correct way of doing it, will undoubtedly work. They don't have time to blog, or enter long conversations. They have problems to solve and life to live. Often referred to as 'lurkers' on lists.

   Offline Persona: Very pleasant people to be with. They have no illusions of grandeur and respectful at all times. Will happily tell you what they don't like when asked, but will rarely offer the information voluntarily.
   

I sometimes feel the online world is a glimpse of what it would be like if we were always drunk. Our inhabitations are lowered and we say things we normally would never say when faced with the same situation in real life. Generally, if people are pleasent online, it translates to their offline persona, and likewise, an arsehole is always an arsehole!