As I said on a previous thread, I check out the message boards to see if I would join that site. You can tell how mature the people are and how carring they are towards each other. Some people sacrifice integrity for the sake of succeding. Where as the people incharge here will exile someone for not meeting the moral or ethical standards that this site has.

I would say that most of the people on this site are my age, so they have been around the block a few times. They have matured and have no need to partake in such garbage. Most people here are friendly and try share what they know for the betterment of others.

If I read a message board and there if a lot of profanity and belittling each other I know that site is not for me. Everyone here tries to police the message board. That helps keep it clean. Of coarse you do get the occasional bad apple but he is talked to real quick. As in everything, it starts a the top. Everone takes their que from the leaders.

Bleh, it's just peer pressure, that's all. It usually starts with the leaders of a group, and people follow. In the case of a web site, it usually starts with the admins. Is ripping tolerable? Is warez acceptable? If the admins of this site say it's not, and threaten to ban people who talk about it, you can be sure that people are going to be quiet about it. I'm pretty sure there are as many warez adepts here than in other message boards, they just keep quiet. Which is fine, as long as this site isn't used as a warez facilitor.

Common interests and common opinions will be an attractive force....just like a sporting club, and as with these clubs, rules of conduct are created or agreed upon by its leaders and/or members.
If you like, you stay, if you don't, you leave and find one you like.

"I'd never want to join a club that would have me as a member"....[Marx...[not Karl]]...

I agree. But there must a...a thing that submliminally makes birds of a feather flock. Like I've said before, I bet if we did a demographic study, the people here are "older" (i.e. non-teens) than found on other technology sites.

Also, I know other sites that do ban people from asking for warez yet people still talk about warez as if it's the standard way of getting software. It is an interesting phenomenon, how does one help build a society that they want to be part of?

I think "all age groups" and different mind sets bring something interesting to the table...

Warez = getting "sumthin" for "nuthin". Not too many have $ to spend on software, let alone clothes for the kids, vacations, etc, etc. This "community" is rare in that many seem to have money to burn on self-satisfying hobbies. It all boils down to "the haves" and "the wants."

Happiness is wanting what you have, not having what you want.

The Geforce cards fall off the back of a truck, and it's mum's cable modem...

I'm guilty of downloading No-CD 'cracks' for various games....because I hate having to keep loading the original CD into the drive, especially when I have the games as 'full-installs' on the hard-drive.
This, of course, is a matter of 'convenience' rather than a question of 'warez' and 'copyright'....and with GrandPrix 3, I tend to hunt down third-party patches for alternate tracks, etc...and these would not necessarily be endorsed by Microprose.....but do 'extend' the game, but not 'denying fees to the copyright holder' as I have already purchased the game as commercially released.
[After spending 11 years working at the F1 track in Adelaide, South Aus, it was great to patch GP3 to run the old track, and not just the Melbourne one]...

there's warez users and then there's WAREZ users. some people act like stealing software is not just not wrong but a good thing. the net is full of people who think that capitalism is evil and that warez is a way to fight the power.

So you are saying you use cracked Stardock products...

It has to do with the idea that people with similar ethical values will congregate.

Back to the community thing. The first thing I feel you need to get a community going is information sharing. There needs to be a reason for people to come and gather. Information sharing is usually a good place to start. Here at Wincustomize our information we share are the skins.

You then set the tone of what type of people will come stay to the community by the people you have run the site.

I feel that the personality of WinCustomize has so much to do with the people that run it.

I used to live in a community where one of my best friends was the police department's chief investigator. Being a 'detective' with some political aspirations and being an incredibly cool guy with great taste in music, a gourmet kitchen and an awesome house out in 'the valley' he had many epic parties. My friend had a rule about his parties, he didn't care what you did as long as if it was illegal, you were kind (smart) enough to not do it in front of him. He'd say, "really, I don't want to know what you do, it's your own business, just don't do it in front of me because it compromises me and that's not only unfair, it's downright stupid."

It was unbelievable how many times some idiot would offer him a toke out on the deck. My friend would shake his head and say "you do know what I do for a living don't you?". Such lame behavior would usually result in not being invited back to his next party.

humans tend to want company of other humans.

give them a place to gather and a reason to come, and a comunity is the expected result

beyond that, if you share enough common interests and values with the bulk of the others already there then it will be a nice place to stay.

as for crae, as memory serves (for things he has said) he doesnt run many (or any) stardock apps.

hehe feline you been following my dutchy around?
and I think you're right I don't think he uses too many stardock apps either, but I happen to know of atleast (1) stardock app he may or maynot be using?
and I seriously doubt he paid for it
bad boy crae! bad bad! hehe

most the apps I have are from Devs that have asked me to help in GUI design or beta testing (why me I dunno I suck at this stuff big time) but anyways, they usually give me a free copy

however on my pocket pc I've only helped 2 devs so all the rest of my programs I've had to actually pay for (though ppc apps are much cheaper it still gets expensive 8 bucks here 11 there and so on)

I paid for my object desktop too, (I love it)
that's about it though I think hmmm
Doreen gots so much stuff on her machines I don't even know half the stuff I got!