Oskar Sigvardsson wrote:
Sarah commented that it seemed like there was much more spirit, much more drive to do something good back when she started in 2004. I think that has more to do with the fact that she was just starting out, more than the relative peacefulness of that year. All of us here are old dogs, who reads about every controversy and have definite views on most issues that come up. Most of the community isn't like that.
That's what commitment is all about, but I think we lack leadership and vision. Jimbo provided this when the project was younger, but the project has gone well beyond that. NPOV, open access, and inclusiveness are great principles but in the absence of leadership and vision these are more difficult to accomplish. Perhaps what some of us see as a more fractious environment is more an inability to see where we are going.
I have a friend who started out a month or two ago, and he still feels what Sarah felt in 2004. He has gotten into a few arguements, but they have been settled amicably (everyone Aed GF) and he still feels that initial rush that all of us felt in the beginning; the joys of contributing. Doubtless, in six months or so, he will have been properly disillusioned and in two years he will be wondering what happened with all the civility there was in early 2008.
This is a very interesting observation. Since last month's newbie wasn't here in 2004 he judges the norm by what he see now, without any reference point in what it used to be. Templating, strict referencing and boilerplate image tags were not there in those days. The newbie's norms are different since they include them from the beginning. A person returning now after 3 or more years of absence would find the environment much different from what he knew. The 18-month burnout, which AFAIK is only anecdotal, has a ring of truth, and could be the basis for an interesting sociological study. The old dogs are the ones who have managed their way through the 18-month crisis, and still stick around.
Ec