Love Affair (1994)...Warrior Forum (2008)

Warren Beatty and Annette Bening stared in this 1994 not so classic, a movie that was essentially about starting over.

In 2008, the Warrior Forum has started over as well, and with it a chance for YOU to start over if you were a member before the big change.

But what exactly does that mean?

Well, for some of us, it means a lot.

It means that all the stupid posts that we made back when we were, well, stupid, won't be following us to the new forum. It's almost like we've served our time and now that we're out of prison, complete with new suit and $20 in our pocket, we can hopefully learn from our mistakes and not repeat them. For some of us, this will be harder than for others.

It also means that we can focus on adding to the community in a real and meaningful way, if we didn't do so before. But what exactly does adding to the community mean?

Well, that's going to be different for each of us simply because we each have our own skills and knowledge to offer.

Allen Says will probably have his hands full getting this place up and running to the point that he wants it. I have no doubt that he'll be more than grateful for any tech people who can give him a hand.

Some of us are knowledgeable in the area of marketing, graphic design, or whatever. Share your knowledge with others. It took me a long time to realize, thanks to great people like John Taylor and Andy Henry that the scarcity mindset is a killer and the wrong way to look at things. The more you share, the more you will receive in return.

Others have great senses of humor. I can think of two people right off the bat, Chris Sutton and Kevin Riley. I have no doubt that they will keep this place from becoming dull. All work can be a drain and we do need to laugh even though we are essentially on this computer to work.

In the meantime, eventually the spammers will find us. This is an area where we can all pitch in to keep this place clean. It only takes a few seconds to report a thread that violates the rules.

I'll leave you and this thread with just one last piece of advice. Take it for what it's worth to you.

Before you put one word, one thought, one letter onto these threads, think about what it's adding to the community. But more importantly, for your own self preservation, think about what potential harm you can do to your own reputation. How do you want people to think of you when they see your name on a post?

If you want to be respected, and ultimately that's all any of us really want when it comes to a public forum, then make sure your actions merit that respect.

We've all been given a second chance this week.

I for one do not intend to blow mine.