the reason for people acting a fool on internet forums

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lets discuss this, i think its because you dont kow how to act socially online, is there some kind of hidden rules? is this why so many people have meltdowns or act crazy on the internets? it seems like to me people with a social disatvantage would be worse off and flip out all the time. how can anybody ever get friends this way? do people understand that the person acting a fool doesnt mean it? is it too mcuh of a bad thing, aspergers, and other co morbid conditions that dooms the internet user for life?

what do you think?

For many people, the anonymity of the Internet removes the social restraints they have, and thus they fail to exercise self control. Even an otherwise reserved individual may say and do things that would seem out of character for them. Additionally, the lack of things like voice, tone, inflection, and body language in typed text further confuses things, particularly for someone who relies on obvious cues. I try to give people the benefit of the doubt, particularly here. Anyone can have a bad day, or be unaware of certain unwritten rules, standards, or acronyms; not posting in all caps may seem obvious, but there are people who don't know this. How do you make friends here? The answer is this: don't assume other people mean bad, and don't say or do something you wouldn't do in a face-to-face 1 on 1 conversation.

I find communicating on the internet easier than verbal communication actually. I'm pretty good at noticing sarcasm when it is written compared to when it is spoken and since I have trouble noticing the tone behind a person's voice as it is, I don't miss it when using the internet.

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I was very surprised, when I first got internet access, to find that, secure in their anonymity, a lot of people abandon their manners when talking to others. I supose this goes to show how important the preservation of one's reputation is in encouraging pleasant behaviour. I wonder what other things a human being could be tempted to do if they were certain their social standing wouldn't be affected. There have probably been experiments done on this very subject, but it's too late in the night for me to go look for them.

Me, I've jsut got a mood disorder, so I snap at people quite often.

I am the same here as i am in real life, although text and email makes all you people bearable - whereas if it is face to face i cannot be inclined or bothered for the most part.
I use my real name. I say what i say with honesty. I do not alter myself just because it is the net.

what you read is what you get and everything can be tracked back to me.

I am not a fan of the approach whereby people hide behind their avatars and use the anonymity to troll, create havoc or be a smart-asses.

I can see the need for anonymity in terms of protecting self and /or others such as family.
that is a choice and fair enough.

I think with the lack of consequences, many internet users say things that they would not normally get away with. This is how internet Tough guys are created.

Yeah same here except I don't say my whole name. What I do online is what I pretty much do in real life except I do better with comebacks online because I have time to think of what to say to that person and say it while in real life I don't have time because you can't hit the pause button or turn back time to say it. The sense of humor I do here I do in real like. Like my bf gave me some ice water in a cup shaped like a boot and I said "You got me the boot" and he said "I'd figure you'd get a kick out of it."

Me picking fights with jerks online I've done in real life in the past and it goes far back to my elementary school years. Last time I picked on someone irl was giving my ex a hard time about his ignorance. That's how much I hate ignorance. I have no respect for them.

Im the very same person online as IRL. Shy and affraid of conflicts. I would never say or do something on Internet that I cant stand up for and be honest about IRL. I always tells the truth and if I dont want to tell the truth then I dont say anything at all instead of lying. The diffrence is that I talk more on the internet than I do IRL as I feel it much more relaxing and most of all - the benefits of anomymity as I have such a social phobia

I have thought of this phenomenon concerning people who tend to get themselves into fights and conflicts - like they feel it a power to provoke and piss off other people on the internet - I wonder if they are the same IRL...

I complain more here than I do RL and I post about things people around here have absolutely no interest in, know nothing about, and will not tolerate listening to.
So, I guess everything I can't talk to people about IRL I post here. It's a vessel of expression. It's like a brain exercise. Where I live, people are shallow, they want an exchange of glib wit and I have tried to fit into their chortling world but I can't pull it off. If I started talking about Khazars people would become paranoid and think I was talking about Arabs or terrorists. Few here know anything about Khazars and I wouldn't even risk talking to anyone here about them out of fear they would make up crazy stuff in their head and start viscious rumors based only on that subject. Yes, this is how people are here which is why I don't bother trying anything more than a 'hi how are you".
As for the anonimity thing, I don't think protecting one's identity on line always means they are a bad person or a troll. Some of us are mistrustful only because we have seen the worst side of human nature time and time again and have pretty much lost all faith. We just don't want to be bothered with any more hassles so we choose not to be too disclosing.
Besides, it's obvious when someone is trolling, even if they are anonymous. It's easy to tell the difference between someone who is posting for reasons other than trying to get certain reactions from others, or just to irritate them.

Very Doubtful.

I agree that anonymity is a large component of the problem, but I think a lot of the difference also comes down to the time delay. Communication on internet forums may not (generally) reach the same peaks of angry or frustrated emotion that face to face communication can get to, but it takes much longer, which gives us more time to be annoyed (that's not to say that one cannot become very angry or frustrated very quickly in a face to face conversation, of course; just that the internet allows far more time for it to happen). It also gives more opportunity to plan and develop lines of argument between parts of the conversation, and there is more opportunity for partisans to join in on either side - an argument on a large forum could involve hundreds or thousands of people.

What makes you think people are on the net to make friends all the time, especially on a discussion forum? You make friends on contactsites and on crappy datingsites.

I come here to read what other peole have to say about ADSs and to pick up a few things that could help me. If i have something to say (life experiences that someone could find usefull), i say it. If i think that someone is wrong i point it out as clearly as i can.

It is easy for people to be snarky on the internet: http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=383533 .