Message In A Bottle

I'm a big fan of messageboards. Ever since the day I first got a modem (I think it was a 14.4K or something), I've been logging onto BBSes, talking to complete strangers about absolutely nothing. There was a time when 99% of those logging into BBSes were guys; when that occasional female wandered into one by mistake, everyone would start hitting on her (not that I did, though. What?).

Of course, no one ever thought that it could be someone pretending to be female, just to elicit a few laughs and giggles. But I digress.

Now? Everyone and his second cousin are arguing about something on amessageboard/forum. Here's a couple I read on a regular basis, because they're pretty interesting:

• The Straight Dope is probably the most interesting, with some very intelligent people, some very political people, and some people who are just weird. This is my favorite messageboard as it covers a broad spectrum of topics. There was a time when I was actually a full-fledged member, but then they started charging for the right to be able to search, and I figured that I spent more time reading rather than posting, anyway.
  
• Digg keeps me up-to-date with the latest technical news, and the forums keep me entertained. Especially when a Microsoft or Apple story gets on the front page. The fanboys come out in full force.
  
• Mac Daily News/http://Apple Matters are Mac-centric sites, with some of the scarier zealots posting on the forums. There are some sane ones, like "Beeblebrox" and "Ben Hall", but there are others who are of the "Jobs-can-do-no-wrong" type. At times I've been sorely tempted to post something, but I never do, since nothing I say would change their minds anyway. I don't have a Mac, but I've been close to buying one at times. Maybe I will at some point, but it's a bit scary to associate myself with the rabid fanboys (who will then say "Good, we don't want you here anyway!")
  
• Slashdot is something I visit on occasion, especially when "Anonymous Coward" was rumored to be either Steve Jobs or some high-up Apple executive. This was also a fun read back when the "Hack-a-Mac" challenge was running.
  
• Engadget keeps me up-to-date with the latest toys. This is where I first heard about Zune, and the hundreds of opinions regarding it; the back-and-forth banter between Microsoft and Apple fanboys was a thing of beauty.
  
• Television Without Pity is where I get a lot of spoilers regarding my favorite shows. The snarking also makes it a worthy read.

I'm a big fan of sports, but not that big a fan of sports messageboards. This is because most posters can barely string a coherent message together, with most posts barely going beyond "Your team sucks" and "{player name here} sucks". I'd rather read the actual stories.

We've come a long way from those BBS days.