I find myself being silenced with "I don't know what you're talking about.
You must be very smart." a lot lately, which is NOT a compliment.
I have no IT background and use very inexpensive equipment (I can get a
Lenovo X60 for about $20 on eBay these days) for forum surfing,
self-education, and my 8yo also uses them for all the actual education and
most of the edutainment that primary aged kids typically do these days.
I pepper my posts liberally with links to illustrate the point of using free
software in education and do not feel that I am derailing topics when the
topic is "where can I get a cheap laptop for my ten year old?" or "Is there
something I can use to read .pdfs that costs less than an iPad?" but people
are hostile and dismissive.
This was not the case ten years ago. I am left feeling that it does more harm
than good and that perhaps there is something terribly wrong with my
communication skills.
It's spoiling my enjoyment of these fora.
Thank you for sharing your own experience, onpon4. I think we are at the
opposite ends of the serious/joking spectrum and that we might both be
beating ourselves up over something that is more societal than personal.
