Matt Rudd - was overwhelmed by Mumsnet - Times article

[nannynick]

Matt Rudd says he "was overwhelmed. The sheer breadth of topics combined with the often funny but more often brutally blunt opinions make Mumsnet what it is"
Article: The Man's Guide to Mumsnet - Times Online, 21 Feb 2010

He actually may have summed it up quite well, as it is the brutally blunt opinions of others that many of us come to the site to read. Do you agree?

When we have a problem, we seek the opinion of others. While we may not always like that opinion, it is what we came for... we wanted to find out what other people thought.

The opinions of others can be seen as Entertainment... hey it's better than some of the stuff on TV. Thus perhaps why we enjoy reading other peoples Mumsnet posts so much.

The opinions of others we may disagree with and thus respond to with our own opinion.

The opinions of others we may agree with and become part of a pack supporting that opinion... it's the wolf instinct in us I suppose. We are pack animals... we like to be part of a pack - rather than an outsider who disagrees.

While Matt may have felt overwhelmed, I as a non-female Mumsnetter love being part of this online community. Sure it may have taken a while to settle in but any stranger in the mist will take a while to adjust, a while to become accepted (or tolerated).

Mumsnet does have a small but growing I suspect male membership. While Matt may not be joining long-term, some of us men have now been on Mumsnet for many years. After all, we now have Dadsnet - not that I post there very often... not being a dad! My usual hangout is Childminders, Nannies.

What would we do without Mumsnet?

I read it yesterday - it made me giggle.

I thought it odd that the artical picked up on the Tack Room etc, and not on all the support we all give eachother on post/ante natal boards, bereavement etc...

never mind

publicity eh?

oh, but I do think it serves as a reminder, that any one - including the press, can read what we all say

"I think it can overwhelming for anyone joining this site because its huge"

That was certainly my experience. I don't post very often but there's soooooo much here and because of the sheer number of people posting, a lot of the topics move on very quickly.

I like the fact that MN has some forthright people on here - makes for good reading!

lol @ 'One poster was worrying about whether the name Luca is too trendy (it is, dear), '

The bad thing about Mumsnet now is that it has lost its way a little.

This morning I saw a thread by a newbie wanting advice on tongue-tie. I was unanswered so I wrote a reply and then someone else came on. So that's 2 replies for what is probably a very worrying thing for that new mum.

Earlier in Mumsnets life if you posted a thread like that you'd get lots and lots of helpful replies.

People now mainly come onto Mumsnet for chat and debate. That's good too and I prefer that in some ways, but it's at the expense of these new mums, I feel, who are not being answered. I think you have to be quite pushy now to be heard on Mumsnet and a lot of new mums simply aren't and would be easily put off by the speed and bluntness of Mumsnet.

tis true, i did a search on my old posts adn they were nearly all about breast feeding and the like. if i hadn't had so much support i wouldn'thave stuck aruond and mn would be a poorer place!

My old posts were much the same. I think people came onto mumsnet for advice on parenting and then just stuck around. Now people are joining for different reasons and whilst that's great, it does mean that newbies who want the great advice we got, are now suffering because posters are too busy arguing about Tania and James to give a damn about someone having problems with tongue-tie.

tania and james were hilarious though. haven't we always had tania and james's. remember conor something or other used to come on and lecture us all at length?

haven't read the article yet but, nannynick, I think you're an honorary mum. If i'm allowed to say that...

DominiConnor yes, I remember him well. Sure we've always had those, they're just more popular now. Funny how all the longtime Mumsnetters seem drawn to those threads.

[gimmer]

I remember the dominic chappie. also agree with Rhubarb. I use mn so differently these days. I mainly use it to chat about whatever's in active convos, and to talk to my running friends. in the old days (I know, it's not really allowed) if you posted for advice in the early evening it felt like you'd asked a question at your (particularly friendly) local and everyone - including people yo knew and ones you didn;t - spent all evening chatting about it, offering mainly very good advice.

I also use MN differently, lots of hidden topics and the like. I ahve a special flag that appears on my screen when certain posters post though so I can go argue with them

(well sort of LOL)

nannynick, IMO one of the best things about MN is that unless a poster chooses to disclose we do not know if they are black, white, gay, straight, bi, male, female, disabled, NT, rich, poor, devout Muslim, Zoroastrian, famous, Nick Griffin himself........ one of teh ebst bits about the internet by a long way.

Oh and YYY to DC

MN is different than it used to be ebcuase of its size, when I joined I think it was me, 3 others and a cat posting! The old style parts are still there, but you hve look closer and wade through huge amounts of the nortmal social chit chat you'd probably get in any alrge group, only when it was new MN the names were all familiar and the tales well known so seemed relevant to you IYKWIM.

Not so now, inevitably.

The expansoion will calm down surely after the current bout of tall poppy syndromers back off?

did htis already nick

I thought it was a great article and like him I really pity those poor husbands. I've never felt the need to use a parenting forum, this or any other, to run my Dh down but so many do and I don't think it'd be tolerated the other way around.

IKWYM Trafficone.

When they mentioned MN on that Bubble programme the other day (David Mitchell's UN-finest hour, still haven't worked out who the woman was) and went on about people slagging their DH's my own DH got a bit agitated. Understandably. Now, i've posted about him in an advice seeking way, he knows my passwords and is free to look but I don't do random DH dissing. If I ahve an issue with DH, I sort it with DH- I don't sulk on the net instead.