Getting involved with the online quiz bowl community

[Scone]

I discovered this forum about two months ago, and I have been a semi-regular visitor of topics relating to high school quiz bowl. To me, it seems like everyone that has things to say is some sort of alumn, organization member, or college student that seems to know everything about the state of quiz bowl in different areas, prominent people, etc. It doesn't help that my state (Minnesota) doesn't seem to have an online presence, so I don't have anything to latch onto, especially as a high school freshman.
That being said, how is one supposed to interact with the online community? What's the "ultimate purpose" for doing so?

[Aaron's Rod]

Hi Samir, glad you found the forums!

How is one supposed to interact with the online community? What's the "ultimate purpose" for doing so?

I'm sure lots of people will have something to say about this, but I like talking about quizbowl and talking to quizbowlers. It's also fun to get to know quizbowlers who are not in my immediate vicinity, because when you play larger tournaments where lots of people come together, you get to meet!

I don't know about Minnesota-specific stuff, but a lot of casual conversation about quizbowl happens on Discord. There's a regular Discord (where anyone is welcome), and a high school Discord (note the Minnesotans on that thread!). Quizbowlers are also very active on a number of Facebook groups. If you're thoughtful and respectful, you're sure to have some great conversations.

I discovered this forum about two months ago, and I have been a semi-regular visitor of topics relating to high school quiz bowl. To me, it seems like everyone that has things to say is some sort of alumn, organization member, or college student that seems to know everything about the state of quiz bowl in different areas, prominent people, etc.

The alphabet soup in forums usernames can definitely be intimidating. If you're trying to learn more about a particular topic (or even a particular person), I'd really recommend searching the forums via a search engine. The QBWiki can also occasionally be really helpful. Happy posting!

[A Dim-Witted Saboteur]

I heartily second everything in Alex's post. I realize this may seem odd coming from an elderly 19-year-old with an acronym or two in his sig, but I felt pretty much the same way you did upon first finding the forums. I know the sheer amount of information people seem to take for granted that everyone knows can seem very overwhelming and quasi-cultish at times. Let me assure you, too, that you don't have to know everything about quiz bowl to make meaningful contributions to the discussion here, and no matter what your position is, trust me, your perspective is important (starting this thread, for example, was a good contribution to The Discourse™). You'll very likely start meeting more and more people as you stay in the QB community. You may even discover, like I did, that a lot of the Internet People you saw on the forums are good friends in real life. That's honestly as close to an "ultimate purpose" as being Online in Quiz Bowl gets: it's a good avenue to make friends, learn things, and blow off steam. If you have any questions about things that the resources Alex linked can't answer, I'd also recommend just asking someone; pretty much all of us love talking about quizbowl (that's why we're here).

Happy Posting!

[Scone]

Thank both of you for your replies; I'll try to keep what you said in mind as I slowly dip my toes into the online world, then.