On the many forums I've been on there has always been differences of opinion and clashes of personality. But what seems to be inconsistent is how they are described.

I'm pushing 30 so maybe my understanding of the terms have changed but I always assumed a flame war to be a hot exchange of insults, no real discussion just trying to 'one up' the other with 'burns' or snarky remarks, similar to a 'rap battle' or 'yo momma' contest. The objective is to win with insults.

My understanding of a Disagreement is literally just a difference of ideas its someone stating an opposing view. This can obviously turn into a flame war or arguement. But it could literally just end with a statement.

A debate in my opinion is when its moderated or at least mutually adhering to a set of rules.

And finally my understanding of a arguement is the most common, an exchange of arguments, unmoderated but still rooted in discussion as apposed to flaming.

What do you think?

EDIT: I realise that I'm deviating from dictionary definitions, these are just words loosely used to define conflict on message forums.

EDIT: I realize that I'm deviating from dictionary definitions, these are just words loosely used to define conflict on message forums.

Well, my favorite thing to do is to quote the dictionary and then draw parallels to a situation. The problem is that you have a lot of people misusing words, and with enough misuse the meaning of the word actually changes. I'll use the weabo community as an example for this. Westerners tend to call hard core cartoon porn Hentai, and soft core stuff Ecchi. But Ecchi is actually what you call the letter "H" in Japanese, and is slang for Hentai. So while they mean the exact same thing in japan, they have different meanings elsewhere. This is the same thing with forum slang, it tends to have different meanings as you go from place to place.

Disagreement, argument, and debate pretty much have the same meaning, but they have different flavors. Two people arguing facts "intelligently" would rather you viewed their exchange as a debate. Someone who is simply stating an opposing view point who doesn't wish to argue would likely tell you they are disagreeing. Argument has a mostly negative context, but they can all mean the same thing.

A flame war is simply the point where an argument (read: any of the above examples) has become toxic and the participants are being toxic, which is essentially what you stated. Though the exact point at which an argument becomes a flame war varies from forum to forum.

On family friendly sites or places with big-ego staff I notice disagreement to be very easily termed as flaming. I disagree frequently and am not opposed to challenging someone's beliefs or chasing them to back up their statements (the latter of which I was warned recently on a site for doing, or as the moderator put it, "encouraging a flamewar" or something similar). I engage in debate and don't moderate my position to suit people who want to be cuddled, but I will have a healthy respect for the other side. A flame war happens when both sides are flinging words that serve to no end; those words usually being insults.

In short, I think it just depends on the community when it comes to how the broad definition can be painted.

Oh, look -- a short reply from me for once.

'Debating 101' pretty much comes down to attacking the idea, not the person. In essence, someone who actually knows how to debate can do so without getting personal or snarky, and without being disrespectful. To me, something becomes a 'flame war' instead of a 'disagreement' when this line is crossed and the person stops debating maturely. It's easy to have a disagreement with someone and still be an adult about it, but a lot of people forget that.

If I'm winning ;-P

Debates on forums are usually passive aggressive, when they deviate from this, they are automatically labelled as flame wars.

The level of pettyness determines whether or not is a disagreement or retards going to war.

The level of pettyness determines whether or not is a disagreement or retards going to war.

A little passive agressive, I think.

<Snipped quote by Burning Kitty>

A little passive agressive, I think.

Nothing wrong with calling flame war participants what they are.

A flame war is funnier than a disagreement.

A flame war is funnier than a disagreement.

Not always, sometimes just pathetic.

<Snipped quote by j8cob>

Not always, sometimes just pathetic.

It's okay to be wrong.

<Snipped quote by Burning Kitty>

It's okay to be wrong.

Better to be right though.

<Snipped quote by j8cob>

Better to be right though.

I'd know.