There is certainly a greater sense of community here than most other places on the Internet. I was talking with kudra about this the other day (sorry gal, I used "that word" again). One of the things I felt was lost moving from the local BBS technology to the world-wide Internet technology was the sense of belonging and contribution to something more than just a bunch of strangers. While I don't know the people (read: regular posters) here as well as my own family and close friends, I know them a heck of a lot better than the multitudes of people on slashdot, IRC, newsgroups, etc. If nothing else, they all share my affection for my favorite language. This isn't something to be taken lightly. {eg}

Like you, I've had my growing pains here at PM... some successes, some failures. My first post was made by the infamous Anonymous Monk and got horribly shot down by those who know better. A few months later (when I had some more free time!) I came back and started posting. I will never forget the feeling when my pride and joy made it to the top ten and stayed there for a number of weeks. I too have learned not to be shy about my code, because I wouldn't be where I am without the help of others, so now it's my turn to give back. A spin on the goal of Perl, to keep simple stuff simple and tough stuff possible--get the job done knowing what you know, but accumulate what you've learned and one day you will become a master! Or at least better than you were. =)

++ for eloquence.

Alakaboo

(it was a JOKE! honestly!)