I've always liked PerlMonks because of the way it is setup and works. It's always been a little more imaginative that regular forums and that has come through in the replies too. Of course in Perl, there is always more than one way to do anything, so there is more than one answer or way to answer any query.

Maybe it's like other societies even work. First there are the explorers, the first in, there is nothing there, they have to forge ways in and solve everything themselves. Then there are the early pioneers, they come into something that works but is still fairly rough and ready, there are rules but not rigidly followed and there is room for experiment and trial. The society is fixed yet neither are it's structures and systems, if something gets broken it's not a huge problem and it gets fixed or replaced. And so it continues but as more people arrive things become more formal and rigid. Those structures and systems are now depended on and they need to be maintained and looked after, guarded and protected both from new comers and from the "old timers" who hark back to when they could do what they liked and everyone respected them because they "did it".