very nice thread dave_Notts
I use both chat room (not as frequent at the moment as I would like) and forum, both have people that are unique to that venue. On the whole the people are the same with the same sort of humour and outlook but the change in the groundrules can make things seem different. the speed in the chatroom is amazing at trimes, even for somebody like myself who is used to IRC I find that the chatroom can move so fast its almost impossible to keep up without knowing a few tricks.
Only 2 things really tho are needed to enjoy your time in the chatroom, observation of the prime directive...." Never PM without asking first " , and knowing that you will likely lose track several times until you acclimatise to the speed of the room which changes wildly