Being an AO member for roughly two years now, I can certainly say that this is a pretty good place for learning and gathering information regarding security. Sure, we get the lamers, the kiddies, the general idiots who aren't here for the right reasons. But I feel that the system has at least, to a degree, a form of policing that works for the most part. Now don't get me wrong, this site has seen some good times and some bad times - we've lost a few well respected members because of the way some things have happened. But if you read these threads and learn to ask the right questions, you will learn. Trust me...

On the other hand, I'm a fan of reading and learning as much as I can.. Yes, you may not be looked upon unfavorably if you ask questions regarding exploits, etc. as you say - but I could give you a few sites right now where you wouldn't even have to pay to ask those questions freely... Further, those questions can be asked here, as long as it's from a learning/discussion standpoint, not from a "How can I use the latest IE exploit to..." - those questions are BS, used by lamers, and not welcomed here.

I guess what I'm saying after all that rambling is that AO is a great source of information - we are not a skiddy hangout, don't claim to be, nor do we want to be. We are (for the most part), intelligent students, professionals, and knowledge seekers here to discuss security (and many times other things) and learn from each other...

My slightly > $0.02