Warning - Long, but hopefully reasoned...
Leave them all in one subforum and stop being so snooty.
I don't see it as being snooty at all. Let's try and leave the emotion behind for a minute and try to take a reasoned look at the two themes in the thread:
Firstly, let’s acknowledge that everyone uses BirdForum in different ways. There are hundreds of different forums and thousands of actives threads at any one time, but I’d wager that most people just dip into the areas that interest them
So, I’m personally not interested in the “Computers and The Internet” section, nor the “Alabama” sub-forum in the USA area, or the “Pentax Binocular” threads, but there are there if I ever want them, and I’m sure other people must use them all the time.
To be honest, the same thing is going on here. Some people want to debate complex ID’s, others want a common bird identified for them. Why not make the forums more intuitive, efficient and reflect the needs of all users better? If its worth splitting “Garden Birds, Bird Feeding & Nestboxes” into three sub-forums, why not the ID Q&A area?
The second theme is different, and has run through many posts, and is probably the more ‘emotive’ on. Many “experienced” birders in the UK feel at the moment that birding in the UK is being “dumbed down”, that fieldcraft isn’t what it just to be, that people new to the hobby don’t want to learn but want to run before they can walk, that no one does an apprenticeship anymore and that the digital camera has become not an asset to birding but a liability that makes people lazy and prevents them really looking at birds anymore. Before anyone shoots the messanger, I'm just saying what I keep hearing.
Of course, this view might be deemed elitist, and it really should be for everyone who finds an interest in wild birdlife to enjoy our great hobby in whatever way they want to. However, the frustration quoted above does exist, it manifests itself on bird reserves and at twitches up and down the country, and occasionally it manifests itself here, on these threads in this forum. Should it? Usually not. Will it continue to if nothing changes? Undoubtedly, yes.
Comments drawn out of this frustration keep coming up from time to time, and when they do someone usually ends up getting offended. Again, the answer to this is to split the ID Q&A forums, to enable people with different views, wants and levels of knowledge to find what they are looking for, rather than setting the bar for everything at the lowest common denominator. As far as I can see, this discussion will keep happening for the above two reasons, unless a really simple change is made to split the forums; it’s not asking too much.
) i.e when UKBirdnet was great ! Myself and a chum were able to identify a Whites Thrush from a strange 'Mistle Thrush' email ( we were sent Photos after a few mails! - I still have it on my wall ! ) two days later we were on the Isle of Lewis enjoying stonking views of this Mega - and a great time was had by all - So I know it can happen , but this along with the LBM are the only times that I am aware of in recent British History where this has occurred and people were able to get along and see the bird in Question. (Sora/Spot Crake on Scilly Aside 
