I think that lots of people wrongly equate ad hominem arguments with personal attacks. A personal attack is something along the lines of "You're a bad person and should be ashamed of yourself". It's not a fallacy in itself (though it is discourteous and ought to be avoided). An ad hominem fallacy, on the other hand, would be dismissing someone's arguments against abortion because they're male or haven't adopted enough kids.

"Does this mean you should feel free to say whatever you want about other people as long as you’re not automatically rejecting their conclusions? Of course not."
In other words, much of what people say against those making an argument either boils down to name-calling or a simple lack of civility, and not their argument. An ad hominem fallacy has to do, strictly, with the rejection of an argument due to a personal characteristic of the arguer.
Well done.