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onewheeldaveGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,252 posts
Location: sheffield, United Kingdom


Posted:
reading this-



[Old link]



and this-



[Old link]



i felt the need to make comment, but, the reply button would not work on either, so I guess they've been locked?



From the perspective of a (long-standing) member of the HOP community, i felt it was important to put forward two points-



1. why some may feel the need to talk about the banning of another long-standing member of the community, not necessarily to criticise those who made that decision, but, simply because that is what community members do when someone is exiled- they feel the need to talk about it



2. address the posted comment by a mod that, from the perspectice of a mod, any discussion of said members banning, is necessarily disrespectful to the mods



To elaborate on point 2, IMO, the discussion on the threads that have been removed or locked, did not come across as disrespectful to the mods.



To question a decision is not necessarily disrespectful.



It's true that the banning of NYC has gone largely unnoticed, till now. But, now, it has very much been noticed and, to expect this community to not talk about it, is, IMO, unrealistic.



There may be very good background reasons why it's seen as best for no discussion to take place, but, obviously, from the perspective of the community, those reasons are not known.



I know it's a difficult thing to make judgements on.



The main thing I want to say is that I find it very unpleasent when multiple threads are locked or removed, when, in my eyes, they contained nothing offensive.



I would also like the mods to examine the possibility that the pulled/stoped discussions are actually not disrespectful to HOP or the mods, but are simply members of the community discussing something which is important to them.



I'm assuming that this thread is not also going to be seen as disrespectful- it's certainly not intended as such.



If threads discussing this chain of events are going to be systematically pulled or locked, then, like many here, I'm going to be wondering whether I'm part of this community any more.



A community talks- that's the point of it.



If that talk is abusive, damaging, hurtful, then it has to be pulled- no questions about it.



But I'm concerned that what is developing here is the pulling of stuff that is not at all abusive, damaging or hurtful.



Banning someone for good reasons is one thing, but expecting the community to 'never again utter their name' is dodgy as hell smile

"You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it."

--MAJOR KORGO KORGAR,
"Last of The Lancers"
AFC 32


Educate your self in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


YakumoSILVER Member
veteran
1,237 posts
Location: Oxfordshire, United Kingdom


Posted:
 Written by :brainstorma



Yakumo what i think you have missed in ade's post is thins little aussy thing we like to call sarcasm



And if you re-read my post you'll see I specifically mention that I know their post is sarcasm, but it gave me the excuse to go into detail about forum management. smile

Blinded by Hyperlights, please donate generously grin


GnorBRONZE Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
5,814 posts
Location: Perth, Australia


Posted:
 Written by

YOU're talking about drugs. I'm talking about this odd apparatus that is spewing smoke.


Did the magic blue smoke escape?

Is it the Truth?
Is it Fair to all concerned?
Will it build Goodwill and Better Friendships?
Will it be Beneficial to all concerned?

Im in a lonely battle with the world with a fish to match the chip on my shoulder. Gnu in Binnu in a cnu


DurbsBRONZE Member
Classically British
5,689 posts
Location: Epsom, Surrey, England


Posted:
Pah - i ignore your serious conversations, innappropriately grope Lightningh, spark up a fatty and watch you all fight.

Meg - Tom called you a... wink

Burner of Toast
Spinner of poi
Slacker of enormous magnitude


jo_rhymesSILVER Member
Momma Bear
4,525 posts
Location: Telford, Shrops, United Kingdom


Posted:
I completely agree with LTC's post.

That is all smile (he's already said it for me!)

Hoppers are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly.


MikeGinnyGOLD Member
HOP Mad Doctor
13,925 posts
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA


Posted:
 Written by :flash fire


I already offered to stand down and hand my mod status to someone more relevant



Over my dead body! hug

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura


georgemcBRONZE Member
Sitting down facing forward . . .
2,387 posts
Location: Christchurch, New Zealand


Posted:
 Written by :Spanner


And I'm glad that you seem to share my opinion that it's the appropriate thing to do. One question here then, is why your offer wasn't implemented.


[putsadminhaton]
It hasn't been implemented because not everybody has the same opinion. Many people believe that even the not so active Mods still have a place on the board (see Mike's response above for example).
Also it hasn't been implemented because it really is still too early to have correctly gauged the pulse of the majority, made decisions and had time to implement them. For example, if we were to replace/add a new mod, we all need to agree this is the correct thing to do (which takes time since the coffee table is distributed in different parts of the world with different personal schedules and priorities etc), and then we need to talk to the selected candidate(s) which might take time because they are in different locations on different priority schedules and then we find they don't wish to be a mod so have to repeat this for the next on the list etc. Rambling - some things take time - especially when we are making important decisions without necessarily having heard from the majority of the members (70,000 members but how many have posted here? [yes, I know - probably enough to guage a reasonable representation, but you get my point I hope]).

It may sound "old" but we are listening and discussing now. Soon we will be acting and you will see some results of that. The last thing we want to do is to make a knee-jerk reaction that turns out to be wrong. Usually in this world, the good things take time. ubbrollsmile

[/adminhaton]

grouphug

Written by: Doc Lightning talking about Marmite in Kichi's Intro thread

I have several large jars of the stuff. I actually like it... a little. And don't tell anyone I admitted to it.
grin


Rouge DragonBRONZE Member
Insert Champagne Here
13,215 posts
Location: without class distinction, Australia


Posted:
I like how George has a mod had and an admin hat. I wonder if they're different colours...

 Written by : LTC


When Meg talks about people being more useful than others (sorry Rob, just putting it to rest, I hope) I think she means 'some people are more active than others'. there's no descrimination there, she's stating a fact. another thing that is getting too hard to do for almost everybody nowadays.



Which is why she singles out Tom when she says it? I would think that Tom is more 'active' than MCP which then makes your interpretation very controversial. I think that if issues need to be brought to light then they need to be done so clearly and without a very large spectrum of interpretation, especially if it's to do with a "fact" as opposing interpretations make facts impossible to determine!

Possibly the same problem with Ade's post? I thought it was hilarious! But it seems that some people didn't understand the sarcasm and this has now caused some problems. Sarcasm might be fine in some threads, but for serious threads maybe something with a large potential for misunderstanding should be actively avoided?

 Written by : LTC


Pele seems to me to be very defensive a lot of the time when there's no need to be, and does come across as authoritarian. ANd when an argument heats up at her, she "tags in" (her words) the boyfriend to handle it for her, who just respouts her opinions in a more offensive tone. Not exactly moderator conduct?



Thanks for saying that Ed because that brings up something I've been thinking but never had the courage to say. hug I've wanted to approach mods about something in the past but didnt for that very reason.

i would have changed ***** to phallus, and claire to petey Petey

Rougie: but that's what I'm doing here
Arnwyn: what letting me adjust myself in your room?..don't you dare quote that on HoP...


brainstormaBRONZE Member
old hand
1,184 posts
Location: under the fairie wheel, Australia


Posted:
 Written by :Doc Lightning


 Written by :flash fire


I already offered to stand down and hand my mod status to someone more relevant



Over my dead body! hug



as he said
over our dead bodies

"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, champagne in one hand, strawberries in the other, body thoroughly used up, and screaming "WOO-HOO What a ride!"


georgemcBRONZE Member
Sitting down facing forward . . .
2,387 posts
Location: Christchurch, New Zealand


Posted:
 Written by :Yakumo


Love the new tabs at the top of HOP smile
Could the edit boxes be made 100-120 chars wide or so instead of 60, and maybe a few more lines also?

A smidgin of javascript to make it user scalable would be a most excellent alternative.


offtopic but:
Was going to just PM you but thought others might want to know also.
You can change the width and height of the edit boxes in your account settings. The ones you mention are the default.

Java-script - yes, lots of fun and goodness can be done with Javascript but at the moment it is not sufficiently cross-browser compatible. Malcolm's done a lot of investigation about this and other related items in the lead up to the new tabs. Full Java functionality for certain features isn't supported on several of the browsers that we know are used by several HoPpers.

Written by: Doc Lightning talking about Marmite in Kichi's Intro thread

I have several large jars of the stuff. I actually like it... a little. And don't tell anyone I admitted to it.
grin


PyrolificBRONZE Member
Returning to a unique state of Equilibrium
3,289 posts
Location: Adelaide, South Australia


Posted:
 Written by :Spanner



 Written by :Pyrolific



ok sorry - I'm missing what the needs of the changing community are that are so radically different to what we do now. Please be specific.



I'd be very happy for there to be input on improving things round here - if you know of techniques being used on other boards that would be good, why dont you tell us?







I can only speak for myself but I'd be willing to bet that those who also hesitate do so because when moderators aren't moderate, they're won't be perceived as approachable. You shouldn't be surprised to hear that your reply sounds slightly sarcastic and demonstrates my point.



I have a sense of deja-vu: I'm sure long previous threads on HoP issues have been locked/deleted, then when members insist on discussion, moderators leave them open and reassure us they're listening and that changes will be implemented, which suggests progress, but this seems to be later forgotten and the circle starts again.



Until a thread like this, what should be the moderator teams united response just looks like one moderator's one response. Looking at moderators' posts, too many don't post regularly for months until a time like this, when their sudden presence on far less controversial threads around the same time seems far more for the sake of being seen to do something rather than actually doing it. I understand life gets between everyone and HoP sometimes, but I'd expect that if this was going to be the case long term for a moderator, for them either to step down temporarily or hand over to someone who can keep their ear to the ground. Otherwise, it currently seems that moderators are being called back in, coming in late on proceedings to formulate a very disorganised and inconsistent response.



Some time ago I reported a known troublemaker returning under another name. One moderator response was that this person had just as much right to be on the forums as anyone else, thank you very much. The other banned them and thanked me for spotting him as they wouldn't have biggrin I've also seen evidence that one moderator isn't using the search often enough to know that if you search for something only under "All Forums", it won't help to "Please wait a few minutes and try again" because it never works. In this thread another is apparently unaware that non-moderators can move threads. I'm sure those moderators still care very much about HoP, but maybe not enough to forgo their privileges for the greater good, so I'm not surprised that the issues of who does and doesn't care is coming up time and again.



I'm generalising again, because I have to go out in a minute, but there is a lot of other people's points I'd like to respond to, so for now I'm just going to echo what others have said about hoping that this thread hasn't been done away with in the meantime and that some heated response is understandable when people are posting what they can, when and while they can.





Now I read your post twice Spanner, and I might be wrong, but in all that, there were no specific suggestions for improvements. I did pick up perhaps some insinuation that some mods should step down, and that perhaps mods should act with a united front?



But really, your original post that I was responding to with my query re: specific improvement suggestions made it seem that you are a member of many other large forums where millions of things are done better than they are here.



*an open question follows to Spanner, and everyone else with absolutely no mal-intent*



Can you please now share with us some of these great ideas?



I'm sure everyone feels pretty feel safe now, given several people have mounted personal attacks, and haven't been banned. surely if you care about HOP as you say you do, you wouldnt mind posting some friendly constructive criticism?



PS - I'm surprised and saddened that you think I was being sarcastic. I like to think I'm fairly diplomatic in my conduct on HOP. If you feel like digging into my past, you will find that it hasn't always been that way..just for like...the past 4 years or so.



In fact, I've been criticised by some members for being too soft, and trying to see too much good in people and other related wussy things wink
EDITED_BY: Pyrolific (1210298057)

--
Help! My personality got stuck in this signature machine and I cant get it out!


PyroWillGOLD Member
HoP's Barman. Trapped aged 6 months
4,437 posts
Location: Staines, United Kingdom


Posted:
I have one idea I would like to mention.



There appears to be 7 admins & mod's in total.



Malcolm, Pele, Pyrolific, flash fire, Charles, Dom, georgemc.



I personally would like to see that number increase. I think mod's should be quite tightly woven into the community or at least a couple of them.



As mentioned by Spanner, it seems by a few including me , they disappear for a while till someone states that they are absent then suddenly they are posting on multiple things....but then disappear as the tempo dies down. I think this has happened several times in the 4 years I've been on here.



I would like, simply to hypothesise say a 12-15 strong mod team, come on there are as we said over 60,000 people on the HoP community, granted that I'd say less than a thousand actually are invovled in the forums side of things (of which this is only effecting). But still 7 is a small number.



I get the feeling that since it's been this way things are unlikely to change as drastic as what I've suggested. Nor do I believe Pele will ever be removed as a mod. I don't think this thread should turn into a Pele lynching thread at all, but it would seem a lot of people have a problem with her as a mod, some from what I gather here, most from what I hear elsewhere. Yet also the general feeling is that her removal of mod status will never happen because she is 'untouchable' so to speak.



A shame I believe, a mod should have the respect (not necesarily the admiration) but respect of the community, and hold their faith. I personally feel Pele doesn't have that, not in the majority anyway, and I think on this topic the community should be listened to, the greater good and all that right??



Pele please don't take this all too personally. I just would agree that often you seem too subjective for a mod.



So my ideas are two fold



1) Possibly look into arranging more mod's



2) Review Pele's status as a mod, maybe a vote if thats possible?



My two cents, don't lynch me

An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind

Give a man a fish and he'll eat 4 a day hit a man with a brick and you can have all his fish and his wife

"Will's to pretty for prison" - Simian


Fine_Rabid_DogInternet Hate Machine
10,530 posts
Location: They seek him here, they seek him there...


Posted:
Don't taze me bro!

The existance of flamethrowers says that someone, somewhere, at sometime said "I need to set that thing on fire, but it's too far away."


PyrolificBRONZE Member
Returning to a unique state of Equilibrium
3,289 posts
Location: Adelaide, South Australia


Posted:
lol (please dont take this the wrong way) we're looking at putting on more mods. and we were before this particular thread even got to this point.

*imagines Spanner reading this and saying..."yeah right..."* wink

--
Help! My personality got stuck in this signature machine and I cant get it out!


ben-ja-menGOLD Member
just lost .... evil init
2,474 posts
Location: Adelaide, Australia


Posted:
 Written by :PyroWill


I personally would like to see that number increase. I think mod's should be quite tightly woven into the community or at least a couple of them.


I think this is a bad idea, more mods from the community will result in more politics and drama, if there where to be more mods they should be objective and have a loyalty to hop the business so that their personal relationships don't bias their behavior.

 Written by :PyroWill

Review Pele's status as a mod, maybe a vote if thats possible



Hop is not a democracy whereby we elect moderators based on who is popular and who is not, Hop is a business run by Malcolm. For whatever reason Pele has Malcolm's trust and respect, if you have a complaint about the service you are receiving then he is who you should be talking to.

The anti Pele sentiment that is emerging in this thread does not fit within the hop rules, I have had issue with Pele in the past, Malcolm is very approachable and listened to my concerns I would encourage everyone that has a problem with Pele's moderation to contact Malcolm directly instead of flaming (however polite it maybe) Pele in this public forum.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourself, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous and talented? Who are you NOT to be?


MikeGinnyGOLD Member
HOP Mad Doctor
13,925 posts
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA


Posted:
Pele's got a thankless job. She *is* the most visible of the mods.

And because she does her job and does it well, that makes her rather unpopular. Kind of like the assistant principal at my middle school. (Mr. Brettslaf...or as we called him, "Mr. Buttslap").

I haven't seen her flex her mod muscle that much. Pele can be firm, she can be grating (although not nearly as badly as I am), and she can be harsh.

She's also fair. She's involved. She's given blood, sweat, tears to this community.

If Pele is to be removed as a mod, then I would want her to be an admin, instead. But in the seven years that I have been on this forum, Pele has been a rock of stability in a community that went from a few hundred to tens of thousands.

Yes, she's my friend. And maybe I'm biased, but I am not simply her lap-dog (as much as she would like me to sit in her lap wink ).

I initially didn't like Pele that much, to be honest. But over time, I've come to know her as an amazing and beautiful soul. She and I have had our disagreements but I count her among my dearest friends and she is one of the people who I respect most in this world. That's not a compliment I give to many people.

I suggest you all make the attempt to reach out to her and get to know her. You may be shocked at what you find under that tough skin of hers.

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura


ben-ja-menGOLD Member
just lost .... evil init
2,474 posts
Location: Adelaide, Australia


Posted:
Out of interest when a member gets banned do they have the option to have all of their posts, galleries and other content deleted from the site?

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourself, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous and talented? Who are you NOT to be?


MikeGinnyGOLD Member
HOP Mad Doctor
13,925 posts
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA


Posted:
Just FYI, we are *never* deleting your "devil" photos.

Just thought you should know that. wink

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura


georgemcBRONZE Member
Sitting down facing forward . . .
2,387 posts
Location: Christchurch, New Zealand


Posted:
Usually a ban just means the person cannot use that account again but the account itself remains intact in case the ban is lifted. All bans are reviewable after all.
If a person on receipt of their e-mail advising them of their banning, then requested their account be "purged" as you described, it would be a very manual job to delete all their posts and so we would need very good reasons to undertake this kind of effort.

This is actually the same when someone requests that their account be deleted. About all we can do is change their username to something like "Deleted user" as all the posts remain without manual editing.

Written by: Doc Lightning talking about Marmite in Kichi's Intro thread

I have several large jars of the stuff. I actually like it... a little. And don't tell anyone I admitted to it.
grin


Rouge DragonBRONZE Member
Insert Champagne Here
13,215 posts
Location: without class distinction, Australia


Posted:
I find the suggestion of more mods an interesting one because from reading this thread it seems to me that people are concerned with the mods being totalitarian...and surely more mods would make that problem even worse?

And I'm going to be brave and ponder the motivation behind the people wanting more mods; are they saying they should be one? Now I know this isn't the case for everyone, but I do get the impression from some people that the motivation behind wanting more mods, or wanting pele replaced is that they want to do it themselves (moderate, that is. Not take pele out!) and this concerns me.

i would have changed ***** to phallus, and claire to petey Petey

Rougie: but that's what I'm doing here
Arnwyn: what letting me adjust myself in your room?..don't you dare quote that on HoP...


PeleBRONZE Member
the henna lady
6,193 posts
Location: WNY, USA


Posted:
I'd like to clear a couple things up.



I don't use the term "tag in" and if I do, it's to other mods and admins. I do it a fair bit actually.



My "boyfriend" got chastised for his behaviour because it was unacceptable and reprehensible, to myself and to (at least one of) the other mods. His posts were modified and he has not been back since.

The person in question has a free mind and he can express himself at will. Everyone here who is complaining should know me well enough to know that I don't need anyone to fight my battles for me. And quite frankly, I don't view this as a battle at all.



*human hat on*

Pyrowill, am I to understand that I'm supposed to, as a mod, act more "human" but not take anything personally?

If there is a problem with me, then come to me. Other people on here have and it's been sorted. I'm not unreasonable and I actually do think instead of knee-jerk.

Believe it as you will.



Now, if I moderate someone and say "Don't take it personally." I get blasted for it because people do take things personally. That's how people are, and when being attacked, people get defensive. Everyone on here has done so at some point in time or another. I am a person. Of course I am going to.



However, I can also seperate personal from business, and HoP is business to me, as such, everyone is equal no matter how long they have been on here. I have even been modded myself. No, I am not beyond reproach. *None* of us are.



However, from non-mod eyes, the attacks coming about me *are* personal and are essentially displaying attitudes that no matter what I do, no matter what I say, it's wrong. What I am seeing is the complaint that I am incapable of civil human interaction, whether as a mod or as a member, and yet, there is ample evidence otherwise.



I've *still* not received PM's or emails from you, or anyone else speaking up now in an attempt to make things better. The whole "fear" thing is quite...I don't even know the word. The worst that will happen is that I'll not like what I hear. What you see of me is a mere fraction of who I am and what I do, just like every other mod. And just like every other mod on here, I am human with emotions.



So...I'm supposed to shape up when no one is saying anything *to me*? I'm supposed to be human but not show emotion or take things personally?



I'd also like to say that I find the statement that you are speaking for the majority to be presumptuous when there have been many in support of me across the threads as well. People here have their own voices and are welcome to use them. So, in that I will echo FlashFire and say, if you have a problem with me, come to me with it. The PM button is right down there at the bottom of this post. I welcome people to use it in a constructive way (not to simply verbally abuse anyone obviously). You might be surprised.



I'm sorry Pyrowill, but you can not call for my lynching in a post (and you are) and then attempt to gloss it over with "I don't think this thread should turn into a Pele lynching thread". Nor can you make it seem peaceable by saying "But don't take it personally." It's too contradictory to be placating and I *am* taking it very personally.



*/human hat*



You know Doc, sometimes I think you get out of hand just cause you like it when I spank you wink

spank
EDITED_BY: Pele (1210306182)

Pele
Higher, higher burning fire...making music like a choir
"Oooh look! A pub!" -exclaimed after recovering from a stupid fall
"And for the decadence of art, nothing beats a roaring fire." -TMK


MikeGinnyGOLD Member
HOP Mad Doctor
13,925 posts
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA


Posted:
 Written by :Pele


You know Doc, sometimes I think you get out of hand just cause you like it when I spank you wink
spank



*whirls around and squares the Nutella railgun at you*

*flicks a switch on it and an ominous rising whine emanates from the gun*


Lady, put the paddle down. Just...put it down. And I'm willing to forget this little...transgression. wink

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura


bluecatgeek, level 1
5,300 posts
Location: everywhere


Posted:
 Written by :Pyrolific



*an open question follows to Spanner, and everyone else with absolutely no mal-intent*

Can you please now share with us some of these great ideas?

surely if you care about HOP as you say you do, you wouldnt mind posting some friendly constructive criticism?




*hopes josh read bluecats post, not just spanners*

 Written by


In fact, I've been criticised by some members for being too soft, and trying to see too much good in people and other related wussy things wink



thats because, my dear josh, you are a wuss.

hug

Holistic Spinner (I hope)


brainstormaBRONZE Member
old hand
1,184 posts
Location: under the fairie wheel, Australia


Posted:
 Written by :Doc Lightning


 Written by :Pele


You know Doc, sometimes I think you get out of hand just cause you like it when I spank you wink
spank



*whirls around and squares the Nutella railgun at you*

*flicks a switch on it and an ominous rising whine emanates from the gun*


Lady, put the paddle down. Just...put it down. And I'm willing to forget this little...transgression. wink



hang on doc your in cani now
your meant to be zapping her with the tazer first then tell her to calm down and keep zapping her every time she moves because she want stop screaming

"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, champagne in one hand, strawberries in the other, body thoroughly used up, and screaming "WOO-HOO What a ride!"


PyroWillGOLD Member
HoP's Barman. Trapped aged 6 months
4,437 posts
Location: Staines, United Kingdom


Posted:
Pele, I feel you have completely twisted what I said and put words in my mouth.

I do not think I said anything harsh or insulting at all, yet as you said you have taken it personally? I haven't seen a single comment in this so called 'Pele Lynching' from anyone that gives the idea that no one likes you as a person. I don't really know you other than as hop mod and I would like to, because I'm sure we would get on well. But back to the point, none of this is directed at you as a person, only as your dealings with a mod, something which you shouldn't take personally which you said you just have. Maybe thats your problem?

I am not calling for your lynching! This has really annoyed me, it is clear you have taken what I said the wrong way and found it insulting. I am NOT calling for your lynching, merely saying that it is very clear that peoples faith in your mod status has been called into question and wondered whether it was at all POSSIBLE for a vote or something to be taken simply to see what peoples views are on this. I do not see that at all insulting and really wish you wouldn't take it personally, because it's not aimed at you Pele the person, it's aimed at Pele the mod, two people which you claim to be different from each other.

An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind

Give a man a fish and he'll eat 4 a day hit a man with a brick and you can have all his fish and his wife

"Will's to pretty for prison" - Simian


onewheeldaveGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,252 posts
Location: sheffield, United Kingdom


Posted:
 Written by :PyroWill




A shame I believe, a mod should have the respect (not necesarily the admiration) but respect of the community,



For me, a mod so do what a mod should do, i.e.-

1. be objective
2. implement board guidelines impartialy
3. never post in an inflammatory manner
4. deal with anyone who does post in a flaming or troll fashion

And, for me, that's it- whether they have the respect of the community isn't anywhere near as relevant as whether they're doing their job properly.

Presumably, if a mod has no respect, it would be because, in some way, they are not following points 1-4?

In that case, it would seem best to fault them on what it is they are specifically failing on?

The very last thing a mod should be aiming for, is winning admiration, respect or popularity- that should be irrelevant.

I've always found, amongst the juggling and spinning communities, that cliquism and 'popularity' is rife- I don't want it playing a part in HOP moderation.

"You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it."

--MAJOR KORGO KORGAR,
"Last of The Lancers"
AFC 32


Educate your self in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


FireTomStargazer
6,650 posts

Posted:
ubblol I love how the threads always keep on topic wink



Is there not another thread with the topic "[Old link]"?



Who is/ not a mod should not be business of the members, but the admin's - IMHO. (As been said before: If one (as a mod) takes unpopular decisions and at the same time is an active member of the board --- popularity decreases quickly. This would not mean that said mod is not doing a good job). It's not a totalitarian or user unfriendly decision.



But (IMO) it would be unwise to have the mods elected by the audience. At the same time we could just vote on every single member remaining on the board or not... footinmouth



Personally I like the diversity of this board, I like it that members tell each other what they think - dis/respectful or not - and as long as we're all able to locate that 'panic' button everything is good. Sure, damage dun and some ppl have their egos bruised beyond repair - big deal?



Just ease off and give it some time --- after all those who really know each other (and/ or themselves) will always find a way to cope... "Ignore it and it will go away."



"A 'mature' board - how boring!" would the majority think, right?



wink



[ed]Pyrowill - as much as I might misinterpret the wit that Meg is actually trying to get across, as much as I am considered to be the (only) 'button pusher' here [/ironic] - you may just have to accept for a split second that what Pele is saying is her impression from what she reads.



Beyond all frustration that one gets misunderstood - when sitting back and acknowledging the other ones feelings, instead of invalidating them, we do a great deal of moderation to ourselves.



How often have I reconsidered my perception and then read my and other peoples posts again - resulting in a different way to look at it.
EDITED_BY: FireTom (1210335546)

the best smiles are the ones you lead to wink


YakumoSILVER Member
veteran
1,237 posts
Location: Oxfordshire, United Kingdom


Posted:
HoP hasn't had a problem in a *very* long time, this doesn't actually prove that it's working perfectly under the hood, it only shows that no problem has come up till now which is a testament to the good nature of the community. Openly discussing the issue, and working out a better system for handling any situation based on what has been learn as a preventative measure is definitely the way to go.



The solution (imo, & apologies as some of this is basically going to be copying in what I've said before in 2 threads) :



Higher mod turnover.
Higher mod accountability (as detailed earlier, and quoted in again bellow)
Hire a bunch more mods, it doesn't matter if they have an incredibly high post count, where they are from, or even to a point how long they've been on, all that matters is from their post history, you think they appear to be relatively responsible. Mods should not have the permission level to completely wreck the place even a little bit anyway.
If they turn out to be not suitable for any reason at any time ie. don't appear to be doing anything in any of the mod logs/mod action forums or that from those logs/user feedback are abusing their privelages in any way they just go back to being regular user.
Try to aim to having at least 2 mods online at any given time through cross timezone hiring, and 2 or 3 per 500 active users.
Mods should not be compelled in any way to post any more than any normal user, ie, post only when they feel they have something they actually want to post about,

them being available on the board to do the job at hand is what matters, the exception of course being they are expected to post when moderation action is required.





By higher turnover I do not in any way mean you should 'fire' current mods if they are doing what is expected of them, or that you should go on a massive recruitment drive constantly, just that when mod numbers aren't thought to be high enough, or it's thought the current mods are out of touch with the current community, it's an efficient fair way for taking action quickly & arguing less over it.



Higher turnover means you can quickly filter excellency/hard working/efficient/present/liked mods from a diverse cross section and build up an efficient team that can change ea silly however the community may change.

This should take a considerable amount of stress off choosing mods as you are expecting, and should let it be known, that as much as 80% of hires will likely be pruned, no-one should take offence at this.

Anyone that considers being a mod a right, or a status symbol, should probably not be a mod in the first place.



It's like stewards at a big festival, you want people who are keen to help manage the community, not help themselves or their own ego's.



On that note I commend flash fire for offering to step down, that's not to say I think she should, I have no idea whatsoever why she's offered to, but to me that shows the right mindset for a mod.



It's expected that some will not be technically competent and may take a while to learn whatever modding system is in place, but they may be more in touch with the some of the users, a diverse cross section of mods is important, ultimate moderation to the point of not doing anything but efficiently reorganising post locations on the one hand, the ultimate banhammer on the other.



Being a mod is not something that's meant to aggrandise an individual user, it's simply meant to help keep the community safe from spam, trolls, and extreme flaming, and keep posts & threads in the right forums.



 Written by :FireTom

it would be unwise to have the mods elected by the audience.

Time consuming yes, unwise, no. It works a bit quicker for admins to quickly chose a few, and then see if the populace vote them out afterwards.



The admins rule is law, ultimately they set the rules but any site will be made or broken by those rules if they do not adequately take into account the will of the people.

The mods however are there to assist in enforcing those rules and guiding the community, and should absolutely be representative of the people. Chaos can not ensue as they do not have the power of an admin, and they are monitored by admins and other mods alike.



 Written by :Yakumo

a well run system has total mod accountability to other mods and admins. Common systems include many or all of the following, either out of the box or by highly popular plugins :



* Any moderator action is tracked by the system and viewable by all other mods, if any mod is abusing their powers it should come to light and the admins should remove moderator status.

* Mods can soft delete/or move to hidden archives.

* Only supermods/admins can physically delete things, not mods.



* A report posts gets generated in a hidden forum when 'report this' is hit by a user, action taken is then done as a manual reply by the mod and thread locked, lets all mods online chip in on tricky decisions easily and rapidly.

* Mod stealth editing of a post massively discouraged or filling in the 'edit reason' simply forced as a required action.





Implement as much of the above as is possible that isn't already in place, and use it to implement mod turnover.



Yes I'm an opinionated b***er on this from experience, sorry smile



Edit: forgot to mention policy, putting it here so it's all in one post -

Any forum rules are prominently displayed, some are instantly enforcable (advertising, spam) some require moderation flaming/varying levels of trolling.

Any change in general policy should be added to the rules immediately for users to see.



Temp bans should be an option on the system to cool heads, perm bans for worst offenders/spambots obviously.



'temp ban' / 'banned' user titles are a must imo, and blanking avatars on a perm banned user. This isn't my or Spanners idea, it's simply common practice and the default out of the box on some systems.



Deleting everything a user ever said if perm banned is ridiculous except when their entire intent was to troll the forum, or advertise.

(Though contrary to an earlier suggestion "Delete * from postTable where userid=X" is not hard to do, but I'd be rather surprised if the forum doesn't already have admin options for purging a user completely. Some, like vbulletin (one of the most popular for very heavy use forums) have a 'delete user/all posts as spam' options for mods.



Offtopic a little but if anyone's interested in forum software statistics globally check out https://www.big-boards.com
EDITED_BY: Yakumo (1210349482)

Blinded by Hyperlights, please donate generously grin


MikeGinnyGOLD Member
HOP Mad Doctor
13,925 posts
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA


Posted:
Ok. Stop. EVERYONE STOP.

Leaving this thread aside, would someone please post an example of a time when Pele or any other mod has behaved in a manner so biased as to be completely reprehensible?

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura


DurbsBRONZE Member
Classically British
5,689 posts
Location: Epsom, Surrey, England


Posted:
This one time at bandcamp...


(heh heh)

Burner of Toast
Spinner of poi
Slacker of enormous magnitude


YakumoSILVER Member
veteran
1,237 posts
Location: Oxfordshire, United Kingdom


Posted:
I just finished posting my edit above, so saw your post doc, and I've got no idea why your bringing Pele back into this, we're discussing efficient forum management in a way I hope can be constructive and not derailed.

Blinded by Hyperlights, please donate generously grin


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