Airbag/How Am I Driving?

[Guest Vitamin X]

I should have mentioned I was kidding about expecting that to happen. I'm just making an example of the possible situations that may arise. I trust the mods including VX to be above that.

Thanks, bud. I was just nipping that concern in the bud just in case you weren't kidding, or if anyone else might have had that same concern.

 

And I was out with the whole Taiga Star incident, but I don't agree with what happened earlier, and in regards to what Czech said, I don't want any messing with Matt Young's account at all (his stay in the Gulag was before I was made a mod, FWIW) since he's harmless and not a bad guy, and frequently gets baited into flamewars, where he then proceeds to look stupid, presumably because he seems like a friendly person and not accustomed to the bitchfests he gets into.

 

Anyways, this thread's gone way off topic. Let's keep our forum bitching somewhere else, this is just a thread for a general survey of how we're doing, which I'm not even sure is worth pinning up as long as it has been.

[The Man in Blak 0]

1. What have we done that you like?

 

I don't go in there, so this is nothing but perception, but I think the increased moderator contributions in the WWE folder is a step in the right direction. Moderators can really help out the board in three ways; creating discussion, controlling discussion, and adding to discussion where needed. In the past, I think there was a very strong emphasis on the control aspect of that value - the fact that the new guys were initially considered the "janitorial staff" speaks to that, in my opinion - but you can improve discussion in ways that don't involve yelling at people all of the time. The new staff appears to be more balanced in that regard.

 

Even though I'll never use it, the name change capability is a nice tip of the cap to the community.

 

The new stance on PBPs and banning in general (i.e. The Gulag) is very welcome.

 

2. What have we done that you wish we hadn't?

 

The Taigastar incident wasn't anybody's finest moment here, but I think it's commendable that the administration actually apologized. I can't say I would have expected an apology from Mole or Dames there, frankly.

 

It's been winding down over the last few days, but there still seems to be some confusion around the changes and, to point out a specific example, the ying-yanging of moderator status among certain folks isn't helping matters. A formal revision of the board rules and perhaps even a formal re-declaration of the new folks in charge (and what, exactly, their new responsibilities entail) could be very helpful in resolving some of the confusion here.

 

3. Is there anything you'd like us to do?

 

I've mentioned this elsewhere, but I think it would be very beneficial to all parties involved if you offered some clear guidelines surrounding the new approach towards banning/suspending, specifically the Gulag. As previously mentioned, a rewrite of the forum rules could go a long way here. Good ideas aren't enough by themselves; you need to keep people informed and aware for them to be able to buy in.

 

4. Would you invite people here to expand the community?

 

Not for the first few months, no; there's still a lot of administrative shakeout yet to be done, even beyond all of the "controversies" that have come up, and that kind of environment doesn't lend itself well to new membership. Down the line, though, I think the community could certainly be in the position to re-open the doors, so to speak.

 

5. Are you optimistic that we're not going to be fucking terrible at this?

 

Cautious optimism. Many of the new people in charge have added a lot of value to discussions in the past, but I'm not sure that necessarily translates into Tremendous Leadership Potential; Kobayashi can eat a hot dog better than almost anybody else on the planet, but that doesn't mean I want him cooking hot dogs for me when dinner time comes around.

 

If you can find the right way to balance the "fun" contributions that you've made in the past with new responsibilities, then I think the community may actually have a bright future ahead of it. There is a renewed interest in actually improving stuff, which is always a plus. And, having "worked" with Danny and Josh in the past, I can say that you have people that actually know what they're doing when it comes to board stuff.

 

But, given that I've previously ran three communities into the ground, I think I'm fully qualified in saying that dealing with the loud minority on issues can get tiresome and, if you don't compartmentalize the "fun" part with the "administrative" part appropriately, it will take the fun out of everything for you. It can be very easy to let this completely thankless job feel like an obligation, like you have to post topics or respond to feedback, etc.

 

And you've got to be careful when it comes to joking around with administrative changes too. Making everybody into a "moderator" was a cute little meta-contextual smirk, but I think you've already seen what can happen if people don't get the joke. Cheech's comment from earlier (which was also followed by an apology - well done) falls under this category as well.

 

The major hurdle that the administration needs to clear, at this point, seems to be a perception of clique-driven bias. I'm not sure that the concerns around this are entirely fair - do you really expect the staff not to be friends and/or communicate with each other? - but it is out there. If you guys can balance responsibility with that quirky meta-contextual bullshit that we all know and love, I think you can get past that and start taking the community in The Right Direction.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

I've said it before, but I'm always thoroughly impressed with the contributions of the Man in Blak. Thanks for your feedback.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

Conversely, I haven't really paid much attention to any of these changes, but the Sports and Music folders seem to be fine. Ergo, I am fine. Good work.

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

I've said it before, but I'm always thoroughly impressed with the contributions of the Man in Blak. Thanks for your feedback.

Agreed.

[Black Lushus 0]

The Man in Blak, your NEW mod, ladies and gentlemen!

[Ted the Poster 0]

More like The Man in Blu, amirite.

[USC Wuz Robbed! 0]

Lushus you said there was too many mods. Why advocate adding another? I'd be okay with MiB being a mod if he was replacing someone already on the staff though.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

Lushus you said there was too many mods. Why advocate adding another? I'd be okay with MiB being a mod if he was replacing someone already on the staff though.

 

I think BL was trying to make a witty joke that anyone the staff likes gets promoted to mod.

[Guest Danny Dubya v 2.0]

If I thought there was a chance he'd actually accept, I'd have offered him a spot before I did anyone else. He's one smart fellow and would be a huge help to us, but also very busy with his family and work... or last I heard from him, anyway.

[DrVenkman PhD 0]

You cads and your "Nuprin" references...

[Black Lushus 0]

I really was just messing around, fellas.

[Dandy 0]

I really was just messing around with fellas.

 

[Black Lushus 0]

[Failed Bridge 0]

Lushus you said there was too many mods. Why advocate adding another? I'd be okay with MiB being a mod if he was replacing someone already on the staff though.

 

I think BL was trying to make a witty joke that anyone the staff likes gets promoted to mod.

if that were true then Slayer and myself would be mods. They aren't handing the reigns over to everybody even if it does appear that way. They're just making their own staff and since they paid for the place they have the right to do that.

[Black Lushus 0]

yes Fridge, we KNOW!

[Failed Bridge 0]

you keep up with the attitude there BL and I'm never taking you out to Applebees for a drink and a sizzler combo.

[Black Lushus 0]

Don't let me forget, I have a kid's eat free card to Applebees...fuckin kids are expensive little bastards!

[Failed Bridge 0]

they don't really have much for little kids there besides chicken fingers and mac & cheese

[bob_barron 0]

We have over 5100 registered users. That's neighborhood of 500 users per moderator!

 

 

We have 683 registered members. Well VX's member purging certainly changed that.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

Bob, the speed and depth of your ombudsmanry amazes me.

[bob_barron 0]

Thank you. I don't know if ombudsmanry is a word, but it should be

[Viper13 0]

I'm a lurker to say the least. I registered to the board years ago when I was reading bps' TNA columns and I've kept visiting on and off since. I did start to post a bit in the last few months due to some basic changes in the wrestling boards (specifically the TNA one and the decrease in hostility and "why would anyone care about talking about this company?" sort of feel that seems like has come). I appear to have been deleted in the last day as part of the "mass purging" but I re-registered without incident so for now it appears to have been a minor inconvenience.

 

So I don't know how much weight my opinions will have but since the new owners have expressed a desire for increased membership and posting I guess it doesn't hurt to post.

 

1. What have we done that you like?

I think that there has been a clear change at least in feel to the wrestling forums. Spreading out the conversation has made things easier to follow than those large "Don't Deserve a Thread" threads did where it would strike me as pointless to go back and try and follow days of topics mixed around if I didn't read the board daily. Some of the topics being started feel a bit in-organic to me and aren't my style, but I understand why they're being done. If the goal is to increase conversation and its not happening on its own than trying to jump start things makes senses, and if people are responding than it should continue.

 

As I said I think the TNA board has changed tones drastically and become a bit more inviting. I started following this board because it was really the only intelligent community that I found where following TNA wasn't treated as a sign of mental retardation (surely helped by the columns and recaps written by the likes of Dames, bps, and Corey Lazuras that I followed). But in the last couple of years this community has seemed to become one of the worst in terms of that opinion. Obviously much of the criticism was warranted and fair but the board basically seemed uninviting to someone who enjoyed TNA and who basically wanted them to succeed. I have started writing more than a few posts over the years only to abandon them because I decided it wasn't worth being told I was an idiot for liking an episode Impact or a PPV, and being jumped on rather than debated. And it seems like many of the actual fans had been driven from the forum for the same reason and all that was left was a pack of critics who made posting uninviting. The moderator seemingly being VERY aggressively anti-TNA and marking every TNA thread with a nasty comment struck me as a clear warning sign, although to be completely fair I engaged in a debate with HTQ sometime ago and he not only was reasonable in it but he took the time to PM me and encourage me to keep posting. Well before these changes and bps' efforts this was the first reason I tried to post a bit more in that forum as I came to believe that I was not as unwelcome as it seemed. But I have no doubt that the fact that the moderator is now someone I know to be a long time fan of the company who basically wants positive or constructive discussion (even if he's happy lodging fair criticism) increases my comfort in posting.

 

The new moderators and administrators also appear to at least be open to discussion and change, which is always a good thing. I am not a part of this community and I only know so much of the drama and relationships from observing this board and others, so I have no idea if these sentiments are sincere. But as an outsider who has no reason to doubt their sincerity it seems like a positive.

 

The basic idea of giving previously banned posters a clean slate seems like a very open and good one, even if there has been some controversy and criticism lobbied to it.

 

2. What have we done that you wish we hadn't?

Given my account deletion that's probably the most obvious. I don't know what the nature of the "mass purging" was but I can account for the impression I've gotten. It LOOKS like there was miscommunication from the moderators and that one moderator perhaps became overzealous and did the action himself, seemingly deleting quite a few accounts that he didn't intend to and possibly causing other problems. Its an understandable mistake and one I've made myself, but it does come off as a bit unorganized. And while criticism have been made by some that there are too many cooks in the kitchen and that some are unqualified, an action like that seems to support that. And I'm not saying that the moderator or moderators who did this are overzealous, unqualified, or any of those things. Merely saying that with the limited information I have and conversation I've seen its easy to believe some of the things said.

 

I also think that the basic idea of a spontaneous mass purging was a bit harsh. Deleting inactive accounts makes a lot of sense, but it seems like a mass PM or email announcing you'd do it in a few days or a week would have made more sense. This would have allowed posters who do actively lurk or have been meaning to start posting to at least get one in so that their account remained active. I for one have a steadfast rule when joining a large board that I should lurk for some time before I wade into conversation, so that I don't fall into too many traps or upset too many social norms. So its not uncommon for me to be registered on a board and not posting for awhile as I try and get comfortable with the environment. But an action such as this would have left my account deleted and made me feel quite unwelcome. Especially reading some of the things said and not said in its wake.

 

I've seen the criticisms made about the moderators, their number, and their relationships. And the arguments had over banned posters and past members. As I said, I'm not in the community and I don't know where the truth lies. I do think that if the moderators are all largely friends who are "members of a clique" or may have had issues with other "cliques" in the past it complicates things. A few more clearly unrelated moderators might help to alleviate that concern and of course people on the other side of arguments would help. But at the same time the sides of this "battle" seem to be very polarized and the moderators need to at least have some level of respect for their "peers" and be able to work together. But none of this truly affects me in much of any way as I am on the outside looking in.

 

The Gulag is an idea that as a bit of a jerk I think is very interesting, but seems more trouble than its worth. The biggest problem that has seemed to plague the new administrators is the idea of a clique of friends who like to pick on people outside their clique. True or not, the Gulag seems to support it unless you have some sort of clear and established set of rules for ending up there. Personally I've been one of the guys trying to have good humored fun with things like that and finding I was just upsetting people who didn't trust me or share my sense of humor and I've been one of the victims of what could have been good humored pranking but which looked like an unwelcoming clique "picking on me."

 

3. Is there anything you'd like us to do?

Presuming the things said in public have been sincere I would think the board is at least headed in a direction led by good intentions. Appeasing some of the more vocal critics would add confidence to someone like me (especially when some of their criticisms seem valid) but at the same time many of those critics seem unreasonable and far too rude or disruptive to work with. So I certainly wouldn't presume to tell people how to handle their affairs that I know little about, and I wouldn't take sides.

 

4. Would you invite people here to expand the community?

Truth be told and with no disrespect intended this is a very uninviting community in my opinion. While there does appear to be an effort to change that there seems to remain a strong core of hunters ready to pounce upon any new prey. And I personally am a member of a board or two that have gone through similar personalities so I'm not really judging that. But just as I've told friends and posters that joining one of my most loved boards might not be a good idea because he will be attacked and most likely ridiculed and will be clueless as to many of the injokes... I'd probably do the same here for at least the moment. But the wrestling forums appear to be undergoing a positive change and appear to be trying some interesting and unique ideas, and I have long lurked in the sports and entertainment forums. So I can certainly see recommending those for particular parties.

 

5. Are you optimistic that we're not going to be fucking terrible at this?

You certainly seem open to opinions and criticism and that's always a good thing. Whether you take it to heart and use it to affect change is another thing that only time will tell. But I can only presume to give you the benefit of the doubt and you can only hope that your actions bear out your words.

 

 

[MrRant 0]

The airbag has deployed.

[USC Wuz Robbed! 0]

What the fuck is this?

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Here's the deal guys. With the board reset, anyone who was unbanned, registered or had a name changed in the last several weeks was undone. PM or IM one of the staff members and we'll set things back if there's a problem.

[LuckyLopez 0]

That's my post up above, for the record. I was deleted this morning in the mass purging and I made that and a few other posts under a new account. Apparently when they reset things the new account got deleted but the posts remained. Which gave me quite a headache for awhile because I also happened to have changed my password and email since whenever the backup was made. And apparently left phantom posts from accounts that never technically existed.

 

Or at least they're listed as no name, no member group, and no post count as best as I can tell.

[USC Wuz Robbed! 0]

My name defaulted and it refuses changes from my control panel and even a moderator's attempt to change it.

[Matt Young 0]

Was VX removed as a mod as a result of his actions, or did his resetting of things put the list of mods back to what it was before?

 

EDIT: Holy fucking avatar compression. And I lost 400 posts?

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Was VX removed as a mod as a result of his actions, or did his resetting of things put the list of mods back to what it was before?

 

EDIT: Holy fucking avatar compression. And I lost 400 posts?

The latter.