Link to rules?

[Pi Mu Rho]

The mods have already scared off a large amount of decent people from the community

Name seven.

 

[Maxi]

Dont twist my words Maxi

I quoted a part of your post and commented on your post after that, how can that be twisting your words? I thought that that ment that you changed someone elses words to fit your oppinion.

 

[Varg|Hund]

How many people does it take to say "this has been posted before - you can find the link here"? About 30, apparently.

I wont argue with that sir, you are quite right.

I think all the recent issues are a result of the lack of news, and the waiting.
Remember how it was last year, when everyone was buzzing with excitement about HL2? And then, with delay after delay, people got more cynical, more agiated.
Of course, this is not what makes old, decent members dissapear. No. But I think it's a factor in how everyone here behaves and reacts.
I know that you mods have a great deal of work to do, especially now with all the newbies coming in, and all the Doom3 hype. I wouldn't survive a day

But still. This is a 14 000 people community. 14 000 gamers. You moderators, you staff, are represantives (me cant spell ) of this site, and a large portion of HL2 fans. Act as such. You are supposed to be rolemodels for the others, people to look up to. You serve the community.
Badger, Farrow, simmo, qckbeam and Majestic are doing great. Coping well with everything. No snide remarks. No 'witty' comments when closing threads.
Always nice and polite.
Kudos to them!
Anyways...I was going to make a point here..hmm...yes...oh right! more moderators like the abovementioned are just what we need to repair some of the damage that this community has suffered. Yup.

 

[Sui]

IMO, if your going to do a job, you might as well put as much effort into it as possible. I appriciate how moderating can be hard, but i can also see how impossibly easy it is to just make a habit of doing all the "little" things, and maybe not complaining when it gets hard?

I mean, being a high school student, i dont do much work... but when i do, i do pages and pages, and make it as excellent as i can. Then it annoys me when i see people at school, who are actually really amazing at the subject, just saying that they "havent had the time", or that they "didnt understand the work". its not bloody hard to do an essay, we have about 50 hours (where we're not sleeping) a week after school, thats plent of time to do an essay....

so surely if moderators have the skills and devotion to the job that is needed, it wouldnt take a little less effort to keep a smile on your face and put that little bit more effort in. Its not hard to add all the little things to your moderating, like quoting the rules. And even Abom stated that munro is pressing for more Mods to do this, so why dont you just do it? in all this time you have spent complaining about our "ignorance" and how its "obvious" why the thread was closed, you could have allready closed a thread like this about 3,000 times. The small things dont take much to do, yet they make a huge impact when you look at the bigger picture.

going off topic , seeing as moderators spend so much time talking to forumtes, checking posts, replying to assholes, sharing knowlege with n00bs and other tasks, i can see how the moderators could get pissed off with all the things they have to do. but at the same time, i have been seeing strangely offensive responses from moderators lately, and there has been a rising amount of uproar tawards certain moderators from the ever growing (or shrinking, at this rate) community. Now i dont know whether this is stress or pressure,But it seems that moderators are getting incresingly annoyed / annoying. whether this is just a phase, or whether the forum is falling apart, i dont know. But we all know who is getting blamed, whether it is actually there fault or not...

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

I think people need to bear in mind that this is a fansite, not a giant corporate entity.

We're never going to please all the people, all the time - it's not possible. Regardless, our userbase is growing. If the moderation was forcing people away in their droves, then it would be the opposite.

 

[Sui]

I dont think moderators are pushing people away, i just think people are getting annoyed with the continuous forum. When i first joined i was all happy and it was fun, but while i am more of an experienced forumite, i can feel the boredom growing on the site.

I think epople are leaving because theyve been in the forum too long, and theyre getting increasingly anxious. As people get to the stage where they are a respected member, maybe they start tto question the moderators? i dont know, and i dont know where the HELL this post is going, so ill just end it here before i make my fingers bleed from typing quicker than i can think, about a serois subject BADGER BADGER MUUUUSHROOM



*edit* why does everyone stop posting when i open my mouth?
;(

*edit2* SAY SOMETHING

 

[CrazyHarij]

A professional forum needs professional moderators, not much else there is to say about this subject.

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

Good job we're all consumate professionals then.

 

[CrazyHarij]

Thanks for reopening, whoever did it.

I honestly saw no real reason for closing it, Pi, except for you to get the last word. :|

 

[Maxi]

I think people need to bear in mind that this is a fansite, not a giant corporate entity.

We're never going to please all the people, all the time - it's not possible. Regardless, our userbase is growing. If the moderation was forcing people away in their droves, then it would be the opposite.

The userbase might be growing but the quality of the forums surely isn't. Before I left people were much more friendly then when I came back.

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

and that's down to the moderators is it?

Maxi:

not much else there is to say about this subject.

 

[Axyon]

The userbase might be growing but the quality of the forums surely isn't. Before I left people were much more friendly then when I came back.

That's what happens with every single forum on the internet. It's a basic formula - as the amount of people on the forum rises, it gets less friendly. There's a higher concentration of idiots, newbs etc. Nothing we can do to stop it.

 

[Maxi]

and that's down to the moderators is it?

Well, when I came back I thought it was wierd that some moderators were hostile, so yes I think that some of the moderators have contributed to the unfriendly atmosphere.

EDIT2: Closing a thread because you think that there's nothing more to say on the subject isn't a valid reason for closing a thread in my oppinion.


EDIT:

That's what happens with every single forum on the internet. It's a basic formula - as the amount of people on the forum rises, it gets less friendly. There's a higher concentration of idiots, newbs etc. Nothing we can do to stop it.

But you can be a little bit more friendly then what you have been in this thread, imo.

 

[Sui]

I agree, moderators have a lot of hot steam trapped in them at the moment. seems like somethings all got you on the ege of your seats, or we're all starting to get to you

chill out, youll live longer.

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

Well, when I came back I thought it was wierd that some moderators were hostile, so yes I think that some of the moderators have contributed to the unfriendly atmosphere.

That's avoiding the question. Are the moderators responsible? I don't see you railing at the users (old and new) to improve their behaviour.

 

[Axyon]

But you can be a little bit more friendly then what you have been in this thread, imo.

Excuse me for not liking being told what to do.

 

[Maxi]

That's avoiding the question. Are the moderators responsible? I don't see you railing at the users (old and new) to improve their behaviour.

I answered your question, so I don't think im avoiding the question. And no, I don't think the moderators are fully responsible, but your behavior does play a part. I've noticed that both old and semi-old members have been very unfriendly lately, flaming newbs when they are asking "old" questions, but just because someone else is behaving hostily doesn't give you the right to do so.

EDIT:

Excuse me for not liking being told what to do.

I just stated my opinion, hence the imo at the end. Everyone has a right to an opinion, right?

 

[CrazyHarij]

Excuse me for not liking being told what to do.

Honestly, I thought you knew you had a certain grade of responsibility as a moderator.

 

[Axyon]

Honestly, I thought you knew you had a certain grade of responsibility as a moderator.

Of course I do, but I don't have to like every suggestion that everyone makes about my work, do I? We freely allow the community's thoughts on how to run certain things more efficiently, but I'm not required to think they're all good ideas, am I?

 

[Sui]

Abom, this thread is all about bettering the forum, and making it a more enjoyable place for all of us. So for heavens sake, when someone offers advice, dont reject it and take it as an offence. Embrace it, and use the advice...

if the forumites think mods tshould lighten up a bit, doesnt that mean that the moderators should lighten up a bit? i mean, its as much OUR froum as it is YOURS, whats the point in a forum with no members? if the moderators are being snide and spoiling the forum for members, then its a problem that should be fixed, not rejected.

and on a different note, can you moderators stop using different avatars every 5 minutes? im keeping it hard to keep my avatar up to date lol

 

[CrazyHarij]

Of course I do, but I don't have to like every suggestion that everyone makes about my work, do I? We freely allow the community's thoughts on how to run certain things more efficiently, but I'm not required to think they're all good ideas, am I?

Well, being a bit friendly is not really considered being that much of a complicated suggestion.

 

[Axyon]

Well, being a bit friendly is not really considered being that much of a complicated suggestion.

I'd like to consider myself as friendly on other parts of the forum. This thread just irked me (and other staff), okay?

 

[Sui]

sorry if im wrong, but i dont really think of you as freindly abom. At least on the forum, anyway. But thats half your charm

 

[Munro]

Where to start...

In response to the first post by Varg|Hund, yes moderators should be closing threads posting a valid reason for its closure. It’s not required to post a link to the forum rules yet but moderators should be posting the reason why the thread is closed, a warning if necessary and a quote from the forum rules backing up the moderator’s action.

Now to the moderators, you know this and you should be making sure that it’s being done, there is no excuse. It might be a little hard work but no one should expect this job to be easy. If you want to be a community leader here you need to work for it. Your job here is to keep the community together and helping it to remain attractive to newcomers. Obviously some of you moderators ranting and raving about various community members aren’t doing this.

Everyone who has signed up to these forums has read and agreed to our forum rules. Sometimes they might need reminding of them should they break them. That is why you explain your actions and why a thread is closed, to let them know what they’re doing wrong so they don’t make that same mistake in the future.

We’re in a very bad time right now. It’s very hard to keep a community together when the thing we’re all waiting for is taking bloody ages to appear. This combined with the lack of information and media, the hundreds of false rumours popping up everywhere and thousands of impatient people don’t make entertaining reading.

A few moderators who know who they are really aren’t helping the situation right now by being negative about everything. I really don’t want to hear you whining on the forums, just keep quiet or take it someplace else. We’re certainly not causing everyone to leave the forums but actions like yours can only agitate the problem. Don’t forget you are here to serve the community. We are all friends here so can we please act like we are?

Just follow the rules, cheer up a bit and be happy!

 

[Murray_H]

:rolling:

I've got no authority to say any of this really, so i don't expect anyone to change their habitats from it. Just adding my thoughts, read it if you want, but i won't cry if you don't.

Maybe I'm just stupid but I have never had an issue with how the moderators do their 'job' (which they obviously get a handsome salary for and lots of fringe benefits) and the "witty" comments they make have absolutely no impact on my life so I don't see a raise in my blood pressure from them.

The rules, although i haven't read them myself, are hardly going to be like 'you must post about half-life 2 only while washing your hands with tomato sauce, or the post in question will be deleted/any threads closed'

People just need common sense, if you post about shite, repeat stuff, start to cross the lines of decency, expect the mods to do their 'job' (did i mention the fringe benefits?) and delete/edit/close anything that doesn't fit in. If you can't work out what is right and wrong, don't post here. All 'newbs' have to do is lurk for a day or two, see what the standards are here, then use their noggin for all of two seconds.

If a moderator does make a mistake in your eyes, PM them, don't drag shite out into the open if it doesn't need to be. I could understand if there was no contact between the moderators and the users but there are plenty to PM about things, an IRC channel and email. You are more than likely to get a response and an explanation of why things happen. If you still can't understand why something happened, the end point is tough shit. If you don't like it, move on. If it really does affect your life so much that you can't play a game of spam in the off topic forums, go and do it in another forum. It's the way life is, you are always playing by someone elses rules and you have to realise that it's put up and shut up or expect to get stressed out by something insignificant.

 

[CyberSh33p]

sorry if im wrong, but i dont really think of you as freindly abom. At least on the forum, anyway. But thats half your charm

I think its the avatar, frankly :|

 

[ComradeBadger]

Threads like this make me cry ;(

It's very nice of you to mention me in the nice attitude bunch I appriciate that a great deal.

Now, I don't know about anyone else, but I come onto this forum to have some fun, and moderating is part of that, I enjoy keeping this community clean of spam etc and I must say that comments like this make me feel a little hurt.. I try my best to make this a fun place for all.. which is what it should be, and I don't really like hearing cries of 'dictatorship' 'facism' and 'detioration of moderating standards' ... we give up our time to help run this place and that's becuase we like being here.. so please, don't try and attack us, it's no fun for anyone.

This all said, I will post a quote from the rules when closing threads.

 

[Varg|Hund]

Well, I'd like to thank everyone for participating in irc. Hopefully it helped a bit, and if not it was still kinda nice. Thank you

 

[Dedalus]

i can't remember how it was like when i signed up, but i don't really remember actually reading any rules. i think i might've just scanned over something and clicked 'agree'. i made an effort to look for a forum rules thread and found one eventually.

so in regards to the rules, would it be an idea to send a watered down version of the rules along with your confirmation email? something in bullet point style with some of the main issues addressed. maybe a little walkthrough on how to use the search function? it's ok for us to complain about the boatload of noobs coming in everyday, but you're damn stupid if you're gonna sit there and do nothing to stop them being noobs. educate them.

anyway, i've got no issues with this site's style of moderation. it's probably a necessary evil, and those who step out of line should realise they'll get burned for it. simple as.

regardless, i don't like threads like this. i guess it started off with good intentions but kind of degraded. if you lot want this community to stay together, then you need to stop putting cracks in the machine.

as for quoting rules when closing threads, seems ok. but it might mean a rewrite of the rules, possibly change the format. but again it ties in to my first point, and the point made earlier, make the rules available and accessible. which means eliminating lawyer-speak and fairly complicated language to make it easier for younger and less cranially able members.

 

[Brian Damage]

Y'know, I've discovered something recently.

A fence is a really uncomfortable thing to sit on...

 

[PvtRyan]

Can't we just all get along? ;(

I don't see what's wrong with moderating here, people get banned for the right reasons, threads get closed for the right reasons.
As for moderators being hostile sometimes, well they're people too, who can vent their opinions like any other member, it's not like they're thread-locking robots who can stay objective and neutral all the time.

 

[Chris D]

Hopefully you've all taken note of what Munro has said and you're happy with that. I know the staff as a whole are happy with what's been said.

What I'd add in addition though is if you do have a problem with our decision then please do PM or e-mail us politely asking why. After that we will politely explain our reasons for the action that has been taken. Although not every single one of our actions is covered by the forum rules, in our experience we know what action needs to be taken when, and why. Every moderating action we make can be explained.

If you do need to contact us to query our actions then please do so politely and we shall respond. Don't sit there letting it build up and up and up until all of a sudden we've got threads like this cropping up.

I'm confident that this thread would have been completely unnecessary if you guys had approached us already for each individual action you've been unhappy with. Let's face it, if we don't know there's a problem - we can't rectify it.