The Wrong Way?

[Insano]

Not too long ago there was a mass ban of several regulars, which probably all deserved it, I don't know the details of all the bans.

But what frightens me the most is that since then, the forum has gone the wrong way. There keep on coming threads with endless pages in which people show no respect, call other people names, and so forth.

There are even some members that stay at this forum just to start another fight in a great thread and totally ruin it. It seems that's their only way to have fun. Some of the smart people on this forum, who should know better, let themselves get dragged into it. Just step back for a moment, and look at what you're doing.

I truly despise what has become of this forum that once was the best I'd ever seen.

I don't really care if this thread gets closed, I just wanted to give this message to everybody: please behave.

And I know I can expect the default replies like "you do know there's a world outside this forum", "get a life, lol" and "0mg n00b $toP wh1n1nG".

I just hope that this situation won't continue like this

 

[Solaris]

I wonder what would happen if everyone who were banned was were unbanned all at once.

And I agree Insano.

 

[Cormeh]

There's always been a fair bit of flaming and trolling, I for one haven't noticed an increase or decrease, but amongst all of that there is still a lot of decent content.

A lot of people, since the bannings you mentioned, have piped up mentioning their disdain for HL2.net and have left, but a forum is really what you try and make it for yourself.

 

[Sulkdodds]

I disagree with mass permanent bannings.

Spamming is not necessarily malicious; I don't see why the bans of many of them are permanent. OCyberManO was deleting all his pron. Etc etc.

However...I still think there's a certain element of misguided nostalgia here. We're still better than the majority of the intarweb, and there's still lots of <3 here. :E

 

[Insano]

However...I still think there's a certain element of misguided nostalgia here.

You can't deny that there's a lot of hate at this forum lately, and that has nothing to do with nostalgic feelings.

 

[ríomhaire]

A warning system would REALLY help (this reminds me of real politics now)

 

[Qonfused]

However...I still think there's a certain element of misguided nostalgia here. We're still better than the majority of the intarweb, and there's still lots of <3 here. :E

<3

 

[Ikerous]

Sulks is right, this is still the best forum I can find

What's weird now is that most of the threads stay on topic rather than going off on tagents
The tangents were always a lot more fun...

 

[Crispy]

I think what differs most on these forums compared to other forums in terms of moderating policy is that when posts overstep the mark they are simply wiped underneath the carpet, instead of remaining with the comments deleted. In this way rules are not reinforced, simply enforced, and bystanders are none the wiser to what is acceptible and what is unacceptible behaviour. In instances like this, the line is never seen to be crossed because it ceases to exist.

For instance, a lot of people on the forums will know about the mass permabans, but not what exactly they did to get banned. The closest answer I've seen on the forums to this is that it was a case of a LOT of spam, but there is still no official word on this. Thus the average member doesn't really know why they were banned and will not have had an advanced warning about this sort of behaviour. If there were more transparency between the crime and the punishment I think members would think twice before acting in an unsociable manner, which is unacceptible whether you're on the internet or not -you're still dealing with real people. If you left the posts with the offending material deleted and a short admin comment instead you might see an improvement in the general conduct of HL2.net members on the whole as more people begin to understand what will get their comments removed and what is acceptible to post and, more importantly, what is definitely not.

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

Wrong.

Sometimes threads get closed, left intact. Other times they get deleted. It all depends on the content of the thread.

And there's never been a "mass permaban", ever.

 

[Pax]

I think what differs most on these forums compared to other forums in terms of moderating policy is that when posts overstep the mark they are simply wiped underneath the carpet, instead of remaining with the comments deleted. In this way rules are not reinforced, simply enforced, and bystanders are none the wiser to what is acceptible and what is unacceptible behaviour. In instances like this, the line is never seen to be crossed because it ceases to exist.

For instance, a lot of people on the forums will know about the mass permabans, but not what exactly they did to get banned. The closest answer I've seen on the forums to this is that it was a case of a LOT of spam, but there is still no official word on this. Thus the average member doesn't really know why they were banned and will not have had an advanced warning about this sort of behaviour. If there were more transparency between the crime and the punishment I think members would think twice before acting in an unsociable manner, which is unacceptible whether you're on the internet or not -you're still dealing with real people. If you left the posts with the offending material deleted and a short admin comment instead you might see an improvement in the general conduct of HL2.net members on the whole as more people begin to understand what will get their comments removed and what is acceptible to post and, more importantly, what is definitely not.

Stick to your PR.

It's annoying enough that you lecture people on that. And now you start lecturing people how to run their forums?

Sorry mate; but you are just going too far now.

And even if this 'claim' is related to your little ND propoganda posts getting mashed by the rightious; then it's pretty pathetic to cry over it.

- Pax

 

[Sprafa]

A warning system would REALLY help (this reminds me of real politics now)

blame munro. Heh. Too late ?


/me donces

 

[sabre0001]

It's sad really...Lately I have logged in and seen a mass of locked threads and stories of how more people got banned or left, etc.

 

[Ennui]

People are more belligerent these days, or rather the members still around are the more belligerent ones.

We've lost a lot of good members, and gained less than that, but it's not the end. You have to remember - everyone who has been banned was for a reason, mostly because they stopped caring and decided to be dicks about it instead of go out in a mature way.

Let's not be fatalist about it though - things will improve, if people start being a little more mature and easygoing.

 

[Crispy]

Wrong.

Sometimes threads get closed, left intact. Other times they get deleted. It all depends on the content of the thread.

And there's never been a "mass permaban", ever.

Oh, what now? I'm not allowed to have an opinion? My opinion on the matter is wrong?

Sorry if I was wrong on the permabans, but I got my information from what a member of the HL2.net staff said earlier in this thread.

I disagree with mass permanent bannings.

Spamming is not necessarily malicious; I don't see why the bans of many of them are permanent. OCyberManO was deleting all his pron. Etc etc.

Stick to your PR.

It's annoying enough that you lecture people on that. And now you start lecturing people how to run their forums?

Sorry mate; but you are just going too far now.

And even if this 'claim' is related to your little ND propoganda posts getting mashed by the rightious; then it's pretty pathetic to cry over it.

- Pax

OK. Just to recap. This forum's called "Site Feedback". And underneath the title is a description: "To cater for you, the community, we need your feedback and suggestions." When somebody else completely unrelated to ND decides to make a thread completely unrelated to ND where I post a comment that read within context is, you guessed it completely unrelated to ND...

...just why is it you feel that you have to bring ND into it?

On-Topic: Obviously the fact that two site members disagree on this proves that there has been a lack of transparency in how certain members have been dealt with, and what for.

 

[Asknoone]

Well, your a PR officer now Crispy. Like any good (Hah!) propaganda churning spokesperson you must now face the repercussions of anything you choose to say as it will, make no mistake, be ripped, torn, dissected and analyzed by the flesh hungry public you attempt to inject with blown-out-of-proportion details and hazy, misleading information.

Comes with the territory I'm afraid, and you are simply going to have to face the music.

Ultimately this boils down to one thing, or a few things, rather. No ND discussion here. No PR Evangelist tosh here. And certainly no flaming. Do I bleed in irony or is it a god-given gift?

As for on topic...well, I agree with mass bannings. If someones being a pillock - get rid of them. It's that simple. Spamming is bad. It's against the rules. Punishable by ban. Break the rules, spam, and be banned. What part don't you get?

 

[Sulkdodds]

I think I'll go and sit in a corner and rock back and forth now.

 

[Ennui]

I think I'll go and sit in a corner and rock back and forth now.

I will too. I said not to become fatalist, but if you people can't wise up and quit jumping all over each other EVERY TIME you post in the same thread, there might be reason to be.

 

[Ikerous]

The vast majority of the ppl that were banned in the last mass banning were banned because they WANTED to be banned. They were spamming so that they'd get banned. Theres nothing to be learned from this other than don't be a jackass. If you wanna leave a forum, don't spam, just gtfo.

 

[Vegeta897]

I will too. I said not to become fatalist, but if you people can't wise up and quit jumping all over each other EVERY TIME you post in the same thread, there might be reason to be.

I quote this for emphasis.

All Crispy did was offer an opinion in a thread that asked for opions, in a forum section that is meant for opinions, and 3 members attack him by comparing his opinion to a completely unrelated one in the past, with no real point other than to put him down.

Where's the ****in love.

I suspect this will be attacked to. Oh the bleeding irony.

 

[63]

I quote this for emphasis.

All Crispy did was offer an opinion in a thread that asked for opions, in a forum section that is meant for opinions, and 3 members attack him by comparing his opinion to a completely unrelated one in the past, with no real point other than to put him down.

Where's the ****in love.

I suspect this will be attacked to. Oh the bleeding irony.

Shutup! You like anime!

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

Oh, what now? I'm not allowed to have an opinion? My opinion on the matter is wrong?

No, I was pointing out that

I think what differs most on these forums compared to other forums in terms of moderating policy is that when posts overstep the mark they are simply wiped underneath the carpet, instead of remaining with the comments deleted. In this way rules are not reinforced, simply enforced, and bystanders are none the wiser to what is acceptible and what is unacceptible behaviour. In instances like this, the line is never seen to be crossed because it ceases to exist.

was wrong.

So climb down off that cross.

 

[Pi Mu Rho]

I quote this for emphasis.

All Crispy did was offer an opinion in a thread that asked for opions, in a forum section that is meant for opinions, and 3 members attack him by comparing his opinion to a completely unrelated one in the past, with no real point other than to put him down.

3 members?

 

[Septih]

Hmm, I've been on forums where all rule-breaking threads are simply locked (maybe have bad links edited out, but that's it) and others where the rule breaking threads/comments are just deleted, but i think i prefer the way it's done here better. Where it's a mix of simple locking and necessary censorship

If you lock every thread, people know what they will be punished for, but you also get attention whores who know that their actions will be seen even if they get banned.

If you delete every thread, people don't know how far they can get. Sure the rules are a good guideline, but people always end up seeing how far they can get. Best way to deal with this is warnings though.

 

[Danimal]

I think what differs most on these forums compared to other forums in terms of moderating policy is that when posts overstep the mark they are simply wiped underneath the carpet, instead of remaining with the comments deleted. In this way rules are not reinforced, simply enforced, and bystanders are none the wiser to what is acceptible and what is unacceptible behaviour. In instances like this, the line is never seen to be crossed because it ceases to exist.

For instance, a lot of people on the forums will know about the mass permabans, but not what exactly they did to get banned. The closest answer I've seen on the forums to this is that it was a case of a LOT of spam, but there is still no official word on this. Thus the average member doesn't really know why they were banned and will not have had an advanced warning about this sort of behaviour. If there were more transparency between the crime and the punishment I think members would think twice before acting in an unsociable manner, which is unacceptible whether you're on the internet or not -you're still dealing with real people. If you left the posts with the offending material deleted and a short admin comment instead you might see an improvement in the general conduct of HL2.net members on the whole as more people begin to understand what will get their comments removed and what is acceptible to post and, more importantly, what is definitely not.

Wrong. I always get asked why people are banned, why threads are closed etc. and I tell them.

And I doubt 3 or 4 permabans are "Mass".

http://www.halflife2.net/forums/showthread.php?t=106758

Is this what you meant by the short comment? Then agian, you could be refferring to a different forum than The Lounge (I don't see you post alot.)

 

[Crispy]

Wrong. I always get asked why people are banned, why threads are closed etc. and I tell them.

And I doubt 3 or 4 permabans are "Mass".

http://www.halflife2.net/forums/showthread.php?t=106758

Is this what you meant by the short comment? Then again, you could be refferring to a different forum than The Lounge (I don't see you post alot.)

No, you're right, I rarely ever post in The Lounge section of the forums.

 

[Sulkdodds]

Right, let's clear up a few things. Firstly, I do consider '3 or 4' permabans on the same night - all on well-entrenched members of the commuity - 'mass'. Perhaps that's just me. What I mean is that despite the fact that they all decided to be twats for a night, many people were left going 'why are people banned'? I still see it. People don't know. I would also argue that spamming the forums on the internet equivalent of a drunken pub-crawl night is not exactly an unforgivable crime in my opinion, but maybe that's just me again.

It seems to me it wouldn't be a bad idea to have the reason for bands actually displayed next to the 'banned' tag.

[ AVATAR ] Sulkdodds
[ AVATAR ] Banned (Reason - too much coffee)

I like how on the GMod forums you can click a link which will take you directly to the post that got the member in question banned.

In any case, this is all just my perception/opinion and it doesn't represent anybody elses. We're not the bloody Cabinet, are we?

Ultimately this boils down to one thing, or a few things, rather. No ND discussion here. No PR Evangelist tosh here. And certainly no flaming. Do I bleed in irony or is it a god-given gift?

Man, what the hell? Who exactly is bringing ND, PR and 'flaming' (if it can be given such an extreme label) into this thread at all? Oh yeah...Pax and you. Why on earth do you feel the need to start going on about propaganda and crowing smugly that now your arch-nemesis will have to 'face the repercussions' in this thread, in this forum, is beyond me. I don't mean to sound overly harsh here but would you mind not, as Ennui said, jumping at every chance to exercise your grudge? Cheers. <3

EDIT: I can't believe I forgot to say this:

HL2.NET GRUDGE!

Also, Crispy, Pi wasn't attacking you but merely arguing against your post.

 

[Solaris]

Sulkdodds I do agree, but I also see the moderators point of view.
If you look at the internet it's 99% crap.
This place is like a f****g internet relic, it's fantastic, it's run by smart, intresting people who do have the communities intrests at heart.

The Angry Lawyer incident, and the one before that where a few got banned as well was a difficult time to be a moderator I imagine. People who had been fantastic members of the community all decided to be pricks for a night. It's a real shame they did that. I don't blame the moderators for banning them, I blame them for making the moderators ban them. But it was their choice. The forum really took some majour blows in the last 2/3months, but hopefully we'll grow back, and new people will rise up to take the place of the fallen.

 

[15357]

I agree with whatever policy our generous and benevolent moderation team has for us. Just shut up, keep your head down, duck and cover, and you'll be just fine.


There is no conspiracy. These are my own words.

 

[Sulkdodds]

Har, har, har.

Solaris - one thing is that many of the members banned were acting up because they didn't want to be a part of this community any more. While that's their own decision, there was a reason for it: namely that they percieved it as less of a community than when they had first joined, or than in some imaginary golden age.

 

[Asknoone]

Man, what the hell? Who exactly is bringing ND, PR and 'flaming' (if it can be given such an extreme label) into this thread at all? Oh yeah...Pax and you. Why on earth do you feel the need to start going on about propaganda and crowing smugly that now your arch-nemesis will have to 'face the repercussions' in this thread, in this forum, is beyond me. I don't mean to sound overly harsh here but would you mind not, as Ennui said, jumping at every chance to exercise your grudge? Cheers. <3
.

Perhaps you missed the bit at the end - I was quite clearly aware of exactly what I was saying. So thanks for pointing that out, but I think I made it crystal clear that I was contradicting myself.

My post? An attack? That amused me. Because quite clearly the only thing that can be taken seriously in my post is the latter bit. I mean, if you took the first bit seriously...well...

 

[UltimaApocalypse]

I quote this for emphasis.

All Crispy did was offer an opinion in a thread that asked for opions, in a forum section that is meant for opinions, and 3 members attack him by comparing his opinion to a completely unrelated one in the past, with no real point other than to put him down.

Where's the ****in love.
I suspect this will be attacked to. Oh the bleeding irony.

 

[Sulkdodds]

Perhaps you missed the bit at the end - I was quite clearly aware of exactly what I was saying. So thanks for pointing that out, but I think I made it crystal clear that I was contradicting myself.

My post? An attack? That amused me. Because quite clearly the only thing that can be taken seriously in my post is the latter bit. I mean, if you took the first bit seriously...well...

Well, I wasn't actually sure what you meant. But you were just so venemous! D:

 

[Asknoone]

I'm a venemous person! But you can't honestly have took the PR rant serious..?

 

[Sulkdodds]

Let's just say I didn't put it past you to explode in such a way. :E

 

[Ennui]

I'm a venemous person! But you can't honestly have took the PR rant serious..?

You've given us plenty of past evidence to believe it was!

Anyway, enough bitching and whining from every party involved, Episode One is out ffs, let's go!

 

[Vegeta897]

Gogogogogo. I'm about to start right now. *closes all unnecessary processes*

 

[Danimal]

No, you're right, I rarely ever post in The Lounge section of the forums.

Oh I see, nevermind then. I thought you were talking about The Lounge, off-topic section to be more specific.

I re-read my post too, I sounded a little harsh. ;(

 

[Adabiviak]

I peruse a handful of online forums and this one easily has the most abusive members. What that amounts to (for me) is that I just avoid those topics. This forum is still one that I frequent regularly. Here's what I think happened. This forum started based primarily on anticipation/release/discussion of Half Life 2. As long as this game was 'new' enough in everyone's mind, there was always something interesting being posted germane to the forum's theme. As Half Life 2 became over played, the topics began to drift to 'typical' forum topics (more politics, more "generic" threads (what are you listening to now, for example), and away from what it was that originally brought everyone here in the first place. It' such a relief to see lots of eager posts about Episode One and I haven't seen as much flaming. I can relate to peoples' perception of the 'bans', as I administrate a different forum.