Moderators?

c0ld, any idea on when this place is going to get moderators? I know this place is an LLC now, so is there any reason why we can't have moderators now? Yes, we have survived without mods for a while, but now it is really starting to show. You can easily tell by the quality of posts around here recently that this place isn't moderated enough. I have a feeling that if this place doesn't get moderators soon, this forum will turn into mainly spam, and it won't be worth searching through the spam to read the good posts. Also, without moderators, this place isn't as "family-friendly" as it used to be either. We have to realize that the majority of the users here are minors, and as funny as some posts have been, the language/terms used in those posts aren't suitable for them. Even members here that aren't young may still be offended by some of the terms used now and then on this forum.

I added a poll to see how many people agree and disagree with me. Feel free to comment on my statement, I want to hear what everybody thinks of this.

Of course we should get some mods. I was wondering the same thing, if the forum is an LLC now, then how come the mods haven't been chosen yet?

I voted yes.

Q: What makes a post bad and do I make lots of those? I might, but IDK.
I always criticize my own posts. If it's useful, funny or if someone might get offended or confused. It's hard work, and I don't even know if I'm doing well.
Sometimes I feel that I post too much, but are there any "unwritten" rules???

i finally had to say Yes.
it IS showing...there are some useless posts around there, people digressing & stuff (im not saying i have NEVER done it, in fact, everybody did this at least once)

the "family friendly" thing: i think the forums should be like that, but it has to allow certain things, like if i wanted to say WOW THIS PIECE OF SH*T i could censor it with an * like i did...or just write S***....everybody will understand it, and as i am not insulting anybody it's fine by me...
if we start controlling how people should talk it'd be a distaster...


and thus
i volunteer myself
to apply chuck's fist by being a Mod.. (a mod who isnt annoying and correcting stupid stuff (which would really make the forums an awful place)).

Yes from me too although i'm no expert at forums and will probably get kicked off or something LOL

I think the forum is doing fine without mods. Aside from a couple of spambot threads every week most of the members of this forum are mature and helpful.

For an example of a forum that needs mods look at this.
http://www.battle.net/forums/war3/board.aspx?ForumName=war3-general
or this
http://boards.msn.com/MSNBCboards/board.aspx?BoardID=780

Razako said:

I think the forum is doing fine without mods.  Aside from a couple of spambot threads every week most of the members of this forum are mature and helpful.

For an example of a forum that needs mods look at this.
http://www.battle.net/forums/war3/board.aspx?ForumName=war3-general
or this
http://boards.msn.com/MSNBCboards/board.aspx?BoardID=780

Click to expand...

i have to agree with you again.


DAM**T now i wanna change my vote


well,
its your decision then
if you want mods, im there for you to lightly moderate the forums, dont want it to be raided with modforce

We DO need mods, the forum used to be a lot better when it had them.

he he I'm ten,Family friendly.

although the forum is now an LLC , i still need to work with my lawyer about a legal contract that potential moderators would need to sign. the contract would probably include statements saying that moderators are solely responsible for what they post, and that they can get in trouble if they intentionally try to harm the forum by deleting post mass posts, etc.

spam is hardly an issue anymore since now members need to verify thru their email before registration is completed, and enter a verification image. this has cut back on spam accounts on the forum as well. i have only noticed 1 or 2 spams posts a week at most.

regarding language that people post, i can add certain phrases to the filter to block out this language. if there are any particular words that you all want filtered out please just PM me and ill be happy to help.

i agree that some posts could have more quality, but im not sure having moderators would solve this problem.

i honestly think the forum has been doing well without moderators. i agree moderators could possibly make the forum more family friendly and could be helpful, but before they can be added i need to get the contract done.

another issue, the main one, is trust in the moderators. most of you are probably aware that i had to remove moderators before b/c of the posts of another moderators that almost got me in legal trouble for something i didn't even do or say.



if enough people are in favor of moderators perhaps we can add them back. signing a contract will definitely be required , however, and i would still want to have a high level of trust and confidence in the moderators appointed.

the main qualities i would look for in moderators are

*trustworthiness (based on what others in the community think about the person, and my opinion as well).
*demeanor (level headed, stays calm, and is appropriate when criticizing others)
*friendliness (helpful, genuinely kind person, never attacks people or starts drama)
*laser knowledge a plus
*basic computer/techninical skills
*can't be affiliated with a laser company (that would be biased)

i would love the hear what more of you think about adding moderators, i want to hear all of your opinions

well, i respect your choice.

now for my volunteering...i cant sign a physical contract (im 100% sure you wont ship a contract to argentina and i wont certainly ship it back lol).


about word filtering....i dont really agree with it. just the fact that g-a Y is filtered is uncool to me, g-a Y = FUN, homosexual is another thing. seriously, look it up on the dictionary.
members should worry about their own posts and what they say.

for excessive swearing, the rep system comes in handy

IMO, words like g-a-y aren't necessary to say in order to talk about lasers.

chido said:

IMO, words like g-a-y aren't necessary to say in order to talk about lasers.

Click to expand...

But you can't say wickedlasers is gay without them.

I can see the need for moderation in terms of keeping things moderate - cutting back excessive flaming etc. Interestingly it was, imho, moderators who were the most flame-bouyant and immature of all, prior to their dismissal. That locker-room-crowd scene is not missed by me.

What moderation probably can't help is the increasing quantity of inane and thought-free posts -- that probably goes with the territory of becoming popular. Sincere questions are welcomed by me, but questions that show obvious disregard for even having read the basics of a thread are annoying at best and board-destroying over time if not contained. But moderating that may be difficult. Maybe have different categories for the rep ratings? like: helpfulness 10; flammability 25; attentiveness -17; values others' time 0; reads tfm -75; etc etc.

Other than those, what makes a post valuable or a nuisance can be very subjective. If moderated, moderate lightly... and let's not have a "moderators' club" atmosphere again.

DanQ

Read through this topic to see what happened with one of the previous moderators.
http://www.laserpointerforums.com/forums/YaBB.pl?num=1200388208

Razako said:

Read through this topic to see what happened with one of the previous moderators.
http://www.laserpointerforums.com/forums/YaBB.pl?num=1200388208

Click to expand...

That link didn't need to be posted, a lot of crap happened on December last year and we don't need to recall that. This forum has had enough drama as it is.