Couldn’t agree more. We will be much further ahead if WE, as a group, tackle unseemly matters and settle them between ourselves in a civilized manner. The vast majority of us are couth, and can determine readily when something posted is offensive or inflammatory. Accordingly, we have two options: ask Bergie to come over here, or tell the offender that we disapprove…and hope that peer pressure regains the tone that we appreciate. Clearly unacceptable posts will always have to be Bergie’s purview, but testy disagreements are usually solvable with patience… and volume.
I also know full well that, if moderators are chosen from among us, and one the choices proves to be a mistake, we may lose an otherwise good member to embarrassment when he/she is told that their services are no longer required. As for favouritism and cliquishness, they happen whenever groups form…so they are probably extant here already.
Well, thanks for the invite, I may have to check it out…but I have say that in context with my “ill formed” opinion, I’ve been participating in web forums for a long time, and my opinion is based upon more than just a little obeservation.
We all tend to favor our “friends” over others, and many is the man who will readilly exploit that.
Usually it is some variation of where some smart aleck regular will kiss up to a member mod, then exploit his friendship to get away with more than he should.
Then all the members are faced with having to kiss up to the member mod, or fall second fiddle to the smart aleck.
Again, I think Bergie does a super job the way it is…problems get delt with…loose cannons do not roll free on the deck for long here.
What I don’t understand is, if some of the people are so uneasy with the “excited” debate threads, what keeps them from ignoring them? why do they keep going back to the same thread, knowing they are not gonna like what they see?
when you see some guy with 3000 posts arguing with some guy who has 2500 posts , and some noob with 65 posts comes along and acts like it is his job to make peace, isn’t that jist a little stupid?
I know I laugh when I see it.
It’s like people running to a bloody car accident in a way. They run to look and then exclaim how terrible it is.
Well, if the sight of “blood” makes them squeamish, then why can’t thay stop looking?
Just out of curiousity, if a “noob” has been reading the forum for the same time the “veteran” has been posting, what qualifies the “veteran” to pass judgement on the “noob”?
Could it be the reason there is only one moderator on the forums?
You guys got to remember that a nubie might not be able to recognize that there is a difference between a hot topic debate between old forum members (that can have a civil debate and walk away with no hard feelings) and a flame war. I think we have a lot more of the former then the later.
Well the only way we really have to tell what kind of person you are is for you to post so we can get to know you. If you never post then we have no idea what you are all about. But if you read and don’t post you should have a pretty good idea what not to do if you don’t want to be labled a troll.
I will tend to give nubies the benifit of the doubt and forgive those that make mistakes. Take the thread Paul started on forign power on the NS. I took the time to write a well thought out explaination (as did several others) and he acted like we didn’t know what we were talking about. I think he learned his lesson though and am willing to give him a chance.
What bugs me is the trolls that manage to fly just under the wire and don’t get kicked off the forum and persist to cause problems when they can, even though most of the rest of the older forum members ignore there existance.
Also, just because a person is new doesn’t mean that they are wrong. One’s stars, as i am frequently reminded, don’t correlate highly with rectitude, savvy, experience, or common sense.
I am not the only moderator on any of the boards that I VOLUNTEERED to moderate–in fact, 1 of the boards has 26 moderators.
If any topic violates that board’s rules, etc, it is moved to the moderator section, where it is discussed by the mods, and then the FINAL decision is made by the board’s Administrator, or the person who “runs” the board. Nothing “cliquish” about it. Everyone has a valid argument, and all views are taken into consideration before “judgement” is passed.
I’ve been a member of this board for years–I don’t have a lot of posts simply because I only respond to Q’s that I “think” I may know, or to ask questions. I’m not a “post hog” on any of my boards, just there for info on particular subjects.
Well, if a “noob” has been here a long time, just remained silent…then he’s not a ‘noob’, …he is a “lurker”.
And for some guy to regularly come here,…read the board heavily, but seldom contribute anything himself…it’s pretty unlikely that such a person is going to come out of the closet just to referee.
Wouldn’t make sense, would it?
Usually what I’ve found when some guy with a very low post count shows up and starts acting like he has rank over other members, barking orders like he is in charge,…it’s usually one of the other regulars who has created a psuedo, or secondary ID that they use to stir up trouble with any way. That way if their deeds get them banned, they don’t have to wear the reputation for their misbehavior.
However, it really wouldn’t be that surprising to me if a lurker suddenly posted in a topic that he/she decided warranted it. People can only take so much, standing in the shadows, before they finally decide it’s time to become involved (even though it may seem kinda’ comical at times).
As for the later part, I would never have considered that as a reason for a post to escalate to the point of no return. You have been around forums for a long time Mr. Gates. [:)]
WE can tell the offending person we’ll report them to the mod if he doesn’t stop his imappropriate behavior. I’m not saying you should all go out and “pretend” to be a mod. Just warn this person and tell him that if he acts up again, you’ll report him. Problem solved.
BTW, I wouldn’t be surprised if this thread gets locked.
The ideal internet forum is self-policing. That is, if the community doesn’t like a member’s behavior they can flag that person for the moderator, or they can collectively ask that person to shape up. This Trains forum basically works like that, and works fine, and I don’t see the need for more moderators.
Actually, dingy and cornmaze have the best idea…we the members are the best form of “forum police” there is…we do a good job of policing ourselves, and if you note, the flame wars only go on long enough for it to become readily apparent it is a flame war as opposed to a heated debate.
As AntiGates pointed out, when the members become moderators with the power to edit or remove, then the “member moderators” become part of the problem…it is human nature to show favoritism towards people who exhibit the same proclivities as yourself, and to exercise the power to slant a forum towards your personal favorites.
We are the one who hold the real power, by virtue that we can, when necessary, alert Bergie to a problem.
Most of us, with the exception of a rare few, have engaged in spats here, myself included(anyone seen the broke back boys again?) but for the most part, we do act and debate in a civil manner, and when or if it does degrade into name calling flame war, most of us are adult enough to stop on our own.
Additional “member moderators” will only serve to slowly turn this into a “steam fan” only or “diesel switcher” only forum, with moderators allowing their favorite posters a lot more latitude than others.
Because he doesn’t post here often, and can view all of this from a somewhat objective perspective, Bergie is in a position that allows him to not play favorites…he owes none of us a thing, and therefore is free to chastise and limit all of us equally, no matter how many stars or how long you have been a member.
Not saying that everyone is like that, or even that most people would do that,…but at the same time…“masquerading” is the oldest game on the internet.
There are some people (usually the ones that get picked on a lot) who thrill on serving revenge upon their adversaries , incognito, while others would never have anyone who agrees with them unless they create their own constituent supporters
I’d love to have a look at the IP log for this site,… I suspect it would reveal that the trainfinders of the world are actually the work of one or two mischevious regulars who get bored and have fun pulling everyones leg.
How many regulars do you know to whom the term “mischevious” might apply? [:-,]
It’s like spitting in someone’s soup! I’m not happy, so no one else will be either!
I don’t mind a little mischief - not above that myself. But seems like some people go to a lot of trouble just to be out-and-out jerks! Poor miserable little people!
I may only have 40ish posts but I agree with what other’s have said. The number of posts a person has made technically has no correlation with intelligence. I know how to have a civilized discussion and can tell what a hot topic is. I check the forum daily, sometimes multiple times per day. I don’t post frequently because not too many topics interest me enough to post. I agree, the best method of policing these forums is responsible use, common sense, and emailing the Mod when necessary.
Mookie: I can honestly say that you won’t need to look at me with a jaded eye. I lack the ambition, memory and general brain power to maintain an alternate personality on a message board.[D)] The personality I current occupy seems to take up all my time as it is[:p].
If anyone should feel that I’m out of line on anything, I’d hope he or she would be civil and tell me, and I will try to do likewise.[:)]