Tread for the airing of grievances with the modding of this forum.

[TerriO]

Thread for the airing of grievances with the modding of this forum.

Okay, it's been brought to my attention that some people have a problem with the way I've been modding the forum. However, since nobody seems to actually want to talk to me about it, I'm going to give you guys an open-season on me thread. I can't change a pattern of behavior that you guys consider a problem if I don't know about it, can I?

I'm setting down a few ground rules for the thread, but I hope you'll think they're pretty fair:

I won't warn anyone for taking a shot at me. I'm a big girl, I can take it. If you have a problem with me, here's a prime time to air it. If you think I'm "heavy-handed", please, tell me why. If you think I'm a bitch, feel free to say it. If you want me to explain a decision, just ask. Anything regarding me and the way I mod the place is fair in this thread and this thread ALONE.

However, this thread is only for airing grievances with me and the modding of this forum. If anyone starts flaming or trolling other posters here, or airing a grievance with me that does not relate to the modding of this forum, you will be warned, know that. I am only making this thread for "open season on me and the modding of Sci-Tech."

Now, I turn the microphone over to you guys.

 

[Trekker4747]

Sometimes, it seems to me at least, you jump on people for pulling threads "off topic" or getting a bit argumentative. Neither of which is a violation of board rules.

But I don't post in here a whole lot so I've really no idea how well (or how poorly) you moderate, Terri.

 

[Ariadne]

I didn't know there was a problem.

You're a bit quick to jump on technologies that are perfectly legal but might theoretically have have a connection to illegal activity, but I guess it's better to be safe then sorry.

 

[Deleted 2]

An apology to TerriO

As she stated in the QS&F forum, people's perceptions of her moderating style differed from her own, and it seems that my perception of her moderating style was not in line with her actual behaviour over the past few months.

This became apparent when I tried to find examples of her alledgedly heavy-handed moderating style. With some effort, I could find some posts where she tried to pre-empt potentially interesting (or entertaining) discussion here, here,
here and here.

Suffice it to say, these examples are neither numerous (these are the only ones I could find when sampling threads started in the last 75 days) or gross abuses of moderator powers.

These posts served to reinforce a perception I had about her moderating style that may have been based on earlier events I find hard to recall (and retrieve), or may not have been justified at all. In any case, it is not justified now, and I'd like to apologize for undiplomatically expressing my feelings in Q&SF, circumventing both caution and board procedure.

 

[USS KG5]

I think TerriO does a good job in here - this is one of the more peaceful areas on the board and we have a good group of posters.

 

[TerriO]

Re: An apology to TerriO

As she stated in the QS&F forum, people's perceptions of her moderating style differed from her own, and it seems that my perception of her moderating style was not in line with her actual behaviour over the past few months.

This became apparent when I tried to find examples of her alledgedly heavy-handed moderating style. With some effort, I could find some posts where she tried to pre-empt potentially interesting (or entertaining) discussion here, here,
here and here.

Suffice it to say, these examples are neither numerous (these are the only ones I could find when sampling threads started in the last 75 days) or gross abuses of moderator powers.

These posts served to reinforce a perception I had about her moderating style that may have been based on earlier events I find hard to recall (and retrieve), or may not have been justified at all. In any case, it is not justified now, and I'd like to apologize for undiplomatically expressing my feelings in Q&SF, circumventing both caution and board procedure.

Don't worry about it, Arthur Frayn. I'm a writer, I understand how people can read things into your words that you don't intend. I appreciate being called out when someone thinks I've screwed up, because it's entirely possible I did. Apology absolutely accepted. Thank you.

However, in the interest of transparency, I'll be happy to explain those four links. As for your first example link: I wasn't trying to pre-empt anything except potentially inflammatory jokes about the obesity problem in fandom, and perhaps I should have explained that better.

As for your second link, if you look carefully, I was actually arguing both sides of the case. Mostly, though, I know religion and politics are going to come up every now and again in here. I don't want to flat-out ban discussions of ID, Creationism, or anything that could have a political component to it, because I'm a firm believer that the more minds we can open, and the more we keep our own minds open, the more we learn. The more we can teach, the more we can enlighten those who visit us. Again, to quote Lwaxanna Troi, "The mind open, and in creeps wisdom."

The third was directly in response to someone going on for quite a time about their own sexual fantasies regarding alien creatures. Are sexual fantasies regarding alien creatures something proper for this forum? Personally, I don't think so, but if you'd like for me to ask the staff for a ruling, you know I'll be happy to do it. You have but to ask if you disagree.

The fourth was in response to a situation that felt to me while reading it as though it were getting tense. I didn't ask for any discussion to be stopped. I just asked for people to relax, that's all.

I hope that helps clarify things a bit, and I promise to try to be more explanatory in the future, even if I think the situation's obvious.

 

[Trekker4747]

The third was directly in response to someone going on for quite a time about their own sexual fantasies regarding alien creatures. Are sexual fantasies regarding alien creatures something proper for this forum? Personally, I don't think so, but if you'd like for me to ask the staff for a ruling, you know I'll be happy to do it. You have but to ask if you disagree.

I'd argue that such a thing is not against board rules.

Which goes back to my point. Though no specific examples come to mind (as, again, I don't post here a lot) I often seen moderating posts from you along the lines of "keep on topic", "back to the topic", "that's not the topic", etc. Which, it isn't against board rules to de-rail threads or make off-topic posts. Or even to, lightly, argue with other posters.

 

[gh4chiefs]

Well I hope you don't think I have a beef with you Terri. Despite our disagreement over whether or not a poster called me a liar, I don't have a problem with you.

 

[T'Bonz]

Re: An apology to TerriO

The third was directly in response to someone going on for quite a time about their own sexual fantasies regarding alien creatures. Are sexual fantasies regarding alien creatures something proper for this forum? Personally, I don't think so, but if you'd like for me to ask the staff for a ruling, you know I'll be happy to do it. You have but to ask if you disagree.

**Pokes head in**

Not quite sure how that would fit under "science". If it did, it would be a heck of a stretch.

 

[Alaedhros]

First off, kudos to Terri for starting this thread. I think it's a pretty rare person that would do that; I hope this thread stays civil and polite.

You're a bit quick to jump on technologies that are perfectly legal but might theoretically have have a connection to illegal activity, but I guess it's better to be safe then sorry.

Which goes back to my point. Though no specific examples come to mind (as, again, I don't post here a lot) I often seen moderating posts from you along the lines of "keep on topic", "back to the topic", "that's not the topic", etc. Which, it isn't against board rules to de-rail threads or make off-topic posts. Or even to, lightly, argue with other posters.

I'd agree with what these two said (thanks for saving me the typing!). In short, you're a bit more "vocal" than some of the other mods--more quick to remind us to stay on topic, more quick to remind us to play nice, etc. Of course, I understand the virtue in nipping things in the bud, but at the same time I think some off-topicness is perfectly normal and good.

Part of the problem is that this is a mostly a matter of personal opinion. While I may see some of your posts as being a bit "vocal", a bit unnecessary, another poster may be glad that you are being so vigilant and on-the-ball. It's fairly rare that I think you've flat-out made a mistake (the "great a/v invention" thread is a recent, notable example, but it's the exception rather than the norm, and I was ready to PM you about it until I saw that you and the staff were discussing it). By and large it just comes down to moderating style preference. I prefer a more laissez-faire style. Keep in mind, though, that while myself and a few others may think you're a bit too "vocal", just as many (or more) may be very pleased that you run such a neat ship. (And I think all of us recognize and appreciate the large amount of time and effort that you put in, even when we do disagree with you.)

If you wanted to experiment, you could take a more laissez-faire approach in a few threads and see how it works out. Maybe you'll like the results; maybe you'll have to issue a couple warnings. I honestly don't know. No matter what happens, though, props for having this discussion.

 

[Ariadne]

Re: An apology to TerriO

The third was directly in response to someone going on for quite a time about their own sexual fantasies regarding alien creatures. Are sexual fantasies regarding alien creatures something proper for this forum? Personally, I don't think so, but if you'd like for me to ask the staff for a ruling, you know I'll be happy to do it. You have but to ask if you disagree.

**Pokes head in**

Not quite sure how that would fit under "science".

Everything is science, somehow.

If it did, it would be a heck of a stretch.

Sexual fantasies often involve stretching.

 

[TerriO]

I'd agree with what these two said (thanks for saving me the typing!). In short, you're a bit more "vocal" than some of the other mods--more quick to remind us to stay on topic, more quick to remind us to play nice, etc. Of course, I understand the virtue in nipping things in the bud, but at the same time I think some off-topicness is perfectly normal and good.

I hope it's been noticeable that I've changed that approach lately. I don't think I'm doing the "guys, let's get back to the subject" posts nearly as much as I used to.

Part of the problem is that this is a mostly a matter of personal opinion. While I may see some of your posts as being a bit "vocal", a bit unnecessary, another poster may be glad that you are being so vigilant and on-the-ball. It's fairly rare that I think you've flat-out made a mistake (the "great a/v invention" thread is a recent, notable example, but it's the exception rather than the norm, and I was ready to PM you about it until I saw that you and the staff were discussing it).

I don't know if this came out in the explanation on that, but I worked in Intellectual Property law for a while. Something with that easy and open access to Bittorrent immediately raised red flags for me. When it was obvious I needed a second opinion, I went to the staff. As a copyright owner myself, I admit, I do tend to be a bit more hawkish about the intellectual property aspect of things. I try to protect others' copyrights as I'd hope mine would be protected. But, please. If anyone thinks I go to far on that, at any time, please let me know and we can discuss it.

By and large it just comes down to moderating style preference. I prefer a more laissez-faire style. Keep in mind, though, that while myself and a few others may think you're a bit too "vocal", just as many (or more) may be very pleased that you run such a neat ship. (And I think all of us recognize and appreciate the large amount of time and effort that you put in, even when we do disagree with you.)

If you wanted to experiment, you could take a more laissez-faire approach in a few threads and see how it works out. Maybe you'll like the results; maybe you'll have to issue a couple warnings. I honestly don't know. No matter what happens, though, props for having this discussion.

I didn't want this to get too public, but I actually have been. Lately, I've been just looking in, checking to make sure links are kosher, checking on hotlinking (and I've missed a couple, which Spiffy PMed me on, which may be at the heart of some folks thinking I'm too 'vocal', since I got called to task for it by the higher-ups), but we have a great group here. And I want to thank you guys for that.


I firmly believe in transparency of leadership, which is why I started this thing. Unless Bonz or Spiff tell me to shut this down, this thread's going to remain here for as long as I'm moderating the forum. I want you all to feel free to call me out on anything you think I'm doing wrong, and if you don't want to do it through PM (which are the rules, I have to say), you can do it here with freedom. That's why I said this thread would be exempt from warnings on posts directed at me. Flame me all you want. Vent at me. Get your frustrations with me off your chest. I think we all need a way to do that for our own mental health, and for the health of the forum. However, this shouldn't be considered a free-rein spamfest thread. No "TITS" allowed.

I want to be held accountable for my actions, good or bad. To those who've made comments, thank you. I promise to continue trying to address them all to the best of my abilities.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

I think the intent of it is good, but it puts the other mods in kind of a weird position.

 

[T'Bonz]

I have no problem with this thread.

I don't think that it puts the other mods in a weird position. I rather doubt that people are going to run around asking the rest to do threads like this. Everyone knows mods differ in how they do things.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Fair enough.

 

[BartlesofJames]

Re: Thread for the airing of grievances with the modding of this forum

About time. This place has been open season on its members for two years. The only thing science about Terri is her tin foil hat.

 

[TerriO]

Re: Thread for the airing of grievances with the modding of this forum

About time. This place has been open season on its members for two years. The only thing science about Terri is her tin foil hat.

Could you please give me an example? Aside from the fact that this forum has been in existence for three years now, I'm curious to know where the "tin foil hat" assertion is coming from, since I'm usually one of the first to post about things like Mars exploration, various press releases from the JPL that I think may be of interest, you name it. I didn't think I'd gone into the stereotypical "the aliens are trying to control our minds" routine that usually goes alone with the tinfoil hats.

And please remember, this thread is for discussion of the moderating in this forum, and this forum alone. Anything else is off-limits, as per the ground rules in the original post.

Thank you.

 

[T'Bonz]

Re: Thread for the airing of grievances with the modding of this forum

About time. This place has been open season on its members for two years. The only thing science about Terri is her tin foil hat.

Mmm. I love actions under cover of a dual.

If you can't man-up and "act up" under your primary name, then you need to shut up. And it's never wise to get me interested in digging further.

 

[Gertch]

Re: Thread for the airing of grievances with the modding of this forum

I rarely post here but lurk quite a bit. Sorry, I've never had an issue with TerriO's modding. I think she's been very even-handed and fair. So I'm not much use in this thread but I think it needed to be said.

Thank you for doing the tough job TerriO. I know that's not what this is about but that needed to be said as well.

 

[LaxScrutiny]

Yeah, is it off topic to say I'm fine with the modding? Because that needs to be said too. It's not just the complainers who should get a voice.