Vote - on specific Forum Charter question....

[colinjones]

A proposal has been placed that an additional rule should be added that once all threads come to their natural conclusion, the moderators should lock the threads, preventing further contributions. Once the thread is locked, further contributions will go into a new wiki article.

Pro: This keeps threads from wandering off on tangents, keeping the board tidier, and keeping the threads on-topic

Con: This prevents a thread from acquiring new information, contributions and further questions down the line, particularly when a new user finds an old thread but needs further clarification. It also stops threads on subjects that continually develop over time, like the zwave driver and javamo threads.

[wombiroller]

No doubt things can get out of control, but generally the people participating in the thread for one reason or another find it useful. I think as a last resort - removing offending posts as "off topic" or "abusive" or whatever other "Ethical" item noted in the Charter would be preferable to shutting down the whole thread.

If it is decided to go as far as locking a thread - there should at least be a warning first. That may have already been the intention but it should probably be spelt out in the Charter. $0.2 cents

Hari does need his popcorn you know? (only joking!)

edit: thanks to our new admins for making an effort.

[mardibloke]

Generally locking of threads is a bad idea, for the points you raise.

Sure there will be the odd time you might lock a thread though.

[totallymaxed]

A proposal has been placed that an additional rule should be added that once all threads come to their natural conclusion, the moderators should lock the threads, preventing further contributions. Once the thread is locked, further contributions will go into a new wiki article.

Pro: This keeps threads from wandering off on tangents, keeping the board tidier, and keeping the threads on-topic

Con: This prevents a thread from acquiring new information, contributions and further questions down the line, particularly when a new user finds an old thread but needs further clarification. It also stops threads on subjects that continually develop over time, like the zwave driver and javamo threads.

My take on all this is lets stop trying to 'document all the angles' and rely on the three of you to act a reasonable and collective manner and in the best interests of making this forum a happy, positive and compelling place to contribute and participate in.

Trying to write a formal 'constitution' is just wasting 'cycles' in my view... lets just let the three of you do your 'jobs'.

Just my 10 cents worth ;-)

Andrew

[lmce3000]

Hi all,

my thread should never have been locked. There was nothing in there that warranted this extreme action
What's next? Deletion? Banning me? By locking the thread, They've done the exact opposite of what this thread
was supposed to achieve. Open mindedness. Patience, tolerance and common sense.

Way to go guys...

John.

[jthodges]

My take on all this is lets stop trying to 'document all the angles' and rely on the three of you to act a reasonable and collective manner and in the best interests of making this forum a happy, positive and compelling place to contribute and participate in.

Trying to write a formal 'constitution' is just wasting 'cycles' in my view... lets just let the three of you do your 'jobs'.

I understand your point, but I think that it is important that they act in unison and for clear reasons.  I think lmce3000's thread brings up a good example, where there is some disagreement about the actions taken.  If the moderators aren't on the same page about these kinds of things, then it just matters who gets there first and the rules appear arbitrary.  Not to mention that keeping the level head and light tough needed for good moderation is not easy, so I imagine it will be valuable to have some standards to reference when making decisions.

[totallymaxed]

My take on all this is lets stop trying to 'document all the angles' and rely on the three of you to act a reasonable and collective manner and in the best interests of making this forum a happy, positive and compelling place to contribute and participate in.

Trying to write a formal 'constitution' is just wasting 'cycles' in my view... lets just let the three of you do your 'jobs'.

I understand your point, but I think that it is important that they act in unison and for clear reasons.  I think lmce3000's thread brings up a good example, where there is some disagreement about the actions taken.  If the moderators aren't on the same page about these kinds of things, then it just matters who gets there first and the rules appear arbitrary.  Not to mention that keeping the level head and light tough needed for good moderation is not easy, so I imagine it will be valuable to have some standards to reference when making decisions.

Yeah... I do take your point. But I think the guys also need to settle in a little and synch up their approaches and thats going to take some time. I think we should give them the space to do that.

Andrew

[Zaerc]

Hi all,

my thread should never have been locked. There was nothing in there that warranted this extreme action
What's next? Deletion? Banning me? By locking the thread, They've done the exact opposite of what this thread
was supposed to achieve. Open mindedness. Patience, tolerance and common sense.

Way to go guys...

John.

Well I have taken the liberty to sort of re-open (or rather continue) it.  But those things you mention have obviously gone straight out the window at the first opportunity. And you are right, no doubt about it, that thread should have never been locked.  The fact that these concerns keep on going unanswered says it all.  Welcome to Germany late 1930's.

[dlewis]

Hi all,

my thread should never have been locked. There was nothing in there that warranted this extreme action
What's next? Deletion? Banning me? By locking the thread, They've done the exact opposite of what this thread
was supposed to achieve. Open mindedness. Patience, tolerance and common sense.

Way to go guys...

John.

Well I have taken the liberty to sort of re-open (or rather continue) it.  But those things you mention have obviously gone straight out the window at the first opportunity. And you are right, no doubt about it, that thread should have never been locked.  The fact that these concerns keep on going unanswered says it all.  Welcome to Germany late 1930's.

It looks like the vote against locking threads will suceed... Therefore, threads will no longer be locked again.

[lmce3000]

Well I have taken the liberty to sort of re-open (or rather continue) it.  But those things you mention have obviously gone straight out the window at the first opportunity. And you are right, no doubt about it, that thread should have never been locked.  The fact that these concerns keep on going unanswered says it all.  Welcome to Germany late 1930's.

Pity, because LMCE has great potential. I would hate to see it marred this sort of dictatorial behavior.

John.

[dlewis]

Well I have taken the liberty to sort of re-open (or rather continue) it.  But those things you mention have obviously gone straight out the window at the first opportunity. And you are right, no doubt about it, that thread should have never been locked.  The fact that these concerns keep on going unanswered says it all.  Welcome to Germany late 1930's.

Pity, because LMCE has great potential. I would hate to see it marred this sort of dictatorial behavior.

John.

The moderators are Allies... Therefore, everything will work out in the end.

[lmce3000]

Well I have taken the liberty to sort of re-open (or rather continue) it.  But those things you mention have obviously gone straight out the window at the first opportunity. And you are right, no doubt about it, that thread should have never been locked.  The fact that these concerns keep on going unanswered says it all.  Welcome to Germany late 1930's.

Pity, because LMCE has great potential. I would hate to see it marred this sort of dictatorial behavior.

John.

The moderators are Allies... Therefore, everything will work out in the end.

I Hope So.....


John.

[Zaerc]

Well I have taken the liberty to sort of re-open (or rather continue) it.  But those things you mention have obviously gone straight out the window at the first opportunity. And you are right, no doubt about it, that thread should have never been locked.  The fact that these concerns keep on going unanswered says it all.  Welcome to Germany late 1930's.

Pity, because LMCE has great potential. I would hate to see it marred this sort of dictatorial behavior.

John.

The moderators are Allies... Therefore, everything will work out in the end.

So was the leading political party in Germany late 1930's...

[krys]

Give me a break, this is a forum where we all meet because we have a common interest. There is no ulterior motive to take over the world and create a superior race of light skinned computer geeks. I personally don't care if some off topic or insulting threads get locked, if it is off topic or insulting than its not helping anyone with LMCE and that's what we are here for.

[jthodges]

Wow, Godwin's law already?  I think we're overreacting a little here.  A couple thoughts, mainly gleaned from others:

• Please stop using the "Tough Love In This Forum" thread to judge this charter effort.  If anything, that thread is an example of what the charter is trying to counter!  We need to move past previous mistakes and our personal disagreements, and focus on bettering the forum.
• Could the moderators please own up to deleting posts that they deleted?  Honestly, what are you trying to accomplish if you aren't willing to point out what was wrong with the posts in question?  And if it was a mistake, it was a mistake - I think given the fluidity of the situation it is understandable, but refusing to own up to it just feeds this mistrust and backlash.
• I share Zaerc's reservations as to the motivation for these changes, but I don't subscribe to the "slippery slope" or "pandora's box" arguments.  It's an isolated incident, compared to the more persistent abusive tone of the forums, so I would consider that trivial compared to the benefits.
• Totallymaxed brings up an excellent point as well - let's keep in mind that the new moderators are finding their footing, and give them a little space to do it.