Moderators probably should be anonymous - otherwise, there could be a perceived conflict of interest.  For example, a known moderator doesn't whammy someone but does whammy someone else for the same infraction.  If the non-whammy person is a friend of the moderator, it could be seen as favoritism even if the moderator simply didn't know about the post.

One of the forums I frequent has a "no political posts" policy.  If someone posts a political thread, you can be sure it will be deleted.  And, I believe, abusers will eventually be banned.

I'm not sure what this has to do with the discussion at hand, since there seems to be no "reason" other than abusive language for deletions here.  But, I suppose it's easier to delete an entire thread than it would be to edit objectionable material out of a thread that remains on the board.

Quoting xradman:

Quote:
Quoting Dr. Killpatient:

Quote:
Moderators probably should be anonymous - otherwise, there could be a perceived conflict of interest.  For example, a known moderator doesn't whammy someone but does whammy someone else for the same infraction.  If the non-whammy person is a friend of the moderator, it could be seen as favoritism even if the moderator simply didn't know about the post.

They can remain anonymous (from their regular DVDP name), but if there are multiple moderators, they should have a unique moderator handle.

all the moderators have the name - Forum Moderator - I'm not sure if this is what you mean. And Ken announced at the very beginning that the moderators are employed directly by Ken - so they are not connected to any of us.

The Moderating "Solution" chosen in this forum will not work and will confuse,
anger or even drive people away.

There is a simple solution for this used on forums that have 50k+ users, which i visit regularly. If someone is braking the rules or is being abusive he/she first gets a warning from the Staff/Moderator. Second abuse you get an icon that can be seen by everyone and is considered your last warning. Third time abuse gets your account disabled for either a period of time or banned permanently.

No posts are ever edited or deleted. If a topic is getting out of hand, the Moderator issues a warning, if being ignored, the topic gets closed. NOT deleted because that way everyone can see the reason why and what happened in the topic.

Yes it will be more work for a Moderator but it's an open and fair solution for everyone. Yes the abuse might still be seen by others but it will also show what kinda person behaved abusively and what kind of person he is. And yes you can see who the moderator is. Is that a problem? No, cause good moderation isn't build on hide and seek tactics but based on respect. Respect you will have as a moderator if you do your job in an honest and open way.

The scenario Gendji describes sounds like a good solution to me. Some may view it as harsh, but if a user hasn't improved their behaviour after being repeatedly asked to do so, it is indeed time for a time-out.

Personally I would very much be against a permanent ban after only two infractions, but maybe extending the three strike rule would be appropriate. Meaning, you get temporarily banned after your third offense, and you get permanently banned after your third temporary banning.

The only issue I can see with this solution is that Invelos may feel uncomfortable with banning people who are customers of theirs, but personally I don't think it should be a problem. The fee paid to Invelos is for access to the program, not the forums. The forums is just a courtesy, and in order to create an overal more harmonious environment for the vast majority of customers, tactics like these appear to be necessary, since forum moderation doesn't appear to be working.

KM

Green arrows for Gendji and Astrakan. 

Currently the contribution side of the forum (including the belligerent remarks on the voting for profiles side) is incredibly disparaging and destructive, costing the forum and the database long time members and new ones, as well.

I read some of the comments in the profile updates addressing people who are submitting their first contributions, and sometimes they disgust me. Instead of some positive reinforcement, you get tripe like "WRONG READ THE RULES!" and "Your data is BAD. Read the RULES!" and "OMG YOU USED IMDB YOU SHOULD DIE!!!!" (capped just like that). It's easy to say, "Well, that's just one or two people," but that's a copout because you are doing nothing more than defending a clown. What happens is (and I speak from experience), the person might not understand the rules (which, really, is not that hard to do in some situations, there should be no disagreement there) and just say screw it, and keep it locally. That's what I do. I don't submit so much because of the buffoons who don't know how to give constructive criticism. Their comments don't bother me so much as the impression that Invelos doesn't seem to care how some of their paying users are treated by others, and I don't feel comfortable supporting a database that turns a blind eye to it. Especially as someone who dropped the money for the program. And, to be completely honest, I would find it hard recommending the program because of the seemingly lackadaisical attitude of Invelos allowing this to go on (once long time and well liked contributors start leaving in frustration, you need to address the problem). That's not to say I wouldn't in the future, I'm not a fool, I realize things can change, but at this point I couldn't in good faith. And, if for some reason I did (because it's a fantastic offline solution for a DVD database), I would recommend not contributing. It's gotten to a point where it's that ugly.

I realize I don't have the post counts of many, but I put my two cents in because I want to take more part in the forums. Yet with the bickering that goes on in virtually every thread (outside of the actors name verification threads), it's hard to.

A stronger hand in moderation would help this. As some of have mentioned, there are forums much bigger than this one, and they do about exactly as Gendji describes, and it seems to work. If someone can't post without mudslinging, then they shouldn't be here. I've said before that I've been both warned and suspended from forums for things I've written. Do I hold it against the forum? Nope, because every forum has a different 'attitude', some I've adjusted to, others I just left and no matter which decision was which, everyone was happy.

The point is, I want to contribute more. There are people who don't post that want to contribute more. There are people who used to post that gave up in frustration. All because *seemingly* nobody wants to openly take the responsibility of making the forum a non-volatile environment.

These moderation suggestion threads are a good start, but until someone in power (be it a mod, Ken or Gerri) pop in and say something, it seems like wasted time. I'm not saying that's the case, but it is the impression because this underlying frustration on the forum has been going on for months (or at least the months that I've been lurking). I've seen at least two long time contributors leave in the past two months over the attitude running unchecked. How many more are going to leave? It's sad when one (like myself) would rather PM someone a question -- a question others may have -- rather than start a thread that could help those others, simply because the chances are extremely high that that thread will become a battle.

Like I said, I know I don't have the post count like some here, but I've definitely been on my share of forums, and (currently) by far this one is the most volatile.

(Note, when I say "forum", I speak of the Contribution side of it. I do not go to the General side much.)

Quoting Alien Redrum:

Quote:
Green arrows for Gendji and Astrakan. 

Currently the contribution side of the forum (including the belligerent remarks on the voting for profiles side) is incredibly disparaging and destructive, costing the forum and the database long time members and new ones, as well.

I read some of the comments in the profile updates addressing people who are submitting their first contributions, and sometimes they disgust me. Instead of some positive reinforcement, you get tripe like "WRONG READ THE RULES!" and "Your data is BAD. Read the RULES!" and "OMG YOU USED IMDB YOU SHOULD DIE!!!!" (capped just like that). It's easy to say, "Well, that's just one or two people," but that's a copout because you are doing nothing more than defending a clown. What happens is (and I speak from experience), the person might not understand the rules (which, really, is not that hard to do in some situations, there should be no disagreement there) and just say screw it, and keep it locally. That's what I do. I don't submit so much because of the buffoons who don't know how to give constructive criticism. Their comments don't bother me so much as the impression that Invelos doesn't seem to care how some of their paying users are treated by others, and I don't feel comfortable supporting a database that turns a blind eye to it. Especially as someone who dropped the money for the program. And, to be completely honest, I would find it hard recommending the program because of the seemingly lackadaisical attitude of Invelos allowing this to go on (once long time and well liked contributors start leaving in frustration, you need to address the problem). That's not to say I wouldn't in the future, I'm not a fool, I realize things can change, but at this point I couldn't in good faith. And, if for some reason I did (because it's a fantastic offline solution for a DVD database), I would recommend not contributing. It's gotten to a point where it's that ugly.

I realize I don't have the post counts of many, but I put my two cents in because I want to take more part in the forums. Yet with the bickering that goes on in virtually every thread (outside of the actors name verification threads), it's hard to.

A stronger hand in moderation would help this. As some of have mentioned, there are forums much bigger than this one, and they do about exactly as Gendji describes, and it seems to work. If someone can't post without mudslinging, then they shouldn't be here. I've said before that I've been both warned and suspended from forums for things I've written. Do I hold it against the forum? Nope, because every forum has a different 'attitude', some I've adjusted to, others I just left and no matter which decision was which, everyone was happy.

The point is, I want to contribute more. There are people who don't post that want to contribute more. There are people who used to post that gave up in frustration. All because *seemingly* nobody wants to openly take the responsibility of making the forum a non-volatile environment.

These moderation suggestion threads are a good start, but until someone in power (be it a mod, Ken or Gerri) pop in and say something, it seems like wasted time. I'm not saying that's the case, but it is the impression because this underlying frustration on the forum has been going on for months (or at least the months that I've been lurking). I've seen at least two long time contributors leave in the past two months over the attitude running unchecked. How many more are going to leave? It's sad when one (like myself) would rather PM someone a question -- a question others may have -- rather than start a thread that could help those others, simply because the chances are extremely high that that thread will become a battle.

Like I said, I know I don't have the post count like some here, but I've definitely been on my share of forums, and (currently) by far this one is the most volatile.

(Note, when I say "forum", I speak of the Contribution side of it. I do not go to the General side much.)

Excellent post Alien. 

I also agree with Gendji, Astrakan and Alien. Moderation doesn't mean anything when it doesn't have teeth and it's obvious that our current method is only trying to cover the problem up (removing/editing posts) rather than solving it (consequences, people learn their lesson). If people refuse to change and communicate in a manner that isn't so harsh even after several warnings/temporary suspensions then banning is the only option left. No community has room for rude behavior and only prevents the community from growing. And in this case we are shrinking... 

Beautifully stated Alien Redrum!