[Icehouse] A question I haven't seen answered.

[Scott Sulzer]

I want to throw in a couple of things here, before trying to answer the
question.

Is the mailing list server, or is it not, the physical property of the
Looneys?

If so, would it not seem that they would like to keep physical control of
the hardware for any official forum?

And, if that is also so, how hard is it to install, patch, bring up to
speed, and get ready the forum software that would be needed for what
everyone is asking for?  Which fits their current hardware configuration?
Also, how much storrage space would be needed for all of the files, images,
posts and other miscelaneous and sundry?

 

Now, as to the question, all volunteer moderators WILL have their own
agenda.  Plain and simple, we all want what we want and most of us aren't
afraid to let others know what we want.  Most likely, these people would be
moderating the forums in which their agenda best fits, such as Fluxx or
Icehouse or Game Development.  Honestly, the base need for moderators is to
help control the forum, preventing flame wars, kicking out spammers and
those who degrade the comunity as a whole as well as helping new users and
"stickying" recursive subjects so that they are not repeated over and over
and over and...  However, they should be able to justify disciplinary
actions because of a violation of some base rules set down by the forum
administrators i.e. no swearing, no racisism, no personal attacks, etc...

 

Honestly, the biggest point of getting volunteers is to get the ones with
the agenda which you want for the forum or that particular topic anyway.  If
a moderator is attempting to push an agenda which seems to go against the
forum (such as pushing people to play monopoly instead of Icehouse or Fluxx)
then they should be relieved and the logs, which should be kept, can show
their indescretions after the administrators are made aware of them by other
members of the community.

 

As to how much control they can have over a forum, they can have as much or
as little as they want, however, as they support the lists for the
community, I believe that they want to be required to have as little control
over them as possible.  In other words, they want the community to self
regulate and keep control of themselves instead of having to step in and
force moderation on a mailing list.

 

-----Original Message-----
From: icehouse-bounces at lists.looneylabs.com
[mailto:icehouse-bounces at lists.looneylabs.com] On Behalf Of Christopher
Onstad
Sent: Saturday, March 08, 2008 10:44 PM
To: icehouse at lists.looneylabs.com
Subject: [Icehouse] A question I haven't seen answered.

 

 


Message: 2
Date: Fri, 7 Mar 2008 17:26:23 -0500
From: Marc Hartstein <marc.hartstein at alum.vassar.edu>
Subject: Re: [Icehouse] Icehouse / Treehouse forum?
To: icehouse at lists.looneylabs.com
Message-ID: <20080307222622.GL13101 at cabinet.hsd1.ma.comcast.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"



The directorship has responsibilities to the business and to its
investors.  A lot of decisions which seem really obvious to you and me
still can't be taken trivially, because they have to consider their
impact on the business as a whole, and also on the LL brand.

They don't feel they can simultaneously be responsible directors and
just let the community make these kinds of decisions regarding anything
official, because the community doesn't have the same responsibility to
the business.  It's kind of annoying, but I think it makes sense.  After
all, anything they sign off on, it's their responsibility (and their
paycheck) that benefits or suffers at the end of the day.  So they feel
they need to think all these things through carefully.

Okay, I am fairly new here, and pretty much just read and don't say much
because I am not near as wise, or clever,  as most of the people I have seen
on this list.  I have been watching the whole forum debate with a curious
interest, but no real opinion.  I will go where I need to for news & stuff.
But suddenly this question puts many things in perspective.

 

   How much control/influence can Looney Labs have over a forum as opposed
to several lists?  And how much work is it?  

 

Yes you can use volunteer moderators, but I have seen how poorly that can
work out if you get moderators who are enthusiastic but have an agenda.
(Totally thinking about a well loved game from my past which was
re-released, (to much personal joy) but keeping informed was distastefull
due to forum "moderators")   

 

The point is, as convenient & functional as a forum might be, how much will
it change the influence and (when occasionally necessary) control the Looney
Labs have over their official image? Especially considering how small and
lightly staffed they are.  I understand that volunteer labor is possible,
but how do you ensure volunteers don't have an agenda they are pushing
without making volunteering so torturous it isn't worthwhile?

 

 

 

 

 

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