Just some general moderation-talk here.
Recently there has been a surge of very narrow, personal threads in this forum. Threads with topics like "which games should I play", pure advertisment-threads (linking to personal sites) and very specific tech-questions.
Try to remember that this forum is for topics that are in the interest of the broad community. Topics that can be appreciated and discussed by our general audience.
A known, trusted member that has contributed to the community before, may of course politely invite people to visit their new homepage/blog, but all spam must be kept to a minimum.
If you have a highly specific technical problem that is not related to AGS, you should first consult a website with an orientation towards the problem in question. Don't use this forum as a shortcut for any possible question or problem.
So before hitting that post-button, think: "Can this be of any help or interest to my fellow forum members?"
Thank you for reading!
Perhaps this should be locked and stickied?
Is this the obligatory annual "Quality of Threads" thread?
I noticed that there has been a lack of interesting threads lately rather than an overwhelming number of "inappropriate threads". Gen-Gen after all is where we socialize and I don't see anything wrong with tell your friends "Hey look at what I did..." or asking "What do you guys think about this or that idea I have..".
We can always go back to serious discussions like about...um...religion...now..That reminds me, it turned out to be bad idea already :P Let's just keep it simple and funny :)
ARE YOU SUGGESTING THAT RELIGIOUS DISCUSSION IS AN INHERENTLY BAD THING I'M GOING TO RIP OUT YOUR SPINE AND BEAT YOU TO DEATH WITH IT
That said, I'm disappointed with the quality of this thread. Last year's reminder about decline in post quality was much better.
That said, too, maybe we need a message like this shown when you're trying to start a thread in GenGen. Kind of like what we have for the game development section, just with different content.
Quote from: Akatosh on Mon 30/03/2009 14:38:15
ARE YOU SUGGESTING THAT RELIGIOUS DISCUSSION IS AN INHERENTLY BAD THING I'M GOING TO RIP OUT YOUR SPINE AND BEAT YOU TO DEATH WITH IT
That said, I'm disappointed with the quality of this thread. Last year's reminder about decline in post quality was much better.
That said, too, maybe we need a message like this shown when you're trying to start a thread in GenGen. Kind of like what we have for the game development section, just with different content.
Yeah exacly what I meant. Good idea as far as it would be written in
BIG RED LETTERS to make sure everyone sees it (esspecially newcomers)
Thanks Petter... I' ve been tempted to make a similar post in some periods during the last weeks, but yours is probably better and more polite ^_^.
One more suggestion: USE PERSONAL MESSAGES for getting help.
If you like someone's work, if you wonder how this or that is done, but it isn't exactly appropriate for gen-gen, write a personal message to someone.
I am sure if the request is not straightforwardly dumb, anyone will be happy to help.
I have, personally, used this method many times for specific or small-time help and it's very effective indeed.
Quote from: Andail on Mon 30/03/2009 12:08:46Just some general moderation-talk here.
Recently there has been a surge of very narrow, personal threads in this forum. Threads with topics like "which games should I play", pure advertisment-threads (linking to personal sites) and very specific tech-questions.
...
...
So before hitting that post-button, think: "Can this be of any help or interest to my fellow forum members?"
The thread called An eye for an eye (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?topic=37316.0) is so not of help or interest to me...can we please ban the guy who posted that thread? ;D
Oh can we? - Please, please can we?
Anyway...I remember a few years back someone asked about 'good' music-software in the general thread, and several people were all over him for why he didn't use Google and stuff. They felt the thread should be closed because it was useless and specific and could have done with a single web-search. On the other hand, Nikolas answered the question, which is how I learned about Pianoteq...so apparently it was a useful thread to the original poster's fellow forum members (or at least to me).
True, there is a lot of junk in the general thread. But the truth is: I really consider that 'eye for an eye' thread to be part of the junk from my point of view. Still I don't think it should be blocked, or that Andail should have been more reserved posting it. It's part of the fun of the general discussion threads.
Advertisement on the other hand...if you want to present your blog (even if you're a 'known, trusted member that has contributed to the community before'), do it in your signature, because if I like you (from your previous posts) chances are that I will visit your site at least once. Otherwise you just annoy me...
Ps. Andail...you may start a "raise your hand if you think Misj' should be banned for life from the AGS community"-thread ;)
Hm, yeah I can admit that the eye-for-an-eye thread is turning out a bit junky.
Anyho... my point isn't that all threads must be great and 100% serious and fascinating, but at least consider if what you're just about to post is of any worth for anyone except yourself.
On the one hand, this raises the age-old problem of one man's junk being another man's...um...non-junk.
On the other hand...
I think we've seen a number of self-promoting or blindly lazy posts in Gen Gen over the last while. On the other hand, we rarely ban anybody or take action against anyone, bar some sternly worded warnings about "the rules". Which are staring me in the face as I type this:
Three golden rules:
1. Is your post interesting, helpful or funny? If not, don't post it.
2. Post in a mature manner. Remember, the minimum age here is 16 - if you're unable to act that age, don't post.
3. If you're not a moderator, don't pretend to be one. If a thread needs to be moved or locked, the moderators will deal with it.
We've asked nicely. But internoids are, by and large, self-absorbed narcissistic man-children or, more to the point, actual children. And asking nicely is usually as effective as trying to topple Communism by tattooing Old Glory on your penis.
Therefore, I propose:
Two golden rules:
1. Is your post interesting, helpful or funny? If not, it will be deleted.
2. Post in a mature manner. Remember, the minimum age here is 16 - if you're unable to act that age, you will be banned.
It's a dirty world.
A little while ago I created THIS THREAD (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?topic=36356.0).
I hoped that people would use it for all those piddly little questions that are invariably answered within a couple of posts.
Questions like 'What's the name of that film whose name I can't recall?' or 'Does anybody know the lyrics to the Mexican National Anthem?' are the kinds of question which, for me, clog up unnecessary forum space because they have no real purpose other than to satisfy the petty query of a single person.
So maybe if you could sticky the thread I made, or make and sticky a new one with clearer details about its purpose.
Interesting that this thread seems to have sparked more useless threads..
Quote from: LimpingFish on Mon 30/03/2009 21:15:45
On the one hand, this raises the age-old problem of one man's junk being another man's...um...non-junk.
On the other hand...
I think we've seen a number of self-promoting or blindly lazy posts in Gen Gen over the last while. On the other hand,...
:o
How many hands do you have?!
Yes, this is a waste of a post.
Quote from: Babar on Tue 31/03/2009 07:15:23
Yes, this is a waste of a post.
But apparently better than a waste of a thread.
~Trent
Quote from: Babar on Tue 31/03/2009 07:15:23
How many hands do you have?!
Oops. Seems I need an extra one every now and again. :P
;)
QuoteEver seen ProgZ (sorry if I use you as an example, it's not in purpose) brag about anything? No.
You obviously haven't lived :P
Maybe it
was just a very bad example ::)
Quote from: Dualnames on Tue 31/03/2009 22:28:12
...just having the best fun he can out of his role here, and not having the best role out of his fun.
I like the sound of this; really sums it all up.
:D
QuoteYou obviously haven't lived
Maybe it was just a very bad example
Wow, remind me to kick your teeth in the next time you ask me for help, Mark 'Judas' Lovegrove! :=
Quote
It's more important to Moderators if a newbie takes a wrong post, and not if an oldie swears or acts in an offensive way (He's an oldie of course , and therefore he's given the right to be a jackass).
I can't speak for the other moderators, but there have been more than a few established members I've addressed in private messages about their behavior towards others, and more often than not they agree with me that the forums are better off with people being decent to each other instead of just being antagonistic and mean.
I hope all this insane posting here, doesn;t make me a complete asshole, If it does, I apologize...
:D :D :D :D
I still love you all.
I guess this means I can't start a topic asking if Hello AGSers, Do You Have Genital Herpes?
That will have to wait for another day. :)
I've taken some stuff into consideration. Does it really matter anyway..? This whole discussion will it change anything? Not really I don't think so. And frankly, I like things the way they are, because sometimes, we all think bad about each other, but it takes the most insignificant thing to make one happy. Thus I erase my previous posts on this topic, for they would do no good to the community. I hope you understand. :D :D
Some oldies are now ex-forumitus. Some newbies are now oldies. Me? I'm a middley.
Quote from: Dualnames on Tue 31/03/2009 22:28:12;)
Quote from: Dualnames on Tue 31/03/2009 22:58:31:D
Quote from: Dualnames on Wed 01/04/2009 00:13:59:D :D :D :D
Quote from: Dualnames on Wed 01/04/2009 03:10:40:D :D
I like the way that Dualnames is blatantly smiley spamming this thread. Excellent work and it makes me happy. Even more so after having just read an article Andail wrote back in 2003 about how "oldies"/"veterans" have more rights than what forum "newbies" would have. It would be absolutely infuriating if, for example, lone-adventurer (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?action=profile;u=9699) was doing the same thing. :=
P.S. Bump. I didn't realize what I was doing. Sorry. :-*
This is what happens when I get sent home from work 3 hours early due to the absurd labor/work volume ratio...
Quote from: Babar on Tue 31/03/2009 07:15:23Yes, this is a waste of a post.
Edit: Of course I realized that (@Dual, below) but still. Removing posts, even stupid embarrassing ones make the thread difficult to read. Especially when someone's trying to respond to you. And besides, replacing it with
only a smiley still counts as spamming. ;D
Actually if you had noticed when i posted the smilies were posts I replaced, in which I was explaining what was wrong with the forums, but after a certain incident, I just took it lightly and replaced them with smilies.