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python said:
can we get back on topic about the mods...?

All the stuff from DPF's dynamic duo caused me to lose track of the topic.

The other day I was thinking about the use of subforums. It seems to me that for casual readers there is a serious problem with the size of threads. If someone only occasionally read a forum then how is he supposed to wade through a thread with 600 posts?

Slashdot-type systems have user ratings and allow a reader to set a visability threshold so that only hgih rated posts are shown. The forum software here is not that sophisticated. Back in the days of Usenet, some forums would have moderated subforums that required all posts to okayed by the moderator. It seems to me that "high quality" subforum could be created for some subjects that operated in a similar fashion.
 
Mar 17, 2009
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python said:
can we get back on topic about the mods...?

akbar places a sexist remark that gets a protest and gets removed. he comes here and whines.

...out of the blue some hypocritical suggestions are added to the topic and some members who would normally jump in to freE, try to derail the thread.

i hope the mods handle it properly.

surely you're not suggesting that i've tried to derail the topic. i think that if you read the last few pages you'll see that my contributions have been every bit as on topic as your own. i am guilty of coming to the defense of another, as are you yourself, but i suspect we're both a bit of a "knight in shining armor" type, and i certainly won't apologise for my chivalrous behavior. you'll all just have to learn to deal with it.
 
Aug 9, 2009
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python said:
thanks for showing up, me and some others expected you !
no one, including the mods, is fooled by where you, akbar and glen are from ;)

i'm all for being sensitive to people from all lands, including texas.

Python, this is the exact thing (the bolded part) the mods seem to be trying to curb - responding to posts that do not answer a post but serve up speculation regarding a poster. I do not know if you are capable of tracing IP addresses of posts on this forum, and pinning the IP address to a particular locale - if so, please let the mods know that they have a security problem with the forum. If not, is there any rational explanation for the bolded part?

Disagreement on posts is what makes this forum lively - again my take is that disagreement should have some substance, not the TFH of the day.
 
Jul 22, 2009
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Cal_Joe said:
Python, this is the exact thing (the bolded part) the mods seem to be trying to curb - responding to posts that do not answer a post but serve up speculation regarding a poster. I do not know if you are capable of tracing IP addresses of posts on this forum, and pinning the IP address to a particular locale - if so, please let the mods know that they have a security problem with the forum. If not, is there any rational explanation for the bolded part?

Disagreement on posts is what makes this forum lively - again my take is that disagreement should have some substance, not the TFH of the day.
He is just taking the discussion in the direction of Armstrong. Some ole stuff, different thread.

There isn't a way to crank IPs unless you have admin tools, which requires forum permissions. With that, you can see approximate where the internet portal is located, which give you an idea where the poster might be from. Generally harmless.
 
So who is ChrisE, who is Oncearunner, and who is Ali? Or is that House and Hombre? I keep losing track of who is who. So we have a bunch of people banned here (multiple times) using an issue here to attack a mod from DPF who had to deal with their disruption there. Isn't that what is going on here? Or am I misreading this?
 
Jun 16, 2009
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#############################################

PLEASE NOTE CAREFULLY BEFORE PROCEEDING

############################################



we truly, utterly, desperately, do NOT CARE about past history on another forum between members here.


ANY post in this thread - after this one - that references DPF, behaviour of ChrisE, et al on that site, or disagreements between members of that group (for the record, Python etc are included in that "et al") will result in a suspension

This includes any post that atempts to be funny about the situation

This includes any post that attempts to use a quote from a previous post to get around this warning.

None of this has anything to do with a thread about the moderators on this site (dont try to argue that angle either of the result will be the same)

In short - try me
 
TeamSkyFans said:
Any mods know why my thread pointing out two glaring photo captioning errors on the website was deleted today?

explanation be nice. :confused:

for what its worth, the two pictures are this one
http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/tour-mediterraneen-cycliste-professionnel-2-1-1/day-3/photos/158214

and this one
http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/tour-mediterraneen-cycliste-professionnel-2-1-1/day-3/photos/158215

No idea, where was that thread? And who are the correct identities?

Susan
 
Sep 25, 2009
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Alpe d'Huez said:
Just an aside - Re-registering as a new user (sock puppet) during a ban is grounds for a permanent ban of all accounts.

i have a general mod question related strictly to this forum, just like all my posts in this thread related to this forum only... i do not have any specific user in mind.

i was perusing some older posts in this thread and came across this alp's post quoted above.

it's pretty dry, clear, and in my opinion quite fair and reasonable. reasonable to the mods themselves and the vast majority of the cn forum posters..

the emphasis is on re-registering during a ban

the reason i'm bringing this up is twofold.

on the one hand, just based on my personal observations in this thread alone, most infractions (and complaints) are committed by the same small group of repeat offenders who appear to have been banned at least once and may (pay attention, may) have re-registered. on the other hand, we are seeing that mods are overwhelmed and shorthanded on occasion, and have limited ability to deal with 'occasional', so to speak, infractions (such as unintentional offtopic or repetitious posts as annoying as they may be) by the members who by and large are keeping within the rules.

so, my question is, if the above quoted statement by alp was adhered to more strictly (and don't mean dogmatically) wouldn't we see a welcome relief in the mod workload ?

as you can see, i'm not a big fan of sockpuppets because i think they waste everyone's time. and it's malicious by definition, imho.
 
Sep 25, 2009
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Susan Westemeyer said:
Of course people aren't allowed to re-register while they are banned, and you might be surprised how many we fish out trying to do that.

But when people monkey with their IPs and email addresses, there's not a lot we can do.

Susan
susan,

thanks for the reply. of course i'm not trying to fault the mods - just trying bring the important issue back to the front as we've had an obvious spike on the radar after a relative calm. at least that's my impression.

as i recall this topic was brought up before and some important and tangible changes were introduced. but judging by what you yourself said above, and sorry for bringing the clinic jargon, 'only stupid get caught'.

so when a certain poster obnoxiously exploiting an easy loophole for the n-th time and we 'know' but can't do anything', he's laughing at every one whilst doing it in this very thread. there is really nothing we can do ?

i know, the question is easier to pose than to answer. that's why i'm bringing this back in the hope that some new ideas may be introduced.

such as registration process change, new software what else ?
 
Jun 16, 2009
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python said:
i have a general mod question related strictly to this forum, just like all my posts in this thread related to this forum only... i do not have any specific user in mind.

Python,
There are two parts to the answer on this one. The first is, the instant we find someone who is operating a sockpuppet they are gone, no discussion. There have only been roughly three cases that got around this if people cast their minds back. One of which was Dimspace/TSF (plenty of discussion already exists on this but the point is that it was felt that he only did so as an instinctive reaction to a suspension that whilst valid was completely unexpected by him). There are two other cases - both of which you were involved with and I dont wish to discuss here but the circumstances are very well knnown.

The second point is - just because one member of a forum thinks they have spotted a returned banned member does not mean that the mods should immediately ban the new username. What if you are wrong? (To answer my own question, there have been at least 2 cases of BPCs being banned who were NOT BPC. - and roughly 10 times that many false accusations)

Therefore when someone is spotted either by a mod or reported to us, we watch them carefully, discuss them and conduct a quite detailed investigation into their posting history, IP patterns, incidence of IP crossover with other members (happens more than you think), etc. We often challenge them directly also. But if the weight of evidence shows they are a returned banned member, they are gone that day.
 
Jul 22, 2009
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Martin318is said:
incidence of IP crossover with other members (happens more than you think)
Most definitely, as most ISPs have shared internet portals. The people who intentionally try to mask their IPs with special programs sometimes read as distinctively as anyone.
 
Martin318is said:
? (To answer my own question, there have been at least 2 cases of BPCs being banned who were NOT BPC. - and roughly 10 times that many false accusations)

When WonderLance joined he was accused of being BPC immediately by about 6 posters and there were many calls for him to be banned.

Imagine how much we would have lost if he had been banned for this there and then.
 
Oct 25, 2010
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I think Fastandfast is using the "The Lance Deposition Tapes (NyVelocity)" thread in The Clinic to try and intimidate Frankie Andreu into keeping his mouth shut. He knows that Betsy reads and posts here.

Read his posts and see the innuendo.

Personally, I think he should be permanently banned for having done this.
 
Jul 23, 2009
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The Hitch said:
When WonderLance joined he was accused of being BPC immediately by about 6 posters and there were many calls for him to be banned.

Imagine how much we would have lost if he had been banned for this there and then.
Check out WL's first posts. Nothing like the irreverent and funny poster we now have. If memory serves he went head to head with TFF and RR and supported BPC while, God forbid, using correct spelling and intelligent phrasing. I don't blame anyone for initially thinking it was a BPC sockpuppet. I don't know what led to the change in approach but when it happened I wondered if WL was a CN staffer just messing about on the side.
 
Feb 13, 2011
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I think you guys focus too much on a few users who you don't like. Your personal power of ignoring others is a lot more powerful than a ban. I suggest you use it more often.

A troll will not damage the conversation/discussion any more in a topic than what the users themselves allow.
 
Jul 22, 2009
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Justin Case:

My offer to admin still stands. I have unparalleled qualifications and impeccable posting record. I know my way around the admin control panel and will hit the ground running. I will bring a sense of fairness with my style while fully supporting existing administrators, and willingly accept falling into line behind their experience. No posters will be unfairly targeted for special exceptions nor overzealous decisions. If my work is unsatisfactory, my admin privileges can be immediately revoked, at which time I agree to not speak of my experience knowing that I would likely lose my posting privileges altogether for doing as much.
 
Feb 13, 2011
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Of course I do realize. I take great interest in these topics. I moderate another forum, so I think it's interesting to compare the policies and whatnot between the two. I post in the cycling related threads when I find topics that interest me, but so far those have been far between.
Anything wrong with that?
Susan Westemeyer said:
Qbix, do you realise that 7 of your 12 postings are in the mod threads? Did you join this forum simply to discuss our mod policies?

Susan
 
QbixNorway said:
Of course I do realize. I take great interest in these topics. I moderate another forum, so I think it's interesting to compare the policies and whatnot between the two. I post in the cycling related threads when I find topics that interest me, but so far those have been far between.
Anything wrong with that?

I doubt there is a "problem" but it's just a little weird seeing someone so newly registered and with so few posts/discussions to their name to be actively discussing moderation policies. The fact that you are being critical of the moderators without actually being a forum contributor may rub some people the wrong way.
 
Feb 13, 2011
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I can't recall ever being critical about the moderation policies. I made some suggestions in regards to the sign up system on the site, and I also made a couple of comments saying that the users should grow some skin instead of worrying so much about people trying to spoil the fun for others (trolling), and this was not a reply to anything which was posted by a moderator. And my first posts made were more about moderating in general, and not about any policies found here.
Ferminal said:
I doubt there is a "problem" but it's just a little weird seeing someone so newly registered and with so few posts/discussions to their name to be actively discussing moderation policies. The fact that you are being critical of the moderators without actually being a forum contributor may rub some people the wrong way.
 
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