Dedicated to all future Gundam fansite pioneers...

Topics not covered in other forums. NO POLITICS OR RELIGION.
toysdream
Posts: 3164
Joined: Mon Mar 06, 2006 12:24 pm
Location: San Francisco, CA
Contact:

Re: Dedicated to all future Gundam fansite pioneers...

In hindsight, the main problem with the Gundam Project message boards is that we simply got trolled to death by a clique of losers who were deliberately trying to shut down the boards and ruin it for everyone else. It's really hard to formulate rules to prevent this, because jerks like that specialize in sticking within the letter of the rules, goading other people into breaking them, and then complaining to the moderators like whiny little babies. In the end, I think you just have to reserve the right to boot people off the forums for being general-purpose jerks, rather than trying to legislate for every possible situation.

-- Mark
PrissAsagiri UK
Posts: 32
Joined: Wed Jan 26, 2011 5:13 pm

Re: Dedicated to all future Gundam fansite pioneers...

toysdream wrote:In the end, I think you just have to reserve the right to boot people off the forums for being general-purpose jerks, rather than trying to legislate for every possible situation.

-- Mark
Having worn the Mod Boots a couple of times myself in unrelated forums (although never the Admin Hat) I figure most forums are an ongoing exercise in striking a balance between operating a ruleset that allows users to go about their business mostly secure in the knowledge that a given post of theirs won't be marked for an arbitrary Orbital Mod Strike, and building a level of trust among the userbase that allows the staff to say "this behaviour is bad for the board" and deploy said Orbital Mod Strike when necessary even when they don't have a particular rule to point to. And it's a difficult balance to strike and often a thankless task to do so.
Zball
Posts: 57
Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2011 1:51 pm
Location: Flying in a blue dream

Re: Dedicated to all future Gundam fansite pioneers...

On a slightly related note, it's cool to see Mark post on this.
Whatever works.
1-4-4
Posts: 118
Joined: Thu Sep 02, 2010 1:02 pm

Re: Dedicated to all future Gundam fansite pioneers...

Chris wrote:
Pegasus wrote:As a former moderator for Gundamwatch, GOUF and later an administrator for Gundam Evolution I can say the reason they lasted as long as they did was because of the members.
I think that place had to be eventually doomed by GreyBear's tyrannical mantra of "It's all Gundam, it's all good" that would get shoved down people's throats as some forced peace.
Somehow, I'm glad to be reminded that I'm not the only one who saw it that way...
Zball
Posts: 57
Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2011 1:51 pm
Location: Flying in a blue dream

Re: Dedicated to all future Gundam fansite pioneers...

To be fair, that didn't bother me nearly as much as the constant comparisons and the same five questions repeated infinitely. People were jerks and, to make matters worse, took things personally when directed elsewhere or answered with a "here's the accepted answer, but look at these seventeen other threads for more info."

I know why Graybear said what he said, and I agreed with it, even if I didn't always approve of its application. But I'm glad people felt justified in taking it completely the wrong way.
Whatever works.
User avatar
Chris
Administrator
Posts: 3381
Joined: Thu Mar 02, 2006 5:20 pm
Contact:

Re: Dedicated to all future Gundam fansite pioneers...

toysdream wrote:In the end, I think you just have to reserve the right to boot people off the forums for being general-purpose jerks, rather than trying to legislate for every possible situation.
Well, as is commonly mentioned on the internet, forums aren't a democracy. I think it's important for admins and moderators to follow their own rules, but you also can't let your hands be tied by them. There have been quite a few occasions where I've instabanned people with no warning because their behavior is so extreme and I know that no amount of threats/warnings will stop them. Then again, in the 11 years of MAHQ I never had to deal with an organized conspiracy of trolls like you did, so I consider myself lucky in that respect.
Co-founder/editor-in-chief, MAHQ
Pronouns: he/him/his
Pkmatrix
Posts: 46
Joined: Mon Jan 25, 2010 11:07 pm

Re: Dedicated to all future Gundam fansite pioneers...

For me, at least, among the biggest reasons I left Gundamwatch/Animemech was 'cause Graybear's administrative style seemed so arbitrary at times, clamping down on things that really didn't need Admin/Mod attention IMO. For example: before he took over, Gundamwatch had a large Roleplaying community. One of the first things GB did was shut it down, arguing that it sucked too much bandwith, and only restored it later after a massive outcry from members. Now, the argument makes sense, but I'm sure there had to be a better way to handle things than just up and closing it (I don't even remember there being an announcement, just logging in one day to find it gone). Another thing that just seemed unnecessary was his ban on Forum Fics, which had been popular at TGP and GW but were suddenly and without announcement all locked/deleted shortly after Botswana passed the torch. It was stuff like that - sudden, arbitrary, and unannounced rule changes - that drove me and bunch of others away.

I still have fond memories of Gundamwatch and Animemech, but I never liked that somewhat oppressive atmosphere GB fostered.
Post Reply