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Post by Ninmast on Sept 29, 2007 13:09:10 GMT -5
I've been with the EAB for a long time. It was the first place I ever role-played. My first step into the EAB staff was being put in charge of the character section as a local moderator in charge of establishing a power level system. I was eventually promoted to Global Moderator to help keep track of the forum as a whole since I was on so frequently. There I stayed until the fall of the original EAB, when I helped set up the new one and joined the admin rank as one of the Triad.
Over my entire time as a member, both on staff and off, I've only wanted one thing for the forum - growth and refinement into a successful, popular forum for writers and artists of all sorts. I have done my best to pursue this goal through all steps, sometimes, admittedly, rather aggressively. It has always been at the front of my concerns, though, and will be so long as there is a forum bearing the emblem of the Elite Authors' Boards, no matter how many times it must be reincarnated.
However, some have raised a concern that perhaps I am hindering my own goal by being an administrator due to getting carried away and becoming overzealous. Thus, I am creating this poll to see how many feel this way. If there is a majority consensus, then I will step down from being an administrator and hand my position over to someone else who might be able to do a better job on the front lines to accomplish that goal. Due to the nature of this discussion and the fear that some seem to have of retribution, you don't have to discuss your votes, or even state that you voted, but you have my word and the word of every other administrator that no such retribution would occur, and whether you vote for or against, I do wish to hear why you feel the way you do.
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Silva
Full Member
I don't need no stinkin avatar!
Posts: 285
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Post by Silva on Sept 29, 2007 17:00:08 GMT -5
I think that begs the question, who's really moderating this forum?
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Post by Ninmast on Sept 29, 2007 19:53:19 GMT -5
Just a note that I forgot to mention, the staff should not be voting in this. This is for the members only.
In response to Silva, it's a method to get opinions. Regardless of my intentions, if the majority believes I'm not doing my job right, then I can't do my job effectively because what I say isn't being received as it should because they don't believe I know what I'm talking about. Besides, I like the idea of being democratic about it.
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Post by CHANGEME on Sept 29, 2007 21:44:52 GMT -5
This is a witch hunt. Sure, maybe he keeps black cats and plays cards by the candle light and makes weird stews in a big pot. How does that make him a witch?
What I mean to say is, what problems will this solve? What even are our problems? Let's get this straight, right now. In a word, our problems are:
Rot.
The forum seems to be rotting, yes. So, to fix this problem, we will pacify the masses by removing the most active admin that nobody likes. You know, the guy that invented the Power Level system, which has become a very important part of character creation. And some other stuff I don't remember.
Really, guys. Sure, he wears little pigtails and can go Hulk in four seconds or less, but... (Heh, Ninmast smash.)
I dunno. I don't think Nin is the biggest part of the problem, and getting rid of him entirely won't solve it. You can think of me as a sidekick or an accomplice all you want, but I'm not saying this for him. I'm saying this because this isn't going to fix our problems, it will just create new ones and make some of you- granted, a whole lot of you- feel better.
For how long? Who's next?
(I know a post this long is a recipe for a flame war, but this is just how I feel. I really don't want to get anyone riled up... that's the last thing we need...)
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Post by Veros on Sept 29, 2007 22:07:21 GMT -5
*sigh* Seeing as how True is making me respond to this, I'll state my opinion on it.
Personally, Ninmast, I laugh at this whole poll. I find it quite humorous as it shows the number of people that dislike you as an admin, or simply want to plain problems on you. Also, its your incentive if or if not you retire. We shouldn't have an opinion in this matter.
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Post by Ninmast on Sept 29, 2007 22:17:37 GMT -5
Thank you for that, True.
And thank you, too, Veros. I appreciate that, both of you.
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Post by EJP on Sept 29, 2007 22:53:34 GMT -5
Well, its not that you don't belong. Its that many feel you've abused your powers and since your the only admin, since Spectral is gone and Kainus is a craptastic lurker admin, no one is around with alot of power to go against you on something.
Right now, I think we need a new admin over more than boot you from power. The only problem with getting a new admin is everyone would vote for themself and I doubt we could all agree on one person to be a new admin. We need somone comman, experienced with the forum, goes to all the areas of the forum and not just one or two of them, knows the sprit of the law over the letter of the law (Doesn't go temp banning every little thing and will let a few things slide) while still kicking those in the ass who need it (Banning the annoying people who seem to do nothing but piss people off whenever they show up), isn't going to censor every little thing just because one immature person bitched about it, will not temp ban a person just for questioning a decision of theirs, will not interffear with someone else's RP just because they had an arguement with a member in that RP, and most importantly be a common member on the site.
Thats were I stand on this.
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Post by Veros on Sept 29, 2007 23:29:10 GMT -5
Actually, on the needing a new admin, I semi-agree. We do need one, but I wouldn't vote for myself, unless a plurality voted for me... Then I'd consider voting for myself... So in-case of a full blown tie-war, I could easily break it... But meh... that's just me. Though my vote would most likely go to MT, Flame, or Giant Brother... Or Enigma if he was still active... but he isn't >>
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Post by Ninmast on Sept 29, 2007 23:51:00 GMT -5
Yeah, there have definitely been times in the past where I have been ... aggressive. I'll admit that, and I always have admitted that. I agree, it'd be nice if the other staff members got into things, too. I'll try not to say much more, because I don't want to sound like I'm blaming my faults on someone else, because that's not what I want to do.
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Post by The Silent Orator on Sept 30, 2007 7:22:46 GMT -5
I believe you're only partially right, Veros. Yes, it is his incentive if he wishes to step down or not. This poll is for him to see what other people think, and maybe even to gather their opinions or not. He said in his first post that he has always put this board first, shouldn't it be right to make this a democratic decision, rather than one he takes into his own hands?
Isn't taking matters into your own hands the very same "power-tripping" that has been claimed? Most forum administrators wouldn't ever do anything in a democratic fashion. I remember this one forum, the administrator pretty much acted like he was a god. In the "humor" boards, he always locked the topics I started, just because HE didn't find funny the things I did. We constantly disagreed, because our points of view were so different. I ended up writing and posting a long rant about the administrator before leaving the board and never returning.
In my time of foruming, I was somewhat surprised to see this topic. It is rare, in my experiences, to see things done in a democratic manner in the staff.
I have to agree with some points in EJP's post. The staff itself needs to be more active. I remember when I first joined the EAB, the four admins were Deadly, Smoke, ML, and Ace. The GMs were Kainus, Silva... and I think Spectral. The mods were KT (for anime board), Ninmast (for RP boards), and Moonbeam (for l33t). Staff changes because of inactivity and conflicts of interest. Administrators changed, Global Moderators changed, and Moderators changed.
Donut became mod, Lotus is Global Mod now, GB is mod now, Ninmast is admin, Kainus and Spectral went from GM to admins...
What I'm just saying is that I feel it's just time for the staff positions to be re-arranged. The fault isn't completely Ninmast's. I mean, yes, Nin and I have disagreed on points (actually, many points a lot of times), but from what I've seen in this thread, we can't scapegoat him.
Yes, he's been overzealous at times. I've been temp banned and my friend's been temp banned before, but that's PARTIALLY (keyword: partially) our faults, 'cause we're both rebels who resent authority figures.
Staff members are needed to keep each other in check, but with Kainus and Spectral gone, there's not much left as far as I can see. I remember when Smoke and the admins revoked Silva's mod powers for un-banning MarvinMan a long time ago. It's sorta like the Checks and Balances system in the US government. We need something to counteract another... something (or someone) to check the system of the other(s) and for them to do the same to itself. I liked the idea of a "triad", because it split control, and it did not give one person absolute power.
Oh, darn, I went off on a tangent again... erm, I lost my train of thought here...
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Post by Ninmast on Sept 30, 2007 10:51:08 GMT -5
I think that was very well put, Flame. And yes, I'm even agreeing with the stuff about me. =P
You mention staff rearrangements. Do you have any specific ideas of how, perhaps, that should be done?
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Lyn Maliodis
Full Member
Unless I grip the sword, I can't protect you. While gripping the sword, I can't embrace you.
Posts: 1,188
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Post by Lyn Maliodis on Sept 30, 2007 11:01:06 GMT -5
I don't really know what to say but i don't think you should leave because i believe that you are currently the only admin on for the most part but i don't think you should leave even though i get in trouble from you sometimes. I say no you shouldn't leave as much as i'd like to see the chaos that would ensue after you leave i'd probably regret not having said you should be around. So i stand by what i voted for No you should not leave
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Post by The Silent Orator on Sept 30, 2007 12:53:43 GMT -5
I believe the forum should vote on who they feel should be the staff. Make it completely an election and completely anonymous to all except one. I don't mean polls either. I mean, start a thread in the suggestions section.
Everyone nominates someone (besides themself) for a position. Two nominations for a triad position, and one nomination for a global mod. Reason I say two nominations even though there's supposed to be three in the triad is I don't want everyone just putting in all three of their closest friends on there. It makes it more fair.
The four members with the most nominations for Triad will be put on a ballot. Along on the ballot will be votes for the three members with most nominations for Global Moderator. People will vote on their ballot and send it to a vote-taker (I'll volunteer for this job if no one else will). Basically, the person keeps his/her silence on the votes until the election is complete. When it is complete, the three nominees with the most votes for the triad become the members. The Global Moderator with the most votes will become GM (or two... dunno how many staff this forum needs). There will be a "checker" as well... someone that the forum trusts... who has access to the vote-taker's account, to prevent any cheating or altercation of votes (not that I'm saying it would happen... just a precaution). Also, no votes can be opened by the vote-taker until election's done. The vote-taker and the checker will check the votes at roughly the same time (at least the same day)... and both will announce/confirm the announcement.
EDIT: I had an idea that we should make a dummy account for the vote-taking, and then temp-ban it until the end of the election... just as a precaution. Maybe I am a bit too paranoid at times, but it just came to mind.[/EDIT]
It's basically an election in two parts. I'd be willing to organize this, if everyone agrees this is an idea that will contribute to the board. Perhaps have the election once every six months? That way the staff can continue to be streamlined... because people fall inactive without notice, even staff members. I believe a key to a successful forum is an active staff who the members like and appreciate.
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Subtle
Full Member
Dynamic Sentai Vic Riot!
Posts: 716
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Post by Subtle on Sept 30, 2007 13:18:28 GMT -5
I voted yes. Big suprise.
Honestly though, while ninmast isnt a very good admin, hes probobly the best choice we have. When other members say things like they would make Enigma an admin, that makes this seem less like a credible roleplaying community and more like a cesspool for the inbreeding of retards.
When you say that this fourm is sucessful, I would have to argue other wise. This fourm has lasted a long time, yes, but its not sucessful, not good. Its merely avarage. Look at this poll, about one of the most controversial topics on the entire EAB. 10 votes, as of now. We have less than 20 memembers... we really dont need such heavy moderation.
How many memebers have gotten temp banned? I can't honestly answer that question, but it seems like half the board has. When something like this occurs, perhaps its time to let the EAB mutate into something that the target audience can deal with. If half our posters cant play by the rules, then the rules should change.
The EAB, as a whole, seems much too structured for how few people it has. The system of law and order we have in place is designed for and would hold up to an entire city of posters, but in actuallity the board is barely even a set of Indian tepees. I can understand why we have such strict rules in place, to allow for structure during growth and such, but right now, they're stunting the growth of the board.
The active, rather than passive, moderation is preventing this board from growing further. Through moving back and forth cross country I've met many people who are good enough rpers to invite to the board ( and thats by my standards, not by the board's standards) but I havent beacuse of the oppressive atmopshere of the board.
Anyway, I draw near wrapping this post up. I didnt want to focus this post on directly flaming ninmast, but this time is asking us to look for fault, so I will. I would like to specificly note that the tone of this next bit is NOT, " Yes! Open ground for flaming ninmast!" its solemn, grave, impartial and informative ( I hope)
You are not without your bias when moderating Ninmast. I dont have all the best examples to back this up, but I have a handfull. During the election 2008 topic, you would constantly moderate and edit posts discussing the faults of the republican party, often citing the people posting them just parroting information as your reason for doing so... This topic is what made lothar leave the eab. I also remember along time ago, when we were discussing one of my temp bans for making a joke about religion, I ended up making another joke/negative comment about it in the IM and it ended with you calling me Ugly. What the fuck? You called a member ugly. You'd never SEEN me before, not even in the picture topic, regardless of weather Im ugly or not. You directly flamed me... that is not moderater appropriate activity. You got dangerously close to flaming during the last little fiasco with Lotus and You, where both of us said that you were autoing, and then you insulted our intelligence ( quickly sidegrading the remark to saying that it was a step short of an insult)... that last little fiasco is my third peice of evidence against your integrity as a moderator. You gave Lotus a temp ban for undermining your authority... when a few days early I had directly flamed you for moderating me and you went out of your way to NOT temp ban me. That definitely seemed like a personal favor, which is something you should not doll out as a moderator... I know that you probably did it because I would have kicked you out of my dnd game for banning me over something so trivial, but it was still against the spirit of being a good moderator
Anyway, now that that part is over I'd like to apologize if I seemed a bit harsh, I wanted to be as direct and truthful as I could, and that can often be mistaken for hostility.
But really, from what you've discussed with me, I dont think we have the user base to draw a new moderator form right now... so I dont know what the best course of action should be.
You should not be an admin, but neither should the rest of sheeps in the pen.
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Subtle
Full Member
Dynamic Sentai Vic Riot!
Posts: 716
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Post by Subtle on Sept 30, 2007 13:21:14 GMT -5
Oh, and I'd like to add that its silly that admins cant vote in this. They're users of the eab too.
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