Some Rude Moderators?

[Im a brickmaster.]

I don't know about Mods being rude, the do have the tough job of policeing an Internet forum! Rude members? I've seen quite few, but not the moderators. Y'all are doing fine

Edited January 4, 2016 by Im a brickmaster.

[The Steward]

I haven't really seen any rude mods, but, I've also not seen, anarchy and rudness raining in the forums, and if it takes them telling some idiot, that they are an idiot, to keep the forum nice and clean of... stuff. Then I'm good with that.

Mods shouldn't be mean for no reason but telling somebody the same thing again and again can get old...

[xboxtravis7992]

Just noticed a member who joined the Star Wara forums posting a link to his YouTube channel asking "please subscribe." Then the MODs promptly delete the link, locked the thread, and put the member on "taking a break" mode.

It was very blunt and direct, but it is understandable why it had to be done. I don't want Eurobricks to be overrun with "plz subscribed" requests.

[The Steward]

Just noticed a member who joined the Star Wara forums posting a link to his YouTube channel asking "please subscribe." Then the MODs promptly delete the link, locked the thread, and put the member on "taking a break" mode.

It was very blunt and direct, but it is understandable why it had to be done. I don't want Eurobricks to be overrun with "plz subscribed" requests.

That sort of thing should be squashed immediately with out pity or mercy. But there is the line of people joining to advertise, and saying 'I have a YouTube channel, you can check it out.' and 'plz subscribe.'

[kevkipo]

While i can find myself in the case of "Sometimes being afraid to say something" i have no trouble with the other subjects,

I mean that's what it is in real life as well, nowadays you just gotta be carefull what to say, and if someone doesn't agree with it (Boss, Mod, Manager etc...) he points it out (Like he should) and if it is a bit harsh (Or if you take it that way) then (From what i've learned from my experiences on the forum) you just shouldn't argue and move on.

I found myself arguing and disagreeing with a few members and mods as well, but like i said, it's a democracy. You think this and someone else thinks otherwise.

So Mods keep on doing what you are doing!

[Stash2Sixx]

Thanks, I will.

I know I come across harsh, but I'm just direct. And on a LEGO Fan site for Adults, I would expect people to be adults, without multiple reminders...

But if you and I have to have a talk, you did something wrong to get to that point.

[THERIZE]

It does get annoying when mods lock topics. In the occasions I saw a topic being blocked the last sentece was: 'i think it's better to lock this.' And then locking it. I understand that they don't want stupid things going on but it can be annoying when you have a question. Now you need to start a whole new topic for that.

[Stash2Sixx]

Feel free to ask us if you need to. That's why we're here. Between all of us, I'm sure we can find an answer for you.

[xboxtravis7992]

There is a little situation developing in Train Tech right now about modding. May I add my $0.02 here?

First: On a phone browser it is impossible for me to notice the difference between a Mod or a regular member since the only info shown is the avatar and the username. I wonder if the member in question posted without realizing he was talking to a Mod because he was on a phone browser.

Second: What the member posted about metal train track in Train Tech is hardly a disastrous post. This isn't some kid asking "plz subscribe" or a debate about superheroes or a battle between old and new Bionicle. Nor is it spam or violating major site rules. This is a railfan making a very very applicable joke. Seeing that posts are added so slowly to Train Tech, this post is not causing issues in finding the other content in the forum.

Third: Saying that the phrase "Lighten Up" is abusive behavior is silly. Bullying, trolling, and mocking are abusive; a common joking phrase is hardly such. Seeing that much harsher language has been used on Eurobricks without qualm (I have seen the F-Bomb dropped in the Lego Mafia and Gaming thread) I hardly consider "Lighten Up" to be offensive.

Edited February 8, 2016 by xboxtravis7992

[Peppermint_M]

It would help if the problem was cited here directly with a quote so that the issue can be considered.

[Paperballpark]

Ok then, as the original creator of the topic (see here), I will.

I posted a topic a few days ago in 'Train Tech'. There's a story about a ton of narrow gauge track for sale cheaply somewhere in the UK (proper train track - 20 miles of it!), and as there is a continuing thing about the old 9V metal Lego track being hard to find, I posted a jokey topic about it, under the title: I've found lots and lots of metal track for sale. I also thought that some people on there, being train fans in general, would find it interesting.

A mod immediately questioned it (slightly bluntly, IMHO, but it's no big deal), basically asking why I'd posted it.

Now, to me, it's no big deal. Sure, it's not really about Lego, but I considered that most people reading that forum (being train fans) would be interested in it anyway, because it's about something that doesn't come along every day - namely, 20 miles of narrow-gauge track for sale! So I posted the following response:

Oh jeez, lighten up! I thought it was interesting, and could be a nice little joke about 'metal track'. Plus, someone might actually find it interesting...

Now, note that I did answer his question about why I'd posted it. Yes, I said 'lighten up', but to me, that's not too bad at all. Anyway, nothing more was said in the topic, and people contributed to the topic as normal, with most people chatting about it, saying things like 'What MOCs can we come up with to run on narrow gauge?'

A full 30 hours later, I got the following email:

Paperballpark,

You have been given a warning.

Reason: Abusive Behaviour

You made a post about non LEGO track, on a LEGO website and it was obviously meant as fun. I can appreciate that. However, what I cannot appreciate is when people are rude to the moderators. A question was asked as to why your post was put in that thread, by a moderator, and it was a legitimate question. Your response was "Lighten up".Instead of telling a moderator what to do, maybe you could have responded differently?Please show courtesy and respect towards other members of this community, thank you.

I won't name the admin who gave me the warning, because that probably wouldn't be fair, as it wasn't the admin who responded on the forum, and it was probably a group decision after discussions with other admins.

Now, I've been an admin myself (for a few years) on another forum, so I know what things are like, I know how people are, how rude they can be, etc. etc.

However, I was very surprised to see the phrase 'lighten up' classed as abusive behaviour. I don't know what others think, but I would not have expected a warning for saying that to anyone, even an admin.

Anyway, there y'go. That's the context as I see it. Others may take a different view.

[Hinckley]

We trust our staff to do things without discussing so that particular instance was not discussed by the staff. I can see how it seems like an over–reaction to you. But, when the staff is volunteering and trying to keep order in the forum being told to "lighten up" instead of answering the staff member's question can seem combative. And we only have a few headings to choose from for warnings. Maybe that was "Other" maybe it was "Abusive Behavior" but it was only a warning after all. The staff did not suspend your account. "Lighten up" though not vulgar (you don't have to use the F–word for something to be abusive) does seem flippant especially as it is not an answer to the question "Why did you post it?"

Furthermore, did you answer the question? Once again, your thread wasn't locked, a staff member simply asked you a question as to your intention in starting the thread. We have a lot of members who join just to sell and if that staff member didn't understand your joke then they had a good reason to ask as we try to keep an eye on posted sales and auctions to make sure people aren't trying to scam our members. Again, you weren't being accused of that, suspended, or even having the thread locked. The staff member just wanted clarification. This is a tiny skirmish amongst staff/member interactions and really not quite worth this much discussion. And I haven't even looked at the thread in question yet. Also, keep in mind, the other staff member may have been responding to a report if another member looked at your response and found it disrespectful, they could've reported it to us and that could be why the other staff member got involved and used the warning system.

At the end of the day, if you are not typically giving the staff a hard time, nobody will even notice you were ever given a warning.

And now I have taken a look and I have this to say:

Apparently, not only is it apparently not ok to post things 'obviously meant as fun',

And while I see you did answer the Train Moderator's question at the same time as telling him to "lighten up" I find your response to the warning came from a viewpoint that I don't see. You say it's not OK to post things "obviously meant as fun", which is discrepancy one. I don't believe it was obvious to JopieK or he wouldn't have asked. And discrepancy two is that you're saying we said it wasn't OK to post that. JopieK asked you to clarify your intention and seemed satisfied with the answer considering the topic was never locked. So why did you think it was "not ok" to post a thread that nobody told you was wrong and the staff left open for people to discuss?

Perhaps you might consider that you over–reacted to the Train Moderator (who does a great job moderating that forum, time which he volunteers). And in the future, I encourage you to discuss any negative interaction with the staff, with the staff before making a public issue out of what was really a simple issue to begin with. In the end you were asked by a staff member for clarification which you responded somewhat flippantly to and another staff member asked you to be more courteous. You are more than welcome to continue a discussion when a staff member asks you to be more courteous. In my opinion, none of our staff has been rude to you.

[xboxtravis7992]

So, 'Situation Normal All "Freaked" Up' then?

[Hinckley]

So, 'Situation Normal All "Freaked" Up' then?

So, I looked at this like a puppy discovering a new sound and while I understand each individual word, they don't make sense together.

[Paperballpark]

So, I looked at this like a puppy discovering a new sound and while I understand each individual word, they don't make sense together.

It's a slang term, possibly only used in the UK - SNAFU.

[xboxtravis7992]

So, I looked at this like a puppy discovering a new sound and while I understand each individual word, they don't make sense together.

Old WW2 slang word; still in use in the military (for example an education WWII film by the guys who did Looney Tunes was called "Private SNAFU"); just I used an "edited" version (that F stands for something else...). Denotes a situation were everybody gets all hyped up and paniced, only to realize nothing happened hence the phrase, Situation Normal-All Freaked Up.

It seems to describe everything which just happened: everything is fine, we just all panicked.

Edited February 9, 2016 by xboxtravis7992

[Paperballpark]

See, I'd use it to describe a situation which was completely messed up, but where that was actually normal. Like in a massively disorganised company, for example.

"What's the situation like here?"

"SNAFU. Situation Normal - All F***ed Up."

[Hinckley]

I've heard the term snafu but not as an acronym. I'm sure I'll hear it three times in the next week.

[xboxtravis7992]

I've heard the term snafu but not as an acronym. I'm sure I'll hear it three times in the next week.

The curse of learning a new word eh? Never heard it before then you'll hear it a dozen times in a row

Edited February 9, 2016 by xboxtravis7992

[nerdsforprez]

Captain Obvious would obviously say that ones' experience with moderators depends on the genre of forum a certain ma'am or gent chooses to frequent. I mostly browse the technic forum and all I can say is that I have had very positive experiences with the moderators there. I am a member of many Lego forums and in my experience the moderators on this site are the most friendly and professional. Not to mention the overall feel of the forum in general. Other places (ahem...*bricklink*) I find much less friendly

[Hinckley]

Typically, Train and Technic have the least amount of problems as they tend to attract the more mature and adult builders who have serious things to discuss. I think I've said it before in this thread, but both forums will typically have less "i want a funktchinning hoper car alreadyz!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! " or "the leggo trainz show on cn is so lamez i cant believe it duz any1 else watch it its stupid"

[Umbra-Manis]

So that's what SNAFU means.

I've always had a positive experience with the mods here. While I've seen Hinckley and some others drop the hammer on people, it's been pretty justified for going off topic or another offense. Now all we need is for the mods to make a youtube series out of them killing spam.

[xboxtravis7992]

I've said it before in this thread, but both forums will typically have less "i want a funktchinning hoper car alreadyz!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! " or "the leggo trainz show on cn is so lamez i cant believe it duz any1 else watch it its stupid"

This needs to be a meme or something.

[dr_spock]

This needs to be a meme or something.

Failure to comply with the site guidelines that you have agreed to when signing up will lead to SNAFU.

[Peppermint_M]

Nefarious!

As Hinck mentioned, some areas are more mature than others. I envy them.

I am sure I am on some rude moderator lists from how I choose to handle Action and Adventure.