Do we need Forum moderators

[Cdecker]

There have been some calls for Moderators to close resolved threads, reduce trolling, keep a clean forum etiquette and merge duplicates. Others love the chaos and freedom to write about just anything.

So should moderators start being more restrictive and create strict rules?  We could also selectively moderate some sub-forums

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[FreeMoney]

I don't think content should be moderated.

Whoever cleans up spam is doing a good job, but I imagine it'll be a bigger job as the forum grows. I volunteer to assist in that. I could also probably merge dupes without mucking it up.

[Cdecker]

Whoever cleans up spam is doing a good job, but I imagine it'll be a bigger job as the forum grows

I think that moderation gets more important as the board grows, the potential for trolling increases and it gets increasingly hard to find the interesting stuff in a mess of spam.

Even today most topics are dupes, which can be resolved by posting a link to the old thread and closing the dupe thread.

[theymos]

I never lock threads. Often, duplicate threads get even more useful replies than the original because people don't have to get up-to-speed on a huge topic. "Completed" topics might benefit from new information.

Off-topic posts are a problem, but I'm not sure how to deal with them. I don't want to delete them on sight, since that causes confusion and makes people upset. The split/merge tools are not flexible enough to deal with larger cases without ruining the discussion.

[genjix]

this is the one forum i like. please don't ruin it. lots of chaos and different points of view.

[FreeMoney]

I never lock threads. Often, duplicate threads get even more useful replies than the original because people don't have to get up-to-speed on a huge topic. "Completed" topics might benefit from new information.

Off-topic posts are a problem, but I'm not sure how to deal with them. I don't want to delete them on sight, since that causes confusion and makes people upset. The split/merge tools are not flexible enough to deal with larger cases without ruining the discussion.

This makes a lot of sense. What about when we have an influx of noobies and 3 threads about the horrors of lost coins appear at the same time? Are there some occasions for lock/combine?

I think I'm going to make an list of threads about the most common topics so I can quickly link new threads to the relevant thread. If I get much done I'll share it. Another way to do it might be to pull out good answers from the thread, put them in the wiki and link there to avoid linking newcomers to long ass threads.

[SmokeTooMuch]

I'm reading the same questions again and again and again.
We need moderators who can close those threads and point to the already existing ones.
Also we need a "Forum rules" sticky which tells the people how they use the board search and stuff.

And to avoid the same old reappearing newbie questions we need a newbie FAQ thread.

Who thinks the same ?

[theymos]

I'm reading the same questions again and again and again.
We need moderators who can close those threads and point to the already existing ones.

Clearly the topics are generating discussion, which is good. If it is truly a useless duplicate, then someone will post a link to the "official answer" and the topic will die on its own. This is exactly what a moderator would do, except that a moderator might lock the thread and prevent even the possibility of a useful discussion.

This makes a lot of sense. What about when we have an influx of noobies and 3 threads about the horrors of lost coins appear at the same time? Are there some occasions for lock/combine?

I might merge or delete topics if I see very similar topics posted around the same time, especially if many people complain about it. I prefer for someone to just post a link and let the topic die naturally, though.

I think I'm going to make an list of threads about the most common topics so I can quickly link new threads to the relevant thread. If I get much done I'll share it. Another way to do it might be to pull out good answers from the thread, put them in the wiki and link there to avoid linking newcomers to long ass threads.

Good idea.

[genjix]

If forum becomes moderated, I leave.

It's bad enough you have rules for the marketplace.

I bet the majority of people voting for regulation are Americans. Americans don't represent all the countries.

[kiba]

For the love of Eris, they are mere janitorial position.

[Gavin Andresen]

I'm reading the same questions again and again and again.
We need moderators who can close those threads and point to the already existing ones.

Maybe it is time to start a bitcoin stack exchange site?

Forums aren't really designed for Q&A.

[Anonymous]

Even 4chan has janitors.

moderators - not so much.

[error]

Censoring people, no. Cleaning up the droppings left by spammers, moving topics to their correct forums, etc.? YES!

Oh, and the place could do with a few mods too.

[Cdecker]

Well the idea was to close new threads after pointing them to already discussing topics, and then close the duplicates, so the discussion is kept alive in the old thread adding helpful information to the big thread.

I'd love to see mods to discourage flaming and offensive language.

[mizerydearia]

I'm reading the same questions again and again and again.
We need moderators who can close those threads and point to the already existing ones.

Maybe it is time to start a bitcoin stack exchange site?

Forums aren't really designed for Q&A.

I am working on a site for q&a.  It will be similar to witcoin, but specifically allowing users to pay for someone to answer a question and for the answerer to get paid.  Unlike justanswer.com, however, the q&a will be public and allow users other than the initial question asker to also pay to see the answer.  Feel free to join #hivemynd for more info on the idea if anyone is interested.

btw, name of hivemynd is courtesy of the infamous (is he infamous yet?) noagendamarket

Apparently he is. ^_^

btw, name of hivemynd is courtesy of the infamous (is he infamous yet?) noagendamarket

+1

[ShadowOfHarbringer]

I join the ones who say we don't need moderators but 4-chan style janitors.

What annoys me is the everlasting mess and opening 10 threads on the same topic. That should be cleaned up, and the older threads locked with URL pointing to the new versions etc.

[Cdecker]

I join the ones who say we don't need moderators but 4-chan style janitors.

What annoys me is the everlasting mess and opening 10 threads on the same topic. That should be cleaned up, and the older threads locked with URL pointing to the new versions etc.

+1

[Jered Kenna (TradeHill)]

I join the ones who say we don't need moderators but 4-chan style janitors.

What annoys me is the everlasting mess and opening 10 threads on the same topic. That should be cleaned up, and the older threads locked with URL pointing to the new versions etc.

+1

Agreed, even give them the title janitor so it doesn't have the "mod" image =)
I'd be happy to do it, spend enough time reading them anyways.

[Vernon715]

I think that a moderator would be good on the newbie board, because there is so much junk there. There are around 166 pages of topics.