How can we make Stormtrack better for 2011?

[Steve Miller]

Danny makes a great suggestion. Why not have a MOD team of individuals who are responsible for monitoring only certain sections of the site? Someone might be more interested in, or more likely to keep up with, the "Target Area" threads while another would be more interested in the "Weather" threads, B&G, etc.
This would cut down on the burnout and perhaps provide better focus on the rules and enforcement of each specific area.

 

[Bart_Comstock]

Danny makes a great suggestion. Why not have a MOD team of individuals who are responsible for monitoring only certain sections of the site? Someone might be more interested in, or more likely to keep up with, the "Target Area" threads while another would be more interested in the "Weather" threads, B&G, etc.
This would cut down on the burnout and perhaps provide better focus on the rules and enforcement of each specific area.

This has been a policy on several sites I have been on in the past and it has always worked well, especially when combined with mods that also cover the full site.

Another idea on here about moderation that I liked was to revive the appointed moderator positions and have them appointed halfway through the elected mod's terms. That way there is always an overlap of senior staff and it will help issues be addressed in a timely manor. That really isn't an issue right now but if we have an active season next year we will need more than 4 mods. Since Tim would personally appoint these mods it would mean they have to be trusted by him and so they could possibly be trusted with some admin powers as well. This would help take some of the work load off Tim's plate when it comes to approving new accounts and other administrative tasks.

 

[Mark Ellinwood]

This has been a policy on several sites I have been on in the past and it has always worked well, especially when combined with mods that also cover the full site.

Agreed... I've been a member and/or admin on a nerd/general community board for a number of years, and the member list just keeps growing and the site is flourishing. Definitely one of the most efficient and timely ways to go about resolving issues on a forum.

 

[Jesse Risley]

Having moderators for certain sections of the site has merit, but it shouldn't abrogate the use of general moderators for the entire forum.

There are certain parts of the forum that require more intervention, such as the Target Area and the Bar and Grill, whereas other sections of the forum, like winter weather, rarely require much moderation. When you couple that with the fact that no moderators are ever available 24/7, and thus staff members are on at different times, it helps to have someone around that can handle incidents at-will, regardless of where they erupt on the forum.

I could easily see where a Target Area moderator, for example, might find themselves needed to extinguish flames in the Bar and Grill, and before you know it, you have moderators needing to moderate wherever necessary on the forums, thereby resulting in what effectively becomes carte blanche moderation again by default.

 

[Danny Neal]

Having moderators for certain sections of the site has merit, but it shouldn't abrogate the use of general moderators for the entire forum.

There are certain parts of the forum that require more intervention, such as the Target Area and the Bar and Grill, whereas other sections of the forum, like winter weather, rarely require much moderation. When you couple that with the fact that no moderators are ever available 24/7, and thus staff members are on at different times, it helps to have someone around that can handle incidents at-will, regardless of where they erupt on the forum.

I could easily see where a Target Area moderator, for example, might find themselves needed to extinguish flames in the Bar and Grill, and before you know it, you have moderators needing to moderate wherever necessary on the forums, thereby resulting in what effectively becomes carte blanche moderation again by default.

Which is why you make it a "team" affair. One or two MODs for the general weather, maybe 3 for the TA and 3 for the B&G. A lot of people are active and check ST daily (me being one). You can't go wrong with the odds of someone appointed to at least check it. I even go on ST and reply via my cell (droid). I understand things get in the way of daily life but what are the odds that 3 people appointed to a certain area are busy for the same period of time.....

But to squash that claim. Why not go through the "senator/senior" MOD idea (2 of them) that oversee the whole operation of ST while still appointing people to specific areas. These senator mods should be unbiased, been on the site forever, and have a good understand of all the forum contents. That way if you or Patrick or whoever can't legislate the TA one day, this senator MOD can pick up the slack. I still think it would be beneficial to have 2 or 3 people dedicated to one aspect and one or two people that oversees it all. If people truly didn't want to get attacked, there would be know elections, no public viewing of who is a MOD, just Tim randomly selecting candidates he deems worthy and instructing them to use the ST MOD account. How can one get pissed off with someone when no one knows WHO is actually a mod?

1 - NEWS - 1 MOD

2 - WEATHER - 2 MODs

3 - TARGET AREA - 3 MODs

4 - B&G 2 MODs

5 - 2 Senator MODs overseeing the operation.

10 people out of 3K+ or w/e it is?

If these people are appointed and maintain the integrity of the website... I think it would be their job to lose. Why break up a good thing. Sort of like Supreme Court Justices. Appoint your most tenured members that have proven good communication skills and promote healthy discussions and have at it. I know most people won't do things for free now a days, so this is where Steve's "pay to play" mentality plays a role. Start building up revenue and offering people 20 bucks a month to MOD. Right now I am on EXTREMELY hard times and even 20 bucks a month would help me immensely.

Just throwing out ideas. If someone can add on to these, have at it

 

[Mark Blue]

When it involves moderation the opinions from members will run the gamut from A to Z and that's completely normal and to be expected. I don't think any of us could have explained it any better than Jesse did as to why the anonymous account exists (Stormtrack Moderator Team). I am of the opinion that it was created for a very good reason. Often times the normal knee-jerk reaction to a warning or infraction is to become upset, fire off a not-so-well thought out PM, and hold a grudge against the staff member for an indefinite period of time into the future. You described yourself as being able to handle receiving an infraction Danny and that's a good thing, however, not all members react in a positive manner such as you described. It would be ideal if every member wanted to have a civil conversation with the staff member who issued the infraction in order to arrive at a mutual understanding. If we as a moderator team could predict in advance who would be able to handle receiving an infraction up front and who would not, then we could alternate using our own account and the anonymous account and everything would be peachy. Each moderator has the choice to make as to which one they will use when issuing an infraction and it basically boils down to their own personal preference. If one staff member prefers to use their own personal account and another prefers to use the anonymous account, then that's their prerogative. I would encourage anyone who really wishes to make a difference and moderate the board with their own style and personal flair to run for an elected position this coming Spring. If it works out and you're elected then you can have at it and moderate as you see fit. I lost on the first go around, but it didn't prevent me from getting back on that proverbial horse when the next opportunity presented itself.

Lol I know what goes on I am good friends with current and past MODs and have had numerous conversations about current and past MODs and their roles or lack thereof behind the scenes. So that ends right there....

ST Staff members are held to a code of conduct and one of the duties that is expected of a staff member is confidentiality, amongst other things. Having insider knowledge of this nature may not be a good thing for the staff member who is sharing it with you and if you are privy to certain details it might be a good idea to tuck that away somewhere safe and out of view (if that makes sense).

What I'm afraid might happen is that we have a golden opportunity to improve ST by suggesting improvements directly to Tim who prompted this discussion. Let's not lose this opportunity as we have a chance to make a difference and that isn't something that comes along every day. So far there have been many good suggestions and as I said in an earlier post I will be reviving the ST logo contest in the very near future, which is only a small step in the right direction but at least it's a start. Hopefully we won't get too mired up in how ST is moderated, unless it's such a huge issue that we need to reinvent the wheel. If that's the case I will eat crow and be more than willing to listen to what the membership has to say.

 

[rdale]

Often times the normal knee-jerk reaction to a warning or infraction is to become upset, fire off a not-so-well thought out PM, and hold a grudge against the staff member for an indefinite period of time into the future.

That's not normal by any stretch. That's immature and childish. An unfortunate side effect of an educational system which gives partial credit to 2+2=3 because you tried hard, and parents giving ribbons to their kid who finishes 75th in a 75 person race. The real world doesn't work like that, so anyone reacting that way to an infraction should get the immediate boot.

 

[Danny Neal]

ST Staff members are held to a code of conduct and one of the duties that is expected of a staff member is confidentiality, amongst other things. Having insider knowledge of this nature may not be a good thing for the staff member who is sharing it with you and if you are privy to certain details it might be a good idea to tuck that away somewhere safe and out of view (if that makes sense).
.

I agree, I am not one to name names nor will I. Just for the sake of this particular discussion I brought it up. If anything it gave me a new found respect for MODs and the turmoil and childish behavior they are subjected to deal with. BTW it is not just one staff member(s) that I have had contact with in the scope of ST moderating. There have been many that have opened up the inside world of moderation on ST. So I hope I don't burn any confidentiality bridges amongst y'all.

 

[Karen St John]

2 & 3. To help those who are newer to chasing and want to learn, how about the experienced chasers here working with Tim to develop some online "Chasing 101" tutorials that cover the basics (material can be culled from the various threads discussing the basics that are scattered about in different threads and centralized into a guided, organized, easy to follow format, with quizzes afterwards to demonstrate competency on each topic). These could be used as an easy way to increase revenue by charging a nominal fee for each course (say, $5.00). That way, newbies could either pay the fee and get the info spoon-fed to them, or, just do it the old fashioned way and search/read on their own.
...and maybe if this idea specifically isn't viable...maybe offering some in-person 'chasing 101' courses at the Chasercon, for example, might be another way to do it.

Yes, yes, and yes! Oh, and yes.

 

[Jason Boggs]

It would be great to get some of these tutorials or guides and revamp the Stormtrack links and library section. There is a lot of good stuff in there, but a lot of the links are outdated or broken.

 

[Jeff Duda]

I'll echo Danny's comment in that I wish we would see more of our fearless leader Tim posting. I rarely see him post anymore.

 

[Rob Wadsworth]

(Legitimate gripes/ex members) x (X changes/rules) = ST/on track
Hope it is that simple.

I think it would be wise to review what some disgruntled ex members had to say at this point in the equation. Couldn't hurt before things get written in stone - so to speak. Is that info available for review? Might be worthwhile to dig it up and glean through it for means and extremes. Just a thought . . .

Been many fine suggestions made; I just didn't want to leave any stones unturned.

 

[Jesse Risley]

(Legitimate gripes/ex members) x (X changes/rules) = ST/on track
Hope it is that simple.

I think it would be wise to review what some disgruntled ex members had to say at this point in the equation. Couldn't hurt before things get written in stone - so to speak. Is that info available for review? Might be worthwhile to dig it up and glean through it for means and extremes. Just a thought . . .

Been many fine suggestions made; I just didn't want to leave any stones unturned.

There was a spirited list of suggestions offered over a year ago. Those can be viewed here. Some quondam members, current members and even members that we don't hear from as much anymore contributed to that thread, and there have been similar suggestions put forth in threads that I can recall from previous years (2008 and before). There were some changes implemented earlier this year as a result of the thread from last Autumn, and I fully expect Tim to incorporate more changes for next year as a result of this thread.

However, in various conversations with individuals, whether it be as part of threads like this, via PMs, or even on Facebook and chatrooms, it's apparent to me that if there is one fixed star in Stormtrack's constellation, it would be the fact that everyone seems to have their own idea of what Stormtrack should be and how it should operate, including me.

There have been many good suggestions put forth in this thread, though I would hope no one walks away disappointed if their suggestion isn't implemented, as there is no way to realistically incorporate every last suggestion and still make everyone satisfied.

 

[Rob H]

Tim, what do *you* want? It doesn't matter what I, or any other number of users, thinks is the right path to take. You created something that drew people in, and your vision should continue to guide the site. Without knowing what you're disappointed in, it's hard to judge how your vision could be improved. If you don't like the exodus of veteran chasers, then we can provide suggestions on how to keep them around. If you want more new blood and a welcoming mat, we can do the same there. If you're looking for someone to suggest the correct mix to make everyone happy, let me know who can do this effectively because I'd love to hire them

'Better' for me is tighter moderation, more knowledge transfer through things like wikis, and more community projects like the 'Storms of' series. I think it would be really cool to have weekly discussions on pre-picked topics and to have someone knowledgeable about the topic steer the conversation in a constructive manner. The ratio of opinion sharing vs. knowledge sharing is extremely lopsided from my perspective.

On the subject of moderation, the infraction system right now is broken and the level of passive-aggressive drivel being posted reflects this. You have people that continually push and really it shouldn't be up for debate. One of my favorite forums is extremely heavily moderated, and 150,000 users with 110 million posts in 3 million threads over 10+ years reinforces the fact that having a vision and sticking with it can work. This forum also faces the dilemma of how to allow "regular Joes" the ability to converse with celebrities in a specialty field, and they pull it off well.

Having real names is a double-edged sword - it forces users to think about what they're posting and it's great to meet people on the road and already know something about them, but it also promotes some narcissistic behavior and brings drama to a whole new level. I love the separation of objective (FCST, RPTS) and subjective, meta discussions (every other sub-forum).

The thanking system doesn't really seem to reward the correct behavior, as snarky posts can be weighed as being many times more 'helpful' as truly useful posts.

 

[Jason Boggs]

Tim, what do *you* want? It doesn't matter what I, or any other number of users, thinks is the right path to take.

I'm sorry, but I have to strongly disagree. I believe it's up to us (the members) what we want out of Stormtrack. Yes, Tim is the admin but he's busy and gone away from the site a LOT! Leave it up to those that visit the forum on a daily basis to make the decisions of what needs to be changed and what is fine as it is. Leave it up to Tim to incorporate and put into action the things that WE want to change. That's the direction Stormtrack needs to take.