Is "the first rule of Scubaboard is that you don't talk about Scubaboard?"

[danvolker]

wow, this is one of the sides of this that I hadn't thought of completely. I respect and support your need for privacy, just a sad commentary. I remember a post by Doppler alluding to being cautious about his posting out of concern of future liability, especially someone of his credentials. Things that make you hmmmm...

I do think that if most members thought about the implications of what they were saying, and how it may upset others if put indelicately, then the potential for having someone out there "stalking" or "after you" would be very small. If everyone posted like they were in a rowdy bar, the things coming out of their mouth would be more measured, because they did not want to create a confrontation and end up in a real fight.

There are far too many people that will say things on a discussion board, that they would never say in real life.

... Maybe the ones that do this in scubaboard, could get a warning once, then Netdoc could replace their Avatar with an image of a toothless drunk that obviously says things in public that will cause fights to start. ...if they stop the pugnacious posting, NetDoc could change their Avatar to a Bar Patron that is cleaned up, and with maybe a bandage on mouth A few more weeks of good behavior, and they canhave their own Avatar back

 

[-hh]

What's the real difference between rec.scuba and ScubaBoard? Follow up. Moderation is the reason why we never became rec.scuba II.

Yes, that's a big part of it; there's also advertising revenue elements too. Moderation does generally make for a more pleasant (& thus appealling) reader experience because the rabble can be more effectively filtered out, which generally doesn't happen in USENET (eg, rec.scuba) groups. Of course, there is no such thing as a free lunch, so there are trade-offs. For example, being generally distributed and unmoderated also means that USENET lacks a single entity ('Moderator' or website host) for which a frivolous (or SLAPP) lawsuit can be easily aimed at, although this can just as easily be a bad thing if you're a party who is being wrongfully criticized by someone. Life is full of compromises and the perfectly balanced system has yet to be found.

Who sets the standard for moderation on ScubaBoard? The users! They follow up on problematic posts by reporting them and then our cadre of volunteer moderators review each and every report...The users have a direct say in what they find problematic via the report post, the suggestions and the feed back forums. We invite everyone to do their part in policing our community to keep the trolls in check. Think of it as a Cyber Community Crime Watch!

An interesting observation, which very much sounds like it may have also been an important distinction and point in SB's legal defense.


-hh

 

[-hh]

wow, this is one of the sides of this that I hadn't thought of completely. I respect and support your need for privacy, just a sad commentary. I remember a post by Doppler alluding to being cautious about his posting out of concern of future liability, especially someone of his credentials. Things that make you hmmmm...

There's a hundred different way that all of this can affect things. For example, consider a casual comment made here about how 130fsw isn't really any different than going to 131fsw ... followed by the unfortunate death of that poster while diving, and their life insurance company getting ahold of that comment and using it as the basis to deny the family the insurance payout. It goes up in front of a Jury of nondivers who are fed the standard boilerplate Agency 'experts' who parrot the 130fsw party line from training, and the outcome is...

In a more real sense, I know that if I were to make my employer more widely known that it would invariably invoke off-topic tangential discussions; sorry, but I don't speak for my employer and I'd rather discuss diving in a diving forum. Similarly, I stopped preannouncing vacations on publically accessible forums several years ago, as I figure that it is only a matter of time until bad guys who burglarize homes will figure out how to data mine online forums to figure out which homes within 50 miles of them are going to be empty for a week. A little bit of identity obfuscating doesn't hurt for when I want to occasionally post something while on holiday ("Hey! Orcas!").

I do think that if most members thought about the implications of what they were saying, and how it may upset others if put indelicately... Maybe the ones that do this in scubaboard, could get a warning once, then Netdoc could replace their Avatar with an image of a toothless drunk ...

Consider yourself whacked by one of George Carlin's "Dumb Darts" Actually, no. There are some discussion board software packages which have a member-selectable (+1 / -1) voting feature with which to rate posts, but after years of watching the dynamics of it in action, I don't really recommend its adoption. The main reason why is that it is all too easy (and tempting) to emotionally "vote down" posts which are brutally honest yet unpopular, and as such, very important elements can in effect become figuratively "shouted down". From what I've seen, the current "like this" feature on SB ... when it is used sparingly ... is superior to the task AFAIC, since it only highlights the positive (good & noteworthy) comments and ignores the negatives. Hopefully, Pete won't ever have to institute a quota system to prevent these 'likes' from being too liberally applied to everything, which dilutes the worth of this tagging.



-hh

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Case in point, when the discussion arose about follow up, a user PMed me to complain that nothing had been done about his report.

No, Pete ... I did not "complain that nothing had been done". Please see my follow-up PM ... as well as the one I just sent to you objecting to this misrepresentation of what I actually did say.

Pete ... I thought the "P" in "PM" meant "private" ... since you felt it OK to bring it up here, this is what I told you when I realized that you were taking my initial contact differently than intended ...

It's not that important, Pete ... on this of all days, it's better to spend the time with your loved ones.

I wasn't complaining ... just pointing out that the post you were responding to wasn't completely wrong. But I think it's more a matter of perception than substance. Rather than reply in the thread, I felt it would be more useful to speak to you about it privately.

Your mods do a great job ... and for a few of them in particular, I'm completely grateful. But sometimes things do fall through the cracks.

Just something to consider ... might be more productive rather than call someone out for voicing a complaint to ask them why they feel that way. Even better, do it in a PM. Just a suggestion Pete ... by no means am I complaining.

Have a great holiday, Pete ... I truly mean that ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[The Chairman]

Bob,

The person who "complained" was never revealed until your post. I feel that I indeed kept our discussion private. As I told you in a PM, "complaint" was an unfortunate choice of words, and I will apologize publicly for that just as I did in that PM. I did not mean to impugn your act, and it's still my contention that reporting problematic posts is not only the best way to deal with personality issues, but it's what stops us from devolving into rec.scuba II. To be sure, I was going to simply edit my post to read "concern" or some other word that does not convey a negative connotation. But since you did not wait for us to continue to discuss this privately, I will gladly discuss it openly.

Not every moderator discussion moves at the speed of light. In fact, most don't. What is an obvious reaction to one mod may not be to another. Combine that reticence to sometimes make a swift decision with the fact that many of our Mod Squad are out busy making merry, and becomes the time of year where some decisions take longer than others. It's not that moderators don't care or that we don't want you here, it's simply logistics about how some decisions can get drawn out. Yes, I know that patience is a virtue and not a requirement. The mods will almost always make the right decision... it just may not be on your time line.

 

[Couv]

In another thread I started many of the posters stated that they don't talk about Scubaboard with other divers.....

I spread the word often. Everyone I've ever mentioned this resource to has been appreciative-except perhaps in a LDS. However, I especially enjoy seeing the look on LDS employee's faces as they pretend to have never heard of ScubaBoard. Additionally, there have been a couple of times I've been on the phone with a business and I've interjected, "I'm a member of an online forum...." and can you believe it, it has a positive impact? But now that I know that promoting this place is against the "rules" I'm sure to blatantly betray the secret oath.

 

[danvolker]

And this would bring us to a cool new option for raising funds for SB defense.....Pete, why not release a limited number of Sweatshirts for "after diving" ( to keep you warm on boat after dives) with "Scuba Board Member" and artwork on each.....Alternative could be a clothing decal or embroider that you could add to Warm Winds......A percentage of each sale goes to SB fund, and by wearing the SB outfit, we "grow" the reach and family size of SB...also making it better. This will also show boats and hotels the media significance of this form of Social Networking.....

 

[The Chairman]

Dan, we are done with the current round of attornyisms... yes we still need money, but we are within reach. That being said, the ScubaBoard store will be open soon I hear. Just in time for (next year's) Christmas!

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I'll be wearing my ScubaBoard t-shirt(s) proudly in the Maldives ... oh wait ... that's a different thread ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[danvolker]

Dan, we are done with the current round of attornyisms... yes we still need money, but we are within reach. That being said, the ScubaBoard store will be open soon I hear. Just in time for (next year's) Christmas!

Good to hear.... What aboat a Scubaboard patch to put on a DUI Dry Suit? ?