Suggestion Feedback on keeping ScubaBoard members

[gypsyjim]

This question is directed at all members, new and old. It is actually a multiple part question, and is designed to get us all thinking about what ScubaBoard is, or could be for someone just discovering us today or tomorrow.

Two weeks ago on Utila Colleen and I were part of 4 couples with no previous contact who were diving on the same boat for a week, so we had lots of time to chat. It turned out that 5 (6 including myself) of the 9 divers including the DM, were all members of ScubaBoard at one time or another, but I was the only actively participating SM user.

A subsequent conversation with a friend who is also a moderator, has had me thinking about this, so here are my questions:

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1) What attracted you to ScubaBoard in the first place?

2) Are you satisfied that the board addresses your needs adequately? And if not what would you change, if you could to make it do so

3) Why do you think other folks who have joined, have not stayed around?

4) Do you have ideas on what the board either did not provide well, or what might have done to scare them away, without becoming participating members?

5) Do you have ideas or suggestions of new ways to both attract and keep new members, new divers involved, and satisfied with this forum?
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---------- Post added March 3rd, 2014 at 08:30 AM ----------

I will start by adding my own 2 cents.

I discovered SB while researching a dive trip back in '05, and was not a terribly active member for some time. I did though, find the info I was seeking.

I did soon after that did make some friends on the board, as both DeputyDan and Herman offered advice and invited my family to join their group for a trip to Bonaire.

I also later asked for underwater photography advice, and got a lot of help from such diverse members as ScubaSteve and DandyDon, who were more than willing to help a struggling novice.

I had a few conflicts in some of the threads along the way, especially early on, with some of the more vocal know it alls, but while that slowed me down a bit and kept me quiet, it did not scare me off. I just spent more time lurking till I became more comfortable standing up for my beliefs, and not afraid of the loud mouths. It just took me time to realize by lurking that they were a small minority, and not particularly as well respected universally as they might have thought, which made me feel less the outsider.

(Note) I think a lot of that 'know it all' attitude seems to have disappeared from the boards, or at least become far less of an issue. I heard a lot of feedback from non member divers between '95 and about 2000 that this "slamming of 'stupid questions' " was a big turn off, but I do not sense this same complaint from my more recent contactsd, when discussing SB. Now it seems more like SB is not supplying what divers are seeking, and they are just moving on to other sources of info.

I know many folks have moved on to FB, but while I enjoy FB a lot myself, I have never seen it as having the potential to reach as many divers, or to serve as a useful search base for dive related questions.

 

[Troy G.]

Dan, I couldn't agree with you more.

I am new to the boards and can speak of this first hand.

I defended myself against a "Mr. Know It All" that was being extremely condescending and rude. I feel my post was firm and to the point and did not violate the TOS and have seen much worse in these forums. When I did so, my post was immediately removed by a mystery moderator. I was not notified that the post was removed or even why it was removed. When I noticed the post was removed, I questioned the mystery moderator in the forum, I was then PM'ed by the moderator whom proceeded to lecture me in a somewhat negative tone and at that time and was issued 10 infraction points and my second posting was taken down. I strongly feel I was given the infraction, not for my comments directed toward the "Mr. Know It All," but rather for questioning the moderator in the public forum. If the moderator initially PM'ed me with an explanation I would have never questioned him in the public forum.

Because they "moderate" for free and in their spare time does not necessarily mean that they make the most sound decisions or are even the right person for the job. This should also not be an excuse to keep them as moderators simply because they are volunteers and no one else will do it.

Honestly, the aforementioned experience almost felt like I was a victim of the "good ole boy" system.

The thing that would cause me to move away from ScubaBoard would be the "Mr. Know It All's" who absolutely lack professionalism and tact and moderators who are free to do as they please without any supervision what so ever.

Aside from these two people, everyone else has been wonderful and offer different points of views.

 

[Para Goon]

1) What attracted you to ScubaBoard in the first place?

As a new diver I wanted to learn from the experiences, mistakes, and observations of other divers.

2) Are you satisfied that the board addresses your needs adequately? And if not what would you change, if you could to make it do so

For the most part, SB has satisfied my needs adequately. I'm not a fan of some of the demeaning and degrading remarks I've read, and that I felt I was subjected to as a new diver posting. I'm not sure what can be done about that. I just decided not let that detract from the positive experiences I've had.

3) Why do you think other folks who have joined, have not stayed around?

I know one person that gave up on SB due to personal attacks from a SB bully.

4) Do you have ideas on what the board either did not provide well, or what might have done to scare them away, without becoming participating members?

I'm not sure how you can encourage SB bullies to have a little bit of class.

5) Do you have ideas or suggestions of new ways to both attract and keep new members, new divers involved, and satisfied with this forum?

I would like to see a mentoring rank similar to a military ranking. I'm thinking of those members that I've developed a certain level of respect for and view as sort of a mentor. Where members can place a vote for other members that consistently provide useful and constructive information. When the member reaches a certain threshold of votes they are considered for a ranking promotion (i.e., awarded a stripe). The higher the rank, the higher the threshold level. The promotion would need to be approved by more than one SB moderator or SB board member.

Now that I've posted, it's time for a free SB beer...from my fridge.

 

[NAM001]

Not at all. The point was that in the past there was a lot of NON DIR bashing if you will. Either you were DIR or you were a nobody ect. If you notice I have said that that attitude has changed significantly for the better over the years. Unfortunately many quit coming to SB long ago and never came back because of how it was then. The hurt feelings are not mine. Its others that have told me that they wont go to SB because of it. For many it is not a DIR boast its a reminder that they are a nub. And for that i said many are thin skinned. I think once again that most everyone have come to terms with it. I say that cause there are also those that have told me that they came to SB expected to be laughed at or trashed for being inexperienced ect and was surprised that they were not. Some has said SB...no way that is where the TECH guys go and im just a OW guy. Others have told me that they will visit and read but not post. All examples of the fall out of the past. BTW there is nothing wrong with boasting when you have the have the merit badge to boast about. NOR do i see anything wrong with promoting the concepts. Some things just have to happen in thier own time.

You have to be kidding.. We make a DIR boast, and we get reamed!!!

 

[danvolker]

Not at all. The point was that in the past there was a lot of NON DIR bashing if you will. Either you were DIR or you were a nobody ect. If you notice I have said that that attitude has changed significantly for the better over the years. Unfortunately many quit coming to SB long ago and never came back because of how it was then. The hurt feelings are not mine. Its others that have told me that they wont go to SB because of it. For many it is not a DIR boast its a reminder that they are a nub. And for that i said many are thin skinned. I think once again that most everyone have come to terms with it. I say that cause there are also those that have told me that they came to SB expected to be laughed at or trashed for being inexperienced ect and was surprised that they were not. Some has said SB...no way that is where the TECH guys go and im just a OW guy. Others have told me that they will visit and read but not post. All examples of the fall out of the past. BTW there is nothing wrong with boasting when you have the have the merit badge to boast about. NOR do i see anything wrong with promoting the concepts. Some things just have to happen in thier own time.

OK, I don't want to sound like I am boasting, or sound obnoxious....
I am thinking Pete ( Net Doc) could help with this....each of us could start building an "Obnoxious Rating" that anyone viewing a post can contribute to.....those of us that are unknowingly obnoxious--and start building a high rating, will see that we need to alter our posting styles...though I am sure some of the posters here will relish the high rating, and glory in it

 

[NAM001]

You know that actually has merit. If you can like or report a post why not a congeniality rating. Personally I have problems with very few on SB. For me its consider the source or just accept that someone does not share the same opinion. Thats the price of free exchange of ideas. Then when someone calles me a nub and he has a high jerk rating i just say consider the source, and move on. Good idea dan

OK, I don't want to sound like I am boasting, or sound obnoxious....
I am thinking Pete ( Net Doc) could help with this....each of us could start building an "Obnoxious Rating" that anyone viewing a post can contribute to.....those of us that are unknowingly obnoxious--and start building a high rating, will see that we need to alter our posting styles...though I am sure some of the posters here will relish the high rating, and glory in it

 

[gypsyjim]

When I began this thread I was thinking mostly of the many divers I have met who had become members of SB, but who then apparently simply never found a reason to stay and participate. I was not focusing on the older members who either quit, or were asked to go away, or "put on vacation". olice:

As large a membership as SB has, our membership I believe is still just a small percentage of the population who dive. Other than the negative comments by various LDS's I mentioned early on, I have not gotten the impression as I met these ex-SB member, that they were driven away. Mostly it seems that as after joining, and looking around a bit, they found little to keep them interested and they just wandered away.
Capturing the interest of divers who have just "discovered" ScubaBoard for the first time, and then holding that attention for longer so that the many divers who seem to drop in and "sample the wares" but move on, actually start to participate, was my original thought/goal in beginning the thread.

One undercurrent I see developing in the thread though is an exploration of some of the tension between various members, and some members the staff and the ownership itself, that has caused more than a few members to quit posting.
Since I started this thread I have had several old members contact me outside of SB to explain why they have left the board, and universally they have expressed anger at the ownership and not so much the staff of mods themselves.
The words "bullying" and "it's my playground, I make the rules" have cropped up in those conversations now more than once, but as I was not a witness or participant in whatever went on in those exchanges I am not in a position to make any judgement. Personally, while I have not always agreed with decisions made by the staff of SB, and have said so, , I also have never felt that I was not heard and responded to honestly and fairly.

I am one of the members who is pretty satisfied by my contacts with the staff of moderators up to this point, and while I am not above the occasional I also know when to back off from a conflict with those who hold the key to the club house door.

 

[Nosnhoj]

Who could forget the Dr. Matt saga... I actually learned a lot from his mistakes.

 

[NAM001]

Presently There are currently 2919 users online. 367 members and 2552 guests

As large a membership as SB has, our membership I believe is still just a small percentage of the population who dive.

 

[boulderjohn]

I participate in some other forums in addition to ScubaBoard. I would like to talk about two of them in which I have stopped participating, although I go back to each occasionally. Perhaps my reasons for not participating in those forums any more may be instructive.

Forum One: This forum was created years ago by some people who were not happy with ScubaBoard. If you think ScubaBoard is focused on technical diving, you should see this one. If you think ScubaBoard is rude, you should see this one. Ask a question someone thinks is stupid, and you will be told it was a stupid question, and the language used might include a whole host of words not allowed on ScubaBoard. A lot of people quit using that forum, and someone recently told me that it is better under new ownership, but I haven't checked it out to see.

Forum Two: This one was as opposite from Forum One as possible. Everyone was quite polite, and there were no dramatic exchanges that I could see. In fact, I had trouble finding anything on it that captured my interest. Like ScubaBoard, it had an Instructor to Instructor forum, and I invited a number of instructors to join that forum so we could discuss a topic openly without the drama that would happen if we tried it in the ScubaBoard Instructor to Instructor forum. It worked well, and when we were done, I wrote a message summarizing the situation. More than a year passed while I worked on the results of our discussion, a year in which we got an important article published as a result of that discussion. After that fruitful year, I went back into that Instructor to Instructor forum to report on those results, and when I did, I discovered that the last post anyone had made in that forum was mine from more than a year before.

So I have stopped using two forums at the extreme ends of the spectrum. Once was so volatile and rude that I was repulsed by it. The other was so very tame that nothing of interest was ever happening. I hope ScubaBoard can steer a path somewhere in the middle.

 

[TSandM]

I think it has, which is why it has survived and stayed active, where so many other scuba forums have dwindled or died.