moving threads

WhiteWashMan

hmmm, ok, so a couple of things have happened inthe last week that have left me feeling rather annoyed and frustrated with AH and the level of crap thats posted in it.

first off, i have put up a thread asking for people to look at where they are posting, and asking to post in the correct forum if applicable.
i got back a load of moaning about this and that.
ive had moderators complaining that when i mive threads, they are full of crap.

now, im asking the people that use this forum what we should do.

so, what im looking for here instead of the usual moaning and whinging, are some solutions to the problem.

so what do we do those threads that should really have a home somewhere else. i mean, they are just clogging up the forum where we should ahve some decent no content threads, preferably started by CSG or faceman etc....

Kiera

So this is to be the brain-dead forum of boards then?

WhiteWashMan

you tell me.

Terry

ban them all. they'll get the hint fairly quickly.

oh, and lock the threads rather than pissing off the other mods.

Ruu_Old

Lock them and leave a note if the user didnt know already, that they to post it in the correct forum.

Dermington

After Hours should be used for shooting the proverbial sh!t.

Dont clog it with threads about taxi's, politics or violence.

RandomOne

WhiteWashMan wrote:

ive had moderators complaining that when i mive threads, they are full of crap.

now, im asking the people that use this forum what we should do.

so, what im looking for here instead of the usual moaning and whinging, are some solutions to the problem.

so what do we do those threads that should really have a home somewhere else.

The lack of a search function makes it a bit tricky for an OP or others to find a thread they've been following once it's moved. My suggestion would be mod's to make a last post in an incorrectly posted thread advising the OP where their question/post ought to be made.

Then lock the original thread, giving the OP the option of posting where he might get more useful answers, and none of the inappropriate (And rule-breaking in new forum) crap ends up elsewhere.

The locked threads would soon fall off the bottom of AH, and could be purged after sufficient time has gone by, and people being made to repost in the right place would educate them for next time.

WhiteWashMan

when i move a thread, i leave a marker they can follow to whatver forum its in. the most anyone will have to do is search back over 2 pages to find a recent thread.

Sleepy

Is it possible to purge the spam from the thread and then move it? I realise this might take a while but if you're overwhelmed I'm sure there's always some sucker one out there prepared to lend a hand in modding AH...

Kiera

Well no, it shouldnt be but if you are approving of the above thread starters i dont see how it wont be.

I agree that there are a lot of lazy feckers who just post here due to the high traffic but I don’t think you should move the more general threads. I’d say you could move every single thread in here if you really wanted to.

How about sticking it in the charter and warning people they’ll be banned if they posts threads that obviously don’t belong here. They cant say they weren’t warned!

monkeyfudge

I say lock them. People don't seem to learn when their hands are held and it's moved to the correct forum for them

The worst are the cheeky bastards who know there is a proper forum but post in AH just to reach a larger audience. Bans for them please!

Angels

I think threads posted in AH that are not meant to be there, should be moved to the relavent forums.

r3nu4l

I think you should lock them and recommend where they might be posted instead with a caveat stating to examine that forums' charter before re-posting.

Sometimes in Feedback I've noticed people complain that after a thread was moved, they got banned by the mod of the forum it was moved to because of some content. The poster then goes on to say that if they had posted in the correct forum initially they would have thought out the post more clearly.

It appears that in AH you can get a little non-sensical and whimsy without the mods getting annoyed (and every board needs a place like that) whereas the same post in another forum would take on a far more serious and intelligent tone.

To sum up: Lock and advise where to post. Warn user to read charter.

RandomOne

WhiteWashMan wrote:

when i move a thread, i leave a marker they can follow to whatver forum its in. the most anyone will have to do is search back over 2 pages to find a recent thread.

Sorry, hadn't realised they were clicky. (Also meant no "posts by" search, which is generally easier to find stuff with than general search)

r3nu4l

Kiera wrote:

How about sticking it in the charter and warning people they’ll be banned if they posts threads that obviously don’t belong here. They cant say they weren’t warned!

It already does:

Larger audience
- Posting on AH simply "to reach a larger audience" may result in a ban. The thread will be moved/deleted. If your thread is more suited to another board then please post it there. After Hours is to discuss non-specific topics and issues in a general way. If you have a serious Political or News post, they should be posted on their specific forums.

WhiteWashMan

Sleepy wrote:

Is it possible to purge the spam from the thread and then move it? I realise this might take a while but if you're overwhelmed I'm sure there's always some sucker one out there prepared to lend a hand in modding AH...

sorry, but i for one am not prepared to go through a couple of pages that have appeared in a couple of hours, make the distinction as to what is worthy and what isnt worthy of a new forum.

its not my job to vet threads for other forums. and i dont have the time either. and when boards.ie is dawg slow, i cant be arsed.

if i was paid to do this, id happily do it, but im not.

im looking for the easiest, simplest way to do this, that the residence of AH agree si overall the best thing to do.
but the discussion has been had on this idea, believe me.

The Hill Billy

Move them. There's enough sh1te in here without serious stuff clogging up the pipes.

Mossy Monk

delete them

azezil

Well I say!

Come on, people now
Smile on each other
Everybody get together
And Love one another
Right Now.

*sways*

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

Adam

I'm for locking with a warning too. That way other forum mods aren't annoyed and fed the inevitable crap in AH but the OP will know what the problem was and can decide whether or not to take their issue to the right place.

6th

Ruu wrote:

Lock them and leave a note if the user didnt know already, that they to post it in the correct forum.

Perfect solution, no other suggestions needed.

biko

Kill them all - let God sort them out.

WhiteWashMan

ok, well, i will leave this open for a day or two and see what the overall concensus is.

personally, im of the opinion that threads that *should* be in another forum, should be moved, after all, there are fora out there that lose traffic due to people just spamming AH,and i'd like to see them be used.

mikedragon32

monkeyfudge wrote:

I say lock them. People don't seem to learn when their hands are held and it's moved to the correct forum for them

The worst are the cheeky bastards who know there is a proper forum but post in AH just to reach a larger audience. Bans for them please!

Exactly...

RandomOne

azezil wrote:

Well I say!

Come on, people now
Smile on each other
Everybody get together
And Love one another
Right Now.

*sways*

Send 'em all to Azezil to sort!

Heyes

Let people post what the want, and if there is intrest from people then keep the thread open, where as if people are just thinking what trip then close it.. simple as

WhiteWashMan

6th wrote:

Perfect solution, no other suggestions needed.

yes, but luckily enough, id like to take in everyones views.

after all, if we just took one persons view, and it just happened to be mine, youd be sitebanned from boards.ie

but thank you for telling us your preference!

Kiera

Heyes wrote:

Let people post what the want, and if there is intrest from people then keep the thread open, where as if people are just thinking what trip then close it.. simple as

I think someone stumbled into the wrong thread. You’re not on the same page as us, Heyes, are you?

Black Swan

Some are innocent mistakes by noobies, others are intentional misplacements. The smart noobies will learn by getting moved once, the less than smart will use up mod time and should get trashed. The intentional misplacements are often put on AH because AH has a larger audience than the appropriate forum, so it's up to the mod to move or trash, but the OP should get a warning. For example, we had no less than 2 tattoo OPs today on AH that should have been in Arts/tattoo.:rolleyes:

But playing devil's advocate, when it's not clear cut that a OP should or should not be on AH, then it should probably remain in the interests of creative free speech. Good luck mods! Glad it's your job and not mine. If we give you a headache, stop by. I always keep plenty of aspirin handy.:D

WhiteWashMan

biko wrote:

Kill them all - let God sort them out.

you know, it really did cross my mind. but can you imagine the admin required to get contracts on various users....

besides, ecksor told me i could put it in. i wanted to put in kill the admins.

spoil sports.

hayes wrote:

Let people post what the want, and if there is intrest from people then keep the thread open, where as if people are just thinking what trip then close it.. simple as

not exactly what we are talking about....

we are talking about place of posting, rather than quality.
if i could close all the crap threads and posts, there wouldnt only be my posts here

RoundyMooney

WhiteWashMan wrote:

personally, im of the opinion that threads that *should* be in another forum, should be moved, after all, there are fora out there that lose traffic due to people just spamming AH,and i'd like to see them be used.

I agree, up to a point. My own opinion is lock 'em and leave 'em. The majority of posters here are and have been around long enough to get the message. A combined heads up/polite warning by yourself, Giblet or whoever should make it clear to even the most cretinous boardsie.

Weeks ban for second offence, month or greater for the third, at the mods discretion, I suggest.

This approach should become self policing after a while, with traffic moving to the relevant forums, in some cases at least.

Less work long term for you guys, and for those who have to sweep up elsewhere.

Thanks for putting this out for discussion in the first place.

RoundyMooney

Heyes wrote:

Let people post what the want, and if there is intrest from people then keep the thread open, where as if people are just thinking what trip then close it.. simple as

Haven't a clue what you mean, but I'm guessing you're talking about something completely different...

Dyr

what happens in after hours stays in after hours

I'm assuming everyone who posts here isnt aware of all the other forums available off the top of their heads so there could be some leeway for people who dont blatanly violate the inappropriate forum rule. Also some common sense in applying the rule. ie a thread on road deaths isnt frogmarched over to the the motors forum for example. TBH there isnt a whole of content here of earth shattering importacne that it needs to rescued from clogging up.

Definitely some feedback in threads that are locked would be helpful...why they got themselves locked etc. I had my "scumbag arrested" thread locked presumably because some arsegán linked videos of people hitting each other but twould be nice to know.

Do we need *gulp* more mods in AH? mybe some kind of community policing type mods?

Ickle Magoo

If it's in the charter then you could ban the poster...that way they couldn't post "where did my post go" threads...:)

I think everyone pretty much knows what should or shouldn't go in AH & so I think the only way you are going to prevent people posting to get to a larger audience is to delete the post thereby taking away the motive & banning from AH for a wk which is a good incentive to check & see if there is a more suitable alternative....:D

Heyes

Roundmooney, Kiera , wwm.... just ignore my blond moment, its the heat i tell ya im only half paying attention, which is more that normal

IvaBigWun

You moved this thread to Weather. Now its closed. Well done This weeks weather is surely a "general" (i.e. AH) topic and not a specific one where nobody really posts anyway (Science > Weather). I dont think you have the balance right with all this moving stuff around.

r3nu4l

Slightly different take on what I wrote earlier but sometimes people like to take a lighthearted approach to a topic that won't be tolerated in the 'appropriate' forum. I've noticed that some of the people in specialist forums don't apear to take kindly to threads that are a 'bit of fun'.

Perhaps there could be a tag for these threads so that the AH mods recognise that this is more a light-entertainment thread than a serious debate.

For example a thread entitled 'Mary Harney and Cadburys chocolate salmonella weight loss diet" would obviously not be meant for the Politics forum, the snacks/sweets forum or the Fitness forum.

Admittedly the above named hypothetical thread would be tripe but you get my point (I hope) It might have a place in AH considering some of the other stuff I've seen here.

EDIT: At the risk of a banning! Tsk, tsk WWM, shouldn't this thread be in Feedback? Please don't post here just to get a larger audience response

delly

IvaBigWun wrote:

You moved this thread to Weather. Now its closed. Well done This weeks weather is surely a "general" (i.e. AH) topic and not a specific one where nobody really posts anyway (Science > Weather). I dont think you have the balance right with all this moving stuff around.

Why in the hell would it be a general topic this week only. If you want to comment on the weather then post in the weather forum. The reason it was closed was of bad language from other users, not because of the topic.

Your the type of person that causes this hassle by posting about whatever you want in AH.

WhiteWashMan

IvaBigWun wrote:

You moved this thread to Weather. Now its closed. Well done This weeks weather is surely a "general" (i.e. AH) topic and not a specific one where nobody really posts anyway (Science > Weather). I dont think you have the balance right with all this moving stuff around.

i never said i did. but thanks for the critisism. did you have anything useful to add?

The Sweeper

IvaBigWun wrote:

You moved this thread to Weather. Now its closed. Well done This weeks weather is surely a "general" (i.e. AH) topic and not a specific one where nobody really posts anyway (Science > Weather). I dont think you have the balance right with all this moving stuff around.

...the only thing bizarre about that is why it was closed. No spamming, abuse, shill linkies, insults, off topic ramblings - the closure's a bigger question than the move!

projectmayhem

move the thread to it's appropriate place, and PM the OP of said thread to tell them to watch where they post these things in future... if they do the same again (i.e. use AH because it gets more posts instead of the webmaster forum to show off their new site) lock the thread and dish out a temp ban

nothing worse then going around forums here and seeing a list of "moved" threads

Rovi

I'd suggest a two pronged approach-

If a Mod (note respectful capitalisation) sees a thread in time that obviously should be somewhere else, move it and leave a place marker in AH.

If a thread might/should be somewhere else, but has already taken on something of an AH ambience (profanity, incoherent rambling, OT chit chat, stuff that would fall foul of the 'correct' forum's charter, etc), lock it and suggest that the OP might get better results by posting their topic in the correct forum.

Stern telling off, ban, etc for persistent offenders.

ST*

Administer one week bans for repeated offenders. If it is rubbish talk, move to TCN or recycle bin, or lock as appropriate. If it has a place elsewhere on boards, then move it. Consult the mod for the forum if you have any doubts.

Dustaz

This really should be in feedback, move it please.

Seriously though, this is a function of how big and unwieldy boards has become. Should anything slighly politcal be put into politics? Should anything relating to tv be in the tv forum? and these are only the ones that we all KNOW theres a forum for. 90 seconds ago i would have been perfectly confident about posting a thread about Lego or Marriages here, untill i checked the new fora for the purposes of this post (The fact that we have these forums should be ringing alarm bells but thats another discussion).

AH SHOULD be a forum where the masses with no particular interest can discuss topics of general concern. I like seeing the much larger and more general reaction to the taxi strike here rather than the intensly boring TLDR posts in politics about them or the much lower population taxi forum (What? There ISNT ONE? WTF sort it out immediatly)

AH will always contain mindless drivel about everything. The only real solution is to delete the forum which would force people to find the 'correct' forum to post in.

Having said all that, i voted to just move to the correct forum.

manonthemoon

Dustaz wrote:

AH will always contain mindless drivel about everything. .

I just started a thread about whether Lois Lane is a slut or not? Discuss

Whitewashman said it should go to the films forum. (I was like WTF)

Yeah, the movie buffs would be real keen on discussing that one! :rolleyes:


For the record:

LOIS LANE IS A HO

RuggieBear

You've done grand, laddie! Now ya know what ya have ta do! Burn the
house down! Burn 'em all!

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h260/ellyns77/ralph.jpg

Adam

I think dustaz hit the nail on the head, I'm sure b.us is a lot easier to mod! However its probably not an option to wander around deleting the lesser used forums really is it? Ah well *shrug*

The Sweeper

Well, another option is to do a massive forum cull. Anything that does have activity over a certain number of views a day gets deleted and it all comes back into After Hours.

At the moment there seems to be one distinction between After Hours and every other forum on boards.ie - if you want people to say funny shit on your thread, you post it in AH. If you want them to take it seriously, you don't.

Nevyn

Kiera wrote:

So this is to be the brain-dead forum of boards then?

lol it always was.

manonthemoon wrote:

I just started a thread about whether Lois Lane is a slut or not? Discuss

Whitewashman said it should go to the films forum. (I was like WTF)

True comics would be a better place for it.

I think the name of the forum should be changed to general bollix or inane chatter.

Serious threads that belong in other forums shoud be locked with a note showing where they should be.

r3nu4l

Minesajackdaniels wrote:

At the moment there seems to be one distinction between After Hours and every other forum on boards.ie - if you want people to say funny shit on your thread, you post it in AH. If you want them to take it seriously, you don't.

This has the sweet aroma of truth about it.