[Discussion] - A Charter for Cool Vids

The Recliner

Hi Guys

Cool Vids needs a charter, the forum is growing and needs some guidelines to keep it ticking over and put some shape on it

Part of this charter will include some rules for the themed threads that have been discussed over the last little while so that there is consistancy in how we mod those threads

What rules or guidelines would you like to see in the charter?

As well as some rules and guidelines for the forum I would like to see the charter include some aims or aspirations for the forum

So this is your chance to shape the future of the forum, what do you think the forum should strive to be or does it need a purpose at all, should it just wander aimlessly from thread to thread as it has done?

What sort of things would you like to see in the foruma dn what sort of things do you not want to see in the forum?

Mozoltov!

Following along the lines of rules for the Photoshop Competition me thinks.

1. No nudity.
2. No acts of racism/sexism/ageism or any other ism's.
3. If posting a vid that you're unsure about, PM a mod or use NSFW tags and don't embed.
4. No pornographic content.
5. No videos about how to take/use/grow/prepare drugs and/or any other illegal contrabands.
6. No videos/pictures/links of violence or illegal activities.

Superbus

Possibly - "Judge whether your vid/pic/link merits it's own thread. Clutter is not appreciated."

Penn

No "Old", "This was funny three months ago when I first saw it" etc comments. Just because you've seen it before doesn't mean everyone else has.

The Recliner

Thanks guys

Basically what I want to achieve is a charter that has the general rules that the forum needs but also includes a set of rules for the themed threads

I want to have the same set of rules cover all these threads and have it included in the charter, that way people don't have to worry about which thread they are posting in and the rules and modding are consistant, I think this makes it fair for mods and posters alike

Any more ideas or feedback is appreciated

MitchKoobski

List of what already has a thread:

• Youtube videos? Has a thread.
• Funny pics? Has a thread.
• Demotivationals? Has a thread.
• Funny GIFs? Has a thread.
• Photoshop? Has a thread.

The Recliner

MitchKoobski wrote: »

List of what already has a thread:

• Youtube videos? Has a thread.
• Funny pics? Has a thread.
• Demotivationals? Has a thread.
• Funny GIFs? Has a thread.
• Photoshop? Has a thread.

See what I am kind of trying to achieve is apart from the above which have their own threads what else do we want in the forum

Basically the above threads cover most things which can be put here

Some people start up single threads for a youtube vid and it either gets merged into the meag thread or it is allowed to live and it is a random thing really, I would like to put a bit of structure on it

Do people want a free for all on threads? Allow people to start them if they want and don't merge them?

bleg

The Recliner wrote: »

Do people want a free for all on threads? Allow people to start them if they want and don't merge them?

I think it depends on the content, I'm happy to let the mods use their best judgement to be honest.

Mackman

I might be drunk right now, but my idea for the charter is:

If you dont think something is funny, ignore it. Dont be a dickhead ny saying "thats not funny, my superior intellect is superior to yours therefore its not funny" that goes for YLTL thread, Gif thread, motivational thread, etc. pretty much all threads. Different people have differnet kinds of humour.

Unless its of very bad taste, e.g. dead people. then no on efinds it funny. wel, some serial killers might. might, tbut they're a very small minority, i think. . [hic]

Peace, where's my beer, oh there it is in my hand mmmmmm

CrazyRabbit

The Recliner wrote: »

See what I am kind of trying to achieve is apart from the above which have their own threads what else do we want in the forum

Basically the above threads cover most things which can be put here

Some people start up single threads for a youtube vid and it either gets merged into the meag thread or it is allowed to live and it is a random thing really, I would like to put a bit of structure on it

Do people want a free for all on threads? Allow people to start them if they want and don't merge them?

There are some video's and images that are likely to spark debate or get multiple comments. It's not a good idea to have these in the mega thread, so I think it's fine to leave them in their own thread. I think most people know when to put something in the mega thread, and when to use a standalone thread.

So perhaps something like:

Please post your video's, images, gifs etc in the appropriate mega thread. However, if you feel that the content is likely to generate significant debate or comments, then please post it in its own thread. An example would be picture caption threads or controversial images/videos etc.

The Recliner

I am going to make a stab at doing up a charter this week/weekend so if anyone has anything else to add then please let me know

Thanks
Rec

The Recliner

It was suggested previously and I have been having a think about it

Would anyone object if we were to archive off the big threads like You Laugh, you lose, Youtube, Picture battle when they hit a big number, every 1000 posts or so?

I would archive them in the way I do the photoshop suggestions thread, as in keep the same thread but move all the posts to a rolling archive thread

I just think this would help keep them fresh and stop people getting so annoyed about reposts

There would be a link in the first post to the archive and it wouldn't have any impact to people subscribed to the thread?

Any thoughts/comments?

CrazyRabbit

Nice idea. Perhaps even a smaller number of posts, like 500?
It's hard to find the right balance. On one hand, keep the thread small enough that it might prevent/reduce reposts, but on the other hand, let new visitors be able to see the older posts that are completely new to them.

I presume the archive will still be visible to everyone? If so, then 500 posts with a permanent link to the archive should work well.

Just my 2c.

leggo

Howya lads. I was banned from here earlier for alleged 'spamming' of my own vids. I appealed the ban and, in fairness to the mod involved, he heard me out and lifted the ban due to a grey area in the current charter over whether the 'Your YouTube Video Goes Here' thread should contain videos from YouTube members. He's also asked me to weigh in on the argument here.

For what it's worth...and I have said this to the mod in question...the videos are promoting a podcast/entertainment project that I run. We have done a lot of work on boards before, offered the opportunity for members to have their questions posed to various people we've had on for interview, and YouTube insights for several of our video campaigns in the past have many hits from boards.

The so-called 'spamming' was to do with myself posting several promotional videos for the new series of the show in the 'Your Video Goes Here' thread. I posted new videos as they were released, one a week, and only posted them once (so didn't see how that constituted 'spamming'...but that's water under the bridge now). I never attempted to hijack or de-rail: people could easily just ignore them if they wished. Some may click them and find themselves intrigued...brilliant! If not...no worries, no harm done either.

Personally, I see no harm in boardsies posting their own videos...even if they are promotional. As long as it's obvious that the person hasn't signed up for the sole purpose of self-promotion (i.e. if my account was 'OfficialAMT' it'd be a different story). People can ignore them or alternatively may enjoy them.

Why should these threads be a proverbial glass ceiling by which only already-popular videos should be promoted? Why shouldn't boards be proud that it can play a part in helping its own members have their own creative input seen and heard? If said creative efforts were to take off...I'm sure the members and mods would be delighted that it was thanks to this forum's exposure. As long as it's not done in a crude, distracting way that irritates other members, then said members can easily ignore these videos when they are posted if they so wish.

I'm happy enough to go along with whatever the new charter says. But if it rules against my argument, I have to say I'll be disappointed. The work and effort that goes into promoting a small, independent brand is enormous (and, at times, rewardless) and it would be a poor reflection on boards, imo, if they were to ignore these efforts in favour of simply promoting only videos that were already YouTube 'sensations'.

dr.bollocko

Thanks for bringing that one up leggo. I don't want to remove stuff our posters have created however I don't want to provide a platform for, you know, just bad content from people who don't regularly post to be OK. So I'd definitely like to see something in place which allows boardsies to post their own stuff, certainly without the unfortunate situation today.
I do apologise for the confusion caused by this and in retrospect the ban was unnecessary and OTT on my part. It happens. I do make plenty of mistakes. I digress.
One good thing which came from this is at least in having that conversation with you we can look at solving the problem in the general case.
So, silver lining and all that.

The Recliner

How about we keep the current Youtube thread as is and set up a second thread for Boardsies to post their own content

People can then chose to look at it or not?

dr.bollocko

The Recliner wrote: »

How about we keep the current Youtube thread as is and set up a second thread for Boardsies to post their own content

People can then chose to look at it or not?

You know I think we actually had a thread for that before.
I'll go digging and get back to you.

OutlawPete

Here would be my (long & boring) thinking on the above ..

Advertising stuff is easily dealt with as Boards stance on users advertising on the forum should cover the more spammy Vids of people just wanting to pimp their vids in order to make some cash and nothing else. Maybe adding something to the Charter about users not being allowed to post YouTube vids if there is any form of blatant advertising in the 'video description' or content of their vids.

It's the rest of the stuff that is very hard to make forum rules on and if you have a Charter rule that states that users can just post what they want, as long as it's not a money making venture, you still could get a whole load of nonsense being posted such as:

<Here's my acoustic guitar version of Chris De Burgh's Lady In Red>

<Here's my vlog opinion on the Dublin riots>

I guess you could have 'Pimp Your Own Content' thread for the above but if the mods felt that such a thread was indeed the way to go, it would need to be a Sticky, as it would just fall of the front page very fast, as I seem to remember was the fate of the last one the forum had.

Part of the problem is that the title of the YouTube thread is:

"Your Internet Videos"

This implies that that is the purpose of the thread is to post videos that you own/created and I don't think that has ever been what the thread was intended for or even been about - as 99.9% of the videos posted in that thread, are just videos people have seen on the net and liked and thought that others might do also.

I think a better name for the thread would be: "Cool / Funny Internet Videos".
Or something similar.

If a user has a Funny / Cool Vid of their own that they have in fact created, then they can still just post that in the 'Internet Videos' thread and if they wanted to could always include in the post: 'This is one of my own vids folks', I see no harm in that once the video fits the thread.

Whenever a user creates a funny pic, they just post it in You Laugh You Lose and so I see no reason why the "Internet Vids" thread shouldn't work on the same principal.

Promotional Podcasts though, I feel are very different.

These I don't think belong in a the 'Internet Vids' thread at all, because they are posted with an intent of getting more than a just a laugh and are not just about one individual post. They are posted in an effort to promote something bigger and I think such videos should have a separate thread.

If the Podcast is just being posted on it's own merits as been funny or cool, then that's different - but when it's been posted with the intent of drawing attention to further Podcasts, then I would suggest that Cool Vids has a separate thread for this.

If a user did then post a Promotional Podcast in the 'Internet Vids' thread (or indeed started their own separate thread and the moderators felt that the video didn't warrant doing so) then it would just be a simple matter of 'moving' the post to the 'Self Promotion / Pimping' thread.

CrazyRabbit

Perhaps a mega-thread for user vlogs & non-profit promotional videos? Of course, it could be hard to determine what is and is not non-profit.

The thing is, I don't see it would get much interest. I don't think there is much of a market (so to speak) for these. But I guess they have to go somewhere...or they are simply not allowed at all.

MitchKoobski

More cowbell

leggo

OutlawPete wrote: »

Here would be my (long & boring) thinking on the above ..

Advertising stuff is easily dealt with as Boards stance on users advertising on the forum should cover the more spammy Vids of people just wanting to pimp their vids in order to make some cash and nothing else. Maybe adding something to the Charter about users not being allowed to post YouTube vids if there is any form of blatant advertising in the 'video description' or content of their vids.

It's the rest of the stuff that is very hard to make forum rules on and if you have a Charter rule that states that users can just post what they want, as long as it's not a money making venture, you still could get a whole load of nonsense being posted such as:

<Here's my acoustic guitar version of Chris De Burgh's Lady In Red>

<Here's my vlog opinion on the Dublin riots>

I guess you could have 'Pimp Your Own Content' thread for the above but if the mods felt that such a thread was indeed the way to go, it would need to be a Sticky, as it would just fall of the front page very fast, as I seem to remember was the fate of the last one the forum had.

Part of the problem is that the title of the YouTube thread is:

"Your Internet Videos"

This implies that that is the purpose of the thread is to post videos that you own/created and I don't think that has ever been what the thread was intended for or even been about - as 99.9% of the videos posted in that thread, are just videos people have seen on the net and liked and thought that others might do also.

I think a better name for the thread would be: "Cool / Funny Internet Videos".
Or something similar.

If a user has a Funny / Cool Vid of their own that they have in fact created, then they can still just post that in the 'Internet Videos' thread and if they wanted to could always include in the post: 'This is one of my own vids folks', I see no harm in that once the video fits the thread.

Whenever a user creates a funny pic, they just post it in You Laugh You Lose and so I see no reason why the "Internet Vids" thread shouldn't work on the same principal.

Promotional Podcasts though, I feel are very different.

These I don't think belong in a the 'Internet Vids' thread at all, because they are posted with an intent of getting more than a just a laugh and are not just about one individual post. They are posted in an effort to promote something bigger and I think such videos should have a separate thread.

If the Podcast is just being posted on it's own merits as been funny or cool, then that's different - but when it's been posted with the intent of drawing attention to further Podcasts, then I would suggest that Cool Vids has a separate thread for this.

If a user did then post a Promotional Podcast in the 'Internet Vids' thread (or indeed started their own separate thread and the moderators felt that the video didn't warrant doing so) then it would just be a simple matter of 'moving' the post to the 'Self Promotion / Pimping' thread.

I think you've got it dead on mate. But give the Pimping thread a catchy title like 'Boardsies Are Doing It For Themselves', which tells the reader what to expect but at the same time doesn't sound like users who click it are going to be inundated with advertisements. Because, while I might make a post promoting something, the guy who sings Chris de Burgh doesn't have to be tarred with the same brush.

That way: it will be worth looking at to get a look at the viral ramblings of the people posting, provide a good outlet for boardsies to have their own original content viewed and keep the integrity of the current YouTube vids thread intact. And it also ENCOURAGES boardsies to get up and make their own stuff then, who knows, maybe another poster will like what they see and post it in the main YouTube thread, on their Facebook/Twitter etc and you could have a YouTube sensation started right here.

MitchKoobski

One I've only thought of recently, but it's a small one.

If you're gonna post someone's photoshop entry into You Laugh You Lose, do the decent thing and give them credit for it and link it. Seen a couple of these being reposted before from the Photoshop Competition, into YLYL by different users.

MitchKoobski

MitchKoobski wrote: »

One I've only thought of recently, but it's a small one.

If you're gonna post someone's photoshop entry into You Laugh You Lose, do the decent thing and give them credit for it and link it. Seen a couple of these being reposted before from the Photoshop Competition, into YLYL by different users.

If this is the case, then the user who didn't give the credit should be banned from this forum. It's one thing to steal someone else's work and pass it off as your own, but it's utterly stupid to do it in the exact same forum.

Amp test, anyone?

how about a thread just for those trollface pic's

I found it amusing at first. Now, well, I have looked at the YLYL thread maybe 3 times in the last 6 months because its destroyed with them

Just an idea

Queen-Mise

What I would love in here somewhere is - a Discussion thread for any questions that might come up because of a picture on YLYL or Photos that Shook the World. Neither of those threads are suitable for chat.

But there has been a load of picture on YLYL & obviously so in Shook the World, that I would have liked to ask more questions about. It would make a mods job very easy - just move posts out, and any discussion can then continue in peace on whatever the topic of the picture is.

On YouTube vids on their own and not in the main thread - if interesting & generate support they will stay on main page - if not they will fall off quick enough. And I have seen a few Youtube clips get their own thread because a mod thought the video deserved it - so flexibility has to be a part of it.


I agree with DaCor on the trollface pictures - I love them, but can understand how people can HATE them :D

And all usual racism etc etc needs to go in the charter. The other thing I would like to see not being allowed are jokes where fat people are the joke - I think the first picture in this post is tasteless and has no place in any humour thread (maybe because I think it is sad & not funny) http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=71611754&postcount=12141


Oh & we definitely need an Oldies thread. I have been on here regularly for the past few months - there are years of pictures that I have not had the pleasure of viewing. We have oldies fans for great books/music/movies/TV shows - why not pictures, youtube clips etc.


That is my tuppence worth - I had only intended to write a short note

Yitzhak Rabin

Thanks for all the feedback guys. I like the idea of a discussion thread to run concurrent to the YLYL thread. Just means I'll have to be moving a lot more posts, but'll definitely help keep the thread moving. Couldn't harm to see how it works anyway.

I think I'll put up a poll on the meme having a thread of its own, and see what the consensus is.

I'm not sure about snipping fat joke pics. I don't consider them to be too offensive, and I think there is a distinction between racism/mental retardation/etc. and being overweight, insofar as in the vast majority of cases being overweight is self-inflicted rather than something you are born with. That said, if it something people feel strongly about, I will of course snip it.

Penn

yekahS wrote: »

Thanks for all the feedback guys. I like the idea of a discussion thread to run concurrent to the YLYL thread. Just means I'll have to be moving a lot more posts, but'll definitely help keep the thread moving. Couldn't harm to see how it works anyway.

I think I'll put up a poll on the meme having a thread of its own, and see what the consensus is.

I'm not sure about snipping fat joke pics. I don't consider them to be too offensive, and I think there is a distinction between racism/mental retardation/etc. and being overweight, insofar as in the vast majority of cases being overweight is self-inflicted rather than something you are born with. That said, if it something people feel strongly about, I will of course snip it.

The thing about Having all the trollface pics in one thread is, where do you stop? I mean, Forever Alone Guy probably gets as many pictures as trollface. But if you start having different threads for a few different memes, it could split the traffic throught YLYL

Queen-Mise

Barrington wrote: »

The thing about Having all the trollface pics in one thread is, where do you stop? I mean, Forever Alone Guy probably gets as many pictures as trollface. But if you start having different threads for a few different memes, it could split the traffic throught YLYL

I would have presumed they would go together... But I see your point.

I adore them - some fantastic humour to them.

YehahS - not all obesity is self-inflicted... that recent thread on the obese 3 year old - that is obviously a medical condition with the child & not overeating. IMO anyone who found any humour in that is the equivalent in finding humour in a person with polio or Downs. I am not a killjoy on this - as I LOVE harsh & sharp jokes, but I don't like jokes that are cheap shots.

Yitzhak Rabin

Barrington wrote: »

The thing about Having all the trollface pics in one thread is, where do you stop? I mean, Forever Alone Guy probably gets as many pictures as trollface. But if you start having different threads for a few different memes, it could split the traffic throught YLYL

Well I would be in favour of leaving them in YLYL. In my opinion humor is subjective and there are certain things I dont find funny (like that cyanide and happiness ****e!) but just becuase I dont find it funny doesn't mean I think it should be moved to its own thread.

But yeah, if it were to be moved it would be all the 'meme-face' ones

Yitzhak Rabin

Queen-Mise wrote: »

YehahS - not all obesity is self-inflicted... that recent thread on the obese 3 year old - that is obviously a medical condition with the child & not overeating. IMO anyone who found any humour in that is the equivalent in finding humour in a person with polio or Downs. I am not a killjoy on this - as I LOVE harsh & sharp jokes, but I don't like jokes that are cheap shots.

I never said that all of it was. I said the vast majority of it is, which is true. I agree and I didn't find that one about the child funny either.

I don't really find fat jokes funny either, as I think they are a bit crass and lazy. That said, I don't think it should be snipped because I don't find it funny.

Queen-Mise

yekahS wrote: »

I never said that all of it was. I said the vast majority of it is, which is true. I agree and I didn't find that one about the child funny either.

I don't really find fat jokes funny either, as I think they are a bit crass and lazy. That said, I don't think it should be snipped because I don't find it funny.

Thanks yehahS - I am glad this thread was open & I got a chance to say it. Humour is subjective - so never going to please everyone all the time :rolleyes:

dr.bollocko

I think the problem with the you laugh you lose thread is that humour is subjective. Repetitive stuff like trollface / whichever meme faces can annoy people but even then can sometimes be hilarious.
In terms of moderating I would be against any further restriction in you laugh you lose.
It's been delimited now as a pic thread, funny gifs have their place etc. We're trying to get in as quickly as possible to moderate the reposts.

Asking for mods to mod humour is a bit subjective. Either a joke is lame or it's funny. Sometimes there are jokes there I crack up about that I just know 95% of people won't get or find funny. More often there are jokes with 20+ thanks and I don't understand why they are funny.

I'm just unsure about the idea of moving all the memeface posts to another thread. I've genuinely found many of them hilarious. More haven't been quite to my tastes.

Having said that YLYL could continue without them... Well we've got a thread for demotivational pics. The YLYL thread also benefits from funny demotivational pics. I consciously don't move them to the other thread now. Part because they're funny and you laugh you lose is about funny pics... partly because to move one would mean to move them all and I don't want to change the equilibrium in the thread which has been a benefit to the cool vids community in general.

I do notice that cool vids / pics / links has had more traffic than it normally would have because of the you laugh you lose thread.

I'd be concerned about killing the positivity of that. However I do appreciate that the discussion on how to handle it best is public.

ibarelycare

I agree with Dr B. Where do you draw the line if you start to move memes to their own thread? The vast majority of the posts in that thread ARE memes, for example the rageface comics, yet they're usually some of the more popular pictures.

The YLYL thread will suffer if it's over-moderated. The Recliner did a great job with the thread before he stepped down and I think the current mods are continuing that good work.

I don't agree with ALL discussion being deleted either. I've often asked questions about a certain post and have got helpful replies. Sometimes someone will make a comment about a picture that is funny and relevant to the thread. Posts like that should be left. Obviously posts complaining about reposts etc., should be deleted.

I think the way it's going now is grand. If it's not broke etc...

CrazyRabbit

Why is everyone trying to fix something that already works fine?

A fantastic job is already being done. Reposts are reduced to links, the threads are kept clean & on-topic. And there are hardly any complaints within the threads over content.

MitchKoobski

I'd suggest a compilation of them all if people want to separate them.

"Rage, Trollface, Forever Alone, Fuuuu, Me Gusta Thread"

These are easily separated into a different thread. Recognisable features include a panel layout, black on white, and ends in the face.

You can't have a 'meme' thread, because there are new ones started all the time, and it could be a meme and you wouldnt even know it.

Personally, I don't see the need to seperate at this time.

MitchKoobski

The "Don't abuse people personally" guideline has led to posts being removed before in YLYL thread and others.

This would usually happen when someone posts an image that just isn't funny or so badly edited you can't understand it, and someone posts a response to it that is funny (e.g. the person was just looking for thanks.l person is forever alone, and such). This sticks within the 'no chat' rule, and the response is to the image posted. 9/10 the reponse ends up being thanked by the original poster.

The issue I've seen in the past is that these response posts were being removed immediatly citing "Attack the post, not the poster, dont abuse personally" and such. Even AFTER the original poster has thanked the new post and shown that they found the response funny.

Now I haven't seen it recently, but it annoyed me when it did happen. Think there needs to be clarification on what is joking around in response to a post, and what is actually being considered an attack or abuse(unfortunately thats like opening pandoras box).