Is Boards aware of the reputation it has across the web?

CabanSail

I much preferred the short lived Boards Antarctica.

Not too lively. It was only me, three penguins and a humpback whale. There was some great chat about fish and lot's of photo's of naked krill.

You have entire sites based around images but the fun forum here doesn't allow them.

I've made the suggestion a few times that only the opening post could have an image and while it was supported, it didn't happen, even for a day.

The result is that while a lot of fun online now comes from some sort of media or talk about a picture, we are stuck with serious threads all the time.

Years ago, it wasn't a problem because that's how the internet worked and After Hours was a laugh back then.

I view this entire site now as just deadly serious conversation and come back out of habit. They'll never attract much of a young audience like they used to.

And now for the part that no one will agree with. The "attack the post, not the poster" thing is good but taken way too far. Sometimes people need to be called out for what they are without the risk of a ban. We're adults.. Surely the word "dckhead" isn't that offensive for a guy who derails and ruins a thread. And filtering bad language.. Average age on here must be 35.

biko

Strange how they all moan about boards when boards is more popular than them
http://www.alexa.com/topsites/countries/IE

If you don't like it there are many other forums out there that may suit you better.
Whatever boards is doing, it works.

Lavinia

The Backwards Man wrote: »

People that constantly gripe about their free speech being restricted very rarely have anything constructive, useful or interesting to say.

Not true, or at least not every time. Sometimes you get "warned" if you express the opinion and even document it with facts, unless it is not what the mod or other people here consider. Which is ridiculous. It suppresses the constructive dialogue.

Chips Lovell

Variety is the spice of life. Some people prefer places like Reddit or Politics.ie. Boards suits others. Would be a mistake to try cater to the people who don't use Boards rather than the ones who do.

ibarelycare

biko wrote: »

Strange how they all moan about boards when boards is more popular than them
http://www.alexa.com/topsites/countries/IE

If you don't like it there are many other forums out there that may suit you better.
Whatever boards is doing, it works.

Boards is only #32 on that list.

Reddit is #17.

Even theladbible is above it...that's embarrassing.

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000

biko wrote: »

Strange how they all moan about boards when boards is more popular than them
http://www.alexa.com/topsites/countries/IE

If you don't like it there are many other forums out there that may suit you better.
Whatever boards is doing, it works.

The lad bible is even bigger than boards.ie, who knew there was that many gonks in Ireland. It solely relies on clickbait traffic from Facebook. Look, even the captain went down with the titanic and the mods and owners of boards are in denial...your site is shít, outdated and overly moderated by (some) clowns, and that's just after hours.

Alun

Deleted User wrote: »

And now for the part that no one will agree with. The "attack the post, not the poster" thing is good but taken way too far. Sometimes people need to be called out for what they are without the risk of a ban.

I do agree actually in some cases. There have been a few cases in the "Home & Garden" sub forums where people who were clearly professionals in their fields have been driven to the point of utter frustration by some of the ridiculous, and in some cases outright dangerous, advice being given by amateurs. Finally, and understandably, some of them lashed out at the poster only to get banned by the same moderators who were ignoring advice being given that, quite frankly, could have killed someone. Bizarre.

Sanity_Saviour

RayM wrote: »

The more right-wing a person is, the more angry and unpleasant they're likely to be. If you can somehow find a way of remaining calm when expressing your dreadful opinions, you'll be safe as houses.

Are you saying that right wing opinions/people are wrong and left wing opinions/people are correct?

North of 32

The only people I've noticed who don't like boards/find it overly moderated are obnoxious types who think they can speak to/about people in whatever way pleases them just because "it's the internet".

biko

The Hunky Monster wrote: »

your site is shít, outdated and overly moderated by clowns, and that's just after hours.

Why are you even here then?

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000

North of 32 wrote: »

The only people I've noticed who don't like boards/find it overly moderated are obnoxious types who think they can speak to/about people in whatever way pleases them just because "it's the internet".

*clicks on your profile*

82 posts

Vast experience on boards so.

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000

biko wrote: »

Why are you even here then?

Because I love a good moan.

pickarooney

RayM wrote: »

That's not strictly true. I think I read somewhere that conservative people are more likely to describe themselves as happy (a combination of strong religious beliefs and an 'I'm all right, Jack' attitude, perhaps). Which is not quite the same as saying that the more right-wing someone is, the more likely they are to be happy.

The more right-wing a person is, the more likely they are to shoot themselves dead in a bunker at 56.

Do lefties even play golf?

Phil Mickelson aside.

HalloweenJack

I know there's been a change on Boards but it's such a big forum that I haven't noticed it so much. But I do have another example.

I posted back on foot.ie years ago. It's a much smaller board so all the messing about was a lot more noticeable and harder to avoid. It used to have a looser modding presence and it was chaos. After a while, the mods clamped down so loads of people were banned or left and the quality improved greatly. Now, there's less people but the nonsense that used to go on is gone and it's much easier to actually read interesting opinions as opposed to having to wade through pages of dick-measuring contests and cheap digs.

Needless to say, the ones who whinge about excessive modding are the ones who are most affected by it. If they can't adapt their posting style then, clearly, they don't have anything substantial to say anyway. If your posting repertoire is built around "yore ma", "blast them with piss" and "coke and hookers", etc., then do us all a favour and start your own board called "Yore Ma" and insist on everyone posting that way. See how long that lasts before you get bored.

Wibbs

biko wrote: »

Strange how they all moan about boards when boards is more popular than them
http://www.alexa.com/topsites/countries/IE

If you don't like it there are many other forums out there that may suit you better.
Whatever boards is doing, it works.

It does and it doesn't. It's certainly losing ground. Much of the efforts of a site rejig is a laudable attempt to stem that decline. The category rejig and now this new Beta. To quote a chap in the Feedback forum on the new look to the site thread

Amadeus 2014 wrote: »

There is an element of "the good old days" about conversations like these but it does feel like this site is withering on the vine these days. Some of the niche forums feel like virtual ghost towns compared to a couple of years ago. You could argue that's just old timer fatigue and "things ain't what they used to be" but the stats on the Distilled Media website that talk about 35% of irish internet users visiting boards dates back to 2010, which is a lifetime in Internet terms. The Wiki on Boards says that in April 2014 the Alexa rank was 5,129 now it's 8,890 and falling. In 2012 Boards was (just!) in the top 20 Irish websites, now it's 32nd. You get the drift.

There are more pressures on a Boards type community than before. More distractions out there and that is more than any rejig can "fix". IMH it doesn't need to. If anything the "old style" should be held onto. Chasing the numbers with a new look may only serve to alienate both current and new folks. There is much to be said for the comfortable, the familiar. My take anyway.

Alun wrote:

I do agree actually in some cases. There have been a few cases in the "Home & Garden" sub forums where people who were clearly professionals in their fields have been driven to the point of utter frustration by some of the ridiculous, and in some cases outright dangerous, advice being given by amateurs. Finally, and understandably, some of them lashed out at the poster only to get banned by the same moderators who were ignoring advice being given that, quite frankly, could have killed someone. Bizarre.

Oh I remember that kinda thing from years ago A. It's not a new development, but I don't know how you could stop that happening TBH. I can say it's bloody hard to moderate that kinda thing. I will also say I've moderated more than one user that I agreed with, but… There can be some real passive aggressive types who goad others just below the radar waiting for them to kick off and then go a running to daddy to sort them out. They can even operate in a pack to do it. Again they don't break the rules and come across all "reasonable". Obvious trolls on a rant are far easier to deal with, both as a user or mod. Luckily both are pretty rare when we consider how many people are involved.

Generally I do think Boards gets it about right as far as signal to noise ratios go. I wouldn't be around and be supporting it and volunteering for so long if I didn't. Yeah you will always have difficult to balance stuff, but it's mostly at the edges.

And yeah I did chuckle at the irony of the OP being banned considering the thread subject. Still, the thread was left open so...

North of 32

The Hunky Monster wrote: »

North of 32 wrote: »

The only people I've noticed who don't like boards/find it overly moderated are obnoxious types who think they can speak to/about people in whatever way pleases them just because "it's the internet".

*clicks on your profile*

82 posts

Vast experience on boards so.

I've been lurking/posting since 2008, though obviously not on this account.

The real reason I'm replying, though, is because I'm mystified as to why you're narrating your actions in third person. It is hilarious but I don't think that was your intention.

smash

I'm undecided how I feel about boards these days. I stopped my regular posting in the motors forum a long time ago because of the sheer amount of d1ckheads that ruin threads over there. You could get off a boat with your brand new Lamborghini and post a pic and rather than appreciation of the car you'll get 20 replies telling you about the VRT process and how it's illegal to drive on UK plates. Then when you get it registered you'll have someone else waffling about a screw being in the wrong place on the license plate. This is the kind of crap that happens in all the specialist forums and rather than taking the bull by the horns, the mods prefer to ban people for quoting a pic or trying to start a discussion in a video thread or something else menial.

I still like AH for the most part, but I think people are drifting to private forums because because they're the only place you can have a bit of craic without heavy moderation. There's just too many people leaving boards recently too.

esforum

KomradeBishop wrote: »

The standards varying across the site is a pretty big problem - you can log out of Boards, see something interesting on the front page from a random subforum - and then end up with a warning or infraction for breaking a minutiae part of that sub-forums rules, which you'd never expect to have run-ins for elsewhere on the site - and the standards can differ hugely, even between individual mods of the same forum.

This is my experience, I have sworn many times to stop posting but the sites so big that threads will drag you in.

Except 2 forums that I completely ignore because apparantly if you are an outsider and dont agree with the mods personal opinions, you get banned.

Also the changing of the rules to suit the situation. I got banned for using a word, that exact word that I was called by a mod and told it was acceptable. Wasnt acceptable when I used it!

biko

biko wrote: »

Why are you even here then?

God I hate that. Same as the big Facebook group where I live. Anyone who makes a complaint is greeted with "just leave".

People are allowed to voice criticism about something they still use.

Your line of thinking is completely toxic.

Effects

Well a number of years ago racism was actively encouraged by moderators here, surely if that's changed then it's a good thing.

smash

Effects wrote: »

Well a number of years ago racism was actively encouraged by moderators here, surely if that's changed then it's a good thing.

huh?

pinkbear

In my opinion there is definitely excessive moderating on boards. While I understand it's often needed, it's sometimes not. I consider myself completely polite and well able to follow rules, yet I've been rapped on the knuckles 3 times on boards! I've never been reprimanded on any other online site. Once I asked a question about a circuit I was building, in the electronics forum, and my post was closed saying I couldn't ask that question. I messaged the mod asking why, and got no response. One I asked was anyone interested in doing a piece of work from me, from my business email, and I got a permanent ban. I understand that I broke the rules (which I hadn't read), but I think a permanent ban is a very harsh penalty, as I wasn't trolling or being rude, and didn't post my website or any links.... I thought someone would be interested in the work I had to offer. The third time, a discussion went completely away from the original topic, and I said some thing along the lines of "Can we get back to the topic of this post, please?" before posting my opinion, and I was told by a moderator that if I had a complaint to bring it to him/her, rather than saying it on the post.

I'm all for moderating "internet undesirables", but if well intentioned, polite people are getting banned and reprimanded for innocent or minor infractions, then one needs to wonder if there is excessive moderation. After each of my 'reprimands' I gave up using boards for a while, as the shine had gone off it somewhat....

padd b1975

It's not the worst but could definitely benefit from some brave decisions while it maintains some relevance.

At a guess, I would say about 70% of the forums could be closed down and the majority of users would barely notice.

Traffic is visibly way down over the last year or so, let's reflect that in a smaller more intimate site.

padd b1975

Effects wrote: »

Well a number of years ago racism was actively encouraged by moderators here, surely if that's changed then it's a good thing.

How many years ago?

Samaris

I dunno, a few times I've faded off Boards but it wasn't due to moderation. It was actually due to being sick of some of the nastier stuff that got posted. I stopped going to AH for a bit because I was so damned sick of the constant feminism-bashing and dole-bashing. When there's several threads in a row down the page that's basically the same **** over again it's a bit "nope, not even bothering".

So there's another side to it. Some people will be turned off by too much modding, some will be turned off by what they feel isn't enough, or rather, too many people that they just can't get along with. Not really much to solve that, mind you.

wes

I think the style of moderation here on boards has its place.

If people want light or non-existent moderation, they have places like reddit, the various chans, and various other forums to choose from.

Boards is a discussion forum that is run by people who are afraid of discussion.
It's like a huge mansion of near-empty rooms, each one guarded by a pedantic bore. You're only allowed in if you promise to do a small bit of talking inside, but if you start to actually converse or provoke discussion, the idiot guard panics and throws everyone out and locks the room.

Lavinia

Of course moderation has to exist the thing is that the boards sometimes feel as it is all about moderation and not about people having a normal discussion.
S some mods also allow themselves name-calling which is disturbing.

biko

Deleted User wrote: »

God I hate that. Same as the big Facebook group where I live. Anyone who makes a complaint is greeted with "just leave".

People are allowed to voice criticism about something they still use.

Your line of thinking is completely toxic.

Not really. It's clear the person I was chatting to had nothing but resentment for the site, the mods and AH. Yet he remains.

If he has constructive criticism, maybe it won't help to call other people clowns?
Maybe actually have some thought-out suggestions?

Bitching without suggestions is not going to move things forward.