Discussion Club Rename and New Guidelines -- Open Discussion

[Charles Kozierok]

Hey everyone,

Okay, you've probably noticed the room has been renamed. EagleKeeper and I agreed that it was a better name than "Debate Club" because the old name carried connotations of "officiality" that were never the intention here. The goal was civilized discussion, not formal debate. Hopefully folks will be less hesitant about posting with the new name.

At the same time, I have just posted a revamped set of guidelines for the room that EagleKeeper I came up with. The basics are the same, but there are a few important clarifications and changes:

First, we have emphasized that the conduct guidelines are based on following the regular AT guidelines for other techie forums (i.e. not P&N). This makes it easier for people to understand what's expected of them in terms of behavior.

In a nutshell, then, if you can post it in "CPUs and Overclocking" without getting in trouble, you can post it here without getting in trouble.

Second, the special guidelines for the Discussion Club have been made more clear.

Third, a section has been added to describe how we plan to moderate the new room. Most notable here is a paragraph that specifies that violations of DC-specific guidelines do not lead to AT-site-wide warnings or infractions.

This has been done deliberately for two reasons. First, it gives people who post here reassurance that they will not be risking their site-wide reputation and posting privileges if they run afoul of special rules that apply only here. Second, it makes the admins' jobs easier.

Feedback, as always, is welcomed.

[darkxshade]

Sure it is... "Debate" Club Moderator

If it's not really a debate, why do we need moderators at all?

You have 2 minutes to respond!

[EagleKeeper]

Originally Posted by darkxshade

Sure it is... "Debate" Club Moderator

If it's not really a debate, why do we need moderators at all?

You have 2 minutes to respond!

Carrot to ensure that people honor their word on civility

[Charles Kozierok]

Oops, we need to get that changed.

[DixyCrat]

I like that the new rules are more ambiguous. For me, the more crystal-clear rules are, the more they can be gamed; but the more based on a "spirit of the law" perspective, the more adaptable they are to novel situations.

"Disciplinary actions, such as temporary or permanent removal of posting rights in the Discussion Club, will be taken only in cases where a poster deliberately or consistently posts unconstructively. If you're making a good faith effort and generally following the guidelines, you have nothing to worry about."

I agree that the moderator's big stick (and trust me he has a big stick) is better used to remove folks that refuse to try.

[Charles Kozierok]

Thanks.

So far, I think things are going swimmingly.

[Pohemi420]

I have yet to get involved in any of the threads here yet, but I've read through a number of them and found some very interesting ideas, or "sides to an opinion" thus far.

It seems the people using the forum have been doing an excellent job of staying on point in any given thread that I've checked out, and it's nice to see that Charles and Eagle have been involved as well. Thanks for the great job guys and keep it up.

[JEDIYoda]

Originally Posted by Charles Kozierok

So far, I think things are going swimmingly.

Isn`t that what the captain of the Titanic was heard to say......j/k

[CPA]

Can I make a suggestion regarding this new forum? Is it possible for this forum only that "Ignore User" (or whatever it's called) is removed as a requisite in any discussions. I can understand its use in P&N or even OT, but to have a true discussion, I would think you need to hear from all parties, not just those you agree with.

[Sheep221]

I think they did it to prevent flame wars and such and filter trolls from discussions. As there is good group of trolls in social section of AT. So the bad ones wont be allowed in.
Although in my opinion it is also abit of harsh option as I think everyone should be let in regardless their forum status and the users who constantly irritate others and are not well behaving should be banned from site in general.

[Charles Kozierok]

Interesting idea, but from my understanding, not supported in this software without a custom mod ("hack").

Maybe if someone is trying to have a discussion here and it's being impeded by people on ignore, that will give them an incentive to "unignore" them...