darkSpyro

Wanted to throw this suggestion up to help address the concerns of lack of involvement from the administration of the site.

Is it possible to create a new subforum where:
A.) Regular users can only see posts they've created.
B.) Mods and Admins can see all posts.

Instead of sending dark PMs every day, a user could go to the Mod Mail section and post their concern - semi-privately (in so much as only the admin and mods can see it, short of the few mods that are known to take screenshots from the regular mod foum and share them) - and, instead of waiting for dark to get time to reply, any of the other mods can read and potentially reply (assuming they can give the answer without needing dark's involvement). Think of it kinda like a group PM for all the mods. This gives them a bit more involvement with what's going on in the background (for example, the types of things dark does deal with) and gives them the opportunity to help step up and address issues, expanding their ability to help run the site.

This seems more of a question to the mods. Modmail usually works on other forums and there's less chance of getting unlucky that the person you're PMing is on a break or something.

I thought that was easily done when you do a normal group pm with the mods and admin in it.

Similar concept to PMs, except it'll keep folk's PM boxes from getting blown up in a situation where there are multiple responses going back and forth - it'd flow easier, being able to easily quote/respond to multiple people, and there's no concern of accidently leaving one or more mods out of the conversation.

Oh, and it creates a reference for other mods to easily refer back to so that answers can be more consistent and in-line with what is going on elsewhere on the forums or events that previously happened.

Sounds like Site Help and Suggestions but the difference is other regular users can't reply to each other.

While it would flow better than the current group pm system, it would also effectively make the pm system redundant for contacting moderators and the admin.

I'd also like to point out that a majority of the suggestion focuses on getting a response out of dark. To be frank, would that not just end up being another version of say, his guestbook, or even his pm inbox?

That being said, I can see some use for it. But I have a feeling a lot of people will misuse it (ie. stuff that belongs in Site Help and Suggestions being put in that subforum so they can get a direct mod/admin response). Actually, wouldn't it also make this board redundant as well?

Quote: Crystal Dragon

Sounds like Site Help and Suggestions but the difference is other regular users can't reply to each other.

Kinda. SH&S would be more towards "How do I..." and "Can we..." type things.
Mod Mail would be more designed for issues with users or to discuss moderations that have occurred, but in a less public way.

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While it would flow better than the current group pm system, it would also effectively make the pm system redundant for contacting moderators and the admin.

Yup. Part of the goal. Seems to me, PMs aren't the best way to contact mods.

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I'd also like to point out that a majority of the suggestion focuses on getting a response out of dark. To be frank, would that not just end up being another version of say, his guestbook, or even his pm inbox?

Well, firstly, I don't think dark intends for his guestbook to be where users go to contact him regarding issues about the site. I can't speak for him, however.

Second, it's not about 'getting a response out of dark' - it's about creating a system where everyone doesn't send everything to dark when there are three dozen mods floating around who can address many of the issues. This would lighten dark's load to allow him to focus what time he does spend on the forum dealing with admin-only stuff.

Third - this has an added bonus of creating a trail of records where dark can see how different mods interact with users and handle questions/issues that come up. Then, if dark does decide to add a second admin or some kind of Senior Mod status, he'll have a history of mod interactions to evaluate and base that decision on.

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That being said, I can see some use for it. But I have a feeling a lot of people will misuse it (ie. stuff that belongs in Site Help and Suggestions being put in that subforum so they can get a direct mod/admin response).

If the Mods agree that the topic is something better for more general discussion, they could move it here.
If a user is constantly abusing the forum, they could be dealt with on a per-case basis (lose the ability to post on that forum, tem banning from the entire forum, whatever is determined to be necessary for the behavior they've taken...)