Tweet
Another question that came up in the moderation thread was the question of "ownership" of this community. While recent conversations may have left some feeling otherwise, we DO value the people that form this community.
Online communities are very new in the grand scheme of things, and often quite unique. As they grow and develop, I'm sure the cited examples of breakdowns over "ownership" won't be the last such issues that communities have with the concept of ownership, and many situations will be quite unique, based on where the boards are hosted, who pays the bills, whether there is premium membership, popups, ads, etc. Each community is unique in how it is set up, managed, ruled, owned, etc., and what works for one, may fail miserably for others.
They are NOT governments. Labeling them as democracies, dictatorships or what have you is beyond misleading. One and all, they are OWNED, somehow, somewhere, by someone. It is up to the physical owners of the forums to decide how they want to run those forums. Yes, there will be wild variation in how this is handled, but it still comes down to a question of ownership when determining who is allowed to do what.
"Ownership" for this site, and these forums, belongs firmly in the hands of my husband and I. We own the domain, we own the license for the message board software, we pay the expenses tied to them, and the main site, we are the ones legally responsible. As such, yes, it is "our site, our rules."
This is not to say that we don't value the people that make up the online community that has sprung up around the framework we have built. We have freely acknowledged, time and again, that the community is what makes this site special. But, when it comes down to a question between what the owners want and what a portion of the community wants, no matter how vocal and visible that part of the community is, the owners make the final decision. No amount of argument or discussion can or will change that.
I've actually suggested, and now IMPLORE people - if you are truly that unhappy here, yet feel the need to speak out, create your own forums. I'm not suggesting that you create an entire site from scratch, nor that you handle anywhere near the traffic load that we do. But do handle the details of hosting, advertising, popups vs banner ads, registered vs unregistered posters, premium membership vs "free", moderation style and rules, etc. If you come up with a viable "community" that is more than just you and a few buddies chatting amongst yourselves, I'd be more than happy to provide a link over to your forums from here. There is absolutely no sarcasm meant here, nor spite nor vindictiveness. If you're not happy here, you shouldn't be here. If you're here and unhappy, then maybe it's because you feel the need for a community, in which case, there are lots of places out there where you can form one, run one.
For those that are unhappy with this basic fact, I'm sorry, but it's not up for debate. Continue to use the main site, continue to read the forums, but know that, if you post, you're subject to the rules decisions of these owners.
Since this is not up for discussion, and I have no desire for trolling with regards to that, this post is going to be locked.
Online communities are very new in the grand scheme of things, and often quite unique. As they grow and develop, I'm sure the cited examples of breakdowns over "ownership" won't be the last such issues that communities have with the concept of ownership, and many situations will be quite unique, based on where the boards are hosted, who pays the bills, whether there is premium membership, popups, ads, etc. Each community is unique in how it is set up, managed, ruled, owned, etc., and what works for one, may fail miserably for others.
They are NOT governments. Labeling them as democracies, dictatorships or what have you is beyond misleading. One and all, they are OWNED, somehow, somewhere, by someone. It is up to the physical owners of the forums to decide how they want to run those forums. Yes, there will be wild variation in how this is handled, but it still comes down to a question of ownership when determining who is allowed to do what.
"Ownership" for this site, and these forums, belongs firmly in the hands of my husband and I. We own the domain, we own the license for the message board software, we pay the expenses tied to them, and the main site, we are the ones legally responsible. As such, yes, it is "our site, our rules."
This is not to say that we don't value the people that make up the online community that has sprung up around the framework we have built. We have freely acknowledged, time and again, that the community is what makes this site special. But, when it comes down to a question between what the owners want and what a portion of the community wants, no matter how vocal and visible that part of the community is, the owners make the final decision. No amount of argument or discussion can or will change that.
I've actually suggested, and now IMPLORE people - if you are truly that unhappy here, yet feel the need to speak out, create your own forums. I'm not suggesting that you create an entire site from scratch, nor that you handle anywhere near the traffic load that we do. But do handle the details of hosting, advertising, popups vs banner ads, registered vs unregistered posters, premium membership vs "free", moderation style and rules, etc. If you come up with a viable "community" that is more than just you and a few buddies chatting amongst yourselves, I'd be more than happy to provide a link over to your forums from here. There is absolutely no sarcasm meant here, nor spite nor vindictiveness. If you're not happy here, you shouldn't be here. If you're here and unhappy, then maybe it's because you feel the need for a community, in which case, there are lots of places out there where you can form one, run one.
For those that are unhappy with this basic fact, I'm sorry, but it's not up for debate. Continue to use the main site, continue to read the forums, but know that, if you post, you're subject to the rules decisions of these owners.
Since this is not up for discussion, and I have no desire for trolling with regards to that, this post is going to be locked.
