AndrewW said:
True moderation tends to be on the lighter side here, rather then using a heavy hand which for myself I find preferable.
Absolutely. I tried to make that point several times over at CotI. They prefer the big sticks over there.
Never once have I got a Warning or Infraction or been banned from any other forum. Never. Only at CotI. So, that made me wonder...was it me? Or, was it the mods over there.
I was putting along in a regular conversation thread not that long ago when I posted a relavent article to the topic. The article was so big that I had to fit it into two posts. Next time I logged on, to my chagrin, Far Trader Dan had slapped me with not one but two Infractions. He decided that two of them were fair because the offending post was cut into two posts--in his moderator mind, two posts meant two infractions.
Oh, what what were the infractions for? Copyright. He didn't like me taking an article from another web site and posting on the CotI.
That's how it goes over there. Those guys are ridiculous. I don't think the article was a problem at all, but even it if was, a mature moderator who knew how to do his job would have sent a friendly PM saying something like, "Hey, I see that you're participating in the discussion, but would you mind removing it as I'm afriad a copyright violation might be a problem here."
I'm a sensible person. Had I gotten that, I would have responded, "Sure, no problem."
But, instead, Dan thinks its a better idea to slap two infractions on something like that, which was posted in good faith to support the discussion. Remember, not one infraction for the single offence--TWO because it was two posts.
Which way do you think is better? My suggestion above? Or Dan's big stick method?
Which promotes a happy, comfortable forum, and which creates a problem between poster and mod-who-thinks-he's-a-policeman?
To the OP, this type of thing happens all the time over at the CotI now. I just saw them crucify a new forum member right before I left. I e-mailed the guy, and he was talking about how the mods on the CotI are nuts.
I agree.