01-19-2010, 04:13 PM
I became the moderator of one of the busiest tech forums in the world when I was 15. I think he appointed me as a mod to attract the crowd also because of the age factor. The admin of the website gave us moderators a clear idea about what we should and what we shouldn't do. And he told us that we should be consistent with our decision. To be frank, this forum lacks that consistency. Some are punished and some are not punished for making the same mistake. Some mods are very kind to new members and some are v.strict.
And friends, I'm way way younger than you all. I always feel a personal attachment to this website because my family is full of civil engineers. I know absolutely nothing about civil engineering:yes:. But I do know a lot about moderating a busy website. I'm of the opinion that mods should be a little more friendly and some mods already are.
Let me tell you, mods are not like police. And if the mods consider themselves as the police, the whole website will be closed in 6 months. You can't ban everybody for for making silly mistakes can you? Mods should be humble and simple in their approach but should amaze the members with the quality of their posts and also with the extraordinary potential they possess. I think the mods here are definitely a step above the rest. Go to any website and the first thing you will notice is the behaviour of the mods. They will be the first one to help you, not to punish you.
I wont say that mods should be selected via rating or voting system because a good mod wont always get the highest rating. But they should be consistent with the decisions they make. It's democracy, not communism. Guys, how many members will dare to complain to the admin about a mod?:lol: I think disputes should be cleared at that point itself. If a member is not following the rules, punish him/her. There is no need to give the user an opportunity to complain because only those people having good common sense and temperament are selected as mods.
This is just my personal opinion based on my moderating experience of 2 years.
Regards,
And friends, I'm way way younger than you all. I always feel a personal attachment to this website because my family is full of civil engineers. I know absolutely nothing about civil engineering:yes:. But I do know a lot about moderating a busy website. I'm of the opinion that mods should be a little more friendly and some mods already are.
Let me tell you, mods are not like police. And if the mods consider themselves as the police, the whole website will be closed in 6 months. You can't ban everybody for for making silly mistakes can you? Mods should be humble and simple in their approach but should amaze the members with the quality of their posts and also with the extraordinary potential they possess. I think the mods here are definitely a step above the rest. Go to any website and the first thing you will notice is the behaviour of the mods. They will be the first one to help you, not to punish you.
I wont say that mods should be selected via rating or voting system because a good mod wont always get the highest rating. But they should be consistent with the decisions they make. It's democracy, not communism. Guys, how many members will dare to complain to the admin about a mod?:lol: I think disputes should be cleared at that point itself. If a member is not following the rules, punish him/her. There is no need to give the user an opportunity to complain because only those people having good common sense and temperament are selected as mods.
This is just my personal opinion based on my moderating experience of 2 years.
Regards,