Forum proposals and questions

[AddictedtoMorrowind]

If that happens we can't post in broken English anymore.

[scribbane]

Don't hold me to it, but I seem to remember a discussion about spell checkers and that they are part of your browser, and not the forums.

[Musicman247]

scribbane is correct. Every web browser but IE 9 and lower has a spell checker built in. You might try using Chrome or Firefox.

[MARS]

Literally every single browser ever has a spellcheck plugin. Hell, some of 'em even have it installed right off the bat.

[The-Shadow-One]

Mark subforum/forum read needs a confirmation. That would really help...

[Sav]

Would there be a way to be able to mark every PM in my inbox for deletion at once?

[Musicman247]

You can use the 'Mark all' link at the bottom of the page and then choose 'Delete' from the action list to delete messages a page at a time.

[Sav]

Oh.

I never noticed.

Thanks!

[Andere]

Better late than never. That's how it goes, although I haven't reached it all, yet.

[Musicman247]

Continuing the discussion from the Avatar and signature thread.

Dark Spark is right that the browser loads images even if they're behind hide tags. The best thing to do is if you use an image make sure it's small.

I could disable gifs, but it would disable them forum-wide, meaning no gifs posted anywhere. I think avtars wouldn't be affected, though.

[MARS]

I do love my reaction gifs. Maybe just put in a suggestion to avoid them in signatures?

[VirtualWeasel]

Would I be able to make threads for general modding discussion, and small questions?
I feel like making a thread to ask questions like "are there any crate containers in Skyrim?" is a bit spammy.

[Musicman247]

Like one thread per game? I don't see why not.

[onewithchaos]

I have a story based on Skyrim, a fanfic. I was wondering if I could post it anywhere on here and get some feed back perhaps.

[p-sto]

It depends on the nature of the fanfic. If based purely on your imagination and set in Skyrim, then the Arts subforum would likely be the best place for it. If it's based on a character you are playing in the game then the TES roleplayers thread would likely be the place for you.

[onewithchaos]

I use my player to cout out quests but I then alter alot of things to better suit me but other than that its hardly bassed on any character.

Thanks for the help I will go check those places out.

[unokitsune]

So you know how we can search through Threads now with the thread search feature, something that has become a staple in finding things in threads?

Can we add a search user option to that so we can find what and where they posted?

[Musicman247]

You can find specific users' posts two different ways already.

1. Go to their profile and click on 'Search All Users Posts' to get a list of all that persons posts from newest to oldest.

or

2. Click Search at the top of the page. Enter their username in the Username box, select the sub-forum you wish to search and then click search. It will show you all that users' posts in that subforum from newest to oldest.

[The SheoDovah]

I have a story based on Skyrim, a fanfic. I was wondering if I could post it anywhere on here and get some feed back perhaps.

If it's based on your character in Skyrim, feel free to post it in TES roleplayer's thread. If it's not, the arts will be more suitable. Don't worry about having to represent everything that happened in game as most of us make [&@%!] up in our stories in TES roleplayer's thread. I know I do.

[MARS]

We've tiptoed around "the GD issue" for a while. Most everyone is displeased with how things are going at the moment, or so I understand, yet no steps are being taken. I think that needs to change. The UESPeriod, as it's been referred to, happens every once in a while, and nothing ever happens. If the complaints are to stop, we need to do something. Since the complaints are always about the same things, we can assume they're not based on nothing. Something's wrong, and we need to identify and solve the problem(s). I'll use this post to also touch on some more general issues that have been bothering me.

Here are the main points I want to talk about:

• Rules: They're here as a guide for users to use the forums the way they are supposed to be used, so that everyone can always understand what is going on, and easily use the forum regardless of the time they have spent on it, how many people they know etc etc. Every rule serves a different purpose. In the case of UESP, the purpose is sometimes unclear or not relevant. As such, perhaps it's time to go over them and decide what's to keep, change, or remove.
• Enforcement of rules: This is the role of the moderators. They read all posts, making sure everything is alright. When something isn't, they intervene. Users are then gently corrected, or scolded through warnings, stern PMs, and/or bans. However, as of late the pattern seems to be absent. Sometimes users will be left unpunished and uncorrected, while other times other users will be punished for lesser offenses. Sometimes posts will be deleted, or threads will be locked for no clear reason. I think this problem stems from, and is perceived by users even when there isn't actually a problem, from a) misunderstandings regarding a moderator's actions b)confusion in regards to standard procedure on behalf of the mods in question. It is not a one-sided issue. Sometimes the users will misunderstand a mod's stance on something, feel wronged and complain, even though the moderator was right. It's happened to me personally several times. Sometimes, a moderator misunderstands a user's stance, and delivers unwarranted punishment, which is sometimes irreversible. Obviously misunderstandings will always happen, but I believe they can be narrowed down.
• The roles of moderators and users: The role of the moderators has already been covered in the previous point. However, one thing that is not the role of the mods, as far as I see things, is the making of rules. We refer to ourselves as a community, so things should be done as a community. Everyone has a say, yet the say is rarely used. If we want to have a happy place, we all need to let the ones in power know what makes us happy.
• Topics vs General Discussion: There seems to be a lack of clarity regarding when it's appropriate to discuss something in GD, or when a new thread should be made. Perhaps we should spell out what "topics that don't warrant a thread" actually are, so that everyone can stop being confused about it.
• What GD is for: GD stands for General Discussion. Emphasis on "discussion". Yet we see a bunch of "how is everyone" and *turns into unicorn and eats everyone omg* posts. Those aren't discussions, and shouldn't be posted, I don't think. Discussing means actually talking about a subject and exchanging opinions. It doesn't have to be super serious, but there should at least be some kind of substance to it.

Here are my suggestions on these topics:

• Rules: I think they are due for a revamp. Not only that, but the way they are made and decided on should also be revamped. I suggest we start something of an awareness campaign. We could make a thread for rule examination and voting on changes, for instance.
  
  
  
• Enforcement of rules: Maybe a clearer protocol on how to deal with transgressions is in order. It would definitely cut down the number of misunderstandings if there were a clearer outline of what happens to a thread or post, and why, as to avoid incidents like I mentioned earlier. A revamp of standard moderation protocol, in short.
  
  
  
• Roles of users and moderators: There isn't really much to say about this, except that maybe a bigger effort to collectively decide what is good for this forum and what isn't, through means of increased community feedback and threads for voting on current issues.
• Topics vs GD: What warrants its own topic and what goes in GD? I have a simple enough answer: GD is a big, fast thread. Whatever you post in it will eventually be buried, and won't be read again. It's not an archival thread in which you can look at things people have said in the past. Well, you can, but you won't because it's over 2000 pages long. Threads about specific subjects should be used for things that will be continually discussed over a period of time. A prominent game series for instance, like Dragon Age, is something one would make a seperate thread for. Or an on-going TV series, or a popular topic, such as food. You won't need to make a thread for something you only wish to discuss at this very moment, though. Examples: property damage, a certain species of butterfly you just encountered, bicycles, and other things that can't really be discussed that much. You'll notice that the subjects I mentioned seem pretty random and unlikely. Well, they are. With the current system it's actually not all that easy to decide if something would go in GD or into a thread of its own. It's not clear. Let's take a look at the next topic in order to see how this matter can be resolved more easily, seeing as the current system isn't all that easy to solve:
• What GD is for: GD isn't about general discussion anymore, that much is clear. Hell, as I was writing this I posted something stupid in there, out of habit. Something needs to be done about this. At the very least a topic change would be something, but there can be more. We have thread for "What happened to you today", family and relationships, and other broad topics. We could make more. The threads I mentioned are like GD in the way that they are long, and thus can't really be treated as a navigable or re-readable archive. No one is going to wade through all 600 pages of What Happened To You Today to recall a specificm event, no one is going to go through the Avatar thread to search for a particular joke etc. We can make general topics like these, splitting GD into a few more specific threads, while the current GD thread can stay what it is: a vat for non-discussion.

Overall, more synergy between users and moderators is what I propose. Moderating and managing this forum is a very tiresome and often unappreciated job; the moderators can't do everything on their own. The users need to work with them, not against them. So let's hear what everyone has to say.

[Musicman247]

I'll give very brief responses to a few of these, but I'm sure we'll discuss it further as a Mod Squad and come back with more definite thoughts.

• Rules: We actually just re-did the rules a month or two ago. Wording was changed to try and make it more clear.
• Topics vs GD: From the recent complaints I gather that people don't like being told to go to the Homestuck or Pokemon or other dedicated thread when they start to have a discussion about that topic in the GD. What you're saying here contradicts what has actually happened and what is being brought up. I can only think of one time in recent memory that someone was asked to start a new thread, and that was when they wanted to discuss a movie which would no doubt be discussed again.
• What GD is for: We are currently discussing that as well.

The other things I don't feel I should comment on at this time. Please allow the Mods time to talk about these things among ourselves.

[MARS]

I am aware the rules were re-done. I think some of them could use some actual change, such as necro-posting and the no-debate rule.

The thing is, people do post in those threads anyway. In my experience, whenever someone posts about something that already has a topic, it's usually as a comment on part of something someone else said in the thread. This is not really the most important issue, though, that would be what GD is actually for; which I'm glad to hear you are already discussing.

[Velvet LeChance]

Rules: It's not the clarity of the rules that are the problem here. It's the arbitrary fashion in which they are enforced that is. Even now people are talking about Tea in the GDT - a clear breach of the rules - but I haven't seen one request (at the time of writing) to move the conversation elsewhere; to the thread concerning tea, perhaps. It's not the wording of the rules that is unclear. It's the actions of users (specifically mods) clearly breaking these rules without reprimand or repercussion that is making in unclear, however.

But I still think we need to concentrate on the later part of Mars' original post. Rules should be decided upon as a community. I have always felt that it should be the Mods job to enforce the rules but not to create them; to decide in which direction the community is heading. That should be be up to the users.

[Avron the S'wit]

We're discussing this, but with forum rules, at the moment we are not going to welcome proposed changes in regards to the no-debate rule, because we tried it before and the forums proved they could not handle it. Plus, we are not a debate site, and that's really not a subject of debate.

Also, you must remember that the forum rules exist for all users, in so that they exist to make the greatest number of users happy as possible - which includes the majority of the forum that does not post in the General Discussion subforums. The rules exist to guide all users and new ones. They do get reviewed based on what we see works and doesn't (throughout the whole site), and we welcome opinions, but just because your opinion gets heard does not mean it will be put into action. Doesn't mean we don't discuss them feverishly, though, so don't be discouraged to bring them forward, like you just did.

At the current moment, the rules in general do not make up any percentage of my active forum complaints or issues, and when they do it's about .5%, which is hardly enough to take action on. I do not believe the rules are a priority at this moment or that anyone is really upset with them. Transparency or how moderators enforce them, however, are topics to review.

Edit: But the moderators are discussing all this right now, so we'll get back to it. I just wanted to throw that out there because I've had this discussion with you guys before.

[p-sto]

My main issue with the rules is restrictiveness with staying on topic. I get that a thread can be ruined by people talking about unrelated topics. But natural discussions go off on tangents sometimes. I'm not sure why interesting tangents are either shut down or forced into their own thread. Likewise, if we're not allowed to discuss each other pictures at length or have share a thought based on what happened in someone else's day without going to a new or different thread, I'm not really sure what the point is. There have been enough times where I felt like saying something but didn't bother because I wasn't sure if it was worth going to a different thread for what could be a one off comment if nobody cared to reply.

Also transparency. Sure doing things the way they're done now means that people aren't shamed when a mod action is taken. But if people don't really know what's going on behind the scenes don't expect us to assume that the mods are handling disruptive behaviour effectively.

Ninja'd by Avron but figured it's still worth posting.