MRC

And this function can also be used by people who want to harm this forum. All they have to do is gather 5 people and they can remove every post they want. Maybe you can even create bots to do this.

      Josephine And this function can also be used by people who want to harm this forum. All they have to do is gather 5 people and they can remove every post they want. Maybe you can even create bots to do this.

      I don't know how that would theoretically work here but normally on platforms such as reddit it's the balance of up and down votes is used for deciding whether a post is hidden, so 5 downs wouldn't be enough if you have 100 ups. If you have a large enough community it can be immune to this kind of attack. I don't know if PianoTell is large enough though and I agree with your other concerns of becoming too self-conscious because of down votes. I wouldn't want this to become a popularity contest.

          BartK

          Is it possible to add 'creating negative atmosphere' to the options that you can choose from when you flag a post? This way only the mods see it.

              Josephine Is it possible to add 'creating negative atmosphere' to the options that you can choose from when you flag a post? This way only the mods see it.

              You can choose Other and write a comment.

                  I think the flagging system should work because in a way it is a form of downvoting that is only visible to the mods.

                  BartK

                  Okay. OT: are you going to watch how the Netherlands is going to win the football match? 😁

                      BartK we already have a great mod team of people who care about the community

                      Oh yes, yep yep yep. I couldn't agree more.

                      And @Josephine Netherlands playing football tonight? Now I know which ones in my family not to disturb because I'd get a lot more than downvoted 😆⚽️🙈

                          Josephine Okay. OT: are you going to watch how the Netherlands is going to win the football match? 😁

                          I'm not a big fan of football but it looks like it won't be such an easy win. 😄

                              BartK

                              I was joking, but it's not a boring match 🙂

                                Wow, I mean sorry that I am late to this party. I have been away on holiday for the last week so not in touch with what's been going off webbie stuff. Last I looked about a week ago here was a secure and safe place, friendly and very open forum. This thread was the first to be picked up on catch up missed list unread. I read a good few opening responses and comments and thought what could have possibly changed in just one week. Looking down my list of unread posts it is easy to see what has happened, new to PT are numerous people from other places new here and who permanently seem to live down some pretty long rabbit holes! They are imposing their same random self indulgent arguments and rants on PT. I left PW after quite a long time to the new PC, became quite despondent that the same oracles were posts there and finding out and joining here was like a breath of fresh air. That will teach me to take a few days away! I do hope better people than me can find a way controlling all this. Just my first thoughts mind, so I may have more positive comments as I get back to normal.

                                  Josephine this place would be so much nicer without you.

                                  Never! You were one of the few reasons I kept coming back to another forum despite the less than optimal atmosphere. And in this forum I think you are positively radiant. Your opinions and knowledge are highly valued. I clown around a lot but I can be serious too 💝

                                      Killomiter I think if @navindra can figure out a way to implement a proper Block function (because Ignore is just as ineffective as it was on PW) it would solve quite a lot of problems!

                                      I did see on some Flarum forum that Cybergene had requested this feature a few years ago but then there was no follow-up update, so I'm not sure if anyone implemented it... If this feature is something we could pay someone to code I'd certainly pitch in!! 😉

                                          twocats
                                          Yes for a block function. I think I suggested that in the past and the idea was shot down for some reason. But it seems that it would save a lot of trouble, instead of trying more potentially problematic things such as downvotes.

                                            BartK I think we already have a great mod team of people who care about the community. I don't know if there was any announcement but currently there is @navindra, @ShiroKuro, @rsl12, and myself. We are part of this community and very much wish it to remain vibrant without the toxicity of of internet discussions in general. Therefore, I think the best thing you can do if you think any post is crossing the line is to simply flag it. We will see your comment, discuss it amongst ourselves, and take appropriate action. Perhaps you might not like that this is going on behind closed doors but please understand that making a public trial of someone is a really bad idea if you want forums to remain a healthy place.

                                            First of all, I would like to thank everyone who has volunteered to moderate. I’ve said it before; I think this is a largely thankless job. Everyone will have different sensibilities about things, and I know that there are times when I probably would make different calls about when things have crossed a line, but overall, I trust the moderators to handle difficult situations, and I agree that moderating decisions should not be aired for general consumption.

                                            One common issue that occurred on the other forum (and that has started to crop up here) is something that I think is very tricky, and I wonder if people feel there are structural things we can do. This is the issue of people getting on soapboxes— and filling threads with long and multiple posts, which all tend to basically say the same thing in many many words. I will say, for the record, that there are plenty of times when I don’t disagree with the substance of the posts. At times, it can feel like trolling, and at times (and with some particular users) these posts can devolve into personal attacks. Somewhat more commonly, my feeling is that these long and/or repeat message posts can come across as ‘browbeating’ to one or another participant. But I think that most of the time, there’s nothing inherently un-civil or off-topic, and so they’re not really in violation of any rules. My personal approach to these discussions is to respond at most once and to try not to feed the soapbox pontifications. But I think that the soapboxing can have the effect of quashing engagement/participation/diversity of viewpoints. So I’m wondering if this is an area where discussions can be broken off, or if we can develop a framework to deal with this issue.

                                            Of course, if I’m the only one who feels that this is an issue, I’m not about to get on a soap box about it!

                                              With my short attention span, I would welcome a limit in the number of words per post. This may be an unpopular idea, though. Feel free to downvote it 🤣.

                                                Rubens With my short attention span, I would welcome a limit in the number of words per post.

                                                Hah! On another forum that I'm on, sometimes people do a "cut for length" with a drop-down in case people don't want to see the nitty-gritty details. I always think that's considerate 😉

                                                  Killomiter new to PT are numerous people from other places new here and who permanently seem to live down some pretty long rabbit holes! They are imposing their same random self indulgent arguments and rants on PT.

                                                  This says it all. Those particular individuals aren't content to sling that stuff around PC, where it's supposedly welcomed, if not encouraged. They seem to want the attention, good, bad, or otherwise, anywhere they can get it, which is how some of them got banned from PW.

                                                  I think the townsfolk should get their torches and pitchforks and ride them rascals out on a rail. I personally think that anyone who joins PianoTell and launches some contentious generic inflammatory post, veiled as piano-worthy information, or sprinkles posts with politics, religion, or social commentary, should be immediately kicked out, or at least, banned with one last chance. And would PianoTell suffer by eliminating a few trolls and troublemakers?

                                                      PianoMonk I think a better approach would be if everyone is willing to say "let's keep this place positive". If a post is creating a negative atmosphere, we can call it out. It happened to a thread that I was on where someone was saying things that weren't helpful and only made me feel bad.

                                                      If we keep reinforcing (in a polite way) that this is a friendly place and that those kind of comments aren't welcome, those people will either go away on their own or will tone it down. And if they don't, a moderator can step in. But if we as a community want to keep this a nice place, we should do it without pitchforks. People can change!

                                                      A Block function would sure make it easier though. Sometimes there are people who don't have bad intentions but you just don't want to see their posts.