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So, as per usual, I like to occasionally check the pulse on the community to make sure that people for the most part are happy and satisfied with the day-to-day operation of the site. For those of you who are new to the community, first, let me welcome you and explain how these work.
When I open the floor to the community, the intent is to provide a venue to discuss anything related to site operations, content, and anything along those lines. I actively review and comment on these posts, and if one issue pops up multiple times in comments, I generally run follow up articles to try and help address issues the community feels is important before someone decides to take rehash and form a spinoff. Feel free to leave whatever thoughts you want below.
In contrary to my usual posts, I don't have that much to say to this, so to both the community and editorial team's relief, I'll cut this off right here before it becomes Yet Another NCommander Novel.
~ NCommander
(Score: 5, Insightful) by gman003 on Monday November 07 2016, @06:09PM
You joke, but this is in fact my #1 problem with the site, and the main reason why I visit rarely and post even less often. The community here is turning toxic. You get racist, sexist comments on any website that allows comments, but here, they've been getting modded to +5. Say what you will about Slashdot, but at least there the trolls get modded down instead of up.
Even outside the obviously-problematic comments like that, there's smaller problems everywhere. Politics gets dragged into everything, and the tone is always "the system is broken, we're all fucked". Same for the perennial hating-on-Microsoft, hating-on-Apple, and hating-on-Google. And the alt-right tribalistic hating-on-SJWs, which goes hand-in-hand with the racism thing earlier (I hate the SJW tribalistic hating-on-rightists too, but there's none of that here so it's not relevant). The overall tone of the site itself seems to be nihilistic despair. I'm a generally negative person but even this is too much for me. I get my tech news mostly from Ars, Anand and El Reg directly these days, because most of the stories here and elsewhere are links there anyways, or somewhere copying one of their articles. Hell, their comments are better than Soylent's, too.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 07 2016, @08:41PM
Toxic is exactly the right word to describe this place.
Want to fix it?
Allow only positive moderation, kill the +5 moderation cap, and make moderation non-anonymous.
(Score: 3, Touché) by zafiro17 on Monday November 07 2016, @09:08PM
It's everybody's duty to help fill this place with quality, intelligent conversation. The more good stuff posted, the more the crapola can be drowned out, or modded down into oblivion. Go tell your smart friends about this place.
Dad always thought laughter was the best medicine, which I guess is why several of us died of tuberculosis - Jack Handey
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 07 2016, @09:34PM
It's everybody's duty to help fill this place with quality, intelligent conversation. The more good stuff posted, the more the crapola can be drowned out, or modded down into oblivion. Go tell your smart friends about this place.
The last time I downmodded something one of the site admins disagreed with me and banned me from moderation for a couple of weeks. I haven't downmodded anything, even obvious trolls, since that little episode.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by NCommander on Tuesday November 08 2016, @12:53AM
Citation?
Mod bans are only handed out due to spam, or abusing the moderation system. I can see the mod logs, so if you link the post(s), I'll look into it and any staff members involved.
Still always moving
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday November 08 2016, @11:25AM
Yeah, Citation Needed. The only moderations we override and ban for are misuse of Spam and mod-bombing. You're allowed to moderate as poorly as your little heart desires, you're just not allowed to abuse the system.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 07 2016, @10:37PM
> Go tell your smart friends about this place.
Wishful thinking dude.
The problem with letting enough shitposters have their way is that they chase out the smart people. It just simply isn't worth the effort of dealing with with the shit. What's the upside? To end up covered in shit? Fuck that. Easier just to move on and leave the pigs to wallow in their own filth.
(Score: 2) by zafiro17 on Monday November 07 2016, @11:00PM
... and yet, here you are, posting. Seeing as how you plan on sticking around, make it worthwhile.
Dad always thought laughter was the best medicine, which I guess is why several of us died of tuberculosis - Jack Handey
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 08 2016, @01:00AM
I've been here from the beginning, I've submitted hundreds of stories and I have a LOT of free time due to being bed-ridden for the last year. Once I am healed enough to have a life again, the value calculation of putting up with the shitposters will change and I will drift away.
(Score: 2) by lgw on Monday November 07 2016, @09:20PM
I really appreciate the near lack of SJW-bait stories here. Let Slashdot be the "Women in computing" bitchfest. Soylent already has better story selection than Slashdot - just drop the SJW clickbait stories and not only will the trolling go way down, but story selection will be great.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 07 2016, @10:34PM
Oh look, exactly the kind of person gman was complaining about. Funny how that works.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday November 08 2016, @01:19AM
Well, I am guilty as charged. Though I would observe that politics is pervading everything and getting everyone down these days, so how would you expect that Soylent wouldn't also? We'll see if that continues past tomorrow, though probably half of America and most of the world will be pissed off either way, and the other half of America will be merely relieved. I would also observe that a lot of SN's community tends a little older than other online communities; we've been through a lot of tech ups & downs, trends, and innovation, and this era we find ourselves in isn't like those of efflorescence we've known in the past. The last strong tech economy we can remember was in the late 90's. So there you have two significant overlays that might be coloring what you're perceiving.
If you have significant cause for hope, please bring it. If you feel ebullient, share why. Today feels me like how the Byzantines must have felt on the Eve of the Fall of Constantinople, so if there's cause to hope it would be welcome.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 2) by gman003 on Tuesday November 08 2016, @05:07AM
Entire countries have moved to renewables. There's a new Space Race going on with goals of actual colonization. Every major auto maker has electric cars either in production or in development. A self-described Democratic Socialist ran for nomination in America and was taken seriously. AI is starting to take off as a real solution to real problems.
There's plenty to be terrified about (I am literally packing a bug-out bag right now in case of post-election rioting tomorrow) but there is room for hope.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday November 08 2016, @11:29AM
Socialism of any stripe is not reason for hope but for despair. It takes those who produce and makes them slaves to those who do not.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.