I wanna know why.......

[Enzoenvy1]

Originally Posted by Icon Modeler

In terms of moderators needlessly butting in and or alturing threads,,, yes there are better.

I too have had this happen and don't understand why a moderator finds that it needs to happen. I have an idea who might have done it and will say it is one of the only mods I've seen giving people a hard time about where they post their topics and or the classic line "use the search". Also one of the few mods that has not posted something in this thread.


Icon Modeler

I have a really good idea also. Like I mentioned before; the mods that have concern and who have taken the time to read this are the ones that make me understand why they are mods.

I also want to make it clear that I am not insulting a single person that is not of American soil. Put me into an Italian forum and I would flop too. I was speaking of all people in general.

Yes, this happens to be the largest sight on the web for this particular hobby. There are others though. I can go on record stating that the mods on other sites (that I have recently joined) have never been rude from what I have seen. I have even had conversations with them as the topic permits. That to me is what mods should do for their site. I love AF still though as there is too much to learn and a lot of great people to stop me from returning.

[Layla's Keeper]

Hello folks.

A: Yes I'm still alive (so sorry to disappoint you, RallyRaider) and trying to be up on the boards as much as possible (even taking pictures of my current builds to post) but as far as my recent "inactivity", I have a very good reason: a fiancee!

Truth be told, guys, she gets first dibs on my time, even if y'all were here first.

B: AF is fickle. I've always known this, which is why when I post pictures of an old IMSA Mustang out of a Monogram kit or a 1970's Indy car I'm working on, I don't expect too much of a reaction. But, quite honestly, why worry? It's your model. I do criticize other builders on a close-scrutiny level. I freely admit to that, but I also like to think I offer the necessary advice on how to correct things I've seen wrong.

Criticism is a modeling tool. Like all tools, it can be used improperly to the detriment of a model. I'll tell you all right now, there's nothing in the world that's about to stop me from pointing out mold lines, sprue nibs, sink marks, injector pin marks, runs, and brush strokes because this is all Fundamental Modeling.

[freakray]

Been out of touch all day so this thread makes for some very interesting, and more importantly, enlightening reading.

There are some valid and good points brought up here and for those of you that have brought them up in a constructive manner, I thank you. Those of you that like to use threads like this as your opportunity to sling mud, thanks too.

I will admit there are days I let my personal life frustrations be reflected in my interactions here, I apologise for that. Fortunately there are members like Stevenski, Andy and Gio who have taken the time to get to know me and have the decency to send me a 'gentle reminder' of things at times

Maybe it's about time I found my way back to the root of what brought me to AF, scale modelling, and forget about the trivialities of all the other things going on.

Thanks Enzoenvy for starting and thread which has created a good discussion

[tigeraid]

Originally Posted by freakray

Been out of touch all day so this thread makes for some very interesting, and more importantly, enlightening reading.

There are some valid and good points brought up here and for those of you that have brought them up in a constructive manner, I thank you. Those of you that like to use threads like this as your opportunity to sling mud, thanks too.

I will admit there are days I let my personal life frustrations be reflected in my interactions here, I apologise for that. Fortunately there are members like Stevenski, Andy and Gio who have taken the time to get to know me and have the decency to send me a 'gentle reminder' of things at times

Maybe it's about time I found my way back to the root of what brought me to AF, scale modelling, and forget about the trivialities of all the other things going on.

Thanks Enzoenvy for starting and thread which has created a good discussion

Cheers, sir.

[Enzoenvy1]

Originally Posted by tigeraid

Cheers, sir.

lol.

[drunken monkey]

just some additional info for those that don't know.
Currently, AF is having some database issues caused mainly by the sheer size of the site. As such, the mods have been having problems trying to do even the most simple of mod related tasks. It is in the best interest of the site, until the problems are resolved, to prevent what might be "pointless" posting and excessive number of uneccessary threads.

Now bear in mind that this is a general thing and not neccessarily related to any of the things mentioned in this thread so far but i thought you should know about it and why certain thread posting policies are the way they are.
We aren't deliberately going out to ruin your fun but it is important to remember that this isn't a chat room and AF does have a PM function.

Using it helps keep the boards clean for easier searching.

[RallyRaider]

Jon, I can understand why your 4th of July post was moved to COT. Surely you should be able to see that it was in reality off topic, so that was the best place for it to be posted. Imagine where it could lead - What to MODELLER's think about stem cell research? MODELER's unite against George Bush!!! And what would you Americans make of it if we Aussies and English started our own little commentary about the latest Ashes series?

In the past it was suggested that Car Modelling could have it's own OT forum. Given the furore over the segregation that we introduced last year I don't think that would be too well received.

EDIT: And regarding the search function. It really doesn't function too well these days, so what are newbies to do except ask eons-old questions anew?

[gionc]

LOL Phil it have now some politics implication , it's a chance that simply we can't lost, MODELLERS WILL CHANGE THIS WORLD, 'cos modelling is spirituality

ok seem silly but think a bit deeply at it





Phil for president!

Phil I'm helpful to waste half of my modelling tme to share brochures if it would be helpful to change the world

hey: I'm not joking!

[chato de shamrock]

This is my first blog website i've ever participated in. My first time here was confussing. I was looking through how to search for things or how to post messages up. With well over 200 comments posted I still dont know how to do certain things such as posting pictures in your signature area or below your I.D. Late last year I bearly figured out how post pictures on here and take a look at when I joined this website. There's a whole lot to look through on here that you cannot expect everyone to go through every single thing. I bet most sign up and want to participate in the threads right away rather than first look through all the "read here first before posting" threads. We're all like that, its normal. You can be at a store or restaurant and post a "pull door" sign and you'll be shocked at how many people try to push the door open. No one reads signs.

This website has so much to look through that when I was new here I reactivated a thread that was like 2 or 3 years old. I had no idea that was forbidden and I got a private message from a moderator asking me to stop. I was clueless about what was going on. Who do I ask what this message from the "moderator" was about? I dont know anyone. So I ignored it and posted in another old thread. The same moderator wrote me this time mentioning if I continue I would get banned from the website. Being a new member and being new at posting messages/blogs I had no idea what a "moderator" was and I thought I was getting cyber-pushed around by someone on here. I gave that person a good piece of my mind but my settings were set so that I cannot send/recieve e-mails so the message could not get delivered. Imagine what would have happened if it did. To this day I still remember who that moderator is and steer clear from replying to messages he posts on thread. Only a punk greats any newb that way before finding out exactly why he's reactivating old threads.

I now know better to do some sort of a search before I ask questions on here and give as many details when I have problems. But it might not cross the minds of the new members to give us as much info to help us help them with their problems. I do think it sucks when I see someone with 3,4,5 messages posted asking a question and someone simply replying "search button". I've sent private messages to a couple people with hopes it could help them resolve their problems. I've answered the same question over and over. It's redundant but I dont see it as annoying. I guess because I was in their shoes one time before. I guess its also because I believe people sign up to this website to make friends that share the same hobby and for help. If they knew they'd get treated on here the way a little brother gets treated by the annoyed older brother then I bet some people might not join. But you know what, I've noticed the same on other websites. Pardon me if I step out of bounds but I feel layitlow.com is worse. I joined that site not too long ago because the modelers on there seem to focus more on lowrider modeling than anything else. I thought I could get help with my lowrider models but i've just found more wise ass answers from people on there than anything else. I think they're less tolerant there than they are here. I will cancel my account once I finish the two lowriders Im working on.

I've also added an additional hobby. I've recently started building R/C cars and joined a website strictly focused on R/Cs alone. I know next to nothing about that hobby and asked how they carbon fiber the hoods on the body. "Wont the dark gun metals and blacks mess up the look of the lighter colored body?" No answer. Perhaps because its the 4th and everyone's out popping the M80's. Perhaps they're also tired of answering the same question. Well the search engine didnt help answer all my questions, thats why I'm asking. And i'm sorry if my question might seem redundant. I'm new to the hobby and am just doing whats normal, search and ask questions. If that site turns out to be as friendly as layitlow then I'll just leave that site too. I mean, why have all these passwords and I.D.s lying around if you dont like the website? It's bad enough our lives now revolve around PCs and passwords, so why keep these if we dont lvisiting the site? But you know what, all these sites are the same. If I go to another R/C site i'll just find the same. Crazy cause I was thinking of the exact same thing earlier today Enzoenvy1.

[bigfrit]

Wow, great read MR CHATO.

This has some really well explained things that I for instance don't ever think about.

I agree on many things, you have kept it open and pretty clear in your explanation.

On one thing I disagree, tho; I don't think first time log-onners will start to post right away? You want to check out your surroundings, just like before going into an appartment. You want to know the neighbourhood, the customs, more or less see what people are like just by observation. I think you'd be surprised at how many 'lurkers' there are, just observing and being a passive member, because of a lack of time or interest or things to add.

This being said, I agree on your tirade about bad moderating. There will always be 'some' mistakes when working with moderators, it's a normal thing. Most of the time it's harmless, some other time the moderator would have to reply quickly just because it's another annoying thread on the same subject, over and over again...

I remember some of my stupid threads back in the day vividly

But to be honest, referring to the search gets annoying, and moderators often dont have lots of patience. Some more then others, naturally.

But on the whole, I must agree, the athmosphere might be a little tense out here, as most of us are active members and have a sence of community, but hey doesn't that make af great?


Compared to other forums, this one is atleast active, has expertise and has great members... and talent, let's be happy it's not as bad as in other countries

Love and Peace, Y'All !

[MPWR]

Originally Posted by Enzoenvy1

I did not want to label any people in particular so I shall not.

What's up with this?

Does it do us any good here at all to get huffy and go on about "those anonymous people who've pissed me off", and complain about it here so we all have to guess? If it's just one or a few people doing one or a few actions that are really getting under your skin, why not address those specific people and actions?

Is it perhaps because this is too public a place to call people out??

Then take it offline! That's what the PM function is for. If one mod or member is doing something that bothers you, let that individual know. But a long nonspecific rant about how someone keeps doing something doesn't really address your grievance, does it? Sure, we get 3-5 pages of other people venting their own nonspecific complaints about nonspecific people, and maybe some people (the already nice ones ) are reminded that it would be cool if everyone were nicer. If this is what makes you feel better, then it's probably fine every once in a while. But has anything really been done about the issue? If you really would be happier if you no longer saw the things that really bug you, then address those things with those individuals.

[drunken monkey]

Originally Posted by chato de shamrock

This is my first blog website i've ever participated in.

this is not a blog.

also, let's while we're at it, ignore the simple fact that there are three stickied threads with big red "important" in their title. One is even titled: "Important: NEW TO THE AF MODELLING FORUM? PLEASE READ THIS FIRST".

[Icon Modeler]

Originally Posted by drunken monkey

this is not a blog.

also, let's while we're at it, ignore the simple fact that there are three stickied threads with big red "important" in their title. One is even titled: "Important: NEW TO THE AF MODELLING FORUM? PLEASE READ THIS FIRST".

I NEVER read any of those threads, I came here for the modeling not your red tape. Another perfect example of a mod pointing out something that doesn't need to be said.

Icon Modeler

[drunken monkey]

then perhaps you shouldn't have clicked the "I Agree" button when you signed up then?

[Enzoenvy1]

Originally Posted by MPWR

What's up with this?

Does it do us any good here at all to get huffy and go on about "those anonymous people who've pissed me off", and complain about it here so we all have to guess? If it's just one or a few people doing one or a few actions that are really getting under your skin, why not address those specific people and actions?

Is it perhaps because this is too public a place to call people out??

Then take it offline! That's what the PM function is for. If one mod or member is doing something that bothers you, let that individual know. But a long nonspecific rant about how someone keeps doing something doesn't really address your grievance, does it? Sure, we get 3-5 pages of other people venting their own nonspecific complaints about nonspecific people, and maybe some people (the already nice ones ) are reminded that it would be cool if everyone were nicer. If this is what makes you feel better, then it's probably fine every once in a while. But has anything really been done about the issue? If you really would be happier if you no longer saw the things that really bug you, then address those things with those individuals.

Case in point.

I do not need to single out the people that I have issues with on a public forum. It is rude and not needed to reduce the morale of those who might like the people. This also gets out in the open what I know others are feeling and have felt.

Am I to just send a pm to someone and expect them to say that they understand and will change?! That doesn't happen because too many people get on the defensive. Besides, this was not about "a long nonspecific rant about how someone keeps doing something", that "doesn't really address your grievance". This was my way of stating how I feel about the site as of recent. If my "rant" is so unspecific then why have there been so many replies that mainly stay on topic?! Look how many replies have been made by the mods and how many of those mods are not even taking the defensive! That was all I was after.

I have been wanting to say something for a long time as I have noticed more and more. This is an online place to share your models and experiences with those said models. AF is not somewhere to go and have people degrade your visits. There should be no reason why anyone ever should treat you poorly on a site that they help support. Isn't the whole point of a website to create a community that everyone wants to return to and help grow constructively?! I am not trying to undermine anyone or create an uprising on the site. I love this site. If I can't speak out in public about it then what is the point of a public forum?