Closing of threads

sprjenkins · 26-03-2007, 01:22 AM

A lot of threads are being closed lately and I know there is a sticky on the subject but could we please have some further clarification on what is acceptable off topic conversation and what isn't. A lot of people are thinking that if Ford is the topic of the forums then The Bar covers everything else

normxb · 26-03-2007, 01:46 AM

Just personal experience .
The thread I started recently , I contacted a moderator for that section , explained what I had in mind & got the Ok . As long as it's sensible , readable , non religious/racial/political and non provocative .
I think the Mods here are "very liberal" , compared to some Forums I've used . At least we do have a section where we can bring up O/T's , some forums don't . It's either on topic or deleted .

Remember , if you're after posts just to "pump" up your post numbers , the Bar won't do it .

Just my .02c worth .

**Mechan1k** · 26-03-2007, 02:06 AM

Couldn't have said it better myself Norm.

Outbackjack · 26-03-2007, 02:09 AM

Do you guys ever go to bed!!??

:

sprjenkins · 26-03-2007, 02:15 AM

hmm, no

**Mechan1k** · 26-03-2007, 02:21 AM

I wish I was at home in bed ... but I am at work unfortunately ... and here for another 5 hours.

Outbackjack · 26-03-2007, 02:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mechan1k

I wish I was at home in bed ... but I am at work unfortunately ... and here for another 5 hours.

Same here, but 5 3/4 hours for me. But 4 days off after this. Wooo Hooo

**Mechan1k** · 26-03-2007, 02:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Outbackjack

Same here, but 5 3/4 hours for me. But 4 days off after this. Wooo Hooo

Lucky you ... I am back on Wednesday for another 3 days ... although Tuesday I am doing courier work as well ... at least I have next weekend off (looking forward to having one weekend off).

normxb · 26-03-2007, 02:45 AM

No guy's , I don't sleep real well , awake , asleep ,awake ,asleep and what better place to spend when you can't sleep , Lol .

You can tell when I'm getting tired , it looks something like this :-
"bnkjlfvhjcdghx cchxkkkkkkkkkkk " It's called "headbutting the keyboard with your eyes closed" . :P

Outbackjack · 26-03-2007, 02:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by normxb

No guy's , I don't sleep real well , awake , asleep ,awake ,asleep and what better place to spend when you can't sleep , Lol .

You can tell when I'm getting tired , it looks something like this :-
"bnkjlfvhjcdghx cchxkkkkkkkkkkk " It's called "headbutting the keyboard with your eyes closed" . :P

Yes, I have woken up a couple of times with a back to front QWERTY across my fore head!!!

Quasi · 26-03-2007, 05:36 AM

Yes it is.

The way threads get locked/closed around here lately borders on paranioa. I've seen a topic inthe list, gone there, and found it closed, but reading through everything a couple of times can see nothing in the thread to indicate any reason for it......then other threads are allowed to continue with page after page of crap and misinformation.

Admittedly I made a comment in one thread that it had basically outlived it's usefulnes and should be closed, and it was. However it was one of those threads that was a bunfight waiting to happen.

I agree with a zero tolerance policyon certain aspects of the forum, and I think in general the mods and admins do a superb job, but let's be honest here.....anybody with anything even semi negative to say gets either closed down, or is subjected to post after post of bagging out from from all the mindless drones, suckups, and 'YES' men who don't have the gonads, or intelligence, to disagree with a mod or admin.

As much as I think there are a lot of crap threads across the entire forum, they are topics that others may find interesting. The same goes for questioning the actions of mods, admins, and general members......it's just part of the whole deal.

I occasionally will take a shot at something particularly stupid that has been posted, and at other times simply posted an opposite opinion on something, and others have done likewise. If you post on a so-called 'Public' forum it's a risk you run. However, I have found, quite a bit, that having an opposite opinion to the masses at AFF is just not the done thing, and this can quite often be taken to the next level bringing about closure of some threads.

4.9 EF Futura · 26-03-2007, 09:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sprjenkins

A lot of threads are being closed lately and I know there is a sticky on the subject but could we please have some further clarification on what is acceptable off topic conversation and what isn't. A lot of people are thinking that if Ford is the topic of the forums then The Bar covers everything else

Roll the dice.

Some threads live on to tell the story, others are not so lucky. I dont imagine moderating on a site as large as AFF is an easy task and on top of explaining to people why their off topic threads were closed, im sure these people also have families and jobs that need some attention

Dezza · 26-03-2007, 05:13 PM

I have to agree with all of this. I have seen plenty of great threads closed down due to the "Quality of threads" rule. I agree that the really crap threads should be closed down, but a lot of them that are closed down seem perfectly fine to me. I just can't see the problem with them. Sometimes I get the feeling that if there is a thread in the bar about some form of joke, if the moderator doesn't find it funny, they close it down. An example is the "Ice Age" thread. I thought it was great, and it lightened up my day. Unfortunately the mods thought otherwise.

Van D · 26-03-2007, 05:16 PM

If that's the case (what Norm said), it's fair enough, but kind of hypocritical isnt it?

There's been many a joke thread in the past, and now everyone made seems to be getting shut down straight away. There's also threads getting closed that have similar topics to threads in the past which have stayed open.

Not having a go at the FF mods, just wondering what's acceptable as well, as i'm getting a wee bit confused.

Laminge · 26-03-2007, 05:29 PM

Easier to close threads than the Bar, and taking into account the utter Rubbish being posted of late thats closer to a reality than most think.

Threads will continue to get closed, be as paranoid as you like, but these forums are run from the personalities of the Admin and the Moderators, hence where it is today.

You can post your cooking lessons, politically biased left wing views about your local religious estate doing what ever they do to amuse themselves elsewhere.

This is a fact of life on these forums, will always be.

If you posting in the bar, and contribute no where else on the forums, and I mean contribute constructively to others, then expect the crap you post in here to be shut and removed.

If you think it is your right to post what you want, when you want, become a Donating Member and do so in the DM Forums, if not then please dont waste your time.

The other side of the coin, have a look at how many posts are made in the bar and remain open, compare the stats on the front page and consider the percentage being closed because we want some decent discussion to happen.

Never please everyone.

AU2PWR · 26-03-2007, 05:35 PM

Agreed!

TURBO_GHIA · 26-03-2007, 06:39 PM

lol im surprized this thread is still open ,weird ,but yeah i do agree on some of the topics talked about in this thread ,

dan.76 · 26-03-2007, 06:46 PM

i only post in the territory forum because thats where my knowledge is, and i only post if i think i have something relevent to say, as you you could probably see from my low post count. but i also enjoy the bar as it allows me to ask questions of other members who have expertise in areas i need , mostly pc help lol, but i think we need the bar.
i reckon that closing threads is the best option , on another forum i use went through this kind of stuff but they deleted the threads and all they got was twice as many threads asking why when and how. closing lets people still read them but stops crap being reposted most of the time.
after all who can say the whats your wost job ever thread isnt a cracker?

Jason[98.EL] · 26-03-2007, 08:11 PM

its always a good topic why do they get closed

i agree i have had a thread or 2 closed (that i started) in the past but thats life

the way i look at it if you start a thread about **** it will get closed or deleted

i believe the mods and admin do a great job ...... i have a 5 yr old daughter that can read nearly as fast as me and for this reason i'm glad for the mod/admin for closing most of the crap that gets posted

please dont bag me for that my comp is in the lounge room so if my kids are awake they will see it all

jason

MO · 26-03-2007, 08:34 PM

Lets put it this way...Rules are made for the guidance of wise men and for the strict adherence of fools.

Now I for one do not have a problem with how this forum is run and I ,as Casper will attest am one of the more political animals here.

Thats life thems the rules.

XRchic · 26-03-2007, 09:30 PM

I think one of the problems is threads that just posted for the sake of it.

Imagine if there were no Bar.... and you just inhabited the technical areas or club areas or workshop areas.... and you were struggling to give up smoking, or your hot water service busted (as in my case) or you wanted some advice about getting a job in the mines....

BUT you didnt want to dilute a thread about blown Boss V8s or throw something about your busted [insert item] and ask for some help in a thread where there is a raging debate about edit v Unichip... so you have 2 choices. Ask your question and take the thread completely off topic and annoy people... or dont bother. Maybe send a few PMs but responses will be much less...

However, if you have the Bar, that is the perfect place to start your own thread about some career advice, your busted household thingy or ask if anyone on the forums had gotten a job in the mines....

That way it is not really a thread for the sake of it, is it?

But putting up stupid, lame jokes, like the Ice Age thing? Why do that here? There is just no point. And it was in rather bad taste I thought anyway...

A side point is that my Dad was going to join up to the forums because he wanted to race at Heathcote and he had heard a lot about the forums through us. He is an engineer, used to race all kinds of cars and has done a lot of work on cars generally - has a lot of knowledge to pass on really.

He took one look at the Bar last week and said that if that is the kind of rubbish that goes on here, then he wouldnt bother. I explained that it is off topic stuff in its own area, and the technical areas are really good. He said that why then are the stats all so high for the Bar, and why are so many people viewing the Bar and none in the tech areas? I explained to him that a lot of people who post in the Bar do not go into the tech areas at all and he asked "Well why have it then???!!!"...

Hmmmmm.

Jason[98.EL] · 26-03-2007, 09:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by XRchic

A side point is that my Dad was going to join up to the forums because he wanted to race at Heathcote and he had heard a lot about the forums through us. He is an engineer, used to race all kinds of cars and has done a lot of work on cars generally - has a lot of knowledge to pass on really.

He took one look at the Bar last week and said that if that is the kind of rubbish that goes on here, then he wouldnt bother. I explained that it is off topic stuff in its own area, and the technical areas are really good. He said that why then are the stats all so high for the Bar, and why are so many people viewing the Bar and none in the tech areas? I explained to him that a lot of people who post in the Bar do not go into the tech areas at all and he asked "Well why have it then???!!!"...

Hmmmmm.

i agree with you XRchic on that one my old man was going to join to till he looked at some of the rott that get into the bar

jason

DOC · 26-03-2007, 09:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by heljas

i agree with you XRchic on that one my old man was going to join to till he looked at some of the rott that get into the bar
jason

Although i wont agree or diagree, i will say you dont throw away the telly because it has the the ability to dial up channel 2, or any channel, you simply view the channel's you do like, and if people can help contribute to the other threads then it makes it better for all.

AU2PWR · 26-03-2007, 09:41 PM

jesus , close this thread , sick of seeing a New Thread about someone having there stuff closed and then having the right to cry about it , fact of life , its someone elses site , so its there rules ,

I Think this one has run its course anyway ..

Quasi · 26-03-2007, 09:42 PM

XR8Chic I have to agree in the most part.

The problem has always been (and yes I'm referring to the old forum as well) getting people to post with some smarts and in the right place. However, I ran a search one night and got 9 pages of results, but after the first three pages saw nothing to do with what I wanted to know. I then created a thread and the second response was a certain admin who closed the thread simply stating to run a search.

This left me with no recourse (other than a PM) to state I had done so, but who has time to read all 9 pages of results just so a topic is not repeated.

This was my point about the way threads get jumped on and closed, whilst there are a plethora of crap threads (many with Polls), that go on for page after page.

It's not just in 'The Bar' either. Take a closer look at 'The Pits' and honestly tell me that there isn't a massive waste of resouces anddatabase volume taken up by the same whinging crap about Rck Kelly, or HRT/HDT in general.

'The bar gets more attention because there is more useless rubbish, but it isn't immune

XRchic · 26-03-2007, 09:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quasi

XR8Chic I have to agree in the most part.

The problem has always been (and yes I'm referring to the old forum as well) getting people to post with some smarts and in the right place. However, I ran a search one night and got 9 pages of results, but after the first three pages saw nothing to do with what I wanted to know. I then created a thread and the second response was a certain admin who closed the thread simply stating to run a search.

This left me with no recourse (other than a PM) to state I had done so, but who has time to read all 9 pages of results just so a topic is not repeated.

This was my point about the way threads get jumped on and closed, whilst there are a plethora of crap threads (many with Polls), that go on for page after page.

It's not just in 'The Bar' either. Take a closer look at 'The Pits' and honestly tell me that there isn't a massive waste of resouces anddatabase volume taken up by the same whinging crap about Rck Kelly, or HRT/HDT in general.

'The bar gets more attention because there is more useless rubbish, but it isn't immune

I agree too. Sometimes the searches are hard to do and often unsuccessful but often instead of having a go at someone for a repost, I have just pasted a link to a thread that *I* know is useful, where they can go directly to get the question asked. I have no problem doing that, and being a pleb, I cant close a thread anyway. Often once you have posted the link, the member finds their merry way, the thread can happily get locked and problem solved. I dont see why some of us with more experience on here cant help out someone who doesnt know what is around as much as others.

As for the Pits, come to think of it, I agree with that as well... but I guess it is on topic, so it stays.

I might add that I do like some of the jokes in the Bar and while I do not really think, in a practical sense, that some of them should be there, I do like some jokes and I think the mods are quite lenient with a lot that are allowed. I think the mods let a lot go that some people wouldnt, to be honest.

One thing though, why is it that so many of the really stupid, useless threads are started by a) people I have never seen before, b) people who ONLY live in the Bar or Pub at a stretch or c) both of the above.... honestly, some people just totally live in the Bar and Pub and never go elsewhere... so why bother joining Ford Forums?

Make a choice! Venture into new sections and learn something or bugger off onto MSN, IRC or some other chat friendly forums... I am sure the Forum is happy, and eager, in fact, to accept new members who love their cars and Fords and want to learn more!!! But those who just join to post dribble in the Bar? Of course the rest of us are going to get sick of it at some point and it just increases the workload of admin and mods who should really be devoting their time to other areas of the forum...

Just my views anyway.

AU2PWR · 26-03-2007, 09:48 PM

if there is just going to be crud posted in the bar , let it be locked and only the DMs can then have Casual Chats in teh DM Thread .. whoever created this thread will be upset if its closed

RG · 26-03-2007, 09:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AU2PWR

if there is just going to be crud posted in the bar , let it be locked and only the DMs can then have Casual Chats in teh DM Thread .. whoever created this thread will be upset if its closed

I agree Dan, all people in the bar seem to be doing lately is sooking about the way the site is run or posting up rubbish threads. Remember people you don't know what you've got til it's gone.

ronwest · 27-03-2007, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedXR347

I agree Dan, all people in the bar seem to be doing lately is sooking about the way the site is run or posting up rubbish threads.

Well, I'll tell you what I don't like most about the Bar and that is the overt racism that is tolerated (if not condoned).

Yes, I understand that there is a large amount of testosterone floating around and I'm sure there was a poll some time back where most of the people (in here) vote Conservative (no, I'm not saying *all* conservatives are rascists), so if you add that mix to the age of a lot of the posters in here, it starts to get a bit ordinary.

Why haven't I brought it to the notice of a mod?
Because I figure that as it continues it must mean that its acceptable and I'm the one out of step. I've done my tilting at windmills. The Bar is what it is. (To be fair, I have seen some posters pulled up concerning rascist remarks).

It's a shame (for people like me) as FFA is a wonderful resource and has a special place for anyone wanting to find, or share info about the blue oval.

Quite often I've come very close to becoming a financially contributing member - not because of the extras you get... I don't need them - but because of the good that is done in the specific forums.
Unfortunately, I get to the bar and read something that's over the top, and I then struggle to support what I would otherwise be very happy to support.

My 2 cents...

Laminge · 27-03-2007, 01:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ronwest

Well, I'll tell you what I don't like most about the Bar and that is the overt racism that is tolerated (if not condoned).

It is only tolerated because you, and others that take offense, don't bother to report the post that one has an issue with, oh wait, thats right why take responsibility for anything in the first place.

See the little triangle next to the green light under my avatar, try using that every now and then.

The rest of your post is interesting, not worthy of reply directly, except to re-read above.

But hey thats my opinion, live with it, or not

: and continue to sit back and watch.