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Can we have a quick discussion about "off topic".

What kind of job are the moderators doing in closing "off topic" threads?

  • Not enough. Close down some more and stick to guns.

    Votes: 4 9.1%

  • Great job as is. Well done.

    Votes: 27 61.4%

  • Way to strict. Give people a chance. Guns aren't everything.

    Votes: 13 29.5%
  • Total voters
    44
SteelyDan - this is not challenging your assertion, though it may appear to be so. You could very well be right. My experience is that the GenDis mods are very exacting in what they close as OT. If it doesn't pertain to firearms, it's OT. Some posters do try to weasel in a thread by mentioning something about a firearm, but that is a very obvious attempt to keep their OT threads open.

Since you give a percentage of borderline closures, that means you probably did an informal survey of the threads. Can you give us some examples of closed threads that you feel were borderline? That would give us some food for thought.

(Love your music, by the way. ;) )
 
Some posters do try to weasel in a thread by mentioning something about a firearm, but that is a very obvious attempt to keep their OT threads open.
Click to expand...

I hate those kinds of posters!

Thanks for the official response Rich. Sometimes I am disappointed a thread gets closed because it would be fun to pursue it, but overall, this is the best place to be. If it weren't, I wouldn't be wearing TFL shirts to shooting events.
 
My only desire for a little more laxness would be in the arena of things that could affect a user's ability to access TFL.

Specifically, I'd like to see threads reporting new, VERIFIED (that's the important thing, folks!) computer viri left open, or made float, for a couple of days.

As my mother recently found out, despite her firewalls and viri scanners, a virus can ruin your day AND, to a degree, your computer.
 
Rich:

""- You can't "loosen up a bit" on OT threads...either you allow 'em or you don't. Once you do, be careful what you ask for! You'll surely be racking up the Rules in short order...replacing this simple one with about 100 "plug-ins". ""

I meant in a single forum, not TFL wide.

But, I do understand your's, and everyone else's desire to keep things the way they are. To be honest, this is THE place I go to read up on things firearms related, and wholesale trashing of the rules would hurt, rather than help.
 
The problem with 90% of those virus warning is they are fake and their true intent is to see how many fools will forward it on to their friends. It is a sad, sad state of affairs when people start to believe some of this nonesense.
 
Mal:

I have to admit I didn't even do an informal survey; the 30% figure was nothing more than my best estimate, my "gut reaction." After reading your response, however, I went back and checked a few of the categories to see if I was out of line. To be honest, and only based on the last couple of days, I'd have to say I agree with a lot more of the closings than I disagree with. But since you were kind enough to ask, I'll try to give some specific examples of what I was talking about:

1. The "What I hate about the M-16" post was closed on 3-29, and the "If you are considering buying a new S&W" post was closed on the same day, because some of the members were bickering. There was, indeed, a little bickering in both cases, but it was by a small minority of the posters. We've seen a number of other posts with more vocal disagreements that remained open.

2. The "Dog attacks...do you shoot" post was closed on 3-30 because it was similar to other posts that were made over a year ago. These old posts were made, however, before the very recent high-profile case where someone was convicted of (nuts, I can't remember for sure, maybe it wasn't that high profile) second degree murder (?) for a dog attack.

3. Actually, the one that bothered me the most was also the most clearly off-topic: the "What are your other hobbies" post that was closed on 3-28. Right or wrong, I like to think there's a certain fellowship or camaraderie among the people who come to this board. I enjoy reading about the other interests that people here have, as I enjoy reading about other peoples' occupations (which is equally off-topic, but wasn't closed), and I like the fact that we can provide some moral support and maybe practical advice to a member who needs some help (the "High-alert, my boss was threatened" post, which wasn't closed, comes to mind).

Please don't misunderstand. I think this is a great board "as is," and I realize that the kind of judgment calls I'm talking about are always going to exist. I'm also uncomfortable "second guessing" what a moderator did in a particular case, because if anyone wanted to second-guess all of my decisions they could certainly find plenty to be critical of. (And not just ending sentences with prepositions...) For the most part, I think everyone involved with this board should be proud of the job they do.

But having said all this, I stick to my original belief that some of the posts get closed unnecessarily. Look, if Rich wants to close every third post "just because," that's his right and I'll support his decision because it's his board. But if the goal is to produce the best possible board, then I want to offer my opinion. Feel free to ignore it, as long as you keep listening to my namesake. Outstanding tunes.
 
Yes, a lot of the viri warnings are fake.

That's why verification through Symantec (sp?) needs to be done before posting such a warning.

Verification is quick and easy.
 
SteelyDan - You make some good and reasonable points.

1. The type of threads you talk about here are all "on-topic", but they have all concluded with bickering as you mention. It is a long standing tenet of TFL that we will remain on the "high road", i.e., no ad hominem arguments, no name calling, etc. Any thread that takes the plunge is going to get canned - simple fact. Some threads meet the axe a little sooner than others, we can't see 'em all in time. The originator of the thread, or anyone else, is always welcome to start another thread on the same subject. But, bear in mind that some threads start off with controversy and are doomed almost from the git-go.

2. I won't address the dog attack thread because I didn't follow it. You may have a valid point on the closing of it, I can't say.

3. FWIW, I tend to agree with you on this point. In general, in the past, we have let threads ride that affect the general membership. However, (there always seems to be one of those, doesn't there?), most threads of that nature have been at least remotely related to firearms, BOR, etc.

4. I didn't misunderstand you. You, like me, and the vast majority of TFL'ers still think this the best place to be for firearms discussion and we want to make it even better, if possible. We, the staff, are indeed very proud of what we have here even though each of us only plays a relatively small part, the sum of it all is a pretty darn good effort.

5. I won't pretend to speak for Rich, but I think I have known him long enough to know that he wouldn't do anything "just because". Each decision is usually well reasoned out and not done in haste. I feel that it is because of this along with the staff's work ethic and, perhaps most importantly, the fine membership we have here, that TFL will remain the finest firearms site on the net.
 
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