| -fatty- 2850 08.01.2005 12:02 |
I think it's fair to say that Queenzone is on it's last legs. In fact, if Queenzone were a horse then it would be making it's final journey to the glue factory by now. The saddest thing is that it's not old age that's fucking up Queenzone. It's the abuse that it has suffered over the past few months that will eventually kill it. I'm no doctor but I can think of a few things that might get the old girl up and running again. Before I go any further I would like to make it perfectly clear that these are just a few ideas that might help halt the decline of Queenzone. These are not demands and I'm not threatening to leave if things don't go my way. In fact I'd be thrilled if someone disagreed with what I'm saying and offered another soloution. That at least would be a step in the right direction. First of all we need a seperate forum for Charles Webster Baer. I don't want to see him banned as there are a few folk out there who seem to enjoy his posts, but I can't see the point of him starting three or four new threads every day when all he writes is "Ah Yeah", "Get it On" or "Global Internet Goverment". Maybe I'm being thick but I just don't get the joke anymore. Come to think of it, I never got it. By all means allow him to post thread after thread of vaginas, poo poos and weenis's but why not stick them all together in one forum and let those take comfort in his wise words visit it as often as they like. Of course Mr Baer cannot be expected to follow this simple premise and would then go out of his way to post his pish in the wrong section. That brings me to my second point. Mods. I realise that I am going back on everything I have ever said about mods but we really do need one at the moment. I don't mean a mods like they have on QOL. An elite band of snobs who feel they have the right to censor and delete people's posts just because they don't like what they say. Just one person who could filter out some of the banal shite that crops up every day. Someone who can move Charles Baer's request for his anus to be squeezed into the vagina of a giant weenis into it's own forum. Or some sad bastard who starts a thread at 3am stating that he or she is bored. This probably needs a bit of discussion as to what constitutes a useless thread but if we keep going the way we are going this board will die. Of course the hands will be shooting up all over Queenzone as to who should serve as mod. but there is one among us who already has this power. Your Valentine has the abilty to delete and move threads at the moment yet never does so. This alone goes to show that she is the right person for the job. Of course Barbera might not want the job so you might want to nominate someone else. Again this is something to discuss. Finally, as I have said in the past it's time to do away with post counts. There's no point in having a post count of 10,000 when it's perfectly clear that you have fuck all to say. So that's my tuppence worth. There are a few other things I'd like to change such as getting rid off scrolling text, different coloured fonts and constant user name changes but hopefully someone else will bring these up. The important thing to do is discuss things, come up with a few ideas of your own, even if they do sound stupid. everybody's pal fatty. |
| -fatty- 2850 08.01.2005 12:03 |
And before I forget, this is one of the 0.01% times that I am being serious. fatty. |
| David Jones 08.01.2005 12:47 |
Yeah, I totally agree with you... |
| deleted user 08.01.2005 12:52 |
i'm serious , too . queenzone shall NEVER die , it cannot , and WILL NOT ! as sad as it is to say , and some here may disagree , i am not the problem here . in fact , i help to keep things a bit lighter . years ago , this used to be a light - hearted place . now , it seems that everyone wants to fight and bicker . can't we all just get along ? ? ? ? ? |
| DeaconJohn 08.01.2005 13:11 |
Good points from fatty. Queenzone has needed some form of moderation for a long time. However the sad fact is that the wonderful chaps that posted here in the days when queenzone was great either have moved on and don't post at all, or very rarley post. Instead we have topics discussing the size of Freddie's cock, with details of what videos to watch to see a clear outline of it. And the thing about charles baer is that he STILL gets responses for posting the same old shite. Queenzone deserves charles baer, as not only does it not ban him, it encourages him. |
| Hank H. 08.01.2005 13:12 |
For me, it never was a problem not to read posts that obviously are useless, or by people I don't like, people I know posting shit. I only read topics by people I know or after they have more than, say, 20 or 30 replies, and therefore seem to be of interest. Of course there are more people than a few months/years ago posting only crap, and less people posting funny or interesting topics, but then again, about Queen, most things have been said, explained, discussed long ago. It's normal. Your suggestions wouldn't change much. If you ask me, only very few people, who left, made all the difference when they posted, the number of spammers doesn't matter. If there were two hundred people spamming the board and ten people still posting nice things, I'd simply only read the posts by those ten. |
| Mr Coolest Cat 08.01.2005 13:14 |
Thats a good post Fatty, the sad thing is it will probably be ignored by those it was intended for. |
| geeksandgeeks 08.01.2005 13:21 |
Mr Coolest Cat wrote: Thats a good post Fatty, the sad thing is it will probably be ignored by those it was intended for.Couldn't have said it better - those of us who agree with fatty have been saying so, often at the tops of their lungs, for close to a year. |
| Maz 08.01.2005 13:32 |
I agree with most of what Fatty offers. Perhaps a new forum, primarily for "useless topics," could be created to drain off a lot of what the personal section puts up with, ie Baer threads and those threads that devolve into conversation among a select group of 14 year olds. Like him, I hate the idea of having mods around here, especially in the QOL mode, but adding one or two might help keep this place tidy for other users. I imagine the bulk of their duty would be moving and organizing theads, and I don't think much deletion would occur (save for a few former users who live to disrupt). Moving threads into the proper forums would cut down on all those "civic minded" QZers who like to tell new users "This belongs in the Personal Section." My only suggestion is that Richard and YV select any additional mods on their own without public input. Opening this up to any public discussion will only create problems and unfair expectations. I think keeping Mods in the background and secondary is best for QZ. As for cosmetic changes, there are a few that would be nice, but mostly we should learn to ignore them. Removing post counts is a good idea, particularly as they only appeal to the underage population on QZ. Name changers only bother me when they are trying to hide who they really are. Colored or scrolling names tell me who is more interested in style over substance and are a pretty good indicator of whom to ignore. As long as html is absent from the text of the thread, I don't mind this too much, though some users complain that it slows the board down. I haven't noticed on my end. I think some adjustments would help QZ right now, especially as we can expect an influx of new users with the tour approaching, but I caution against clamping down too much. QZ has survived on its simplicity so far, and subtle additions are more important than drastic changes. |
| YourValentine 08.01.2005 14:01 |
What kind of moderation do you want? Moving around topics from one place to another? You cannot seriously want that. Crap is crap no matter in which section. Charles Wizzler is not Charles Baer. Charles Baer is banned from this forum and I delete his newly created accounts about 3 tímes a week. I agree that Charles wizzler is not the problem. Maybe he can add a bit to improving the board by showing a bit more fantasy with his topic titles. Queenzone always had trolls and nutcakes but there was a time when the regular users ganged up on them and they either fitted in or left the board. The problem now are a group of attention seeking spoiled kids who spam the board boosting their post counts not even realising that it's bad manners to abuse the forum for their pathetic attempts to look important. On the other hand, the regulars don't feel it's worth their time or effort to teach the new users some QZ netiquette. Instead they leave or want a moderator. This is a fan board - you cannot expect Richard to solve all problems - like when some users are annoyed by colours Richard has to programme filters etc. It's true that I can delete threads and user accounts and Richard has told me on many occasions that he trusts my judgement because he knows I don't have my fingers on the delete button all the time and I heartily agree with his view that this board should maintain the freedom of speech. You have no idea how fed up I am sometimes about this board being misused by all these bored kids but I cannot and will not make my own taste the measure of all things (and I would not want someone else do it) I can ask Richard to return to the good old Champion/Royalty names to put an end to people posting useless crap only to obtain a higher post count. I can also delete the most crappy threads if this is what you want but I cannot save the forum without the help of the users who care. The saddest part about all this is that Richard has done so much in the recent months to improve the website and the forum with all the new features and services that it's a real shame that the forum is in such a state when it could still be the best on the net. Edit: it took me ages to write this up, so I did not see Zeni's post. I agree with most of what you say except for the moderator part. I am still very much in favour of an unmoderated forum - after all it's just a notice board and the QOL moderation where threads are "quarantined" before some higher powers decide, is just an awful example for how this can get out of control. If we have mods, we will have threads about moderation, discussion about fairness an favouritism etc etc - it would not be Queenzone anymore. |
| Bob The Shrek 08.01.2005 14:42 |
The only way to get rid of the shit is to make it 'pay per post' - that way, people will think before they post crap. |
| -fatty- 2850 08.01.2005 14:48 |
Nice to see a bit of constructive input on the board for a change and thanks to all of those who have replied so far. I too would like to see Queenzone remain unmoderated. The worst thing that could happen is for us to go down the same road as QOL where posts are deleted without explanation and mods seem to rule rather than serve the good of the board. Maybe a caretaker would be a better title for the job of someone who cleans up the 'I'm Bored', 'Who hates marmalade?' or 'Squeeze my clitoris' threads. I agree with Barb in as much as crap is crap no matter which forum it is posted in, but if someone's posts of sheer banality keep getting swept into the sin bin they ought to realise that this isn't the place for them and they would be better off posting on Channel 4's Big Brother forum. Anyway thanks again for the input and it would be nice to see this and discussions like it remain near the top of the bored. fatty. |
| deleted user 08.01.2005 14:50 |
indeed , all valid points . |
| Bob The Shrek 08.01.2005 14:56 |
The idea of deleting the 'poo, weenis' type threads is very valid. Instead of thinking of it as moderation, consider it as administrative tidying up - all these posts do is take up space and contribute nothing. |
| KillerQueen840 08.01.2005 14:59 |
With all honesty, I would like to know if am one of those "attention seeking spoiled kids. " After reading this it has finally sunk in..I am starting to question whether if I should stay and ruin these boards with pathetic posting or leave so it will be one less brat for everyone to deal with. |
| Serry... 08.01.2005 15:07 |
No any censorship, for God's sake! If people want to say crap - they would say it, no matter of what we think about it. There's no cure for such things - moderator would have his own tastes and points of view and would be able to delete what he/she just doesn't like. That's wrong. Maybe we need more forums here, just like it was done with Paul/Tour case. And if guys would go on to post their thoughts about Paul on Queen forum you could remove it into special forum. That's it. |
| pma 08.01.2005 15:14 |
I'd gladly see the postcounts gone (and the REGISTRATION date returned in the postcounts place). As to what I consider the biggest problem on queenzone? Well, after lack of phpbb ;-) there's "postwhoring" and removing the postcount/status and OR starting a new "freezone" section (a section where posting doesn't increase your count) could solve a few problems. But I guess I could always bugger off, three years as a poster is enough. :-P |
| AC 08.01.2005 15:15 |
I don't like moderation as they do on QOL (where my posts are deleted without explanations). But I also find difficult and tiring to check the board to find maybe 10 interesting threads out of 100. If we could just move Charles Baer's threads into the Queenzone.com foum, that would really improve the readability and pleasantness of the board. |
| deleted user 08.01.2005 15:32 |
Jess, I don't think you would be included in the bunch of "spoiled" posters, because you actually contribute to the board. I more so think the complaints are directed towards Baer clones (who, I might add, are not funny, nor do they add anything to the board except for inane crap and crass subject titles. Anyone who finds the clones' posts funny obvious has the mentality of an 11 year old). I may be in the minorty, but I am finding Megamike's goodbye topics to be extremely tedious. Were they ever funny? I'm surprised he is resorting to such childish posts... Anyway...I thought Zeni's suggestions were good, but I really don't think much will change around here. |
| Ian R 08.01.2005 15:33 |
The solution is simple. Add a new forum - perhaps call it something innocuous like the "QueenZone Coffee Room" - and get the moderator to move all of the crap and mind-numbing threads into this section, leaving the cream of the discussions in the Personal section. This is not censorship and leaves each individual poster's right to free speech intact. It will certainly make it easier for people to sort the Wheat from the Chaff, so to speak. If you should fancy wandering down to the Coffee Room to find out whose anus Charles Baer is sniffing today, then you can do so. However, no doubt the majority will avoid this proposed extra forum at all costs. The only major decision to make would be to decide who should be moderator. If Barbara volunteers to take on the role in a more active capacity, there will be no arguments from me. |
| YourValentine 08.01.2005 15:36 |
You should stay, KillerQueen840. If you read all this without moving on to a "lighter" topic you are certainly not someone I have in mind. - Although you would not be any less respected if you remove the ugly green colour from your username :) |
| jericho05 08.01.2005 15:39 |
I've only been on this board for about six months. I was attracted by my love of Queen and with the hopes of meeting other like-minded people. I haven't been here long enough to see what the board was like before the influx of useless posts but can only imagine that it was probably what I'm looking for. Fatty,Zeni,YV and a few others have made a lot of excellent points and I can only reiterate what they have said. I don't believe moderation is the answer and I hate to admit I have been drawn into the stupid threads (Baer,often HeM and Megamike) on more than one occasion. Maybe there should be a separate forum for Stupid Threads. Maybe there should be a caretaker who moves them from section to section. I really don't have the answer. I think the only way we can move forward is if those responsible for the state of the board grow up and learn some respect for it. We should all be accountable for what we post. Let's look at ourselves and try to bring this board back from the brink. Another excellent point that YV made: maybe we should be ganging up on the idiots to force them to leave or fit in. I know I'm babbling and doubt I've added anything constructive but that's my two cents for now. Rob |
| Penetration_Guru 08.01.2005 16:05 |
I think it's too late. The lunatics have already taken over, and you can't put the genie back in the bottle. The days of the board being self-moderated went when people started whinging about the treatment inane, repetitive and pointless topics got from the more long-term members. THis led to less abuse towards newbies, which led to more newbies posting shite unmolested, which then decreases the average intelligence of the board's content. So, all the sanctimonious "lay off the new guys", IN MY VIEW has given you (the generalised population) THIS forum. I think there may be a need for an invitation-only private forum. Unfortunately, most of the people who would enrich it have already given up and left, and half of the rest no longer have the energy to go to more forums. So we're all doomed. Happy days... |
| YourValentine 08.01.2005 16:08 |
Basically, you gave the answer yourself, Jericho05: just don't post in the crappy threads. I am totally against this moving around of topics and creating extra forums for useless posts - come on. Occasional nonsense topics are fun and do not hurt anybody. It's the sheer number of these threads that choke the board. Nobody gets a heart attack when a topic is in the wrong forum - who cares. But 20 "I hate newbie" threads per week in the Queen forum can kill the board as well as opening the Personal Forum and seeing the same name as a last poster in each and every thread. We all must know that it's impossible that someone has to contribute something useful to any given thread. When I see that I don't even want to open the threads anymore. A little bit of self control and responsibility can do more than 100 mods. |
| agneepath! 11994 08.01.2005 16:08 |
Things are dire and have been for some time. its a great shame because a lot of effort has been put in by so many people especially the whole sharing the music / bittorrent scheme. Hopefully things will improve once the tour begins and people will once again discuss interesting issues. |
| deleted user 08.01.2005 16:21 |
It was said before, and I say it once more: if you know the thread is filled with BS, why bother posting in it? Some people just don't quite get the fact that what these spammers enjoy is attention and more attention. And another thing, do we have to resort to the strictest moderation? |
| Janet 08.01.2005 16:34 |
I began coming to Queenzone back in late 1997. There have been times when it was great fun, there have been times when I was bored...angry...whatever. There have been times when I wanted a break, sometimes 6 or 8 weeks would pass without me even looking at it. But I've not thought of leaving. Everyone always thinks that the time when Queenzone was the best was when THEY arrived on the scene. And then almost everyone eventually claims it has gone to the dogs. I can remember..when QueenRocker crashed, and all the members there flooded Queenzone. We were all horrified, being a tight-knit little group, and alot of the 'originals' left because they felt Queenzone was ruined beyond repair. But soon the personalities meshed (after alot of bickering and some real fights, lol), we got along, and at least some of the Queen Rocker people became some of Queenzone's best loved and funny, and intelligent posters. I really don't think moderation is the answer. Yes, there alot of posts that I think Queenzone could do without...for all I know, others feel that way about MY posts! Someone might hate birthday threads, others hate Baer, and some love him, etc etc... I also thinks its rediculous of people to post of leaving, never coming back, etc. To me, its simple, you either pick and chose what you would like to respond to, or you go, simple as that. Posting dramatic goodbyes is always a wrong idea...almost everyone comes back at one time or another. Queenzone will only be as good as the posters here are willing to make it. As Barbara says, there's nothing wrong with a bit of nonsense and mischief now and again. And the people who can't deal with it need to lighten up! The place is full of people from different ages, locations, walks of life, etc. Not everyone is going to get along, or find all jokes funny, or approve of everyone's behavior. And because its unmoderated, you have every right to say so! Its the differences of people, that made the board interesting in the past, and I think that if people just took a little care with what they do and don't post on, it could be that way again. |
| DeaconJohn 08.01.2005 16:53 |
"I think there may be a need for an invitation-only private forum." ... I was going to say that.... "Unfortunately, most of the people who would enrich it have already given up and left, and half of the rest no longer have the energy to go to more forums." ...but then I too thought of that. A no win situation it seems. Janet, love the new signature ;-) |
| Janet 08.01.2005 16:57 |
And who says who is good enough to enter the private sanctuary? Who picks? Perhaps the elite few should just converse on IM. Then they wouldn't have to deal with the rabble at all. Thanks :-) |
| Bob The Shrek 08.01.2005 17:12 |
I have to agree with Janet - who is going to pick members for an invitation only forum? Silly idea if you ask me. |
| DeaconJohn 08.01.2005 17:37 |
Well I know two people who WONT be getting in! *Crosses names off list* ;-) |
| Janet 08.01.2005 17:38 |
:-P ~giggle~! |
| -fatty- 2850 08.01.2005 17:46 |
I think an invitation only forum is a bloody good idea. We could invite all those annoying newbies to an elite invitation only club and while they're in there boring the tits off each other, we can have Queenzone to ourselves. Problem solved. fatty |
| deleted user 08.01.2005 17:48 |
I shudder to think who the second person is. *ahem* |
| DeaconJohn 08.01.2005 17:51 |
Hahaha the man is a genius. I know we can lock people out of a forum...but is there a way of locking the bastards IN the new forum once we lure them all over there? Then queenzone will be ours once again! Ive just went into the chat room and i recognise no one. I've been on this bloody site too long... |
| DeaconJohn 08.01.2005 17:56 |
"I shudder to think who the second person is. *ahem*" - well I'm sorry Amanda, I may have to lock you out. Having a Jennifer Aniston lookalike might draw too much unwanted attention to the new board! We dont want Friends fans from all over the globe flocking to the new board begging for memberships to get a glimpse of you now do we!! |
| deleted user 08.01.2005 18:01 |
Dagnabbit, how unfair. Interesting ideas, btw. Don't get drunk with power, you hear? ;^) |
| Music Man 08.01.2005 18:15 |
Finally my efforts toward the demise of Queenzone are finally propagating tangible success! Anyway, I think that seeing the same name in the "Topic Started by" column is far worse than the "Last Replyed to by" column. When I spent more time on here, I used to reply to everything I had a response to; I would hate to think that any of my posts lacked intelligence. Yet still, regardless of any of these statistics, apparently nothing important enough is being said, so I don't think one should mind the unimportant, "irritating" ones. |
| Lester Burnham 08.01.2005 18:16 |
I know I've stopped posting fairly recently, and while it's partly due to personal reasons, it's also because I can't stand how some people on this board are making the experience completely unenjoyable anymore. These are the people who take any opportunity to shit on a thread, serious or not, by turning it into a flame-war by cursing, shouting, and being generally annoying. Without naming names, there are three culprits: one claims she is a dirty queen, the other is a form of Southern, homemade alcohol, and the third is from the valley. Charles isn't the problem anymore, but people like MegaMike who constantly post utter shit about leaving and supposedly parodying threads asking if songs were written about Freddie's having AIDS, which isn't funny to begin with, and explaining the logic by saying, "Sorry, I had to do it." No you fucking didn't. I don't want to see Queenzone die either, because there might come a time that, when all the shit going on in my life right now is finished, I'd want to come back and contribute again. I enjoy my sparring matches with iGSM, which most will undoubtedly find nonsensical (and some might even think is part of the problem - but I haven't heard any complaints), but I also like coming here to see what's new in the life of Queen and what fans have to say. But posts like "how big was Freddie's cock" are absolutely absurd, and people keep fueling them by posting to the threads, and some certainly don't help by posting parody threads. I'm afraid that all I can do is bitch, instead of offering any help. I just hope that some people understand where I'm coming from, as I might be a bit more of an unspoken minority on the board (hell, I don't even know what people honestly think of me), but speaking as an observer, there are really some shit posters here that would have been eliminated if social Darwinism reigned. Anyway, thus ends my rant. |
| Richard Orchard 09.01.2005 01:15 |
Ok - i have removed the postcout thing. Also, removed html code from usernames when viewing a forum topic. i will contemplate other ways to filter out the trash. Ideas are welcome. |
| jericho05 09.01.2005 01:34 |
Looks good.Maybe some of the rabid posters will get bored. |
| deleted user 09.01.2005 03:04 |
It's a start, Mr. Orchard, a good start. |
| dragonzflame 09.01.2005 03:38 |
Yes. Now perhaps, bambam, you could remove the whitesmoke html code from your username? It just looks weird is all. *sigh* I'll miss my post count, and I'm a little sad about the fact that I won't be a deity but if it'll help the state of the board then I'm willing to make that sacrifice. Good on you Richard. |
| deleted user 09.01.2005 04:02 |
"Yes. Now perhaps, bambam, you could remove the whitesmoke html code from your username? It just looks weird is all." You know what, I tried like 3 times to update my profile, and it seems that it would not budge. Conflicts in the new setup, maybe. |
| iGSM 09.01.2005 05:09 |
<> Nor 'ave I. I thought it might have been too. I can't say I'm Mr. Model Poster. I post shit. I know that. I'm not sure I post it in the quantities to be designated a pain in the prick. There are pains in the arse, I know that too. I had fun matching repartee with Lester and learning more about Queen from the older folks from the board. It's damned fun. It's damned, damned fun but it seems there's a monkey wrench in the works at the moment. I remember when I joined there weren't too many people on the board. But it seems now days that on the Queen forum that there's a new topic started by every new member. Not that I have a problem. After all, I've got a feeling '05's gonna be good year. Especially if we see it in together. |
| Banquo 09.01.2005 05:11 |
Anyone else on the old forum design like me? I can't get used to the new one. A little moderation wouldn't go a miss but how can you measure 'little'? I certainly wouldn't do it. If Queenzone does go tits up it will be sad. Perhaps a re-boot of the board might work. Crash the board on purpose then we can all re-register. |
| DeaconJohn 09.01.2005 05:38 |
I too always use the old board. I never go to the new one. If the old board disappeared I probably would too, really cant stand the colours of the new one; its good that people have the choice between the two. Nice to see Richard is reading this topic and thinking of ways to help out. |
| pma 09.01.2005 06:51 |
Richard Orchard wrote: Ok - i have removed the postcout thing. Also, removed html code from usernames when viewing a forum topic. i will contemplate other ways to filter out the trash. Ideas are welcome.Please have the old registration dates displayed on the new board (if possible?). |
| AC 09.01.2005 08:38 |
Good idea. Let me create other 500 accounts and I will win the poll and become the new moderator. No, in the end I don't think it is a good idea. |
| deleted user 09.01.2005 10:09 |
i cannot say that i will not post the occasional odd thing , but i will certainly , in the future , try to refrain from posting vulgarities in my subject lines . i may be a bit off upstairs , but i am also a huge queen fan , and rather enjoy the reactions i get posting this mindless , drivel . that said , can we STILL get it on ? |
| Richard Orchard 09.01.2005 10:27 |
I have posted a few guidelines as a sticky topic to try and help. However, make no mistake, there is a onous on you, the dedicated Queen fan to make a difference. Rather than read a topic that you think is crap, how about starting a good, decent topic!!! I can only do so much - you have to help out! |
| deleted user 09.01.2005 10:29 |
thank you , richard , for all of your hard work. we all shall work , together , to make this a better place . we need to . |
| Yogurt 09.01.2005 11:00 |
I know this might be a little late, but I noticed the post counts are gone and thank you Mr. Orchard for doing that. |
| Yogurt 09.01.2005 11:00 |
Yogurt wrote: I know this might be a little late, but I noticed the post counts are gone and thank you Mr. Richard Orchard for doing that. |
| geeksandgeeks 09.01.2005 11:45 |
Bob The Shrek wrote: The only way to get rid of the shit is to make it 'pay per post' - that way, people will think before they post crap.That would be an excellent idea, Bob, except that certain of our long-term members (read: me, and probably several other people) don't have any money - or, for that matter, power in our households. As there is a good number of you whom I like quite a lot, I really don't want to lose contact with you. This is a fantastic board for its purpose, and I would really hate to have to stop coming here. I notice that post counts are gone. Good. I didn't really mind them, or pay attention to them much, but getting rid of them will eliminate the complaints about them. Fewer complaints = happy people. Somewhere on the Queen board, there is a fellow named Zander05 who created a sort of newbie survival guide on this web site. My friend, if you're out there, could you please post it again so that the Personal board frequenters could have a look? It's a superb list. Face up, folks - it's not any of the little things that are dragging us to hell in a hatbox. Many boards manage to exist in peace and harmony with post counts, HTML, the occasional troll, etc. It's us. If you've ever replied to a Charles Webster Whateverthehellhisnameis topic, you're guilty. If you've ever out-and-out flamed someone (including Britt or Baer), you're guilty. If you've ever accidentally hurt someone, but flatly refused to apologize afterwards, you're guilty. If you're on the front line of the newbie-bashing brigade, you're guilty. Yeah, this includes me, too, and I regret it - you'll notice that I've tried to be a bit nicer in the last half of my QZ years. No matter how many itty-bitty technical things we eliminate, as long as we're still being hard and bitter, things aren't going to look up. Before I get accused of being an apologist for stupid newbies, yeah, some of them need to shape up, too. But if they haven't figured that out by now, they're not going to. The least we oldbies can do is hold up our end of the bargain. Sorry if this sounds a bit preachy or condescending - wasn't intended that way. I really love this community, and I don't want to see it go down with flying fists. |
| KillerQueen840 09.01.2005 11:59 |
I'm glad the post counts are gone, but I'm not going to lie..I'll miss my lime green font. ;-) |
| geeksandgeeks 09.01.2005 12:22 |
HeM wrote:Only issue with that is, the novelty would wear off after about two weeks.HeM says:"See the cow in my profile!" wrote:Richard Orchard wrote: Ok - i have removed the postcout thing. Also, removed html code from usernames when viewing a forum topic. i will contemplate other ways to filter out the trash. Ideas are welcome.Maybe some kind of "prize". Now we don't have post counts anymore (thanks, now new users won't be discrimined), the place under people's name is free, so you and YV could every week choose a few "good posters" and add something like "Good Poster", "Good Queenzoner" or something like this under this people's name for 1 week. And put something like "Bad Poster" under the name of the worst one, those who keep starting useless and boring posts. I'm sure people's egos would make them think a dozen times before each post. ;-) Oh yeah - about moderators. Who the hell in their right mind would volunteer to moderate a board like this? Not me, my friend. I have no desire to be the one who is always raining on someone's parade. Trust me, moderation isn't all it's cracked up to be, especially on boards prone to flame wars. |
| Music Man 09.01.2005 17:46 |
geeksandgeeks wrote:Haha, I would. :-PHeM wrote:Only issue with that is, the novelty would wear off after about two weeks. Oh yeah - about moderators. Who the hell in their right mind would volunteer to moderate a board like this? Not me, my friend. I have no desire to be the one who is always raining on someone's parade. Trust me, moderation isn't all it's cracked up to be, especially on boards prone to flame wars.HeM says:"See the cow in my profile!" wrote:Richard Orchard wrote: Ok - i have removed the postcout thing. Also, removed html code from usernames when viewing a forum topic. i will contemplate other ways to filter out the trash. Ideas are welcome.Maybe some kind of "prize". Now we don't have post counts anymore (thanks, now new users won't be discrimined), the place under people's name is free, so you and YV could every week choose a few "good posters" and add something like "Good Poster", "Good Queenzoner" or something like this under this people's name for 1 week. And put something like "Bad Poster" under the name of the worst one, those who keep starting useless and boring posts. I'm sure people's egos would make them think a dozen times before each post. ;-) |
| John S Stuart 09.01.2005 18:57 |
Good old Fatty! What an excellent thread - and some very sensible postings. I agree that it is a very difficult problem. NO censorship (on one hand) v the Freedom to write sh*te on the other. It's a shame we have had so many spoilt kids in lately, but for my two-pence worth, perhaps a QZ intro on the main page (including poster responsibilities - but not too formal or rule like), and a big space between the "post reply" and "new posting/thread" buttons. They have been of no problem to me, but I do see that they have been for coutless others. In the main, I too think this is the best Queen fan forum around because of its lack of censorship, and I to would hate to see it die because too many useless topics which have clogged down the board. |
| Mr Mercury 09.01.2005 20:02 |
geeksandgeeks wrote: Oh yeah - about moderators. Who the hell in their right mind would volunteer to moderate a board like this? Not me, my friend. I have no desire to be the one who is always raining on someone's parade. Trust me, moderation isn't all it's cracked up to be, especially on boards prone to flame wars.Agreed Geeks. As with just about everybody else, I wouldnt want to see any mods here. Infact the only mods I would welcome is self moderation by eveybody - MegaMike take note (your "Im leaving" posts are juvenile). HeM bucked his ideas up and in my opinion became a better poster - so can you. There is 2 quotes from Mark Twain that could be used here if you do decide to use self moderation - "Always do right; this will gratify some people and astonish the rest" and the famous "Its better to keep quiet and have people think you stupid, than to talk and remove all doubt" |
| Mr Mercury 09.01.2005 20:41 |
HeM wrote:Lol does that mean I'm in the HeM Fan club now? Yeah your right about Mike and I hope the Charles Webster wotsisname does what he says he will do as well.Mr Mercury wrote: MegaMike take note (your "Im leaving" posts are juvenile). HeM bucked his ideas up and in my opinion became a better poster - so can you.First of all, thanks for the comment. :-) |
| deleted user 09.01.2005 21:23 |
Also, if Mr. Orchard does not mind, instead of "Member Since: time in memorial" or "Post Counts: 1 Bazillion", can we put "queen fan from: Boogaloosa, Tanganyika", or something similar? You know, just to know where we are from and give some leeway to those unavoidable incoherent and/or bizarre grammar. Just a suggestion... |
| Rabon_Gumm 10.01.2005 05:21 |
Qz is dying? What's up with it? If it is in such a bad way, it may be more humane to have it put down. I'll get the gaffer to take it into the back yard and drown it in a bucket of water, like he did with all my childhood pets. It was for their own good, he said. |
| queen_forever_87 10.01.2005 08:51 |
I totally agree with Fatty! I came here not too long ago, but in the time "when the topics were still interesting". It was so great that I used to come around here everyday to read topics and sometimes reply to them ('cause I only reply when I really think that I have something to say or ask). But these days, I tell you, sometimes I don't get here for a week, just because topics are gettting worse and worse. I love real topics about Queen, not those shitty ones in which folks are asking about the size of Freddie's dick.... like I care! Maybe we do need moderators around here, it's not the best option, I know, but I think it's the only option we have. I also think that the FAQ section should be bigger, just for the new folks around here. And if they join QZ, they should get an e-mail or something with these FAQ in it, so that they can read it before they go posting stupid questions on the board. Once again, I totally agree with Fatty: DON'T LET QUEENZONE DIE!!!!! |
| eggy 10.01.2005 09:00 |
There have always been crap posts. How many T E D posts were the back in the days when I remember posting shite!? Maybe we are all just older and more miserable now. I know I certainly am. |
| Lisser 10.01.2005 09:37 |
I've only been posting on here for a year and a half. I'm still a newbie so to speak...maybe I don't deserve to comment on whether or not I think the board is dying but I have a comment or two. Its nothing spectacular or something that hasn't already been said really but atleast I can say I put my two cents in. I don't think the board is dying. I will say that it does take a bit more effort on my part when I come to the board to weed through the crap and get to the good stuff. Its nothing I get too particulary peed off about. I automatically ignore Baer/clone Baer's topics. So that is a fair amount of the crap right there that doesn't come into play. The only reason I would vote for his banning is bc when he does go on a new thread rampage he covers up some of the good stuff. It is very easy to avoid his threads but when there are so many that the valid posts are covered then that does irritate me. Hem irritated me as well a bit but I agree he's become better. Some of Mike's topics are annoying as well but you just have to take the good with the bad. It really can't be up to Barb and Richard to clean up every mess. If you see something that is shit on the board just ignore it. If you don't feed the fire it will eventually burn out. Like I said, I may not be qualified to state what would help the board given my amount of time here. I can only say what works for me in sorting through the poop. I also do not expect Barb or Richard to do what I am capable of doing myself... and that is don't read it if I don't like it. If I don't like it, I go try and find something I would enjoy reading or commenting on. I do realize that that is not the entire solution though. I do become a little more irritated when there is so much garbage that I can't even find one interesting topic. I have hopes that the people/person that litters the board will eventually tire and go away. I would like to add that I think there are still far more interesting people on this board than there are trolls and fart heads. I've met tons of cool people on here that have taught me a lot! For that I am grateful, you all know who you are. As long as I think this I won't be leaving anytime soon. Sorry to disappoint. ;) |
| brENsKi 10.01.2005 10:01 |
i don't think the html names hurt anyone the postcount did because nubes were making excessive posts (all stupid) just to up their status |
| Taylor-Mayed 10.01.2005 12:22 |
Queenzone.com is an ex-website. It has ceased to be. It has gone to meet its... Ah, you all know the bloody words. |
| YourValentine 10.01.2005 15:24 |
I disagree, Paul. The truth is that QZ is more alive than ever, it has more users, more visitors, more features and services, more information than ever and it's sure the most versatile and lively Queen fan site on the net. For example, the Queenzone chat room is the only Queen chat room which is busy every night whereas #queenfanclub is virtually dead and #queenonline never really started. The notice board always has been more unruly, chaotic and crazy than QOL or former Queenworld board. And Janet and eggy are right - there were always people who proclaimed the death of the QZ notice board but it's still there - quite an achievement |
| deleted user 10.01.2005 16:06 |
the rumours of link 's death have been greatly , exaggerated |
| Brandon 10.01.2005 17:36 |
Well, I have always been a rabid opponent of any type of moderation, but I'm going to have to agree with fatty on this, QZ is in dire need of having the garbage shuffled. I come, take a look and see fifteen mindless topics started by the same three people and simply close the window. QZ was once one of my pleasures in life, and now I rarely visit at all. Hopefully, something will give, but at this rate, I doubt it. Throw me in for the slight moderation by maybe a few trustworthy posters. |
| geeksandgeeks 10.01.2005 18:25 |
charles webster bizzle wrote: the rumours of link 's death have been greatly , exaggeratedI gotta agree with this fellow on that one. The crochety oldbies (Closed Captioning for the Severely Humor Impaired: SHE'S NOT TRYING TO INSULT YOU) have been predicting the death of QZ for ages, and from what I see it's still there. As long as our old posters don't keep dropping off the face of the earth, and as long as we keep getting some non-Baer clan newbies, it'll live. |
| Bob The Shrek 10.01.2005 18:29 |
It won't die, it will just continuously evolve. |
| iron eagle 10.01.2005 18:41 |
this place is not going to die too many will not allow that to happen there is a influx of newbies --this is nothing new alot are youngsters... this definitely is not new and people come and people go... some quietly and some with great fanfare the only change is the 'intolerance' and 'cynicism' factor that has grown over the years... this crap has taken on many different forms.... blasting of newbies newbies in a rush for quanity versus quality wondermous topics-- you know the ones board floodings by both jerks and those who know better sexism and homophobia conversation topics -- anyone hear of chat??? what is needed is for people to take a bit of responsibility for their actions and words and not rely on Richard or YV to do it for them its not thier job to dictate decency here we make the NB what it is.. dont like it... options are you can move on to greener pastures (you wont find them but perhaps will come back and apprieciate this place a bit more) create your own NB and moderate/flood/spam/ to your every delight i have been around here for a long time-- seen alot of stuff-- both good and bad-- the good far out wieghs the bad stop calling for babysitting and hand holding and do it yourself if this NB was mine-- i would take it down for a while..... a good while.... would remind many how good they had it...unitl it was gone.. and just maybe when i'd bring it back up it would be apprieciated a bit more for being a free and unmoderated place -- a true rarity in the cyberworld |
| Janet 10.01.2005 18:44 |
most excellent post... |
| Bohardy 10.01.2005 18:46 |
I agree Bob, but why is it evolving into a cyber-playground for a bunch of retarded kids with nothing constructive to say? Obvioulsy you always view the past through rose-tinted spectacles, but in my 4+ years that I've been here, I seriously can't remember a time when there were so many immature kids running about the place, scaring away the adults or more mature amongst us. Why is this place attracting more of these types these days? Obviously these people all have an interest in Queen, but it seems that far too many people instantly migrate from the Queen board to the Personal board, find some like-minded imbeciles to converse with, and then proceed to saturate the ENTIRE forum with their infantile shite. Somehow, somewhere along the line this place has become more akin to a general kids chatroom than a semi-serious place to discuss Queen. There are thousands of forums on the net that are more suitable for the people that post here and are ruining the board. Why do they stay here? I think there's some validity to what PG said. We inadvertantly fostered the environment here that made it more acceptable for people to post shit, get away with it, and become a prominent poster. Maybe we were too nice to too many newbies. We've mostly got ourselves to blame. I still come here pretty much every day, and I hate that fact, because I'm just wasting my time. I rarely post, and I rarely actually READ anything that's posted, because only about 20% of the posts are worth reading. Having said all that, I see a difference between a 'mod' and a 'caretaker'. I really can't see the harm in there perhaps being couple of new forums, and someone (Barb gets my vote!) taking a bit of time to ensure posts are in the right place. |
| Maz 10.01.2005 20:12 |
One thing we should consider is that QZ is bound to get a bunch of new posters due to the upcoming tour. I think Bob's idea of a "caretaker" would help solve some of the issues that will arise with an influx of new users. But if users are dead set against making any sort of administrative changes, then, as Richard said earlier, the onus is on us to promote good threads or topics. |
| Bob The Shrek 10.01.2005 20:19 |
I agree Bob, but why is it evolving into a cyber-playground for a bunch of retarded kids with nothing constructive to say? I think it would take me less time to explain to how a Tunneling Scanning Electron Microscope works. |
| deleted user 10.01.2005 23:06 |
Are the old-timers saying that they let their guard down and was overran by morons? |
| eggy 11.01.2005 06:11 |
I don't come here anything like what I used to, and to me it will never be like it was here in 2001/2002 but I still do what I used to and just ignore the shite. Maybe there were 50% shite in the old days and now its 65%%, but as time goes on people only remember the good posts and forget all the crap ones from old. I remember the time when TED completly spammed this place and that took people ages to sort out. The situations now are just similar to those ones. I go down the no moderation line, just cos I remember those few years ago. All the younger kids seem to get on, just like Me, Paul, Alli, Emma, Sonya etc did a few years ago. I say give them a bit of a break. |
| Taylor-Mayed 11.01.2005 06:46 |
"All the younger kids seem to get on, just like Me, Paul, Alli, Emma, Sonya etc did a few years ago. I say give them a bit of a break." It's a bit like school really. If you ever happen to pop back to your old school you think "Christ - what a bloody mess! This place has really gone to the dogs!" when in fact it's just new kids doing the same things you and your friends always did. I think many of us who were around Queenzone in the 2001-02 sort of time when I did most of my posting here just went off and found other things we were interested in in life. |
| Rabon_Gumm 11.01.2005 07:31 |
Speaking as one of the 'younger kids' (I like the sound of that!) I have to say I prefer the older crowd to the younger. They want their heads read most of them. "Seen and not heard " gaffer says. But he's not really a one for message boards. He's not really a one for much to be truthful. But he's full of good advice. |
| Music Man 11.01.2005 14:18 |
eggy wrote: Maybe there were 50% shite in the old days and now its 65%%, but as time goes on people only remember the good posts and forget all the crap ones from old.I think you have it the other way around. People will tend to remember all the crap posts and will forget the normal, everyday conversations they are wont to have. eggy wrote: I remember the time when TED completly spammed this place and that took people ages to sort out. The situations now are just similar to those ones.I rest my case. Anyway, personally, I consider this a pretty stupid topic. I generally come to the notice boards for entertainment and enjoyment; honestly, this thread is just plain boring. It's kind of like listening to a one-sided argument with no substance. One would tend to view my response and think "Why doesn't he just not read it then?" The response is simple: this seems to be a focus of the board at the time, and to become uninvolved with it would be to become uninvolved with the board. This seems to be a similar dilemma to that of which this thread is about. Many of the mainstream threads in this board have turned into nothing but long, miserable threads on ridiculous topics, filled with supernumerary posts on the populations disappreciation of these threads. This is the mainstream; there is no alternative. Actually, the Queenzone notice board threads can be easily split into two categories: threads are ridiculous and threads that attack threads that are ridiculous. To be honest, neither of them pique my interest. This brings me back to my former point I made a while back: there is nothing else to counterbalance the ridiculous posts. If one were to eliminate them, one would also kill Queenzone because instead of creating threads of substance, the population is resorting to creating even more ridiculous threads bashing the ridiculous threads already in existence. Take away those ridiculous threads and what are you left with? Nothing. A little logic never hurt anyone. Do not worry about the threads which boast no point, but rather create threads of substance; this is what you can do to save your precious Queenzone. |
| geeksandgeeks 11.01.2005 16:26 |
Couldn't have said it better, Music Man. |
| deleted user 11.01.2005 17:56 |
when do we get to see the three some ? |
| deleted user 11.01.2005 18:24 |
when will you learn , paul , that an anus is NOT a vagina , and mine is not for sale , or rent ? |
| eggy 12.01.2005 04:35 |
Musicman you have it plain wrong in the fact that I remember the normal posts a hell of a lot more than the shite, as will Paul I am sure. There are a lot of people here who enjoy the normal sensible conversations about everyday things and to call them miserable threads is just plain bollocks. There is also nothing wrong with a thread with ideas on how to improve this place for everyone the majority or minority. Paul you are right in what you said - the people who were 17/18/19 three years ago now. We've grown older and got other things to do. I suppose being bored at work is the reason i'm back here now (yes its 9.30am!). |
| geeksandgeeks 12.01.2005 15:41 |
eggy wrote: Musicman you have it plain wrong in the fact that I remember the normal posts a hell of a lot more than the shite, as will Paul I am sure. There are a lot of people here who enjoy the normal sensible conversations about everyday things and to call them miserable threads is just plain bollocks. There is also nothing wrong with a thread with ideas on how to improve this place for everyone the majority or minority. Paul you are right in what you said - the people who were 17/18/19 three years ago now. We've grown older and got other things to do. I suppose being bored at work is the reason i'm back here now (yes its 9.30am!).I think you've both got a point. Music Man's right that we need to actually have constructive discussions about non-related topics and not continued ranting about how the board is going to hell in a hatbox (CCFTSHI: SHE'S NOT INSULTING FATTY. YOU CAN PUT AWAY THE ASSAULT RIFLES.) Then again, this is the personal board, and it's supposed to be for perosnal discussion. Surely we can have some nice, boring, good ol' personal discussions that do not contain the variations on the phrase "when are you going to get it on". |
| Munchsack 22.09.2005 08:19 |
I will have to agree with Fatty once again. We Scots have to stick together. Plus his ideas make sense. |
| Hitman 22.09.2005 08:46 |
Uhm...i have read many interesting opinions here, i think that this place is not dying after all, but sometimes it's right to remember everyone that we have an occasion to share our passion for Queen and the chance to meet new cool people without offending anyone and, also, without using the board just to write too silly things. I appreciate the "good" quality of a noticeboard.Too much trash around make invisible the good things. personally i'm always around, not leaving but without much free time...times are changing ;) greetz |
| great king rat 1138 22.09.2005 11:00 |
DeaconJohn wrote: I know we can lock people out of a forum...but is there a way of locking the bastards IN the new forum once we lure them all over there? Then queenzone will be ours once again!Just what I was thinking! I think that this is a very difficult topic, as you need to balance people's right to freedom of speech with people's right to enjoy Queenzone without some idiot's pointless posts annoying the hell out of them. I know alot of people got up in arms about BPP, but atleast his posts were actually relating to queen, and not just some random crap about cookies! I've only been a regular here since lastdecember, but even in that short space of ime, I've seen the site change beyond recognition. I used to be able to come on and reply to sensible, well thought out posts in virtually every new thread. Now I feel lucky to find that it's worth replying to more than one post per week. I'm not saying that funny/random threads are all annoying, but the sheer volume of them is ridiculous, as is the factthat virtually every thread in the personal section these days ends up turning into a slanging match. However, we shouldn't just give in and let all of richard and barb's hard work go to waste. Let's fight the bastards head on and get this site back to what it should be! |
| Lisser 22.09.2005 22:55 |
Ressurectionnnnnnnnnnn |