One of my conclusions in Red Light Redux was that Dragon’s Mark needs more staff. But that brings up more questions, like. . .
- How do you find responsible “smile-from-the-wrist-down” volunteers for your staff?
- How are you going to choose people who can be perceived as reasonably neutral?
- Who will oversee your staff and deal with “abuse” of their virtual power?
- How will you keep your volunteers from burning out?
- Who can you trust not to create bigger problems than already exist?
- Who will take the time to train new hosts, and for that matter, what are you going to train them to do?
- How do you reconcile what the players expect hosts to do and what you expect the hosts to do?
In comments on Red Light, Green Light, M. Pence questioned whether hosts and admins are there to help mediate disputes between players. She also suggested that they should be setting a mature and impartial example for the rest of the community, which I completely agree with. I have even higher (unrealistic?) expectations.
I think roleplay hosts should be a blend of a GM, storyteller, maitre’d, bartending bot, information desk, and TOS-cop, in that order. I think there should be message board hosts – and I don’t think message boards in a roleplay forum should have more posts in OOC threads than IC threads. I think there should be hosts who ensure that galleries, avatars, and portraits aren’t violating any intellectual property rights.
Most importantly, I think all hosts at Dragon’s Mark should set a good example. I can’t believe that hosts are serving any useful purpose when they are “in uniform” and exclusively conducting their own personal storylines with their roleplaying partners instead of hosting. I do not think they are setting good examples when they’re posting x-rated stories*, engaging in snipefests on the forums**, or even just using copyrighted images without permission on their own hosting profiles***.
*There are better places for that than the Red Dragon Inn.
**Duh, that’s what IMs and blogs are for.
***I’m sure there’s a good place for this crap. I just don’t know where.
The only answer I have is: “step out on a limb and take the chance.”
Back up forums, posts and databases as much as possible and then take a deep breath and…Award someone their host/mod/admin title. Hope for the best.
Listen to your player base. If you’re getting 23023920392039203293 complaints about Admin Bobby Joe and Bobby Joe couldn’t POSSSSIBLY understand why–it’s probable 2039230293203 people are telling you something about Bobby Joe.
As for training new members–I believe the trainers currently training now are probably one of the best people to be handing down their knowledge to those new and brave enough to want to try.
The second biggest issue that I (think) I see is that there are no CLEAR instructions to players on HOW to become a host or how to help out. There needs to be a name/screen name/private inbox for them to get a hold of clearly somewhere in very big font. One of the biggest questions I get a lot is, “Oh, how does someone become a host anyway?” as if it’s a big mystical process where people with robes come out chanting and choosing specifics from the flock of those worthy. (Okay, maybe the latter part was something I imagined before I knew better. But still.)
I love the idea of Forum Hosts and Gallery Hosts! This would lighten the load for some of the admins and mods responsible for other things across the board!
I agree that Forum Hosts and Gallery Hosts would be great. These ideas have been suggested previously and at that time rejected. Perhaps continued suggestions might come at the right time to be considered and implemented.
The trouble with live RP Hosting comes into different styles. I admit to my failing as a host because my style conflicted with what was expected by a majority of the players at the time. I removed myself from hosting (though for some reason am still listed). However, at the time, and this may have changed, becoming a Host was either one of the Admins asked the player, a current Host was approached by a player, or Host observed a player and gave the heads up to Admins. Briefly there was a time when the names of suggested Hosts were given to other Hosts so they might observe and see if the player “got it”, for lack of a better phrase. However, most of the time Hosts just appeared without their peer group having any idea. I feel there is fault in this only because Admins do not, as they have admitted, have the time to get to know these people or observe their interactions both IC and OOC over an amount of time.
Outside of that lengthy ramble there, the style of Hosting also touches on what Eve mentioned about Hosts focusing on their play partners while in uniform. From other viewpoints, that is showing how to RP by example. Some see hosting as bartender, greeter extraordinaire, and guide to staying within TOS. Others see it as someone just setting atmosphere, giving the room some life, but not necessarily someone who has to interact with everyone.
It boils down to Admin stating this is A and this is B and they want more A to happen than B, as well as Admin admitting to being overwhelmed and releasing some of the responsibilities to others. I think with the Forums, they were expecting each folder’s moderator to fill in those roles, but for the most part they do not. It is hard to do so when the standard requirements for maintaining a folder are handled so unevenly. Moderators don’t know if they should follow the guidelines or not when they observe others not doing the same.
It would also be nice to have use of the Dragonsmark side of the OOC rooms used more often for perhaps Town Hall type meetings of a nature instead of hanging out in the Lobby, which, from my understanding, was just supposed to be a quick meet up thing for RPers and then moving on to actually gaming in the other rooms.
And absolutely the folders should not have more OOC posts than storytelling posts. I have to admit that to being one of my pet peeves beyond the entire thing of players getting folders before the required 20 posts (I know the reason why, I just don’t agree with it), and the 90 (60?) day keeping up with the folder before it gets sent to the Catacombs that doesn’t happen for some. I’ve been tempted to let my folder go and see how fast it gets sent to the Catacombs, but I’d have to stop other people from posting in there as well, and that would be just me cutting off my nose to spite my face. I may think it, but try not to act on it.
Oh sheesh…that wayward post just proves Mt. Dew drinking and making sense do not go hand in hand.
P.S. On an alternate but not completely off topic post, I would change my host picture to my new DAZ rendered picture if I could, but I no longer have access to that SN even though it still shows up on the Meet the Staff. I’m trying to get out of copyright danger. Honest!
I think it would be next to impossible, at this point, to find impartial hosts.
That being said, I also think that no one would willingly volunteer for the position. Becoming a host means separating yourself from most of, if not all, of the fun in the game. You essentially become a non-participatory entity who can no longer offer opinion in the OOC section of the site without seeming partial to one side or the other. Seeing as how just posting a dissenting opinion these days on the Round Table boards labels you as being against the player whose opinions oppose yours, their family, dog, cat, play partners, and anyone else involved in their “clique”. You can’t voice a dissenting opinion on the boards without major drama erupting in regards to conspiracy theories, “Us” vs. “Them” infighting, and everlasting grudges bubbling to the surface. Who do you appoint to Host with that sort of power that has never been accused of participating or being involved with the above? Newer members? The older members wouldn’t stand for that.
Its like I said before, giving any sort of power to anyone but the administration will just cause more drama than is necessary. Do Panth and the other admins want to file through the added complaints lodged against hosts accused of abusing their power? Do they have the time? Do they want to? M. Pence mentioned that even though they don’t want to it is their responsibility as administrators to do so. With the drama the site has the potential to generate anyone who would accept that level of responsibility would have to add a full work day onto their 9-5 job to maintain the site to that sort of level. It worked in the days of AOL because paid AOL staff always resided at the top to settle disputes brought against Guides.
While I understand that it can seem a difficulty to find neutral parties in light of the very strong personalities often read on the boards, I think it is possible. There are several respected RPers who, so far as I have seen, do not get involved with the OOC squabbles, maintain level headedness when they do try to steer the conversations, and have been around for some time. They keep themselves aware but apart. I am sure there are more who come in, play the game, read the boards, and take it all with steady reasoning.
In addition, it is probable to assign certain people to areas of which they are not involved. Those who have art interests could form a small tribunal that reviews the artwork and brings problems to each others attention and decides on action. Within the boards, the same thing could be formed, perhaps five people with a certain day to check the boards for difficulties, meet together or post to their own area anything that might be a touchy subject. If it is black and white “this folder has not been updated for 90 days” they sent a note to the moderator with a warning of its removal, and then take care of it. All of this done without prejudice and without Admin having to handhold anyone.
I just feel that if there are organizations that are all Volunteer run, like charity organizations, movie fan groups, etc, without paid people to keep things going, that it can be done here as well. It is a matter of finding those appropriate to the positions, not the person that jumps up and down saying “Pick me! Pick me! I’m your bestest friend!”
It isn’t easy, and mistakes will be made, but correcting the errors in judgment are better than letting it linger until one feels they must do everything themselves. It might help to look at people’s OOC work / volunteer experience. It is an OOC objective Admin would be trying to attain with the Forums and Galleries, so OOC experience could be the better guide.
What you say is very possible Sylvia, there are some members who are/were Hosts, such as yourself, that are level headed and are capable of keeping themselves out of the routine drama that seems to happen over at DM.
But there are those that would accuse even you through as many degrees of separation as necessary of favoring certain groups, disfavoring other groups, or being involved in a super secret internet conspiracy that is out to get them. It’s inevitable and can’t be avoided in any situation. Not saying that something shouldn’t be done. I agree with all the sentiments here about censorship. Something must be done about PG-13 being maintained in the chat and copyright being upheld. Just saying that handing out that sort of power is dangerous.
But I have to question the necessity of having someone keep track of the message boards to the level of detail being described here. There are no message boards that are on the front page when you visit rdi.dragonsmark.com that have to be read, nor are there any at the Forum Index page. If others were being denied there own Forum folders because of lack of space, then I can see making the rule that someone has to have an IC post within the last 90 days so their folder doesn’t get Catacombed. But whats the difference between a folder being put in the Catacombs and residing underneath its subcategory? Not much aside from the folder being locked.
To be honest with you I check a scant few Forum Folders with any regularity, and the fact that people can keep their folders alive and active without posting IC doesn’t really bother me all that much. The fact that some folders have more OOC posts than IC posts doesn’t bother me all that much either. It takes a few clicks to reach those folders from the homepage and searching through tiny font to find those folders on the Forum Index page. When I know someone’s folder has more OOC posts than IC posts I just don’t bother to go through the effort of finding it and reading it. Plus there are people who drop by to type in a quick, simple OOC post like “LOL OMG WTF”, which hits the post counter as a single post, but then post IC posts that are multiple pages long, which still hits the post counter as a single post. Should those people be reprimanded because their OOC post count says “25″ and is at best a half typed page of content in total, while their IC post count says “5″ and is 10-15 typed pages in length? Should the people who post slowly also be reprimanded for suffering from writers block or being a bit busy?
I currently have a post going in Dragons Tales that I haven’t updated in a while due to suffering from a little bit of writers block. I updated it pretty steadily at least once or twice a month. Recently I haven’t really had the time to. If I had my own personal folder I don’t think it would be fair to have to get access to those posts by requesting the Admins move my folder out of the catacombs because I fell out of rhythm for a little bit. Its easier just to make an OOC post.
I do see your point about the writer’s block, and I apologize in not touching on that very valid concern. I was basing my recommendations on current guidelines of maintaining an active folder, and not touching on the perhaps the derivative difficulties of those current guidelines.
Does it bother me more OOC than storyline? Yes, but I still see OOC as keeping it an active folder and therefore the player is putting effort into visiting it the folder in some fashion. Does it trouble me the play-by-posts? Well, I will admit that it is a little disappointing (like watching a DVD that sticks every two minutes), but I understand that is simply a different style and is as valid as any other.
The difficulties probably also tend to stem from how one reaches these posts. I either do a “Posts since last visit” which often sends me a barrage of OOC or I read through my RSS feed, which is even more difficult at times. This, however, I don’t think should be upon Dragonsmark’s shoulders to rectify. It is my choice on how I get there, just tedious sometimes to have 125 posts of OOC jokes or whatnot that I feel would be better over on the OOC boards than sprinkled throughout the actual play posts. Tedious, but it won’t kill me to get through it, which is what I do now.
If the folder guidelines are as they are now, that is what I was referring to being moderated, not investing more restrictions upon length or style of post.
Sorry Eve for running rampant on your board, but I did not want anyone to think I was ignoring their input or concerns. And Bad Juju you are very kind to think I have a level head. However, it is often pointed out to me that I have a somewhat narrow perception. I’m glad to read these other viewpoints, because it made me really look at what was troubling me, and that it was partly of my own doing.
Thank you.