The Gray Room

Gul had an idea for the Gray Room, which I like and believe Listkeeper is also on board for (correct me if I am wrong there!)

The concept is to expand the purview of the Gray Room to include threads where people are bitching about Wordforge and most likely the staff.

This is a good idea because:

It keeps the Help Desk for threads where people need help and questions asked and answered.

It keeps policy shit out of the Red Room.

It keeps the dirty laundry hidden away where it is easily ignored.

Staff won't have to see what shit people are saying about their actions unless they want to.

Staff can fire back at shitty remarks if they wish in a trolling allowed forum.

It will keep the shitstorm out of whatever thread the actual issue is being discussed in.

Listkeeper can be a dick all he wants to asswipes.

It will boost traffic a whole lot in there.

Basically it just adds Wordforge to the list of BBS' and websites being talked about in there.

Discuss! :lookatme:

Doesn't matter to me, since I'm lead moderator in both forums now.

Great idea, IMO!

I just like the idea of the shitstorms being hidden away from casual guests.

So you basically want to turn the Help Desk into a big FAQ and place to report technical problems?

Trying to stifle debates about policy sounds like an awfully weird place to go.

I like the idea. Especially because it requires no technical changes

Honest debate is fine. The sniping and trolling, not fine.

I'm against it on general principle. But, if you do a better job of selling it, I'll be glad to listen.

Stifle debate? Nooo..I want to keep the debate of issues in perspective by offering another location where the frustrations can flow freely...and where disruptive shitstorming can be split off and continued unfettered in the hidden room.

Depending on the kind of debate you want, you'd choose which place it should go...open to trolling and harsher language..put it in the Gray Room. A more serious debate without any BS..the Help Desk.

Let people have their place to get it out without flooding the Red Room or the Help Desk with "Tamar is jack booted thug!" "Martial Law fucking sucks!! EVIL ELITEFORGE" sort of shit. It doesn't happen all that often anymore anyway *knock wood* but it's better to tuck it out of sight for the people who want/need the outlet and not irritating people who don't want to see 70 RR threads on policy crap.

They are going to do it anyway, it might as well be somewhere more private.

Seems kinda odd, the Gray Room is specifically for other BBSs. I imagine it won't take too long before somebody realizes the main reason is to hide any complaints about WF/Staff.

It's so they can more openly bitch when they need to without getting warned in the Help Desk or filling the Red Room with policy shit Elwood loathes in there.

It only "hides" it from non-members so it's not like "sweeping it under the rug". And civil, non-trolling non-flaming complaints/debates can still be made in the Help Desk. This just adds a place for venting frustrations if needed.

I have no opinion on this matter. The Help Desk seems to work fine as is, but I can also see letting the rank-n-file use their pottymouth skilz in the Gray Room if they want. If something solid comes up, the mod(s) in question could just say "rephrase this in the Help Desk and we'll see."

But of course, some would post only in the Gray Room and then bitch when no-one on staff responded to them.

And this would be different from what goes on already in the Red Room how?

Elwood would be less annoyed by it.

Exactly!

They already have a place to do all the potty-mouthed bitching they want about the board and it's staff. It's called Troll Kingdom.

If you see a policy thread in The Red Room early enough, move it. If it's too late, ignore it. It's not that complicated.

Thy will be done.