Do you run a gaming or other forum?

[jerri blank]

No, this doesn't belong in the tech board. I'm just curious about how many people besides me run other communities, especially forums.

I run a small (fewer than 100 people) private adult gaming community,* and for me it's a constant struggle to walk that line between policing too much and letting things go to hell.

Because the community came into existence two years ago primarily as a way for us to organize Xbox Live get-togethers, I have pretty much insisted that people Be Nice and have been strict about flaming and name-calling, because nastiness in an online community spills into interactions in other places, such as XBL. Many unpleasant threads have led to removals from friends lists, etc. (Yes, people should be more mature, especially in a "mature" gaming community.)

Then you have Qt3, where flaming is allowed and only the REALLY over-the-top annoying posters get gently touched. It's a nice change for me to be in an environment where I can either deal with the rough-and-tumble or get out of the way.

And in the community I run, I have to resist the urge to find technological solutions to social problems. I run a board on the Simple Machines platform and briefly considered installing an "Ignore User" mod. I successfully resisted, reasoning that people are just going to have to toughen up a little and be able to deal with posters they don't agree with, perhaps by actually ignoring them.

So I've rambled long enough. Do any of you run online communities? What's your approach to policing the community?

*Note that I did not post its address lest I be accused of pimping.

[XPav]

private adult gaming community
Roooowwwwwrrrrrrr.

[Bahimiron]

I run a roleplay MUSH which includes a wiki and a forum.

Not quite the same thing.

[Ed Solomon]

Roooowwwwwrrrrrrr.

Boom chicka wow wow

[Leah C]

I have a fairly small private forum (50ish people) that branched off from a much bigger public forum. Over the last several years, most of us have met in person so we're mostly respectful and don't need a lot of policing. All I really do is delete people that stumble in randomly, fix broken pics/links, and delete things for the less tech savvy users that miss the giant "Delete Post" button. I could probably police more but I'm lazy and I figure they're grownups - they'll either be nice, get a thicker skin, or leave. A few people have chosen to leave.

[Pogo]

If I ran a community I would probably be an incoherent Nazi jackass.

As it stands I'm just an incoherent Nazi jackass in IRC.

[Sol Invictus]

I run several.

I have a simple policy: Let people say what they want to say, unless it's something that's absolutely offensive or spammy -- e.g. racism, holocaust images, rickrolls on every thread, "FIRST!!!!!". In which case, you shouldn't ban them outright. A talking to is in order. If they're interested in being a part of the community, they'll tone down.

Flaming and debates should be allowed. That's not to say that the staff should jump in on every thread and start calling people with whom they disagree 'retarded', however. When you clamp down on what people can or can't discuss, you're stifling your community and encouraging them to leave for greener pastures.

Like QT3, you have to draw the line somewhere. Threatening someone's job is pretty much asking to be gently touched. Posting hateful slurs at someone, or constantly trolling them in every thread should result in a moderator stepping in to warn the user, especially if its disruptive.

I personally dislike forums that are moderated by fascists. There's nothing worse than being banned just because you have a differing opinion to one of the moderators.

If there's one thing I noticed about official forums, is that moderating them heavily is the worst way to go about doing it. The Age of Conan forums are pretty much reviled by the community due to their nazi moderation policies and people getting banned for criticizing the comapny. This is in contrast to Blizzard's WOW forums. Sure, it's full of complaints and lots of anti-Blizzard rants, but it's not such a bad place.

[Bill Dungsroman]

I used to help run a site that was mostly about gaming and occasionally my penis. It was a wonderful, grand old time and I cherish the memories of it warmly.

[Funkula]

I used to help run a site that was mostly about gaming and occasionally my penis.

I think you inverted the ratio there.

[Bill Dungsroman]

I think you inverted the ratio there.

I'll invert your ratio FUCKLICK.

[wildpokerman]

I'll invert your ratio FUCKLICK.

I like the new Bill. It reminds me of a less funny Andy Kaufman.

[JD]

What's your approach to policing the community?
I dunno, we always this type of deal at whatever place I worked: You're free to vent your frustration towards the developer in case the game doesn't seem to work as it's supposed to do, if you, however, feel like insulting any other members of the community, you will get in trouble. 'Trouble' being two or three warnings ahead of being gently touched ultimately. We also said: If you include an insult in a question or remark, your post will be ignored until you've learned to phrase it properly.

It usually worked out well, and as soon as one has a decent core community running, the other community members tend to take care of things since they value the place they're now familiar with.

-Julian

[Bill Dungsroman]

I like the new Bill. It reminds me of a less funny Andy Kaufman.

P&R spillover alert whoop whoop

[Jason McMaster]

I've hosted and ran several failed gaming communities.

[extarbags]

I run/ran a small forum for, of all things, my (now pretty much defunct) Magic Cards team. I think qt3's moderation style is pretty much on point.