SUGGESTIONS/COMPLAINTS

[tripled_mods]

This post is now closed. Please see the new complaints/suggestions post here.

Comments

Suggestion

[(Anonymous)]

I don't know. This might be out of line, but I think something needs to be said.

You guys should really have a larger mod team. Especially for apps and stuff. I know you guys all have a lot on your plates and you probably don't want to hear from an anon about this, but, I also know as a player it's really frustrating to wait a week for apps, and then have the weekend pass. And I'm kind of sick and tired of hearing "we're getting to it, we're getting to it."

Not to sound rude but this is a big game and it kinda seems like you're playing favorites by having such a tiny mod team when you all seem to know each other really well. Also, this may be a personal problem, but I was always afraid to approach anyone on the mod team because it kinda felt like it was the "in" group and I was the "out" group until just recently.

You have amazing players on here that have been here for years, who can mod, and who would do well with modding and you're kind of ignoring them and brushing it off with "we can do it"s when it's becoming more and more obvious that you can't. DDD is starting to feel rushed and hassled, and the more I look at the apps page, the more it seems that rejections/acceptances are based on when mods have bad days and don't. Weekly, it kinda looks like one week will be mostly rejections and then the next mostly acceptance.

Maybe you guys are spreading yourselves too thin. But your actions don't affect just you, it affects everyone playing. It's starting to look like you don't really care about us at all. RPing is supposed to be fun for everyone, and I love the members here, they've become good friends in only a short time, I just wish you'd treat us a little more like adults and a little less like kindergartners.

Yeah, that's all. I just felt I should state my piece.

Re: Suggestion

[carnality.livejournal.com]

Thank you for your input. I know I've been largely failing as the applications moderator for a month or two now due to real life circumstances; I understand it's hard to wait and I've asked for patience but I can see that it's running thin all over the board. I feel inclined to apologize for not keeping up as well as I should have.

I can guarantee that there are no favorites. We work well together because we respect each other. We actually have a lot of disagreements that you don't see because we don't want you feel like there is any sustainable conflict between us - there isn't. We just aren't afraid to say what we feel around each other. Publicized, that might come off as attacking or possibly holding grudges, etc, when it's not true.

We actually have only had one person offer to help with modding, and at the time we didn't need her. At this point, we are about to mod someone we've had among us for quite some time who will be assisting me with applications as well as doing other duties to make sure things run on time and effectively. Six mods and two helpers is more than enough in my opinion, but if you'd like to suggest or nominate someone, we'd be more than happy to take them into consideration to be a modpole.

I have never, ever let my personal bias get in the way of the way I deal with applications. Should there be 'on and off' weeks, that's not intentional. I also am a lot stricter with applications than Itsuki, I think, and so when I do them there may be more seen than say when she or Idgie or Tif do them. It's not playing favourites, it's just simply our way of moderating.

I'm sorry you feel you don't care. I really am, I'm not just saying that, but we do and we do work tirelessly to get this stuff done for you so please don't think that we do it out of obligation. We want you all to be comfortable and happy. If it's the way we talk to you or what have you, let us know! Every thing we do, we base off player input and that's why I'm really glad you came to us. It's nice to hear what we can improve on and I hope, in your opinion, that we do in the near future.


I'm unscreening this to invite discussion on the topic, as I do think things we could work on are something we need to hear and I wish this could've been brought up before on the HMD. It's never too late though, and I seriously don't judge you for this. Feel free to talk to me directly if you want. ♥

Re: Suggestion

[solidork.livejournal.com]

lol i'm actually disagreeing with the whole mod team. i honestly think we have way too many mods. People aren't really sure who to come to for what. i mean, what can we go to modpoles for and such. however, i am well aware that right now summer is sort of a lull and there really isn't much for modpoles to do right now or how schedules are when school starts.

i honestly think that the reason that it takes some times for mods to get stuff done because you guys have to bring on eight people, who all have stuff to do together to decide on something.

Re: Suggestion

[samuraiprosecutor]

People can actually take any of their problems to any of the mods or modpoles. If the one they get isn't the one that deals with a certain subject, that mod can always take it to the team and the one(s) who are responsible for that subject can then handle it.

As for how many people it takes to make a decision, one of the reasons we have the team we do is so that everyone can handle certain things, i.e. Norry handles events and apps, Idgie handles lists, etc. Those things are our responsibility, and unless it's something that actually needs all hands involved, like a large policy change, we make decisions on those things ourselves. It's not really a case of too many cooks will spoil the broth, because in general, only one or two members of the team are working on a duty at a time.

Re: Suggestion

[solidork.livejournal.com]

To clarify, it's not that I think you guys aren't doing your job or anything. All of you who put in so much time out of your day, it's really appreciated. But, to apply an economic principle to this: economy of scale? As we grow larger and larger, we reach a point that having such a big mod team is more chaotic than it is helpful. Personally, I don't care how long it takes you guys to do apps. You do a wonderful job of getting to them, regarding your schedules.

HERE HAVE A GRAPH:

(http://tinypic.com)

Re: Suggestion

[vivi]

Well, that's the truth, but that's only if majority consensus or total agreement is needed to be reached for a decision. I personally think it'd go a lot faster and more efficiently if there were formally delegated responsibilities and tasks. This might sound elaborate, but we're a pretty damn big game and we're only growing bigger... And of course, too much organization is always better than not enough in my opinion.

Re: Suggestion

[devilishkurumi.livejournal.com]

I disagree. I mean, I don't think you can ever have too many mods when it comes to applications, but it's only been the last month that apps have been suffering and it's because of RL drama all across the board for everyone. And it definitely doesn't help when people keep nagging the mods about it. I've seen people in chat go "WHEN ARE APPS GOING TO BE DONE, WHEN ARE APPS GOING TO BE DONE" and if it's annoying me, a non-mod, I can't begin to describe how annoying and harassing it must be for the mods.

Re: Suggestion

[solidork.livejournal.com]

I concur with the sentiment about people asking about apps.

Re: Suggestion

[arcesso.livejournal.com]

It irritates me to no end when people bitch about apps getting done sooner blah blah because, really, that's not going to make it go any faster. Not to mention, it's actually IN THE APP POST that it's against the rules to hassle the mods about it. I'm like... really? Have some patience.

I think that considering all of the RL shit that has been going on within the mod team - which has forced Idgie to take a hiatus, which should be your first clue that shit is going down, son - that apps have actually been accomplished fairly regularly! I mean, sure, it's not the same speed as normal, but you have to realize that MODS ARE HUMAN TO. No excessive number of them will change that. There will be slow periods. No one bitches when mods get to the apps in the middle of the week even though they say apps are only done once a week. They're happy. So, don't bitch when they go out of schedule the other way, because that's how you find this happy median of once-a-week.

That said, I did concur about the excessive number of mods, but as I understand it, they all perform unique and helpful tasks when required so... that makes things different. I just wish it were, like Setine said, easier to know what to go to a modpole about and what has to be taken straight to a mod.

As for the playing favorites thing, I really don't see it. I mean, Setine threw up a challenge app and it got rejected, so clearly there is no swayed bias toward close friends of the mods. Umm, let's see. What else, what else, I'm TL;DRing already so I might as well do it right. Oh! Yeah, pretty much just in terms of them spreading themselves thin, it's more that they ARE overstressed because real life SHOULD be taking priority and that's not being allowed because people are demanding they pay attention to pretendy happy fun times which is... kind of absurd. This is a hobby. Real life and any trouble in it needs to take precedent and we as players should be understanding of that.

Re: Suggestion

[vivi]

I don't think the anon's arguing with you that RL shouldn't take priority - or at least, I certainly wouldn't try to argue that. But perhaps there is something to the suggestion that if someone is overstressed or having difficulty coping with responsibilities, they should consider getting help?

As far as I see it, both your request to know who to go to about what and a lot of people's concerns about each mod doing their job (by which I mean, the nasty stuff on the anon meme and a few people I've talked to personally) could be solved by more transparency. I know that, at least, it'd be easier for me to judge what suggestions I could make that would actually be helpful if I understood how the overall process worked. XD;

derp important edit.

Re: Suggestion

[tripled_mods]

YOu guys want me to help out with apps some? I stopped doing it before because I felt bad about letting OOC apps through, but if I'm really careful about asking others first and so forth- Norry and Itsuki could use a break, I'm sure.

- DC

[thricedeadwind.livejournal.com]

Just as my two cents? I've only been here for just over half a year (which I guess is enough so I'm not a n00b? But I'm definitely not an 'experienced RPer' by any means) and I've never, never had any problem approaching the mod team.

Even when I was a little newblet and applying to DDD for the first time, when I PMed the mods out of the blue they were so very helpful and patient. I can see that you're obviously right, that the mods know each other very well - but it's easy to get to know them too! And I'm a very socially anxious and rather shy person. But they are very approachable. I haven't been bitten yet.

As for other people willing to mod - well, after getting to know some people here, I can see there are a lot of people who are way more experienced than I am, and who would be excellent mods - but don't have time to mod. Being a mod is a huge task, as I know everyone knows. There's a difference between having the qualifications needed to be a great moderator, and actually having the time for it. I'm not saying no-one else can mod. I'm just saying a good mod is hard to find, and I'm delighted that we have the excellent mod team DDD already is privileged with.

However, the last caveat to this teal deer - These are all my only my opinions, obviously! I'm very sorry you've felt parts of us were exclusive and unapproachable. I'm also sorry you think that DDD feels rushed. I don't think we need a new mod - but then again, I don't think a new mod will hurt us, either. Maybe there can be a compromise and the mods bring on another 'assistant'? Who knows. I just know I can't contemplate volunteering for the job. ^^;;

I admire you for standing up and saying these things, even if I disagree. Hopefully we can get something worked out which makes everyone happy. ^_^

[(Anonymous)]

Different anon than the original - but thanks, you're such a sweetheart. :) It makes me feel better about voicing my own concerns when people like you respond so supportively, even if you do disagree. ♥ It's hard when a lot of times I feel like I'd just get jumped on... XD;;;; Which to some extent the intial anon did imo.

Anyway, I myself would love to volunteer - I have the time, the inclination, and I believe the ability though that wouldn't really be my place to judge - but I'm honestly not sure how to go about it. I don't want to seem like I just want it for power or... something. idk. it seems like it'd be a dick thing to suggest. .___.; I just want to take care of something I love.

Re: Suggestion

[vivi]

Well, I think some people are being pretty harsh on you for just voicing how you feel. xD; I'm certain that the mods care greatly and honestly do their best, but I'm also sure it's no secret that I'm a big fan of efficiency. Everyone seems to be touting that all mods need to agree to make a decision for something, but... is that really true? Why not have a more structured mod system? As in - there really are mods who only cover apps, who only cover player relations, who only cover policy decisions, etc.

I don't think anyone's playing favorites, but I can understand the feeling of frustration and isolation that I imagine you're going through. I do urge everyone thinking about this topic to not consider it in terms of more or less so much as, is this organized enough? To be frank if we lack anywhere, that's where I'd say it is. Or, if we aren't lacking organization in your opinion, could it perhaps be made more transparent to the players?

I'm much more interested in talk of "how can we improve what we have" rather than "let's disagree with a suggestion", and I think ultimately everyone else is too. I don't want to incite arguments but rather constructive discussion. If you're interested in the latter, I'd love to talk it out with you. Seriously. Even if our discussion does nothing.

--Needless to say, you can unscreen this. If unscreening things get tedious I'd be happy to carry this elsewhere, more publicly. Just let me know. xD;

Re: Suggestion

[dreamoflight.livejournal.com]

The thing is-- you really can't separate things out all that much, when it comes to PR and policy decisions. Things that occur on apps or on the comm or whatever all affect each other, and if there isn't any discussion occuring on policy decision or how to treat player complaints, it ends up just being one person running the show. And one of the largest benefits of having a large team is that you get the debates and devil's advocates and discussions that keep things running in the best interests of all players, not just the opinion of what one person thinks is best.

Re: Suggestion

[attorneyatlol]

Sorry for any typos, I'm on my phone... XD;

Anyway, speaking from the point of view of a mod, my opinion may be biased, but I'd like to think we are efficient at what we do. I can't think of an issue that hasn't been dealt with, and, for the most part, we're all caught up on our duties. It's only been in the last few weeks that apps have really been behind; other than that, Norry and Itsuki are on top of it, and when they can't do it, Tif and I step in (sometimes it's all four of us, and occasionally five with Shiro).

If you disagree, please let us know in which ways we are inefficient so we can work on them.

As Tif already pointed out, each mod does have their own duties, but, like Norry, I'd like to encourage players to go with any mod they feel comfortable with when they have an issue, and if that mod can't answer their question, they'll field it to someone who can.

ETA: I just want to clarify that I don't think we're the FOMG GREATEST MOD TEAM EVAR. XD; Nothing is perfect, and I'm aware there are things we need to work on, but I'm of the opinion that they're things we can and will work on. My point was I don't think we're inefficient, but if you disagree, I really would like to know what it is we need to work on. The players and what's best for them are always first and foremost!

Original Anon

[(Anonymous)]

Okay, first off--I totally understand RL shit can go down. It happens to everyone. But, at the same time, I like to live by the saying of "If you're going to do it, do it well." If RL shit is going on, take a break, guys. Let someone else handle things for a while. If the entire team is dealing with something, maybe it's seriously time to ask for help.

I'm not saying you guys don't do your jobs. I'm saying you're taking too much on yourselves. I've defended the DDD mod team more than once in the past, and I will continue to do so because I love DDD. And, despite what the responses might suggest, I only posted my concerns because I've had more than one person mention this to me.

I know whining about the apps won't get anything done. I know it frustrates you guys. I'm just trying to see a way to make things easier for everyone. Maybe I'm just a fool and I don't know what I'm saying. Actually, I don't doubt that at all! The only time I've ever been a leader was a couple clubs in high school and a secretary in college. But I'm trying to take my knowledge from there (Have separate teams, like Edgie said for separate tasks, one leader and things seem to get done much quicker and easier) and apply it to here (because logic totally applies on the internet).

Also, I apologize for being totally anon, but I tend to be a shy person to begin with. I don't like giving my opinion, but I don't like hearing the same thing from my friends day after day when only one or two of them will actually say something. My words don't come out right so I tend to sound harsher or more critical than I intend to, and I really don't want to upset anybody (though I might have with the "favorites" bit. I'm sorry. I'm just trying to call things as I see them, or as they're shown to me by others).

Re: Original Anon

[arcesso.livejournal.com]

Don't apologize for being anon! Some people feel more comfortable that way and you're not being an asshole anon so lmao there is no reason to say you're sorry if you're just shy.

I said this above to Vivi somewhere, but I'll put it here too. If they accept any more help, it'll just get chaotic. There are 8 mod(ling)s total, which even for an RP this big, is pretty much a ton. Majority consensuses and getting the whole team together online at the same time to decide things must already be a chore, can you imagine doing it even more with 9 or 10 or however many people they pull on every time they need help because RL has topped the two most active mods? Considering this is the first time they've fallen behind to this extent since this mod team was formed, I... think they're doing a pretty solid job? I mean, I do see where you're coming from, but it would really inevitably only cause more chaos to have more mods. It would be like entropy all up in the mod comm. /2 cents!

Re: Original Anon

[attorneyatlol]

Since my name was brought up, I just want to say that, while I have gone on several hiatuses throughout the past year, those have been for playing; I've taken maybe one from my moderating duties, and it didn't last very long. It may sound egotistical of me, but I think I am doing my job well, and I'll say the same of my fellow moderators. I'm not saying that as a friend, either. While I love each and every one of them, I don't think we're as close as you seem to think we are. XD; We rarely talk outside of modly interactions, and I think that's actually one of our strengths because we're not going to be biased because we're friends.

As I asked of Vivi, if you believe we aren't doing our jobs well, could you tell us in what ways so we can work on fixing them? We love this game and its player base so much, and we want to be there for people. The players have been and always will be our top priority. I understand the thing about apps, how frustrating it can be to wait for a response, but up until a few weeks ago, I believe they were getting done at a fairly regular pace. That's something we can work on, though; I don't think it's something that requires us to restructure how we do things.

I really do appreciate you taking the time to bring this issue to our attention, despite my disagreement. I'm completely open to trying to fix things to make sure they're better for everyone. I may not be able to realize the extent of our mistakes because of being a moderator, so feel free to clarify any of the issues you're having.

And don't worry about being anon. We want everyone to feel comfortable when they address concerns. ♥

Re: Original Anon

[(Anonymous)]

I understand that waiting is tedious and all that because, lol, I have a serious lack of patience when it comes to, well, everything ever. But, at the same time, if we had more mods working on applications, there's a possibility they could take longer.

Think of it this way, if Mod A and Mod B both knew Series C very well. Applicant D comes along and Mod A thinks Applicant D is A+++++ BETTER THAN CANON! While Mod B thinks Applicant D FAILS AT LIFE and probably never never even watched Series C hyperboles are hyperbolic, guys. That might take some time to smooth things over. Or at least, they'd require a second sample or something. Either way, extra mods creates the possibility for situations like that which would mean that apps would/could take longer. Mhmm. However at the same time, it would mean that they wouldn't have to spread themselves so thin which means it might speed things along.

Like all decisions like this, it's a double-edged sword and there's no such thing as an easy fix. Though I doubt anyone likes the wait, it's really not the end of the world and going "LOL WHEN ARE YOU GETTING TO APPS DAMN IT?" isn't going to help anyone. Mmmyup.

Re: Suggestion

[maraich]

Thoughts!

So, I was just thinking, for the most part apps are usually decided by one person, possibly with input from another person if they don't know the series or something.

Once a week sounds fine to me, but occasionally stuff will happen. And, while that stuff might go away after awhile, apps would still be coming in and making a lot of backlog later.

Maybe there could be a few people who aren't mod-mods, but can just be called on to do apps on occasions when the mods aren't able to get to them. So they wouldn't really do anything unless something came up. That way they don't need to be available all the time for modding but they're also there when RL hits mods.

We have plenty of good members and while a lot of people don't have the time to be mods there may be some more that have time to do it "once in awhile".

Re: Suggestion

[carnality.livejournal.com]

I personally feel largely uncomfortable relying on players to do apps just because they are such a sensitive area and if we were going to do that, we might as well have an app voting system like CFUD which ... terrifies me. Haha.

And don't be fooled, it's never just one person doing apps, there is always at least 2 to ...5. One person generally delegates the result, but we never do apps alone. XD I think I'd go crazy if I didn't have someone to bounce my thoughts off of.

I think you'll see with some future changes we have, they'll be handled a lot more efficiently than I've been doing this past month. ♥ We really want to avoid resorting to an apping period or anything like that so we're going to do anything we can to make sure they're done on time.

Thank you for the suggestion though, we can definitely see about possibly gaining another modpole who can give help with app decisions or just see if we could involve players without making it intimidating or bias/favouritism/etc as that wouldn't be our intention at all with who we pick or what have you. I'm not sure how but if we discuss it we might be able to find something interesting :> ♥!

With the apps thing

[tainted-flowers.livejournal.com]

As I've said elsewhere, I don't really app much so my view of this might be a little skewed or whatever.

But it seems like getting apps done on time is something that's fairly important to people and so they tend to get tetchy and start poking at the mods and such. So I guess, my idea would be maybe change the app days from specific days (Wednesday and Saturday, I think?) to perhaps just a general "apps are done on the weekend". Because it's easier to notice when specific days are missed, but a general weekend period would give the mods three days and more time to figure out schedules and times to get them done. Obviously by cutting out a midweek period, there would be more apps to deal with so it might not be helpful idea at all. I don't really know exactly how many apps we get per week.

J-Just my two cents.

Re: With the apps thing

[carnality.livejournal.com]

I... really like this idea! I considered it but was afraid people would take that as me flaking out sob so I never pursued it but it's honestly a really good idea so when I dont get to them on sat specifically, I can definitely get them done on sunday or monday.

thank you so much for this suggestion, I really want to pursue just changing it to a friday - sun or sat - monday time period if people are behind this ;_; ♥

Still Vivi here, btw.

[bloomingdragon.livejournal.com]

...I just always assumed they were weekends and not Saturdays. XD

/worthless two cents here