you've got a real problem

[burlyanaccount]

when you've got so many forums that when one gets made in the wrong place, a mod kindly moves it (no sarcasm, thanks for helping) and another mod kindly closes it (real sarcasm, no questions allowed? I thought it got moved for that reason)

maybe theres some issue taken with new members, I know that's rampart all over the internet, but this is a pokemon forum for pete's sake!

 

[Pandeji]

Isolating a situation would help.
Give a good example that we can understand.
I'll admit sometimes mods do things I don't agree with like close threads that could have constructively gone further, but if we can't see what you're seeing it's hard to side with somebody who says "Mods close mah threaaadz!!"

 

[burlyanaccount]

yes, here you go
http://www.serebiiforums.com/showthread.php?t=410693

 

[RaZoR LeAf]

The problem is that a lot of forums have their own rules, and especially with the game forums (4th gen is the worst atm) there are specific threads to post in to stop the forum being cluttered up. If you don't frequent those forums, then you'll not know the rules. In this case Erik figured the question was related to Competitive RMT, but the content should have been in the question thread, hence it being closed after being moved. This is just one mistake, quite often mods will just close the topic and redirect the person to the correct place it should be posted, and tell them to make sure they check stickies or the rules of that forum to ensure they are posting it in the right place.

Thought I don't see why this being a pokemon forum should make us more lenient on new members.

 

[Pandeji]

Well, the biggest issue is stupidity, Razor Leaf. I myself hardly ever read the huge "READ THIS FIRST CUZ IT'S THE RULEZ YO" notifications for each board, until I got an infraction, that is.
I think a good idea could possibly be a warning system (and I understand infractions are pretty much just that, but it's still kinda harsh to have permanent blotches on your record when you were unaware of where a topic should go or if a question shouldn't be asked, etc, etc). And I do completely understand that you aren't Serebii and you can't just change the rules like that.
I can also only begin to imagine how annoying it must be to have to go through all the threads that are made every day and make sure people aren't being stupid; by the time you DO hit threads that are stupid, I'm sure you're pretty well done with the whole matter. But sometimes (as was in the case of Burlyanaccount's thread) it would be much more helpful to be pointed in the correct direction. Erik seemed to be more helpful to a point - moving the thread in the right direction, but I don't think Reno helped even a tad by just closing it and saying "Question's thread."
There's not much anybody can do, but idk. I got an infraction from Reno from asking a question that was supposed to go in the questions thread as well. Not only did I not see a single thread that was just for "Questions Only About 4th Gen Stuff" upon searching "Questions Thread" in the search bar, but I have never seen it myself.
Again, I understand mods are kinda like Jesus in that their rule shalt not be opposed, but I have sympathy with Burly for what happened. Sometimes mods aren't as helpful as they could be.

 

[Kirby]

Infractions are not permanent unless it is severe such as pure trolling, or posting porn if I recall correctly. Most expire after around 45 days, sure, it keeps a record of it but the points are not permanent.

And you can also turn an infraction into a warning, making it worth 0 points, but those also stay on the record.

And mods are not Jesus, if you have a legitimate complaint we do our best to fix them and make sure it doesn't happen again =) We are human and make mistakes, but coming to us in a calm manner and presenting your case will make us want to help you, coming and screaming at us calling us names, etc etc, makes us just write you off as a jerk

I can't speak for everyone else but if you see something I do and think I could be more helpful, don't hesitate to drop me a PM and let me know what I can do better.

 

[randomspot555]

Well, the biggest issue is stupidity, Razor Leaf. I myself hardly ever read the huge "READ THIS FIRST CUZ IT'S THE RULEZ YO" notifications for each board, until I got an infraction, that is.

Who's fault is that?

I think a good idea could possibly be a warning system (and I understand infractions are pretty much just that, but it's still kinda harsh to have permanent blotches on your record when you were unaware of where a topic should go or if a question shouldn't be asked, etc, etc). And I do completely understand that you aren't Serebii and you can't just change the rules like that.

Assuming that this is the same infraction system all Vbulletin boards have, there is a warning option in place for infractions. Depending on how it's set up, you'll have the type of infraction, the points it's worth, the length it lasts, and then you select either "warning" or "infraction."

Depending on who sets it up, warnings might be allowed on only some of the options, all, or none at all.

And then of course it's up to an individual mod's judgement blah blah blah.

But considering that you usually have to hit a very high mark before anything actually happens to posting privligies, then those that do hit that mark usually have to TRY very hard to get there.

Erik seemed to be more helpful to a point - moving the thread in the right direction, but I don't think Reno helped even a tad by just closing it and saying "Question's thread."

He should've just merged it into one of the general help threads (either in CRMT or the D/P or Plat forum), but I don't know if whatever his position is can do that. Sometimes permissions can be tricky, depending on if it's Smod, mod, admin, etc...

Either way, the OP posted a simple question that should've gone into one of the various help threads. He would've (could've) received an infraction either way. If he had done a simple search, he would've posted in a Help thread, instead of making a whole thead for a fairly simple question.

 

[SBaby]

when you've got so many forums that when one gets made in the wrong place, a mod kindly moves it (no sarcasm, thanks for helping) and another mod kindly closes it (real sarcasm, no questions allowed? I thought it got moved for that reason)

maybe theres some issue taken with new members, I know that's rampart all over the internet, but this is a pokemon forum for pete's sake!

I can tell you from experience that it could be because they're new (or at least newer; post count has come up in alot of those topics many many times) that the topic got what I like to call 'whimmed' (a mod closes it, doesn't give a reason, etc...). There probably was a reason, but so many topics get made every day that alot of mods will just do keyword searches and close topics without even looking at the posts. This happens alot, especially with opinion threads. Kind of like how youtube deletes videos without looking at them. There's an awful lot of that going around not only on this site, but all over the net. I don't think it's a MAJOR problem, but it can be discouraging for new mebers and new forumgoers to start topics (I think you can see WHY).

What I did when I first joined, is I posted in currently made topics until I saw what other people did before making new topics for things. I tried starting a few new topics early on, and got treated pretty much in a similar way to what you mentioned (topics getting closed, no explanation or PM, and occasionally insulted). It almost scared me off this forum initially because I thought this was another somethingawful. But it really isn't as bad as it sounds. Just look at what others post, and try to follow up.

 

[ellie]

Care to give examples, SBaby? I almost never see mods closing a topic without posting a reason unless it was a duplicate topic or it's old. And I have absolutely never heard of a mod doing keyword searches and closing topics just because they had that word or phrase in it. Again, examples? Same thing with "oh they're new so I'll just close the topic and not post an explanation!!". And also, do realize that you as members can't see everything that the staff does. It's possible that the mod closed the thread in question and gave them a warning or infraction via pm explaining what was wrong with the topic. Just because YOU don't see what the staff member did doesn't mean it didn't happen.

Stop making groundless claims. I've noticed you in particular doing it a lot, SBaby, and it's quite annoying. If you're going to whine that the mods are mean and do bad things, then at least have the decency to provide concrete examples of the staff members doing what you accuse us of. Follow the TC's example and actually find topics where the action took place instead of making vague, unproven rants that the mods do this and that.



As for the original question, it doesn't seem like it has anything in particular to do with you or the fact that you're new. The mods do goof up sometimes and move it to a section that we think it probably belongs in, but the vast majority of us don't frequent every section and don't know those rules as well as our own sections' rules. Personally, I usually just close the thread and tell the TC to look over the rules of a forum I think it would go better in and then post there if it applies.

If you got a punishment for it, just explain to the mod who gave you an infraction that it was moved there and you didn't originally do it. If not, then just don't worry about it, and next time if you have a topic you want to make and aren't sure where it should go, ask one of the mods first. There's no punishment if you ask where it should go and post it where we tell you.



Also, it was stated that we could warn instead (and we can do that, you can get most of the infractions in a 0-point warning version that still leaves a notice on your profile but won't get you closer to being banned), and it does happen, but really, it's every users' responsibility to read the rules and understand them. If we went out of our way to say "oh please User X could you not post those threads, that's against the rules" every time someone broke the rules, we'd never have time to do anything else. If you learn from your infractions and don't break the same rules again, you have nothing to worry about. The bar is set pretty high to get yourself actually banned (20 whole points, and most infractions are worth 3, meaning you'd have to get 7 "standard" infractions within 45 days to be banned. As said before, it seems most of the time that users who get banned either do so intentionally or are so completely lazy and oblivious that they ignore everything told to them), and even a lot of the best users have gotten a couple of infractions here or there, so it doesn't mean you're a bad user if you have one "blotch" on your record of 1-2 old, expired infractions.

 

[SBaby]

Stop making groundless claims. I've noticed you in particular doing it a lot, SBaby, and it's quite annoying. If you're going to whine that the mods are mean and do bad things, then at least have the decency to provide concrete examples of the staff members doing what you accuse us of. Follow the TC's example and actually find topics where the action took place instead of making vague, unproven rants that the mods do this and that.

You know, after careful consideration (and some much needed sleep) I've gotta admit that you're right. I should at least wait until I have some examples. So I won't harp on the 'whimming' thing anymore until I do.

But the 'looking at other posts to see how they do things' part is still a good idea.

 

[the jman]

I accidental double posted and got infracted... It would be nice if someone or a mod told use be double posted cause 99% of the time its a mistake. If a mod TOLD me or anyone else we double posted we could
A. delete the post or
B. merge the post.

seriously that easy. dont have too infract use and put up a BIG frowny front saying
"Dont double post"

God just tell me.

EDIT: Furthermore I see mods call eachother names and double post like KIRBY did above. Mods can get away with this and yet if I call someone who was being ignorant, ignroeant, its like HELL NO and I get infracted...

 

[Peter Quill]

Doubleposting is a issue.

The server for this site lags from time to time, so sometimes some posts are duplicated. Kirby's example abouve was one of these situations.

so i.e

Post A: LOLOL
POSTB: LOLOL

Proabably won't get you infracted for double posting, however it'll get you infracted for spam. Unlike this:

PostA: Oh lol I love Family Guy
PostB: No wait Simpsons are better.

You can just easily use the edit button. That will get you infracted for double posting.

 

[the jman]

exactly When I wanna say something I tend too rush so I forget too edit and double post.. now if osmeone told me i double posted then I could easily fix it. but no everyone reports me as spam and calls me a troll..
your right I am a troll.. I am the grumpy old troll that lives under the damn bridge

 

[Peter Quill]

You're expected to know the rules and use the edit button though.

 

[randomspot555]

You're expected to know the rules and use the edit button though.

Not true. Serebii himself that accidental double posts are a server issue and not the fault of an individual user, and thus shouldn't get infracted.

If the server causes a duplicate post of mine, I usually can't edit/delete it right away BECAUSE it's still so slow. So I usually forget about it and move on with my life.

Most infractions are rightly earned. But not for accidental double posts. Contest it, tell them to contact Joe if need be.

 

[Peter Quill]

That would make sense except that he's not talking about an accidental post. He's talking about an actual double post.

 

[Chelc]

^ I never infract double posts unless they are truly intentional, but even then, I start out with a warning and teach the user about the edit button. If the second post is clearly the same as the above post, I just delete it, because I doubt it was on purpose / most likely caused by the lag. :|

the jman: You should PM an SMod or Admin about that infraction, then, because that is unfair, as randomspot's quote from Serebii states.

Before I move a thread that doesn't belong in one of my forums, I PM a moderator of the forum I want to move it to before I do so, just to make sure it would belong there.

If anything, you should PM Reno, because he is the mod who closed your thread. I'm sure he'll gladly give you an explanation as to why it was closed. Erik doesn't mod CRMT, so he isn't familiar with the rules, and could only assume where your thread would go. Like Razor Leaf said, many forums have different rules besides the main rules. Though because you didn't know your thread had to be moved, that isn't really your fault.

It's a good idea to read over the descriptions for each forum before posting in one, really. If you're still unsure of where a thread should go, you can always PM a moderator, too. Even if you feel 100% sure, things like this can happen, so it may be a good idea to PM a moderator, anyway.

Mods don't close threads for fun, honest. If you feel like one should not have been closed, PM the moderator in question, and they'll happily discuss it with you. Never feel like you can't question the staff, because you definitely can - just remember to be mature about it, not, "OMG! Why did you close this thread?! It should stay open! You suck! " or something like that. Something more like, "Hey, I was wondering why you closed this thread? I don't understand what you mean in your closing post." will get you an answer.

 

[the jman]

Well I was infracted By MOD PROFESCO, Because I did A actuall double post not thinking.
I said something And I wanted too then add but forgot too put in edit, so im stuck with infraction I complained in a nice manner but he said "we mods made these rules".
WHAT THE HELL????????

EDIT: @ chelc, I guess he was doing his mod job but like I said before Just tell me soo I can merge, I got the feeling he was mad at me or disagreed with my thread statement so went and infracted me......

Also I dont feel like its that big a deal but still what gets me is JUST TELL ME I DID IT AND I CAN JUST MERGE IN AN EDIT. double posts arnt really a big deal and its stupid too infract people for it, seriously, if its a super huge deal that will end your life just merge the post into the previous one... GOD ITS A FREAKING POKEMON WEBSITE FOR GODS SAKES!!

 

[ellie]

We don't have time to tell everyone they made a mistake and wait around for them to fix it. You're expected to know both the main SPPf rules and the specific rules of each forum and thread (if applicable) that you post in. One or two infractions is not a big deal, they expire eventually and as long as you don't get enough to get banned, you'll be fine. Just read the rules and learn from your mistakes, rather than whine and complain that a mod was doing his/her job and enforcing the rules.

 

[the jman]

I do read the rules But like I said, We can accidently make a mistake regardless If we read the freaking rules 100million times in a row, we still might accidentally double post, If you dont wanna wait around all day just merge it with the users previous post or delete it its really not worth an infraction...