This is going to be a relatively length post.
To the Administration: I, as well as many other members, would like a response to this.
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To begin, I believe that Administrators and Moderators need to take control. Below is a picture. It shows that today, 5/25/2011, there has only been 4 staff members online, out of 8. This is not a large problem, but djack has not been online since 5/03/2011 and CC&Fabb has not been since 3/19/2011. I believe staff members need to be online AT LEAST once every other day. This will take the burden off of those members of staff that actually do their job.
Also included in the picture is that Kennedy_Power is still a Technician. I am not going to make this post around him, we all know what happened. He should not be a member, let alone a Technician, and it is clear he agrees since he has not been online since 03/19/2011.
This contains proof of information mentioned above (Click to enlarge):
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Next, this goes hand-in-hand with needing a more responsible administration... members are getting out of hand. I am NOT calling anyone out, nor do I want this to be a flaming match between various members. What's done is done, end of story.
To those moderators that come online, you do well. The forum has over 13,000 members. It is not fair for 4 members to control all of these people. what we need is a staff that will remain active and keep the forum clean.
In the Off Topic area, most things should go, with the exception of NSFW (Not Safe For Work) posts, which did happen. Again, what's done is done so those involved should NOT be punished.
As for the other areas of the website, however, things should stay professional. I/we understand that most of us here do not do this for a living, and everyone has an opinion and a right to express this. But, do not insult other members based on their opinion.
If a new member asks a "stupid" question, do not say "Use Search" or make a smart-alec remark. Point them in the correct direction, answer the question and then simply say "The search feature can answer most questions." This really isn't hard, and we will gain more loyal members by doing so.
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On to the next, and getting into the more technical things. This forum has been the same for as long as everyone can remember. For the amount of activity, there should be some personalization options.
Currently, Blaster Forum is running vBulletin® v3.8.7. That is great software, don't get me wrong, but vBulletin® v4.0 is now released, which enhances many features and improves security.
The cost for v4.0 is $175 for an upgrade. This is a lot, but look at the supporting members. I counted them, we have 185 supporting members. This means the forum has earned $1,850, plus other donations from members.
I do understand that web hosting is not free, but it also does not cost THAT much. The host provider that I use offers $3.50 a month hosting for 3 years, and this includes unlimited bandwidth. It is not the best option, but certainly proves there are cheap alternative hosting.
On top of the upgrade to a new version of vBulletin®, more user styles should be made available. There are FREE options to this, and vBulletin® has an incredibly easy installation process. Not everyone likes what the Administrators like.
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Lastly, Administration needs to listen to it's members. Without the members, the forum would be useless. Make them happy. It should not have taken years to get the Raptor changed to a Blaster. When a suggestion arises, a REAL answer should be in store for it. Not an answer that just shuts the thought down.
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Conclusion:
If anyone else wishes to add to my issues list, feel free.
I would greatly appreciate no argument on this thread, but would appreciate feedback on my thoughts and opinions.
I am anticipating a full response, please do not let the me as well as the members down.
Thank you,
Corey
xKroniK13x
To the Administration: I, as well as many other members, would like a response to this.
----
To begin, I believe that Administrators and Moderators need to take control. Below is a picture. It shows that today, 5/25/2011, there has only been 4 staff members online, out of 8. This is not a large problem, but djack has not been online since 5/03/2011 and CC&Fabb has not been since 3/19/2011. I believe staff members need to be online AT LEAST once every other day. This will take the burden off of those members of staff that actually do their job.
Also included in the picture is that Kennedy_Power is still a Technician. I am not going to make this post around him, we all know what happened. He should not be a member, let alone a Technician, and it is clear he agrees since he has not been online since 03/19/2011.
This contains proof of information mentioned above (Click to enlarge):
----
Next, this goes hand-in-hand with needing a more responsible administration... members are getting out of hand. I am NOT calling anyone out, nor do I want this to be a flaming match between various members. What's done is done, end of story.
To those moderators that come online, you do well. The forum has over 13,000 members. It is not fair for 4 members to control all of these people. what we need is a staff that will remain active and keep the forum clean.
In the Off Topic area, most things should go, with the exception of NSFW (Not Safe For Work) posts, which did happen. Again, what's done is done so those involved should NOT be punished.
As for the other areas of the website, however, things should stay professional. I/we understand that most of us here do not do this for a living, and everyone has an opinion and a right to express this. But, do not insult other members based on their opinion.
If a new member asks a "stupid" question, do not say "Use Search" or make a smart-alec remark. Point them in the correct direction, answer the question and then simply say "The search feature can answer most questions." This really isn't hard, and we will gain more loyal members by doing so.
----
On to the next, and getting into the more technical things. This forum has been the same for as long as everyone can remember. For the amount of activity, there should be some personalization options.
Currently, Blaster Forum is running vBulletin® v3.8.7. That is great software, don't get me wrong, but vBulletin® v4.0 is now released, which enhances many features and improves security.
The cost for v4.0 is $175 for an upgrade. This is a lot, but look at the supporting members. I counted them, we have 185 supporting members. This means the forum has earned $1,850, plus other donations from members.
I do understand that web hosting is not free, but it also does not cost THAT much. The host provider that I use offers $3.50 a month hosting for 3 years, and this includes unlimited bandwidth. It is not the best option, but certainly proves there are cheap alternative hosting.
On top of the upgrade to a new version of vBulletin®, more user styles should be made available. There are FREE options to this, and vBulletin® has an incredibly easy installation process. Not everyone likes what the Administrators like.
----
Lastly, Administration needs to listen to it's members. Without the members, the forum would be useless. Make them happy. It should not have taken years to get the Raptor changed to a Blaster. When a suggestion arises, a REAL answer should be in store for it. Not an answer that just shuts the thought down.
----
Conclusion:
- Blaster Forum is an absolutely wonderful website with some fatal flaws. I believe that these need to be addressed quickly and in an informative manor.
- A fix to moderation, I think there should be a poll with a list of loyal members to become moderators. The poll would run similar to BOTM. Each member explains his/her reasoning on why they should be a moderator, and the community votes.
- Kennedy_Power needs to be removed from the Technicians list and/or banned due to known reasons.
- Members should start to show respect that is deserved by other members.
- vBulletin® should be upgraded to the newest version, and also a selection of themes and appearance options should be available for members.
- The staff needs be more active and listen to the community more, and give feedback.
If anyone else wishes to add to my issues list, feel free.
I would greatly appreciate no argument on this thread, but would appreciate feedback on my thoughts and opinions.
I am anticipating a full response, please do not let the me as well as the members down.
Thank you,
Corey
xKroniK13x
