- Joined
- Sep 22, 2010
- Messages
- 7,223
Fellow members:
Recently, a couple of members, one a moderator, have been dismissed from this forum.
While we have a rule about public discussions of forum policy, I know that many of you wonder what happened, particularly when a very prominent member or members is dismissed.
I want to make it clear that we take dismissal very seriously. It is not an action that occurs due to overreaction by those that run this site. It does occur when serious violations of the rules occur, and are documented, when those rule violators have been spoken to and/or given multiple chances to correct their behavior, or when it is impossible to keep order in the forum while those members remain.
No names shall be mentioned, but you can use your imagination.
One member was dismissed for his inability to get along with the staff, for daily fights with his peers, for sarcastic, obnoxious, arrogant behavior that taxed the Administrator and Owner of the forum, and made our lives miserable. He was spoken to, and so were others he had issues with, and in an effort to be fair, he and someone he had issues with were both given suspensions to cool down. When he returned, the fighting behavior continued- every day. A demotion was suggested, and it was HIS decision, not ours, to leave the forum. He then attempted to encourage others to leave, creating discord and hostility.
The other member had left over a year ago, resigning his staff position, and had vandalized the forum when he left by deleting his projects and taking them to another forum - a violation of the rules. Despite that, he was given a second chance and permitted to return. He was left alone for some time, when he decided to advertise his videos and personal forum he had been working on with his son (which I am sure will soon be a commercial site selling items since it has a "Store" section on it) on here to draw our members away, without first asking the Administrator if he would be permitted to advertise (common courtesy). When his post was placed on "moderated" in order to determine if it was permissible (in fact, the Administrator said that it was), and before we could restore it, this member immediately decided that he had been censored (untrue), went on a rampage and again decided to leave, to encourage others to leave, and to enlist the assistance of another member to build a competing forum. He then again began deleting his posts on our forum, and was in the process of doing so when it was discovered and prevented. Two incidences of vandalism and vengeful behavior more than warranted dismissal.
These are not decisions that we make lightly- especially when productive, well-respected people are involved.
Unfortunately, the most talented, skillful, and learned people often cannot be persuaded to live on an online forum without rocking the boat.
Still others want to make a quick buck with their skills, rather than give them away, and it is not the purpose of this forum to promote those who want to profit from their projects or lessons unless you, the members, realize some benefit on here in exchange.
As for members that assist in causing disruption when we are forced to act, they too, will be looked upon with disfavor.
Members who disregard the rules to PUBLICLY call into question why a member was dismissed will also be looked upon with disfavor. There are PMs on this forum, that can be used to avoid a public showdown or embarrassment to the forum or its staff, and more importantly, to avoid causing the atmosphere of bickering that so permeates elsewhere. We don't want those types of threads distracting from our prime purpose of this forum- machining, teaching, learning, discussion, and sharing in a friendly atmosphere. I don't want this forum to run in a heavy-handed manner, but it is a private forum. People who dress down their boss in front of everyone rarely have a long tenure at work. The same is true of those who dress down the staff, Tony or me publicly. Use a PM- that is what they are there for.
Rest assured that no one is removed from THIS forum on a whim, an overreaction or knee-jerk reaction.
Rest further assured that people are given SECOND chances all the time to return and be productive without the drama and vindictiveness.
I don't want to delete people.
I don't want people backstabbing one another.
And I don't want to be hated for trying to do a good thing by starting this forum.
Nelson Timken
Owner
Recently, a couple of members, one a moderator, have been dismissed from this forum.
While we have a rule about public discussions of forum policy, I know that many of you wonder what happened, particularly when a very prominent member or members is dismissed.
I want to make it clear that we take dismissal very seriously. It is not an action that occurs due to overreaction by those that run this site. It does occur when serious violations of the rules occur, and are documented, when those rule violators have been spoken to and/or given multiple chances to correct their behavior, or when it is impossible to keep order in the forum while those members remain.
No names shall be mentioned, but you can use your imagination.
One member was dismissed for his inability to get along with the staff, for daily fights with his peers, for sarcastic, obnoxious, arrogant behavior that taxed the Administrator and Owner of the forum, and made our lives miserable. He was spoken to, and so were others he had issues with, and in an effort to be fair, he and someone he had issues with were both given suspensions to cool down. When he returned, the fighting behavior continued- every day. A demotion was suggested, and it was HIS decision, not ours, to leave the forum. He then attempted to encourage others to leave, creating discord and hostility.
The other member had left over a year ago, resigning his staff position, and had vandalized the forum when he left by deleting his projects and taking them to another forum - a violation of the rules. Despite that, he was given a second chance and permitted to return. He was left alone for some time, when he decided to advertise his videos and personal forum he had been working on with his son (which I am sure will soon be a commercial site selling items since it has a "Store" section on it) on here to draw our members away, without first asking the Administrator if he would be permitted to advertise (common courtesy). When his post was placed on "moderated" in order to determine if it was permissible (in fact, the Administrator said that it was), and before we could restore it, this member immediately decided that he had been censored (untrue), went on a rampage and again decided to leave, to encourage others to leave, and to enlist the assistance of another member to build a competing forum. He then again began deleting his posts on our forum, and was in the process of doing so when it was discovered and prevented. Two incidences of vandalism and vengeful behavior more than warranted dismissal.
These are not decisions that we make lightly- especially when productive, well-respected people are involved.
Unfortunately, the most talented, skillful, and learned people often cannot be persuaded to live on an online forum without rocking the boat.
Still others want to make a quick buck with their skills, rather than give them away, and it is not the purpose of this forum to promote those who want to profit from their projects or lessons unless you, the members, realize some benefit on here in exchange.
As for members that assist in causing disruption when we are forced to act, they too, will be looked upon with disfavor.
Members who disregard the rules to PUBLICLY call into question why a member was dismissed will also be looked upon with disfavor. There are PMs on this forum, that can be used to avoid a public showdown or embarrassment to the forum or its staff, and more importantly, to avoid causing the atmosphere of bickering that so permeates elsewhere. We don't want those types of threads distracting from our prime purpose of this forum- machining, teaching, learning, discussion, and sharing in a friendly atmosphere. I don't want this forum to run in a heavy-handed manner, but it is a private forum. People who dress down their boss in front of everyone rarely have a long tenure at work. The same is true of those who dress down the staff, Tony or me publicly. Use a PM- that is what they are there for.
Rest assured that no one is removed from THIS forum on a whim, an overreaction or knee-jerk reaction.
Rest further assured that people are given SECOND chances all the time to return and be productive without the drama and vindictiveness.
I don't want to delete people.
I don't want people backstabbing one another.
And I don't want to be hated for trying to do a good thing by starting this forum.
Nelson Timken
Owner
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