A few suggestions (Reply to: "Is it just me, or have you noticed...?")

Skinner ADMIN

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Wed May-17-06 08:39 AM
Original message

A few suggestions (Reply to: "Is it just me, or have you noticed...?")

Earlier this morning, I posted this message as a response to this thread, entitled "Calling Old-time DUers- 'Is it just me, or have you noticed...?'". I don't usually like to start new threads to repeat replies posted elsewhere, but I think this is something that bears repeating every once in a while. --Skinner

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Subject: A few suggestions, in no particular order.

This exact thread gets posted every few weeks, as it has been for years. I'm not trying to belittle your concerns, because believe me -- encouraging quality discussion is the single issue that the admins think about most. But I must vehemently disagree with the underlying premises of this post which are that (1) there existed a DU Golden Age, and (2) old timers are better than newbies. Some of the least thoughtful and most disruptive people on DU are old timers, and some of the best members we have are new. That is a FACT.

Also, I notice that whenever a thread like this gets started, the responses are in agreement that something is wrong, but if you look closely you will notice some very fundamental disagreements about what exactly that is. These are fundamental disagreements that make it extremely hard to make things "better." Some examples: 1) Some complain about too many kooky conspiracy stuff, while others complain about not enough "free thinkers." Those are opposing viewpoints. I cannot simultaneously fix both of those "problems." Fixing one will by necessity make the other worse. 2) Too much flaming vs. too much censorship. Again, I can't completely fix both. If you want me to completely get rid of one of those problems, then you have to pick which one you want. 3) Too much Dem bashing vs. too much Dem boot-licking. Again, which one is it? I could go on, but I think the point's been made.

A few suggestions, in no particular order

1. Read this post: http://journals.democraticunderground.com/Skinner/3

2. Get your asses out of the General Discussion forum once in a while. Like it or not, the GD forum is the one where people park themselves all day and shoot the shit about politics. It is rapid fire, not in-depth. It is too big and fast to nurture a thoughtful discussion. But apparently that's how lots of people like it, because when I suggested splitting it up, many people acted like it was the end of the world. LBN, GDP, Editorials, and many of the Topic Forums all have much more interesting discussions than GD. It's just a fact. When I write long stuff, I usually post it in Editorials & Other Articles, because I know it will last longer and get more thoughtful replies. Sure, there are plenty of DUers who won't see it, but that's true in GD too.

3. Check the DU Homepage. We are scouring this site looking for thoughtful posts, and highlighting them there. Sometimes people will write great stuff, but it'll only get a few replies and drop off of GD. If we know about them, we'll put them on the homepage.

4. Check the Greatest page. Obviously, Not all the threads there are great, but the the great-to-not-great ratio is much better than anywhere else on DU.

5. If you see someone making an effort to add quality stuff to our website, click the "Recommend" link on their post, and post a reply.

6. On your "My DU" page there is something called "Journal Tracker." USE IT. Find the DUers who are writing good stuff and add them to your journal tracker. (To track a journal, either add that person to your buddy list, or else click the link on their journal that says "Track this Journal.") Then keep checking back to your Journal Tracker to find out when their journals get updated so you can read their stuff and respond and recommend and encourage them to add more good stuff.

7. Use the "My Forums" feature so you have one-click access to smaller forums that interest you. Obviously, the topics don't move as fast as they do in GD, but in many of the small forums the discussions can be maintained much longer and often have a lot more "meat" because the people involved in the discussions actually care.

8. Paraphrasing Gandhi: Become the change you want to see. Don't be an ass to other members of this website, even if you disagree with them. Don't drive people away with ridiculous demands that they fall in line with the prevailing DU point of view. Don't start threads whenever some random crap pops into your head -- and when someone else does it, don't respond to those threads; just let them drop.

9. I promise I'm not picking on anyone in particular when I say this. But I think it's really important that it be said: LOOK IN A MIRROR. I may be the most cynical person here, because I have access to all the stupid shit that everyone here has done in the last two or three years. So often, the people complaining about a particular behavior or problem are constantly engaging in it themselves -- BUT YOU BELIEVE THE BEHAVIOR IS JUSTIFIED WHEN IT COMES FROM YOU OR YOUR FRIENDS OR YOUR ALLIES.

We have made a number of cool upgrades to this place in the last six months, and we've got a lot more up our sleeve. When we announce these new changes, I would advise everyone to have faith in what we're trying to do and give them a try. Don't throw up roadblocks before you've tried them. What's the worst that could happen? They might suck and then we'll just undo them after a while. What's the best that could happen? They might actually make this place better. Keep an eye on the announcements so you have a clue what's going on around here.

As usual, I suspect this post will be completely ignored.