Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!iuvax!maytag!looking!brad
From: brad@looking.on.ca (Brad Templeton)
Newsgroups: news.groups
Subject: Re: Effects of moderation (was Volunteer for rec.arts.movies.serious...)
Message-ID: <72766@looking.on.ca>
Date: 6 Jan 90 04:24:29 GMT
References: <702@hq.af.mil> <133.filbo@gorn.santa-cruz.ca.us>
Organization: Looking Glass Software Ltd.
Lines: 44
Class: discussion

Why not experiment with post-moderation instead of pre-moderation.  It's
not as complete, but it is a lot faster, and might be right for some groups.

By post moderation, I mean a system where a moderator exists who is entitled
(and indeed requested) to send cancel messages on messages and threads that
are clogging up the group.  Flame-wars, name-callings, off topic threads,
etc.

The disadvantages are many:
	a) The moderator has to read very frequently, and on a well connected
	    site.  (One might arrange for lots of sites to feed to and from
	    them moderator's site, just for that one group)
	b) No matter how fast the moderator is, some people are going to see
	    the undesired stuff, and some will follow it up.
	c) The moderator can't take a vaction for any amount of time.
	d) Some twerps will disagree with the moderator's decisions, and
	   complain and whine.  Sure some decisions will be wrong, but the
	   problem is that for every decision, there is somebody who thinks
	   that it is the really wrong one, so you get constant complaint
	   unless you stomp it.
	e) There are some problems with cancel, aren't there?
	f) Some twits will deliberately break the References line to follow
	   up a dead thread so that their message makes it out.

The advantages:
	
	a) The group runs at full speed for lively discussion -- on the right
	   topics.
	b) The moderator can take a break and the worst that happens is that
	   the group acts unmoderated -- better than having it go away.
	c) The moderator just makes a cancelling macro and reads through
	   the group hitting 'd' (delete macro) from time to time.  Easy
	   task.  Macro can even send mail to author.

To kill threads I would advocate an automatic program that runs on the
moderator's machine (and other major machines, if possible) which searches
for articles that followup dead threads (or have the same re: subject) and
cancels them as soon as they happen.

Anyway, this would work, and it's even less 'authoritarian' than the current
moderation scheme.  (Not that the current scheme is bad -- it's just right
for some groups.)
-- 
Brad Templeton, ClariNet Communications Corp. -- Waterloo, Ontario 519/884-7473