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Dubai Expat Forum - Suggestions

Suggestion: Reboot?


arniegang
I dont think so Ian, i think you have lost the plot Judging by the amount of pm's in my inbox supporting Sage. I actually have quite a few, i was hoping people would post in public. It seems quite a few here are fed up with the way certain "regulars" come over as "condescending" !!!! People seems to have quite a lot to say about you too Ian :wink:
People seem quite happy to complain to me about you in private, it appears they dont want to post in public for fear of your "personal posting style".
It appears the general concensus is that, people seem glad i am back "on board" so to speak to sort this crap out :wink:
^ian^ Over the past few months I have noted that the quality of the forum is slowly slipping and sliding. I'm not sure how many hits or the revenue coming in for the owners is amounting to, but if the quality continues to slide, then I am sure shortly it will represent itself in that respect too.
(Note, checking on Alexa, there is definitely a downward trend)
I have also noted that there are several competing forums coming to the fore, and whilst I still prefer the structure of this forum, I think it really does need some cleaning up.
So my suggestion? Reboot the forum and start again.
1. Remove all current mods - and have people apply for the mod positions. No more than 2 mods per section with the requirement they actually live here in the UAE.
2. Remove ALL users who haven't posted in 6 months - send them a notify that their account will be deleted for inactivity in 72 hours - and then do it.
3. Delete ALL messages more than 6 months old. Even the 'helpful' ones, because Dubai is a dynamic and changing environment and a lot of the answers are now wrong. The search facility is now next to useless as it is.
4. Delete ALL unrelevant messages. A big cleanup, get rid of the fluff and focus on what this forum is all about.
5. Create a sandbox to stop spam - current measures aren't working. All new users must post in new members and then be approved by the section mod after they introduce themselves.
Often people come out with 'stop whinging and suggest something' so here is a suggestion - to clean this place and get it back up and running and lift it up from being a place for useless banter and not much help.
Please feel free to add other suggestions for cleaning this place up. St.Lucifer Yalla! all suggestions are great.. lets start the discussion at a DF meet.. :P The Major Here, Here..... What a good idea! ^ian^
Then Vote :) MAC gud idea but 2 complicated.
suggestion,
[color=red]solution = simple = ban Sage[/color]
before Sage DF = great
after Sage DF = goat poop
another suggestion,
ian = moderator (have common sense and humor) asc_26 I voted YES. Banned those who advertise other forums here. If not, charge them a fee. Dr.D Don't wait for a meet to discuss... discuss here! I think it's a great idea. sage & onion
Considering you suggested it you would think it was great.
Why don't you go start your own forum if this one is so bad. HP
Sage sweetheart !
Being a moderator , u shuld respect the freedom of expression instead of telling a user to make his own forum if they have disagreement :=).
if our home is bad , we dont leave it , rather , we try to make it look better.
well !!
I am agreed to da moderator part but i dont second the idea of making it complicated for users to write at certain forums before they can actually post at some forums. It can irritate to new comers .

1 Dubai Jobs .com The First Place to Find a Job in Dubai
bushra21 i also think that some of the veterans should have a personality change. its not only the new people that have caused df to become what it is. ^ian^
Hey! Why don't you shut the hell up and let people speak and vote?
You don't own the forum Sage, and the poll speaks for itself, as in you're the only one opposed to what is generally considered good suggestions.
Unless of course you're going to claim (stupidly) that all votes are mine.
The fact is, you're not doing your job, none of the mods really are. I have put forward solutions for making this place better before it dies, and the fact is, it is dying... it only takes a minimal knowledge of web reporting to identify this.
So, either be part of the solution or be part of the problem.
Your choice. Dr.D
No, not at all, but the people who moderate it I feel to a certain extent SHOULD be Dubai based. The reason being is they have the local presence and knowledge to contribute to the discussion.

Dubai is a changing place. What does someone now resident in England and has been for several months know of such things as Salik for example? Moderators need to know what they're moderating... they have to be on the lookout for bullsh|t content.

Does he want to be a moderator?
Not everyone wants to be a moderator. I don't want to be a moderator! One must also concede the limitations of their own position when it comes to being a moderator. It's hard work... not a prestigious position, nor is it something to be abused.
As a moderator, you are a servant to the community, it is your responsibility to guide and moderate the forum in accordance with the values and purpose of the forum.
Being Dubai Forums, I would think being based in Dubai would be a good chunk of ensuring that it is moderated in accordance with these values. Not a factor alone, but certainly one to be considered. bushra21 ian how do you expect sage to help be a part of the solution if you constantly berate him... ^ian^
This is his opportunity to do participate in something positive.
I actually don't berate him that much, but you know, like Spider-man, with great power comes great responsibility, if you're going to be a mod, you have to expect that extra level of scrutiny. Concord I agree with the suggestions and of course it comes as no surprise that only one obvious person is against it. My great grand mother used to say "only a horse with a blemish squirms when saddled" (god only knows where she got that from but...true). ^ian^
I agree with this, but what to do? If you make it too easy to post... the spam bots come in and swamp the forum... too difficult and new users are put off posting.
Of course, strong, positive moderation would prevent this and fix the problem very quickly, but most of the current moderators are disinterested in the forum now, hardly any are present at all.
But even with strong moderation, the bots will get through.
What do other forums do? ^ian^
Whilst we're talking about old sayings...Sage, how about you attack the problem, not the person?
There IS a problem. If I ran a forum and the very backbone of veteran posters became disinterested and left... I'd consider this to be a problem. If tracking was going down (NOT UP) I would consider this a problem.
Notice I haven't attacked you in this thread... I am openly and honestly putting up solutions for the forum to become a better place, and you have attacked me.
Do you think the suggestions are bad?
This is simply not a campaign to remove you as a moderator (whilst personally I would think this to be a good idea) it is a campaign to make this place great once more - and focus on what it is about.
If you think creating a thread about positive action to improve this place is counter to the forum... well, I DO know people who want to start their own forum, and I have the email address and contact details of a group of people who represent 90% of the posts on this forum.
I'd rather just see this place return to what it once was as opposed to helping undermine it.
Ask yourself... what role do you play? Jeevan i dont think starting a new forum is a solution, defo this place needs a bit of revamp and cleanup, get the old guys back, the intent of this forum is interaction and information, we have interaction which is stupid at times and information from just limited sources ( thanks to dxbsoul or dunno what would have happened). i wont say mods are not doing the job, but most of them are disinterested at this point of time. what we need is generating positive vibes and getting the old timers back if possible, if not then post quality not quantity. Cheers, J
bushra21 i agree with J. like i said before its not only the new comers who are, well, ruining the forum -- its some of the veterans as well. some are quick to judge and can be rude at times...these kind of attitudes are definitely going to push people away. and if we continue to argue amongst ourselves and attack one another like what has been going on of course people are going to stay away -- no one wants to be a part of that. Concord Some more suggestions: 1. Reduce the number of forums. When the forum was a lot of fun there were half the forums (no veterans, events, ladies, culture, language, etc.). 2. When there were less forums people engaged more in discussion, etc. There was hardly a reason to move threads except to (fight club, politics, or accommodations). 3. Let a thread run its course for at least a page or 2 before moving it anywhere 4. Moderators should: recognize that this is not real life, let others express themselves, not impose their own way of life morality, etc. on others, not unnecessarily delete posts 5. Moderators should all agree on what is “offensive” or “objectionable”. 6. Moderators should be active members of the forum. 7. Finally but not least Sage should be moderator of the “Games Forum” ONLY. Andyba, give the foregoing a try and see what happens it can’t get any worse. Concord
You can't get any of that so long as Sage is here "impossing" his "morality" and lack of sense of humor and power trip (Period). Just read his reaction to this thread alone. St.Lucifer What is it with you people. Have a smoke, chill out n then talk ppl..lot of smoke comin up..hatred broiling.. Facts , yes, I dont think anyone would say forum is as good as it used to be. Lets face it. There are lotsa issues and reasons y its in the declain mode.. but fighting over it in public i dont think is a great option. Gotta have the consensus of veterans abt the options, and ian's step was in right direction. To reply in such a fashion that sage did was not very mature... now the reasons may run long back to history for him to post like that.. conci, ian,mac n a lot more of us've posted lotsa nasty comments on the man.. now lets keep the ego n power struggle aside.. isnt it simple, spitting over each other really is no solution..lets stop doin it at the public place n lets start rebuilding.. Concord
Why you reckon that is? "A million frechmen can't be wrong" (title of a song but...) fayz

Forums are evolving places; they all have peaks and valleys. This forum has been good to me and I agree that I enjoyed it more last year then I do this year but I think it wasn't sage that ruined it, I blame others and the clicks that they tried to create. Removing exclusive forums is a good idea. ^ian^
Fayz I agree 100% but I think HP also said it best when he said if your house gets messy do you leave it? No you clean it up.
I don't hold Sage accountable, perhaps the decline and the timing of his arrival are mere coincidence and I will concede that, and although he has not been a good mod to the forum, I do think in that respect he shouldn't be 'banned' or anything.
Can we discuss all of the suggestions? Not just the reshuffling of the mods?
Recap:
bushra21 well even the exclusive forums aren't getting that much activity these days. people as a whole have just lost interest in df. no one wants to discuss anything because they will get attacked or scrutinized for their comments/views. and the ones that do post are usually complaining about something or someone else that they do not like. there is nothing really to discuss anymore because of the attitudes of certain individuals on this forum. if we want to fix this forum, its not only the duty of andyba or moderators -- its also on the regular posters. sage seems to be one of the few mods that are still active, which could be a bit hard on him to fix up the forums he has access to. but once he or another mod clears out spam and threads are moved to correct forums, then we would be fine...maybe... we just need things to talk about and people who aren't going to force their beliefs and ideals on others... ^ian^
I think it's about attracting the right kind of poster too. Things like "I like bananas" and "What's your favourite word" don't really help.
Quality posts such as discussing Salik, day-to-day life, etc which ARE relevant should be encouraged.
Spammers should be stopped at the door, not after they've already come in and made a mess of things.
Moderation is serious business and requires dedication. I've never wanted to be a moderator for this fact... but if you're going to be one, merely being around and posting like crazy is not enough. You have to MODERATE, not play faves, not bend or ignore the rules, accept criticism gracefully, not edit posts to your favour, not delete posts you don't like etc.
Bushra, it's one thing to nag on about the posters, but come up with some positive suggestions, least you sound like a nagger yourself.
Thinking positively, how would you get the forum back to like it was 12 months ago? fayz
I like point 1, I'd even vote Sage and you together for the general forum. A review of the mods needs to be done and a voting process would be good if feasible.
Point 2 --> My vote No, people disappear and then reappear all the time.
4 --> Part of the enjoyment of the forum was the fluff, but a general cleanup of spam and reorg would be good.
5--> good idea, sandbox for new <10-25 posts or something but then moved to the correct thread, i.e. someone responds to a thread in Expat help, the response gets moved to the sandbox and then moved to the proper topic but only spam stuff should be removed, things can't be removed because the person modding the sandbox doesn't agree. Essentially you'd be creating a delayed response, not sure how practical it would be to implement but I think that'd be a good idea. ^ian^ Looking through the mods, most of them don't even frequent the forum much anymore.
Don't post anymore

Barely post

Still post

and of course there's smartd.
Tell me this doesn't need a tidy up? bushra21 i agree with what you said earlier about the changing of the mods. it needs to be updated. but how do you decide on who moderates what forum? two mods should be allocated to each forum, not more than that. But i disagree with them having to be in dubai...lets say the arabic forum -- those mods have to speak arabic but not necessarily be from dubai. general, travel, and so on...same thing.
the registration for the forums shouldn't be as simple as it currently is. its far too easy for anyone to sign up. another forum i belong to required you to register and then in 24 hours they would send you a password that you could use to log in with. you could change it once you log in and then you had about 5 posts allocated for your first week as a member. if you weren't active then your id was removed but if you were a contributing member you gained access to other forums on the site.
i don't know how feasible it would be, but what about if members where allocated a number of posts per day -- that could help with the quality of posts and stop/reduce spamming...it could even be used with your idea where spamming would be almost be impossible...
the forums that aren't frequently used should be removed, and some other forums should be combined together rather than just having their own.
and the attitudes. but thats about it. everything else just takes time.
im sorry for sounding like i was nagging, but i thought it was important, and wanted to make sure it got through to some people. Dr.D
The name of the place is Dubai Forums my dear. bushra21
all right dr.d does this mean that the only people who can use it should be in dubai? the only topics discussed be about dubai? no.
im not saying make someone who has never lived in dubai and is in england a mod, but if that person did live there but had to move to england whats the big deal? he would still know enough about the country and its regulations (possibly) to be able to contribute, as well as moderate...
i mean dxbsoul had excellent knowledge of dubai but once he moved he didnt forget it all...its still with him. so why would he not be able to be a moderator? Concord I think there are a number of considerations regarding moderating and living in Dubai. 1. Knowledge of the place/people, etc. (so for certain forums it is essential that the moderator live here). 2. Location - if you live in a far away place (over 8 hours time zone difference) it is more difficult to be an effective moderator when the posters are more likely to post (although one mod per 12 hr time zone wouldn be bad). The key is effective moderating not just moderating for the sake of moderating (power trip!) 3. Not everyone wants to be a mod. edited: reads like a repetition of Dr D's post but I am too slow in typing so I was responding to bushra's comments. bushra21 dr.d i was only using dxbsoul as an example. also, i did say earlier that for some of the forums, not all, that both mods being located in dubai wouldn't be a necessity. but i suppose that wasn't clear... ^ian^
Good point! Especially even if the values and purpose are contrary to the person's own views. Of course one should question whether they should be a moderator if they have misaligned views.

And some people SHOULD NOT be a mod. ^ian^
I would think though preference should be given to a local mod don't you think? At least ONE local mod... we have some sections with no local mods. MAC
i agrees. you guys very smart and intuitive. wish other were :roll: MAC
you mean local as in = locality. right! bushra21 gosh this would be so much easier for me if it wasnt 3 in the morning... thats what i wanted to say ian. im just going to list the forums that dont necessarily need two mods to be located in dubai and then the ones that should only be done by mods in dubai...hopefully that makes sense. expat help - both mods should be in dubai with sufficient knowledge of the state...if not the entire uae. general - both would be nice, but one would suffice. romance - should not even exist. there is no point to this forum except for having a few good laughs ever know and again. auto - would be nice to have both in dubai...but dont really think its necessary. high tech - both in dubai. dubai guide - obviously both would need to be in dubai. but i think only one mod would be needed. jobs - that should be with accomodation and professionals or vice versa and should be moderated by those living in dubai. arabic forum - just need to be fluent in arabic and the local dialect. culture - one in dubai and maybe the other from dubai itself, someone that grew up there. politics -- anyone. fight club -- who cares games - same as fight club new members - should be smart d and andyba media - only one needs to be in dubai events - only moderated by someone in dubai if there is more i cant remember them, but veterans and ladies should be removed...no one really discusses in those anyhow ^ian^
Yes that's what I meant. Don't fret MAC. HP well it seems lot of people and especially old members would like to see the changes and now the question is "How" and who will bell the cat ? I mean who ll speak to the owner of this forum? :roll: bushra21 well wouldn't the owner be able to see this post on here already. so technically anyone who is responding to this thread would be speaking to him...right? St.Lucifer Who owns DF? I thought we all :) bushra21 andy St.Lucifer oh Andy uncle.. I thought hp's pa had some stake in it.. :D arniegang Now i will have a say. I get on with and know a lot of you well and some are friends. First i will give some history for the newbies. This time last year the forum was buzzing, there was indeed a core group of us that met often and many of us became real life friends and still are. At the height and after Libans demise (we wont go there so dont ask), i was basically running this forum almost single handed. I needed help, so i basically selected who i thought would make good mods. I did approach others as well, but they did not want the commitment. Forums, similar to real life and frienships go through stages. They peak and dip at various times. People change and so do forums. People find new friends and forums find new users. Nothing ever stays the same and never will do. People loose contact with friends and forums loose users. Thats life, like it or not. There has been much discussion in this thread about Mods. Whilst i agree with some of the content, in trying to honestly play devils advocate, there does apear to be some serious personallity clashes and personal stuff. Whatever your feelings or impression about anyones ability as a moderator or person is purely your own. It may not concur with either the majority or other individuals. Posting personals about anyone in the hope of getting others to agree or to incite others sucks. It has been stated that some of us dont participate much. This is true, but i can assure you in my particular case, it doesn't mean that because i dont post much it does mean i do not visit or do moderating. I can tell you its a fact, that i visit generally 6 out of 7 days a week and moderate on each of those days. It has also been suggested that Mods should live in Dubai. Most of the mods actually do !!!!!. I dont, but what has that got to do with moderating??. I visit DXB frequently, own property there and have as much local knowledge as most of you who live there 24/7/365. I, like others who have posted in this thread, have found DF to be a bit stale at the moment. But. in saying that i accept that this is a natural phase. On reading the comments posted in this thread, it seems the majority is pointing the finger at the Moderators/moderating. I totally disagree with this line of thought. A forums relies on posters and their participation. This is the current problem with DF. There is currently a lack of banter that did exist and i believe that is what a lot of you miss. It may return, it may not, who knows. Rather than complaining about it and blaming individuals, it would, in my humble opinion, be far more productive and pro-active for all here to give the personals a rest and maybe post subjects that people might actually find interesting and that "everyone" can relate to, whether they live in Dubai or not. ^ian^
Having read your post, it seems you have read all the preceeding posts from page 1 with tinted specs. Therefore I urge you to go back and re-read the initial points. There is two very pertinent points about moderation, and others to do with freshening things up.

Good for you. I think you did a good job, give or take a few oddities, but you're not doing much now, and no disrespect intended, I'm sure you have better things to do.

OK, but it's OK to change things too. A fool is not a man who makes a bad decision, but a man who doesn't change a bad decision when he can.
Don't be a fool.

All the seasons come and go, turn turn turn etc.

Way to go for completely missing the point about the whole thread. It's NOT a personal attack. Take your rose tinted spectacles off for a second and read it for what it truly is. It's a post suggesting improvements to freshen up the forum.
Freshen up. Not personally attack people.
Attack the issue, not the person. The ISSUE!

That's awesome, except spammers visit the forum 6 to 7 times a day. It is in need of tidier moderation, only one of several issues.

Except you knew almost nothing about Salik for example. It's not a strict requirement, but one I feel more relevant. Given two ideal candidates who could be mod, picking the local one would be the smarter option.

Arnie, I will point this out to you and everyone else now so they understand my motives in starting this:
[color=darkred] DEATH IS A NATURAL PHASE! [/color]
Doesn't make it any more desirable does it. Want to know where the forum is heading at the moment? Ask the boys who collect the revenue and count the hits... it's not growing. It's not attracting more traffic, it's not following the natural growth a website like this should have.
That to me seems far more important than sticking to crappy decisions.
Having separate forums was another crappy decision as it turned out... one that also lead to a lot of female forumers being publicly exposed and embarrassed.

Again, which thread are you reading? This thread is about positive suggestions, not a sounding board for 'what we don't like about the mods'. There's been a lot of good suggestions put in, and if the people who own this site (re: take the revenue) have any brains, they'll effect some changes. Some, maybe not all, but some would be a start.

New posters only come through content. Content only comes through quality posting. Quality posting comes through good moderation. If there is no proper order, things crumble into chaos.
Welcome to chaos.

And what the F(*## did you think this thread was about?
Go and read the first post!!!
Can't believe it took contact from Sage to get you to come to the 'rescue'. arniegang and it would be helpfull if people posted the correct topic into the correct forum, this is why i have moved it Mod. ^ian^
* sigh * arniegang Ian You obviously have serious issues, and i for one do not intent to go there. For the record i have read the whole topic and posted MY OWN opinion. I did not mention names and i did not do personals. If you feel so strongly about what you think and write Ian, maybe it is time for you to move on, it seems DF is no longer the forum for you. ^ian^
Arnie, please attack the issue not the person.
I'll say it again.
Please attack the issue not the person. ^ian^
I will also add at least 14 other people agree with the points I put forward initially.
Now, I know I am a master of disguise, but it seems what remains of regular posters have said YES!
Now, all scuttlebut aside, if the forum dies I will live on, you will live one, and everyone else will live on... but it'd be a sad thing for it to die.
If you want to keep the forum from moving in the right direction, maybe DF is no longer the forum for you?
After all, you don't own it. arniegang
Ian
The 11th Post on the first page. Telling someone to shut up just because thay may not agree with you Ian, may be your way of getting your point over. On the other hand, it may not be the way others would like to get their point acoss.
If you dont want others within this forum to have a different or opposing opinion to your own, maybe you should keep your opinions to yourself. arniegang Ian You are making yourself look bitter and twisted because someone else ie me, may not agree with you. Thats life mate, get used to it :wink: ^ian^
Actually, I didn't tell them, I asked them. And I think in this instance, it was necessary to ensure that people were allowed to speak their mind and put forward suggestions.

Pot, Kettle, Black.
Or... let people have their say... listen... and go with the changes.
At the end of the day, there will always be something else, and I must admit my brand new XBox 360 is far more interesting than this place at the moment, but you know... deep down inside, I want to help people.
I'm happy to say "I'm wrong" when I'm wrong, and I change my opinion in the face of intelligent debate....
Now I know you're a reasonable upstanding person, so do the reasonable upstanding thing and listen to the audience... the people who from a marketing standpoint are the customers, and look at the suggestions in a positive light.
This was never intended to be an attack on moderators... but a push to get things to freshen up here and become more relevant.
On a serious note, I have been approached by someone with serious cash who wants to own the forum space for Dubai. They have asked me, and I know they have asked others to provide them with contact details of the core posters in this group... all of which you can appreciate someone in my social position does have....
... I have said no.
Because I'm a decent, honest, person, just trying to do my bit for our little forum.
What have you done lately? ^ian^
Arnie, that's the mirror mate, not me.
I can type like a mofo, but at the end of the day, it's just the internet, I can go home, have a cup of tea, and save the planet Sera on Gears of War. St.Lucifer wowowow Biggies.. calm down will ya.. Lets get it straight.. 1. There've been lots of personal attacks. 2. This thread to me didn not have any intentions of a personal attack, but yes it turned out because of some posts. 3. Lets give this thread a reboot and get back to discussing the ways to improve and revamp. So guys please stop tryinna enforce yoa thoughts onto someone else.. lets take it light.. with due respect to all sernior members.. Lets concentrate on the ways to improve DF.. and we'll fix thesr personal issues over a drink :) what say guys.. arniegang If there are any more personal remarks or rudeness, i will lock this thread. If people cannot post with respect or are unable to get their point across without such, that is their problem. So people, be nice please. Mod HP There shuld be some creteria , when mods are added at different forums. Otherwise it seems as adding one more monkey in Zoo. Only a stupid modertors can alter the contents of post (i am not talking about editing ). It happened with the posts of Concord. It seems people need change and change shuld be there instead of making argument for the sake of argument. We would like to see the new look with the new team. ^ian^
Right on, I agree with you 100%
It was never meant to be a flamefest, I guess just some people took it personally.
Khallas and peace.
Now... down to business... who should we execute first? HP But i would like to know if someone is qualified as moderator if he/she alter the contents of posts ? St.Lucifer Suggestion : What's the need to display mods' names? if its to help others to communicate to them , keep a single link 'Write to Mod' that would b directed to both the mods of a section. Concord Hell, I actually had work to do and missed the live action.
Anyway, Arniegang I think you were(are) a good moderator and that's the way moderating should be done. The prime example is the Politics forum were lots of bad/insulting stuff is said and rarely is anything moved. You got carried away a couple of times (but we all have bad days).
I think what you said about "bantering" is at the crux of things here. So I quote what you wrote:

The problem is that "bantering" is not allowed to go on because one particular moderator will move a thread in a nano second because of what he thinks is morally correct or what he likes or dislikes, or what will “protect” the young or female (whether the posters are in reality young or female). He is only one forum member. This is not a personal attack but that member is Sage & Onion and I for one have no qualms about critizicing him for it.
If more "banter" is allowed then often interesting topics and discussions are generated. Otherwise as soon as a post is deleted or moved (with commentary of course) then the entire thread turns into a defence of the morality or who is right or wrong or who moved it and why.
It is intersting that you mentioned Liban as he was a prolific poster (instigator, passionate, thought provoking, etc.) but if he were here today most of his posts would have been deleted, moved and perhaps he would have been banned.
Her are just his last 10 posts;
1. Its the rule of the forums to type in English you dumb Turk. Shouldn't you get gangbanged by some Greek???
2.
2. Its horrible.... Death is a better option.
3. vegael2003, your last two posts make as much sense as planting palm trees in Antarctica
4. No. Such a salary is quite impossible unless you are the personal physician of the ruler of Dubai.
5. Not many people can understand your blabbering.
Perhapes an English course could fix things up for you.
6. everybody knows everything because he/she comes in earth from one way.
You like to cum in the Earth? Wouldn't your b/f anus be a better place?
7. So you like kissing young boys and girls... Hmmm....
FREAK!
8. Congratulations.
Do you want a bone?
9. except no one has good sour cream here
Many men have sour cream.
It depends on what they eat.
10. Also I was wondering the the original poster uses a falcon to hunt for jobs...
By the way none of those posts were moved to Fight Club or deleted. and guess what the forum lived!
None of those 10 posts would be allowed on this forum today!
Ian is right and I’ve said so before: those who generate revenue from the forum and rent the servers should be concerned about the state of the forum. Surely there are other forums for example: /
Why ignore all the votes in this poll that say something should be done. And why is it that Sage took it so personally and retorted to personal attack on Ian and told him that “if he doesn’t like it he should move own”. Which you also said. Clearly anyone who has been here more than a half hour figured out that Ian knows he can do that. His point is to make things better. ^ian^
I didn't know I could do that. :? Concord
Moderators are not suppposed to do that. But as you know it has been done repeatedly.
Anyway, where is EJ? Concord
I wish I could but no one has told me I could. But its early! St.Lucifer hellllooooo I made a peanut of a suggestion.. pls keep that in the suggestion book.. and HP look what these people missed.. u should've joined orkut at the right time.. :P ^ian^
I'm not so sure. All the forums I have been on they have displayed their names... it encourages transparency.
For instance, if a mod goes in changing the content of subjects, we know who it is, or at least, whom it could be. By making mods 'anonymous' I think it leaves them unchecked.
That's my Cashew nut. St.Lucifer shite.. U won it on the sole basis of your transparency argument.. Agreed.. but if people dont really encourage or enjoy criticism and if moderators feel that they r being personally attacked, addressing them only by a tag would make them feel as if its only an official criticism.. n they and posters can segregate the personal attacks from that of mod criticism... ^ian^
Mate, it takes a tough skin to be a good mod. To take it on the chin and to focus on upholding the rules and regulations of the forum in a very open and binary matter.
No emotions, no care, no tact... but strict adherence to the T&C of the forum. No hypocrisy either.
As the saying goes, if you can't stand the heat in the kitchen... arniegang Conc, Respect my friend. I agree with some but not all of what you say. There appears to be issues with moderation that some of you take exception. If this is the case i accept that, but in saying this i think you must, amongst others Concs, accept that the way some of you have dealt with this is, as equally questionable. Hurtling abuse about the forums when one has a beef, makes that person no better than than those who are the target of such. It must be said Concs, you have been guilty of such as have others. May i suggest that in future if anyone has a beef about moderating/moderators they contact myself and admin. The examples you have given Concs could have easilly been resolved, had a pm been sent to me and i could have moved threads back etc etc. ^ian^ Arnie, is it possible to alleviate confusion we could have a clear code of conduct, what is acceptable and what is not to alleviate confusion over the actions of moderators, thus alleviating criticism? It is not so much that people act as moderators, I wouldn't care who the moderator was, so long as they acted in accordance with a code of conduct which they enforced, instead of applying their own moral code to the forum. Morals and opinions as you know differ greatly, I'm sure even from mod to mod, so as a positive suggestion, why not formulate a standard rule that could be used by moderators. This would then remove any such criticism of mods because they could just say "I'm just doing my job" which would be fine. Yes / No? arniegang To All I know this point may seem to divert from the original topic, but i feel it has some relevance to the overall Karma within DF. Please everyone, take a look in "new members" forum. It is a interesting fact that in the majority of posts the same 3 Mods give a "welcome" message and very few others. Maybe, just maybe, if new members that post to introduce themselves had more welcomes and invitations to participate, then maybe this topic would have never been an issue. Out of the numbers that have voted in this poll and according to some of you who say they are "the majority", it would be nice to see this "majority" welcoming all the the new members and giving encouragement to them. Think about it. ^ian^ Point noted. Perhaps this in conjunction with a sandbox would help indoctrinate posters to the (positive) culture, and also drastically help to reduce spam? This in line with the above mentioned code of conduct? arniegang
A very valid and excellent post Ian. Take this as read and it will be discussed in our Mod section. I will use your post as a benchmark for that discussion and i will post replies in open forum, so that others can have input.
Please everyone, like Ian either post your suggestions in this post or please do feel free to "pm" me. I will not engage my private pm's containing comments in open forum and confidence is assured.
Cheers MaaaD *sigh* .. i miss the days when the DFM used to run things around here .. non of this democracy .. voting .. discussions .. what the mafia wanted is what the mafia did .. those good old days of PSPs and mafiozo threats .. can we revive the DFM arnie ? maybe start off by killing a few people just to make a mark ? St.Lucifer looking for the good time again.. if the theory of cyclic evolution is to be believed... arniegang
This is also an equally interesting and valid post Maad :lol:
I will look into the current DFM membership and maybe issue some new invitations. As i remember Maad you were never officially accepted into "the brotherhood" on the basis you never applied. I will therefore take your post as an invitation to join.
:wink: sage & onion
Ian,
It's intersting how you say you havn't attacked me in this thread, I quote;
[color=red][/color]
Looks pretty much like an attack to me :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: sage & onion
14 out of a total of 11,516 registered users and for the record we know at least 2 that are you Ian. ^ian^
Up to 21 now it would seem.
They can't all possibly be me.
Still 5 people are happy with the place.
Anyway, it's just the internet, 11516 posters and 90% are spambots.
It's not real Sage. sage & onion
I agree with you Ian, it's not real.
And sure they could be you if you wanted it that way, although I doubt it. fayz Wow everytime I tried to respond I got pulled away and then there were additional posts, this is the longest it ever took to respond.

At the time, I think you made the right choices but a lot of whom were chosen aren’t on the forum anymore, myself included (today being the exception) I also like Bushra’s suggestion that the mods of Arabic section should speak Arabic, for this reason alone I think I should be replaced, I nominate Bushra as she is on here still and has an excellent of command of the Arabic language.
.
Very much agree, so a review from time to time isn’t a bad idea.
.
That’s awesome and keep up the good work, I think both you and S&O should remain but I’ve been on this forum for years and there are a few people I’ve never seen post, probably a good idea to review the list.
.
Actually Liban was a mod long before he moved here, I’m okay with people living wherever but they should be aware of the situation here. Nobody knows everything about Dubai so if you have valid input that’s fine, plus i like the suggestion of concs for people in different timezones.
.
I actually think the forums have been a bit over moderated, if some of the bickering continued I think some interesting threads would have formed. (my humble opinion) Modding is a thankless job and I appreciate all that have participated.

I hope it does, time will tell.
.
I think a lot of good dialogue has come from this thread in between a bit of rubbish, as posted before this forum has really helped in my life in Dubai but I think some of the DFM and the whole “us veterans against the newbs” attitude needs to be readjusted, it made it very unwelcome for new posters.
My two fils. arniegang Great Post Fayz Respect :wink: jabbajabba This version of phpBB is very old and full of security holes so it could certainly do with an upgrade. arniegang As promised i am reporting back from the private discussions in the Moderators Forum. Below i have pasted my last post which should be self explanatory. You input and suggestions/comments are welcomed.
.............................................................................................
Thanks for your replies and contribution. I do not intend to cut and paste/quote and answer points on each individual point. Rather, i will try and summerise with a view to answering some of the issues raised.
The majority here in Mods know me, and some of us have become friends and i do not wish any of these issues to be seen as my "taking sides". Far from it, i think all have some valid points to make and they rightly have made them.
On the other hand i do not agree equally with all that has been said by "everyone". Sp please can we continue this thread/conversation without the "personals", there is no need for it and it serves no purpose in moving DF forward as has been suggested by Ian.
It is fair to say that as far as i am concerned only 2 members appear to have serious issues with moderating. Whilst i hear what has been said, i feel it fair to point out that i have also received numerous pm's about the conduct of those members here. I quote :

Now, on one hand we have members here complaing about Moderators and on the other hand we have members here who feel intimidated and bullied by those unable to express themselves or lack the confidence to speak out. Now, i personally am not saying Ian is a bully and i dont think he is for one second. However, i have to consider and take on board the fact that there may possibly, be people out there that have this perception.
It cuts both ways guys and this is not personal so please dont take this as such, i am merely trying to put things in perspective and trying to broker a compromise in playing the devils advocate.
I do not intend to recommend to Andy or Danni that Sage be removed as moderator. In my opinion he generally does a good and at times a thankless task. We have all been guilty at some point of editing/deleting/moving posts that has pissed people off, including myself.
The trouble is the more time spent on here and lets be frank Sage is on here a lot, the more chance there is of being crticised.
Like in real life "you cant please all the people all the time, only some of the people some of the time" and thats basically it in a nutshell.
On one hand we have people saying "well its only a forum, its not real life", then those same people and it has happend in the last 3 days, then take exception to the point where you think their whole life depended on it. You cant have it both ways, either you accept the forum how is is or you dont - Its that simple people.
Moving on now, i have also had a pm which i think has made some good suggestions, and i personally think has contributed to the downward trend in DF. Many of us agreed and disagreed about the private forums and i feel those in the disagree camp were correct at the outset. I was in the agree camp and i feel personally with hindsight i was wrong. Anyway back to the suggestion, i have added in my personal suggestion for moderation if this proposal is accepted.


I would further suggest the removal of the following Mods :
Alvii
Sweet Mary
Liban
The Zooter
Harpax
Faisal7
Sara_UK
and............. :wink:
Smartd - only joking :lol: :lol:
so let the arguing begin NOT please.... Jeevan Finally we are heading in some direction:) Yes i am in for a benchmark for moderation, if that step is taken Have more active people as moderators, if there are any changes to be made, and most important people with a balanced view who wouldnt jump the gun. We need to have a look at the forum as a FORUM and not take things too personally, if someone has something against someone vent it off in Pms. And lastly arnie, i am leaving Dubai in a months time, though i would be active on the forum id ont think i will be doing justice to being a moderator in events. So if you think its feasible to transfer me to some general section it would be wonderful. Orelse i am open to being just a contributing member :). cheers, J sage & onion [quote="arniegang"]As promised i am reporting back from the private discussions in the Moderators Forum. Below i have pasted my last post which should be self explanatory. You input and suggestions/comments are welcomed.
Hey Arnie, sounds reasonable to me.
Sorry that you are leaving J, however I presume you will be in to see us from time to time. Where are you headed?, good luck m8. HP
He is heading to Red Mosque in Pakistan :lol: arniegang Well considering so many people wanted to jump on the "have a go at the mod/sage bandwagon" there does not appear to be many positive contributions, since i stepped in! Most interesting. :wink: If people feal they dont have the confidence to post in open forum for fear of upsetting "the hardcore" then please feel free to pm me in private on ANY issue regarding the performance of the current moderators. I can ASSURE you that your idenity will remain confidential. Many Thanks Mod. ^ian^
Maybe they're afraid of upsetting you? Concord
:bootyshake: smartd I urge all mods to keep mod related topics in the Mod section and not here in public Cheers, D ^ian^
**** this is not school and we're not 10 years old.
I'm checking out of this fantasy. I offered some suggestions for improvement and this is the response.
What a load of crap.
edited by mod arniegang and before you complain about editing posts Ian, i edited yours to remove my name - i do hope you and Concs approve, i am sure Sage would have done the same. :wink: And yes i agree about how childish things have become, indeed some people think the way some of you have been behaving in making personal attacks has been very very childish. In fact Ian, a good example of how childish and rude you are can be found here; &postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0 The forum is fine Ian, just fine. I am going to recommend to Admin some slight changes here and there. If some of you dont like it, then you have a choice to stay or go End of................. ^ian^ Arniegang (apologies for using your real name earlier - I concur this is not real life),
this may or may not be my last post on the forum... either way, it doesn't mean a lot to me, so I'd just like to make a few last points and I don't expect or require a reply.
1. As Concord has pointed out, I am well aware that I can choose to leave or not... have been for quite a while and the continual pointing this out is really becoming quite boorish.
2. I made some positive suggestions to breath some life into this place. It was taken as a personal attack, which for me is a bit disappointing, as I believe nobody should be beyond reproach. Not I, not you, not anyone. However, so be it. I guess some people just don't take criticism well eh?
3. My thoughts and feelings on this are not excitement, anger, frustration, tension blah blah or anything of the sort. It is merely disappointment. Disappointment that people have responded in such a childish manner to what was always intended to be positive discussion. Alas, I am not going to lose sleep over something so minor, and it really is minor. Perspective please?
4. I've never seen such a bunch of clowns flop down and cry 'victim' in such a manner before. It truly is cringeworthy and my 12 year old son exhibits maturity several orders of magnitude higher.
5. Finally, if I wanted to get personal (and I don't, it's just a bleeding online forum) I would get personal. I'm sure we don't want to go there do we?
So that's that. Let's grow up and be mature and stop bellyaching and repeating garbage ad-hominum. I'm going to do my bit by focusing my attention elsewhere (most notably which is fledgeling community for Xbox users in Dubai).
Out of all this I expect nothing of you or any other mod in this forum, anything more would lead to further disappointment.
Thanks
over and out. benwj
Does this mean that they have all been Negative contributions? :)

3 cheers for arnie, Hip Hip...
Perhaps the lack of response is because people don't really give a rats (care one way or the other) who the moderator is?
I felt that all of Ian's suggestions where positive, from someone who is genuinely interested, and (up until now), committed to the forum.
And for all of his efforts, he is told that he is free to leave whenever he feels like it.
Nice.
Don't be too disappointed Ian.
As you said.. it is only a forum. LG * * * The Major
W.T.F... LG my other post get sensored by arnie :roll: arnie very sunsitive man who not like da uncumfortables truths about him. umer222 Can't find a Job? Tired of your boss? Can't to live a life of luxury? Call: 050-8843509 Mr. Umair (solution to ALL your problems… :D) muyesser
the first thing should ever be done is to lock you away for suggesting 1,2 and 5..
after only 6 weeks of being here, I was better informed of most things through the Forum's current frame, than I would ever be other wise..
xl muyesser 8) 8) sage & onion
Comments appreciated



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