Blogscape and Rate This! Suggestions

[Low C]

Hello fellow tifers, I've tried to stay active in these forums over the years and haven't found a better community since I started runescape and stumbled upon these boards. I love the whole board and my former favorite place to post and view was Blogscape and Rate this!. However, lately it has gotten pretty bad on both sub-forums which have transformed into a breeding ground for spam and basically no structure what so ever. Blogscape used to be a place to track your progress through your runescape journey and to showcase your achievements to the community. Now it is made up of cliques of friends who spam each others blogs. I admit I have partaken in this but I now look at it as a problem. I really wish we could improve blogscape to the point that it could return to somewhat of its former glory. It just needs more structure and moderating considering forumers have resorted to posting inappropriate things and discussing things that would never fly in a moderated zone.

 

As for Rate This!, the main problem I see is someone getting harassed for a sub-par achievement that isn't up to the community's standard. It all starts with someone posting a very low rating with no substance which is then responded to by someone who picks that persons rating apart and starts a flame war. I don't have a solve all to this problem but I do have a few suggestions that need to be discussed with the community to form a better system that could prevent some of these problems and improve those sub-forums.

 

1. Remove blogscape and incorporate it with the new community blogs to increase moderating since two separate blog spaces are harder to moderate than one.
   
2. Assign more moderaters to the community blogs now that it is repackaged as one blog area.
   
3. Add a poll system for rate this to give a clearer picture of the ratings a user receives.
   
4. Add a rule requiring constructive criticism of some sort to every rating, mainly no 1/10's without stating why or how the user could improve.
   

 

I would like to hear more idea's as to how to improve these boards and give them a nice overhaul that they rightfully deserve. My changes that I brainstormed are focused on fixing the rule breaking whilst pulling the community together closer to make for a better blog and rate this environment.

[Sentry_Wolf]

Totally agree that Blogscape and RT! has spiralled into a mess. Thumbs up for any changes to it to bring it back to what is was years ago. If I'm honest, out of 10 rates really annoy me and provide no benefit to anything. :P

 

EDIT: I don't think Blogscape should be removed as a forum, the community blog thing is too hidden and out of place and I don't think it would feel right. More moderation or something I would be much more happy with.

 

PS: YAY for Global!

[Low C]

Thank-you to the moderator who moved this for me. :thumbup:

 

John, I agree the numbers system offers nothing to the viewer and OP. If the ratings system stays intact then requiring substance such as constructive criticism explaining why said user feels the achievement merits a 1-10/10 would be the best alternative to prevent flaming, ect. What do you guys think?

 

Edit: I think removing one or the other would pull the community together and make the moderators jobs easier though. I know I liked the community blogs section but the lack of viewers really hurt it for me. Anyone have suggestions as to how this could be improved?

[Kimberly]

The way I always saw it was Blogscape was for runescape and the blog feature was for RL aspects. I would rather see this be enforced than doing away completely with blogscape.

[Shelby_Polo]

I don't really use/visit Blogscape, but I can see how spamming friends topics can become an annoyance and problem.

 

I do however visit Rate This, and must say I always thought it should become an achievement forum rather than a rating forum. Ratings are of course alright but as the OP stated whenever a 'sub-par' achievement comes around it practically gets flamed.

 

I'm all for change.

[Kimberly]

I do however visit Rate This, and must say I always thought it should become an achievement forum rather than a rating forum. Ratings are of course alright but as the OP stated whenever a 'sub-par' achievement comes around it practically gets flamed.

 

If you're going to have people explain why they dislike the achievement, they'll do so in accordance with opinions. If you're going to have clashing opinions, you're going to get heated debating that really doesn't have a place in RT but isn't strictly against the rules. Whether it be ranking system or not, that's a core issue that isn't going to be changed by structure. Being rude isn't against the rules.

[Michael]

They need to be more heavily moderated and currently a lot of the posts on Blogscape are spam/bumps.

[Gradeskip]

I remember Blogscape back in 2007-2008, was so much better...

 

Good old times. <3:

[Aiel]

lack of views in community blogs? My blog has over 8k views, troactids has over 55k views. It definitely gets seen.

[Youmu]

I think Blogscape is fine as it is. Sure there's the spam, but it's just personal stuff between friends, and the forum doesn't give any post count anyway.

 

Rate This though... definitely give more moderation. There has just been too many flamey attacks towards users if the achievement is subpar... it's an ACHIEVEMENT towards that player, don't flame just because you are more superior in that department.

[Low C]

Thanks for all the feedback and responses and a big thanks to Tripsis for making this an announcement. Should get some great feedback from the community now that it is more well known about.

 

lack of views in community blogs? My blog has over 8k views, troactids has over 55k views. It definitely gets seen.

When I tried out the community blogs scene it didn't seem like I got near as much traffic as I did in the Blogscape section. As well as a lack of posting, which entails comments over in the community blogs section. I love your community blog as well as Troactids. :thumbsup:

 

I think Blogscape is fine as it is. Sure there's the spam, but it's just personal stuff between friends, and the forum doesn't give any post count anyway.

 

True, but in comparison to how it was in 07-08' it really doesn't have the same vibe in my opinion.

 

Rate This though... definitely give more moderation. There has just been too many flamey attacks towards users if the achievement is subpar... it's an ACHIEVEMENT towards that player, don't flame just because you are more superior in that department.

Like Shelby Polo said above me, maybe making it an achievements board would solve some of the problems?

 

Really intrigued to hear more ideas and proposals as to how we could improve these forums. My proposals were merely brainstormed idea's that I thought would kickstart some debate as to how we can improve the RT board as well as the Blogscape board.

[Kimberly]

Rate This though... definitely give more moderation. There has just been too many flamey attacks towards users if the achievement is subpar... it's an ACHIEVEMENT towards that player, don't flame just because you are more superior in that department.

 

I don't see a lot of flaming (or if it's there, then things are working and they're being reported and removed) but I do see a lot of things like this post dotting RT threads. I don't think it's trolling or flaming to rate something low if you don't consider it an achievement, but it's all in how you say it. How quickly topics can go, well, off-topic though is annoying. The board has no real focus so long and so long as you're talking about the achievement in question then it seems like anything goes. That leads to heated debating a lot. Is that what people are talking about when they say 'flaming'?

[Aiel]

lack of views in community blogs? My blog has over 8k views, troactids has over 55k views. It definitely gets seen.

When I tried out the community blogs scene it didn't seem like I got near as much traffic as I did in the Blogscape section. As well as a lack of posting, which entails comments over in the community blogs section. I love your community blog as well as Troactids. :thumbsup:

I think the problem is the awkward comment system in community blogs, not the system its self.

[Bladewing]

the problem with rate this is not that there is too much flaming. the problem is that everyone interprets anything but a 8,9, or 10/10 as flaming.

 

if someone gives you a 4/10, it's not flaming.

[Youmu]

Should have worded myself better. :\

 

Well, I know stuff like the Agility thread got flamed a lot. What definitely needs to be moderated though, is the amount of 1-word posts like "10/10". That's just spam, at least say grats on the achievement or something.

[Alg]

I don't really use/visit Blogscape, but I can see how spamming friends topics can become an annoyance and problem.

To quote something I posted on a friend's blog...

So much spam on this blog lol :P

Well, "good luck on your goal" and "congrats on your goal" for a hundred or so pages is ridiculous. This is a bunch of friends trolling each other as friends.

 

The guys in gen discussion may think it's a cesspool because of it, but it's pretty much the best part.

It looks like spam, but we're all having fun with it, and unlike spam in any other thread, it doesn't disrupt anyone.

 

Rate This, on the other hand, needs a fix. Really, anything is better than what it currently is. It's pretty much legalized trolling.

[Kimberly]

Should have worded myself better. :\

 

Well, I know stuff like the Agility thread got flamed a lot. What definitely needs to be moderated though, is the amount of 1-word posts like "10/10". That's just spam, at least say grats on the achievement or something.

 

If you say "10/10" or "grats" is that really any less spammy? :/

[Youmu]

Ok, how about every 1-word post gets moderated?

 

At least say a full sentence with the achievement or something.

[Bladewing]

or add a simple 1-5 star rating poll on every rate this! thread? that way instead of saying "10/10" they can just click on the poll if they have nothing else to say.

[Low C]

or add a simple 1-5 star rating poll on every rate this! thread? that way instead of saying "10/10" they can just click on the poll if they have nothing else to say.

 

I like your idea, maybe incorporate the star rating system as well as revamping the rate this board to be an achievement board that actually creates feedback for the forum member who posts an achievement. Then they would have a better chance of getting real feedback rather than a demeaning 1/10 you suck. :?: I still think we need more feedback from the community, it seems the board is divided on this issue.

[stonewall337]

Blogscape is fine as it is. Rate this, I don't use it often so I have no opinion.

[mister_moocky]

There is nothing wrong with someone giving an honest rate. It's the people that get offended when their crap gets low ratings that are the problem.

[Ginger_Warrior]

or add a simple 1-5 star rating poll on every rate this! thread? that way instead of saying "10/10" they can just click on the poll if they have nothing else to say.

I think the question is, would people be any less offended if they were rated by people who kept themselves anonymous using a star rating system?

 

Surely the answer is yes.

 

BlogScape has always been spammy because, frankly, there isn't much to talk about in RS.

[Saru Inc]

I vehemently disagree with this on so many levels.

 

 

There shouldn't be any moderation on Blogscape, besides the obvious flame wars etc. Who cares if it's just spam? Don't partake. Live and let live.

 

 

 

I will never understand the hatred for spam on this STJ forum.

[Obtaurian]

I don't really use/visit Blogscape, but I can see how spamming friends topics can become an annoyance and problem.

To quote something I posted on a friend's blog...

So much spam on this blog lol :P

Well, "good luck on your goal" and "congrats on your goal" for a hundred or so pages is ridiculous. This is a bunch of friends trolling each other as friends.

 

The guys in gen discussion may think it's a cesspool because of it, but it's pretty much the best part.

It looks like spam, but we're all having fun with it, and unlike spam in any other thread, it doesn't disrupt anyone.

 

Rate This, on the other hand, needs a fix. Really, anything is better than what it currently is. It's pretty much legalized trolling.

 

I completely agree with this. I love Blogscape, especially now that I'm not playing RS (real life obligations, etc). It's a place for me to relax and talk to my friends. When I want to post serious stuff, I go to GD. I would really rather keep Blogscape a light-hearted place. If it were to become heavily moderated, I wouldn't really have a place to talk to and joke around with most of my friends. I mean, I could probably add some of them on Facebook or something, but that seems like a lot to ask of someone.

 

Rate This!, on the other hand, might need a bit of improvement. I agree with Bladewing in that most people tend to interpret low rates as flaming or whatever. I really don't know how it could be improved. I like the poll rating idea, as it would eliminate the "omg he rated me 3/10 must be a personal attack" thing.