AMA Session!
August 9, 2023 11:29 AM Subscribe
Wait, there’s no question here!?
Should I flag this post? Should I answer something? No!
Is this chatfilter? Maybe...
This is our "Ask Mods Anything" (AMA) Session! For the MetaFilter Fundraising! Head over to Metatalk for more details
Should I flag this post? Should I answer something? No!
Is this chatfilter? Maybe...
This is our "Ask Mods Anything" (AMA) Session! For the MetaFilter Fundraising! Head over to Metatalk for more details
Response by poster: wenestvedt:
All of us together? Rarely, we are 5 people in 5 different time zones.
1-on-1 or asynchronously? Waaaay more often, we're chatty people with very different backgrounds as you might have guessed.
posted by loup at 11:52 AM on August 9, 2023 [5 favorites]
All of us together? Rarely, we are 5 people in 5 different time zones.
1-on-1 or asynchronously? Waaaay more often, we're chatty people with very different backgrounds as you might have guessed.
posted by loup at 11:52 AM on August 9, 2023 [5 favorites]
Is there a softball team -- or, I guess, Learned League team or whatever -- that plays against Reddit mods or the people who work at other web properties?
posted by wenestvedt at 1:22 PM on August 9, 2023 [4 favorites]
posted by wenestvedt at 1:22 PM on August 9, 2023 [4 favorites]
What is your workload like? Mostly responding to flags, or seeking out issues, or general housekeeping?
posted by hydra77 at 1:39 PM on August 9, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by hydra77 at 1:39 PM on August 9, 2023 [5 favorites]
What trivial thing do all the mods have in common (such as favorite foods, books, TV shows, places, etc.)?
posted by May Kasahara at 2:11 PM on August 9, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by May Kasahara at 2:11 PM on August 9, 2023 [1 favorite]
Why did the mods choose to put this in AskMe rather than Metatalk?
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 2:25 PM on August 9, 2023 [17 favorites]
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 2:25 PM on August 9, 2023 [17 favorites]
wenestvedt:
Nope! At least, not to my knowledge. I think we all keep to ourselves, although that sounds like a fun concept.
posted by travelingthyme at 4:11 PM on August 9, 2023 [1 favorite]
Nope! At least, not to my knowledge. I think we all keep to ourselves, although that sounds like a fun concept.
posted by travelingthyme at 4:11 PM on August 9, 2023 [1 favorite]
hydra77:
Our workload really depends on the day and the type of activity on the site. Usually, we're responding to flags that come in during our shift, monitoring our inbox for any requests to open/reopen accounts, and helping users get back into their account if they lost their password. We also have the occasional email exchange with users writing in to share their thoughts on moderation, concerns over the direction a thread is taking or we might walk a user through the best framing for a proposed post!
posted by travelingthyme at 4:16 PM on August 9, 2023 [2 favorites]
Our workload really depends on the day and the type of activity on the site. Usually, we're responding to flags that come in during our shift, monitoring our inbox for any requests to open/reopen accounts, and helping users get back into their account if they lost their password. We also have the occasional email exchange with users writing in to share their thoughts on moderation, concerns over the direction a thread is taking or we might walk a user through the best framing for a proposed post!
posted by travelingthyme at 4:16 PM on August 9, 2023 [2 favorites]
I just wanted to pop in to say you folks are heros. There's not a day that goes by that I don't thank whatever deities that may be for your thankless efforts which make this my favorite place on the web. And that's not just the beer talking. I had a little gin earlier.
posted by Floydd at 5:08 PM on August 9, 2023 [25 favorites]
posted by Floydd at 5:08 PM on August 9, 2023 [25 favorites]
What's a metafilter post or moment that lives rent-free in your head in a good way?
18 pounds of Red Leicester cheese is mine
posted by Baethan at 5:43 PM on August 9, 2023 [11 favorites]
18 pounds of Red Leicester cheese is mine
posted by Baethan at 5:43 PM on August 9, 2023 [11 favorites]
Tell Me No Lies:
Likely because all subsites have different audiences and we want to reach all possible audiences! The format of this question makes the most sense in AskMeFi.
posted by travelingthyme at 6:53 PM on August 9, 2023 [1 favorite]
Likely because all subsites have different audiences and we want to reach all possible audiences! The format of this question makes the most sense in AskMeFi.
posted by travelingthyme at 6:53 PM on August 9, 2023 [1 favorite]
May Kasahara:
BrandonBlatcher has a great answer to your question! Our inboxes are always full of outlandish spam emails so Brandon's answer was, "We all have no love for spammers".
So true...so so true.
posted by travelingthyme at 6:57 PM on August 9, 2023 [2 favorites]
BrandonBlatcher has a great answer to your question! Our inboxes are always full of outlandish spam emails so Brandon's answer was, "We all have no love for spammers".
So true...so so true.
posted by travelingthyme at 6:57 PM on August 9, 2023 [2 favorites]
I note there's no way to underline text in a post, which I often use for emphasis in some of my other electronic communications. Bold feels wring because it also indicates linked text. I don't think of italics very often but I'll admit that it's an option. So --
1. What would it take to use underline or do I need to review my mid-level knowledge of HTML to determine that it's not do-able?
2. What about Markdown text-editing?
No matter the answers, thanks for the Metafilter ecosystem - what a joy to use an ad-free site where there are no "sponsored" answers either.
posted by TimHare at 10:07 PM on August 9, 2023 [1 favorite]
1. What would it take to use underline or do I need to review my mid-level knowledge of HTML to determine that it's not do-able?
2. What about Markdown text-editing?
No matter the answers, thanks for the Metafilter ecosystem - what a joy to use an ad-free site where there are no "sponsored" answers either.
posted by TimHare at 10:07 PM on August 9, 2023 [1 favorite]
We all know that the MetaFilter mods make the site the helpful, safe place that it is. Thank you to all of you. (I'm a monthly contributor but will throw another $10 in the tip jar for your response to the below).
I came across an issue in a neighborhood social media group that I moderate and I've wondered "how would the Metafilter mods handle this?" ever since. Unlike MF, the socal media group in question often includes a lot of user back-and-forth so I understand the format is different, but your insight would still be appreciated. Here's what happened:
The OP, a new user to the group, had posted their opinion on a local ordinance. Neighbor1 (a regular contributor to the group, never a troublemaker) had responded with a respectful disagreement. OP seemed inordinately distressed by this, and started responding with a completely unhinged rant about how Neighbor1 was harassing them, that OP was pressing charges, the cops were on their way to OP's house to take a report, the issue was being escalated to the FBI, accusations that Neighbor1 was bugging OP's phone, just completely bonkers shit. I removed OP's responses but the issue weighed on me because I had legitimate concerns about OP's mental well-being. I feel like I should have handled the situation differently, but I don't know how I could have. So my question is, WWAMFMD (What Would a MetaFilter Mod Do)? Delete/block and move on? Reach out to OP and ask if they're okay? We all know that the Internet is full of wacky people but this was someone in my city whose real, full name was use in their replies and I felt like I should have done something more.
posted by mezzanayne at 10:17 PM on August 9, 2023 [2 favorites]
I came across an issue in a neighborhood social media group that I moderate and I've wondered "how would the Metafilter mods handle this?" ever since. Unlike MF, the socal media group in question often includes a lot of user back-and-forth so I understand the format is different, but your insight would still be appreciated. Here's what happened:
The OP, a new user to the group, had posted their opinion on a local ordinance. Neighbor1 (a regular contributor to the group, never a troublemaker) had responded with a respectful disagreement. OP seemed inordinately distressed by this, and started responding with a completely unhinged rant about how Neighbor1 was harassing them, that OP was pressing charges, the cops were on their way to OP's house to take a report, the issue was being escalated to the FBI, accusations that Neighbor1 was bugging OP's phone, just completely bonkers shit. I removed OP's responses but the issue weighed on me because I had legitimate concerns about OP's mental well-being. I feel like I should have handled the situation differently, but I don't know how I could have. So my question is, WWAMFMD (What Would a MetaFilter Mod Do)? Delete/block and move on? Reach out to OP and ask if they're okay? We all know that the Internet is full of wacky people but this was someone in my city whose real, full name was use in their replies and I felt like I should have done something more.
posted by mezzanayne at 10:17 PM on August 9, 2023 [2 favorites]
As someone who is eternally appreciative for this site and those of you who have kept it possible:
What are the times that you came closest to putting your foot out the door, and why? And why did you stay?
posted by Riki tiki at 10:31 PM on August 9, 2023 [1 favorite]
What are the times that you came closest to putting your foot out the door, and why? And why did you stay?
posted by Riki tiki at 10:31 PM on August 9, 2023 [1 favorite]
If there was ever a case for threaded comments, this is it!
posted by dg at 10:55 PM on August 9, 2023 [35 favorites]
posted by dg at 10:55 PM on August 9, 2023 [35 favorites]
What are the times that you came closest to putting your foot out the door, and why? And why did you stay?
I don't think I've ever really been about to quit, really. But almost by definition this job entails being exposed to seemingly endless negativity -- you're involved in a thing you love, but you mainly see its worst parts.
Most people I've talked to about this have suggested that to deal with this it's key to limit one's exposure. So when I'm not on shift I'm not, and that can be difficult because you do still want to care. But I imagine if I stopped rigorously compartmentalizing, it would lead me to a point where I will have had enough.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 3:17 AM on August 10, 2023 [6 favorites]
I don't think I've ever really been about to quit, really. But almost by definition this job entails being exposed to seemingly endless negativity -- you're involved in a thing you love, but you mainly see its worst parts.
Most people I've talked to about this have suggested that to deal with this it's key to limit one's exposure. So when I'm not on shift I'm not, and that can be difficult because you do still want to care. But I imagine if I stopped rigorously compartmentalizing, it would lead me to a point where I will have had enough.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 3:17 AM on August 10, 2023 [6 favorites]
So my question is, WWAMFMD (What Would a MetaFilter Mod Do)? Delete/block and move on? Reach out to OP and ask if they're okay?
Delete and reach out, I guess. Without knowing the verbatim discussion, this sounds like it may have been harassment or intimidation (and off-topic at best). That seems pretty plainly not okay.
Perhaps even more important is to maintain an ongoing awareness of such incidents, because they're not exactly always isolated. That is to say, make a note of it and share it with any colleagues: then if a pattern does emerge, you may want to reach out to the person posting the unpleasant stuff, and potentially ban them if efforts fail.
I do recognize that the group being strictly local, this may require even greater diplomacy and finesse in communicating with users, and that you will be especially concerned with people's physical safety. It's difficult for me to gauge the impact of that difference on specific moderation decisions though, but it seems worth mentioning.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 3:41 AM on August 10, 2023 [4 favorites]
Delete and reach out, I guess. Without knowing the verbatim discussion, this sounds like it may have been harassment or intimidation (and off-topic at best). That seems pretty plainly not okay.
Perhaps even more important is to maintain an ongoing awareness of such incidents, because they're not exactly always isolated. That is to say, make a note of it and share it with any colleagues: then if a pattern does emerge, you may want to reach out to the person posting the unpleasant stuff, and potentially ban them if efforts fail.
I do recognize that the group being strictly local, this may require even greater diplomacy and finesse in communicating with users, and that you will be especially concerned with people's physical safety. It's difficult for me to gauge the impact of that difference on specific moderation decisions though, but it seems worth mentioning.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 3:41 AM on August 10, 2023 [4 favorites]
What would it take to use underline[?]
There's no button for it, but as dg illustrates, if you enclose your text like so: <u>underlined text</u> it should turn into this: underlined text.
The FAQ mentions several other supported HTML elements. We've always been HTML-based though, I'm not aware of any plans to support Markdown.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 3:53 AM on August 10, 2023 [5 favorites]
There's no button for it, but as dg illustrates, if you enclose your text like so: <u>underlined text</u> it should turn into this: underlined text.
The FAQ mentions several other supported HTML elements. We've always been HTML-based though, I'm not aware of any plans to support Markdown.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 3:53 AM on August 10, 2023 [5 favorites]
What is your workload like? Mostly responding to flags, or seeking out issues, or general housekeeping?
Depends on the day and time and what else is happening on the site or in the world. A major news event or janky thread can completely command your work attention.
And that's not just the beer talking. I had a little gin earlier.
Have some blackberries soaking in gin for about 2 weeks now, looking forward to trying that soon.
So my question is, WWAMFMD (What Would a MetaFilter Mod Do)? Delete/block and move on? Reach out to OP and ask if they're okay?
The situation and community is highly circumstantial and relevant to how I'd respond specifically, but probably would have removed the responses and left it at that, to see what the OP's next move would have been.
What are the times that you came closest to putting your foot out the door, and why? And why did you stay?
Still new, haven't thought quitting per se, but sure some days are better than others. Sometimes when talking about my day with lady I regularly call upon, I simply say "The people were peopling today".
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 6:52 AM on August 10, 2023 [6 favorites]
Depends on the day and time and what else is happening on the site or in the world. A major news event or janky thread can completely command your work attention.
And that's not just the beer talking. I had a little gin earlier.
Have some blackberries soaking in gin for about 2 weeks now, looking forward to trying that soon.
So my question is, WWAMFMD (What Would a MetaFilter Mod Do)? Delete/block and move on? Reach out to OP and ask if they're okay?
The situation and community is highly circumstantial and relevant to how I'd respond specifically, but probably would have removed the responses and left it at that, to see what the OP's next move would have been.
What are the times that you came closest to putting your foot out the door, and why? And why did you stay?
Still new, haven't thought quitting per se, but sure some days are better than others. Sometimes when talking about my day with lady I regularly call upon, I simply say "The people were peopling today".
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 6:52 AM on August 10, 2023 [6 favorites]
Would you rather fight one horse sized duck or 100 duck sized horses?
posted by kiwi-epitome at 7:34 AM on August 10, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by kiwi-epitome at 7:34 AM on August 10, 2023 [1 favorite]
Would you rather fight one horse sized duck or 100 duck sized horses?
I would fight neither and would instead pet them all and share my snacks with them.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 7:44 AM on August 10, 2023 [23 favorites]
I would fight neither and would instead pet them all and share my snacks with them.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 7:44 AM on August 10, 2023 [23 favorites]
I dunno, man.
Duck-sized horse = cute
Horse-sized duck = terrifying
posted by slkinsey at 7:53 AM on August 10, 2023 [5 favorites]
Duck-sized horse = cute
Horse-sized duck = terrifying
posted by slkinsey at 7:53 AM on August 10, 2023 [5 favorites]
Horse-sized duck = terrifying
Buckets of cracked corn, oats, rice, and/or birdseed would soothe that savage beast!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:17 AM on August 10, 2023
Buckets of cracked corn, oats, rice, and/or birdseed would soothe that savage beast!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:17 AM on August 10, 2023
Recommend this Ask.Me be sidebarred.
posted by theora55 at 10:03 AM on August 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by theora55 at 10:03 AM on August 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
nvrmnd, it's already sidebarred, TYVM.
So what's the most fun part?
posted by theora55 at 11:05 AM on August 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
So what's the most fun part?
posted by theora55 at 11:05 AM on August 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
Would you rather fight one horse sized duck or 100 duck sized horses?
I'd happily take on one horse sized duck... I think I could win to be honest!!
posted by travelingthyme at 3:17 PM on August 10, 2023
I'd happily take on one horse sized duck... I think I could win to be honest!!
posted by travelingthyme at 3:17 PM on August 10, 2023
I'm wary of duck-sized ducks.
posted by fritley at 3:25 PM on August 10, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by fritley at 3:25 PM on August 10, 2023 [5 favorites]
So what's the most fun part?
Making sidebar/Best Of posts, thinking of ways to show today's world that MeFi is relevant and quite possibly needed (dead serious about that), the satisfying click of hitting the "block" button when on targeted MeFi spam, helping people, finding a particularly good thread of people making thoughtful and/or funny and/or insightful comments, and being able to work from home (first time I've ever done that).
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:30 AM on August 11, 2023 [6 favorites]
Making sidebar/Best Of posts, thinking of ways to show today's world that MeFi is relevant and quite possibly needed (dead serious about that), the satisfying click of hitting the "block" button when on targeted MeFi spam, helping people, finding a particularly good thread of people making thoughtful and/or funny and/or insightful comments, and being able to work from home (first time I've ever done that).
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:30 AM on August 11, 2023 [6 favorites]
MARKDOWN is already here....
Thanks to Evan Dickinson's browser extension, "Markdown for MeFi"
evan-dickinson.github.io/md4mefi
Available for Safari, Firefox, and Chrome
posted by Jesse the K at 2:17 PM on August 11, 2023 [3 favorites]
Thanks to Evan Dickinson's browser extension, "Markdown for MeFi"
evan-dickinson.github.io/md4mefi
Available for Safari, Firefox, and Chrome
posted by Jesse the K at 2:17 PM on August 11, 2023 [3 favorites]
What's the status of my pony request here? I assume it has fallen aside. Would it help if I upped the ante?
posted by hypnogogue at 10:55 AM on August 13, 2023
posted by hypnogogue at 10:55 AM on August 13, 2023
Okay, so this isn't really a mod thing, since we don't work under the hood, but I think the issue is that we are in a situation where we already need to hire extra help for tech stuff to take care of ongoing issues, so funds available would go to that first, and extra, fun things are subsidiary to that atm, but loup can answer this better!
posted by taz at 12:36 AM on August 14, 2023
posted by taz at 12:36 AM on August 14, 2023
When you tell someone what you do for a living, do you let them know the site you work at? Have they generally heard of metafilter? If not, how do you sum up the site and its culture for interested outsiders?
posted by einekleine at 8:04 AM on August 14, 2023
posted by einekleine at 8:04 AM on August 14, 2023
Response by poster: l rarely provide many details about I what do for a living... but when I do (mostly when catching up with longtime friends) there's a 50/50 chance that they have heard about MeFi. If they have never heard about it, they better be prepared as I tend to speak A LOT! So I'll start saying that it is a crowd-sourced weblog where people tend to be positive and inclusive (unfortunately a rarity nowadays IMO) then I'll go on forever talking about my favourite 2 subsites (Ask and FanFare).
posted by loup at 2:18 PM on August 14, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by loup at 2:18 PM on August 14, 2023 [1 favorite]
Is there going to be an auction? Or did it already happen and I missed it?
posted by Vatnesine at 8:20 PM on August 20, 2023
posted by Vatnesine at 8:20 PM on August 20, 2023
No question here - just a big thank you to the mods for all they work they do in making Metafilter such a pleasant environment compared to just about every other website out there.
posted by Paul Slade at 11:57 AM on August 21, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Paul Slade at 11:57 AM on August 21, 2023 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Is there going to be an auction? Or did it already happen and I missed it?
We are looking into the feasibility of running it with the staff resources we have and hope to start soon if possible. We'll provide more details ASAP.
posted by loup at 8:54 AM on August 23, 2023
We are looking into the feasibility of running it with the staff resources we have and hope to start soon if possible. We'll provide more details ASAP.
posted by loup at 8:54 AM on August 23, 2023
Response by poster: Thank you, Paul Slade! It is highly appreciated.
posted by loup at 8:54 AM on August 23, 2023
posted by loup at 8:54 AM on August 23, 2023
When you tell someone what you do for a living, do you let them know the site you work at? Have they generally heard of metafilter? If not, how do you sum up the site and its culture for interested outsiders?
When I do share what site I work at, folks usually have no clue what I'm talking about. I then explain that it's a corner of the internet where very unique people hang out and talk about pretty much everything under the sun. I tell them about how my job is to make sure things are going smoothly in threads so our users are having the best possible experience. I also say that I sometimes feel like a referee on spicier days haha.
posted by travelingthyme at 3:52 PM on August 23, 2023
When I do share what site I work at, folks usually have no clue what I'm talking about. I then explain that it's a corner of the internet where very unique people hang out and talk about pretty much everything under the sun. I tell them about how my job is to make sure things are going smoothly in threads so our users are having the best possible experience. I also say that I sometimes feel like a referee on spicier days haha.
posted by travelingthyme at 3:52 PM on August 23, 2023
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posted by wenestvedt at 11:36 AM on August 9, 2023 [2 favorites]