I've been reading... 10/14/2011

• Coding Horror: Suspension, Ban or Hellban?
  ..."every community is different. I've personally talked to people in charge of large online communities – ones you probably participate in every day – and part of the reason those communities haven't broken down into utter chaos by now is because they secretly hellban and slowban their most problematic users. These solutions do neatly solve the problem of getting troublesome users to "voluntarily" decide to leave a community with a minimum of drama. It's hard to argue with techniques that are proven to work2...
  tags: hellban hellbanning comments community
  • I'm not quite sure how I feel about these sorts of reality-altering tricks that are impossible in the world of atoms. On some level, they feel disingenuous to me. And it's a bit like wishing users into the cornfield with superhuman powers far beyond the ken of normal people. But I've also spent many painful hours trapped in public dialog about users who were, at best, just wasting everyone's time. Democracy is a wonderful thing, but efficient, it ain't.
     That said, every community is different. I've personally talked to people in charge of large online communities – ones you probably participate in every day – and part of the reason those communities haven't broken down into utter chaos by now is because they secretly hellban and slowban their most problematic users. These solutions do neatly solve the problem of getting troublesome users to "voluntarily" decide to leave a community with a minimum of drama. It's hard to argue with techniques that are proven to work.
     I think everyone has a right to know what sort of jail their community uses, even these secret, invisible ones. But keep in mind that whether it's timed suspensions, traditional bans, or exotic hellbans and beyond, the goal is the same: civil, sane, and safe online communities for everyone.
    

    • Enders: 40 per cent regional press jobs cut in five years - Press Gazette
      Enders said: “There has been a substantial decline in advertising revenue in the regional press. They have been the worst effected by the pressures of the digital age. It has lost 40 per cent of its workforce in the last five years.”
      tags: regional+ press future+of+news enders
      • Media analyst Claire Enders has estimated that 40 per cent of jobs in the UK regional press have gone over the last five years.
    • The Future of Journalism: Good for You, Scary for Us - Chicago Ideas Week 2011: Intelligence Squared - TIME
      RT @JulieWestfall: "Journalists are confused and scared." Speak for yourself. Can't disagree http://t.co/Ncir14lM

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