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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 7 of 7. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Dinah on March 25, 2002, at 12:42:45
Next time you go away could you explain the role of your stand-in before you go? The parameters of his power, the security issues? Give people a chance to ask questions?
I think it was grossly unfair of you to leave poor Mark to answer those questions himself. After all he was doing you a favor and you should have made it easy for him.
Or once you have determined what people are worried about, you could have a canned FAQ on the subject.
Just a thought.
Posted by Fi on March 26, 2002, at 7:06:26
In reply to So... Dr. Bob, posted by Dinah on March 25, 2002, at 12:42:45
Was this the first time Dr Bobs had a break and a stand-in? If so, its understandable not to have anticipated exactly what issues might arise.
But I agree that a little more info the next time would help, along the lines suggested.
Fi
Posted by Dr. Bob on March 26, 2002, at 17:52:34
In reply to So... Dr. Bob, posted by Dinah on March 25, 2002, at 12:42:45
> I think it was grossly unfair of you to leave poor Mark to answer those questions himself. After all he was doing you a favor and you should have made it easy for him.
You're right, he was just thrown into it. It was only at the last minute that I ran into Internet access problems...
> Next time you go away could you explain the role of your stand-in before you go? The parameters of his power, the security issues? Give people a chance to ask questions?
>
> Or once you have determined what people are worried about, you could have a canned FAQ on the subject.Exactly right. Below is a start. But first let me ask: how did you all think it went? And how (besides giving everyone more notice) could it have been done better? Mark, those are questions for you, too...
One specific issue: Mark felt the need to "go public" to some extent. I'm not so sure that was necessary. What do you all think?
----
Draft addition to FAQ:
If for some reason I'm not able to monitor these boards as closely as usual, I may ask a poster to stand in for me. His or her main role would be to try to maintain an atmosphere of civility -- keeping an eye on what's going on (checking the boards at least every other day) and (if necessary):
1. posting requests to be civil
2. blocking posters who continue not to be after one warning
3. deleting grossly inappropriate posts.He or she would post under his or her usual posting name and not pretend to be me.
He or she wouldn't have access to registration information; blocking is done by posting name, not by email address.
He or she might not have the time or be familiar enough with the site to respond to technical questions. Housekeeping tasks like deleting duplicate posts might also need to wait until I'm back.
FYI, I have mixed feelings about this. My philosophy has been to take the responsibility (and the heat) for administrative issues myself. But I think this might be better overall for the community. Let's see how it goes.
----
How's that?
Bob
Posted by Zo on March 26, 2002, at 18:20:25
In reply to Re: role of stand-in, posted by Dr. Bob on March 26, 2002, at 17:52:34
Posted by Mark H. on March 27, 2002, at 17:16:57
In reply to Re: role of stand-in, posted by Dr. Bob on March 26, 2002, at 17:52:34
Dr. Bob and Fellow Babblers,
First, the week went smoothly because of the regulars who helped keep threads civil and supportive. I won’t single out specific participants for recognition, but you know who you are. I felt that we worked well together as an unspoken team, and I thank you for making my part of the task a whole lot easier.
I checked the boards several times a day, starting at about 8 a.m. and finishing up about 10 p.m., but there wasn’t time enough to read all of the postings. Generally, I focused on new postings and looked for involvement in threads by experienced old-timers.
Several people raised questions and concerns, both on the boards and by writing to me directly. This worked well, both in terms of being able to reassure people individually and for knowing what information I needed to post publicly. Writing directly also gave participants a way to point out problems without having to get involved in on-line conflicts.
Probably the most important piece of information to share publicly was that filling in for Dr. Bob did not give me access to anyone’s email address or other private information. The admin functions (specifically post removal and user-name blocking) are handled through an administrative menu that enables these actions while protecting privacy. If I had better understood the significance of this earlier in the week, there might have been fewer concerns about who I am, what I do, what my role was, and so forth.
Being on “the other side” for a week clarified for me what is civil and what is not better than any list of rules. Simply put, this is not the place to debate, argue, engage in verbal battle, personalize disagreements, or disabuse people of their beliefs. By the same token, correcting inappropriate on-line behavior is the role of the moderator, not participants. The most civil response to an inappropriate post is to ignore it altogether and report it privately to the moderator.
I was surprised to be asked to fill in but glad to have the experience. It immediately changed my entire perception of participation. I felt a lot of responsibility to be vigilant and decisive, but also to be as lenient as possible, to allow threads to develop without interference except when absolutely necessary.
For all of these reasons, I think it would benefit the board if more of the regulars could be given the chance to take on the admin duties from time to time. It not only increased my sense of responsibility, but also renewed my appreciation for how much time and energy Dr. Bob devotes to keeping these boards running smoothly.
With kind regards,
Mark H.
Posted by Mark H. on March 27, 2002, at 18:52:34
In reply to MARK H, my post of thanks ended up on PB! (nm), posted by Zo on March 26, 2002, at 18:20:25
Posted by Dr. Bob on March 30, 2002, at 14:18:08
In reply to Re: role of stand-in, posted by Mark H. on March 27, 2002, at 17:16:57
> the week went smoothly because of the regulars who helped keep threads civil and supportive. I won’t single out specific participants for recognition, but you know who you are.
Mark suggested I email you all, but I try to avoid sending unsolicited email, so let me just thank you here. Thank you all, too!
> Several people raised questions and concerns, both on the boards and by writing to me directly... Writing directly also gave participants a way to point out problems without having to get involved in on-line conflicts.
Hmm, that's a good point, I do think anyone filling in for me should be reachable by email. But couldn't it just be an anonymous hotmail address?
> I was ... glad to have the experience. It immediately changed my entire perception of participation. I felt a lot of responsibility to be vigilant and decisive, but also to be as lenient as possible, to allow threads to develop without interference except when absolutely necessary.
You got it. :-)
> For all of these reasons, I think it would benefit the board if more of the regulars could be given the chance to take on the admin duties from time to time.
I do think we might try this again. I'm sorry if anyone felt passed over this time, but if you'd like to volunteer, let me know. Thanks again,
Bob
This is the end of the thread.
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