So sad.....

Thank you for this thread, Brooke! It is a sad time. Many of us remember how much more open and fun it used to be here.

If my cat photos were found to be inappropriate in a cat rumor thread, and whatever other reasons were found for deleting an entire thread...I am truly shocked. The thread was about cats. The photos were...yep - cats. And their purpose was as Brooke has stated...to foster 'a real sense of community, laughter and friendship.' See also ming's post #9 above.
If the person who deleted them, and an entire thread, found them offensive in any way, then this is no longer the place for me. I have always had a joyous and happy heart and mind, and to have that stuffed into a 'hard-sided rule/Law box' is very discouraging. It feels like anti-life.


I have read that:....rules are set as Guidelines, but are able to be modified by circumstances - unlike Laws.
It would seem as if their definitions are being confused, and rules are becoming the same as Laws here.

More damage has been done by this overzealous application of rules than could ever have been done by the happy and fun thread content.
Please remember that we are people, with feelings, and imperfect - we are not robots. And the Majority of us try hard to follow the rules.

 

farmlily3 - Very nicely said! Yes, I simply adored your divine cat pic's!!!! And I realize how much time it takes to find them all. I also greatl enjoyed mingling's sprinkling of cat pics throughout a few threads.

What the heck is wrong with getting excited about our newest(and I might add...cutest) breeding animal? Excitement about new introductions into this game breeds farmer enthusiasm(pun intended..LOL). Which keeps members playing...and possibly spending...so why wouldn't BP encourage this?
BP would probably encourage us revving up for a new breeding animal....getting excited about purchasing pf and or breeding packages......but unfortunately our overly strict mods want to quelch any enthusiasm. Their priority seems to be an extremely tight run or empty forum. Well they have it.

 

I'm sad too, but we kind of knew this was going to happen when BP was taken over by ~edit~...I remember posting that we would eventually loose our freedom of speech here...low and behold the prediction came true and a great follow through on the MOD's part! Everyone is so afraid to post here in THIS En forum, I keep my posting to a minimum now days, if some of you hadn't already noticed.
Thanks for the eye opener Brooke! Thank you MSB for the well needed relief...only a few know what I'm talking about

 

I have been around almost as long as the game has existed and seen lots of changes, both in this Forum and the old one. I was a little surprised that one of my posts had been deleted - then I read that I am not alone and I stumble on this thread. I post less and less, mainly because of RL commitments but I try to read as much as I can. I am also saddened by the way things are going.

When this Forum started I was sad to see the end of the "Games" section. This was a place where we could go while waiting for something to be ready - it can be so boring waiting for long term crops during an event! There were so many of us just kicking around with time on our hands and fun to be had.

The fun element is definitely being sucked out of the Forum. So much for a "game". I agree with you, Brooke, (and all the others who have posted here) if people aren't kept amused and hanging out here, they will spend less time on their farms and, in consequence, SPEND less on the game.

 

Loss of freedom of speech(DBAYES) = SPEND less on the game(illy1996). Extremely tight run = empty forum.(Brookeham)
I concur.(farmlily3)

(Love love love this pic, ming!!! Oui!)​

 

I concur!

 

I've been away from the forum for some time due to RL time restrictions. I've just checked back in and now have some extra time to post and play and this is what I find? Yeesh. So I don't know the back story since I've not been paying attention but it seems from reading the above that things have changed and we are what not supposed to have fun anymore? And here I was so happy to see so many of my friends still active and posting and now it seems that won't be true for long. Well that does make me extremely sad.

 

I am also one who has been here almost from the beginning. I wake up, get my coffee and look forward to coming to the forum. Whether I post or not, I still feel like I have shared a little time with friends. I have been so happy lately seeing a few posters from the old forum appearing again. Once again the tension for the most part had left and people were coming back. It is a GAME to us. We spend our MONEY, ENJOY the COMPANY of our friends. We visit, we share, we laugh. This is over 50% of this game. I have seen this forum almost completely destroyed several times in the past because one or two players opposed to the rest registered complaints. Some players have never come back and it is everyone's loss. I have been here long enough to see the good, the bad and the UGLY. I have seen very little of this in a long while. Most of what I see is good natured fun. We are human, we tend to stray topic, but for the most part are adults playing a game, we are not in a class at school. If someone feels like a post is wasting their time, why do they read it? If all they want is the knowledge then let them read the FAQ's. I feel like it is not right to punish the majority because a few are unhappy. I for one, do not want this forum destroyed once again.

 

Hmm, I see it this way: what if one or two moderaters did have a bad bad day and didn't know what to do about it? Being a volunteer and loving to keep a forum in shape and spirit, then moderating the forum may well be a great way to relief daily nuisance. So, stressed out, one wonders what can be moderated today? Ahhh.. off topic posts, didn't pay much attention to that for a long long time.. let's act!
A warning goes out on the board but as usual on bad days nobody listens nor takes note. Right .. time to deliver the message and on to a deletion spree. No hard feelings to anyone involved, just a great feel of relief to have done a good task.

Everyone has a bad day every now and then, even moderators. I think it's a pity so many feel offended while no harm was intended.

Cheer up fellow farmers and keep smiling to all, everybody and everything. Let's keep this forum a great place to hang out (even when we have a bad day on our own!).

 

If you have a bad day, it happens. But if you are sensible and people start complaining all over the place you should walk away.
In this case it happened over several days and the actions where defended and the complainers told off.
And even then, how likely is it for all three mods to have a bad day? Why does one defend the other instead of saying, take the day off.

The only thing that really needs to be taken care of are the questions that need answers to help players, and these questions are only a handful a day, so not an excuse.

So in my opinion this was not a bad call, this was a bucket full of bad calls by a team and not an individual. And if one is respectful to the players an excuse goes a long way. But we got an

 

MSB, with repect to your opinion we seem to disagree on the matter. To disqualify and/or dismiss a longlasting moderator team just because they made a mistake -which btw didn't happen over several days - seems quite a drastic follow up to me. Teammembers defend eachother, no suprise, as if in real life. Given the time I've been around in this forum I personally see no reason to demand a replacement. So IMHO no need for a vendatta, no need for yet another private forum. I agree an apology by the mod team would be a nice thing to see thou. Might clear the sky and put a smile on every farmer

 

There is no vendette, I am not on a warpath, I just gave a very critical opinion. And I know most are not on a warpath but rather an ignore walk. No mod has to leave for me either. No private forum has been made, all in the open for all to see, and every person has to decide for themselves if they feel the need for that. No one is asked to leave here, nor by me nor by mods. And thus I agree to disagree with you on all those accounts. I have been around for almost 6 years here so am colored with an opinion too. All fine, but it is far too late to put smiles back on many players, not just because of this event.

 

I'm sorry, too, habalala, but some of your facts are just wrong, and making excuses for bad behavior only encourages it.

This has been an ongoing problem for quite a while now - not just someone's - or several someone's - 'bad day'. There is a history here, and many have finally had enough. It has several times, by several people, been reported to Support. Has that helped?...No, the problem has culminated in the actions and responses you have read about in this, and other, threads

No one is on any 'warpath'. All anyone wants to do is be able to relax, have a bit of good, clean, respectful fun together, and play the game we spend RL$$$money to enjoy...and NOT to be treated like naughty little children who are continually chastised for having that fun....which most of us have thought was the purpose of this forum - since it is in a G-A-M-E (i.e=FUN), which we $play$ for...yep - FUN!!

 

I started playing Farmarama midway through the Oktoberfest quest of 2010. I was looking for a game I could play without having to worry about clans and alliances and the like. One where I could play my way. And Im still here today.

Im not a big one for getting too involved in forums (bad experiences in the past), but i regularly read the all the posts. So I was happy to see a forum which on the whole was friendly and harmonious, where people were encouraged to share and made to feel included.

In the time that I have been here I have seen people come and people go. Some have chosen to leave, others have been made to feel that they should. For the most part it has been good place to visit despite temporary periods of unrest.

I feel a little sad every time I see another message that long time contributors to the forum saying goodbye. It is especially sad where people who are genuinely passionate about the En forum and supportive of the people there in, are no longer feeling welcome. When long time and frequent contributors feel that they have no choice but to limit their involvement. They are the ones that we should be encouraging to stay.

Where the "Please read before posting" states in part

The intervention of the moderators will be minimum in this area, as this should be the place where you can share your opinions and strategies with the other players. However, if things get out of hand or forum rules are broken, we will have to get involved and keep everything under control

the possible heavy handed modding of posts for "minor stretching of the rules" is upsetting to the people who are posting/being deleted.

I understand that it is required for situations where things are getting out of control. But this seems to be mainly about having information that was a little extra in addition to or outside of strictly strategy.

But at the moment it seems that there is a sense of disquiet seeping in to our forum. No one wants a witch-hunt or for more contributors to leave. We all want the people of our forum to feel encouraged and supported, but at the moment it seems to be a headed in the direction far from that. We dont want it to get to a point where there is no life or laughs here, where there is no sense of community. We want an engaged and vibrant forum. Where people want to contribute and participate.

And this current situation saddens me.

 

i bag your pardon. don't you know, you are in heaven here ..
just try two times the german
forum .. it will be two for the reason one and never again ..
it is -edit- over there

you say unkind .. well go there and teach yourself a lesson

there you'll find assimilated beings with their own jargon and in the restricted area or you howl with the wolves or you will be dropped down like a stinking cleaning rag

this is what internet will look like if it isn't free

i'm proud about this thread .. my compliments

a robot killed my word -edit- written with an e

 

English Forum is not German Forum and because something is worse there that it is here, it doesn't mean this is good.

Hi hans_lotte,
Welcome to English Forum !

You are from German Forum ?
A long time member there ?
German Forums problems are their internal affairs and please do not bring it here. It's your home and please do not speak disrespectful of it.
We might have misgivings within us but we will never let down our forum before others.
All said in good intent and not to hurt.


________________________________


I wish to stress one thing. Players may be sweet or bitter. But moderators are to be patient and polite to them. That duty goes with the post of moderators. Players have been warm in expressing their feelings but have not crossed their limit. When they feel wounded and feel they cannot get the solutions, they just ask to close the thread and they go away.

If posts are removed and are if questioned as why, the post and its contents and also the reason why it is removed should be provided for. It may be inconvenient but that is not a reason for not giving them. The whole world speaks about Right to Information and there is no such thing in Farmerama World ?

Just 2 examples why players are dissatisfied with the mods way of acting. These are just samples. Dissatisfaction grew over a period of time and the immediate cause was mass deletion.

1. Help Section question by a player :

Spoiler: Question

The following is a quick cut and paste. Ignoring all other related issues at the moment, is the following practice to be expected in the future?

______________________________________________________________________
FAQHouse on the Hill

Neon-Lights, Monday at 5:54 PM <------------------- Notice day and time
EventHouse on the Hill

Neon-Lights, Yesterday at 10:14 AM <------------------- Notice day and time____________________________________________________________________

Spoiler: Mod's reply

Hello (player name),

FAQ's need to be prepared in advance. The post time shows the wrong date as it was copied into another thread. The FAQ was posted at the announced time and on time. If you have a problem you are welcome to take it further.

~closing thread~

I do not endorse this type response. The answer is right but the question is much more right and a sensible question. I understand the logic and truth in the answer. But the points are,

1) You have given the answer but you should not have abruptly closed the thread. The Original Poster’s permission needs to be asked before closing the thread. The issue is not a top secret and not one that should not be discussed in open. (if rules are followed, it should be followed in all)​

2) Different timings in the same post create confusion. So it ought to have been rectified. Errors always happen. When pointed out instead of getting offended we have to correct them with gracefulness.​

Hasn’t the said error been corrected now ? What prevented the same being done earlier ? The error might be unintentional. But one which has to be rectified. In other forums there is no such errors.​

3) The question raised is a constructive one which is permissible to be asked or discussed. How else would we know what the real fact is. Won’t we be reeling under wrong impressions ?​

4) Rules are same for players and mods in the forum. Mods have to be much more responsible & polite as they are in authority wielding position. Abrupt closing of thread is rude and impolite. It is like shutting a door on one’s face.​

Users = (mods + player)
Opinion = questions, answers, opinions, criticism and or any post of user

This is from Our Forum Netiquette

“ Our netiquette is for users
In each forum there's a netiquette which all users should adhere to.

Nevertheless, constructive arguments are always welcome.

Never forget that you’re dealing with other human beings here!
When writing an article, most people unfortunately forget that messages aren’t just read by computers but by (other) living beings as well, mainly by humans.

Remember: The more impolite and ruder you act, the less people will be willing to help you when you need something.

​

2. I requested the mods to restore some of my partly deleted rumour in the grapevine. For the pictures I provided correct sources. Only the name of the FSQs were without source.

These are the 3 initial source I provided
http://el.bigpoint.com/farmerama/board/index.php?threads/Γλυκιές-γατούλες.18694/https://board-en.farmerama.com/index.php?threads/for-september.25557/page-9
# 1675

This was their

Spoiler: answer

“ Your links were not linked to the information provided. The first link was to a totally different section of the EL Forum and your second link was to one of your own postings in the Grapevine. Also I have not seen any Official postings about the Quest names. If you have that information from an Official fansite/Moderator, you are welcome to post them again.”

The links I provided, provided source for all my pictures. I expected the mods to restore those pictures for which I posted the source. I did not expect them to restore the names of the FSQ as I realised that they are the actual names and I ought to have posted source for the names. It was my fault. But that did not happen. I took strains to understand what they said. But they were reluctant to understand or to strain to restore my genuine postings with source. And stood in their stand. Do you know how much strain it is for me to gather news from all different forums and how difficult it is for me to understand the automatic translation of various languages? and how difficult it is for me, a person from an Asian Country to understand European terms, customs and usages ? I am not complaining but just putting out my side arguments. I, too, am busy in my life and out of love for the game and my friends and a little bit of selfishness to know what is going to happen in future I post in the grapevine section.

El Forum is the Greek Forum and the section is grapevine section for them. I copied some rumours from my previous month rumour thread and for those pictures I have already provided source in that post. So I just provided my previous post source. That is permissible and acceptable.

This was the interaction I had with them in rumour thread.

Spoiler: interaction

I quoted their post which is

“ Please include Official Links to your posts otherwise they will not be allowed to remain "​

and quoted my source

"12ss12 said:↑
# 1675 "​

and replied,

Hi shooger.sweet,
While posting the pictures I posted the source of picture. You can find it in my second quote here. Click on the green, you can go to that foreign forum source. There are more sources too for the said pictures, if you want I can give them. Can you please restore my post ? For the rumour about dog event I have not posted any pictures. So I did not give the source. IF you see the German Grapevine, there is a special thread in for it with pictures. So can you please restore that part too ?”​

The #1675 is the link . I quoted it and even then the mods did not take any strain to go to the link and check whether the picture was there. The picture is still there.

And my first rumour about the dog event. When I posted it, it was all over various forums that a dog event is to take place. I just said there will be an event and the crop will be something like bone crop and the drop will be dog whistle. I don’t need to provide source for them. But why were they deleted ?

In truth only the FSQs names should have been deleted. But others should not have been deleted and should have been restored. I always give sources to the exact posts and not the pages. Mir, pointed it out to me long long back and I am sincerely following it. I do not post pictures without sources. If I absent mindedly do it (which is rare) , I edit it and give the source immediately.

Several times my posts have been deleted. I understood that the original rumour pictures have been removed and so obviously my post have been deleted. So I never approached the help section for them. Only for this particular post, I did. But I did not get any relief. I found that mods were reluctant to acknowledge their error and bent on justifying them. And I did not have the energy and time to clarify further. So I said I understand and went and reinserted the image and additional image along with sources right under each of them. My earlier source is also in the bottom of it.

All players are not the same and everyone will respond in a different manner. If they are angry because their harmless post which has not offended anybody’s sensibilities have been deleted, isn’t that natural.

Just don’t think that other person is a mere player. We do not know what his age is, what his standing in family, society, circle is ? What his or her physical and mental strain is ? And the older a person becomes more abrupt they become in stating things and they have a right to be so. They have seen a lot of the world.

Dear mods,
Don’t think I am against you or I bear grudge against you for deleting my posts. I do not and do not have enmity or any other thing against you. To be frank they do not have any effect on me other than modifying my way of posting my future posts. I intend to stay in this forum for long and be active. I am not against you.

I am putting this very long post to make you understand why players are angry right now. And leave it to you to make up the difference and make this forum once again a lively and happy place. I want to have all players including the moderators to be active and without any grievances in the forum.

****************************


And China has got nothing to do with this problem. If anyone needs to be afraid of the takeover, it is the staffs who work there – for fear of loosing their job. That did not happen. Also I think if someone buys a company, it’s to make profit not to wind up or be rude.

 

Before this thread gets out of hand, please remember the following points from the Forum Netiquette. Comments regarding China may be considered political opinion, so please mind what you say

 

Hi Neon,
Does my comment comes within the rule or is it violative ? If it is violative you can intimate me, I will delete it. I wish to put to rest mis-thinking regarding the change over. So it is said in good intention.

 

well .. i'm not owning any forum ..and i'm more like a tourist, if you know what i mean

so i can compare a bit. i just try to communicate how it is .. hope i can allow it myself

it is very strange what happens in restricted areas .. very strage .. lots of red.pencils all around .. mostly in the heads

have a nice internet and enjoy yourself

ps. most of the time i'm in the italian forum, if you permit. but the turkish is spectacular and the russian too

pps picked it up and put it in the pocket:
You are from German Forum ?
A long time member there ?
German Forums problems are their internal affairs and please do not bring it here. It's your home and please do not speak disrespectful of it.
We might have misgivings within us but we will never let down our forum before others.
All said in good intent and not to hurt.
open your borders

 

Nice to meet you hans_lotte,
I do travel like you over all forums.
You are from Italy ? We have a thread in gabfest where we share pictures from our places. Visit that place. You see I am very passionate about it.

p.s what about Danish, Swedish ?