Mods are appointed when we see someone who performs admirably at the task, though there are two mods who have been elected in the past. In my case I was shanghaied while I slept and woke up with powers.
In general, mod decisions that have permanent effects on tropers are discussed by the moderators as a group. While you may only be speaking with one mod, it doesn't mean that the rest of the staff wasn't involved.
We have not had a problem with mods removing their power in part because we are so selective about who becomes a moderator so it's just something that's never come up. Again, this also goes back to the fact that the mods as a whole talk about everything to each other a lot.
edited 4th Sep '15 11:56:26 AM by shimaspawn
Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. Dick
There was at least one instance
within the past year where the mods did not, it seems, unanimously agree on an issue on the forums.
What I think is interesting is that apparently it is possible for a mod to be thumped for something.
So does that mean there's no "un-thump" button?
Obviously, instances like that one are rare, and has not led to any member of the staff at any level being removed from their position, but if/when such instances do occur, does there need to be a vote?
Does the site's coding allow for these sorts of privileges and powers to be removed from a user if it should ever be necessary?
The mod in question thumped himself because he realised he'd gone over the line. So it's more like the mod realised he did something wrong and treated himself like he would any other troper. That's the opposite of an abuse of power.
The moderation team does discuss such things and we do a good job of keeping one another in check. We are only human.
edited 4th Sep '15 12:36:05 PM by shimaspawn
Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. Dick
I didn't say it was.
I also wasn't aware of the exact circumstances, I only saw it browsing through the thread.
It's why I asked.
Hi
shima and I got our powers around the same time and in pretty much the same way.
Going back to your question about features, most of this you may already know...our interface gives us toggles to hook crowners and clock and un-clock threads in the workshop forums, lock and unlock threads, shuffle threads between forums, adjust titles and links, and completely remove threads as necessary. It's also a lot easier for us to make crowners than it is for the tropulace as we have a tool that does it automatically and gives us lists of which crowners have been done under which category.
edited 4th Sep '15 4:53:29 PM by Willbyr
...Could or would that part be made a standard feature at any point?
Because the crowners are one of the many features of the wiki that I, at least, find a little intimidating.
Knowing about what crowners do and don't exist already in a convenient list seems like it could help with that.
...Although, wait, out of curiosity, is this the exact same thing as what Willbyr was talking about?
If not, what's the difference?
It's not. Our tool lets us link crowners to threads. Non-mods don't really need to do that.
Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. Dick
The Know the Staff page wasn't entirely clear and, I'll be honest, I've been a little curious.
One thing I've been wondering is how exactly do people become part of the staff here? Are there elections? Appointments?
If a member of the staff is found to be abusing their power, is there a protocol for removing them?
Are there any guidelines for potential conflicts of interest when dealing with a situation involving tropers the mod in question may be inclined to deal more harshly or more favorably with based on past experiences?
And I know mods have the "troll post" button, are there any other unique features or interface options?
Thank you all for your time.
If other tropers are curious about these sorts of things, they can certainly add their own questions.