About a month ago, we had an open revolt here on Interact. People weren't happy with how we were responding to requests anymore. We were feeling hard pressed to keep up with some other work we were doing, so it didn't go down well. Some requests began to feel like whining demands.
It climaxed with a "Go To Hell" post and went down hill from there. A few people were asked to leave. A few more felt like their friends were badly treated and they left on their own.
I'm sorry they left. I really am. They were all good folks and I think they all had good intentions. They added a lot of spice to Interact at times. The problem for us was that they sometimes made the pot boil when we were just trying to get the work done.
They asked (rightly so) for rules. "What are the rules", they demanded. I was too upset and over-worked to spend any time thinking about it. And I didn't want the forum to get all bitter and twisted again. I wanted to work.
So, now that we've had some time, I'll say what I think. Maybe some of those who disagree will reply. Maybe not. Who knows what goes on in someone else's head?
All I ask is this.
Be polite and respectful. That's all.
If something's broken, please ask us to fix it.
If you think something could be improved, please suggest how.
Telling us to "Go to Hell" won't help. Neither will repeating the same request over and over if we've said we don't expect to do it.
Please respect our right to decide what is OK here -- it isn't about "Free Speech" this is a business. We have a purpose. We try to please, but we can't listen to the same 10 people all the time.
Here is a post that perfectly typifies the kind of feedback we need and welcome.
http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?board=3;action=display;threadid=19400;start=msg134527#msg134527Listening to: 'Melanie' from 'Entertainment Weekly 1971' by 'Brand New Key' on Media Center 10