I would like to end my tenure as Forum Owner. I am considering how to best do this for everyone involved. Your response to this survey would be appreciated very much.

Tom

I'd like to add that as long as the person you pick is highly interested :>)

Charlie

Words can barely express my profound gratitude to you. I remember when Peggy said goodbye I was devestated. Then RW took the helm and I felt as if a life preserver had been thrown my way. It was just before Thanksgiving as it is now.

Then when RW said enough and you took care. This forum has been an incredible blessing. Your words of wisdom and your friendship have been a constant North Star for me and I am forever grateful.

My vote is for you to appoint the new forum owner from whomever volunteers for this huge responsibility.

I can only hope the pay is enough! Isn't there some kind of saying that when you save a life you are forever more responsible for that life. You have a lot of people in your life boat Tom.

This board and you have truly been here for me when I needed you.

Words of thanks can never do justice to all that is in my heart.

with loving friendship always,
El

Tom,

What about the HTML?

Moderating is one thing. HTML is another.

I just want to thank you for your dedication to us all for so many years. I hope you find what makes you happy in your life. I hope you continue to visit and keep us updated on how things are going.
Blessings and Thanks to you, Tom.
jbeam

"What about the HTML?  Moderating is one thing. HTML is another."

HTML is fairly simple if you are computer literate.  You really can just pick up a book and learn it :>)

Charlie

> Moderating is one thing. HTML is another.

I know that my HTML will be surpassed by someone with something even better... maybe some good java or XML skills. I'm sure that someone can put CSS if not CSS2 to good use on these pages.

However, there's always the concerns about color.

>I hope you find what makes you happy in your life.

Gee, I thought everyone knew I'd already found it.

> HTML is fairly simple if you are computer literate.

Charlie, are you going to blow my cover? Now I can't go around pretending to know something.

thank you, thank you, Tom.

Jean

>>However, there's always the concerns about color<<

Yes. Those concerns will probably always be with us, as long as there is a board. Surely there is a color by number system that has been developed for web-based forums. Or maybe we could color by poll. You know - ask people whether they prefer the current blue background or something with more yellow or red in it and if so should the color be more or less intense. These problems deserve some careful consideration, IMHO.

Tom,

Another thank you so much, what you and WR created and have kept going has been a life saving tool for so many of us.
I found the Ban board a couple of months after D-day , reading there helped me so much...we went on vacation came back and it was gone...it took me a while to find this forum...since them I have learned to type faster, but in all seriousness this forum has been so helpful to me.

pat

Yes, thank you Tom.  This forum has been a great source of comfort to me in the last 2 1/2 years or so. 

"Charlie, are you going to blow my cover? Now I can't go around pretending to know something."

Sorry about that!  I just took an HTML class last summer and enjoyed it - even made my own website.  CSS and CSS2 were fairly easy as well.  I didn't do a whole bunch of Java though :>)

Charlie

 

>> I just took an HTML class last summer and enjoyed it<<

Ah HA!

Tom,

I don't know how to thank you for all that you have done for me. This is the first computer forum I ever belonged to. If you only knew how I hung onto your every word that you typed to me when I first found this site. We made a shaky entrance to the boards and you helped me so much. I was so grateful for your insight and wisdom. I hope you never find the need to stop sharing with us. Your consideration and caring always shines through all of your writing.

Take care Tom and stay in touch!!!!

A gracious thanks going out to you.

Amber

Tom,

Take your time about this. Are you sure?

I could pay for it again, and some moderators could moderate. My only request might be pink wallpaper with hearts.

Tom if money is an issue im sure there are a few of us that could kick in whatever we could afford?
<br />I admit i have no idea if there is a fee or not, but seeing WRRW's message made me thing that if there is i am sure some of us could help out. Or is it time? or something else. I imagine a site like this does take a bit of time each week to maintain and I know you spent alot of time on the new forum policies recently.

Email me privately if you don't feel comfortable talking on the board about this

It is most definately not a financial concern. The total amount I pay is not a concern. If it were, I'd ask for donations again.

The reasons are very simple.

1) A leadership role in an organization like this should be time limited. RW did two years on Arrow. I will have done two at the end of this year. It's time to give another person with a good vision a chance to lead.
2) I have recently, but consistently, been finding less time available to serve the board the way it needs to be served. If I had more time available, then it would only be reason #1 which was a more than sufficient reason even before my time came under more demand.

Tom

Tomj-

We'll miss you. You are special man. So's your wife.

MM

Your work on these boards is greatly appreciated by the vast majority of members. However, six weeks ago, on October 28th, you announced on each of the three boards your intention to step aside as forum owner.

During the past six weeks, several members have offered to take on the job of forum ownership but apparently no decision has been made. A number of members are wondering what plans are in place and when action will be taken. As long ago as November 9th, James asked on the Open Board whether you had come to any decisions. There has been no response in the past five weeks.

The boards have had only one previous experience with a transfer of forum ownership. At that time, important decisions were not made in a timely manner and the transition was far from smooth. I am becoming increasingly concerned that history might repeat itself. The longer the period of transition, the greater the opportunities for some kind of disruption to the boards.

I have previously expressed to you my concerns about the many lengthy discussions about the administration of the boards that have failed to result in any decisions being made or any actions being taken. Important decisions about the boards (such as the selection of new moderators) continue to be delayed because the forum ownership issue has not been resolved. These delays are unnecessary and (IMHO) in the long run can be harmful.

At this point, I believe that it would be in the best interests of the boards if a decision were made regarding the forum ownership issue. At the very least, the moderators and the members should know when that decision will be made. The boards are not well-served when they operate under a cloud of uncertainty with no apparent end in sight.

These boards would not have continued to operate without your leadership. I believe that for that, all of us are very grateful. However, I also feel sure that you would agree that the boards have an importance that is greater than that of any one of its participants.

It is understandable that you are finding it increasingly difficult to find the time necessary to administer the boards effectively (as you have mentioned). Both the board members and the moderators have offered a wide range of options for administering the boards following your retirement. It has been more than four months since you first mentioned that you had considered stepping aside as forum owner. If you are having difficulty coming to a decision, would it be possible for you to say when a decision should be expected?

If there is anything that can be done to help avoid a disruption of the boards, to facilitate a speedy transition of ownership, or to help you to come to a decision, please say so.

Bart

I started responding to this on Chris's New Discussions thread.

 

I will not be making any decisions until after the holidays, but I'm not guaranteeing a decision at that time either.

When I made the announcement, I apparently did not make my timetable clear... I was hoping to resolve the new owner question by the end of this year. That said, this is not intended to be carried out on a strict timetable. It will happen when the neccessary compontents are in place. I'm not going to cast the boards to the wind just to get my tenure over with.

I'd be happy to hear from anyone who is interested in owning all three existing boards. If you are interested but have concerns, we can discuss those and work out a solution that meets everone's needs. For example, if you'd like to have a transition period, working together, that would be fine. Forum Owner can be very satisfing and it's a job that requires a good balance of discipline, mercy, compassion, and strength. I've enjoyed my time at this job and I'm sure the next owner will as well.

I would personally be open to a formerly wayward spouse as the new owner.

If you'd like to contact me about becoming owner, my email is tomj76 at hotmail.com (my anti-spam approach to writing it)


Tom

I do not believe in e-mailing you privately for information which, in fact, need to be made public. The shroud of secrecy I feel around the leadership is making me question my stay on the boards.

And as you walk you make your path Kat

Kat, if you'd like to become owner, you can announce your desire here.


Are you also saying that all moderation decisions should be discussed on the boards?

NO, Tom..... I am a linear thinker lol lol I don't know what it entails and untill I do I will not make a decision !

And as you walk you make your path Kat

Your question is not an easy one to answer. Some parts of what I do could be delegated to an approapriately skilled person, or they could be learned. The part that can't be delegated is dealing with people. Most of the time that is dealing with posters who are not posting according to the rules, or who have found a way to post offensively without actually breaking a rule. Other times it requires establishing a direction for the boards through establishing new policies.

For example, having moderator discussions on a separate 'hidden' board may seem like a bad idea if you favor openness over secrecy. However, having moderator discussions in the open has it's own share of pitfalls. If moderators need to share a suspicion that a particular poster is making posts under two IDs, they can voice that concern openly on a moderator-only forum. If it turns out that the evidence doesn't support that conclusion then the accused party isn't offended by the discussion.

One big key is that the forum owner be able to identify the needed parts of a moderator team and bring them together and keep them working together. There is an obvious need for someone who understands the workings of the internet in enough detail that trolls can be accurately identified and that people's annonymity is not compromised. Someone also needs to understand how to work the Network54 system and create or change the board as needed for an easy browsing experience. As links are added, or new helpful posts are added, someone must modify the pages to support them. Also, new memember often have difficulty registering, so someone must meet those needs as they arise.

There is a great need for integrity, because many members coorespond with the forum owner using information that compromises their annonymity. A forum owner could potentially hurt people if they misused this information.

This is just a few of the things that are required as forum owner.

>>I will not be making any decisions until after the holidays, but I'm not guaranteeing a decision at that time either<<

Please make a decision promptly.

>>It will happen when the neccessary compontents are in place<<

I don't know what that means. Please explain.

I repeat that you have been "thinking" about this decision at least since August. It is two months since you announced your plans to step down.

Asking all of us (volunteers for the job, moderators, and posters) to wait indefinitely and without explanation is not polite. More importantly, as I have said to you many times in the past, the boards suffer when there is no clear procedure for making decisions and when the decisions themselves are put off indefinitely. If anyone would specific examples, I would be happy to provide them.

If you cannot make a decision promptly please explain why not.

Please also explain what might take to help you come to a decision.

Hi Tom,

Is there a particular person you would like to have as the new owner?

MM

>>The part that can't be delegated is dealing with people<<

Puleeeze. There are countless people here with better "people skills" than either of us.

Am I seeing a problem with delegating responsibilities ?

Tom, have you 'groomed' anyone to take your place since you knew your tenure would be limited?

And as you walk you make your path Kat

>Puleeeze. There are countless people here with better "people skills" than either of us.

Thank you for you opinion. I never claimed to have the best people skills.

This is an odd approach to effecting the change you are interested in acheiving.

I'm not interested in a debate. This is the end of the discussion for me.

This is most curious.

A forum is a place for open discussion and debate, and that's why I've always felt comfortable here.

Chris.