Re: Will I ever be able to change my name?
I hope the mods don't hold it against me, but here's some constructive criticism of the current situation.
I think this forum's moderation policy could use a slight overhaul. The whole "invisible power" thing does not seem to be as effective as it could be, as it gives the impression that these forums are not actively moderated (which I know they are). I think there should be at least one thread stickied to the top of each forum by a moderator to give the impression that "we are watching you".
The moderators should be much more communicative of what is and is not allowed, and make examples of people to be banned. Take the person's post, quote it, make it sticky, post an explanation underneath, and leave it up there for a week in the General (or every) forum. Put sticky messages with peoples' names in the titles who are doing things that deserve a public warning. Instill a little fear, but also, very importantly, provide some transparency into how the moderation is working.
Disabling feature after feature when people abuse it is just asinine, since the worst abuses will always come from the ability to post, which cannot be taken away from the members as a whole. It really just attacks the symptoms of the diseases rather than the root: a few problem child users.
Don't want affiliate sites in sigs? Warn people publicly. Ban people publicly.
Don't want people abusing the name change? Warn people publicly. Ban people publicly.
You can't get around it. You'll always have something to police... why make the forum a less enjoyable place to be by disabling our features?
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