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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 13 of 13. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Dr. Bob on August 7, 2002, at 13:27:20
Hi, everyone,
I'm going to be out of town again at the end of August and the beginning of September. I should be able to connect most of the time, but I've also asked Dinah to fill in for me (especially in September, when it might be more iffy for me).
Here's a new section in the FAQ on this kind of thing:
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/faq.html#subs
And some previous discussion:
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20020308/msgs/3574.html
Mark H., will you be around? If so, it would be great if you could back up Dinah, too...
Bob
Posted by oracle on August 7, 2002, at 15:15:26
In reply to Going out of town again, posted by Dr. Bob on August 7, 2002, at 13:27:20
> Hi, everyone,
>
> I'm going to be out of town again at the end of August and the beginning of September. I should be able to connect most of the time, but I've also asked Dinah to fill in for me (especially in September, when it might be more iffy for me).Last time this happened, poor Mark got asked a gazillion "what if" questions. I was taken aback by this. Is there some way to curb this ?
Posted by Mark H. on August 7, 2002, at 16:20:28
In reply to Going out of town again, posted by Dr. Bob on August 7, 2002, at 13:27:20
Dear Dr. Bob,
Dinah will be an excellent guest moderator in your absence.
Many of us have said this before, but I would like to see the boards moderated on an on-going basis by a group of well-seasoned participants, ideally one moderator and one back-up for each board (all of whom would be overseen by you, of course). For instance, Dinah might moderate the Psycho-Psycho-Babble board, and I could back her up.
The boards have grown over the last two years to the point that the next phase of good management requires delegation. I believe that the only way for you to retain meaningful control overall is to delegate a majority of control of the day-to-day operations to participants.
Two years ago, we were all in the same boat. Today, your lack of participation *as a community member* has become a hindrance to the smooth functioning of the boards. Most of us know far more about one another than we do about you. We have achieved a level of meaningful intimacy in our interactions over time here, yet our posts remain subject to the interventions of a non-participating moderator. It no longer feels right to have the list-owner "drop in" and censure participants based on a word or a few sentences that are too frequently taken out of context. For many of us, this lack of balance has become unacceptable.
By passing the role of moderator to active participants on each board, maintenance of civility and good will becomes a peer effort. If the role of moderator is further shared with others (someone takes it for a period of time, then it passes to someone else), eventually, many of the regular participants will have experienced the responsibility and difficulty of board moderation and will have achieved a seasoned sense of when to intervene and when to let things work out on their own, which will make your job much easier.
My schedule for the end of August is uncertain at this point, so you (or Dinah) may want to ask someone else to back her up. However, if I'm in town, I'll be happy to help if needed.
Sincerely,
Mark H.
Posted by Dinah on August 7, 2002, at 17:31:45
In reply to Re: Going out of town again, posted by oracle on August 7, 2002, at 15:15:26
Well (tongue planted firmly in cheek), one way to prevent it is to ask the person who asked most of the gazillion questions to fill in. :)
Seriously, I think the reason Dr. Bob announced this so far in advance this time is so that he could answer a lot of the questions before he left. (At least I hope that's why.) Assuming there were any that I didn't think of when poor Mark was filling in.
Posted by Dinah on August 7, 2002, at 17:35:44
In reply to Re: Going out of town again, posted by Mark H. on August 7, 2002, at 16:20:28
Thanks Mark. I would certainly appreciate any help you could offer, whenever you are available.
If you have any suggestions or can give me any idea of what it's like (or if you'd like to tell me I deserve this for all the questions I asked you last time) I'm at bullyforyou77 (all one word) at yahoo.
Dinah
Posted by .tabi.T.ha. on August 7, 2002, at 18:25:01
In reply to Going out of town again, posted by Dr. Bob on August 7, 2002, at 13:27:20
Posted by Dinah on August 7, 2002, at 19:03:29
In reply to Re: Does that mean Dinah's picture goes up? :) (nm), posted by .tabi.T.ha. on August 7, 2002, at 18:25:01
In case you guys were wondering...
It's because I was foolhardy enough to volunteer. :)
(My therapist thinks I'm nuts. Or more nuts. Or something.)
Posted by judy1 on August 7, 2002, at 22:50:15
In reply to Re: Going out of town again, posted by Mark H. on August 7, 2002, at 16:20:28
And I don't understand the lack of response to your suggestions. I agree the board has grown so much as to warrent the changes you laid out- the idea of moderators for each board so that they can follow each thread will certainly prevent the chance that something will be taken out of context. I hope Dr. Bob considers your suggestions seriously. And Dinah, I think you will do a wonderful job- not only do you have a deep sense of empathy, but you are a much stronger person then you probably realize. I wish you both well- a still fragile judy who happened to pass by.
Posted by Dr. Bob on August 8, 2002, at 8:38:41
In reply to Re: Going out of town again, posted by Mark H. on August 7, 2002, at 16:20:28
> Dinah will be an excellent guest moderator in your absence.
> My schedule for the end of August is uncertain at this point, so you (or Dinah) may want to ask someone else to back her up. However, if I'm in town, I'll be happy to help if needed.
Thanks for the vote of confidence, and please keep us know about your plans.
Thanks also for your thoughts on moderating on an on-going basis, but I think that's a separate (though related) issue, so I've used that section to start a new thread:
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20020725/msgs/7094.html
Follow-ups regarding that should be redirected there, thanks.
Bob
Posted by Dr. Bob on August 11, 2002, at 17:52:21
In reply to Re: Going out of town again » Mark H., posted by Dinah on August 7, 2002, at 17:35:44
> If you have any suggestions or can give me any idea of what it's like ... I'm at bullyforyou77 (all one word) at yahoo.
Seems like you're getting warmed up, so far so good? Would it be OK with you if I include that email address in a notice on the boards?
Bob
Posted by Dinah on August 11, 2002, at 18:30:36
In reply to Re: warming up, posted by Dr. Bob on August 11, 2002, at 17:52:21
Sure, that's fine.
But don't you dare go off without filling me in more on what I'm supposed to do! :)
Posted by Dr. Bob on August 20, 2002, at 10:14:31
In reply to Re: warming up » Dr. Bob, posted by Dinah on August 11, 2002, at 18:30:36
> But don't you dare go off without filling me in more on what I'm supposed to do! :)
How about if I make you "official" and post the announcement tomorrow?
Bob
Posted by Dinah on August 20, 2002, at 10:25:55
In reply to Re: ready? set? » Dinah, posted by Dr. Bob on August 20, 2002, at 10:14:31
As Spongebob Squarepants would say:
I'm ready! I'm ready!
(I can't do impersonations in type).
That will be fine. :)
Dinah
This is the end of the thread.
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