tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post1293280174498062344..comments2024-03-10T19:16:41.170-04:00Comments on Dumb Things I Have Done Lately: Cognitive Lock-In, in Living Color: The AOL FDO Message BoardsJoelogonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12889931738120460487noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post-49750525793854711702008-02-17T13:07:00.000-05:002008-02-17T13:07:00.000-05:00So do you just not understand the part about askin...So do you just not understand the part about asking them, not me, or are you simply in love with your own voice?Joelogonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12889931738120460487noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post-14836392365347920542008-02-17T08:14:00.000-05:002008-02-17T08:14:00.000-05:00"Though because they're off the clock, they don't ..."Though because they're off the clock, they don't need to answer inane or annoying people if they don't want to. So you may be out of luck."<BR/><BR/>Although you may consider me to be "inane or annoying," the fact is that a LOT of questions were left unanswered by the mishmash"MESH".<BR/>That doesn't instill confidence in "users," particularly when the nonanswers are coming from an AOL group that trumpeted that they were there for the community and to answer questions.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post-16416608838761265432008-02-14T12:18:00.000-05:002008-02-14T12:18:00.000-05:00Re: Nancie and Joe -- Yeah, they're nearly impossi...Re: Nancie and Joe -- Yeah, they're <I>nearly impossible</I> to find or get in touch with right now. <BR/><BR/>Though because they're off the clock, they don't need to answer inane or annoying people if they don't want to. So you may be out of luck.<BR/><BR/>The point about the banhammer is that in many places, it's explicitly arbitrary -- note the SA episode where Lowtax clearly stated that anyone posting in a specific time window would be banned, for no reason other than whim. And he did. Which is completely different from stepping into the middle of a dogfight and trying to clean things up.<BR/><BR/>As to the oppressive, capricious, completely unfair treatment you're apparently alluding to -- I don't think there's anything else I can say about that. So I won't.Joelogonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12889931738120460487noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post-53964723475846160982008-02-12T06:25:00.000-05:002008-02-12T06:25:00.000-05:00N and J were canned, so I can't ask them about mod...N and J were canned, so I can't ask them about moderation at AOL.<BR/><BR/>I'd never heard of "banhammering." But after reading some links, it's nothing new...what makes you think it wasn't going on sometimes at AOL?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post-6379940705492040702008-02-10T12:45:00.000-05:002008-02-10T12:45:00.000-05:00If you have a question for Nancie or Joe M., you s...If you have a question for Nancie or Joe M., you should probably ask them directly. Though I'll warrant you have no idea how expensive moderation is, or have any idea how a business (let alone a huge corporation) works. <BR/><BR/>I never had to deal directly with moderation, and for that I am grateful, because in doing so, one has to put up with really annoying people who:<BR/><BR/>* have no sense of perspective<BR/>* feel they're never at fault<BR/>* always have to get the last word in (and will thus forever forgo ignore and block tools)<BR/>* think they and their allies are always punished, while their enemies never are<BR/><BR/>Since the boards are now going over to all member-managed, you now have a chance to see how the experience will be without all the "heavyhanded" moderation. <BR/><BR/>(And if you want to see examples of a true heavy hand in moderation, check out the SomethingAwful banhammer)Joelogonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12889931738120460487noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post-89139357294243441012008-02-10T10:27:00.000-05:002008-02-10T10:27:00.000-05:00"probably the lack of official notice surprised us..."probably the lack of official notice surprised users, too."<BR/><BR/>We were promised advance notice by Nancie Meng a long time ago. So what did we get? 1-1/2 days notice. <BR/><BR/>Did you notice that Joe Manna and Nancie Meng have also been canned by AOL? Looks like "MESH" (formerly "CoMET")was a failure, because surely they wouldn't have canned them if it was a success? <BR/><BR/>Unfortunately, "some"one at AOL is deleting Comments written in response to Joe and Nancy's farewell posts on the socialaimblog. Wonder why that is? <BR/><BR/>Now that you're gone from AOL, care to comment on just who does this heavyhanded moderation at AOL? I suspected it was an AOL heavyweight...and I think I might know who it is...could you elaborate?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post-9040521888038144692008-02-07T23:13:00.000-05:002008-02-07T23:13:00.000-05:00It's always the same story with AOL. It's not that...It's always the same story with AOL. It's not that change isn't improvement, it's just the whole tyrannical way AOL seems to present things. They launch things prematurely, before the glitches are even known, no less worked out, and then they just intimate that whole "like it or lump it" tenor to their PR work.<BR/><BR/>Some people never accepted the fact that AOL's revenues are advertiser-driven. The dialup service is more like a courtesy than anything, but if The Overlords just said something like, "Hey folks, we have to work a format that's compatible with advertising, or else we're screwed outta luck" the changes might not be met with so much resistance. Just tell it like it is, so to speak.<BR/><BR/>I just wonder now, how much longer the client software will survive before AOL goes completely and exclusively web-based. Hold on to your hats then, baby!<BR/><BR/>Stupidsheet JimmyLippyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10280795930290894490noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post-18582719565343372642008-02-07T20:28:00.000-05:002008-02-07T20:28:00.000-05:00And, now the backdoor way is gone. I can't afford...And, now the backdoor way is gone. I can't afford anything more than dial up right now (hey, I'm charging groceries while I await child support or my next paycheck, whichever comes first). I find the new way very cumbersome, and even while it seems a mite improved from when it was first released, it still, basically, bites. I simply don't have the patience for something that cumbersome. Many of my aol friends DID drop out when this first happened. Now that there no backdoor method, sigh, it's not the "we've paid our dues" so much, as we form bonds with these people over the years. But, now? Come summer, I may move my journal, and drop aol (or at least, drop paying and move to something non-dial up). I hope to afford that move by then. This is just less and less worth it. Thanks for commenting / explaining it!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post-8193021979143655782008-02-07T17:48:00.000-05:002008-02-07T17:48:00.000-05:00Yes, I agree -- hence my point: If you're going to...Yes, I agree -- hence my point: If you're going to change, you better make damn sure something is actually better, because you're already starting out in the hole.Joelogonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12889931738120460487noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post-43823559260280066732008-02-06T15:07:00.000-05:002008-02-06T15:07:00.000-05:00Based on the majority of complaints, cognitive loc...Based on the majority of complaints, cognitive lock-in is a considerable driver of the frustration; however, probably the lack of official notice surprised users, too. <BR/><BR/>As far as features -- the only lacking feature on the Web-based message boards is a spell check. This is clearly from the traditional AOL user demographic, because I know that vBulletin, phpBB, myBB, Invision or any other community applications don't include spell check. This was one feature the the FDO boards had. Just like you mentioned, maintaining parity between products is vital to satisfy users. <BR/><BR/>On the other hand, new features that were introduced didn't carry over into the legacy format: Pictures, MS-Word compatibility and an improved hyperlinking feature. Because of this, many of the tenured users who didn't even try the Web format were unaware of these features. I've seen some users who have experimented in the Web format cite that it is better in a couple of ways. <BR/><BR/>Change happens, and honestly it's never a pleasant experience unless you communicate the changes, offer the same (and better) functionality and make it speedy.<BR/><BR/>I agree with your five points as they are definitely the pinnacles that any product manager should consider before making drastic changes to their community application. <BR/><BR/><BR/>~JosephAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5794430.post-88903423665694452992008-02-05T22:26:00.000-05:002008-02-05T22:26:00.000-05:00Actually, I didn't have much of a problem with the...Actually, I didn't have much of a problem with the notion of AOL upgrading its message board to something a little more "modern" and potentially streamlined; however, the heap they replaced it with was so riddled with problems and glitches that I, and a whole lot of other people, inevitably stopped using the message boards altogether. <BR/><BR/>So, it wasn't really about teaching an old dog a new trick, so to speak. It was more like replacing your shiny new car with a skateboard from the 1970's. AOL should have waited and maybe tested the product at some level before installing it.<BR/><BR/>Anyway, I do see what you're getting at. No matter how much for the better the change, there will always be people who dislike the new thing for the simple reason that it is different. <BR/><BR/>Personally, I don't care if things change so long as they change for the better. What AOL did was a disaster and a complete embarrassment. It was like a throwback to the days of Q-Link.Daniel Poehlmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04464025697641476686noreply@blogger.com