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Citizens and tourists?

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Solitaire Rose as Tom Servo

03:36 / 13.08.02

Joels and Mikes.
Dr. Forresters and Mrs. Forresters.
Us and Them.
Lousy Rat Bastards and Just Plain Bastards.

gravitybitch

03:52 / 13.08.02

Dragons and eggs
moths and larvae/pupaesharks and minnows
stars and asteroids
rods and cones (who doesn't want to be in full color?)
cytoplasm and ectoplasm

So far, I like citizens and civilians the best...

Shortfatdyke

07:04 / 13.08.02

[being awkward] But what do we call regular posters who aren't welcome? It's not automatic, you know. [/being awkward]

bio k9

08:49 / 13.08.02

When you set em up that easy people feel bad to knock em down...anyway, [talking about me?]realise that different people may have different ideas about whos welcome[/talking about me?]

Other suggestions:

Smurfs & Snorks
whores & virgins*
ninjas & pirates

*my fav. so far

Ellis says:

10:03 / 13.08.02

I quite like the Ninja and Pirate option.

But seriously, I am not sure that we need a division such as this anyway, it might work to make people feel unwelcome and create competition (or at least long conversation threads so new members can become members in few days just by quantity of posts).

Tom Coates

10:11 / 13.08.02

Yeah - but they won't be able to do that. The thing is there's going to be a radical distinction between the two 'classes' of people - those with a serious long-term investment in the community and people who have just turned up out of the blue. What I want to do is build a system that allows those with the largest investment in the community to help dictate as a community how it should be run. So yes, there will be a heirarchy - but it will be a heirarchy in which the top-level has several hundred members, who make decisions about the baord and about new members collectively...

STOATIE LIEKS CHOCOLATE MILK

10:41 / 13.08.02

Kind of uneasy about the whole hierarchy thing... but the whole "junior member" and "member" thing never made me feel too unwelcome. I do feel, however, that "tourists" seems somewhat derogatory... it sounds like it should be preceded with the phrase "I hate them fuckin'..."
Probably a good idea... but we should tread carefully with it.

Jack The Bodiless

11:13 / 13.08.02

I'm interested in how's it's decided when a suit moves from one category to another - a particularly incisive post? A particularly interesting topic? Will there be a gravitation towards quick n' easy acceptance of people posting most often in the Revolution rather than the Spectacle?

Once we've considered that, then we'll know what to call them.

Tez - surprised you got the ball gag out of your mouth long enough to say anything, to be honest. Back to cleaning the toilet with your tongue, now.

Tom Coates

13:43 / 13.08.02

Basically new members will have their posts pre-moderated, while full members won't. All of the full members on the board will decide which posts to let go live on the site - and when a certain number of good and valuable posts have been made, the person will automatically become a citizen. This is designed to make it highly impractical to spam the board or to set up multiple user names...

grant

14:43 / 13.08.02

1. That sounds like a brilliant idea.

2. I think either "has-beens and wannabes" or else "citizens and civilians". The advantage of the former has been well discussed already (it's funny!), while the latter is etymologically nice because they're rather similar words - it's not much of a distinction, but one that makes a subtle difference, springing from the same root, the idea of the community.

cusm

15:05 / 13.08.02

Again from the crotchety old files of "been done that long ago in net chat boards before this new fangled web thingy and all you kids came along":

Guests
Residents
Operators
Admins

In our case, Moderators is used over Ops as this is a b-board and not a chatter. But otherwise, I think the old terms still apply.

Though granted, I do like some of the more snarky options

Less searchable M0rd4nt

15:36 / 13.08.02

I'd like to put in my vote for "hasbeens and wannabees". That'll piss everyone off.

Ganesh

17:13 / 13.08.02

Yes, I like that one.

Or 'Royal Family Member' and 'Peasant Scum'? Only if, as recently-deceased Queen Mother (Gawd bless 'er beige teeth), I get to pick teams...

Mourne Kransky

17:21 / 13.08.02

grant: I think either "has-beens and wannabes" or else "citizens and civilians".

I think so too, convinced by elegant argument. Of the two choices, I prefer the latter (with its SF nuance) but then I am a Nazi snobtroll.

Ganesh

17:39 / 13.08.02

Somewhat tragically, the latter option makes me think of Liz 'I'd never date a civilian' Hurley...

Grey Area

18:20 / 13.08.02

Rather than just two terms, would it be possible to create a number of terms for people to choose from in both categories? The established crowed could pick from Resident, Has-Been, Alphas, Us or Citizens (and I've just grabbed these from the thread as examples). New people would be asked to choose from Guest, Wanna-Be, Beta, Them or Plebian. Once the trial period's over, they can select a new identifier.

I'd say this would let people be a bit more comfortable about the whole identification issue, rather than forcing a category on a person and saying "You are now an Alpha (pick up your letter jacket and pack of Lucky Strikes on your way out)".

Tezcatlipoca

18:45 / 13.08.02

I'm not convinced about having a group of names from which the user can select, but how about a list of names with each being attributed to a person depending on the number of their posts? So one name for under 50 posts, another for 51 - 200, etc.

Jack - Sorry to hear about your recent loss. Your wit will be sorely missed.

Ganesh

18:58 / 13.08.02

So, like, if you've only got 117 experience points and you're an Anti-Paladin, that makes you an Initiate-Novice-Warrior-Knight?

Tezcatlipoca

19:49 / 13.08.02

Not quite what I was referring to, but nevermind.

Perhaps just sticking with 'has-beens' and 'wannabes' is a better idea...

Shortfatdyke

21:03 / 13.08.02

Actually Strap On uses a whole host of names that people move up through the more they post. Let me assure you that you're either in the clique or nobody - your status in the ranks (from 'thug' for newbies through to picking your own name after whatever-zillion posts) is irrelevant.

If we're going to use this method we could be Brave New Worldish: Alpha-Plus through to Epsilon Minor.

Graeme McMillan

21:24 / 13.08.02

Tom: "Basically new members will have their posts pre-moderated, while full members won't. All of the full members on the board will decide which posts to let go live on the site - and when a certain number of good and valuable posts have been made, the person will automatically become a citizen. This is designed to make it highly impractical to spam the board or to set up multiple user names..."

Can I ask how "full members" will be defined? Everyone who's here before the new system is installed? Everyone who's been here for a set length of time? A set number of posts?

I'm curious, considering that time-wise, I've been here for a while, but I've made less than 100 posts, whereas people who've been here for less time but posted more have been more valuable and "full" members than me...

ill tonic

02:25 / 14.08.02

Liking the "has-beens" "wannabes" myself. The whole thing sounds like a good idea Tom.

STOATIE LIEKS CHOCOLATE MILK

05:48 / 14.08.02

Yeah, "has-beens" and "wanna-bes" is kinda gently self-deprecating to both sides. Seems sort of friendly and inclusive, somehow, like a shared joke.

ONLY NICE THINGS

08:21 / 14.08.02

Metopes and triglyphs!

sleazenation

08:25 / 14.08.02

I'm up for citizens and civilians for that quasi Robert A. Heinlien mystique it has. Plus it sounds cool and a little more austere than the alternative