Topic: What is RAWK?

[electricghost]

A couple of possible practicle ideas that might improve the quality of the main board. I have no idea how easy they are to implement so might be a non starter from that point of view.

How about have a minimum character count in each post on the main board, like the opposite of Twitter in effect ? This will obviously remove the quick one line responses, and the two word "Great post" after quoting a mammoth post. It will also in my view make posters think about what they are about to say more, encouraging a higher quality post, and give people a vital few more moments to  calm the emotions before getting involved in a confrontation with another member. 

Another possibility to prevent the same posters going over old ground, and derailing threads is to limit the amount of posts anyone is allowed to make in one thread on the main board to say 5 posts. This would hopefully again make people think more and construct a better argument, knowing they only have a limited amount of posts to get their point across.

[redbyrdz]

A couple of possible practicle ideas that might improve the quality of the main board. I have no idea how easy they are to implement so might be a non starter from that point of view.

How about have a minimum character count in each post on the main board, like the opposite of Twitter in effect ? This will obviously remove the quick one line responses, and the two word "Great post" after quoting a mammoth post. It will also in my view make posters think about what they are about to say more, encouraging a higher quality post, and give people a vital few more moments to  calm the emotions before getting involved in a confrontation with another member. 

Another possibility to prevent the same posters going over old ground, and derailing threads is to limit the amount of posts anyone is allowed to make in one thread on the main board to say 5 posts. This would hopefully again make people think more and construct a better argument, knowing they only have a limited amount of posts to get their point across.

I do enjoy some one-liners. Nothing wrong with a crisp, well put statement. On the other hand, I do find some long posts incredibly tedious and full of waffle.

Limiting the number of posts wouldn't work either - for one, people would start editing their posts, making it impossible to keep up with the thread. Also some threads need frequent posts by the same users, for example campaign-type threads.

[Red Cez]

And you have to remember that there are a lot of people - many long time members - who know each other because they go to the match together or have got to know each other on here over the years. Is that a clique? I don't think it is. I knew no-one on here when I joined, but over time I've got to know people on the forum and at the match/in the pub.

That's all well and good and is something I was alluding to.

I guess it comes down to where you feel your loyalties and responsibilities lie. Is it to your friends even if it may be to the detriment of the site, or is it to the site, and your role as moderator, regardless of any previous relationship you may have with the offending member.

[Veinticinco de Mayo]

Unfortunately folks I don't think any of the post time limits or post per thread quotas are workable or necessarily desirable.

We'll have a chat about a daily posting limit

[stevedo]

RAWK is a great place for information (with associated debate) regarding moments like the takeover, Suarez/Evra, etc.
Off topic can be extremely funny, but also a decent place for advice for any "heavy" issues.
The main board threads (players esp) that become polarized are annoying and yet, taking the time to read through, there's usually an articulate, considered opinion worth the read. Is there too little wheat to chaf, and how do you cutdown on the latter without losing the former is the difficulty, I don't envy the mods. 

[Rafa_La]

As Andy says, fair comment. However I think that both would provide even more eloquent commentary if they were at the match. It's a simple fact that at the match you see the whole game, not what's selected for you by the TV company.

It is indeed.

But if there's no other choice then I'm grateful for that snippet.

Not going to give you 10 things I like about RAWK.

There's one facet that manages to shine.

There's a certain camaradrie that is unique .
We might moan,groan.
Go back to those dark hours of the last owners. Overall we stood together for
Liverpool

[Rigden]

quick question.

does many people use the main page?

i only use the forum, but back in 2004 when i first found this site, i was always reading it. It looks rather dated now, but perhaps the centre column could be displayed like a blog. The top posts and articles written should be clearly displayed there. Same applies to images from the LFC forum & the great artwork by McPhisto, ArtV, The blasted french, kit etc.

I'm dead proud of the contributions by many people in here, it's such a resourceful and quality place to be a member of.
It would be great to really showcase the talents of these people by highlighting it in a really nice manner on the main. Articles do get promoted there in its current form, but i reckon the format is rather dated.

It would also be an ideal way for us to snoop in on the latest quality while at work.

I would have to agree with this as well. If the the purpose of the forum is to spur debate about the team, then I believe the Opinion pieces should be the centrepiece of not only the front page, but of the entire forum. Unfortunately most people come here to lament that Arsenal have already signed soandso and what the hell is Kenny doing bla bla bla, and fine contributions (e.g. Royhendo, L6, E2K and so many more) go unnoticed.

May I suggest changing the front page to being solely Opinion submissions and completely remove the 'Recent Posts' section.

[John C]

2. Many members are given a free ride in terms of getting away with blatant flaming and abuse. Using the 'report tom moderator' function usually results in a light rap or sometimes nothing and they carry on with their merry ways.

But in your own early days on RAWK mate you were a pretty bad abuser yourself. When I expressed concerns about Skrtlel early in the year you called me a fucking c*nt which is exactly what the mods are trying to cut out. You served your first ban of a few and I think you now understand the benchmark of discussion. (I never reported to mod btw).

[John C]

b) You need to do more to clamp down on cliques,

I don't think they are as prevalent or fierce as the Rafa days now VdM, I just have my own observations which other people may not notice.


Put it this way, certain posters quote their mates or mods constantly refering to first names. I know you'll find me calling someone by a first name like And Could He Play - but I've never met him.


Its not a big issue and doesnt effect the quality of RAWK, its just one of my observations Kev VdM.


This place is ace.

[Alan_X]

That's all well and good and is something I was alluding to.

I guess it comes down to where you feel your loyalties and responsibilities lie. Is it to your friends even if it may be to the detriment of the site, or is it to the site, and your role as moderator, regardless of any previous relationship you may have with the offending member.

You misunderstand, the point is that we are aware that SHF calling macca a prick is probably not abuse, although it may look that way to someone who hasn't been here long. Long time posters who persistently abuses others will get warned and banned as they have done on more than one occasion.

[Fat Scouser]

HA! That's brilliant.

[Fat Scouser]

Bloodyhell, the axe was in quick there.

[Saul Goodman]

I guess you could say the site has been a victim of its own success but the noise to signal ratio on the forum is far too high. It makes it in general quite unreadable as threads move at such pace they're impossible to follow. Good posts tend to get completely drowned in a sea of shit.

Times when it's quite fun to have threads moving at such pace if for instance the topic is quite frivolous or been beaten to death already. Other times when you feel if only a certain number of posters were given access to post in a thread it would be of much more value to not only the people involved but for the people reading the thread.

The youth thread for example has quite a hardcore posting group that is quite small which creates a good community feel in which you get to know the posters much better. It also seems to serve for much better, more level headed discussion with far more posts of substance.

I am waffling because I only have observations rather than solutions.

[hollger]

Bloodyhell, the axe was in quick there.

A prime example of that "just in time" moderation mentioned on page 1! 

[Outlaw]

I seriously doubt that.

Well, I guess that's just something you're going to doubt. If I wanted to offend you, I'd like to think I could be a little less discrete about it. I tend to spend less time offering my opinions when trying to offend somebody. In fact, I come right out and say what I think. I was actually trying to offer my opinion, in the hope that it might trigger a thought or two. Your reaction to it, compared with the thankful way another has responded, is a little strange. It's almost as if questioning you is verboten.

you don't like the way the site is run

Sorry, but that's not true. I don't know how the site is run, much less dislike it.

the way it's moderated

I was talking generically. I said clearly that I was sharing my views on moderation in general; that I believe moderators should moderate the discourse rather than dictate the subject. That's just my opinion. It is, after all, the role of moderators in every other area of life.

what constitutes 'quality'

I'm making no judgements on quality. I just guessed we'd see it differently. I see quality moderation as allowing a natural, open debate to flourish and encourage a civil area in which different sides can debate issues surrounding our club. You, quite clearly, see it as directing what people talk about and the opinions they can share. That's fine, too. I just disagree with it.

the role of moderator as interpreted by the staff on here, the use of custom titles...

This is where you lose me a little. I think you're adding your own sub-text. I've no problem with custom titles, to say so totally misses the point I was making. I asked why it would be an 'honour to be recognised by staff'. I couldn't give a toss about custom titles.

What are the ten things you like about RAWK? Just askin...

I was referring to your list of 11 things. 10 of which are sound. The other, well, I think that's obvious.

[lorenzo23]

As Andy says, fair comment. However I think that both would provide even more eloquent commentary if they were at the match. It's a simple fact that at the match you see the whole game, not what's selected for you by the TV company.

Guess clubs wouldn't really use technology to go into mass details of the match if that was true, don't really go with this notion that if you go match you see/know much more than some one who at home watching on tv. While you may be watching live in person. Some one at home get to see 3/4 different views of important decision (which is mainly discussed on the forum, goal/fouls etc) In opinion going to the game live just gives you different view of the match(most importantly the experience is what matters) but it does not IMO give you better understanding of the game to give commentary of it.

[iamrobk]

Just a thought, but perhaps having threads open during the matches would do a lot to cut to down on all the shit posted afterwards?  Seems like since there are strict rules on not posting during the match, it just creates a mad rush as soon as its over to post in the post match thread and various player threads (inevitably on how good/shit they were).  If there were a thread open during the match, I think it'd cut down on a LOT of this post match shitposting.

[SP]

Guess clubs wouldn't really use technology to go into mass details of the match if that was true, don't really go with this notion that if you go match you see/know much more than some one who at home watching on tv. While you may be watching live in person. Some one at home get to see 3/4 different views of important decision (which is mainly discussed on the forum, goal/fouls etc) In opinion going to the game live just gives you different view of the match(most importantly the experience is what matters) but it does not IMO give you better understanding of the game to give commentary of it.

It is so much harder to gauge movement off the ball on TV. You can rarely see more than a third of the pitch, so you rarely see the runs that pull players out of position or don't get spotted by a player with the ball. You could see them with cameras that cover the whole pitch, but that is not what is broadcast. The TV director is like under 8s playing football, just chasing after the ball.

[SP]

Just a thought, but perhaps having threads open during the matches would do a lot to cut to down on all the shit posted afterwards?  Seems like since there are strict rules on not posting during the match, it just creates a mad rush as soon as its over to post in the post match thread and various player threads (inevitably on how good/shit they were).  If there were a thread open during the match, I think it'd cut down on a LOT of this post match shitposting.

The topics during games were an embarrassment to the site that the moderating team did not want the good name of the site associated with.

[Get]

Just a thought, but perhaps having threads open during the matches would do a lot to cut to down on all the shit posted afterwards?  Seems like since there are strict rules on not posting during the match, it just creates a mad rush as soon as its over to post in the post match thread and various player threads (inevitably on how good/shit they were).  If there were a thread open during the match, I think it'd cut down on a LOT of this post match shitposting.

The things that would be posted there wouldn't very much Liverpool supporter worthy.
Emotions running High and everything.. i think it would just make a Bigger mess and spread into bigger arguments. thats how i See it

[lorenzo23]

It is so much harder to gauge movement off the ball on TV. You can rarely see more than a third of the pitch, so you rarely see the runs that pull players out of position or don't get spotted by a player with the ball. You could see them with cameras that cover the whole pitch, but that is not what is broadcast. The TV director is like under 8s playing football, just chasing after the ball.

Sorry i miss read if speaking just purely tv broadcast then you are correct, you won't see any of that movement off the ball. In saying that lot of people do ball watch at games and miss some great movement from players that open space for others.

[Trada]

What about a weekly debate thread, Say 8 people debate a subject that would usually get locked. 4 for and 4 against and at the end of the debate people vote on who they think won.

In fact they could debate anything about the club.

[Jake]

Just a thought, but perhaps having threads open during the matches would do a lot to cut to down on all the shit posted afterwards?  Seems like since there are strict rules on not posting during the match, it just creates a mad rush as soon as its over to post in the post match thread and various player threads (inevitably on how good/shit they were).  If there were a thread open during the match, I think it'd cut down on a LOT of this post match shitposting.

Sorry robk but i think this is daft.

If you are a Liverpool fan then WATCH THE LIVERPOOL GAME, I think the lads who do comms are great, but they aren't doing it for fun, they are making a sacrifice for the benefit of those who cannot find a stream for whatever reason.
If you're a Liverpool fan and you enjoy football, why do you need to tell 30000 strangers your view on Charlie Adam while there is a chance you could miss some action?

[iamrobk]

The things that would be posted there wouldn't very much Liverpool supporter worthy.
Emotions running High and everything.. i think it would just make a Bigger mess and spread into bigger arguments. thats how i See it

I'd rather all the shitposts get stuck in those threads than in a dozen threads after the match.  Like it or not, on a forum this size, there will be lots of bad posts.  I think that some sort of a timer or post limit is a bad idea, but that's just my opinion.  Don't think it'll really solve much.

[-RedTilDead-]

I don't really have the time to look at other LFC sites but when I was picking one to register on it was quite clear to me that RAWK had an intelligent and knowledgeable core, and was actively used and moderated, so I picked it.

How about when someone starts a thread they have the option to create a thread type:

free-for-all (no or limited moderation)
considered responses only (no less than 50 word posts/replies etc).
veteran posters only

etc, etc. Perhaps not those exact options but I hope you get the idea.

[KiNki]

"Ruthlessness among the mods why we need to get it back"

Too many forumites think not what they can do for the site, for the club, for the fanbase, issues which we can effect but as evidently seen from this thread alone want to continue using the forum as a toilet to vent their spleen arguing pointlessly over issues that we have next to no control over. 

"I want a pre match thread so i can whinge over the team selection and who is and isnt on the subs bench because i see it as my right, this is a discussion forum isnt it, so well let me vent, even though it serves no real purpose, and gets many other forumites backs up before a ball is kicked."

(Meanwhile, those actually at the match, are having a pint for 4.80, trying out new songs, hanging out new banners, having a laugh, handing out dont buy the sun stickers and flyers, trying out new songs, being manhandled by overly zealous stewards, being told to sit down, being filmed for being football fans.)

I want a match thread, so i can whine about the formation, the tactics, the first 11 and will argue with anyone who doesnt agree with me, over and over again, ignoring what is even happening on the pitch, cos my opinion is absolutely all important.

(while those at the match, who've spent an arm and a leg on tickets and travel, are doing what they can, irrespective of who's picked, who's played, the formation, whos on the subs bench, whos managing us, who the owners are, what colour kit we are wearing, theirs a match going on and they are trying to do what they can to encourage those playing for us to put in a shift)

I want an immediate post match thread, so i can carry on the arguments i was having in the pre match and match topics, about the 11 that played, cos they havent won 5 nil, they arent top of the league, and i want to comment about the opposition fans outsinging us at home"

Meanwhile those at the match are making their way home and who may want to talk about their experiences are met with a forum of petty pointless whinning, whinging, moaning, contribute fuck all to the site as a whole, and worse still tell those at the match that they should be doing more, that their opinions are no more important, they shouldnt wear those tshirts, shouldnt sing this, shouldnt do that. 

The supporters of this club are everything, those that pay the money, make the effort, make the banners, pay for the banners, get the songs going, get over charged for everything and treated like shite by everyone bar those who go with them.   

Dont get me wrong, i understand that their are multitude of reasons, why some cant go, priced out, distance, family, jobs, health.  I know there's plenty on here that love the club just as much as as those lucky enough who can go, i know they know the score, know what its all about and have plenty to contribute to the site.

I know there are plenty of good forumites that have been sucked into the sea of shite that is the main footy forum because its become the norm. 

You have a chance right now to think about your contribution to this site, this club, this fanbase.   To ask yourselves can you be doing more, contributing more for the benefit of all. 

Right now, well i'm getting my self ready to go the match, to cheer on whoever the fuck is picked for us, to sing for our manager and the others on the pitch who may well not be here next season, to show my gratitude for the years of service they have put in and the cup they've won.

You can do what you want. 

Next season, however, i will be far less tolerant and make no apologies for banning and muting disrespectful, selfish, forumites who contribute nothing but their own hot air. 

[iamrobk]

Sorry robk but i think this is daft.

If you are a Liverpool fan then WATCH THE LIVERPOOL GAME, I think the lads who do comms are great, but they aren't doing it for fun, they are making a sacrifice for the benefit of those who cannot find a stream for whatever reason.
If you're a Liverpool fan and you enjoy football, why do you need to tell 30000 strangers your view on Charlie Adam while there is a chance you could miss some action?

I, er, do, thanks.  I also post about it on 2 other forums with dozens of other people (mostly fans of other teams).  But that's not the point.  I'm not saying RAWK has to bring them back, and I think the arguments against them are fair, but I think it's a way to cut down on all the post match shit that gets posted.

[Garcepticon]

"Ruthlessness among the mods why we need to get it back"

Too many forumites think not what they can do for the site, for the club, for the fanbase, issues which we can effect but as evidently seen from this thread alone want to continue using the forum as a toilet to vent their spleen arguing pointlessly over issues that we have next to no control over. 

"I want a pre match thread so i can whinge over the team selection and who is and isnt on the subs bench because i see it as my right, this is a discussion forum isnt it, so well let me vent, even though it serves no real purpose, and gets many other forumites backs up before a ball is kicked."

(Meanwhile, those actually at the match, are having a pint for 4.80, trying out new songs, hanging out new banners, having a laugh, handing out dont buy the sun stickers and flyers, trying out new songs, being manhandled by overly zealous stewards, being told to sit down, being filmed for being football fans.)

I want a match thread, so i can whine about the formation, the tactics, the first 11 and will argue with anyone who doesnt agree with me, over and over again, ignoring what is even happening on the pitch, cos my opinion is absolutely all important.

(while those at the match, who've spent an arm and a leg on tickets and travel, are doing what they can, irrespective of who's picked, who's played, the formation, whos on the subs bench, whos managing us, who the owners are, what colour kit we are wearing, theirs a match going on and they are trying to do what they can to encourage those playing for us to put in a shift)

I want an immediate post match thread, so i can carry on the arguments i was having in the pre match and match topics, about the 11 that played, cos they havent won 5 nil, they arent top of the league, and i want to comment about the opposition fans outsinging us at home"

Meanwhile those at the match are making their way home and who may want to talk about their experiences are met with a forum of petty pointless whinning, whinging, moaning, contribute fuck all to the site as a whole, and worse still tell those at the match that they should be doing more, that their opinions are no more important, they shouldnt wear those tshirts, shouldnt sing this, shouldnt do that. 

The supporters of this club are everything, those that pay the money, make the effort, make the banners, pay for the banners, get the songs going, get over charged for everything and treated like shite by everyone bar those who go with them.   

Dont get me wrong, i understand that their are multitude of reasons, why some cant go, priced out, distance, family, jobs, health.  I know there's plenty on here that love the club just as much as as those lucky enough who can go, i know they know the score, know what its all about and have plenty to contribute to the site.

I know there are plenty of good forumites that have been sucked into the sea of shite that is the main footy forum because its become the norm. 

You have a chance right now to think about your contribution to this site, this club, this fanbase.   To ask yourselves can you be doing more, contributing more for the benefit of all. 

Right now, well i'm getting my self ready to go the match, to cheer on whoever the fuck is picked for us, to sing for our manager and the others on the pitch who may well not be here next season, to show my gratitude for the years of service they have put in and the cup they've won.

You can do what you want. 

Next season, however, i will be far less tolerant and make no apologies for banning and muting disrespectful, selfish, forumites who contribute nothing but their own hot air.

I agree with your sentiments, and I think that there is a strong reason behind discouraging people from 'contributing nothing but their own hot air'.

This forum probably is the largest gathering of Liverpool fans who can each engage in a discussion with every member, and as such we should analyse what we can do with that. If we allowed people to speak without thinking and criticise without reason then negative consequences follow, they are more likely to back reactionary flavour of the month actions, such as sacking Benitez etc. If someone goes on this forum and absorbs intelligent opinions and becomes inclined towards employing a bit of critical thinking when listening to talksport and 606 amongst other shite then we can help ensure that our fans don't become reactionary toolbags. We saw what happened with Lucas and now Henderson, plenty of fans felt safe in having a go at Lucas because he was an acceptable scapegoat - too many were doing it. If we can encourage our fanbase to look upon speaking without thinking with disdain then ultimately the club will be more successful as players will recieve more support from fans.

I can't really think of any benefits of encouraging to scream and shout the loudest in a post match thread, it is the sort of environment which I can see facilitating the booing of the team at the end of a game.

[Jake]

I, er, do, thanks.  I also post about it on 2 other forums with dozens of other people (mostly fans of other teams).  But that's not the point.  I'm not saying RAWK has to bring them back, and I think the arguments against them are fair, but I think it's a way to cut down on all the post match shit that gets posted.

I, er, am glad for you (why put er? to make me sound daft?)

When I said "you" in my last post, I meant the poster in general, not iamrobk .
I get that you want the post match shit down, so do I mate, I just don't think during-match threads are the way to go about it. I'll post at HT if I'm not there, probably will do tonight, because I can't stand the analysis, I just want to watch the game. Or replays of the game, I don't care what Neville, Quinn, or Mr Ying have to say. But once the red men are on the pitch, surely we want to focus on them, we can talk AFTER the 45 minutes of live football, right?
If it were up to me, during the game the whole forum would be locked except comms thread, streams thread and maybe a shelter type thread for those who are watching in full later and don't wish to know the score or anything.

[B0151?]

what does an editor do?

my apologies for my ignorance, not taking the piss or anything jus not that smart haha

[Number 7]

I spend a lot of time on RAWK. In fact it's a big part of my day. If I find that I haven't visited the site all day I start getting a pseudo withdrawal symptom. I have to have by dose of it, even if I'm not adding anything constructive to the ongoing discussions. Kudos to all the moderators and staff that make my experience so enjoyable.

The biggest issue I have (I don't have many), is that certain posters feel passionate about certain topics, and will see out their argument. If their argument doesn't sit well with the masses a mob mentality seems to emerge, where the original poster is shot down because the majority don't agree with their views. Everyone should have the right to back up their argument and make a valid case as to why they believe in what they do. Often posters feel insecure in actually agreeing with the minority and are afraid to do so because of the reaction they might receive. Frequently, this can be a new poster who isn't 'WUM', but someone who's making their point in a respectful and well argued manner.

There are some wonderful writers here, hidden beneath the plethora of regular posters. They lurk, and only post when they feel its worthwhile to add their thoughts. Often, these insightful well written posts get lost in the deluge of chatter. What I'd like to see are new threads started with some of these quality posts that were hidden under the rubble. For exampLe, the thread entitled 'FSG – are they living up to their own billing' had some remarkably informative posts. The original thread got locked, but I started a 'part 2' version of the thread by actually including one of these posts from the first thread. A quality post that was overlooked in the first thread. This way a new thread on a current topic, and one which we all feel we need to contribute to, started in a quality manner. This may or may not spawn intelligent discussion. The thread second eventually got locked as well, but that was because it had become infiltrated with garbage, and had gone off topic.

[Rigden]

I, er, do, thanks.  I also post about it on 2 other forums with dozens of other people (mostly fans of other teams).  But that's not the point.  I'm not saying RAWK has to bring them back, and I think the arguments against them are fair, but I think it's a way to cut down on all the post match shit that gets posted.

There is also RAWK Chat, which is great for both sides: people can vent their frustration and others dont have to read the garbage that ensues.

[Alan_X]

What about a weekly debate thread, Say 8 people debate a subject that would usually get locked. 4 for and 4 against and at the end of the debate people vote on who they think won.

In fact they could debate anything about the club.

Interesting idea that might be worth a try. I'm not sure that the vote at the end is necessary.

[Alan_X]

I'd rather all the shitposts get stuck in those threads than in a dozen threads after the match.  Like it or not, on a forum this size, there will be lots of bad posts.  I think that some sort of a timer or post limit is a bad idea, but that's just my opinion.  Don't think it'll really solve much.

When we had in game threads we had just as much if not more shite in the post match threads. If you encourage people to post shite during the game then they don't suddenly switch off once the game has finished, especially if it's a loss or poor performance.

The in-game commentary is one of the best things we've done on this site. Open in-game threads were just full of piss and wind and mindless abuse. They lost us decent posters from the main board and most moderators dreaded them.

I hope they never come back and would have nothing to do with the site on a match day if they ever did. 

[J-Mc-]

Mods want clever and thought out discussion again.

Mods open thread about RAWK positives and negatives

Tought provoking posts ensue with sensible, well thought out discussion

Conclusion:
Mods are sly bastards with their uphanded tricks!

@Alan_X

In response to the vent your anger thread question posed a few pages ago, I've got the wires mixed mate, I thought you meant vent in a personal sense (i.e. something that's happened during the day that's set you raging, not related to football) and not purely in a footballing sense.

I can see why you'd be against any player abuse and rightly so, when someone puts on a red shirt, no matter how bad they play, they're a Liverpool player and should be backed to the hilt, atleast for 90 minutes.

However some pent up frustration would need to be aired. Suggestion would be to allow 'abuse' of a player if there are valid points (i.e. get rid of the "x player is shite" posts yet keep the ones that state the negatives of said player in a way that allows for discussion.)

Could help people think about why a player is shite in the long term and help create more thought provoking posts on the matter.)

[It's Jimmy Corkhill]

You can give criticism without giving stick on here at the moment though J.

[J-Mc-]

You can give criticism without giving stick on here at the moment though J.

Aye but it ends up deleted or lost in the inane drivel half of the time as soon as a player is mentioned to be shite for one reason or another.

Even some decent posts stating a players negatives are deleted when valid points are raised. We all know Downing isn't the right player for us, yet when someone says the same thing before/during/after the match, it gets frowned upon and the user possibly warned/banned*

I'm not saying keep the posts that just say "Player X is shite," however do keep the ones that raise the valid points as to why the player simply isn't good enough.

*Not sure if that's actually the case, but seems that way IMO.

[farawayred]

Pre-game threads are usually pointless. Rarely you find two people with the same opinion, and when you do it's not what the manager comes up with anyway.

Initially, I had a split opinion about the in game threads, except when I had no chance to watch and I needed a window on what's going on. They were full of crap, alright, but if you are stuck at an airport or at work (actually working ) they were a plus. When the in-game commentary by 3 pre-selected posters replaced the in game threads, I thought the place cleaned up. But it takes a while to get info that way too (the posters are actually watching the game and sacrificing their attention to post something). With time though it gets easier to find a working stream and sometimes even a quality one, so I haven't missed what's happening in a game this season. I think that the Mods did the right thing with the in-game threads altogether.

The most valuable to me are the Round Table post-game discussions. Whatever you do, Mods, please keep these open! Usually I don't post in them, but I never miss a single one. There is always something I haven't noticed, something I haven't thought of, and the posters are top guys, the atmosphere is great. RAWK is worth reading for me just because of these threads.

[SP]

There is also RAWK Chat, which is great for both sides: people can vent their frustration and others dont have to read the garbage that ensues.

Not any more.

[Sir Harvest Fields]

And SHF why the fuck did you single me out you fucking Evil Knievil cyclops?

Im not having this. Thats abuse and i feel violated, verbally. Im a disabled person with feelings you know. It hurts that someone would use my disability to verbally abuse me. Piss off twat I am a monocular wonder ill have ye know. I like the Evel reference though, classy