SMALL BIZ ADVICE
What would you ask Michael?
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Comment moderation by users

60 points posted to IdeaStorm by chrisr 06/17/07

The discussions on this website are often being drowned out by noise among the comments. Introducing a Slashdot-style comment moderation scheme would help keep the visible comments of high value and make it easier for people to have meaningful discussions on new ideas.

By having users do the moderation and not Dell, there is no way it could be considered to be Dell censoring anyone's viewpoint.

cheers,
Chris

benjesuit
06/17/07		 The real issue most are having is eliminating or curtailing the useless, irrelevant, and joke ideas submissions which lately have become epidemic. There were good discussions last week on possible solutions.

The other problem and the one which renders your idea a no go, is continuity of discussion is disrupted with any type of moderation of comments. What has happened already is that there was comment moderation of content which violated the terms of agreement. The process wreaked havoc on the continuity of discourse. The Admin of the site decided that going forward, if such moderation occurs, not only would the offending comment be removed, but the comments responding to it also.

In any event, Dell is committed to the free flow of ideas and comments so long as they do not violate the terms and conditions as set forth in their terms of use.

The community's primary outlet of opinion is the voting system and comments. Considering why Dell created this site (as a quantifiable gauge of the marketability of an idea), your idea of user moderation of comments becomes contradictory to that goal. It amounts to suppression of dissent and alternate viewpoints.
reg
06/17/07		 Ok, this is a lame idea,
Modded down for 'inaccurate'.

-1 redundant.

DUPE
jorge
06/17/07		 The problem is only and only the software used to run this site, its weak, featureless and buggy. Anyone already posting on a modern forum knows this as we're hitting problems long gone from the average forums. All if not most of the ideas to fix these limitations refer to what we use in the real world.
benjesuit
06/17/07		 Very true Jorge. But I don't think Dell wanted this to be a forum but rather an opinion poll where "users" submitted the thing to be voted on. The comments serve as further insight into the submitted idea. This site is a marketing tool first and foremost.

The OP wants comments to become a "circle-jerk" of sorts which devalues dissent and alternative views of a submitted idea. Such an idea simply goes to show how some think that this is a forum instead of a marketing tool for Dell to gauge the viability (read $) of an idea.

Dell already has a forum and a blog.
jorge
06/17/07		 Most modern forum software can easily be modified to this format. Its not a forum but the software used lends it to be, hence the bad software.
reg
06/17/07		 bah.

idea storm is a good idea.

Don't take the fun out of it.

HERE: make a JOKE category, just like you made a DELETE REQUESTS category.
(I believe I was one of the people who suggested the Delete Request category too...)

For the Humor impaired, you can click JOKE as one of the category choices.
That way when someone suggests laptops made of Chocolate, humorless people wont get confused.
benjesuit
06/17/07		 Jorge,

You're missing the what and why of this site and why you couldn't mod and use forum software like Vbulletin. The best thing I can suggest is that you look at www.salesforce.com. There are marketing specific analytical tools which Dell is using "behind the scenes" and why this site is set up the way it is.
benjesuit
06/17/07		 Reg,

It's a great idea... in a perfect world. But I think the main gripe peeps are/were having is that they don't even want to see the jokes/nonsensical/non-idea submissions. Submissions voluntarily tagged as "joke" would still show up on the main page intermixed with serious submissions. And let's face it honestly and truthfully - if say, the joke submissions only showed up when you clicked jokes, some of the jokesters here wouldn't at all be happy about it because they presumably have a need of validation from the audience at large.
jorge
06/17/07		 @benjesuit: you need to look here http://www.ideastorm.com/article/show/68438/IdeaStorm_FixRemoveExplain_the_Ju...
benjesuit
06/17/07		 Great. So then why, if you understand what service salesforce is providing, did you suggest modding commonly available forum software which does not and cannot provide the same thing?
badblood
06/17/07		 Dell does not have a sense of humor.

I will buy a tie, it will boost my productivity.
reg
06/17/07		 A perfect world is closer than you think...
 
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