# It's ok to call an admin a mod, if they are **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [July 5, 2002, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515 "2002-07-05T18:12:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![de\_trop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@de\_trop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/de_trop)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2002, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/1 "2002-07-05T18:12:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by stockton -[Atlanta Dopefest Saturday June 1](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=2152258#post2152258) \* > \*\*Hope this ain’t a doublepost - Sorry to call Tuba a mod, when any sane individual knows she’s an admin. I stand firmly behind the balance of my remarks above. I think. Good to see all you dopers in the flesh. \*\* **stockton** - It’s OK to call TubaDiva a mod, since that’s one of her official titles. (Just as it’s all right to call Dick Cheney “Vice-President”, despite his being “President of the Senate” - two different jobs, two titles) Some admins are mods and some mods are admins but not all admins are mods. The distinction: some admins do their job in the back room at the Reader, and just post for fun or announcements, but not to moderate disputes between posters. Other admins, like TubaDiva, are listed on the main menu, and the top page of each forum, as Moderator. It means they are regularly watching the action and available when things slip out of the bounds of moderation into immoderation. What makes her an admin as well as a mod is the ability to do functions mods can’t, like fix daily problems with accounts and passwords, and rare things like rewording forum descriptions. ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2002, 10:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/2 "2002-07-06T10:31:45Z")
Bah. The great and all-powerful Diva of Tuba must be addressed in all her fearsome righteous glory! Verily, moderators are merely the stinking toejam of an Administrator! Wouldst thou call a nuclear bomb a firecracker? Wouldst thou call a hurricane a drizzle? Wouldst thou dare to refer to Underpants simply as underwear?!? I think NOT, mortal! Suffer the wrath of the scourned Administrator! Woe be unto thee who dares to raise her ire! Tremble in fear of her omnipotent Tubaness! Woe, I say unto thee, WOE!!! (Okay, so maybe she doesn’t give a damn… but, really, I just want attention.) ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2002, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/3 "2002-07-06T12:57:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SPOOFE \* > \*\*Verily, moderators are merely the stinking toejam of an Administrator! \*\* Actually, I prefer to think of myself as Lynn’s belly-button lint. I’m not sure what Lynn thinks of that. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2002, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/4 "2002-07-06T13:17:36Z")
But what if they just look like mods-- you know, wear those skinny ties and high-water pants-- but are actually rockers? Can you imagine the rumbles that would break out spontaneously in random threads? ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2002, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/5 "2002-07-06T23:58:54Z")
Where does _bootylicious_ fit into all of this? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Iguana\_Boy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ed655f/32.png) [@Iguana\_Boy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iguana_Boy)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2002, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/6 "2002-07-07T00:05:49Z")
I just call them “O Great One” and I haven’t been banned yet! ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2002, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/7 "2002-07-08T06:19:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bibliophage \* > \*\*Actually, I prefer to think of myself as Lynn’s belly-button lint. I’m not sure what Lynn thinks of that. \*\* I’m not sure what I think of that either! ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2002, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/8 "2002-07-08T22:54:50Z")
> [@](#): > > Some admins are mods and some mods are admins but not all admins are mods. This is incorrect. **All** admins can also fulfill moderator functions, but **not all** mods can perform admin functions. ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2002, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/9 "2002-07-09T01:26:54Z")
I think the OP meant that not all admins **do** perform moderator functions, even though they can. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2002, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/10 "2002-07-09T09:18:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by de trop \* > **Some admins are mods and some mods are admins but not all admins are mods.** I still need to know why there are old pilots and bold pilots, but no old, bold pilots. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2002, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/11 "2002-07-09T23:32:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bibliophage \* > \*\*Actually, I prefer to think of myself as Lynn’s belly-button lint. I’m not sure what Lynn thinks of that. \*\* Wasn’t that a series of articles in Reader’s Digest? “I am JillGat’s titsweat.” Or something like that. ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2002, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/12 "2002-07-10T00:13:34Z")
Someone break out the Ven diagrams. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2002, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/13 "2002-07-10T21:11:21Z")
> [@](#): > > Someone break out the Ven diagrams. How about this: ```auto ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------ALL SDMB users--------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------SDMB mods---------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------SDMB admins------------------------------------------------- Perfect Master (de trop, SPOOFE, many others (manhattan, bibliophage, DrMatrix, and others (TubaDiva, C K Dexter Haven, Noodles, Gaudere, Lynn Bodoni) Ed Zotti, jdavis, (Cecil Adams))) ``` We can clearly see, then, that **de trop** is an SDMB user, but not a mod, admin, or Perfect Master. **bibliophage** is a mod, but not an admin, **jdavis** and **Cecil Adams** are admins, but not mods, and **TubaDiva** is both a mod and an admin. All admins are SDMB members, and all mods are SDMB members. All Perfect Masters are admins, and no Perfect Master is a mod. (Yes, I know this will wrap, but I couldn’t see any better way to do it.) ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2002, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/14 "2002-07-10T21:48:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Quoth Chronos \* > \*\*(Yes, I know this will wrap, but I couldn’t see any better way to do it.) \*\* Ha ha, the joke’s on you. It _didn’t_ wrap. 😃 Well done, **Chronos** , but I think you should note that “mods” in your diagram refers to “those that act to moderate” and not “those capable of moderator actions”. If we want to get more detailed, we can split “SDMB users” into “SDMB members” and “lurkers”, although the latter category would have no known elements. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2002, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/15 "2002-07-11T21:43:58Z")
> [@](#): > > Ha ha, the joke’s on you. It _didn’t_ wrap. Whoops, I meant “stretch the window”, which, unless you’re running at about 1800x1350, it does. Is there a nice, single-word term for that? And by “mod” I meant “A person who is assigned to moderate a forum”. Hence, the bootilicious Ms. Diva qualifies, by virtue of moderating “About this Message Board”, for instance, and **Gaudere** is a moderator of “Great Debates”. By contrast, there is no forum “Moderated by Ed Zotti”. You do make a good point about users vs. members, but the one is not a subset of the other. There likely exists a significant population of members who are not users. Of course, I could have also added a category for “all people”, including those with no connection to the Straight Dop[sub]®[/sub]e, or a category for “all living things”, or… but enough is enough. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/16 "2002-07-12T16:36:25Z")
> [@](#): > > I could have also added a category for “all people”, including those with no connection to the Straight Dop®e, or a category for “all living things”, or… but enough is enough. Unless you happen to be reading this on a dual-monitor system at 3200x1200, in which case your diagram still may not have caused _ **sidescroll** _. ---
**Author:** ![hawthorne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@hawthorne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hawthorne)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/17 "2002-07-12T17:43:42Z")
Ven **n**. And Ed does moderate, just not in one forum. jdavis as hamster wrangler moderates in a way. Cecil is what makes de trop’s OP correct. Does he cool people down? Does he move threads? Does he ban miscreants? Does he set out board policies or practices? No. He just stirs up trouble. ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/18 "2002-07-12T21:54:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by UncleBeer \* > \*\*Unless you happen to be reading this on a dual-monitor system at 3200x1200, in which case your diagram still may not have caused _ **sidescroll** _. \*\* Ugh, I’m imagining reading a window that’s 3200 pixels across. It must be like sitting in the front row for the opening crawl of _Star Wars_. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2002, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/19 "2002-07-25T05:47:27Z")
Huh. Unless I’ve been whooshed by Chronos, I have absolutely no idea we have an admin by the name **Noodles**. Is this a new thing or a very old thing? ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2002, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515/20 "2002-07-25T05:49:50Z")
I just did a search and the board admits to nobody named Noodles or Noodle. I smell the whoosh-bird. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-ok-to-call-an-admin-a-mod-if-they-are/117515.md?page=2)