# Moderator Name Calling In Regard To members **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [May 10, 2011, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387 "2011-05-10T13:09:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/41 "2011-05-11T13:06:31Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > Perhaps in addition to the mod tag, official mod comments/instructions/warnings can be posted in red? At a glance there can be no confusion or ambiguity. And then we can add a new rule that no one except mods can use red text! Yay for rules! ---
**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:** [May 11, 2011, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/42 "2011-05-11T13:23:52Z")
I only read and post on a desktop, and this is a serious question…can people who use mobile devices to read the boards even see red text? ---
**Author:** ![Farmer\_Jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Farmer\_Jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmer_Jane)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/43 "2011-05-11T13:24:33Z")
I think that when a mod shows how he/she _really_ feels, there’s no way to take them seriously when they make a ‘decision’. So, yeah, it’s kind of how mods go, but I’ve never been on a board that was so heavily uh, moderated. ---
**Author:** ![Farmer\_Jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Farmer\_Jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmer_Jane)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/44 "2011-05-11T13:25:54Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > And then we can add a new rule that no one except mods can use red text! Yay for rules! :dubious: We have rules here? ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/45 "2011-05-11T13:32:03Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > And then we can add a new rule that no one except mods can use red text! Yay for rules! Maybe it isn’t practical in this case, but in theory it wouldn’t have to be a _rule_, as far as non-mods are concerned; it could be implemented in the software. Mods would have a button to designate moderating statements; no other post _could_ be made to appear similarly, and no other post could be interpreted or misinterpreted as official (as per **BigT** above). ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/46 "2011-05-11T13:41:06Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I only read and post on a desktop, and this is a serious question…can people who use mobile devices to read the boards even see red text? On the iPhone (Safari mobile browser), yes. Text color and all other formatting is displayed. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/47 "2011-05-11T13:43:31Z")
> [@CitizenPained](#): > > I think that when a mod shows how he/she _really_ feels, there’s no way to take them seriously when they make a ‘decision’. You don’t have to take us seriously as long as you follow the rules, which includes listening to our instructions. But I think your expectations may be unrealistic: we moderate because we enjoy posting here, and our posts are already subject to additional scrutiny. Expecting us to keep our opinions to ourselves at all times woudl be stifling. > [@spark240](#): > > Maybe it isn’t practical in this case, but in theory it wouldn’t have to be a _rule_, as far as non-mods are concerned; it could be implemented in the software. We’re always reluctant to implement hacks, and we’re not going to use one for that. The system we have already works. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/48 "2011-05-11T13:46:06Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > I guarantee that anyone who can’t figure out the difference between a regular post and one set off by mod tags won’t pay any attention to what color it’s posted in either. I think you are mistaken. Color is far more modal than text changes. It can be noticed much more easily than plain text. It’s a basic design principle. That said, I’d be happy with just having the tags used consistently. The idea that they are required is new to me, not only because of the previously mentioned Warning, but also because I remember several [del]Pit[/del]ATMB threads about **tomndebb** ’s not separating his posts. But I’ll be playing it safe as much as possible. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/49 "2011-05-11T15:15:20Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > I guarantee that anyone who can’t figure out the difference between a regular post and one set off by mod tags won’t pay any attention to what color it’s posted in either. Oh come on. Thats like saying someone who won’t notice a stop sign also wont notice a flashing red light. Yeah, somebody somewhere might not notice BOTH at the same time, but I don’t think its in the realm of fantasy to suggest that having both present at the same time won’t make any difference to anyone anywhere. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/50 "2011-05-11T15:21:58Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > Oh come on. > > Thats like saying someone who won’t notice a stop sign also wont notice a flashing red light. Yeah, somebody somewhere might not notice BOTH at the same time, but I don’t think its in the realm of fantasy to suggest that having both present at the same time won’t make any difference to anyone anywhere. If you have a habit of running stop signs, I don’t think suggesting to the judge that the problem is that they weren’t flashing at the time will get you very far. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/51 "2011-05-11T15:33:42Z")
I actually think this is a very good idea. The color will catch the attention of most people scrolling through a thread quickly, and make it much easier to note a moderator’s actions/comments. This is especially useful for larger or fast-moving threads, where people aren’t necessarily reading only the latest/last post. No hack is required; mods would just use the font color editor buttons for their “Mod hat on” comments. I also don’t see any reason to make it a rule against others using red; despite the ability having been present for years, the vast majority of us never use any different text colors or formatting – well, **Bosda Di’Chi of Tricor** notwithstanding. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/52 "2011-05-11T15:37:09Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > Thats like saying someone who won’t notice a stop sign also wont notice a flashing red light. Yeah, somebody somewhere might not notice BOTH at the same time, but I don’t think its in the realm of fantasy to suggest that having both present at the same time won’t make any difference to anyone anywhere. That’s not what I’m saying. In my experience, when people don’t pay attention to moderator instructions or warnings it’s not because they have inadvertently or innocently overlooked them. Instead it’s usually because they just don’t care or are simply oblivious. I’d say that I receive no direct response to at least 99% of my moderator notes or warnings, either to apologize or to protest. (However in cases where a poster did convince me they didn’t see an instruction, I have sometimes rescinded warnings.) I don’t think adding additional signals is going to change that. The vast majority of posters abide by the rules, and are alert for stop signs. The few who don’t pay attention to stop signs are going to blow through the red light too. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/53 "2011-05-11T16:06:28Z")
> [@choie](#): > > I actually think this is a very good idea. The color will catch the attention of most people scrolling through a thread quickly, and make it much easier to note a moderator’s actions/comments. This is especially useful for larger or fast-moving threads, where people aren’t necessarily reading only the latest/last post. > > No hack is required; mods would just use the font color editor buttons for their “Mod hat on” comments. \ I think it’s kind of a stupid idea - if people are in the habit of not reading threads before responding (and we all know they are, which is one of my pet peeves), then too fucking bad for them. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/54 "2011-05-11T16:20:13Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I think it’s kind of a stupid idea - if people are in the habit of not reading threads before responding (and we all know they are, which is one of my pet peeves), then too fucking bad for them. Well, maybe, but for me, seems silly to play “gotcha” like that. And actually it’s not just “too fucking bad” for _them_ – it’s bad for everyone if the rules get broken by bad behavior that was previously warned against. In my experience as a moderator/admin of a message board, I’d always prefer to make things easier to see/clearer to understand than have to clean up the mess later. YMMV, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Lestrade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/94ad74/32.png) [@Lestrade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lestrade)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/55 "2011-05-11T16:24:56Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I only read and post on a desktop, and this is a serious question…can people who use mobile devices to read the boards even see red text? I don’t know about mobile devices, but I can’t see red text in the browsers available for my chosen [operating system](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emacs). The board does work surprisingly well, otherwise. Well, except for **wierdaaron** ’s inexplicable reluctance to port his greasemonkey script to Emacs Lisp. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/56 "2011-05-11T19:11:35Z")
> [@choie](#): > > Well, maybe, but for me, seems silly to play “gotcha” like that. And actually it’s not just “too fucking bad” for _them_ – it’s bad for everyone if the rules get broken by bad behavior that was previously warned against. > > In my experience as a moderator/admin of a message board, I’d always prefer to make things easier to see/clearer to understand than have to clean up the mess later. YMMV, of course. I don’t see it as a “gotcha” to expect people to do what they’re supposed to do (i.e. read the threads before participating). It’s not _bad_ for me to watch dumbasses getting their asses handed to them - it’s entertaining. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/57 "2011-05-11T19:58:56Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > If you start to pile restrictions on where and what we can post, the incentive to volunteer here fades pretty quickly. There’s incentive to volunteer here? 😉 > [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I only read and post on a desktop, and this is a serious question…can people who use mobile devices to read the boards even see red text? Why wouldn’t they be? Most smartphones have full color screens and real internet access. > [@Colibri](#): > > In my experience, when people don’t pay attention to moderator instructions or warnings it’s not because they have inadvertently or innocently overlooked them. Instead it’s usually because they just don’t care or are simply oblivious. Exactly. Sure, there are sometimes a handful of posts just after the moderator reply that then get edited or commented they were composing their post when the moderator posted, so they didn’t see it before posting. That wouldn’t change no matter what color the moderator posted in. But the bulk of the rest of the people violating a moderator’s instructions in a thread know full well what the moderator said, they just don’t think it should apply to them, or can’t help themselves from making one more dig, or whatever silly justification that means “I’m special, your rule is stupid, and it doesn’t apply to me, anyway”. Those people will continue to ignore the moderators no matter how their posts are set off. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/58 "2011-05-11T20:14:09Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I only read and post on a desktop, and this is a serious question…can people who use mobile devices to read the boards even see red text? I use Tapatalk to access the forums on my smartphone, and it does not preserve formatting: italics, bolding, coloring, etc. Come to think of it, it’s not that great an app, really. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/59 "2011-05-11T20:26:54Z")
If you’re reading too fast or carelessly to notice a moderator comment set off by mod tags, you’re too dumb to be taken seriously. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2011, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387/60 "2011-05-11T20:42:43Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > That’s not what I’m saying. > > In my experience, when people don’t pay attention to moderator instructions or warnings it’s not because they have inadvertently or innocently overlooked them. Instead it’s usually because they just don’t care or are simply oblivious. 😕 Wouldn’t “innocently overlooked” = “simply oblivious”? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-name-calling-in-regard-to-members/581387.md?page=4)