exiii wrote:With all do respect, it seems the only thing you are interested in fixing is the symptom (thread derailment). You've apparently decided that the root cause can't be fixed.
You are right: I don't think the root cause can be fixed without serious forum moderation. And this particular forum is intentionally "moderator-free" by the design and wishes of the Goodmans, who provide us with this space. Being unmoderated is one of the charms of cpaptalk as well as one of it's problems.
If you want a moderated board that still allows you to talk about how to change the pressure on your machine and whether you need to increase or decrease the pressure with or without your doc's permission, then you might find the forum over at apneaboard.com a better fit than cpap.com.
I belong to both boards, and yes, apneaboard more civil than cpaptalk. But along with the civility provided by the moderation come rules that can chafe at times: You can't mention sites like cpap.com by name. You can't link to many outside sites with .com in the suffix. You can't link to your own blog site. You can't post over there unless you register and are logged in. And registering does cause problems for some newbies---particularly newbies who are not particularly computer literate AND are sleep deprived because of untreated OSA. And newbies can't post image files until they have four posts under their belts. And there are still strong personalities that sometimes clash. But the strong personalities do tend to "behave" themselves since the forum is moderated and the moderators will step in when necessary.
Participating on both boards has taught me a lot about forums. I like both boards a lot. But my fundamental home is over here warts and all. Why? Probably because in spite of all the flame wars and my need to take periodic breaks, I like the wild, wild West atmosphere over here a bit better than the more staid and cerebral atmosphere over at apneaboard. But apneaboard is well worth a try if you really believe that the atmosphere over here is toxic because of strong personality clashes.
Maybe that's true. It would, after all, require some admin involvement, and apparently they have no interest in making the community more inviting to the people who really need the help - new users.
Our hosts believe that a moderated board would make it
harder rather than easier for a poor lost soul who has never posted to a forum to figure out how to get the help they need. They also believe in treating us, the cpaptalk.com community as if we are a community of adults who can and should police themselves. And contrary to common belief, the owners and moderators of this site do occasionally step in and ban a user who has done something truly egregious.
Again, if you think that Goodmans are not providing enough moderation for this forum (in addition to running their business), then I encourage you to wander over to apneaboard.com. You'll find a warm, welcoming community over there, albeit one with rules.
