2007 Judge Selection

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

I would rather vote for someone that supports his local community than someone who buys online from Amazon.com.

I'd say that's not a fair way to pick a judge at all, though. WHERE they buy from doesn't have anything to do with how a product is judged. Besides, some of us aren't exactly very wealthy and have to aim for the cheaper venues to get our RPG fix. Also, not all communities HAVE local places to buy RPGs beyond bigger book stores or simply online. Putting that into the judge ring really just strikes me as completely and utterly against the point.

Honestly, beyond a few questions like "Why do you think you'd make a good judge?", I think its going to be very hard to get a set amount of questions that are relevant each year.

 

[Umbran]

Tell you what, since I'm the one who thinks this is a good idea, I'll do the legwork for it. I will try to have something to show you in the next few days.

I'd suggest you wait until the BOD gave an indication that they wanted such stuff. They do run the show, and are probably very focused on the immediate needs of the newly elected judges. And even if they have some cycles to spare, they may prefer it be done in-house, instead of by some random folks who think it wouldbe a good idea.

The prime time to bring this stuff up, really, would be just after GenCon - when the old judges are done, and the new judges still months away, and everyone has some time to look towards improvements.

 

[C.W.Richeson]

I just think that judges should represent the fans, since this is a fan award.

I can see that. I see the judges role as less about representing the interests of the fans and more about objectively screening products for the fans to vote on.

 

[Kaladhan]

I think that most people that ran for judges would have done an excellent work anyway. Do you know of anyone incompetent that tried to be a judge? I don't.

So if I take 2 people of equal value, or a value so close that I can't make a difference, why should I vote X instead of Y? That's why I'm basing my vote on something other than pure reviewing talent.

 

[C.W.Richeson]

That's cool

 

[Master of the Game]

I based mine on sheer good looks.

I can't help it if I'm prettier than you guys

 

[C.W.Richeson]

I based mine on sheer good looks.

I can't help it if I'm prettier than you guys

Oh come on, I even had a suit on!

 

[fusangite]

I've suggested in the past that we pick a Standard Product - somethning like a small pdf or the like, possibly donated by the publisher for the purpose - and have each candidate write a review of the thing. That would go a long way in showcasing the communication skills and tastes of the individuals.

Great idea Umbran!

I'd prefer to have a thread (or threads, on mulitple boards) in which peopkle ask questions, and then have someone collect and edit them into a single document for candidates to answer. Post the answers on the Ennies site, linked from the bios.

As is this one. PErhaps we can think about creating a Chief Electoral officer position in the ranks of the thankless volunteer jobs for someone to handle and set this thing up, also as an ombudsman for issues that come up during the two rounds of voting.

I think one of the problems we also need to resolve is that people want more than one thing out of their judges. The judges have a bunch of jobs:
1. Picking the best products
2. Publicly representing the image of the awards and the community in gaming media, online and in person
3. Making the judging panel cohere as an effective team
4. Doing additional volunteer work for the awards

I think that when people vote in the awards, based on past results, factors 2 and 3 tend to rank up there in the considerations of voters. It's not all about #1. We are electing something closer to a high school student council than a panel of game systems experts.

 

[C.W.Richeson]

We are electing something closer to a high school student council than a panel of game systems experts.

If that's the case then I wish it had been more clearly stated. I entered and promoted the voting where I could with the understanding that the ENnies were striving to be an industry wide award for the best in roleplaying gaming.

I think I feel that, if you don't have the best products competing for the awards to begin with then the rest is somewhat unimportant as the awards lack credibility.

 

[Master of the Game]

We are electing something closer to a high school student council than a panel of game systems experts.

.... and I promise that if I am elected I will make sure the campus stays open for lunches....

Oops, flashback.