Did the WotC boards blow up...again?

[Deset Gled]

And put that target on my back? No thank you .

Generally speaking, I come to ENWorld to relax and get away from my "other job". I enjoy what I do, most of the time, but sometimes its nice to be able to talk to people about gaming without having the weight of a public persona and a huge corporation on my shoulders.

I would humbly suggest that you come up with some way to differentiate between when you are posting as a D+D fan, and when you are posting as a WotC employee. As has already been discussed in this thread, ENWorld mods do this, and it works out very well for everyone. It would help both you and other people realize when you are being personal and when you are being professional. I think a lot of the hostility in this thread stems from people not being able to differentiate between the two.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

I would humbly suggest that you come up with some way to differentiate between when you are posting as a D+D fan, and when you are posting as a WotC employee.

So, should he write in blue "ink" instead of black, equivalent to the moderate red?

 

[Tao]

I would humbly suggest that you come up with some way to differentiate between when you are posting as a D+D fan, and when you are posting as a WotC employee. As has already been discussed in this thread, ENWorld mods do this, and it works out very well for everyone. It would help both you and other people realize when you are being personal and when you are being professional. I think a lot of the hostility in this thread stems from people not being able to differentiate between the two.

Honestly, around here I am only posting as a D&D fan (who happens to work for WotC). I'm not an official spokesperson for Wizards of the Coast in any way. I don't have the ability to give out any information that would be otherwise unavailable to anyone that was willing to ask or dig around (everything said here has been confirmed publicly on the boards, though the specific technical reasons aren't generally given).

However, I do work for WotC in a certain capacity, so I may be a little thinner skinned when it comes to insults that may specifically target myself and my coworkers. I personally have made a lot of criticisms about the way certain things have gone down, both publicly and behind closed doors. I'm fairly vocal in my opinions, and generally don't pull any punches when I disagree with proposed WotC policy (though at the end of the day, I have to follow policy once it is made). I am all for constructive criticism. Its when those criticisms turn into insults, especially insults at people who may not deserve the blame, that I take issue.

 

[racoffin]

Its when those criticisms turn into insults, especially insults at people who may not deserve the blame, that I take issue.

Maybe we need a list of the people who deserve the blame to direct ire towards?

In all seriousness, I don't blame the people that have to deal with the day to day messes and screaming people. That's sort of like blaming the guy selling you the hamburger for the policies of the company. Problem is, the guy doing the selling (or in this case, the day to day workers on the board) are the ones taking the lion's share of the hassle from all of this mess because they are the most visible. The situation was (and still is) fixable, in my opinion. It simply requires a bit more communication and honesty on both sides.

 

[Delta]

At any rate, I heartily encourage Morris to continue posting his professional observations, exactly like he's done in the past, regardless of what anyone who may or may not work at WOTC thinks about it.

 

[silentounce]

Now that I finally got my subscriptions back on the WotC boards I can link this thread: http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=1052178

It specifically deals with threads being deleted with no explanation.
One of the stars of the above thread is Tao who has featured prominently in this thread. Read and enjoy. It's not very long, and it is very enlightening. Especially, the part where Gamer0 steps in and corrects Tao. Heh, I would have searched for that thread sooner but I didn't remember that the WizO in that thread was Tao.

 

[Tao]

Now that I finally got my subscriptions back on the WotC boards I can link this thread: http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=1052178

It specifically deals with threads being deleted with no explanation.
One of the stars of the above thread is Tao who has featured prominently in this thread. Read and enjoy. It's not very long, and it is very enlightening. Especially, the part where Gamer0 steps in and corrects Tao. Heh, I would have searched for that thread sooner but I didn't remember that the WizO in that thread was Tao.

The CM/CS debate on the WotC forums is a matter not at all related to this issue. It's fairly public record that I have disagreed with it in the past, but again, I don't have the advantage of setting policy. Once a decision is made, I have to follow along with it, even if I am privately trying to find a more adequate solution and change the policy through the appropriate channels (and behind closed doors).

In the case of that particular incident my only real mistake was to respond to the issue publicly rather than privately with WyvernSting. However, I figured that it was something worth commenting on publicly, since he made the thread before I was able to send out an email to him. Once we discussed the matter privately, there didn't seem to be any lingering problems. I could be wrong. Maybe Wyvern really does hate me. The only way to find out would be to ask.

Given the very public nature of my comments, I can hardly be accused of deleting threads without explanation. Being a little quick on the trigger? In this case, perhaps I was. But I ALWAYS respond to any concerns anyone might have about my moderation, whether in public or in private. Feel free to keep digging.



Can we get a thread name change to: "Kick Tao and Dig Up All His Dirty Laundry"?

 

[The Highway Man]

http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=1052178

Enlightening. Like not deleting negative threads but merging them to the "First Impressions" megathread no one will read because of its length.

Like after reading the core rules and running the game you'd still have just "first impressions" that deserve to be dumped into the anonymous crowd because your opinion happens to not reflect WotC's marketing wishes... sorry, "policy".

Way to "drown the fish", so to speak.

 

[Michael Morris]

While lurking, I happened across this particular thread and figured I could perhaps add something worthwhile. Michael (and another poster, Wayne, I believe) had already pretty well explained the majority of the problem, so I figured I would just confirm what he had said. However, I was also a little bit offended at some of the insults he made concerning customer service and forum moderation... both jobs that I currently do. Considering that he had worked, at least indirectly, with the WizO team in the past I was surprised and a little bit hurt by what he had said.

@Tao That was not my intent and I apologize. When I referred to customer service I was referring to the policy the boards now have of requiring users to either call into customer service or use a cust-serv email. The appearance this gave to me is that the wizo's have been cut out of customer service.

The remark about deleting posts was uncalled for especially since I know it can't be done and there be any possibility of getting away with it. This said I have read a huge number of complaints on the matter (and who is GamerZero anyway?) so I wonder if someone has gone rogue.

@Everyone Else - Nothing Tao has said merits the amount of flak he has received. I would like to underscore what Piratecat stated earlier - lay off the personal attacks please.

 

[Bump2daWiza]

The wizard boards are down again.