Staff /+ forum usernames

[Richie]

Hey,
A while back you guys had a massive thread on forum usernames in relation to staff. I'm just curious would a habbo username on/off feature not be a useful plugin to implement / develop. I'm not sure if it'd be far too difficult to implement / develop for a forum that already has thousands of users but I thought I'd suggest it anyway just to see responses from users who are familiar with the production of plugins for vb to see if this would work or not.

Something like this during registration:

http://www.cublix.com/s/6N05tnY.png


Then you could have a feature within the user cp that allows members to toggle usernames on and off. So for example I would be registered under two IDs (sort of) Yet and Richie. Currently it's set to toggle off but if toggle username was turned on people would see my username as yet.

[scottish]

I can't see how it would work practically.

Would make searching more difficult and various other stuff too.

[Richie]

I can't see how it would work practically.

Would make searching more difficult and various other stuff too.

Ah sure the search function doesn't work anyway :P

I'd imagine it'd be hard to implement but would give the staff the option of having a different username / solve the problem.

Again it's just a suggestion to see if this could actually logically work.

[scottish]

It will once it's rebuilt :P

[Chippiewill]

I'm not sure what this achieves. Users can already set their habbo username and we can already set up vbulletin to display it anywhere.

[Kyle]

would take up more available usernames than is necessary. glad this has been brought back up though considering the vote showed overwhelming support for community staff to be allowed to have any forum name and nothing has been done yet an idea polled (REP) with a majority of two people against it was immediately dismissed.

what's going on about community staff and forum names Wispur; Shonly;

[sexpot]

would take up more available usernames than is necessary. glad this has been brought back up though considering the vote showed overwhelming support for community staff to be allowed to have any forum name and nothing has been done yet an idea polled (REP) with a majority of two people against it was immediately dismissed.

what's going on about community staff and forum names Wispur; Shonly;

I asked Chris about it and he said that because the "I don't care" option won out they're not going to "waste time changing it"

[scottish]

Maybe if we're polling obvious stuff before doing it, we should poll to fire Wispur and replace him with someone who actually wants to do their job instead of sitting back and doing nothing at any suggestion that's given?

just a suggestion (obv gna get ignored, because it's a suggestion)

[e5]

Could link he search so whichever name you put in brings up searches for both names in that ID. Either way, there has to be a proof you are that Habbo before you're allowed the name so it would be difficult. On phone btw so not read other replies, soz if already said

[Phil]

Yeah I don't really see the point in this for reasons stated by other people. It wouldn't really solve the problem of staff not wanting their Habbo names?

[Chippiewill]

Could link he search so whichever name you put in brings up searches for both names in that ID. Either way, there has to be a proof you are that Habbo before you're allowed the name so it would be difficult. On phone btw so not read other replies, soz if already said

Not sure how many times I will need to say this, but you can already search by someone's habbo name via the memberlist.

[Chris]

would take up more available usernames than is necessary. glad this has been brought back up though considering the vote showed overwhelming support for community staff to be allowed to have any forum name and nothing has been done yet an idea polled (REP) with a majority of two people against it was immediately dismissed.

what's going on about community staff and forum names Wispur; Shonly;

That poll was ran out of interest as it was something we were discussing. We ultimately decided against it.


Maybe if we're polling obvious stuff before doing it, we should poll to fire Wispur and replace him with someone who actually wants to do their job instead of sitting back and doing nothing at any suggestion that's given?

just a suggestion (obv gna get ignored, because it's a suggestion)

Rather than constantly making snide comments, why don't you make an official complaint to Matt and Jin? You're continuous moaning about me in public threads won't achieve anything.

[sexpot]

Would you have decided against it even if yes had been the majority? Wispur;

[Chris]

Would you have decided against it even if yes had been the majority? Wispur;

Possibly. It was just to see how interested people would be if it was changed and it turns out that most people don't really care either way. For that reason, we decided that changing it would be more of a disadvantage than an advantage.

[e5]

Not sure how many times I will need to say this, but you can already search by someone's habbo name via the memberlist.
Sorry hadn't read the replies as on my phone. I guess if people stick their habbo name in their profile it's all good!

[lemons]

That poll was ran out of interest as it was something we were discussing. We ultimately decided against it.


why

[scottish]

Possibly. It was just to see how interested people would be if it was changed and it turns out that most people don't really care either way. For that reason, we decided that changing it would be more of a disadvantage than an advantage.

How so?

If most people didn't care, and the only logical argument was coming for the people in support of the change, then it's more of a disadvantage than an advantage to ignore it and do nothing.

The only disadvantage here is you'd actually have to figure out how to do something, or get someone else to do it if you're incapable.

[sexpot]

-.-

un*******believable

[scottish]

So it was essentially 'I didn't like it, but I done a poll to see what people though, and regardless was going to say no' lol

[Chris]

How so?

If most people didn't care, and the only logical argument was coming for the people in support of the change, then it's more of a disadvantage than an advantage to ignore it and do nothing.

The only disadvantage here is you'd actually have to figure out how to do something, or get someone else to do it if you're incapable.

It's a disadvantage because we then have to keep a manual log of the Habbo names for our community staff. It's convenient having it as it is and makes it would make no sense to go and change it if we have very little to gain from doing so.

[scottish]

oh I thought Kyle mentioned rep, i don't care about community staff names.

[Kyle]

Possibly. It was just to see how interested people would be if it was changed and it turns out that most people don't really care either way. For that reason, we decided that changing it would be more of a disadvantage than an advantage.
what the bloody hell is this nonsense lmfao the vote was 16/16 between those that 'don't care' and those that stated that they WOULD become staff because of it. that's against only 6 votes that said they wouldn't, who, if you read the thread, are either already staff or simply have no desire to become staff regardless.

the arguments against it were that it might become difficult to find or keep track of staff - chippiewill pointed out multiple times that that was not the case.

16 people would probably double the current active community staff pool and you've denied it because what? some people it doesn't apply to don't care about it? kk.

strongly advise that you avoid community polls if you aren't going to take their results and comments within their designated threads into account when making decisions.

[Chris]

what the bloody hell is this nonsense lmfao the vote was 16/16 between those that 'don't care' and those that stated that they WOULD become staff because of it. that's against only 6 votes that said they wouldn't, who, if you read the thread, are either already staff or simply have no desire to become staff regardless.

the arguments against it were that it might become difficult to find or keep track of staff - chippiewill pointed out multiple times that that was not the case.

16 people would probably double the current active community staff pool and you've denied it because what? some people it doesn't apply to don't care about it? kk.

strongly advise that you avoid community polls if you aren't going to take their results and comments within their designated threads into account when making decisions.

Right, look at this:

Voter 1 = Manager, name should be Habbo matched. (It needs changing)
Voter 2 = Manager but Habbo name not currently required.
Voter 3 = Manager but Habbo name not currently required.
Voter 4 = Staff, Habbo name not currently required.
Voter 5 = Has been staff previously. Has Habbo name anyway.
Voter 6 = Is community staff.
Voter 7 = Has been community staff in the past
Voter 8 = Is community staff
Voter 9 = Has been community staff in the past
Voter 10 = Is communtiy staff
Voter 11 = Is community staff
Voter 12 = Has been community staff in the past
Voter 13 = Is community staff
Voter 14 = Is community staff
Voter 15 = Is community staff
Voter 16 = Has been community staff


8 of the 16 voters are already community staff that are using their Habbo names.
5 of the 16 voters have been community staff in the past and have used their Habbo names. One of which still goes by their Habbo name.
A mere 3 of the 16 voters have never been community staff or are not currently using their Habbo name.


So my points are this:


If 8 people who votes yes already use their Habbo name, then what was the point in voting?
if 5 of the people who voted yes didn't have a problem with using their Habbo name in the past, what is the problem now?


I'm sure you'll have something to say about that, but thats one of the reasons it was decided against.

[Kyle]

Right, look at this:

Voter 1 = Manager, name should be Habbo matched. (It needs changing)
Voter 2 = Manager but Habbo name not currently required.
Voter 3 = Manager but Habbo name not currently required.
Voter 4 = Staff, Habbo name not currently required.
Voter 5 = Has been staff previously. Has Habbo name anyway.
Voter 6 = Is community staff.
Voter 7 = Has been community staff in the past
Voter 8 = Is community staff
Voter 9 = Has been community staff in the past
Voter 10 = Is communtiy staff
Voter 11 = Is community staff
Voter 12 = Has been community staff in the past
Voter 13 = Is community staff
Voter 14 = Is community staff
Voter 15 = Is community staff
Voter 16 = Has been community staff


8 of the 16 voters are already community staff that are using their Habbo names.
5 of the 16 voters have been community staff in the past and have used their Habbo names. One of which still goes by their Habbo name.
A mere 3 of the 16 voters have never been community staff or are not currently using their Habbo name.


So my points are this:


If 8 people who votes yes already use their Habbo name, then what was the point in voting?
if 5 of the people who voted yes didn't have a problem with using their Habbo name in the past, what is the problem now?


I'm sure you'll have something to say about that, but thats one of the reasons it was decided against.
This data has a lot less meaning unless it is presented alongside data of the no and don't care voters.

I don't believe that using the vote as some sort of recruitment drive was your intended purpose, it was - or should have been - to gather a consensus on what should be done about a long-redundant rule. Nevertheless, I'll highlight the fact that people who have been community staff in the past may be dissuaded from contributing further because of the obligation to change their name, that the staff member that voted yes who doesn't currently have to change his name used the vote as a suggestion that a more hands-on community-based role would be more appealing should he be allowed to keep his current name, and that the people who are already community staff voted yes because they want the freedom to express themselves on the forum with less association to their presentation of themselves within the hotel.

Could you provide the stats of the other votes

and you say "one of the reasons" but "what's the point voting if you're already using your habbo name?" is not, in my eyes, an actual reason. so what are your other arguments for keeping the rule in place, I wonder?

[lemons]

http://38.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m063ud676F1qefq2jo1_500.gif

Edited by Calum0812 (Forum Super Moderator): Please don't post pointlessly, thanks

[Chris]

This data has a lot less meaning unless it is presented alongside data of the no and don't care voters.

I don't believe that using the vote as some sort of recruitment drive was your intended purpose, it was - or should have been - to gather a consensus on what should be done about a long-redundant rule. Nevertheless, I'll highlight the fact that people who have been community staff in the past may be dissuaded from contributing further because of the obligation to change their name, that the staff member that voted yes who doesn't currently have to change his name used the vote as a suggestion that a more hands-on community-based role would be more appealing should he be allowed to keep his current name, and that the people who are already community staff voted yes because they want the freedom to express themselves on the forum with less association to their presentation of themselves within the hotel.

Could you provide the stats of the other votes

and you say "one of the reasons" but "what's the point voting if you're already using your habbo name?" is not, in my eyes, an actual reason. so what are your other arguments for keeping the rule in place, I wonder?

Well no it doesn't need to be compared whatsoever. We're purely looking for potential additions to the community departments so we're uninterested in those who aren't going to have their minds changed by something as trivial as a username.

[Kyle]

Well no it doesn't need to be compared whatsoever. We're purely looking for potential additions to the community departments so we're uninterested in those who aren't going to have their minds changed by something as trivial as a username.
You're the one trivialising the issue. Why should somebody be barred from joining a department because of "something as trivial as a username"? :P My request for a comparison was to see how many of the no and don't care voters are (community) staff so would also not, in your view, contribute to the end result.

You yourself stated that 8 of the yes voters voted so because they were put off becoming community staff because of the rule. The fact that people have conformed to the rule in the past does not mean that they agreed with it, it was simply a minor issue that could be overcome. This isn't about it being a huge obstacle, it's about the impact of the potential removal of the rule on staff numbers. No obstacle is better than a small one. A factor of 8 would double the current events team and offer a large boost to other community departments. It's not an insignificant number. Plus there's the other 8 community staff who might be more inclined to stick with their roles if they have just that little more freedom around the forum.

[Chris]

You're the one trivialising the issue. Why should somebody be barred from joining a department because of "something as trivial as a username"? :P My request for a comparison was to see how many of the no and don't care voters are (community) staff so would also not, in your view, contribute to the end result.

You yourself stated that 8 of the yes voters voted so because they were put off becoming community staff because of the rule. The fact that people have conformed to the rule in the past does not mean that they agreed with it, it was simply a minor issue that could be overcome. This isn't about it being a huge obstacle, it's about the impact of the potential removal of the rule on staff numbers. No obstacle is better than a small one. A factor of 8 would double the current events team and offer a large boost to other community departments. It's not an insignificant number. Plus there's the other 8 community staff who might be more inclined to stick with their roles if they have just that little more freedom around the forum.

Well yes I am because thats all it is. It's a trivial issue that really does not matter and has not mattered for the many years it has been in place. I'm not against making changes if it makes sense to do so, but in this case it does not make sense to have to rework a system that already works well. We would still need to keep track of their Habbo names and having it as it is now not only makes it convenient for us, but convenient for other members too.

The majority of the yes voters are already community staff so it wouldn't affect them. 5 of those yes votes have been staff in the past, so they obviously don't have a problem with joining a community department under the current rules. Those 5 people might prefer to use their own name, but I don't think it would prevent them from joining again if they have already done so in the past.

I'm really just struggling to see the benefits of changing it. Yes we MIGHT gain a few staff members, but it isn't a magic fix for the underlying problems and it certainly isn't going to be enough to attract enough staff members that could make a change. After Christmas myself and Sho have agreed to make the events department our primary focus. We want to go to other fansites that have full timetables to find out exactly what they're doing that we're not and then we want to implement our findings into our own department.

I have posted the poll results below if you really want to go and get the stats for each member yourself, but I'm not going waste anymore time on fact finding when it isn't going to change my mind on this.

----------------------------------

Yes -:Undertaker:- bikini Drew e5 Evanora Expling Kyle lawrawrrr lemons lesbon mdport. Sharon Shonly Stealth XxZammyXx Zelda

No -Nick Empired FlyingJesus Inseriousity. MyChemicalRomance scottish

I don't care Arfar Chippiewill Chloe7355 CrazyLemurs Dolphins emoji Jssy Jurv Nick Paige. Plebings Richie Samanfa The Don Yupt Zealoux

[Phil]

Just going to weigh in here. It really doesn't make a difference to me because I'm not Community Staff.

I think for some departments having a requirement where your Habbo name is required makes complete sense and is very practical (this is coming from an ex-Events Manager point of view!!!). However, I think the only Departments that this is really necessary for are Events, HabboxLive and MAYBE HxHD.

I don't think changing it so nobody needs to have a Habbo name will really make that much of a difference. If it was changed it's not like a lot of members will suddenly become staff and if they did, it probably wouldn't be for very long.

[Kyle]

Well yes I am because thats all it is. It's a trivial issue that really does not matter and has not mattered for the many years it has been in place. I'm not against making changes if it makes sense to do so, but in this case it does not make sense to have to rework a system that already works well. We would still need to keep track of their Habbo names and having it as it is now not only makes it convenient for us, but convenient for other members too.

The majority of the yes voters are already community staff so it wouldn't affect them. 5 of those yes votes have been staff in the past, so they obviously don't have a problem with joining a community department under the current rules. Those 5 people might prefer to use their own name, but I don't think it would prevent them from joining again if they have already done so in the past.

I'm really just struggling to see the benefits of changing it. Yes we MIGHT gain a few staff members, but it isn't a magic fix for the underlying problems and it certainly isn't going to be enough to attract enough staff members that could make a change. After Christmas myself and Sho have agreed to make the events department our primary focus. We want to go to other fansites that have full timetables to find out exactly what they're doing that we're not and then we want to implement our findings into our own department.

I have posted the poll results below if you really want to go and get the stats for each member yourself, but I'm not going waste anymore time on fact finding when it isn't going to change my mind on this.

----------------------------------

Yes -:Undertaker:- bikini Drew e5 Evanora Expling Kyle lawrawrrr lemons lesbon mdport. Sharon Shonly Stealth XxZammyXx Zelda

No -Nick Empired FlyingJesus Inseriousity. MyChemicalRomance scottish

I don't care Arfar Chippiewill Chloe7355 CrazyLemurs Dolphins emoji Jssy Jurv Nick Paige. Plebings Richie Samanfa The Don Yupt Zealoux
It really is like getting blood from a stone trying to get a sensible response around here sometimes :P Though I'm not the biggest fan of the rule, I do appreciate the reasoning.

For the sake of argument I would like to point out, however, that half of the 6 no voters already use their habbo names and the other half either don't play habbo or have no desire to become members of staff based on their track record. :P Of the don't care vote, 12 already use their habbo names, one has never been staff and never will but has the habbo name of their usual forum name available to them should they wish to use it and the other three are either old and retired from community roles (but have pushed for the rule change in the past) or are too focused on other roles to consider joining another department.

+8
-0
/~2

Anybody au fait with the legal system will tell you that legislation is constantly added to or rectified in places where it has proven to be problematic in the past. Just because a problem can be overcome with the right motivation does not mean it does not exist. I realise that the decision has been made, I just think it was the wrong one. :)

[Phil]

You lot love tearing polls and stats apart