I dont know about you guys, but last years cyclone threads were way out of hand. We had 100's and potentially thousands of people signing up for the weatherzone forums during the busy peroid this year which was of course Cyclone Anthony Severe tropical cyclone Yasi.

As i understand, 99% of the users that have been on here for years can definatly say it was a joke. The forums went from being a place to discuss meterology as a pretty close knit group, to becoming pretty much a online chat room.

Just some points to raise after reading through the Yasi thread.
1. Most of the users that came onto the Yasi thread could have gotten there information from the Bureaus Cyclone warnings and advices !!!
2. Most of the people posting that night have not posted since???? So they have absolutly no contribution to the forums what so ever.
3. new people that were signing up had the balls to attack other users that have been on here alot longer than they have.

I just am wanting to know, ( mods ) has anything been done this year to kind of prevent what happend last season??? Has the issue been brought up, im sure the admins must have a fair idea about what happend...

I know i cant be calling shots, but just some ideas that may actuaslly help the forums.
1. Can weatherzone limit the amount of posts someone makes a day as a new user?
2. Can weatherzone have a system where new users cannot post but can only hover over the forums and read during very busy times.
3. Can there be a new in the Cyclone threads that a USER can only submitt a post if they make there posts more than 100 words long??? This would add to the discussion and cut out the Facebook type chat.

Im not by any way trying to be a hero and put the blame on other people, im just worried that the old days off coming onto weatherzone, having a laugh, while also getting very useful information during cyclonic peroids may have passed?

I think i talk for a few people on here that if this years threads are as terrible as last seasons, im not going to be contributing.

Good points Trav. The mods/admin have been discussing what can/should be done since the 'Yasi debacle' but due to the technical limitations of the forum, there is not much (if any) that can be done to alter the framework of the forum to limit new users from posting etc.

Stronger moderating during these events will happen. Instant bannings will happen. Less leeway will be given. These steps alone will hopefully keep things flowing more smoothly than last season.

I'm hoping (although I know a lot of people aren't) that we won't see another Yasi type event for some time and I also hope that people have learnt from the Yasi thread(s) just how horrible and unpleasant things can become if people don't show some basic self control.

The fun in posting on Weatherzone is still there - it's what you guys make of the forum that gives it it's 'personality' - it's still very much a place to relax and talk about the weather.

is it possible to have a thread just for paying users? Or just permission's given in advance by Mods based on past contribution? New users can still read but cant post. i.e read only.

Good point Poncho- but dont we have to be a PAID MEMBER to actually post in the forums?
I- for once- didnt post much during the Yasi buildup- I just knew that my comments were not being heard. Once i put a genuine comment ( and not some trash that was being said by over excited noobs)- it was lost- because a dozen other pages of nonsence was immediately added.
All i can think of for now- is have2 threads for such an event- a "General Banter Thread" and a " Technical Discussion Thread". Perhaps if Weatherzone monitors the "technical" thread like a hawk- and delete/ ban any new member who ihnores, say, 2 or 3 warnings?
I too was gobsmacked at how many new "experts" appeared during yasi- and stuff like " oh- look at the last frame- its moving to the SW"- and because some stupid person who just had no idea what he/ she was talking about- all the other new/ inexperienced people thought it was "the end of the world" and panicked.
Still- as others have mentioned ( think it was Trav) - where are all the THOUSANDS of people who joined during Yasi? Perhaps if someone doesnt contribute in the forums for say- 6 months- delete their account?
Anyway- just my 2 cents worth!

But it has to be taken into account that not all new members are inexperienced. Some are knowledgeable and shouldn't be grouped with the ones spilling crap and making uneducated guesses.

I think most of the time it works well the general discussion and technical threads, but Yasi was an exception and alot of people were in panic mode.

Hi guys,
I'm one of those members who doesn't contribute a whole lot to discussion but reads with genuine interest and a desire to learn. Don't some of the suggestions being made actually act to remove the opportunity for people like myself to ask questions and to feel included on the odd occasion where I feel confident enough to offer a comment?
Just sayin'
Lea

I agree Ree. Just because someone is 'new' to WZ does not mean they are new to weather. Can't punish everyone for a few idiots with no manners or self control.

I think the mods have the best solution with tougher monitoring and less leeway etc. Make a few examples and the rest get the message pretty quick. There's a collectors forum where the mod posts a very succinct message whenever he bans someone explaining exactly what rules they broke. He doesn't tolerate trolls and rudeness and the forum is a nice place to be.

I also have to say that even the best moderation in the world will come to nothing if the rest of us just sit back and let people get away with bullying. There is no reason to be frightened to speak up ourselves if we see someone being a jerk. I've done it and I always try to support anyone else by adding my comments when I see them trying to pull a bully into line.

In addition, i think that part of the problem last year was when Yasi was bearing down on us in Tsv and EVERYONE had to batten down and take of their families, including the mods. In circumstances like that no-one can expect a forum to be monitored. The choice then is to leave it go and hope for the best or shut it down for a few hours.

One suggestion I have is, again, taken from the collectors forum where there is a counter next to your avitar to say X thanked X times in X posts. So people get acknowledged for helping someone out and being friendly.

as far as Im aware, you only need to be registered to post but not a paid rego. Im simply suggesting paid priveledges to post in certain topics, OR, you need to apply to the mods to gain access. Apllication takes into account user history, background knowledge of general weather by yourself and submit reason why you think you should have priveldges to post in certain topics.

This way, everyone has a fair chance of being able to join in... if its proven your not going to post silly questions or add unuseful comments.

The admin on this or any other forum has the ability to set up any number of user permissions including access to a thread/forum based on post count vs date/time of becoming a member. i.e. some troll joins at 11.00am and starts posting rubbish 3 minutes later can be counteracted by making him/her post a minimum number of times in threads BEFORE they are allowed to post in the Breaking Cyclone of the Century Thread or whatever. It is standard practices in a lot of forums (Whirlpool for example - you can't post in the Lounge until you have 100 posts or whatever it is this week)and if i wanted to it would take me less than 3 minutes to enact this on my own forum.

There has to be a balance made between making it difficult for the trolls vs enabling legitimate users and I whole heartedly agree that more mods is part of the answer as well as enacting a seperate forum for general information about cyclones that covers the whole of Australia that will keep the same question being asked every 3rd bloody post. I almost gave up in frustration and in the end sent members PM's or emails with answers to their questions which where being swamped with the nonsense which ended up being the Yasi general thread.

If people had a seperate resource such as the forum I suggested yesterday they could access and a link at the top of the thread title to point them there it would reduce the amount of drivel that was being asked.

I will have an example of what I am talking about available for anyone to see in the next 24 to 48 hours on my forum and will provide a link when I have finsihed creating it.

I am not sure how much the forums can be played around with but a system that may work would include a MODS post every 20 posts that is programmed in to appear in heavy usage. Something saying along the lines of:

"Due to the serious nature of this weather event, the moderators at Weatherzone wish to inform everyone that discussions on this topic need to remain on topic and relevant to the system being monitored. All posts will be moderated heavily and removed if necessary. All other talk can be continued in ....... thread. We hope you understand this request as this forum is a primary resource of information for those in risk areas."

If its popping up every 20 posts it must get across to people soon enough and the mods would not have to police it too much. If peope decide to read the oneliners in the linked thread its up to them. But I know from past events its near impossible to keep up with once it starts flowing. There could even be a link to Weatherzones Facebook page to direct alot of the people who love facebook there. All 3 avenues though would split the information, direct the people to the places they are familiar with and ease the pressures on everyones angryness in the heat of the moment cause they can be directed to an area which suits them better. Additional to these 3 avenues would also be the technical thread aswell. So even more levels of information transfer to people. Anyway my thoughts. I love a good QLD cyclone on these forums but as everyone says its a bit chaotic trying to sift through everything whens its 'game on'

Maybe also Weatherzone might need to upgrade and get a few more MODS during peak season or atleast have some as part time MODS in high usage events. Probably based in QLD and know the ins and outs of the forums. I guess the current MODS would know who would be suitable and others who would be deleting every second post. lol.

Theres an idea!!
Perhaps during severe weather events some of the more experienced users such as Nitso, Inclement Weather, TravDog ( yeah mate- youre famous- you were on TV!! ) can step up as a " Subbie Mod" or whatever you wish to call it. As far as I am aware- theres only a handful of MODS on weatherzone- and during an event such as another YASI or Brisbane Flood- they would probably be out doing more important stuff ( especially if they were in the immediate danger area).
Also I guess MODS cant watch over general banter in the forums 24/7- they DO need to eat, sleep, watch "Days of our lives", catch up on their cross- stitching ( or whatever hobbies they may have! )

during large events we do put other mods from other parts on the forum on to cover the tropics. that already happens, infact some of the volunteers are still tropical mods now.
one problem we did face was that i was working my normal job all through the week and night of Yasi, and other tropical mods lost power and were unable to do anything.
putting part timers that are local into modding causes the same issue, trav and nitso are likely to be chasing and locals are likely to lose power.

We (mods/admin) are throwing a few more ideas around at the moment, so hopefully we will have something in place soon...

Some of the ideas you mention SBT are being looked into..

What about the new users that join that have there posts banned by mods. But the. In the thread started arguing with the mods as to why there bad posts were banned? Were these people permanently banned?

I would say that 70 percent off people in panic mode were not even in the danger zone? People in north Queensland who actually were comin into the thread for information were getting lost in other peoples panic who were not even going to be affected by the cyclone!!!! That makes me Angry

I'm not sure Trav but from my understanding a lot were permanently banned.

This is exactly why I do not post anymore in any of the threads. Even though I am not all that knowledgable in weather. I joined early last wet season so i could learn some more (even went out and bought a rain gauge). Now I don't even bother, as I found that even though i didn't contribute much and only read what was going on, I couldn't stand that utter garbage that was rolling around in there. It has put me off from posting and find that with the up coming wet season I might miss out on talking and chatting with others who also enjoy the rain and storms that the season brings.

There are currently 79 guests online. I was wondering if they are thinking what l am thinking but are just to shy or polite to say what they are thinking about this discussion.
Is this a forum for the 'experts' or the general public?
If someone says its 20 deg c and windy at their place during the quiet times but can't say it in the busy times?
Sounds a bit 'toffee nosed' to me.

There was a technical thread during YASI , so why not just use it ( experienced members). The general thread is for all members . Is it not?
It was a forum like weatherzone that got me interested in studying the weather. From beginner to more knowledgeable. It takes time to learn and you have to start somewhere.
As for word limits. I have read many posts by the experts well over 500words.
If you want an expert and general public thread then make one!
They will all get read anyway.

EDIT: Actually make that 73 guests. 6 have just left.
Point made!

This thread is becoming more and more interesting.

I hope you do contribute during the coming wet season mcjody and enjoy being part of the forum.

Even though I have only been part of this forum for this year, i have been a member of Weatherzone for about 10 years and a constant user of BoM since it first published on the web. As Ree said, grouping all new users into the "asking dumb questions" group would be a shame.

When I was reading the Yasi thread, i skimmed over the bullshit and read the interesting stuff - it is quite easy to do that and the crap didn’t affect me at all. The Yasi event was extraordinary and it did generate extraordinary behaviour.

Most regular people who contribute to the forum are attracted to the power of Mother Nature and enjoy sharing the experiences of weather events. If some silly comments are posted, don’t let it affect you. You can just choose to ignore it. Be cool.