I miss Jo.

[JLives]

I suspect it's a thankless job and Management puts many restrictions on the forums. Some good some not so much so.

jo seemed to be under a lot of pressure and needed a break. Over all I liked her and hope she is doing well.

There's no restrictions on the forums from management. I do know why Jo parted ways but won't post it out if respect. It was time. We modded this forum for over ten years, it ran it's course.

[Bsuds]

There's no restrictions on the forums from management.

That's not what I have been told by jo and other mods but you might know better.

[JLives]

The exception would be not allowing links from local competition which I think is silly.

[Lady tehMa]

I can honestly say how can I miss someone I didn’t know personally, be Jo or ferri its just words on a computer/tablet screen.

FB era has changed the whole idea of connection, I have group friends and we don’t connect via a device. We connect in getting together, now last number of months there been no hi-5s.

btw I sure both of head of this forum are nice people in person, so thumbs up for each one

There are people I connect with in person, and people that I have never met. Some people are best as friends online. For me, forum friends are nice. I don't often feel the need to meet in person, though I have made exceptions.

[Bsuds]

The exception would be not allowing links from local competition which I think is silly.

And negative comments about local business.

[LANDM]

And psychotic personal threats. Of course management puts expectations for how the forum is run.

[Jo]

A friend sent me a link to this thread, and I'm glad he did. It was nice to read the comments, and weird but nice to be here.

To address a few of the comments, first up: whereas I have no idea how it works now, management put almost no restrictions on how I ran the board (so those who hated the way I ran things, sorry, it really was me). They trusted my judgement and my rules, and over the years there was very little contact with them about anything. My basic goal here was to be fair, keep things running smoothly, keep it fun but not out of control, and structure things to reflect the values of its membership. Sometimes I succeeded, sometimes I did not.

I also want to be clear that in regards to my departure, very few know the 'real story' of what happened, and none of them are on this board. The story is not particularly exciting, but that is, of course, where gossip comes in, it spices up a boring story.

When I left the editing, writing and news comments part of the job, I was asked to continue administrating the board. I declined, because I was burned out after so many years of doing it. I recommended Terri because she is one of the steadiest people I know, and I knew she would be a much better person to run the board than this crabby old bag. You could not be in better hands. The board really was long overdue for a change, and so was I.

After leaving Castanet, I continued to work with Nick Frost for awhile, but in the end I pulled the plug because other opportunities presented themselves. It was a pleasant parting of ways with Nick, and we keep in touch from time to time. He was a good boss, easy to get along with, and a genius for what he has accomplished with Castanet.

Finally, it seems that some are unhappy with the direction the board has taken, but that is kind of the mantra of any discussion board. In fact it could be the board's slogan: 'Castanet Discussion Board: Used to be good. Now sucks'. Thing is, it never sucks, the dynamics simply shift as old members leave and new ones join. There's a sort of uneasy vibe until people get to know each other, but they will. And be grateful, because at least there is debate here. Social media (ie facebook), is nothing but an echo chamber of like-minded people who only want to hear confirmation of what they already think to be true. Boring.

Remember, too, that times have changed, there is a heightened level of political correctness and trigger-awareness that is getting to a point where an opinion contrary to the current narrative is almost forbidden because it might offend someone. That's tricky on a discussion board, and it must be hell for Terri and the mods to handle. In some ways it is good (more kindness expected) but in most ways it is bad (repression of free-think, welcome to 1984). Either way, it is a reality and we all must learn to work within the parameters both here and in the 'real' world.

Ultimately, each person on this board can help set the tone here. If you want the board to be a certain way, be the example and don't react to those who aren't a good example. Oops, and just like that, I'm in default lecture mode. Never mind. Carry on.

And thanks again for remembering me.

[gardengirl]

A friend sent me a link to this thread, and I'm glad he did. It was nice to read the comments, and weird but nice to be here.

To address a few of the comments, first up: whereas I have no idea how it works now, management put almost no restrictions on how I ran the board (so those who hated the way I ran things, sorry, it really was me). They trusted my judgement and my rules, and over the years there was very little contact with them about anything. My basic goal here was to be fair, keep things running smoothly, keep it fun but not out of control, and structure things to reflect the values of its membership. Sometimes I succeeded, sometimes I did not.

I also want to be clear that in regards to my departure, very few know the 'real story' of what happened, and none of them are on this board. The story is not particularly exciting, but that is, of course, where gossip comes in, it spices up a boring story.

When I left the editing, writing and news comments part of the job, I was asked to continue administrating the board. I declined, because I was burned out after so many years of doing it. I recommended Terri because she is one of the steadiest people I know, and I knew she would be a much better person to run the board than this crabby old bag. You could not be in better hands. The board really was long overdue for a change, and so was I.

After leaving Castanet, I continued to work with Nick Frost for awhile, but in the end I pulled the plug because other opportunities presented themselves. It was a pleasant parting of ways with Nick, and we keep in touch from time to time. He was a good boss, easy to get along with, and a genius for what he has accomplished with Castanet.

Finally, it seems that some are unhappy with the direction the board has taken, but that is kind of the mantra of any discussion board. In fact it could be the board's slogan: 'Castanet Discussion Board: Used to be good. Now sucks'. Thing is, it never sucks, the dynamics simply shift as old members leave and new ones join. There's a sort of uneasy vibe until people get to know each other, but they will. And be grateful, because at least there is debate here. Social media (ie facebook), is nothing but an echo chamber of like-minded people who only want to hear confirmation of what they already think to be true. Boring.

Remember, too, that times have changed, there is a heightened level of political correctness and trigger-awareness that is getting to a point where an opinion contrary to the current narrative is almost forbidden because it might offend someone. That's tricky on a discussion board, and it must be hell for Terri and the mods to handle. In some ways it is good (more kindness expected) but in most ways it is bad (repression of free-think, welcome to 1984). Either way, it is a reality and we all must learn to work within the parameters both here and in the 'real' world.

Ultimately, each person on this board can help set the tone here. If you want the board to be a certain way, be the example and don't react to those who aren't a good example. Oops, and just like that, I'm in default lecture mode. Never mind. Carry on.

And thanks again for remembering me.

Thank you so much for stopping in. As an old-timer here, I am missing a lot of people who used to be regulars.
I don't follow as much as I used to but I have found that the overall "flavour" of the forum is different. However, things change, that is the way it is.

Nice to see you Jo. Hope you are doing well.

[Lady tehMa]

It IS so good to see you :)

Remember, too, that times have changed, there is a heightened level of political correctness and trigger-awareness that is getting to a point where an opinion contrary to the current narrative is almost forbidden because it might offend someone. That's tricky on a discussion board, and it must be hell for Terri and the mods to handle. In some ways it is good (more kindness expected) but in most ways it is bad (repression of free-think, welcome to 1984). Either way, it is a reality and we all must learn to work within the parameters both here and in the 'real' world.

This is absolutely, without reservation true and why I have been involved in Castanet less and less. There are a few threads I haunt, but not nearly as often.

I'm finding the polarization of . . . well, everything difficult to deal with.

[Fancy]

It IS so good to see you :)

I feel the same. It doesn't matter if I agreed or not with the rules as they were enforced but there WERE rules that one needed to abide by (house rules) and that was the bottom line. And move on with discussions and don't take it personally. I'm not on here near as much as I used to be but there are a few old timers that I read with interest. Wish I had taken the leap to meet up with people in person years ago but being able to put a face to a name is very special. Thanks Jo for taking the time to come back and say "hi". Miss you too

[Jo]

Funny that seeing the names above (hi you guys!) makes it seem as though I never left, in a way. In another way, it all seems so alien now that I have forgotten how to do some basic things, like finding the user control panel (stop laughing, and dammit, I did find it in the end, lol).

At any rate, I forgot to mention something in my earlier post. Someone referenced the get-togethers, those seem so long ago now. I never arranged them nor did I attend any, but they were a good thing. Remember the fence that was built to help a long ago member keep his dogs? That was cool.

Lot of fun here back in the day but the thing is it can be fun again for those still here. It's a matter of getting to know the new members, finding that common ground. It'll still be different but it can be just as much fun. I remember very clearly how tricky it is when first posting to a new forum, it's weird and all the regulars seem weird and so you just sort of fake it until you make it. So, cut those noobs some slack, you old-timers, help 'em feel welcome, make 'em feel safe, and THEN kick their arses, haha.

[dogspoiler]

I miss Nebula

[Glacier]

I miss Nebula

LOL!

Hey I Think, there was a GTG in Vernon last year.

[Urbane]

A friend sent me a link to this thread, and I'm glad he did. It was nice to read the comments, and weird but nice to be here.

To address a few of the comments, first up: whereas I have no idea how it works now, management put almost no restrictions on how I ran the board (so those who hated the way I ran things, sorry, it really was me). They trusted my judgement and my rules, and over the years there was very little contact with them about anything. My basic goal here was to be fair, keep things running smoothly, keep it fun but not out of control, and structure things to reflect the values of its membership. Sometimes I succeeded, sometimes I did not.

I also want to be clear that in regards to my departure, very few know the 'real story' of what happened, and none of them are on this board. The story is not particularly exciting, but that is, of course, where gossip comes in, it spices up a boring story.

When I left the editing, writing and news comments part of the job, I was asked to continue administrating the board. I declined, because I was burned out after so many years of doing it. I recommended Terri because she is one of the steadiest people I know, and I knew she would be a much better person to run the board than this crabby old bag. You could not be in better hands. The board really was long overdue for a change, and so was I.

After leaving Castanet, I continued to work with Nick Frost for awhile, but in the end I pulled the plug because other opportunities presented themselves. It was a pleasant parting of ways with Nick, and we keep in touch from time to time. He was a good boss, easy to get along with, and a genius for what he has accomplished with Castanet.

Finally, it seems that some are unhappy with the direction the board has taken, but that is kind of the mantra of any discussion board. In fact it could be the board's slogan: 'Castanet Discussion Board: Used to be good. Now sucks'. Thing is, it never sucks, the dynamics simply shift as old members leave and new ones join. There's a sort of uneasy vibe until people get to know each other, but they will. And be grateful, because at least there is debate here. Social media (ie facebook), is nothing but an echo chamber of like-minded people who only want to hear confirmation of what they already think to be true. Boring.

Remember, too, that times have changed, there is a heightened level of political correctness and trigger-awareness that is getting to a point where an opinion contrary to the current narrative is almost forbidden because it might offend someone. That's tricky on a discussion board, and it must be hell for Terri and the mods to handle. In some ways it is good (more kindness expected) but in most ways it is bad (repression of free-think, welcome to 1984). Either way, it is a reality and we all must learn to work within the parameters both here and in the 'real' world.

Ultimately, each person on this board can help set the tone here. If you want the board to be a certain way, be the example and don't react to those who aren't a good example. Oops, and just like that, I'm in default lecture mode. Never mind. Carry on.

And thanks again for remembering me.

Very well said, Jo. One of the great ironies of our time is that as we bend over backwards to be tolerant we've become incredibly intolerant in the process. As you say, we're getting to the point (maybe already there?) when an opinion that doesn't jibe with the current narrative is forbidden. That makes the job of the moderator a near impossible one.

I also agree with you that it's up to the posters on this board to set the tone. It's up to us to ignore the trolls, to concentrate on those who are participating meaningfully, and of course to always take the high road. You did great and ferri continues the tradition. I have the utmost respect for you both. Great to hear from you, Jo!

[Glacier]

I just noticed Jo commented in this thread! hi Jo!