Question about Approving Comments

[Gregory Bartholomew]

I've been randomly checking the magazine's dashboard and approving comments
as part of my editor duties, but I saw one from Paul that has me wondering
if maybe I should be rejecting more of them.

Paul said something to the effect of "this isn't a support forum". And that
makes sense to me -- we don't necessarily want all the problems advertised
on the magazine. At the same time though, I have rejected some comments
just because they were low information, excessively critical/negative, and
repeated what had already been stated (in a better way) by others. But then
the commenter sent another comment complaining/asking why his/her comment
had been rejected. I think Red Hat's motto is "be open", so I'm not quite
sure how to handle some of these situations.

I think it would be a nice feature if there were an option to have the
rejection message say something like "Please direct support-related posts
to https://discussion.fedoraproject.org/". Maybe such a feature exists and
I'm not aware of it?

Just tying to make sure that I am handling this part of the job properly.

Thanks.

[Dale A. Raby]

Years ago when I was learning about the joy of Mutt, I got some pretty
rude replies to my questions.  They were on the order of "this is about
Mutt, not Sendmail".  Now, when a noob posts a question or comment,
he/she is usually frustrated and possibly can't find help anywhere.  A
few sympathetic words and directions to where help can be found is much
better than "Comment rejected.  Stop bothering me!"... not to suggest
that this is what a rejected comment looks like, though even a polite
rejection kind of reads that way to a frustrated newcomer.

On Sat, May 16, 2020 at 02:42:05PM -0500, Gregory Bartholomew wrote:
> I've been randomly checking the magazine's dashboard and approving comments
> as part of my editor duties, but I saw one from Paul that has me wondering
> if maybe I should be rejecting more of them.
>
> Paul said something to the effect of "this isn't a support forum". And that
> makes sense to me -- we don't necessarily want all the problems advertised
> on the magazine. At the same time though, I have rejected some comments
> just because they were low information, excessively critical/negative, and
> repeated what had already been stated (in a better way) by others. But then
> the commenter sent another comment complaining/asking why his/her comment
> had been rejected. I think Red Hat's motto is "be open", so I'm not quite
> sure how to handle some of these situations.
>
> I think it would be a nice feature if there were an option to have the
> rejection message say something like "Please direct support-related posts
> to https://discussion.fedoraproject.org/". Maybe such a feature exists and
> I'm not aware of it?
>
> Just tying to make sure that I am handling this part of the job properly.
>
> Thanks.
> _______________________________________________
> Fedora Magazine mailing list -- [e-mail]
> To unsubscribe send an email to [e-mail]
> Fedora Code of Conduct: https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/project/code-of-conduct/
> List Guidelines: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Mailing_list_guidelines
> List Archives: https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[e-mail].o...

[SysOp]

I don't think I've ever read the comments on any of the articles but I tend to be more for allowing comments as long as they aren't harassing other users/authors and or spreading mis information.  If the post is accurate and contributes to the conversation/article that sounds good to me.  On the other hand I tend to think more that comments that ONLY say "Don't ask xyz here without an answer or a redurection" do not contribute at all and would probably hit any personal filter I would set long before a question would.

Just my personal view as a new person to the group and what I think would help foster a more welcoming and better community

On May 16, 2020 2:42:05 PM CDT, Gregory Bartholomew  wrote:
> I've been randomly checking the magazine's dashboard and approving comments
> as part of my editor duties, but I saw one from Paul that has me wondering
> if maybe I should be rejecting more of them.
>
> Paul said something to the effect of "this isn't a support forum". And that
> makes sense to me -- we don't necessarily want all the problems advertised
> on the magazine. At the same time though, I have rejected some comments
> just because they were low information, excessively critical/negative, and
> repeated what had already been stated (in a better way) by others. But then
> the commenter sent another comment complaining/asking why his/her comment
> had been rejected. I think Red Hat's motto is "be open", so I'm not quite
> sure how to handle some of these situations.
>
> I think it would be a nice feature if there were an option to have the
> rejection message say something like "Please direct support-related posts
> to https://discussion.fedoraproject.org/". Maybe such a feature exists and
> I'm not aware of it?
>
> Just tying to make sure that I am handling this part of the job properly.
>
> Thanks.
> _______________________________________________
> Fedora Magazine mailing list -- [e-mail]
> To unsubscribe send an email to [e-mail]
> Fedora Code of Conduct: https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/project/code-of-conduct/
> List Guidelines: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Mailing_list_guidelines
> List Archives: https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[e-mail].o...

[Paul Frields]

I might have sent something about this to the list earlier, but it's
been a while. This isn't just my opinion but rather a shared
philosophy about comments among editors.

* We didn't want the Magazine to become a support forum, so we
encourage folks to use the appropriate channels to get targeted help.
Otherwise article authors can feel like they're on the hook to be a
support mechanism for people. We try to point to the canonical wiki
page: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Communicating_and_getting_help
* We typically get rid of comments that are either (a) repetitive, (b)
lack any constructive value, (c) stage pesonal or project attacks,
and/or (d) are way off topic.

One thing I encourage editors to remember is that we're not required
to publish anything that anyone sends in (comments or otherwise). We
want the Magazine to be an enjoyable and informative forum, so we aim
for content that supports that goal. My analogy is an open-house
party. Everyone's welcome to come in and enjoy themselves within
common rules of decorum. But if someone starts dumping punch in the
pool or smearing cheese dip on the wall, they'd be shown the door.

Paul

On Sat, May 16, 2020 at 8:47 PM SysOp  wrote:
> I don't think I've ever read the comments on any of the articles but I tend to be more for allowing comments as long as they aren't harassing other users/authors and or spreading mis information.  If the post is accurate and contributes to the conversation/article that sounds good to me.  On the other hand I tend to think more that comments that ONLY say "Don't ask xyz here without an answer or a redurection" do not contribute at all and would probably hit any personal filter I would set long before a question would.
>
> Just my personal view as a new person to the group and what I think would help foster a more welcoming and better community
>
> On May 16, 2020 2:42:05 PM CDT, Gregory Bartholomew  wrote:
> > I've been randomly checking the magazine's dashboard and approving comments
> > as part of my editor duties, but I saw one from Paul that has me wondering
> > if maybe I should be rejecting more of them.
> >
> > Paul said something to the effect of "this isn't a support forum". And that
> > makes sense to me -- we don't necessarily want all the problems advertised
> > on the magazine. At the same time though, I have rejected some comments
> > just because they were low information, excessively critical/negative, and
> > repeated what had already been stated (in a better way) by others. But then
> > the commenter sent another comment complaining/asking why his/her comment
> > had been rejected. I think Red Hat's motto is "be open", so I'm not quite
> > sure how to handle some of these situations.
> >
> > I think it would be a nice feature if there were an option to have the
> > rejection message say something like "Please direct support-related posts
> > to https://discussion.fedoraproject.org/". Maybe such a feature exists and
> > I'm not aware of it?
> >
> > Just tying to make sure that I am handling this part of the job properly.
> >
> > Thanks.
> > _______________________________________________
> > Fedora Magazine mailing list -- [e-mail]
> > To unsubscribe send an email to [e-mail]
> > Fedora Code of Conduct: https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/project/code-of-conduct/
> > List Guidelines: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Mailing_list_guidelines
> > List Archives: https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[e-mail].o...
>
> Fedora Magazine mailing list -- [e-mail]
> To unsubscribe send an email to [e-mail]
> Fedora Code of Conduct: https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/project/code-of-conduct/
> List Guidelines: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Mailing_list_guidelines
> List Archives: https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[e-mail].o...

[Gregory Bartholomew]

Thanks Paul. I guess I missed your earlier post.

Item (b) "[get rid of comments that] ... lack any constructive value" looks
like it could give me enough leeway to delete a few comments that I would
otherwise have approved.

On Mon, May 18, 2020 at 11:15 AM Paul Frields  wrote:
> I might have sent something about this to the list earlier, but it's
> been a while. This isn't just my opinion but rather a shared
> philosophy about comments among editors.
> We didn't want the Magazine to become a support forum, so we
>
> encourage folks to use the appropriate channels to get targeted help.
> Otherwise article authors can feel like they're on the hook to be a
> support mechanism for people. We try to point to the canonical wiki
> page: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Communicating_and_getting_help
> We typically get rid of comments that are either (a) repetitive, (b)
>
> lack any constructive value, (c) stage pesonal or project attacks,
> and/or (d) are way off topic.
>
> One thing I encourage editors to remember is that we're not required
> to publish anything that anyone sends in (comments or otherwise). We
> want the Magazine to be an enjoyable and informative forum, so we aim
> for content that supports that goal. My analogy is an open-house
> party. Everyone's welcome to come in and enjoy themselves within
> common rules of decorum. But if someone starts dumping punch in the
> pool or smearing cheese dip on the wall, they'd be shown the door.
>
> Paul
>
> On Sat, May 16, 2020 at 8:47 PM SysOp  wrote:
> > I don't think I've ever read the comments on any of the articles but I
>
> tend to be more for allowing comments as long as they aren't harassing
> other users/authors and or spreading mis information.  If the post is
> accurate and contributes to the conversation/article that sounds good to
> me.  On the other hand I tend to think more that comments that ONLY say
> "Don't ask xyz here without an answer or a redurection" do not contribute
> at all and would probably hit any personal filter I would set long before a
> question would.
> > Just my personal view as a new person to the group and what I think
>
> would help foster a more welcoming and better community
> > On May 16, 2020 2:42:05 PM CDT, Gregory Bartholomew <
>
> [e-mail]> wrote:
> > > I've been randomly checking the magazine's dashboard and approving
>
> comments
> > > as part of my editor duties, but I saw one from Paul that has me
>
> wondering
> > > if maybe I should be rejecting more of them.
> > >
> > > Paul said something to the effect of "this isn't a support forum". And
>
> that
> > > makes sense to me -- we don't necessarily want all the problems
>
> advertised
> > > on the magazine. At the same time though, I have rejected some comments
> > > just because they were low information, excessively critical/negative,
>
> and
> > > repeated what had already been stated (in a better way) by others. But
>
> then
> > > the commenter sent another comment complaining/asking why his/her
>
> comment
> > > had been rejected. I think Red Hat's motto is "be open", so I'm not
>
> quite
> > > sure how to handle some of these situations.
> > >
> > > I think it would be a nice feature if there were an option to have the
> > > rejection message say something like "Please direct support-related
>
> posts
> > > to https://discussion.fedoraproject.org/". Maybe such a feature exists
>
> and
> > > I'm not aware of it?
> > >
> > > Just tying to make sure that I am handling this part of the job
>
> properly.
> > > Thanks.
> > > _______________________________________________
> > > Fedora Magazine mailing list -- [e-mail]
> > > To unsubscribe send an email to [e-mail]
> > > Fedora Code of Conduct:
>
> https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/project/code-of-conduct/
> > > List Guidelines: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Mailing_list_guidelines
> > > List Archives:
>
> https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[e-mail].o...
> > Fedora Magazine mailing list -- [e-mail]
> > To unsubscribe send an email to [e-mail]
> > Fedora Code of Conduct:
>
> https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/project/code-of-conduct/
> > List Guidelines: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Mailing_list_guidelines
> > List Archives:
>
> https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[e-mail].o...
> _______________________________________________
> Fedora Magazine mailing list -- [e-mail]
> To unsubscribe send an email to [e-mail]
> Fedora Code of Conduct:
> https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/project/code-of-conduct/
> List Guidelines: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Mailing_list_guidelines
> List Archives:
> https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[e-mail].o...