Poll: What Did YOU Suggest In The Escapist Reader Survey?

[BanthaFodder]

I'm curious as to what everyone thought the Escapist needed more/less of, so I decided to make a thread about it.

Let's clear the air, in public. What did you suggest? What do you like/dislike about The Escapist?

NOTE: The following is purely my opinion. I mean no disrespect to anyone. After all, this is the reason the Reader Survey exists; to hear what WE have to say.

Most of my suggestions were in reguards to the rules/moderation of the site. I understand that The Escapist wishes to be free of trolls (everyone does), and the rules are there to keep the trolls out. But trolls are like termites. If you spray 50 cans of Raid all over your house, there's a good chance you'll kill all the termites. But there's also a good chance you just poisoned everyone who lives in the house.
I suggested the abolishment of the (in my honest opinion) totally assanine Forum Health Meter. If you've accumulated several minor/moderate offenses over time (ie. the worst punishment recieved is a small suspension, the appeal to the mod is polite and respectful, etc.),the mods will take one look at the health bar and administer punishments for the slightest step out of line. Conversely, if your health bar is pristine, you could waltz into a thread, flame the hell out of it, call the OP scum, and get off with a warning (an example from real life).
I also suggested toning down the "GAMING IS A SERIOUS ART FORM FOR SERIOUS GROWN UP ADULTS" attitude just a bit... Yes, gaming SHOULD be taken seriously, but we're all here because we share a love of this wonderful form of entertainment. Gaming doesn't HAVE to be serious all the time.
I also suggested stricter regulations/requirements/punishments for moderators/admins. If you are a mod or admin and are reading this, please know that I mean no offence whatsoever. But I have seen a few cases of mods/admins making questionable decisions. Minor things like warnings wouldn't be a problem, but something as large as closing a thread (I once recieved a suspension and a locked thread for making a TF2 Trading Thread. the mod thought that I was using the Escapist to sell items for real-life money. the punishment stood, despite my appeal) should be brought up before several mods/admins for review before action is taken. Basically, give mods/admins less of a "judge, jury, and executioner" role.
Another recommendation of mine was to take user opinions into greater account, to display less of a "if you don't like the way we do things, then maybe you should GET OUT" attitude. Granted, there's always the trolls, but just because someone disagrees doesn't mean that they might not have a legitimate point.

After all of that, you people probably think I hate this site. That is not true at all. I love The Escapist. I love Zero Punctuation and the forums (while frustrating at times) can lead to some great fun and interesting discussions. Bottom line, The Escapist has its share of pros and cons, but the same could be said of any website (or any community PERIOD).

Sorry for going writing a novella there, but those are my thoughts. Just my opinions. Nothing more. No offense meant.
In other words:

Spoiler

PLEASE DON'T BAN ME FOR THIS.

That's what I think.
What about the rest of you?
What do you, the community, think the Escapist needs more/less of?

 

[JoJo]

I don't have any issue with the rules, during my time here I have had three warnings, of which I personally believe two were justified, the other wasn't but it was a very exceptional case which is unlikely to be repeated so I've accepted it as a misstep in an otherwise good system. Soon I'll have one removed due to the six month amnesty so that's all good, I've since learned how to avoid any more mod wrath. I can't help but notice that the OP is one strike of being banned from this site, which might have coloured their view slightly. It's really not that hard avoid mod-wrath. To improve the Escapist I'd suggest more community events really since I'm happy with the current video content and the modding system right now.

 

[Bobic]

Wait, there was a reader survey? When did this happen?

 

[Sassafrass]

I suggested more contests with prizes for those who reside outside the USA and Canada.
Because, ya know...I want chances to win free shit too.

 

[BanthaFodder]

I can't help but notice that the OP is one strike of being banned from this site, which might have coloured their view slightly.

I admit, I am a tad biased when it comes to the rules.
a good amount of the punishments I recieved WERE justified. occasionally, I was punished for either not knowing any better (usually just a warning, I would reply with an appology and a smiley face) or, admittadly, acting like a massive douche (I recall trolling the hell out of one thread by pointing out the delicious irony of Xbox Live crashing IMMEDIATELY after PSN was restored, just because of all the "THIS IS BS, SONY NEEDS TO GET THEIR ACT TOGETHER, I'M SWITCHING TO XBOX" that was flung around during the outage. looking back, as delicious as that irony was (and believe me, it was DAMN tasty), I really should have kept my mouth shut and NOT made an ass of myself).
HOWEVER...
there were several times where I was smacked down for the slightest thing. I made a thread about Half-Life DJ. this thread was thoroughly flamed by this one guy throwing out all kinds of insults (this would be the "scum" incident mentioned in my original post). I say that he's "a little butthurt" and recieve a non-negotiable suspension. they recieved a warning after I implored the mod to be fair.

I'm not trying to say that every single mod on the Escapist is a ban-happy nazi or anything. they have to uphold the rules of the site. it's their job. but I think that the forums would be a much happier place if the rules were just a LITTLE bit more lenient (I was once punished for using swears in reguards to a story about a mom forcing her son to drink hot sauce as a punishment)and if that Health Meter was done away with.

again, no disrespect to anyone.
this is just my opinion, so make of it what you will.

 

[BanthaFodder]

Wait, there was a reader survey? When did this happen?

it's the little orange ad box to the right hand side of The Escapist (I noticed it in the Zero Punctuation video gallery)