For Grapes and Bow Ties! ~ Kaimen's Champagne

[Zebestian]

Hello and welcome to my wonderful campaign thread where you can bombard me with all the questions your want answered by this me. But who is this "me" I'm talking about? ... Well, let's see if we can't clarify some of the easier questions beforehand. ^_^

Q: "So, who are you now?"
A: "My name is Kaimen and I have been a member of this forum since pretty much its very beginning. I am also a member of this forum's Resource Team creating all the cool songs for you to use in your games. Is... uh... is the short version enough? If people wanna know more, they can ask, right?"

Q: "Sure, they can. Okay, why do you want to become a mod?"
A: "Ah, this is where the important questions start. Ever since I joined this community I have experienced a special sort of kindness and friendliness that I have never experienced in any other community I have joined thus far. This is also the reason why I am as active as I am on here - I love being around here and sharing my views, opinions and advice. I want to become a mod for the same reason I wanted to be part of the Resource Team - I want to give something back, I want to repay the community for all the kindness, the new friends I made, the confidence they gave me and the motivation I received by being a member of this community."

Q: "Quite the story, man. And what are your qualifications?"
Apart from moderating the comments and forum section of the biggest German-speaking Pokémon podcast, of which I am a member of, and the obvious common sense I am equipped with, I am a very creative person and an unconventional thinker. I consider myself to be decent at solving problems and mediating (and that's not because all my friends always come to me for relationship advice... obviously not). I'm friendly, kind, lovable but can also do my duty where it's due. Meaning that if someone or something goes against the rules I won't hesitate and resolve that matter in a civilized manner. What is also a huge advantage is, that you can't tick me off very easily. As a mod you should always keep your cool and I pretty much always keep my cool."

Q: "Now, if that doesn't sound promising I don't know what does."
A: "Maybe you should go and look at the other contestants' threads then. Don't just read through this one. Inform yourself before voting. This also applies in real life."

Q: "Sure, sure. Will do. One last question though: why 'grapes and bow ties'?"
A: "I need to correct you there. The question is not 'why', it's 'why not'? Let's just say it's an easter-egg for certain people. Those people will know what I'm talking about. I just needed a motto for my campaign and couldn't think of anything more stupid. And heck, bow ties are cool."

Q: "Alright, then thank you for your time and good luck with your campaign."
A: "Thank you for asking all these questions. And I can't wait for all the questions the users are gonna ask me. Let's get this going!"

 

[HotfireLegend]

What RM games are your favourite?

 

[Zebestian]

What RM games are your favourite?

I must admit that, in all the years that I have been part of the RM community, I haven't played a whole lot of RM games and thus can't make a definitive judgement on that. I have seen quite a few games, especially in WIP topics and on contests but I never found the time to actually go ahead and play one of them. However, if I had to choose one out of the few I've played, it'd definitely be "To The Moon".
If anyone wants to make some recommendations though, go ahead. I'm interested. ^_^

 

[JibstaMan]

Why are you no longer Amysaurus' bitch? Does it have anything to do with you running for mod? Are you expressing your independence?

 

[Zebestian]

Why are you no longer Amysaurus' bitch? Does it have anything to do with you running for mod? Are you expressing your independence?

If you really believe that I'm no longer "Amy's Bitch" then I suggest you take a look at my profile and see what's listed as my occupation. However, I can guarantee you that has no effect on my independence. @Amysaurus has no power over ME! ... I think.

 

[Amysaurus]

I approve of this thread, but ugly sweaters are still the best.

I'll keep it fair and ask the same first question: What do you think is more important: being taken seriously as a staff member, or being able to hang around with other users?

 

[Zebestian]

I'll keep it fair and ask the same first question: What do you think is more important: being taken seriously as a staff member, or being able to hang around with other users?

I don't think those two things exclude each other. You can be taken seriously as a staff member and still hang out with others. A mod is not a bad guy, not a spoilsport, not a party crasher. A mod is simply someone who keeps watch over the rules and that they're abided by. That doesn't mean you have to cut ties with the community and be in serious mod mode 100% of the time. In fact, not hanging around with others would be a bad thing to do for a mod as it's their duty to help keep the community running. And that's not just righting all the wrongs out there. It's also being all around supportive, present, and friendly towards the community. I wouldn't want to become a machine that spits out warnings.
So, it's perfectly possible to be taken seriously as a staff member while being all buddy-buddy with the guys on there. You just have to draw the line somewhere and treat everyone the same when rules are being violated. :)
Jeez, that was long-winded. Guess you found a way to make me talk. :P

 

[Eien Nanashi]

What would you prefer, a grape-shaped bow tie or a bowtie-shaped grape?

 

[Zebestian]

What would you prefer, a grape-shaped bow tie or a bowtie-shaped grape?

*gasps*
Eien asked me a question! That means he got his post count up by one! Rejoice!
*coughs*
Anyway... to answer your question: deciding on that is very, very difficult. I would want both, honestly. No, in fact, GIVE ME BOTH RIGHT NOW! :P

 

[MinisterJay]

How would you handle warning a fellow moderator or administrator?

 

[Zebestian]

How would you handling warning a fellow moderator or administrator?

For the unlikely case that this will ever happen, I would settle things internally, via PM, IM or the staff forum section. If it's a fellow moderator or an admin even, I would also inform the rest of the staff about the transgression and, depending how severe the offence, work on a fitting solution. Staff members, no matter how high ranking are not exempt from the rules and are to be treated like any other forum member that broke the rules. However, since they are staff and I'd have other ways of communication and don't want to cause an open riot and a public lynching event (I've seen this happen before) I would settle this internally.

 

[JibstaMan]

If you really believe that I'm no longer "Amy's Bitch" then I suggest you take a look at my profile and see what's listed as my occupation. However, I can guarantee you that has no effect on my independence. @Amysaurus has no power over ME! ... I think.

Darn, that is hard to find. Glad you cleared that up.

Do you proofread your own posts?

 

[Zebestian]

Do you proofread your own posts?

Can I play the "I'm not a native English speaker card"? XD
Seriously though, I try to be as correct as possible most of the time. If I see an error, I correct it. If I notice it, that is. I think that comes from English being a foreign language to me and I was "trained" so to speak to make as few mistakes as possible. Still, little errors happen and I don't pursue every little mistake I make in spelling. I did proofread all of my posts in this thread though. :D

 

[DarcHiro]

If you were to see two forum member's in a heated argument, but both of them were "right" how would you calm down the situation?

 

[Zebestian]

If you were to see two forum member's in a heated argument, but both of them were "right" how would you calm down the situation?

First off it depends on where the argument is taking place. If its off-topic I'd probably suggest them to discuss in a dedicated topic which is especially good for lengthy arguments and complicated matters. If by "heated" you mean strong language I would also ask them to calm down and settle things in a civilized and... well calm manner. What gives me a little headache is that "both of them were 'right'". Let me explain you why. Me, not being part of this argument and possibly not versed in the matter that is discussed about wouldn't be able to tell who's "right". The concept of "right" and "wrong" is also difficult to explain to other people who might happen to be a little more stubborn and stick to their opinion. But let's assume they both have valid points and could settle things by simply compromising. If they take their discussion to a dedicated topic and it doesn't escalate, it's all good in my book. I'd keep a watch over that argument though, just to make sure. If they still continue to argument in a "heated" manner, I would again ask them to calm down and mediate and possibly offer a compromise both can live with. If they then decide to continue to argue and violate any rules in the progress I will go ahead and punish where punishment is due. However, that would only be my last resort or a possibility after a violation of rules.
Geez, so long-winded again... Guess I made more out of that question than it was, covering every possible outcome. XD

 

[DarcHiro]

@Kaimen yea I think you answered my question pretty thoroughly, but here is another one:

A member of the forum is focused on politics, religion, ect... but it is their own opinion... however their posts have people mixed with their own beliefs and has been upsetting a few of the other members for making the forum awkward. How would you handle this situation even though they aren't technically breaking any rules?​

 

[Iron Croc]

How would you handle mod hate? Supposing some members don't think you're able to do your job. Supposing you caught wind of that, whether out of or IN the forums. These members are simply stating their opinions without breaking rules. No other mod or admin has taken action against the member(s).

How would you handle this situation?

 

[LTN Games]

Ah, so glad to be back at a computer. Time for some questions

What is your daily schedule like?
I'm not looking for the small details, more like, current job hours per day, music making hours, game dev hours, Resource team hours, etc etc. I would like to know what the "mod to be" day is filled with, it will be nice to see how much time can be truly dedicated to the community.

Another question related to previous one.

What is the priority you have for your schedule?
Now most people will obviously say, your real life job is #1 priority, and it should be, but after that, how do you like to prioritize everything else on your schedule, is it random, or do you do it the same everyday.

Now if you become a moderator, how will you prioritize your schedule?

Now for a bit of fun. I want to see a general PM you would make to a member. A rule has been broken, lets pick rule #1, it has been broken by a member and now you need to PM them letting them know the rule was broken. Let us see it

That should be good for now, may not be the best questions but I'm saving the best for later on.

 

[Zebestian]

@Kaimen yea I think you answered my question pretty thoroughly, but here is another one:

A member of the forum is focused on politics, religion, ect... but it is their own opinion... however their posts have people mixed with their own beliefs and has been upsetting a few of the other members for making the forum awkward. How would you handle this situation even though they aren't technically breaking any rules?​

Spoiler: Answer

You say "focused on [a sensitive topic]" so you mean generally I presume...
Future Kaimen: "Stop presuming - he said 'generally' in the Skype chat."
Okay, okay. That helps a lot. So let's see... Generally focused on politics, religion, etc., huh? Well, call me crazy but last time I checked we were an RPG Maker focused forum and people are here to mainly discuss matters that are related to RM. If someone comes here to discuss about sensitive topics then I suggest they search for a different forum that focuses on the topics they want to talk about. I would think that on forums dedicated to that people aren't offended or upset as easily or at least it doesn't matter as much. To keep this place here a friendly one and true to its purpose I would stop any bantering about sensitive topics that aren't actual civilized and relevant discussion. If you come here to proclaim your opinions about politics or religion I suggest you rather go to the nearest town square and do that there. Source: Rule #8. :D

How would you handle mod hate? Supposing some members don't think you're able to do your job. Supposing you caught wind of that, whether out of or IN the forums. These members are simply stating their opinions without breaking rules. No other mod or admin has taken action against the member(s).

How would you handle this situation?

Spoiler: Answer

Oh now, that's interesting. I know that by no means I am a perfect being and I would go and see if their claims are valid. If they can give specific examples where my faults lie and don't just merely "hate" on me I can actively work on that and adapt to the feedback of the users. However, if it is merely pure hating without any valid reason I would inform my fellow staff members of this matter and try to work on a mutual solution. Under no circumstances would I take actions alone in a sensitive case like this.
I am curious though... how is outright hate possible without breaking the rules. Stating an opinion is fine but not at the cost of other people's reputations. "Person X sucks" is an opinion, yes, but it also goes against rule #2. Suppose there is a way to hate without breaking the rules... well, see above. :D

 

[DarcHiro]

@Kaimen dang that was a good answer! I applaud you for that one! How about this:

There is a major issue in the forum; however, not many members have seemed to notice it yet. There are a few ways that could resolve the issue, but no one seems to take the issue seriously because it's not detrimental at the moment... but will cause a lot of problems later on. How would you bring about a way to resolve this issue that only a few people seemed to have noticed.​