Anonymous Section

[NoviceNic]

What about a Anonymous Section? It could be horsey or life related. Just reading another Anon section on another forum and they seem to be able to give people the chance to talk about things before they spiral worse.

[*GroovyGallop*]

I like the idea of that aswell.. :)

[ponylover88]

I like that idea. :D

[KarinUS]

What is it? How does it work. Give an example.

[Cochise]

I'm unsure of what it entails too. All I can think of is that it's fodder for those other anonymous users to hide behind anonymity to flame and cause distress to other members. Or do the moderators have access to know who is who and can counteract any flaming? Sounds like extra work from that angle for the moderators.
I might be completely off the bat, but I've been on too many message boards and witnessed so many trolls that I'm incredibly jaded! ;)
Or if you could give more information on how they work maybe we won't have that problem of flaming?

[chev]

Another couple of forums I go on have a facility where members can post anonymously if they don't want people to know they're posting, for various reasons. The posts on both tend to be of a more personal nature; and usually o/t.

An anonymous section here wouldn't be *life* related in any case; NR is horse related, nothing else.

The usual scenario is that someone posts something they don't want other people to know about in real life. There are sometimes valid reasons for that horse-wise; but it is also open to abuse (usually problems on a yard, or personal differences). The abuse issue is what would bother me.

Personal wise, you get posts about (from past experience on both boards I go on) self-harm, depression, eating disorders, relationship issues, and so on.

I se no value in an anonymous section here to be honest; it might work on a subscription board, but not on an open forum, and certainly not on an open *equine* forum.

Would be interested to know what you think would be the benefits though? Maybe I'm missing something?

[smaggi]

I don't see any value in it either. All I think you might get is people saying nasty things that they would be afraid to say if their names were attached.

[Mehitabel]

how it works on the other board is that you pm a moderator to ak them to put up an anon post - there is an account called 'anonymous member' and the mods all know the login details for that account. so they log in as AM and post, and then others reply as normal. so, no flaming possible as every anon post goes through a mod, but yes, work for the mods.

as chev says, it's generally used for yard problems, relationship issues etc.

it's a very different board to here though - subscription only and with non-horsey sections, and a much smaller core of posters. i don't see it working here either, although it's a useful feature on the other board.

[teabiscuit]

i think it would be too hard to moderate, and why should mods be asked to do more?

the level of discussion we have now is perfect i think, not too disrespectful yet enough for a good old thought provoking discussion

if anonymous posting was allowed i think it'd get too heated

people can pm if they want to keep it private

[Bobbin]

Mmmmm I actually think it would be a good thing.

Let me give some examples.

Say you are having 'yard' issues and are think about moving but are aware that if you post about a possible new yard it may get back to your current YO and cause back lash. On an anonymous forum you could ask for opinions and support without anyone getting 'hurt' on both parties.

Another example

Say you were sharing a horse, but owner didn't really like the idea of forums so to respect the owners wishes you refrained from telling anyone about the share. However you encounter a problem that you would really like to ask for opinions/help on without it being glaringly obvious who you/the horse is and still respecting the owners wishes.

These are both horse related problems and neither would cause bitchyness or backlash.

Maybe you could have an 'approved thread' system so the thread would be submitted and a MOD would know who the thread was from (which they would anyway) and if they deemed it appropriate they would approve it. More work for MODS I know but I believe could be an asset to NR.

K xx

[martini55]

I think that in principal it is potentially a good idea (as long as it is kept horse related). There are numbers of other forums out there where you can post on personal life matters.

However, I would be worried that the types of threads posted in an anonymous section wouldn't necessarily be problems with our horses but yard politics and problems between people, rather than problems with our horses that we don't want to post on the main board. I think it is a shame that people do not want to post some problems for fear of embarassment (or whatever reason). I think no matter how silly or embarrassing the question, there is no such thing as a stupid question. You might get some not so nice replies but at the end of the day there will be someone who will offer some genuinely good and friendly advice.

[Peanut]

I'm not sure it's necessary because there are anyway quite a few people on here who I have discovered have two different user names for reasons of anonymity.

[Bobbin]

I'm not sure it's necessary because there are anyway quite a few people on here who I have discovered have two different user names for reasons of anonymity.

I used to be one of those as I am well aware that there are people on here that I don't wish to tell my deepest worries and stupid questions about my horse/riding to.

I don't have one anymore and find myself going off onto other forums to ask questions. Having another username is just a waste of server space when you could just post the odd thread anoymously. The rest of the time I like to show people my pony and tell them about how we are gettring on!!

[NoviceNic]

I too am using other forums as a source of anomynity. Sometimes I just dont want my yard to know when I am at my lowest and struggling...:(

[Morganna]

I used to moderate a forum with a similiar section and I was never done telling people to calm down or trying to diffuse a bitchfest.. It got totally out of hand, they all turned on the moderators, including me, and I quit as it wasnt worth the hassle and was something I was doing on a volunteer basis because I wanted to make the forum a more fun place to be.

The thing I love about NR is that its always about the horses and nothing else. :)

[HairyCob]

I think an anonymous section would have it's advantages, BUT it would have to be run very tightly to ensure it didn't turn into a free-for-all bitching space and that would mean the posts going thru the mods... who frankly have enough to do already without 'policing' a new forum;)

I guess if enough people wanted an anonymous section and it was to be strictly moderated to only include 'serious' horse and yard related issues that needed to be anonymous, then perhaps a couple of 'new' moderators could be appointed JUST to moderate this section? I'm sure there would be plenty of volunteers... wouldn't there?!;)

[teabiscuit]

? I'm sure there would be plenty of volunteers... wouldn't there?!;)

not me guvnor

i love to come on NR for lots of things, help, learning new stuff, discussion (my fav), but if i don't want to get involved in a thread i can keep well away

i'd hate to come on and have to mop up and get involved in bitchfests

i have enough of that at work :(

if anyone else wants to do it, go ahead :D

[teabiscuit]

i would be an avid reader though, of stuff that peeps felt they had to post anon....i'd be soooo curious as to who it was

[Mehitabel]

i would be an avid reader though, of stuff that peeps felt they had to post anon....i'd be soooo curious as to who it was

as would most people - and with the amount of people we have on the board who post mostly 'fluff' anyway, i would bet that a lot of anon posts would be full of 'no help but oh dear' posts - which while they may give support to someone, are often not appropriate and not useful, if the person has to trawl through several pages of 'oh dear' to find that nobody has any actual suggestions.

[crazyhorse97]

I think it could be a good idea if used responsibly having just read a post where someone only wants to let things out through PMs coz they didnt want anyone knowing what was up/starting problems!!!

CH
xXx

[teabiscuit]

but that means the PM system is doing its job surely? a good thing is it not?

[chev]

I think it could be a good idea if used responsibly

But what *is* 'responsibly'?

I think it might open the floodgates to all sorts of 'yard' problems because people feel they're safe posting anonymously. But it's still very easy to pick up on who is being posted about if you know the situation; don't forget that NR is an open, public forum. Posting 'anonymously' is not going to be as anonymous as some might think.

I also think there is a very real danger that you'd get an awful lot more nastiness if people didn't have to put a name to their posts. One of teh boards I mentioned that has that anonymous facility has constant problems with 'nasty anons'...

As for having that section moderated specially - I for one don't feel that would work so well. One of the reasons the moderating works here is because it is a moderating team, who work accross the board. Having mods responsible for a particular section would make that more difficult - and also raises teh problem of how to moderate something in that section if those mods are not online. As it is now, if a post is reported, there is generally *someone* around to take care of it. To moderate an anon section you'd need not just one or two extra mods, but pretty much a whole team. And for what is likely to be posted there, it's really not worth it.

The biggest problem from my point of view though is the false sense of security that would be generated. It's much more difficult to be anonymous on the net than most people think; the last thing you need is a section that could potentially cause more problems because people feel safer than they really are.

[Afellpony]

I think that having an anoymous section could lead to more nastiness. People wouldn't be afraid to say something that was out of order if they could hide behind anonymity. Keep NR Message Board the way it is. If people feel uncomfortable about putting a name to the message/statement they have posted, then may be they shouldn't be posting it at all!

[RustyMary]

I completely agree with afellpony - I think it's an awful idea that is very likely to lead to trouble. If you want to say something you should put your name to it and take responsibility for your actions.

[Bobbin]

I completely agree with afellpony - I think it's an awful idea that is very likely to lead to trouble. If you want to say something you should put your name to it and take responsibility for your actions.

Don't agree with that at all, you're presuming that whatever a person is going to say will be of a nasty or bitchy nature.

No point in taking this discussion any further as its clear the mods don't want it, infact why ask for new ideas, if it was going to be done, it would be done already from what I can see. Thats me putting my name to it and taking responsibility for my actions;)

Kxx

[NoviceNic]

I had assumed that people could be mature on the thread actually. But I am fogetting there are some people who just want to moan and b**ch. It could be monitored by mods and closed if it ended in a moaning unneccesary thread. I would be happy to volunteer to be a shadow mod for this forum if it is felt that the mods are over worked now.:)

[teabiscuit]

if you feel that strongly about it, why don't you do a poll to see what everyone thinks?

its only the few of us who post in this section, a wider view point might be useful?

[chev]

No point in taking this discussion any further as its clear the mods don't want it, infact why ask for new ideas, if it was going to be done, it would be done already from what I can see.

Not at all. New forums *are* introduced when suggestions are made that we think will work and provide something that's maybe lacking; the Adults That Ride Ponies forum was introduced for that reason, as were the colouring and breeds forums, for a start.

But some ideas do strike us as being maybe less than helpful (like age-related forums), or potential trouble-spots (like an anonymous forum).

New forums tend to be introduced when it's felt they meet a real need - like the ones I mentioned already... we had masses of threads that were being posted in general that now go in those forums.

And I'm still not even sure why we'd *need* an anonymous section, all other problems aside. I did ask why earlier in teh thread, but nobody's really clarified exactly what they visualise being posted there other than Bobbin's examples, and as I said it would worry me that people would feel more anonymous than they are in reality and still end up in hot water.

[S_F_S]

Given as its free to join and post here - if you want advice without giving away 'your identity' why not make a new account and NOT tell people personal identifying details?

[teabiscuit]

someone said that would take up server space

but surely an anon section would take up much more server space?

i can't see the need myself, am i missing the point?

[NoviceNic]

I feel that sometimes you cant post asking for advise as someone who may be involved also will be reading the thread. Or if you need support but dont want everyone to know that it is you then you can be anon. For example if your YO was giving unsavoury advise about beating your horse till you saw the whites of its eyes, would, should you move your horse. Even though to the original poster it may be impossible to move for various reasons. Sometimes people just want support and advise without the naming of names behind it. ;)

[Afellpony]

[CENTER]Perhaps it's me. Perhaps I always see bad in people where it isn't warranted. I have had vast experience with all sorts of peeps in my working life and know that if they can hide behind anonimity they will. Those who are less well able to express themselves in replying to what could be a "strong posting" will only be able to express themselves in an aggressive, antagonistic way. This in turn will envoke similar replies and before we know it, they'll be a full blown row between everyone here. I'm sure no one wants this but it's what could happen easily. Not only that, there will be nonhorsey peeps dropping in and again, posting unsavoury, and unwanted replies here.
Keep it horsey (discussions about other pets/other animals I am sure wouild be welcome. Personal matters and personal lives are a no go area - well as far as I'm concerned anyway!!!!!!!![This doesn't mean to say you cant discuss going out or boyfriends, having good days/bad days etc. Just have to be sensible about things./CENTER]

[teabiscuit]

in that case NN surely another user name would fix it?

am afraid i'm with afellpony here, my experience of the human race leads me to believe an anon section would be abused :(

but like i said it isn't up to me, and only a few NR members post in this forum.

i wonder what the general opinion is?

[NoviceNic]

I can put a poll up and see what the rest of the board thinks??:)