The Factory Floor

@Secespitus would you mind editing your answer to the other sites ettiqyette question to include one or more examples of good phrasinga at the top of it? :)

@Mithrandir24601 can you make an example? or explain it in 3 sentences?

Mithrandir24601

2

Q: Looking for ideas for a world that requires some earth based mineral to be released into its atmosphere to render it non toxic to life as we know it,

Im busy wrtiting a Space Opera and was going to utilise the "hypothesis", or whatever you call it of an ancient civ mining gold here and utilising it to disperse into its atmosphere, in turn either creating oxygen, or possibly dispelling the toxic atmosphere ALLOWING for oxygenation of the atmosp...

"Looking for ideas" and "Any other ideas ?" pretty much nail it as idea generation, unless the question is changed somehow

dot_Sp0T

The title is badly worded. The body is posing a problem that needs to be solved, albeit, as gryphon notes, it could benefit from clearer restrictions - I'm not a mod (yet?), but I would say it's fine (aside from the title that could be shortened into sth akin to: "What mineral(s) could be released into an atmosphere to stabilize it?"

the old, 2014-ish, idea-generation vtc reason was mostly about: I have xyz - what can I do with it?

disclaimer: I am not a mod

Mithrandir24601

7:05 AM

@dot_Sp0T Then let me put this another way: why is it not too broad?

Secespitus

@dot_Sp0T I don‘t have the time right now, but I‘ll add some.

dot_Sp0T

8:02 AM

@Mithrandir24601 I see two major limitations: 1) it's asking for a means to stabilize an atmosphere for human usage; 2) it's for this means to be based on releasing metal(s) inti that atmosphere

Mithrandir24601

@dot_Sp0T So how do you define a 'better' answer?

dot_Sp0T

@Mithrandir24601 that is what gryphon's comment is upvoted for

Mithrandir24601

@dot_Sp0T Then why do a have a flag declined again

dot_Sp0T

so in my understanding it is neither idea generation, nor really too broad, but it is opinion based as of now - due to no measurable constraints

@Mithrandir24601 i don't know. not doing the queue :/

there should be a reason with the delcining though..?

Mithrandir24601

8:18 AM

@dot_Sp0T Seriously, I've had >100 perfectly fine post flags, until the most recent 3 have been disputed/declined for no reason that I can see and this is something I feel I should mention to a mod as how this site is currently handling flags on posts by new users is starting to look a bit concerning...

dot_Sp0T

might be worth bringing up on the meta

Mithrandir24601

There's already a PSA about using flags

dot_Sp0T

just for curiousity: what flags were declined?

Mithrandir24601

@dot_Sp0T this one, the one above and one (an answer) was disputed that's now deleted

dot_Sp0T

(argh I really need to get to the 10k...)

Mithrandir24601

8:22 AM

@dot_Sp0T I still get confused by not being able to see all the details that a mod has access to here :P

dot_Sp0T

Hmmm, do you think it would be easier for me to candidate and become a mod than breaking the 10k rep in the same time?

Mithrandir24601

"In what way do you feel that being a moderator will make you more effective as opposed to simply reaching 10k or 20k rep?" :P

dot_Sp0T

@Mithrandir24601 "I don't see myself reaching 10k or 20k rep anytime soon - yet I am moderately confident (see that pun there? I'm way better with puns than you are @James) that I could win this election. Make WorldBuilding capitalized again!"

Mithrandir24601

@dot_Sp0T You're much closer than I am - I'm still <2k... NOO!! Not capitalised!

Worldbuilding Meta

8:38 AM

0

Q: Do we have a troll in our midst?

I have noticed that many times, there are negative votes given to new posts (both questions and answers) that look perfectly fine to me. There is also never an explanation given for why the downvote is given. I know that many people do not do that, but with the shear number of downvotes on new po...

feature-request troll

dot_Sp0T

@Mithrandir24601 we could, in theory, help each other out

Mithrandir24601

@dot_Sp0T We are now... Mith_Sp0T

(or dot_Mith, if you prefer)

dot_Sp0T

@Mithrandir24601 Sp0Thrandir?

(btw, what does PSA mean?)

Mithrandir24601

@dot_Sp0T public service announcement

@dot_Sp0T Mmm... I like that one :)

dot_Sp0T

Sooo, just to still my insecurities: Do you think I'd be an enrichment to the current mod team?

(I personally always have issues seeing ways I could improve something)

Feeds 4026

9:00 AM

0

A: Sandbox for Proposed Questions

anatomically correct version of a siren Hi. I am interested in creating a real based version of a creature from Greek mythology called a siren. These were supposedly women that had the bodies of large birds, and lured men to them with their beautiful voices. Once the men were caught off guard, t...

Mithrandir24601

@dot_Sp0T Don't see why not...

dot_Sp0T

@Mithrandir24601 I was hoping you'd see a good reason for me not to throw in my hat..

Mithrandir24601

@dot_Sp0T You're not throwing in a hat, you're giving yourself the possibility of getting a hat

dot_Sp0T

I guess I could claim to be doing it to fight James - that should get people to think twice about even thinking about nominating me

@Mithrandir24601 true that, and what a hat it'd be

Imagine being invited to all the cool mod-parties. Everywhere you go people duck and run in fear.

Mithrandir24601

@dot_Sp0T The best bit is getting there by unicorn :)

dot_Sp0T

9:09 AM

@Mithrandir24601 oh boy I love unicorn

Gryphon

12:24 PM

@dot_Sp0T Let's see if we can break the record for downvotes on a nomination, shall we?

dot_Sp0T

@Gryphon awww, that is not nice of you to say - especially after asking me if I'd nominate myself

Feeds 4026

1:25 PM

0

A: Sandbox for Proposed Questions

How long would a flat Earth last? As we all know the Earth is flat. Once upon a time a group of explorers set off with the idea of proving that the world was round and that there was a route to the spice islands the other way, but the few survivors came back screaming about seeing ships falling ...

FoxElemental

I'm back.

And in accordance with this comment and those near it, I'm totally bugging you, @Secespitus and @dot_Sp0T , to nominate yourselves.

dot_Sp0T

@FoxElemental well, I won't stand a chance against Sece

FoxElemental

1:40 PM

I think @Aify and @Mołot should run too

@dot_Sp0T Well, there are 2 spots

And one spot for dot_spot!

dot_Sp0T

I think they both did the past election(?)

FoxElemental

Hey! That could be your slogan!

dot_Sp0T

I'd rather have something witty involving how I am better than @James

FoxElemental

One Spot for Dot Spot! One Spot for Dot Spot!

Who knows . . .

dot_Sp0T

well, I'm off for a bit - need to prepare my speech

FoxElemental

1:44 PM

Yes, lol

James

1:58 PM

@Mithrandir24601 So long as it effectively constrained and provides the world building context I would call it on-topic.

@dot_Sp0T Better at being less awesome maybe.

FoxElemental

Oh, lord. You two

Hosch250

Are the Hatfields and McCoys back?

James

I like hats.

FoxElemental

So we should have a Summer Bash?

dot_Sp0T

@FoxElemental ?

FoxElemental

2:02 PM

In response to "I like hats"

dot_Sp0T

Don't listen to him or it'll go to his hat

Gryphon

@dot_Sp0T In all seriousness, though, I think you'd be a good mod.

@dot_Sp0T There are two spots open, so you don't have to be first.

FoxElemental

Agh. No one has left so much as a "you could use this tag" comment on this draft, which I posted 6 days ago. Going slow

dot_Sp0T

I will heed your recommendation. alas i think I'm still too emotional about some topics on here

@FoxElemental ping me about it in am hour

FoxElemental

Here?

dot_Sp0T

2:13 PM

ja

FoxElemental

Oh, thank you, @Gryphon !

Thanks @dot_Sp0T

@Gryphon tag added, thanks.

Gryphon

I'm wondering if we should have a wings tag, or if that's really just a subset of flight.

FoxElemental

Nothing under wings on main

dot_Sp0T

@Gryphon is there a case where wings don't imply flight?

Hosch250

@dot_Sp0T Ostriches.

FoxElemental

2:15 PM

Perhaps avian or anatomy?

Hosch250

And submarines and fishes have "wings" for stability, but they they are called fins.

dot_Sp0T

@Hosch250 evolutional holdover from flight

Hosch250

Actually, not necessarily.

I imagine birds would have run around on land before they figured out how to fly. Assuming I even believe in macroevolution.

Gryphon

@dot_Sp0T No, but we do have a lot of sub-tags that are more specific than the tag they are a subsection of.

Hosch250

Also, they are still used for stability when running, like a racecar's things (forget the term).

dot_Sp0T

2:18 PM

is there an actual case where using a wings tag wouldn't hint at flying?

@Hosch250 fins or spoiler

Hosch250

@dot_Sp0T Spoiler, thank you.

Gryphon

@dot_Sp0T No, it would probably be used near-universally on questions with the flight tag already on them. However, we do already have tags that are more specific subtypes of other tags we have.

dot_Sp0T

@Gryphon have an example of one with the same relationship?

Hosch250

@dot_Sp0T Not as far as I can see, but, I wanted to mention the edge case.

Gryphon

@dot_Sp0T For example, creature-design is technically a subtype of biology, but it is still a very useful tag.

dot_Sp0T

2:19 PM

@Hosch250 i know u did

Hosch250

:)

I'm a dev. Edge cases are in my blood.

dot_Sp0T

@Gryphon it's a conjencture between biology and enfineering

@Hosch250 you should still primarily write unit tests for the most common cases

Hosch250

@dot_Sp0T Of course I do

dot_Sp0T

@Hosch250 don't we all?

Hosch250

If you want to talk dev talk, I'll be happy to. But we should probably take it out of the room so we don't derail site business.

And, no, we don't all, unfortunately :(

FoxElemental

2:23 PM

Anyone have ideas for this:?

11

Q: Community Promotion Ads - 2018

It's almost February in 2018, which isn't supposed to be the proper time to cycle these, but for this year it'll be once again, so we'll be refreshing the Community Promotion Ads for this year now! What are Community Promotion Ads? Community Promotion Ads are community-vetted advertisements tha...

discussion community-ads

It would be nice to see ideas beyond SFF and Writing

Hosch250

@FoxElemental Do you guys have ads on SFF and Writing?

FoxElemental

Ads for them

Hosch250

I mean, is this site running ads on those sites--because they would be good sites to run worldbuilding ads on, I think.

Gryphon

@FoxElemental Maybe for RPG SE as well? We seem to get a fair number of questions from people interested in building worlds for campaigns.

Hosch250

Maybe earth science?

FoxElemental

2:26 PM

No no no. It's ads on WB, for other SE sites

Hosch250

@FoxElemental I know. I was thinking from the other direction too. Although, that's probably a different discussion.

FoxElemental

Like the ads that show up on the WB mainpage . . built your world now build your story (writing.se) like that?

@Hosch250 got it

What SEs might be useful to WBers?

Hosch250

But, I think earth science might be a good ad to run on worldbuilding for the hard-science tag.

And biology too.

FoxElemental

Yeah . . . is there an earth-science SE?

Gryphon

@FoxElemental Once again, RPG SE might be useful.

Hosch250

2:27 PM

Yeah, in beta.

FoxElemental

Hold on

Gryphon

@FoxElemental Also, do we have a Conlangs ad yet?

FoxElemental

Two. One is mine. Neither have hit the 6 upvote requirement

@Gryphon Added predator frequency, thanks

Hosch250

@FoxElemental Fixed.

Gryphon

@FoxElemental I just upvoted yours, so its hit the 6 required now.

FoxElemental

2:31 PM

Lol I saw, thanks

It's actually at 7 now

Gryphon

I'd do one for RPG.SE, but my graphics skills are limited to hand-drawn red circles in paint, so...

Hosch250

I may be interested in doing one for biology. However, it might be a little graphic.

Does anyone get queasy about dissection diagrams?

FoxElemental

Oh . . yes

Hosch250

OK, maybe I'm not the best person to do it.

dot_Sp0T

what is the Earyhsciemce stack abouy?

FoxElemental

2:34 PM

Uh oh. Gotta run. See you soon

Hosch250

@dot_Sp0T Geology, meteorology, and a few other earth-related things.

@FoxElemental TTYL.

Gryphon

@Hosch250 Yeah, I don't think that would hit 6 upvotes. Maybe 6 downvotes, though.

@dot_Sp0T That spelling is truly impressive.

@FoxElemental See ya

Hey Secespitus, are you planning on running for mod?

dot_Sp0T

@Gryphon envy much?

Secespitus

@Gryphon Haven‘t thought about it so far. I am not sure whether I am a good fit.

Hosch250

@Secespitus Classic response.

Gryphon

2:47 PM

@Secespitus I think you would be an excellent moderator. I don't think I know you well enough to know whether you'd enjoy it though. That's important too.

@dot_Sp0T I don't think my brain could ever come up with something as twisted as "Earyhsciemce"

(and yes, I had to copy and paste that).

Secespitus

@Gryphon Thank you very much. I wouldn‘t need to flag stuff in the Sandbox anymore which would be nice:D

Gryphon

@Secespitus Very true.

FoxElemental

3:37 PM

@Secespitus I think you'd make a great mod.

dot_Sp0T

@Gryphon try typing it on a small mobile keyboard and see how your fingers hit the wrong keys

FoxElemental

But I could be biased. After all, you only edit constantly, guide new users, work in the Sandbox, edit edit edit, and are super helpful and active on meta.

Sarcasm^

@dot_Sp0T You said to ping you?

dot_Sp0T

@FoxElemental he's almost too active

Gryphon

@dot_Sp0T There is a reason I never type on phones.

FoxElemental

I know

dot_Sp0T

3:40 PM

@Gryphon you don't have a phone?

Gryphon

@dot_Sp0T I am a strange human being, I know.

But yes, I may be the only teenager in North America without a phone.

FoxElemental

Better than texting while driving

Honestly, there's lots of good choices. I'm just going to wait until nomination and see who's up

Gryphon

Is there a rep barrier for nomination?

FoxElemental

300 rep

I checked

Gryphon

That seems really low. I'd think it should be like 3,000 at least.

Hmm, that means I can nominate someone.

FoxElemental

3:44 PM

IK,R?

Who?

@dot_Sp0T I fixed the image, thanks. What else?

Gryphon

@FoxElemental I don't know. I just hadn't known it was an option. I'll have to think about it.

FoxElemental

Yeah . . . trying to think of lower-rep users who would have the experience to handle modding

HDE 226868

@Gryphon Elections are all self-nominations.

Of course, you can always bug someone to run. :-)

Gryphon

Oh, so you can only nominate yourself.

Never mind then.

I don't have enough time to be a moderator right now.

FoxElemental

Yes. I imagine it's draining

But I have some people I am bugging to run.

See above

Gryphon

3:49 PM

@HDE226868 Hey HDE, how would you answer the question you put on the question collection list?

FoxElemental

I'm considering a third suggestion .. .

dot_Sp0T

@FoxElemental you might want to work with emphasis and other stylings to reduce the amount of block text even more - the easier it is to consume the information, the better

HDE 226868

@Gryphon Probably the same way I did two years ago:

> Moderators are exception handlers, but they are also ambassadors. I would love to represent Worldbuilding in cross-site affairs, letting people know what we’re about and who we are. Being a moderator also means being - in many cases - a leader, and I think I can help propel us through the changes in scope we’re currently experiencing - although I’ll be there just as much if I’m not elected.

FoxElemental

@dot_Sp0T edited. Does that clear it up for you?

Just breaking up paragraphs and putting it into lists

Thanks for all the feedback

dot_Sp0T

@FoxElemental it's not about clearing it up for me, more about making it presentabe :)

smaller bites are easier to swallow

yadayada

FoxElemental

3:59 PM

Agreed

anyway im off

So no more?

@FoxElemental Thanks

Okay, thanks for the feedback. Bye

@Secespitus It's true

Secespitus

@dot_Sp0T You can never be too active :D

Gryphon

4:05 PM

@Secespitus Well, at the point when you fall over from sleep deprivation...

Secespitus

@Gryphon I suspect you are not very active anymore at that point

FoxElemental

Exactly

Gryphon

@Secespitus But you were very active for the 48 hours previous.

FoxElemental

4:22 PM

Be right back (15 min or so)

Gryphon

See ya

FoxElemental

4:40 PM

I'm back

AndyD273

Hey

FoxElemental

@AndyD273 @Green I feel that this draft is almost ready for main. Could either one of you provide just a little more feedback, please?

Aify

@FoxElemental I don't think I should run for a mod position, and I have several reasons to justify the thought.

FoxElemental

@Aify understood, why?

Aify

1) I'm not a very "friendly" person when it comes to this site and patrolling questions. I come off as "brusque" and "blunt" and this is on purpose, because of point #2

2) I don't have enough time

FoxElemental

4:47 PM

got it

Aify

Busy life :)

and then, there's 3) I'm relatively certain my opinions are of the minority when it comes to question quality

Which means that it's unlikely that i'll get voted in anyways

Therefore, no point trying

FoxElemental

All right.

James

@Aify you do have a different approach, and it does alter where we land as a whole, that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Aify

@James I've been told repeatedly that my approach is "not friendly", "too harsh", or "assumes knowledge" - none of which are good things for a mod

In this case I think it's definitely "bad" in terms of "would this person be a mod that would be voted"

Gryphon

I think part of the reason you get that kind of feedback is that you do review tasks very quickly, which is good in terms of efficiency but not necessarily so good in terms of how the person being reviewed feels afterward.

FoxElemental

4:55 PM

Yaaay my ad for ConlangSE must have shown up on Main and it has its first click!

Aify

Y'know, @Gryphon I think you're onto something here. That's certainly a possibility that I hadn't considered.

Gryphon

@Aify I mean, there are definitely advantages to being quick. It lets you get more tasks done. However, it can leave the people who read your comments somewhat put-off.

So if you try to slow down a little bit, you might get less of that kind of response.

Aify

If I try to slow down a bit I'd be less efficient! Looks like I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place XD

@Gryphon I think a lot of it could stem from the fact that I value efficiency so much more than the time it takes to "cushion" someone's feelings.

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