State of the Board

[Eric the Red]

It’s amazing to think we are headed into Huskerboard’s 13th Husker signing day. I can remember the first one, taking the day off of work with Blackshirt, scanning any website we could get to to see who committed and post it on our site to the nine or 10 members we had. Funny thing was half of those members were him and I, doing everything we could to get this site off the ground. To think, I wasn’t married, no family and living in a one bedroom apartment beginning a career. Now I’m pushing mid-life, going bald, grey hair and shuttling mi familia around in the minivan.

 

Now that is all an afterthought due to the tremendous support we have from many of our members who bleed Husker red and only want to help their fellow fan. Information is posted here quicker than ever. People are thankful they have a free place to view, participate and discuss their beloved Huskers. We are well over 10,000 members strong and there is absolutely nothing else out there like this message board that doesn’t cost a dime. This is something our whole team, members, moderators and administrators are very proud. Simply awesome!

 

It takes a lot to keep this thing afloat. It’s not just financially, but much more the time to keep things running smoothly. To think of all the generosity that has been handed over to this site it’s really phenomenal. Just last week Zoogies and AR Husker Fan amongst others freely donated their time to fix our malware intrusion. If we had to hire a private firm we’d be looking at a bill of several hundred if not several thousand dollars. Or when there is a potentially theft of ad space, someone trying to post for the competition, Knapplc is right there “Johnny on the spot” to cut them off. How about Mavric spitting out one tweet after another as soon as it leaves the recruits finger tips? We also have huskeraddict, who provides us with so much of the graphics that give Huskerboard its look, not to mention the yearly Schedule wall paper. BIGREDIOWAN and Rawhide and all the Moderators that keep the site clean from spammers. You can’t ask for anything more, certainly not anymore time. Every single one of these moderators has a career and obligations outside of this message board.

 

There is also the financial burden of running a board with this much whipping past us on a daily basis. We are almost our own worst enemy so to speak. We have grown so large it simply cost more to keep it up. This site is no cash cow by any means. There have been several months where Blackshirt and I have put in our own money to get to the next month. We are desperately looking for advertisers. We have recently purchased software to allow a very quick transaction to take place to get advertisers up and running on the board. Please reach out to me if you want to know more.

 

Of the recent bans, let me try and help.

 

What gets someone banned? I think it's simple, act as if you are face to face with someone meeting them for the first time, not as if your actions have no consequence because you’re sitting behind your computer. If you do, there is a chance you’ll be asked to leave.

 

Huskerboard is a public medium of communication. We provide a forum that allows members to post their thoughts, pictures, videos and related material. Because it is a public forum, it rests with the members to utilize it responsibly. While Huskerboard is not responsible for the content submitted by members, we also strive to provide a forum that is accessible, civil, and lawful. For that reason, Huskerboard Admins have a direct responsibility to monitor all forms of communication that occur within the domain. As a single example, should a member post child pornography, Huskerboard bears no responsibility. But as the material is illegal, we will do what must be done to remove it. Other examples include threats or harassment. We exist in a litigious society. The threat of litigation, even when there is no chance of success, is to far too great to act otherwise.

 

Our responsibility not only obligates us to be accountable for communication within public threads, but also within the PM system, including direct member-to-member conversations. If it's on our domain, we must take every step to protect ourselves.

 

With that said, we cannot be everywhere, nor do we wish to be. We have only and will only review PM messages when we have grounds to suspect that the system is being misused, such as when another member makes an accusation of threats occurring within their PM conversation.

 

This particular incident occurred from a PM conversation between three members and an Administrator. It subsequently was broadened as a result of a member sending us quoted comments another member sent them via PM. To verify the authenticity of the claim, we had to verify with our own eyes to ensure there was no fabrication. We determined these were libelous and/or offensive comments that had to be addressed. Again, regardless of the fact that Huskerboard is not legally responsible for what members post or say, we must protect ourselves from the threat of litigation. Further, we will not stand by and allow other members to be threatened or bullied and look the other way.

 

With that said, we have no interest in playing Big Brother and monitoring all PM conversations. We respect member privacy and will only take this step when verifiable proof is required to make a decision on an accusation or misconduct or abuse of the system, threats, or similar situations. I want most of my time consumed with talking Huskers.

 

To maximize members’ privacy, as we have always done, these actions will be recorded & securely logged by the owners of Huskerboard, but will not be shared with anyone for the sake of privacy unless legally compelled to do so, such as a subpoenaed in a court of law.

 

A formal privacy policy and update to the terms outlining these policies will be posted within the week.

 

We understand that this response will elicit a number of different views. Some will be satisfied (although its human nature to want to know all the details); others will not. For the latter, it is their decision to stay or go. We sincerely hope they stay, but if they elect to leave, we understand and appreciate the time they have spent on Huskerboard. We ask two things. First, and foremost, that any discussion concerning this message be civil. Second, please confine that debate to here. It is certainly on-topic here; it is not elsewhere.

 

Again, we did not do this lightly. This is the third time in our history that, unfortunately, these steps had to be taken at this length, but for the good of the board, it was necessary.

 

This is the first time in over two years I personally felt someone had to be asked to leave. I hate doing it, it’s the worst part of this and I hope we can all get back to discussing the reason we are here. That is our love of all things Huskers.

 

Something else I’d like to touch on. In a document recently circulated, I stated that the use of a term, in response to a personal attack, sounded “gay.” I did say that, and not I’m not running from it. It was an attempt at levity, especially since one of the members I had met face to face. I try and bring humor to these things and my attempt at using a Seinfeld reference came off as an insult to some. Please accept my apology, I screwed up and I apologize.

 

Please realize we cannot and will not be able to be everything to everyone. We cannot and will not be able to be everywhere and see everything. Be our eyes and ears and lead by example. Huskerboard.com is proud to be the Heartbeat of Huskernation. Our members are excited and many want to promote their passion for the Big Red. Do it here, do it loud, and do it often.

 

We set-out to make Huskerboard the most welcoming discussion forum online, allowing ALL opinions not just ours - and aim to keep it that way.

 

The State of the Board is in excellent shape. I’m overwhelmed at what we have accomplished in the first 13 years, and excited to see what the next 13 have in store for us.

 

A big thanks to all of our active members & regular visitors for being such an important part of this, and hope you continue to be involved in the board.

 

Thank you,

 

Eric the Red with Blackshirt and Ar Husker fan

[Lyons in the Sea of Red.]

Fox News will have none of this.

[huskers15]

Thank you gentlemen! What's the fee going forward?

[Eric the Red]

Thank you gentlemen! What's the fee going forward?

 

No fee.

 

Be civil, don't bully.......fair enough?

[Minnesota_husker]

I respect the challenge of keeping a board like this moving and know that some of the criticism is very unwarranted.

 

I dont really have a dog in the fight.... but fully respect the idea if someone was being harassed via PM's that actions need to be taken. You dont owe us specifics, but also it does seem like a cop out to just say "It was something i cant tell you about"... I dont know the whole story, so I have to just believe what you say.

 

 

My question is the banning after the 3 were originally banned. It seems almost like a board cleansing of people who are negative.

 

I respect what you and the other Mods/Admins do to make this place a special/fun place, but also think that making such a massive move like that can sink a board many of us love.

 

 

I know we wont get actual answers, but just hope things can be worked out. I also hope that some people learn there lesson to stop taking shots at some members on this board.

 

 

Here is hoping things get back to normal.

[killer cacti]

1. So you're banning people based on Private Messages? I'd recommend changing the name of them. That whole 'private' thing could throw people.
2. It's extremely hard to take a post seriously when it's signed with your handle.

Sincerely,

 

Killer Cacti

 

 

 

P.S. Pretty disappointed with a lot of good posters being banned at once. I will probably be spending a lot less time on the boards.

[jsneb83]

It's pretty easy to not get banned here. Just be nice. If everyone was nice and civil to each other, we would have very little problems and very few people getting banned. These guys obvious weren't civil towards some members, therefore, they were punished.

[Eric the Red]

 

 

My question is the banning after the 3 were originally banned. It seems almost like a board cleansing of people who are negative.

 

 

 

It's a damned if you do, damned if you don't position. If we do nothing and someone gets hurt, we're blamed and asked why we weren't more responsible. If we try to get out in front of it and be proactive, then we are being henchman.

 

Cyber Bullying is a serious thing and ultimately if something were to happen who is liable? Will anyone here pay the bills, take the time to go to court, and possible have your personal reputation dragged through the mud over a football message board?

[Eric the Red]

It's pretty easy to not get banned here. Just be nice. If everyone was nice and civil to each other, we would have very little problems and very few people getting banned. These guys obvious weren't civil towards some members, therefore, they were punished.

Thanks for the feedback. Believe me, the overwhelming majority are very civil.

[gobiggergoredder]

Easily the best message board on the interwebs....thanks gentlemen.

[jsneb83]

 

• So you're banning people based on Private Messages? I'd recommend changing the name of them. That whole 'private' thing could throw people.
• It's extremely hard to take a post seriously when it's signed with your handle.

Sincerely,

 

Killer Cacti

 

 

 

P.S. Pretty disappointed with a lot of good posters being banned at once. I will probably be spending a lot less time on the boards.

If someone left voicemails or letters filled with threats, would you not take them to the police and try to get a restraining order? The receiver of those PM's revealed them to the admins, not the admins going NSA, at least that's how i read it. Yes, it sucks that some very good posters got banned, but they must have crossed the line one, or a few, too many times. Oh well, life goes on.

[zoogs]

My question is the banning after the 3 were originally banned. It seems almost like a board cleansing of people who are negative.

The first three were after discussions with an admin via PM. The investigation within the PM system was what led to some of the later ones, or so's my understanding.

 

I respect what you and the other Mods/Admins do to make this place a special/fun place, but also think that making such a massive move like that can sink a board many of us love.

I know we all feel this way, but nobody wanted there to be a massive move. One of the bans was a member that had been involved in many issues over the course of a long period. During most of that, Eric himself had been adamant in arguing for him to stay.

 

The rest of them pretty much stunk, that they were ever necessary. Of these some were very visibly determined to leave, and others, well, if we're even anywhere close to dealing with threats, I'd say there's just not much choice left either.

 

I know we wont get actual answers, but just hope things can be worked out. I also hope that some people learn there lesson to stop taking shots at some members on this board.

 

Here is hoping things get back to normal.

Definitely.

[huKSer]

Attack the post, not the poster. And don't attack the Admin **duh**

 

Sounds good to me.

[zoogs]

It's pretty easy to not get banned here. Just be nice. If everyone was nice and civil to each other, we would have very little problems and very few people getting banned.

Thanks jsneb. I tell this to people all the time if it gets to a point where I have to talk to them about their conduct here. It is super easy to never even get close to walking the line! I'm always thankful that we have so many people who fit that description exactly. I mean, at a sports forum with a rabid fanbase? Come on! That's what makes this (in my experience) a pretty special place.

[huKSer]

On a side note

 

I am closer to breaking into the "starting line up"