Rich Skrenta - Demoted at Dmoz
Thread Title:
rubberstamped.org
rubberstamped.org
Thread Description:
Rich Skrenta, one of the founders of the ODP lost his root priveleges a day or two ago over at DMOZ - demoted to a common META, ack, the shame of it heh...
I shouldn't think he's in the least bit worried about it, Topix.net is doing just great thankyou very much! - I don't know if Rich's loss of priveleges have anything to do with everyone's favorite troublemaker IHU in the threadlink above at the "oh such a pleasant place" resource-zone but maybe it did. I know it'd give a few of the more rampant IHU'er wet dreams for weeks to think that they may have played apart in someone elses misfortune, but then i find it hard to beleive that:
a) Anyone cares what they say
b) Anyone at dmoz cares if Rich adds sites he likes - that's the point isn't it?
c) Any of you care at all
It does make for a fun little scandal though, plenty of whining, lots of skullduggery and no small amount of frothing at the mouth lunacy thrown in for good measure.
And for those with a lust for Skrenta info, Peter has an interview with the uber geek himself...
Rich Skrenta, one of the founders of the ODP lost his root priveleges a day or two ago over at DMOZ - demoted to a common META, ack, the shame of it heh...
I shouldn't think he's in the least bit worried about it, Topix.net is doing just great thankyou very much! - I don't know if Rich's loss of priveleges have anything to do with everyone's favorite troublemaker IHU in the threadlink above at the "oh such a pleasant place" resource-zone but maybe it did. I know it'd give a few of the more rampant IHU'er wet dreams for weeks to think that they may have played apart in someone elses misfortune, but then i find it hard to beleive that:
a) Anyone cares what they say
b) Anyone at dmoz cares if Rich adds sites he likes - that's the point isn't it?
c) Any of you care at all
It does make for a fun little scandal though, plenty of whining, lots of skullduggery and no small amount of frothing at the mouth lunacy thrown in for good measure.
And for those with a lust for Skrenta info, Peter has an interview with the uber geek himself...
- Y! MyWeb
ODP Airing Its Dirty Laundry
. . . It is astonishing to see ODP so bent on self-destruction that it has now turned on its own creator like the Frankenstein monster. . . .
IHU "troublemakers"
I can feel your pain, and I'm sorry for your loss - but according to the Chefmoz Editor List, skrenta still has root privileges there. So that's nice.
Chefmoz
Should not think he is too worried one way or the other. His last log in there is given as
20/May/2003 22:49:03
On closer inspection that is when Chefmoz was set up. Most of the staff have never logged in. Must be doing well!
Still if he is at a loose end...
Call Doug a troublemaker if y
Call Doug a troublemaker if you want (and I do agree with the editors in that thread who wrote that this discussion should not have been public), but it seems to me that every ODP editor who contributed to that thread agreed that this was a clear case of editorial abuse.
So if the consensus of the editors is to be deemed the truth (by the ODP's standards if not everyone else's) then I have to ask who's more at fault -- Skrenta for abusing his editing priveleges, or Doug for pointing that out.
it's not the pointing out
but the way things are sometimes pointed out.
and of course it could be argued, if someone wanted to be irritatingly picky, that the editors who contributed to that thread were ones too stupid to realise that the discussion shouldn't take place in public and that perhaps they aren't, therefore, the ones who should be making the decision?
nah, that would be a really petty point wouldn't it? ;)
No argument with that
They probably should have deleted the post, discussed it amongst themselves, and come to a decision. I have a hard time believing that the opinions they posted were only posted because they were public, or that any editors that disagreed with the publicly-posted consensus would have overruled that decision.
I haven't asked Doug whether he posted it in public out of a belief that he'd only get results that way, but that doesn't really matter to me. It was up to the editors to take it out of public view if they honestly felt it didn't belong there.
And once again, I have to stress that I have nothing against RS myself. In fact, Peter gave me a free listing for a site I run for a friend. But if other directory owners are refused listings because they have empty categories, and if WoW is told they'll never be listed, I honestly can't think of a legitimate reason to make an exception for RS.
I hope Peter gets himself a few thousand more listings (paid and free), resubmits to ODP, and gets in.
What's the Big Deal?
Granted, I've come into this teacup storm late, but I just don't get why it's such a big deal for a founder of ODP to add a directory listing that he stumbles upon. Even if he only did it to prove Peter wrong about ODP listing delays (a point Peter himself found amusing), surely he is entitled to add any site/directory that he comes across?
We all know that listing favors and rushes are done all the time by ODP editors for their buddies, family or selves. Provided the site fits the category description and is relevant, I just don't see the big deal. I haven't peeked at the Resource Zone thread in question so maybe the apparent "infringement" by Rich is more serious than I suspect. But I doubt it.
>>I haven't peeked at the Res
>I haven't peeked at the Resource Zone thread in question so maybe the apparent "infringement" by Rich is more serious than I suspect. But I doubt it.
Don't.
Loud noises upset my chickens, When I shoot skeet my chickens get upset. They cluck and run around like something important is happening. They don't die and they keep laying eggs. Much like ODP editors that are startled by noises and raindrops...
FWIW
I fully agree Kal, it's beyond understanding just how riled up people get over this crap...
Welcome to Threadwatch :) do introduce yourself here...
and yeah DG, resource-zone must be *the* ugliest community on the web i reckon bar more traditional hate sites of course..
RZ a community?
I hope not. As I see it, it's just a place for people to come in and ask questions about ODP. Apart from editors, I really hope nobody hangs out there.
The Sky Is Falling!
> ODP editors . . . are startled by noises and raindrops....
That they are. And they often drown themselves with raindrops when they look up to see what's falling on them, which can make it very hard for them to lay any eggs.