I had opened a thread about the new licensing system and its many implications, with the intent to ask for other users’ opinions, experiences, explanations.
The thread, absolutely devoid of aggressive, offensive, inappropriate tones from the participants, was becoming very useful and interesting to me, but unfortunately it was suddenly closed by a moderator because, according to him, the issue is already “presented in multiple threads and also in the knowledgebase”.
I know that the new licensing system is currently much discussed (which seems not meaningless to me), but I really don’t understand why people should be prevented from discussing it as much as they want and like, exchanging opinions and experiences, even (why not?) very similar to each other.
I really didn’t expect that in a forum it was unseemly or forbidden to talk about topics already discussed by other users or about topics already present in the knowledgebase (or even, at that point, in the user manuals). Indeed, I thought (and I think) that the primary purpose of an online software-related forum was exactly THAT. I wonder how, in a “technical” forum like this, one could be able to talk about something that is NOT somehow already present in other threads or in the official documentation.
I thought, also, that an “heavy” act such as the forced closure of a forum thread was envisaged only in the event of explicit and prolonged “off topic”, or in the event that the messages contained unacceptable wording, slander, defamation, insult or similar things.
So, if these are the rules of “moderation” in force here, then they are not compatible with my personal way of intending the use of Internet forums. Therefore, since each website obviously has the full right to impose on its visitors all the rules it prefers, in the future I’ll have to take this incompatibility into account. NO polemical or quarrelsome intent; just a fair amount of… bitterness.
“In order to maintain our community, moderators reserve the right to remove any content and any user account for any reason at any time. Moderators do not preview new posts; the moderators and site operators take no responsibility for any content posted by the community.”
I can see why. It gets really hard to navigate when you have loads of threads about the same thing. Why do you need a new one. I’m not sure what else there is to be said about the subject.
With all respect for your opinion, saying it’s “forbidden” to be critical in these forums is just hyperbole. There has been endless discussions about the changes and Steinberg has answered, addressed and in some cases initiated changes based on user feedback.
It’s just that at some point this endless pissing and moaning about how wronged someone feels or how bad Steinberg is just becomes noise that drowns out the useful discussions. That moderators actually, I don’t know, moderate that, seems only adequate. I don’t know if your threads was that but there’s been plenty of it to go around. That would make any sane person moderating it running the risk of growing a little trigger happy.
As mentioned there is a plethora of online platforms for airing grievances. Steinberg’s own forum does not need to be one of them. And there’s a plethora of powerful DAWs at all price points with different developer ethos. Pick one that fits you better if you’re constantly unhappy with how Steinberg conducts their business.
Answering from a perhaps different point of view than the previous esteemed and experienced posters:
I understand why you would feel upset If indeed your post was written as you describe; feeling that one has been unfairly censored is always unpleasant. Perhaps better than deleting it would have been to simply merge it into one of the other similar threads, as has been done frequently in situations sounding similar to how you describe yours. Not knowing the full picture though makes it impossible for us to know what the best thing to have done was.
But your thread, and probably this one, would probably have been best posted in the Lounge, since it sounds like it wasn’t asking a specific Cubase question? The lounge seems to be where members can discuss more general topics.
Apologies all around if I got all this wrong, I’m basing it on what you wrote, not having seen the thread.
The target of the thread I opened was not “pissing and moaning” (not in my intention, anyway).
I wanted to get some information and share experiences and opinions about the new licensing system and, particularly, about a specific aspect of its operation (which, maybe due to a clumsy search, I had not found dealt with in other threads).
I also wanted, yes, to express some doubts and perplexities about the transition, exchanging and comparing them with those of others. Which I believe is legitimate, as long as it is done in a proper manner; even in the case (other than this) of strongly negative judgments on a company’s products and policies.
As I said, I did not intend (in that thread as in this one) to promote any sterile controversy or to “air grievances”. That way of using the Internet (very common, I know) is far from my habits and my interests.
I didn’t mean to sound polemical; maybe not exactly enthusiastic and satisfied, maybe a little disappointed, but also willing to well understand how these new things are expected to work, how they have been conceived, how they are being tested and evaluated by other long-term users. Hopefully to discover that my doubts and perplexities are unfounded.
That’s the main reason why I was bitterly surprised by being suddenly prevented to carry on that peaceful and useful (to me, at least) exchange of messages with the other participants.
You are totally right about this.
I don’t write much on this forum (I usually just read, almost exclusively here in the Cubase section) and I didn’t know (or didn’t remember) the existence of the Lounge section.
So that’s indisputably a mistake of mine, and I’m sorry for it.
At this point, however, I don’t know how to move the thread to the other section.
Maybe a moderator will.
I know the rights of moderators and I do not claim to question or deny them, at all.
As I said yesterday, I think that “each website obviously has the full right to impose on its visitors all the rules it prefers”.
I just believe I may have, in turn, the right to express (decently) some observations of mine about the way in which a legitimate right is sometimes exercised.
Why should I, as a common Cubase user, want or need something like that, when these forums here are not only official but also specifically dedicated and also, presumably, frequented by many more experienced people?
I’ve also had my fair share of bitterness. It’s not pretty. It happens, but using fewer words and expecting less always helps. That’s what I did and continued doing.
Anyway, I know a great Cubase Users group on Facebook. If you want, I can give you an invitation. PM me if you want.
That’s what I’m going to do as well.
I just thought it was right to point out a few things and, being unable to do it in the other (closed) thread, I did it in a new one.
