The Cool Wall

[Kent]

I suggest "The Cool Wall" be managed by a moderator.

No personal opinion should be presented in the presentation, nor should the steward's opinion be the subject of any individual's vote.

I ask that the GTP staff please consider making "The Cool Wall" a matter for moderators to deal with rather than any normal member.

PS... I say this only because my car isn't "cool enough" to get a high ranking.

 

[Azure Flare]

Or I could do it...

 

[daan]

No personal opinion should be presented in the presentation,

This ^.

 

[Azure Flare]

I remember the last person to do it would have the OP, then post his opinion about it right after.

 

[AudiMan2011]

I'll be happy with whoever takes over the Cool Wall, whether it's a GTP mod or another member who isn't outrageously biased and tries to shovel their opinions down other people's throats like they know what's best.

 

[Hayden]

The current organizer does a great job running The Cool Wall behind the scenes but he really needs to keep his bizarre opinions miles away from it. I don't think a mod needs to take it over (they're busy enough as it is) but having an independent member in charge would certainly be refreshing. I honestly don't care if that's someone new or just W&N with a heavily bitten tongue.

 

[Liquid]

Nothing wrong with the way it is run, W&N fairly puts all nominations to the vote with good stats / information.

As others have alluded to, perhaps split the OP and W&N's opinion over two posts and it's fine.

 

[Azure Flare]

Nothing wrong with the way it is run, W&N fairly puts all nominations to the vote with good stats / information.

Even though he loves some easily found information out, like torque figures. The Renault Sport Spider has 136 lb.-ft. of torque, I found that in just 15 seconds.

 

[Tornado]

The only issue with how it is run is that it needs to be more thoroughly researched on occasion (and sometimes even that is just people looking for a fight rather than any actual error of consequence). Otherwise who cares. It doesn't make any difference to anything.

 

[Wolfe]

Also, cubic inches.

 

[Beeblebrox237]

I'm honestly very tired of W&N's idiotic views being put in the OP. And those threads always turn into arguments about him, rather than discussions on the coolness of the cars. I absolutely think a moderator should manage the Cool Wall, or just scrap it altogether. It's a lot of effort and all you get in return is the same argument repeated endlessly.

 

[Liquid]

I'm honestly very tired of W&N's idiotic views being put in the OP. And those threads always turn into arguments about him, rather than discussions on the coolness of the cars. I absolutely think a moderator should manage the Cool Wall, or just scrap it altogether. It's a lot of effort and all you get in return is the same argument repeated endlessly.

Someone else runs it, he still contributes as a member, same old discussion.

Management is not the problem. Objectivity in nominations and creation of vote threads is fine. The opinions which subsequently follow are the problem, and will be the same anyway.

 

[Azure Flare]

I just think he is beyond the point of no return, let him keep going and see where it ends up.

Someone else runs it, he still contributes as a member, same old discussion.

He uses his political views to 'jack the thread and drag it way off-topic.

Now if I was running it...

 

[CarBastard]

I actually have nothing against W&N running the Cool Wall. His opinion being in the OP barely influences the voting, if it does influence it at all, and I've got to the point where I'll just ignore the poor little soul. If anything, I'd like a Cool Wall thread every day but he already said he couldn't do it and that's ok.

 

[Azure Flare]

He has sometimes votes for Seriously Uncool for cars he doesn't like, thus skewing the final result.

That just ain't right...

 

[Tornado]

I'm honestly very tired of W&N's idiotic views being put in the OP.

So ignore them when he posts them. It's not too hard. This can be seen in how most of the threads he posts in have the same views, but not every one of those manages to become another round of "telling the ignorant guy that he is ignorant for 50 straight posts."

And those threads always turn into arguments about him, rather than discussions on the coolness of the cars.

As long as other members similarly refuse to keep it in their pants, so to speak, this will not change regardless of who is running it.

I absolutely think a moderator should manage the Cool Wall, or just scrap it altogether. It's a lot of effort and all you get in return is the same argument repeated endlessly.

Let's say Famine runs it. He posts a car someone else requests that happens to be FWD. Or an automatic. Or an I4. Or a hybrid. Let's just say the car nominated was a Prius. The thread goes along as normal until White and Nerdy says something.

Then the thread instantly gets derailed anyway as everyone starts going out of their way to argue against whatever it was he said, even if it doesn't strictly have anything to do with the actual car and even if the view itself wasn't particularly objectionable. So what difference does it really make in that case?

He uses his political views to 'jack the thread and drag it way off-topic.

Now if I was running it...

Actually, he says something typical of him, and someone else uses his political and Luddite views to hijack the thread and drag it way off topic (frequently broaching topics that have absolutely nothing to do with the car in question). Because there's nothing whatsoever saying that when he says something stupid which is practically a copy paste job of some other stupid thing he said in the past, he can't be ignored; and, as the most recent example, the Honda Insight thread is not 6 pages of him talking to himself.

He has actually been voting for Seriously Uncool for cars he doesn't like, thus skewing the final result.

So what? I voted Seriously Uncool for cars I didn't like when I ran it. I'm sure Joey did the same thing. I don't think he's done a several years facade of saying how much he hates crossovers and hybrids to cover for him manipulating the Cool Wall results.





The fact of the matter is that his running of the Cool Wall and his opinions about some of the things in the Cool Wall are two separate things; and when the latter is what people have an issue with to the extent that the messes of the Insight thread repeatedly happen they will have the issue with it regardless of whether or not the former is true. That he does run the Cool Wall is merely a scapegoat for how they don't want him to post at all.

 

[Crash]

Personally, I think that W&N does a pretty good job of running the Cool Wall itself. Yes, there are a few things that should be better researched once in a while, but the regularity and frequency of new nominations being put to vote I think are good.

I completely disagree with W&N's opinions and think he's an idiot, but I think that as long as he puts his opinions in a separate post, then I have no issues with his running of the Cool Wall. I think that the first post of the Cool Wall should be just facts about the car, no opinions whatsoever, no matter who is actually running it.

Also, if people would just ignore W&N, he'll eventually go away...

 

[Famine]

I wouldn't care if it was a car-hating, Gaia-worshipping couscous-weaver who "ran" the Cool Wall and posted

SERIOUSLY UNCOOL BECAUSE KILLING MOTHER EARTH

after every post. Cool Wall isn't srs bzness.

He has sometimes votes for Seriously Uncool for cars he doesn't like, thus skewing the final result.

To some people, what they like IS what's cool. If that's how they want to vote, so what? Sure, have the discussion in the discussion thread if you like, but it's hardly a hanging offence.


"Cool" isn't objective. The "Cool Wall" is supposed to be a laugh - that's why it comes from an entertainment show. And if I ran it, I'd not even bother with the poll - I'd just tell you where it goes and you can complain about it afterwards. Which is, amusingly, exactly how it works on Top Gear.

 

[Beeblebrox237]

So ignore them when he posts them. It's not too hard. This can be seen in how most of the threads he posts in have the same views, but not every one of those manages to become another round of "telling the ignorant guy that he is ignorant for 50 straight posts."

Actually, I generally do a pretty good job of ignoring his remarks, and I generally don't even look at the OP if I know the car already. And while not every thread descends into mindless squabbling, the percentage of threads that do is still quite high.

Then the thread instantly gets derailed anyway as everyone starts going out of their way to argue against whatever it was he said, even if it doesn't strictly have anything to do with the actual car and even if the view itself wasn't particularly objectionable. So what difference does it really make in that case?

I understand this, and I agree. It's a joint effort, not just W&N.

The fact of the matter is that his running of the Cool Wall and his opinions about some of the things in the Cool Wall are two separate things; and when the latter is what people have an issue with to the extent that the messes of the Insight thread repeatedly happen they will have the issue with it regardless of whether or not the former is true. That he does run the Cool Wall is merely a scapegoat for how they don't want him to post at all.

👍

To be honest, I don't think the problem is so much with W&N, though he is a blithering idiot and he knows that when he posts he stirs everyone up, the problem is the Cool wall. As Famine said, the original cool wall was meant to be funny and it wasn't a democracy, so it worked. But the GTP cool wall is just arguing, and doesn't actually tell us if a car is cool or not, nor does it entertain very often.

I'm increasingly of the opinion that the cool wall should be scrapped entirely, for good. There's a reason it's had many curators. If it were put to a vote, I'd vote to kill the cool wall entirely. It's old, repetitive, and has no practical value. They're discussion threads on individual cars, and frankly we'd be better off with one "Is this car cool?" thread where people could randomly post a car and discuss its coolness. Except I have a feeling that if that thread was started and the cool wall killed, it would be locked within a month.


By the way, I think it's only fair that we tag @White & Nerdy so he can see this thread and know what's being discussed. He deserves to have his say on this matter.

 

[LMSCorvetteGT2]

Nothing wrong with the way it is run, W&N fairly puts all nominations to the vote with good stats / information.

As others have alluded to, perhaps split the OP and W&N's opinion over two posts and it's fine.

My only question is how does this actually defeat the point of what people are saying. Which is the organizer not giving his opinion. So yeah it's not in the OP, that's great. So he posts it later on, but anyone with a handful of brain cells (see what I did there) would still figure see organizer bias.

 

[Liquid]

I don't see a problem with the organiser giving his opinion. Just keep it separate from the OP.

 

[Famine]

I barely even read the first post. I look at the title and vote.

Sometimes it's a car I'm not familiar with - current US market US domestics or the occasional weirdity from far flung climes - and I'll look at the picture too.

That's. About. It.

 

[Tornado]

My only question is how does this actually defeat the point of what people are saying.

It doesn't make any difference. You're right. But that is because what people are saying is rather irrelevant when it's not what they actually mean (which is rather blatantly nothing more than "we don't want him posting in Cool Wall threads anymore" and taking it away from him is the quickest outlet for that). Let's call a spade a spade here: This isn't about protecting the sanctity of the Cool Wall from "organizer bias," because the event as a concept was going on for years before White and Nerdy took it over and he doesn't run it any differently than any of the other people who ran it; including having opinions about the things being voted themselves.

For crying out loud, two of the previous people who ran it stopped running it specifically because I complained about what they were doing with it; and even I don't see any serious issues with how White & Nerdy does it that he is to blame for.





Similarly:

So he posts it later on, but anyone with a handful of brain cells (see what I did there) would still figure see organizer bias.

Several people keep claiming that his personal bias is reflected in how he runs the Cool Wall, and they have to because that is the only requirement of him to run it. It has literally been claimed since he stepped up to take it over. And yet the million dollar question is how. What is the relationship between the fact that he is outspoken (putting it kindly) and he is also the one setting up the polls?
He doesn't manipulate results. He presents the car information and pictures exactly as it is given to him in the nomination thread, even copying errors over when the person who nominated the car did a poor job (and certain people have even used that to try to claim he's trying to misrepresent cars). And he incorporates all of the questionable ideas that he inherited from the former runners of the thread that do dramatically and demonstrably skew the voting results, and follows them to the letter. He didn't change anything, and the closest he ever came to anything of the sort was making a joke about it that blew up in his face when at least one of the people posting in this thread tried to use even that as proof of the same thing that is being claimed now.




So where does his personal bias actually factor into this? The only thing he does any differently is that he puts his opinion at the end of the OP (as far as I can remember, always clearly separated from the actual car info, mind) rather than double posting at the end, which means it is all of 2 centimeters further up the screen and a wholly meaningless difference for the purpose of this thread, as you yourself noted. I'd personally like to see it happen too, but I'm under no illusion that that is actually what people are angling for here.

 

[CarBastard]

And why does it matter if he votes? Before being the responsible of the Cool Wall he is just an ordinary GTP member and as such should be albe to voice his opinion, as ridiculous and worrying for his mental health that opinion is. And in the end, it's just one vote.

 

[Jahgee]

I'd be willing to run it too, he's said before that if he's unavailable, that he'd ask me to do the things needed then

 

[Parker]

I'm also of the opinion that he does a good job running the Cool Wall but I'd also like to see him keep his opinions out of the OP. To me personally I think the OP should just be about the specifications of the car, nothing else. He should be free to add his opinion in a separate post.

Also, while his rants are idiotic, it is almost worse to see all the other members continuously replying to him when they know exactly what the outcome will be. If no one replies to his rants and just vote how they wish, the Cool Wall threads will actually be about the car again instead of an Alaskan with a Sunbird.

 

[Mini Stiggy]

By the way, I think it's only fair that we tag @White & Nerdy so he can see this thread and know what's being discussed. He deserves to have his say on this matter.

He doesn't get notified if you tag him in an edit (I think that's what you did anyway).

 

[White & Nerdy]

Don't worry, I found the thread anyway.

Even though he loves some easily found information out, like torque figures. The Renault Sport Spider has 136 lb.-ft. of torque, I found that in just 15 seconds.

Wasn't that the racing version though?

As far as leaving in errors from the nominations: Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't. Depends on how easily I can find information and how large the error is. Sometimes the gap between nomination and what I can find is so large I just go with the nomination because they might be talking about something completely different.

As far as the joke that blew up in my face: What was that?

As far as my opinion affecting voting: Yes, there do seem to be some people who who are so offended by one or more of my opinions that they have taken it upon themselves to counter every SU vote or opinion I give (even when I don't actually bother to put a vote in, which was pretty often for a while) with an SZ vote and a lengthy rebuttal. I blame them for my own car scoring as low as it did - if it weren't for the "White & Nerdy owns one, White & Nerdy is anti-brony conservative, therefore auto SU" people it might have even broken into the -0.9s. Maybe you should take that up with them instead.

 

[Furinkazen]

Don't worry, I found the thread anyway.



Wasn't that the racing version though?

As far as leaving in errors from the nominations: Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't. Depends on how easily I can find information and how large the error is. Sometimes the gap between nomination and what I can find is so large I just go with the nomination because they might be talking about something completely different.

As far as the joke that blew up in my face: What was that?

As far as my opinion affecting voting: Yes, there do seem to be some people who who are so offended by one or more of my opinions that they have taken it upon themselves to counter every SU vote or opinion I give (even when I don't actually bother to put a vote in, which was pretty often for a while) with an SZ vote and a lengthy rebuttal. I blame them for my own car scoring as low as it did - if it weren't for the "White & Nerdy owns one, White & Nerdy is anti-brony conservative, therefore auto SU" people it might have even broken into the -0.9s. Maybe you should take that up with them instead.

You do seem to have 99% of nominations in that thread....

 

[MatskiMonk]

FWIW, I think @White & Nerdy should not post "his take" in the OP, it does seem to be a catalyst for thread derailment. If you're putting something up for polling, the OP shouldn't be biased one way or another.

Besides that, there are just as many other opinions that are just as predictable as his, and just as annoying Maybe the Cool Wall is just doomed!