Thread:Mira Laime/@comment-5785681-20190518044003

Hi Mira,

I wasn't sure who to talk to about this, but we've communicated in the past and you've always given level-headed advice so I figured I'd ask you about something that concerns me of late....

There's a feature on a wiki in which I participate called DISCORD, which is audio chat. I'm curious about it because I haven't been able to find any information about it here on CC as a feature. It doesn't seem to be CC-based and there's no Discord Moderator listed as a User Right. Like chat, which is a CC feature but which can be turned off, DISCORD seems to run independently once it's installed. And unless you "connect" and sit in, you have no way of knowing what's being said because nothing is transcribed for other wiki members to read.

''How is this in keeping with wiki's policy of transparency between all members? More importantly, how is it safe? ''

From the start, wikis have been democracies. That only works when everyone knows that every action is visible to all. It keeps things honest. Yet when it comes to DISCORD, transparency is lost. Conversations of any kind, about any subject, can take place without a record being shared with the rest of the wiki's membership. Not only is this unfair, it's risky for those involved in the conversation because if unkind words are said, what happens next? And if the topic veers into non-wiki-related matters into politics or pedo grooming or whatever...who's paying attention? I know it sounds paranoid, but that's a legitimate concern in this day and age because if I'm thinking it, as a concerned citizen, you know those who would exploit it are, too.

It's troubling. Frankly, I'd ban DISCORD outright. Chat, too. Neither really do much to make wikis more socially interactive. Most social media sites don't even offer such options for the very reasons I've stated above. And if banning is not an option, at least make a daily transcript available to the wiki's admins or, better yet, to the membership of the wiki at large. That would keep the participants careful about what they say, don't you think?

Thanks for listening and I hope to hear from you.

Angelle ( Talk ) 04:40, May 18, 2019 (UTC) 