Kickstarting in the blue

February 9, 2011 10:04 AM

Did I miss something? Kickstarter solicitations are not approved by No. 1 in Projects, but posting someone else's Kickstarter idea in the blue is OK? Even the protagonist of the project seems to be surprised.

Yes, there have been a few Kickstarter links in the blue before, but always in the context of a larger story, which is lacking here.

posted by beagle to MetaFilter-Related at 10:04 AM (29 comments total)

It's an interesting project, seemingly posted in good-faith, with a very small but positive discussion. I don't feel like we have to convict this post for the possible future-crime of a million Kickstarter posts to come.

But, of course, I can see it getting the shit-can, too.
posted by dirtdirt at 10:13 AM on February 9, 2011

I don't really see the problem with Kickstarter posts in Projects (and no, for the record, I've never tried to post one).

Yeah some of them will be good and well thought out and get a little attention or feedback, others will suck or just lay there. That's how Projects already works.
posted by hermitosis at 10:23 AM on February 9, 2011

A Kickstarter request isn't a Project, though - it's an idea - perhaps even a white paper but not much more. Post it to Projects after you get the funding, IMO. Or do a proof of concept, post that to Projects, and link your POC to your Kickstarter.
posted by muddgirl at 10:34 AM on February 9, 2011

Pretty much anything goes on the blue, it's up to the members what they want to see and post, and no one has flagged it and everyone seems cool with it (I didn't know about the project, thought it sounded cool and pledged to help fund it too).

My specific complaint about Kickstarter and Projects was that people were throwing up their newest "MeFi Project" as a single link to a Kickstarter campaign, and the site is for announcing new completed works, so I'd rather see things done after the kickstarter campaign is over being posted. I've seen a few people work around this by building sites with more stuff that happens to mention Kickstarter and I've gone ahead and approved those.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 10:37 AM on February 9, 2011

Kickstarter projects aren't kept out of Projects because they're not okay for the blue, they're kept out because they're usually not completed projects, but starter idea-level projects with an added side of "Fund me!" The fact that the MeFi commjnity has people who do amazing thigns that might also include Kickstarter content doesnt preclude that sort of stuff from being on the front page.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 10:51 AM on February 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

my goodness typos.

I love this idea. esp. the book deal when it comes. good concept.
posted by clavdivs at 11:26 AM on February 9, 2011

If you want to post "Fund Me!" and "Look at this Kickstarter idea!," you want Hacker News, not Metafilter. They do a fine job of filling that niche.
posted by schmod at 1:01 PM on February 9, 2011

i have seen many sites/blogs linked to a FFP-B concerning funds, i see this as no different. It is a new idea, new to the web, IMO.

cool, homegrown niche
posted by clavdivs at 2:10 PM on February 9, 2011

I don't think the issue is with Kickstarter projects, it's with people who are like "I HAVE AN IDEA FOR A BAG THAT IS ALSO A HAMBURGER WHICH IS ALSO A SMARTPHONE SO HERE IS MY KICKSTARTER LINK".

I think if you have a concrete idea, some production details and materials, so evidence of actually intending to follow through, then it's okay.
posted by GilloD at 4:37 PM on February 9, 2011

Just for the record: I'm not knocking the integrity of the posted project or its funding-worthiness. I'm just thinking it's a slippery slope if the blue becomes a place for posting things that are not yet real but are simply great ideas that are still in a fund-raising stage. That's what Kickstarter is for, and it works, but it could really clutter up Metafilter.
posted by beagle at 5:04 PM on February 9, 2011

Totally agree with you there, as a once in a while "wow this RARE COOL THING" post, its neat. If it starts getting to be something we see more often, we'll likely curtail it.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 5:06 PM on February 9, 2011

The project seems cool, but I dread the future for this sort of thing. Show me something that's done and out there and finished. I know the creator wasn't behind it, but this seems a lot like advertising to me.
posted by Dee Xtrovert at 9:49 PM on February 9, 2011

I wonder how the FPP would fare if its subject didn't have the power to make the MeFi wiki go bye-bye.
posted by Sys Rq at 10:28 AM on February 11, 2011

That's a surprisingly passive-agressive accusation.
posted by muddgirl at 11:34 AM on February 11, 2011

I had a crabby response but I couldn't figure out if that was an accusation or a joke. If people do not understand the awesome that is adrianhon, I am not sure what to tell them.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 11:38 AM on February 11, 2011

I admit my joke-meter has been really off recently; if it's malfunctioning again, I apologize.
posted by muddgirl at 11:43 AM on February 11, 2011

I meant it more as a hypothetical what-if than anything else. Certainly not a serious accusation or anything. Empty cynicism, really.

But it wasn't a joke, either.

I do think it's worth considering. An increasingly integral part of the site is not actually part of the site. That seems like something with the potential to not end well.
posted by Sys Rq at 11:58 AM on February 11, 2011

Is the Wiki an integral part of the site? I've only ever used it once - to research a couple troll flameouts that I missed during a period when my account was self-closed.
posted by muddgirl at 12:03 PM on February 11, 2011

Well... ish. It's sort of the SuperFAQ.
posted by Sys Rq at 12:18 PM on February 11, 2011

Regardless, you did intend to accuse the moderators of giving adrianhon a pass because of some fear that adrianhon would mess with the wiki if they piss him off?

Because that's a pretty uncharitable characterization of both the moderators and adrianhon.
posted by muddgirl at 1:48 PM on February 11, 2011

Or if accuse is to harsh: there is an underlying assumption about how Mefi works.
posted by muddgirl at 2:05 PM on February 11, 2011

Yes. I agree. That is why I characterized it as "empty cynicism."
posted by Sys Rq at 2:08 PM on February 11, 2011

Or if accuse is to harsh: there is an underlying assumption about how Mefi works.

No. There seems to be an underlying assumption about what I was getting at, though.

Let me put it this way: It's a potential conflict of interest, and potential conflicts of interest might be worth considering in terms of site policy. That's all.
posted by Sys Rq at 2:33 PM on February 11, 2011

If cortex sleeps on my couch when he's in town, and then I make a borderline FPP that's not deleted, is that a conflict of interest that should be considered in terms of site policy? Where do we draw the line between "friendly moderators" and "conflicted moderators"?
posted by muddgirl at 2:54 PM on February 11, 2011

If cortex sleeps on my couch when he's in town, and then I make a borderline FPP that's not deleted, is that a conflict of interest that should be considered in terms of site policy?

Yep!

Where do we draw the line between "friendly moderators" and "conflicted moderators"?

Line?
posted by Sys Rq at 3:19 PM on February 11, 2011

I think you're holding up a completely unobtainable standard that adds little value to this site.
posted by muddgirl at 3:20 PM on February 11, 2011

Yes. Thought and consideration. Dear me.
posted by Sys Rq at 3:21 PM on February 11, 2011

Yes. Thought and consideration. Dear me.

How is an individual site user actionably hurt by these conflicts of interest?
posted by muddgirl at 3:30 PM on February 11, 2011

And no, I don't consider "His FPP was kept but mine wasn't" to be an actionable hurt, but that's just me.
posted by muddgirl at 3:30 PM on February 11, 2011