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Tomato writes...

So, this is not really a question, so much as a statement, one that a lot of people may not like me for, but whatever. As someone who has been reading Ask Greg, who currently has his own question in the queue, and who loves pretty much every show you've made: If this section has become an unnecessary burden on you, if it no longer holds any value or fun, you need to stop. I'm not saying you need to close the section down or anything, but if it comes down to a choice between you taking a step back for a month or so or letting things get so out of hand here that you shut it down permanently, then take a step back. Those of us who are loyal, truly loyal, to you and your shows will wait, and those that aren't can go off and whine elsewhere.

Truthfully, I don't think I've ever seen a creator involved with his or her fan base to this extent. It says a lot not only that you take the time to answer our questions, but that you WON'T answer all of them. It shows that you care enough to let us experience the narrative the way it's supposed to be experienced, even if we'd rather worm our way around it.

So yeah, if you need to, let the moderators handle things for the time being. They might have to skip over a few questions here and there, but they've already proven capable of typing "SPOILER REQUEST, NO COMMENT" and really, that's 90% of the answers you give right now anyway >P

Greg responds...

Thanks for the support. I think - generally - we've found a happy medium. The plan is to reopen the site's posting function toward the end of the month when our new episode (#208 "Satisfaction") premieres. Unfortunately, there's little chance I'll have gotten through the remaining 673 questions by then - so the backlog will increase. But whatchagonnado, right?

Response recorded on September 10, 2012

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Matthew writes...

Not a question just a comment. I found those long posts with tons of questions annoying as get all so I was glad about your decision to ban more then ten questions. Often, half the questions were things that you already answered (not that I haven't repeated a question once or twice.) So not everyone is disgruntled about this.

Greg responds...

Thanks.

Response recorded on September 10, 2012

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Derek writes...

Really more a comment than a question. As a reader of this site I prefer a smaller amount of questions per entry anyway. It makes them easier to search if a question has been asked previously about a character or storyline. It also makes the archives more pointed towards a particular topic.

Greg responds...

Agreed.

Response recorded on September 04, 2012

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Anonymous writes...

Hi greg! why you sometimes write in ALL CAPS? do you know that on the internet that means shouting?

I love yj!!!!1

Greg responds...

I don't feel like I write in ALL CAPS, except for emphasis or - sometimes - for titles.

Response recorded on August 30, 2012

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CGYJ writes...

Mr. Greg Weisman,

Your response to one of my questions from my first posting (which was posted by me on March 3rd, 2012) stated that you are not familiar with the Smallville interpretation of Krypton’s destruction. The circumstances behind Krypton’s destruction were made clear within an animated series related to Smallville (but also which is not shown on TV) called “Kara and the Chronicles of Krypton.”

The website, http://smallville.wikia.com/wiki/Kara_and_the_Chronicles_of_Krypton, should hopefully be able to help out in some way to help you understand.

If you want to know more about Smallville’s interpretation of Krypton, here is this website, http://smallville.wikia.com/wiki/Krypton.

If you want to know about the DCAU interpretation of Krypton and how its destruction came about (which you claimed to some difficulty remembering), here’s the website, http://dcanimated.wikia.com/wiki/Krypton.

Does this information appear to help in any way to let you understand the nature of my question from the first posting (which I believe was question #5)? I feel that that these sources are well-informative, so please let me know how it all works out.

PS. I would also like to let you know that two days ago (from the date of this posting), around nighttime, I noticed in the unanswered questions archive that an anonymous person posted a very offensive and insulting message towards me; which also accused me of posting too much. Whoever’s posting it belonged to was deleted by whoever is in charge of the approval of the postings, so I don't remember the anonymous person's exact words. If you feel that I AM posting too often, I sincerely apologize and wish to be advised as to how to avoid the problem. Otherwise, I will not post anything from this point forward unless I feel that I need to ask something important regarding Young Justice.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read this posting.

Greg responds...

I appreciate you posting these links, but I don't have the time or inclination to check them out. Sorry.

But I don't think you're posting too often. The moderators obviously have NO problem with your posts - since they've remained in the queue for me to respond to - while the post made by your attacker - which I haven't seen - was deleted. So I think it's obvious who belongs here and who doesn't.

Response recorded on August 28, 2012

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B writes...

"What exactly are you asking here? Whether or not I'm going to give a free pass to people who phrase the request sneakily? Or whether folks will stop asking when I make it clear that it's not going to work? "

The latter, of course. You constantly refuse to give spoilers and yet they keep trying that "in your opinion" thing as if it's not a spoiler request.

Greg responds...

Okay... so. Is there still a question here?

Response recorded on August 28, 2012

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ASK GREG UPDATE - VERY IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT

There is a NEWLY revised intro page at ASK GREG, and more importantly, a newly revised "GUIDELINES FOR ASKING A QUESTION" page. What's on it is SO important, I'm going to copy it below. But first a WARNING. In ONE WEEK'S TIME, I am going to authorize the moderators to go through the EXISTING QUEUE and retroactively apply these guidelines, DELETING any and every post that breaks even one of the guidelines. That's right, RETROACTIVELY.

I can justify this for a number of reasons:
1. NONE of these guidelines are actually new. This is the first time they've been gathered together on the question asking page, but I've been pleading for people to follow all of these guidelines for OVER A YEAR. So by now, anyone who spends even a little time at the site should be aware of them.
2. I'm giving folks a FULL WEEK to retrieve their non-guideline posts and RE-POST them PER THE GUIDELINES. Our biggest problem recently seems to be with folks who are hit and run posters, more interested in being able to post questions then in actually getting timely answers of any substance. Those folks may return in a few months (or whatever) to find their posts deleted, but anyone who's a regular here has plenty of time to correct their mistakes.
3. The queue currently has over a thousand questions and is still growing. No one's going to get ANY timely answers if something isn't done.

Please, keep in mind that (a) I take no pleasure in being this draconian and (b) this is WAY less draconian than it might be. Heck, their are fans advocating that I SHUT THE SITE DOWN entirely, which, frankly, is still an option on the table.

So please, read the following guidelines CAREFULLY. Reread your existing posts - or any new posts you might make - and confirm for yourself whether or not ANY ASPECT of your post busts a guideline. Because if even one little rule is broken, your ENTIRE post will be deleted mercilessly. (Feel free to ask for advice from the moderators at the Station 8 Comment Room, as to whether or not your post is within the guidelines and/or what you can do to get it guideline-safe.) Repost your question, if necessary. I realize that if you're near the front of the queue with a semi-non-legit post, it'll be frustrating to have to go to the back of the line, but keep in mind that in one week, the line is about to get WAY SHORTER, because nearly EVERY post breaks one or more guidelines.

GUIDELINES FOR ASKING A QUESTION
1. DO NOT REQUEST SPOILERS! All requests for spoilers will be met with "SPOILER REQUEST. NO COMMENT." or DELETION. Prefacing your spoiler request question by saying, "I hope this doesn't trigger a spoiler alert" or the like doesn't help. Think before you post. If you're asking for information about what is to come on a show, it's a spoiler. And Greg flat out will not answer. So all you're doing is clogging the queue.

2. Search the archives to make sure your question hasn't already been answered. Any question already answered will receive an "ASKED AND ANSWERED" response or be DELETED. Again, this only serves to clog the queue.

3. Check the unanswered questions queue before posting your question. It may not yet be answered, but if you can see that someone's already asked the question, then there's no point in asking it again. All you'll receive is another "ASKED AND ANSWERED" response or the post will be DELETED.

4. Consider asking your question from knowledgeable fans before posting it. For example, the folks at http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/comment/ are very knowledgeable and can usually answer questions much faster than Ask Greg. The Gargoyles Wiki, the Young Justice Wiki, and the Station Eight FAQ are excellent sources of information as well and may contain the answers to your questions.

5. Please refrain from asking questions - even non-spoiler questions - that it seems obvious will be answered by the end of the season. One of the reasons the queue is so long is because it's filled with questions that have already been answered by subsequent episodes, even questions that one would reasonably assume would be answered by subsequent episodes. If at the end of the season, your questions still aren't answered, THAT is the time to ask them. Until then, your post risks DELETION.

6. If you are asking multiple questions in one post, please number your questions. And if you're asking more than five questions then create a separate post. But please, do NOT flood the queue. Show restraint or risk DELETION.

7. Please do not submit any original ideas, notions, concepts, or drawings of original characters. No stories, no fanfic, no teleplays, nothing. Anything like this will automatically be DELETED.

8. No original ideas masquerading as questions. Asking what Demona did during World War II is fine. Asking if Demona tried to assassinate Hitler during World War II is an idea masquerading as a question and is not all right. Again: automatic DELETION.

9. No requests for employment. If you want to ask generally about how one might break into the business, Greg will try to give his perspective, but this is not an appropriate forum for personal pleas for work and as such will be DELETED.

10. Please make separate posts for each topic you want to address or ask questions about. If you have 3 or so questions about one topic (for example, Oberon) you may post them together. But if you wish to ask about multiple topics (for example, Oberon AND Goliath and Elisa's relationship) please make separate posts for each topic or risk DELETION.

11. Please keep the language clean. This is more or less a PG website. Anything beyond the occasional 'damn' will result in your entire post being DELETED.

12. Rudeness is not appreciated. You don't have to like Greg's stuff. And negative comments are perfectly legitimate and will not be deleted simply for being negative. But that can be done without being rude or abusive. Keep it civil or risk DELETION.

13. Please do not bother making comments worded in such a way that they, in essence, CHALLENGE Greg to acknowledge how right those comments are about their criticisms of the program. Here’s the thing...you do NOT have to agree with Greg's creative choices, but aside from a few objective mistakes that he has ALWAYS been willing to acknowledge, you have to understand that if Greg and his creative partners put something in the series, the odds are THEY LIKE IT. YOU are NOT going to convince GREG that, for example, “Hello, Megan!” or Robin’s laugh or Superman’s response to Superboy or Wally’s flirting is bad for the show. Feel free to tell him you don’t care for these (or other) things, but stop phrasing these COMMENTS as questions or challenges. It grates. Any question that falls into this category will at best be answered with a: “WE LIKE OUR SHOW.” and in fact risks DELETION.

*PLEASE READ AND FOLLOW ALL GUIDELINES CAREFULLY*
Breaking any of these guidelines may result in DELETION. This means, for example, that if you ask four legitimate questions, but your fifth question does not follow even one of the guidelines, your ENTIRE POST may be DELETED. (Are you sensing a theme?)

Once a post is deleted, there is no cache where it is saved. There is no appeal. You can go to the S8 Comment Room and ask a moderator WHY the post was deleted FOR FUTURE REFERENCE, i.e. so that future posts will better observe the guidelines and hopefully not be deleted. But the moderator cannot reinstate your post. Also, keep in mind that sometimes the moderators delete posts. Sometimes Greg does, in which case the moderator may not be able to explain the decision. The moderators are merely following Greg's guidelines. Greg can delete a post on a whim.

In case it isn't clear, I'm not actually (let alone actively) trying to alienate fans. I wouldn't do ASK GREG at all if that were the case. But the system has been so terribly abused, that I feel it's this or we shut it down.


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Anonymous writes...

Paraphrased Antiyonder's appeal from the Comment Room:

"The Young Justice Wiki (http://youngjustice.wikia.com) incorporates info from Ask Greg, such as the often repeated age questions. So if you're (just talking to folks in general who tend to do so) going to ask for an age, look at the character articles on the wiki to see if it's there."

Greg responds...

Good plan.

Response recorded on April 24, 2012

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Disgruntled

TODAY, a disgruntled fan posted at the Station 8 Comment room: http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/comment/index.php.

Here's the post in full, and my response will be below it:

I posted this message on AskGreg but it was censored. I guess only sucking-up messages are allowed. Here it is:

Dear Greg Weisman,

I would just like to express my deepest outrage for what happened today (April 17). I'm talking about, off course, the new 5-questions-per-post limit you've pulled out of thin air with complete disregard for your most loyal followers. Yes, I realize AskGreg is not a right, but a privilege, like Greg Bishansky so well put it on the comments room (though he goes out of his way to kiss your ass on every turn), but WE are fans. YOURS, no less.

Basically, up until today the rule regarding the quantity of questions per post one could ask was TEN (http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/search.php?rid=925). Changing it after one month worth of answers seems like foul play. And this new limit comes off as a rather draconian and disproportionate edict, because there's no direct correlation between the number of questions and the required time to answer them. Say there is a post with 30 yes-or-no questions and another with only one that demands a more in-depth response. The former doesn't comply with the 5-questions limit, whilst the latter does. However, would the former really take up the same time to answer as the latter? How do reviews and rambles (that sometimes only prompt a three or five worded answer from you) get precluded from this? Don't they consume more of your time than answering 10, or even 20 short questions?

Also, it seems that forcing posters to spread their questions won't solve the problem, but only add to it, because instead of making one big post with 30 questions, they will make six. This will simply increase the influx of posts.

While I believe this to be illogical, logistically speaking, I understand it may seem like a good solution in theory (though I think I've just disproved it) and you feel the need to try something out. But what's really unfair is to enforce this rule as a blanket for all the approved 10-questions-posts that predate it. Those actually complied with your initially established 10 questions limit. How is this fair or even rational? Some posters ask stupid, shallow questions, but others actually take their time to think and write insightful queries, and, not unlike essays, those take time, and throwing them with such careless disregard is very disrespectful. Particularly so when those conformed to the policy, have been stewing for ONE MONTH and now have to be distributed into different posts and take the back seat at the end of a two months' waiting (or longer) queue. Wouldn't it be more logical to close the queue as you've done before so that you can clear it?

I do realize that this very post can be axed under the auspices of some new made up rule to cut down the number of questions, even after and if it gets approved. In case this does get through, I'm sure you won't see it until the next couple of months, and when you do, I'm sure you'll write some well composed answer making me come off as an ungrateful and obnoxious douche, and you'll have the last word, because I won't have a chance for a timely reply. But I felt like I needed to share my disenchantment for what seems to be a gross disrespect of your FANS. You know, the people who watch your shows, buy your merchandise and keep you on a payroll.

Sincerely,
Disgruntled
A disgruntled (former) fan.
posted @ Fri, Apr 20, 2012 12:46:02 pm EDT

MY RESPONSE:

Dear disgruntled (former) fan,

I agree with some of what you've written. Among other things, this post should NOT have been deleted by the moderators. And I'll make sure they know it. Comments, positive or negative, are fair game here. Always were and always will be.

And it's true, of course, that sometimes a post with many questions can be answered more quickly than a post with a single in-depth question, but I have NEVER wanted the moderators to judge or try to guess in advance the length of my response to anything, let alone gauge the time it takes me. Setting a question limit seems like a reasonable way to make things manageable.

I also, as I've stated before, see the unfairness in me reducing the limit from ten to five without warning and applying the rule retroactively to posts that contained 6-10 questions. As I've admitted, I screwed up there. I thought I had said five in the past, and instructed the moderators to erase all posts with more than five. By the time it was pointed out to me that I had said ten in the past, it was too late to recover those questions. TOO LATE. We don't keep a record of disallowed questions, so that's it. I screwed up and admitted it, but it's done. So from here on out, the max is five. And some posts were lost unfairly. And that does suck. And I do sincerely sympathize with your frustrations and disgruntlement, up to a point.

But here's that point: you don't seem to get or acknowledge (or perhaps care) that I'm currently on the verge of shutting down the site entirely. ENTIRELY. You don't have to praise me, my work or Ask Greg, but I'm trying to take measures to make me want to keep doing this AT ALL. Some of these measures, are indeed, as you've noted, 'draconian', forcing you to - horrors - repost your questions and wait even longer for the answers you do seem to feel entitled to. But again, the alternative is you NEVER get your answers. EVER. Now if this response, makes you "come off as an ungrateful and obnoxious douche" - well, I don't know how else you would expect me to respond. But this doesn't have to be the "last word". Normally, I only occasionally stop by the S8 comment room, but I promise for the next week or so, I'll stop by there every weekday and at least once on the weekend, which should give you "a chance for a timely reply". Any post there (like this one) that seems relevant to the current conversation will get pushed right to the front of the line and be published here at ASK GREG in a ramble (like this one).

That's my compromise. It's probably less-than-satisfactory, but it's the best I can offer at this time.

[I also want to state, that you've NOT been privy to the discussions between myself, Gorebash, Masterdramon and Todd. I have RESISTED taking even more draconian measures suggested by them and/or by others at Station 8, because as much as possible, I'd like ASK GREG to remain the open free-flowing forum it has been for like a decade or more now. The measures we are taking, draconian as they may seem, are still less draconian than they might be. But if I am forced to truly make the site rigid, then the fun will go out of it for me in the other direction, and I'll still wind up shutting it down anyway.]

Obviously, I'm not in the business of taking fans and making them "disgruntled (former) fan[s]", but I'm hoping you're a fan of THE WORK I do, more than a fan of me anyway. I mean, face it, you don't know me. I could be an axe-murderer. But if you like Gargoyles or W.I.T.C.H. or Spectacular Spider-Man or Young Justice (or whatever), then the work is the work is the work, and I'd hope you'd remain a fan of that work whether I'm a big of a jerk or not, whether Ask Greg existed or not and certainly whether or not I get to the answers to your questions in one month or six. I mean there have been times when I've been TWO YEARS (or more) behind in answering questions. This lag is nothing in comparison to that. But somehow the discourse associated with the whole thing seems... meaner. And I'm really, truly trying to keep my desire to maintain this site below the boil-over point.


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More Ask Greg Angst

Okay, I clearly messed up. Previously, I posted a guideline mandating a ten question max per post, and yesterday in my mind I changed it to five - and guilty of what I accuse others of - I did not check to confirm. So I'm here to (a) admit my mistake and (b) live with it - as we all will have to from here on out.

If in my head, the number shrank from ten to five, it's most likely because my patience has ebbed since I posted the ten question limit. Ten seems like a huge amount now - though lower than the twenty-questions-in-one-post that triggered the current guideline change. Frankly, FIVE seems like more than plenty per post, but I realize it's silly to require multiple posts on the same topic when questions are closely related, and five (or thereabouts) seems like a reasonable number.

So I do apologize for the error. But I'm not changing the new policy.

I have talked to Gorebash and our two moderators about updating the rules/guidelines on the front page, and that should be done in the next couple days.



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