Good evening, folks!

I wouldn't normally post this sort of thing here, except for an MfD that took place recently on "RfC:User Conduct"...because many of the people who commented there regularly post here. That, and I think people need a break from draaaaaama.

Many seem to think the current RfC for User Conduct isn't really helping...that it's just a stepping stone to arbitration you 'have' to go through, not unlike the security lines in airports. I would agree, and I would say it's because the current RfC is all about talking past each other.

The people opening an RfC make their statements...some people go "ditto." Someone posts a responses, more people go "ditto." Then the outside views begin, where people make impassioned speechs.....and more people go "ditto."

When things do get to ArbCom, there's begins a lot of furious activity on the Workshop page where people armchair quarterback their way through a case. Arbitrators can draw from this, or ignore it, but oddly...on ocassion...sometimes things get worked out before the case is closed. I've even noticed a few cases closed without formal resolution, because "the parties seem to have worked it out themselves."

The Workshop page serves two purposes: it lets people vent, like the current RfC; and second, it's very format forces people to work with each other than past each other. On an RfC, people make their speechs which are "judged" by the number of "dittos" they get, but on a Workshop page everyone just put's their concepts out there. They don't belong to anyone, and no one scores points for having a better concept than another, they just go out there, and then people discuss the concepts...not the contributor.

So, I created a new [[Template:RfC2]] to see if I could adapt the RfC to something more like a workshop. I reformatted the certified and response areas to be more balanced, and feature a Q/A section so people could address either side equally. I renamed Outside views to Additional views, although in the long run I'd like to excise that section entirely. The biggest change is a new section called "Proposed Solutions" that uses little templates like a Workshop page, where people can make suggestions and than discuss them. I'd hope that would serve as a bigger focus to the page.

I'd considered adapting something even more like the "Principles/Facts/Remedies" style of an arbcom case, but that middle one: "Facts" seems the most hazardous one to have in an unmoderated forum like RfC. It still might not be a bad idea, and even if you think my idea is doomed look at it this way: at least RfC could be a more useful springboard to an ArbCom case.

Tell me what you think at the template talk, or over on [[Wikipedia talk:Requests for comment]]. Thanks.

InkSplotch