Patience, Contest Results, and You

[Bluesecrets]

First of all, may I remind you of this thread:

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=11937

This is first year I was part of the judging process. I have competed in this contest multiple times. I have donated money and prizes for years. I have seen and participated in all of these perspectives of this discussion. I have an insight into the CCC that only a handful have. And since we are in the process of judging, I would ask politely that you allow the process to complete itself. Once we have completed, the admins will discuss the contest. They have every year.

All good things come to those who wait. So once again, please be patient.

[AK_Brickster]

Ok, great. I'm happy to wait until after the results are posted to have this conversation. I'm glad that you've at least indicated that the admins will be open to addressing the concerns of everyone who has commented here once the contest is completed.

Thanks Blue.

[plums_deify]

Hi there! Friendly neighborhood mod here, and I'm going to address some things in this here thread. Then I am shutting it down. Because at the end of the day, what once was a friendly request now apparently needs to be something more.

As has been recently pointed out, this contest has been going on a long, long time. And ever year, without fail, someone ALWAYS asks when the results will be posted. Personally, I'd be inclined to delay the results a week every time that's asked, but lucky for you I don't make that decision.

1. The way this conversation has gone, and the fact people have asked despite the fact that the entire topic of this thread is not to ask simply reinforces why I post this every. single. year.

2. Allow me to crunch numbers for you. Let's assume that each entry takes the judges, on average, 10 minutes to review, document, and judge each entry. I am selecting 10 minutes as average based on the judging criteria:

Submissions will be evaluated based on Creativity, Playability and Details. Judges may also consider how well the entry fits the spirit of the category. An entry may be moved to the miscellaneous category if it does not meet key category requirements.

This means that:

A. Each judge is dedicating 3,140 minutes (52 hours and 20 minutes) to judging every single entry. There are six admins who must judge.
B. That means there is approximately 314 hours dedicated to judging alone, coming right after the holiday season.
C. There have been 14 weekend days since the conclusion of entry. Assuming they're judging every weekend, the admins must spend approximately 4 hours each, Saturday and Sunday, in order to have even gone through every entry as of today.

I can guarantee you they *do not have* 4 hours each of their weekend days to dedicate, because of family and life. They're teachers and professionals and people responsible for things that make the world-go-round. They put in 10+ hour days on their day jobs, and sometimes work weekends to put food on the table of their families. I don't know about you, but I regularly put in 10+ hours every day at work. And when I finally get to my weekend and don't have to work, the last thing I want to do is anything that requires the level of energy judging does.

This doesn't include final evaluations, tie-breakers, and tabulating the entries themselves.

By asking when the results will be posted, given the history of this and the fact the circumstances simply haven't changed year after year, and we specifically request that you not ask about the results, you are demonstrating disrespect to the staff of this site.

There is a time, place, and method to offer constructive feedback. This is not it.

[plums_deify]

With all of this said:

Feedback is entirely welcome. Like any business or organization, there are absolutely places to improve processes and streamline efforts. I agree there are opportunities. Changes are made through respectful discourse, and through solicited feedback. Feedback offered interspersed with listing of opportunities gets lost, and the message is less "I'm offering constructive advice!" and becomes more, "I don't like the way it is, so change it now!"

Is this the year to shake things up? Maybe. Could be. We'll discuss it on the staff-side. What worked 10 years ago doesn't necessarily work now, and I get that. 10 years ago I was still newly out of high school, in college, and still lurking on CC.

So. The staff will solicit your feedback later this year on ways to improve the CCC. That will be your opportunity to provide feedback, and we will look at and consider every idea. THis doesn't mean we'll use them all! We will absolutely take it all into consideration. So please, instead of kevetching why the admins can't manipulate time like the Goblin King, please brainstorm the following items:

Category Selection
-Currently, categories are selected based on the prizes the site is able to solicit and coordinate. Everything is donated from private individuals with a few exceptions.

Entries
-Entries are submitted via form and must follow all guidelines

Rules
-Review the current rules here.

Ratings Systems
-The evaluation criteria is found under the rules.

Should any individuals wish to continue this conversation they may do so privately through messages.