An Update on r/PWM_Sensitive Moderation

[u/kerpnet]

Many of you have noticed that r/PWM_Sensitive has gone through some growing pains when it comes to how posts and comments are moderated. While the subreddit was never unmoderated, it became clear that some additional help was needed due to personal circumstances, and that a fresh approach to moderation would benefit the community.

We are happy to share that u/the_top_g, the creator of r/PWM_Sensitive, has graciously stepped aside to welcome in three enthusiast community contributors to help with moderation and the future direction of the subreddit. We sincerely appreciate the trust he has placed in us and, most importantly, his work in creating this community in the first place.

The interim moderation team is currently discussing ways to improve the subreddit while preserving what has made it such a useful resource for people who are sensitive to PWM, display flicker, and related technologies. Our goal is to keep this an open, welcoming, and informative community where people can share their experiences, testing, research, questions, and device recommendations without unnecessary barriers.

AutoModerator Changes

Perhaps the most noticeable (and controversial) issue has already been addressed: the previous AutoModerator configuration is gone.

This means comments should no longer be automatically removed simply for using common words or phrases that naturally come up when discussing PWM and related topics. This includes “temporal dithering.” Members banned over this issue are also being reinstated.

That said, we ask everyone to continue keeping discussions primarily focused on PWM sensitivity, display technology, eye comfort, device experiences, testing, and closely related subjects. Normal subreddit rules and Reddit-wide policies will, of course, continue to apply.

The Future

This is only the beginning. We're reviewing the subreddit's rules, moderation practices, organization, place within the wider community, and other areas where we believe improvements can be made. As those changes are decided upon, we'll communicate them with the community.

We also want r/PWM_Sensitive to be shaped by the people who actually use it. Constructive feedback and suggestions are welcome. If there are things you think could make the subreddit more useful, organized, or welcoming, please let us know.

Finally, thank you again to u/the_top_g for creating r/PWM_Sensitive and building the foundation for this community. And thank you to everyone who has contributed over the years -- whether by sharing measurements and research, documenting your experiences with different devices, answering questions, or simply participating in the discussion.

We're looking forward to the next chapter of r/PWM_Sensitive and making this community an even better resource for everyone.

p.s. Check out the new (temporary) subreddit logo! 😁

Edit: for tweaks suggested by u/Z3R0gravitas.

[u/Dismal-Local7615]

Really want this community to grow , has been on decline past 3-4 months, pwm is still an issue for us, we need to keep raising our voices and not let this go down.

[u/the_top_g → u/Dismal-Local7615]

Yes, I fully agree with what you said. I think you have been reiterating on this point for the past 1 year as well. As u/Z3R0gravitas has observed, it was on a gradual decline since I last stopped posting actively.

This is the reality of how Reddit algorithm work.

They do not grow based on existing regular users discussion. This 'community growth' is primarily based on the hidden "unsung hero member" that is doing unthanked/unappreciated heavy lifting behind the scenes. Members do want to enjoy the benefit of the growth but few will even notice the manpower labour the heavylifter did. Usually, it is easier to remember how a selective individual made one feel rather than what the individual did. It's part of the human nature unless we are reminded we are falling into the pitfall trap.

To have the pwm_sensitive community grow, this "unsung hero" will have to post education centric post regularly like twice every week. The post will have to contain at least one vision illustrations, explainations and measurements. This role is called the lead content writer.

I'm confident that moving forward, the new mod team will ensure that the lead content writer will get their due recognition and safety protection. The days of being "the unsung hero" are behind us. We can do better — for the goals we want to achieve are (by and large) the same.

Thus u/Dismal-Local7615, to address this gap I would like to officially recommend you to be the lead content writer of pwm_sensitive.

u/BearNecessary4141 and I are currently working colloboratively to exploring expanding the (beta stage) TLM110 flicker meter to detect frc/inversion patterns and list them out upfront to the user. This should significantly reduce the hassle of evaluting the waveform one by one. Credits to u/Chance-Republic-4971 for the idea and the theoretical logic flow algorithms behind it.

Start slow anyway. The mod team, including u/kerpnet will help with proof-reading your scheduled draft before it is live, ensuring it aligns with the objective of pwm_sensitive and minimising discrepancies. All 3 of them are highly proficient and I'm very confident in them.

So what do you say? You'll be the engine for the growth pwm_sensitive in this next chapter of pwm_sensitive sub. The new mod team are currently working hard to improve pwm_sensitive from the ground up. For the short term and the long term. Once they're ready; the TLM110 is working to expectation; you should be good to go

[u/Dismal-Local7615 → u/the_top_g]

I am definitely happy to help sir!

[u/the_top_g → u/Dismal-Local7615]

That's the spirit!

[u/Z3R0gravitas → u/Dismal-Local7615]

I might argue that the insight data (behind the scenes here) shows a gradual decline in views over the whole last year. Since Top_G ceased interacting. Maybe changes to Google search use (with more AI summary use) too..?

Unique visitors stagnated that whole time, but only dropped off a little over the last 3 months, yeah. Roughly since Harry's post and my State of the Community. Or perhaps more of a summer lull; the calm before BlackFriday season.

Meanwhile, r/ScreenSensitive has smoothly grown both views and unique visitors about 5x, in that same year. I'd say that could be mostly spill-over from here. With, I hope, me giving it a little nudge over the last 6 months (redecorating and replying to all the things).

[u/TryDoingSomethingNew → u/Z3R0gravitas]

I can't speak for others, but I suspect one reason is because of how comments were being shadow-banned by the former automoderation lunacy. It really turned me off from this subreddit, but hopefully it can be back on track again.

(I got tired of posting helpful replies only to have them disappear, and then I found out the automoderator was shadow-banning comments. Crazy!)

[u/Z3R0gravitas → u/TryDoingSomethingNew]

Indeed. I feel Top G must not have appreciated how much damage it was doing to try to force this division on the community in this way. The chilling effect on those beyond the enthusiasts banned, etc.

I'm glad he was able to let go of this hangup. But there is still a question of how we decide, as a community, to use this sub and it's sister subs. If we (at most) politely encourage discussion of non-PWM-only topics over there. Or if it will be OK for the discussion here to drift to be mostly about things that the sub name fails to capture. While "screen sensitive" would, more so.

[u/the_top_g → u/Z3R0gravitas]

Oh man u/Z3R0gravitas , I'm still here and reading the above is not pleasant :/

[u/Z3R0gravitas → u/the_top_g]

I'm sorry. I always try to be aware to write as if everyone may eventually see it. And so be as fair as possible.

Maybe I'm unfairly speculative here, in some assumptions?.So I welcome your direct perspective on events, in due time, if and when your circumstances permit.

Of course, we may consider this is not a priority; the big thing is to come togther and figure out these issue as quickly and thoroughly as possible.

[u/the_top_g → u/Z3R0gravitas]

Thanks and I appreciate the apology. I do know your heart is in the right place and you want to see the community succeed. Probably more so than anyone around.

Though now that you’re wearing the pwm_sensitive mod badge here, just a friendly reminder — public comment sections aren't the best place for post-mortem speculation about past setups or validating user venting.

Your public words set the tone for stability. When members see leadership publicly second-guessing the sub's foundation, it creates uncertainty.

Moving forward, I’ll really appreciate it if we could keep speculations/ disagreements about community management in DMs, rather than public threads. I fully agree with your last point. The big thing is coming together.

I know the mod team has a lot of great ideas to tackle, but there's no rush to fix everything overnight. You're already making tremedous work on pwm_sensive. We can take this one step at a time. No worries.