here's another thing

[memorizingthedigitsofpi]

Just continuing on my thoughts from the other day. I've said for a while now, kind of half-joking, that the OTW should put AO3 into read-only mode for a month and let everyone take a vacation. Rest. Relax. Recouperate. Maybe let go of a few grudges here and there.

The more I think about it, the more I think that's probably the only way that the OTW actually could make the kinds of changes people (including those in leadership at the OTW) want. Right now, everyone is spending all of their spoons just keeping AO3 running. It's too huge, and it's taking up all of the oxygen, all of the energy, all of the operating capacity.

Put AO3 into read only for 6 months. Give everyone some time off and time away. Allow the site more downtime to implement code changes. Give OTW 6 months free of fires that need to be put out and maybe they'll have some juice left in the tank to make some much needed changes.

Right now, no matter how much people want to do things, it genuinely is very hard. And that's putting aside all of the people and personalities involved. I'm just talking about time and energy.

Comments

[mistressofmuses]

The problem of scale is absolutely one that I think no one envisioned at the start of AO3. I think they've kept up with the absolute bonkers-batshit explosion of users and works and popularity extremely admirably... but it IS still very much in "putting out fires, desperately just keeping it afloat" mode. (Again, like you said, time and energy wise; not that money doesn't help, but this is more than just donations and financial operating costs.)
And the answer also isn't as simple as "get more staff" because it IS all volunteer-based, and having more people to coordinate ALSO creates more work and logistical snarls, as well as cases of different people doing the thing differently, creating headaches and frustrations down the line. Again, not even talking about conflict; just in a sheer "trying to organize a team of hundreds of people is almost impossible, and the bigger the site is the more people we need" way.