Jeff,

Explicitly branding Superuser.com as a more free-form, relaxed version of the other sites might just open that crack to a much larger problem. I hear it referred to as a "free-for-all" and a "dumping ground." I'm sure that's not what you envisioned.

If you (we) hold Superuser to the same focus and same high standards as the other sites, most of these problems would go away. Even if Superuser is held to the same high standard as the other sites, it would still have the lighter, more relaxed atmosphere you imagine, just from the broader appeal of the the site and the subject matter.

More specifically, I see the abundance of Wiki-style posts as a problem. I thought it would be fun having more subjective, intriguing conversations on Superuser. I started one myself. But I see it just doesn't work in the bigger picture.

I think the "community standard" should be that Wikis are rare. Wikis are reserved for that rare case when a question does not have a specific answer but the solution would be part of a "group think." Even then, Wiki questions should be posed as a specific question looking for a real solution. Anything else should be closed as too general or too subjective.

StackOverflow is a winning formula that should be reapplied to Superuser, almost verbatim. That's my take on it.