The Problem of...SPAM

Iliara_Mustardtop 2017-09-17 21:14:44 UTC #1

@Goku_Ironheart @Hanna_Brassheart and @everyone else whom this concerns...
Yes, the topic of SPAM has been discussed a lot , and our moderators and forum regulars have given lots of good examples on what is, and is not, spam. For the most part, we try to stick on topic.
Still, it hasn't worked too well, and the worst case is Signing on and off the game/forums. I don't have a problem with randomness in Random anything or Talk all you want! because, frankly, they've become pretty handy. Friend locator topic and GPS is also getting some good use. But Signing off/on is loaded with irrelevant posts, especially those asking "Hey are you on" which frankly aren't very useful. (If the person you want to meet is on, they'll see your post saying your "in-game at Lukas", and if they aren't on they won't see it and won't come, rendering "are you on" posts useless.)
I understand that I've spammed myself, and I know that we would all like to make these forums easy to navigate and read. But "commitments" haven't seemed to work to well...we all forget sometimes.
This may be extreme, but I feel like it might be a helpful measure to delete any posts in Signing off/on that don't say "I'm signing onto the game or forums". Even (especially?) "where did you go" posts, which could be delegated to Friend locator topic.
I suppose this is a sort of rant (I was feeling a bit fed up with all the cluttering posts) but I mean it kindly.
Goku, Hanna, what do you think of this? And I want to hear other's thoughts also!

Random anything

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Season 2, Episode 4

Random Anything The Third

Talk ALL YOU WANT IV!

Your attention, please!

Random Anything Version 2

Xonos_Darkgrate1 2017-09-17 21:39:57 UTC #2

I agree. Spam is a problem, and it can be problematic as well as problem-causing sometimes, but...
while deleting any posts that can be classified as spam or off-topic seems like a good idea, you also have to take into account our current situation. @Goku_Ironheart, to the best of my knowledge, is EXTREMELY busy and can't even be on as much as he used to, and @Hanna_Brassheart may or may not already have a bunch on her hands with keeping the forums how it is now.

I do think spam is a "scourge", but while your suggestion may be effective, it might not be actually "effective" in the sense that NOBODY is able to be on at all times and that this is a forums for kids. And kids, as you know, get messy at times. So really, the best thing we can do is warn them about spam and flag it when we can. I hope this makes sense. I'm still against spam, but your idea of delete or moving every post that could fall into that category isn't really possible to be done continuously. This is what I think. Maybe @Goku_Ironheart might think otherwise.

Xonos Darkgrate

Goku_Ironheart 2017-09-17 21:52:51 UTC #3

Speaking just about my thoughts, I don't particularly think "Signing on/off" will change. I've mentioned about posting in other places to find people after saying you are signing on like 3 times in that thread.

About just deleting posts if they are off-topic, Hanna and I have been but every few hours there will be a new string of posts that are off-topic after we have gone through and removed posts earlier. It's hard to stay on top of especially since I can't get on as much as of late so Hanna will have to share her thoughts on what it has been like lately.

I am sort of not fussed on the whole "Signing on/off" thread as a whole as it has one and only one use which I find sort of a waste, whereas the "Friend locator/gps" topic could fill both the role it does currently as well as the "Signing on/off" if people just expanded more in their post about where they and how they long they will be there etc it would work fine IMO.

Those are some of my thoughts on it though but to sum up:

Hanna and I have been trying to delete off-topic posts as much as we can but there are just that many, in "Signing on/off" specifically not including everything else, we can't keep up.
I think a better way to combat it would be to properly utilize a multipurpose topic eg "Friend locator/gps".

Rachel_Blackruin 2017-09-17 21:55:11 UTC #4

I think SPAM is annoying, but it's hard to change it on such a widely used site... I agree that the 'Signing on/off' is getting a little off topic, I have also spammed on that one-asking where peeps are and putting other things like that on there... "Sorry. OOPS!"

Goku_Ironheart 2017-09-17 22:05:05 UTC #5

Just having a look now at the posts in there from 1 day ago, I had to delete 21 posts because they were off-topic, the topic being strictly signing on and off.

I don't even know if 21 is a lot or just average for this thread either, @Hanna_Brassheart would have a better idea though.

Emily_Purplebottle 2017-09-17 22:55:37 UTC #6

Yes @Goku_Ironheart, I find the spam in signing on/off forums and game, very irritating! @everyone, please don't spam on there...

Matt_Bonnetfolly1 2017-09-18 19:48:32 UTC #7

CAN WE SPAM HERE????

Matt_Bonnetfolly1 2017-09-18 19:48:47 UTC #8

(just a joke)

Emily_Purplebottle 2017-09-18 19:59:34 UTC #9

Oh My Goodness!

Iliara_Mustardtop 2017-09-18 22:54:26 UTC #10

Yes, that's a good idea. And I had forgotten about not you and Hanna not being on here all the time. Obviously deleting ALL off-topic posts would be a bit difficult!
Thx for @everyone's thoughts!
@Matt_Bonnetfolly1

Rachel_Blackruin 2017-09-21 21:27:55 UTC #11

I have been noticing a LOT more spam recently, although I haven't been on the forums for very long- so I can't compare. I don't know why this is, especially with all the reminders and things like that, which @Goku_Ironheart and @Hanna_Brassheart are working on.

Cinnar_Ratchetloop 2017-09-22 00:34:23 UTC #12

Spam is a big problem. I remember this guy in Minecraft who was like

"Hi"
"Hi"
"Hi"

Hanna_Brassheart 2017-10-03 17:03:00 UTC #13

There's been a lot of proverbial "headdesking," and thoughts that go like this: "Why, oh why... why can't you just quote the person and move to an ON-topic topic? Ughhhh grgrgrgrg."

When someone gets off topic by asking where someone is, everything goes downhill, sometimes up to 30-35 posts at a time. I know some of you have been making an effort to redirect conversations to the right topics. Thank you. And for those who forget, please remember out of consideration to everyone! Thank you

Rachel_Blackruin 2017-10-04 00:37:11 UTC #14

I am trying not to spam myself, but also to help others by suggesting topics and maybe asking them to make one larger post than 4 little ones.
But.... I sort of feel like I am not in the right place to say that, I don't know why. Maybe because I am newer or because I don't like correcting people, sometimes because they have been on the forums and/or game for so long.

I know that nobody (I hope) will get offended if I say, 'hey you are kind of spamming, or being off topic, maybe we can continue this conversation on Random anything' or something like that. But sometimes I worry that someone will get, this sounds weird now that I type it, but almost get mad...

Jacoby_Elderfun1 2017-10-04 11:40:16 UTC #15

@Rachel_Blackruin
All right. To start I'm sure most of us wouldn't be offended if you did say we were spamming. We can all use a correction or two. (Well, at least for myself.) Just because you're "newer" doesn't mean you can't help to make the forums better. Plus, if they do get mad, there is always a moderator looking out for you. (I mean what are they going to do? Pick up there computer and throw it on the ground till you leave the forums?)

Just keep doing the right.
(Also @ @Hanna_Brassheart or @Goku_Ironheart if you're not sure about something.)

Xonos_Darkgrate1 2017-11-08 18:45:55 UTC #16

Silverclaw_Bonnetfolly1 2017-11-08 18:46:50 UTC #17

Wouldn't writing your replies in the form of memes be considered spam?

Xonos_Darkgrate1 2017-11-08 18:48:50 UTC #19

@Silverclaw_Bonnetfolly1

Hanna_Brassheart 2017-11-09 15:40:15 UTC #20

Really, people.

really.

I just had to delete around 50 posts. Couldn't you guys be more considerate? There is a topic for about everything on the planet, so, please switch to the other topics when you start going off topic!!!! These weird offshoot conversations need to be stopped and transferred to their correct topics. If you're having a conversation with someone, and they start going off topic, politely redirect them to an on-topic topic with an @ and a quote.

The forums are not a chat room!

It's really frustrating to have to keep posting about this. Spam has gotten worse and worse and worse. It feels like it will never stop unless some sort of punishment is implemented, and I am 99% sure that's not going to happen.

So stop.

Before.

The moderators explode.

Or before spamming becomes a ban-able offense. MUAHAHA! (In my dreams)

You can't use the excuse that I had to delete all those posts because I had been gone for a week. That might be reasonable. But no.

50+ spam posts in 12 hours.

Talk ALL YOU WANT!

Talk ALL YOU WANT IV!

Xonos_Darkgrate1 2017-11-09 15:51:53 UTC #21

@Hanna_Brassheart, well... I've been trying to flag more posts, so I've noticed that too. I'm sure that I must of caused that problem at least once or twice. Sorry about that haha.. but anyways, do you think that flagging these posts helps you in any way or are you just speaking out against spam? I've actually already tried to make a topic on how not to make spam but I don't think everybody reads it...