Petition for Serious Discussion Forum

[Shadowstrike]

The Off-Topic Forum abnormally large. Mainly, this is because there are two different groups of people having conversations there, spammers (mostly people who go there for comedy) and serious discussion people (who just want to discuss things unrelated to computer games)

This is a petition to move the serious off-topic threads to a new forum where people can actually have a serious discussion without spam. Aditionally, this would also reduce volumne in the OT which is the largest forum, as yet.

[Andz83]

well, if there would be a serious discussion forum opened, then it would be flooded with spam and DLs I think.

the idea might be good but as for making it real....

[Smash]

Wishful idea.Commie Dan and Brain would be there in no time.

[Legman]

I think it would be a bad idea to create a separate forum for "serious" discussion. The majority of people in the OT that don't spam don't necessarily want to be "serious" all the time - many like to hang out in not-so-serious threads also.

Spammers aren't trying to be "non-serious" either, all they're interested in seems to be their post counts and having meaningless private conversations in any active threads - be they "serious" or not.

Instead, what we need to do is get the moderators to enforce the forum rules more rigorously when it comes to spam. In other words, send a clear message to the relatively few people (a dozen or so) who spam excessively that their behaviour is unwanted and spoils the joy of coming to the OT for the rest of us.

Swift justice materialized in a couple of one week vacations will certainly teach the post count obsessive individuals how to behave!

BTW, earlier this evening I started a thread venting my frustration over the increasing amount of spam in the OT:

All this spam has got to stop!

- if anyone wants to chip in there as well.

[Shadowstrike]

Legman, I started this thread as a way of resolving the problems everyone expressed in the thread you mentioned!

[Legman]

Shadowstrike,
Yes, good thing too! I just wanted to express that I don't agree with your suggestion of separate forums, so I can't sign this petition.

But any initiative that will help alert the people in charge to the growing problem of spam in the OT is most welcome.

Carry on.

[Andz83]

will anyone comment my spa... serious post?

[MarkG]

there is only one off-topic forum here, and that is how it will stay

the following will get a 10% post count reduction for their spam on legman's thread
John Lenin
Comrade Dan
Andz83
Paul Hanson

[Andz83]

what? post count reduction?

[Shadowstrike]

MarkG, eventually, post reductions won't do much. This is not to critizise, but stricter measures should be taken against spamming (or, we could create an infinite volume spam thread in the OT and confine it there). Sooner or later, people will have so many posts (and make so many more) that even 10% won't do.

[Legman]

Thanks MarkG for contending so distinctly that we need one OT forum only.

And for applying the kind of swift justice I've inquired in my thread in the OT. I hope we will see more of the same swift justice, should the spam problem persist.

Note: Normally, nobody wants to see fellow posters punished, but those four brought it upon themselves without question. That should be clear to all here and in the OT.

[Andz83]

<center><table width=80%><tr><td><font color=000080 face="Verdana" size=2><font size="1">quote:
<img src="/images/blue1.gif" width=100% height=1>
</font><font size=1>Originally posted by Legman on 07-30-2000 06:23 PM</font>
spam 'problem'
<img src="/images/blue1.gif" width=100% height=1></font></td></tr></table></center>

HAAAHAHAHAHAHA!!

[Hasdrubal]

There's no point in opening a 'serious OT'. The spammers will only consider it an open invitation. Just as the surest way to attract a lot of spam is to start a thread with the title 'stop all this spamming'.
I'm not that annoyed by most spam. Some of it is really funny.

------------------
Hasdrubal's Home.
Ceterum censeo Romam esse delendam.

[Ming]

Well, there is indeed a very fine line between humor and spam. It's all the thread jacking and meaningless (+ one post) type responses that is starting to get out of hand again. Yes, threads can change in subject matter as the thread progresses... but many times, it is now being done on purpose for the fun of it.

------------------
Ming
CivII & Off-Topic Forum Moderator
Ming@Apolyton.net

[Drow]

I agree that we should get spam off apolyton, but i don't want to point to anyone, ppl who spam know it them selves.

<center><table width=80%><tr><td><font color=000080 face="Verdana" size=2><font size="1">quote:
<img src="/images/blue1.gif" width=100% height=1>
</font><font size=1>Originally posted by Shadowstrike on 07-30-2000 04:27 PM</font>
The Off-Topic Forum abnormally large. Mainly, this is because there are two different groups of people having conversations there, spammers (mostly people who go there for comedy) and serious discussion people (who just want to discuss things unrelated to computer games)
<img src="/images/blue1.gif" width=100% height=1></font></td></tr></table></center>

do not generalize. I(for example) don't usually go to the serious discussions, because usually the subjects are about america...etc. so i'm not that interested. But i don't spam, i have never got a post reduction. so what am i? there are ppl between also.


and for two forums? yes it's a good idea, but markos has said a thousand times that there won't be another OTF.