filler '...................' in posts

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Bamfette
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Post by Bamfette »

ok people. we installed the 50 character hack FOR A REASON. if you have to use ............. or any other nonsense filler to make your post long enough, we will DELETE YOUR POST! (aside form the word association game) if you need to fill up your post to make it long enough, do it by making an actual sentence that relates to the topic at hand, and that means something, or assume what you had to say wasn't enough to warrant posting, and don't post.

honestly, people. 50 characters is like what's underlined here, one FULL line of text. It is NOT that much to ask.
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Post by Northstars Love »

Jill, how about, "what are you doing?" Sometimes you don't need 50 characters. I'm pretty good at posting 50 c's. But can "what are you doing" also be an exception to the new rule?
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Post by Bamfette »

i know they are not used to it. but if we don't actually enforce the rule in some way, they have no reason TO get used to it. they'll jsut be like 'hey, if i put .... or a lot of spaces in every post where i say 'me too!', i don't have to enter 50 characters of actual text...' rules have to be enforced for them to mean anything.

i don't think it's too extreme. we were having a lot of problem with pointless chatter in threads, that derailed threads, and were downright painful to read through if you actually wanted to read relevant posts. had to wade through a lot of 'yeah!' 'lol!' 'me too!' 'that's cool!' posts to get to anything relevant that actually added to the discussion.

and since Off-topic Antics does not even record post counts, i'd say any of the 'game' threads are exempt.
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Post by Northstars Love »

It doesn't bother me either way( I don't care about post counts). But I do what I'm told(I'm a good boy too!:smirk well, sometimes ). But thanks for making "Off Topics" an exception Jill.:kiss
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Post by Mad With Power »

Originally posted by TATU2005
..yes jill..rules do have to be enforced..im just saying dont get too extreme..i dont wanna see people revolt and call you a nazi again...
I certainly hope that Bamfette doesn't give two hoots if some ungrateful kid calls her a Nazi. I also hope that if someone were so stupid and insulting, they'd be suspended at the least.

The Nightscrawlers staff is running a tight board, and that's a good thing. Once people learn the rules, they'll also learn to appreciate them. After all, when there are rules, everyone else has to follow them too.

I have been caught a few times myself by the 50 character reminder, and I have kicked myself each time and found I could easily say enough to cover it. And the no-post-count in Off-Topic is sheer genius. All these rules that help promote a higher signal-to-noise ratio can do nothing but good for the general discussion on this board -- if people want to chat, they can visit the beautifully appointed chat room!

I'd say that your finger-wagging and "friendly warnings" are almost as bad as nagging, TATU. The staff doesn't need you to tell them how to run the board -- it's theirs to run, and you can't presume to speak for the general population.
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Post by Bamfette »

we're not so small. X-Fan, one of the largest fan sites out there, only has 3500 members. before the hacking, we were about a third that. most message boards are lucky if they get 100 members, we have 700 presently. but a lot of the old time posters were actually driven away by all the nonsense posts and noise. quite frankly, we would much rather have them back than the ones who are responsible for them leaving. plus, we want to attract more visitors, and if all the posts are derailed by poinless fluff, the people we WANT to attract, those who actually put some thought into the discussions, and post intelligently, will be like 'screw this' and pass us over.

all we're trying to do is encourage some intelligent discussion. get some threads that have some actual meat to them. we tried asking for it politely, no one listened, so we installed the hacks. the rule about posting more than jsut 'me too' posts has been there since the very beginning of the forum, it's just no one followed it, most proably never even read the rules to know it was there.

fun is ok, we're not trying to squash fun. but that's what the games in off-topic is for, and you can have fun while still posting more than 2 words. many of us enjoy actual thought provoking posts far more than the filler, and we are trying to attract more people like THAT.

is it elitist? sure. i don't really care. this is the last message board that i actually post at, and i'll be damed if it turns into a place i can't stand reading, let alone posting in.

if someone revolts and calls us a nazi and then leaves (or we ban them)... well, good riddance.
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Post by sevati »

I fully support this new rule. It might be annoying for things like someone asking in Dave's forum where Storm was recently because they haven't seen her. 'Twas a very short answer: "She is in X-Treme X-Men..."

But on the other hands, it is getting rid of those damn postwhoring responses of "i agree" "omg, that's so funny!" "me too" etc. They aren't needed, if you really wanted to express your feelings on something, you can think up a few more sentences, yes? It's not too hard to do :p

And no one has mention this yet, but it will hopefully get rid of that stupid shorthand/misspelling way of talking "do u no what nightcrawler's powers r and y he's blue?" I haven't exactly seen people asking that (I don't know what the hell it is, it isn't L337speak, because that brings in letters and symbols), but they have been typing similar. Seriously, if people just wrote things out correctly, they'd be much closer if not past the 50-character rule.
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Post by Bamfette »

well.. could say 'she is currently appearing in x-Treme X-Men, written by Chris Claremont'... 71 characters. see how easy it is? ;)
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Post by Tatu »

oh now that is one rule i will absolutely support, i believe i mentioned it to Kurtlover once, that is seriously the only thing in the world that drives me insane "m8 wot R u Do'n 2day? C U l8r" ...ugh...cringe-worthy..plus i cant figure out what the hell their saying (..or i just dont care to...you decided)

well.. I would say 'She is currently appearing in X-Treme X-Men, along with my boy Gambit, written by Chris Claremont whom is greatness' :P


And no one has mention this yet, but it will hopefully get rid of that stupid shorthand/misspelling way of talking "do u no what nightcrawler's powers r and y he's blue?"
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Post by kurtlover »

TATU why you spend your time debating what the admins do for the board? i guess they do it because they decide its the best for us...and please stop calling us nazis..i let you slip to call me like this a few times because i was playing but believe me its not pleasant, and i guess we don't deserve it..why not instead of wasting words in debating us you think about doing something more creative with your time...you will not gonna change our minds and you will not gonna make us feel mad or guilty, we can even ignore you if we want, its completely useless...don't you think?
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Post by Bamfette »

that's the rule we forgot to add.. right before the hacking we were coming up with new rules, and right before they were implimented... i knew there was one we thought up that we forgot to impliment. no 'L337 speak' and shorthand...
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Post by kurtlover »

Oh yes my english is not the best but i meant every word i said.....i dunno about Jill but for me sounds like bitching, but if you aren't then pardon me because i wasn't getting it right.
And i wasn't attacking you i just asked you a question.
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Post by kurtlover »

Then we are clear..and i wasn't talking about this thread in particular, i was talking in general, if you're ok with this then fine, but i still and i wont get it why you have to question the things the admins do..that's all.
but if you still wanna do it then fine by me, do it if you want but even if you do it it is not gonna change anything..the rules will stay the same because it was a decision already taken..they not asking to know it was right or wrong, they just doing it to inform the rest of us :)
and now lets leave it like this ok? ;)
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Post by Maelstrom »

Originally posted by Bamfette

....and since Off-topic Antics does not even record post counts, i'd say any of the 'game' threads are exempt.
Bamfette, thank you for clearing that up. I was a bit confused as to why the "Rule of 50" existed and the post count was turned off in Off Topic. It kind of looked like it was to eliminate the Word Assoc. game, but it was too oblique to make a lot of sense, as someone reminded me that you could have just shut the thread down if you wanted to.

Now I see that wasn't your intention at all; you wanted to stop post whoring in the other topics.

:) Makes sense now. Thank you. :)
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Post by Mad With Power »

Originally posted by TATU2005
i dont think i have questioned the admins.....but um...ok...do you think i have? Coz if i did..i dont know about it...
You don't? Then scroll up, mate:
Originally posted by TATU2005
i dunno... just..give them time
...
wow, now thats a bit extreme, dont you think?
In these particular examples from this particular thread, the first is advice for the mods, and the second chastisement. No, you're not calling anyone a Nazi, but I'd say you're still out of line.

And so, while I haven't accused you of insulting the admins directly, I am very surprised that you are claiming not to have questioned them. It's sort of a backhanded, "just sayin'" sort of thing, and in excess it's as bad or worse than outright insults. And this thread isn't the only time I've seen you do this; rather, I find it's wherever you can slip it into your posts.

To put a finer point on it, it seems like you're stirring shit, then avoiding responsibility by claiming to merely represent the general malaise of the population. This is bad. If you have an issue, consider taking it to an admin privately.
Originally posted by TATU2005
we know the reason
...
i think people are just not used to having a rule like that...
(emphasis mine.)
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Post by Mad With Power »

I don't think you're nasty, just misguided. And I'm not "making you out" to be anything at all -- your words represent you fine on their own.

You can't expect anyone to know you better than what you type. Instead of being hurt or offended, just look at what I'm trying to tell you -- whatever your intentions, your message isn't coming across as benign.
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Post by Mad With Power »

I'm at work, so I can't surf too much. So I'll look around this evening and post the examples I'm thinking of.

I said it because that's the only reason I even know your name -- I have thought to myself more than once, "there tatu goes again."

So. I'll provide sources later, if you like.
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Post by Northstars Love »

Guys, I'm not a mod and I hate to get in the middle of this but I think this whole discussion is getting real ugly. And I think the four letter words can be avoided. Please u2u each other to talk. I don't think the Admis..would want this to continue. I don't know MWP well but TATU I like you:kiss and I really don't want to see you get any warnings if it gets any uglier(and I'm not saying that's going to happen either. Just looking out for you TATU). We don't need to expose new members to this type of heated discussion. I've been on other forum sites where this stuff is going on constantly and nothing is being done about it. I don't like going there anymore. I don't want it to happen here.:cry

Simple...post a response 50 characters or more. "Off Topics" are exempt as Jill said.
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Post by Tatu »

..yeah i agree...i'll delete my posts..but i really just wanna know...if i actually have been rude..i never really realized it, and i want to correct it if i have been
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Post by Northstars Love »

Originally posted by TATU2005
..yeah i agree...i'll delete my posts..but i really just wanna know...if i actually have been rude..i never really realized it, and i want to correct it if i have been

I believe the "think before you post" is a good rule of thumb. TATU don't feel that everyone is attacking you. I think many of us like you. You may come off strong sometimes but that just might be your way.

Try to have a good day hun:)
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Post by Mad With Power »

I want to make this very clear: I have said nothing about "like" or "dislike." I don't know most of you well enough to like or dislike you; that isn't even on my radar.

I'm only talking about respect, and perception. If someone posts in a way that comes off disrespectful, I feel compelled to point that out. I have run boards myself and it is a very thankless job, so I bristle when I see admins being treated poorly in any way.

So basically, tatu, don't mistake this as a personal vendetta. It's completely business.
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Post by Northstars Love »

Originally posted by Mad With Power
I want to make this very clear: I have said nothing about "like" or "dislike." I don't know most of you well enough to like or dislike you; that isn't even on my radar.

I'm only talking about respect, and perception. If someone posts in a way that comes off disrespectful, I feel compelled to point that out. I have run boards myself and it is a very thankless job, so I bristle when I see admins being treated poorly in any way.

So basically, tatu, don't mistake this as a personal vendetta. It's completely business.

I agree with you MWP**gives a hug**. But I only posted because I didn't want this to get out of hand. I too am looking out for this site. I care about everyone here. It is in fact an extended family. We all like Nightcrawler and that's why we are here. I don't want it to turn into:yell. fights. Sorry, I'd certainly leave NS if it came to that.
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Post by kurtlover »

No no deleting any posts please.........................
, this has to stay as an example of what we shouldn't do, and thanks bamfnightcrawler to chill up the situation, lets leave this like this..like i said nothing is gonna change, the admins already have a decision so nobody and i say it again...nobody is gonna change so complaining, questioning or whining about it is not going to make any difference.
i guess there's a room for everybody here and no one has to feel attacked or something like that because i guess we're nice people here, and nobody is yelling at each other and no bad words at all. It is possible to discuss something without all those things.
so my final point is: lets get over this, everything is fine, lets not make it bigger than already its..shall we ;)
MWP thanks for trying to make the situation clear! i love ya.
And i hope you understand this since my english is not that clear ;)
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Post by Bamfette »

wow... i leave for the weekend and come back to this.

for the record, while tatu's ah, suggestions did ruffle my feathers a bit, i realized they were not intending to be rude, so i don't hold anything against them.

i do wish people in general could have a bit of empathy for the admins and moderators here (and other boards, too). you think we LIKE haveing to put down all these rules and go around slapping people upside the head when they break them? no. it's a lot of work, but without those rules, it would be anarchy, this place would be a MESS without moderation and rules. it is not an easy job and we have to walk a fine line between keeping people in line, and keeping them happy.

the simple fact of the matter is there is a certian crowd we wish to attract, and we will do everything we can to make this an inviting place for that crowd, and un-inviting for trolls who would spoil it. sometimes the rules meant to keep trolls in line take away some freedom of the good posters, but you just have to live with it. it is for the greater good.
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Post by Crawler »

Coming into this thread about a week late, but here goes...

Filler posts break the rules. There should be NO QUESTION, so we've decided that there wont be. Filler posts are deleted.

And Off-Topic Antics is NOT exempt from the rule. ONLY the game threads are. ONLY the threads that intended to be fluff are allowed to have mindless drivel and fluff in them.

I'm guessing there are some posts that have been deleted from the middle of this thread, and it's an unspoken rule that you don't do that when they're essential to the conversation...

But in any case, we don't like making rules. We don't like enforcing them. Once upon a time, at this very same board, we DID NOT NEED THEM. We didn't have any rules. People just knew how to behave. People respected themselves and the rest of the posters enough to post intelligently and in a manner that was beneficial to the discussion at hand -- as well as the board in general.

And, yeah, maybe we're being harsh. Maybe we're really cracking down on the people we see as nuisances. It's nothing personal. It's just our love for this place driving us.

Over the years, I've posted at somewhere around 70 different messageboards, but now I post at only one other board on the entire internet. Know why? Because most boards crash and burn into idiocy and trollishness. WE WILL NOT ACCEPT THIS PLACE SHARING THAT FATE.

I think we have been very fair up to this point. We try VERY VERY hard to walk the line between fun and anarchy and the line between orderly and fascist. We DO NOT want to quash the fun. We DO NOT want to moderate with iron fists. But we WILL NOT allow people to be disrespectful and we WILL NOT allow people to drive this place into the ground.
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