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Some Restrictions On Posting To Stop Spam?


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On another board we require a bit more information and that controls spam.  An admin reviews their information before they are allowed to post (we never get spam there).  I've never seen that much spam here before.  I noticed the spammers give no information at all.   Does this board do an email check?   Personally I think posters should submit something ... like 1 picture of your ceramic work, a web site link, facebook page ... something that shows you have professional interest before they can post.   This information could be private, with only an admin viewing  I wouldn't want to discourage new people from posting  ... but those spammers are taking advantage here. 

 

And another consideration for the board  .... "Off Topic" section.  For people that like to discuss non professional interests like pets, games, etc.

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Dirt roads,

My personal opinion here is that having a "qualifier" to restrict potential spammers, would create a bottleneck that some casual non spam visitors might not want to go through so they would skip to a different site, or just browse and not get involved. It is the lively activity on this site that first brought me here as a browser, and then as a poster. If I had a question, I could be assured by the end of the day I could have 5 different answers if not more.  I don't think spam is such a problem here that we need restraints of the sort you speak of, but then again, that is my personal opinion.

 

best,

Pres

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About three out of four new threads here are spam. That will drive readers away. I suggest that the first one or two posts from new members should be moderated.

 

Sincerely,

 

Arnold Howard

Paragon Industries, L.P., Mesquite, Texas USA

ahoward@paragonweb.com / www.paragonweb.com

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The amount of spam we've been getting lately is steady with what we normally get. Most spam arrives during hours when most of the US is asleep, so if you visiting during the overnight hours you will see more than most people. As soon as a moderator arrives every morning, the spam gets zapped. The best way to handle it is to use the Report button.

 

I do like Arnold's idea that the first one or two posts from a new user should be held until approved by a moderator.

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An instant email verification is enough. I do not believe they will spam if they have to use a monitored email. A lot of the spam here is selling stuff, but quite a bit Is utter nonsense, quite strange. I sometimes feel like it is a message from someone trapped in the Internet and if I could decipher it I could send help. Anyway all the marvelous moderators take it down so fast, it is hardly there at all.

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Guest JBaymore

There is already a basic filter function on the signups.  It stops the Bots.  Every spammer you see here is a real person.

 

Mod review of every new member or new member's postings sounds great in concept.......... but please remember that all of the Mods are in totally volunteer positions.  That is more work than the forum software function that kills ALL the posts of a single SPAMMER with just two clicks (flag, and "are you sure"), once we find any single posting (of a long set of posts). 

 

The Admins of the Board, the CAD group, already have their hands full with all of the stuff they do. That is why there are Mods.

 

I agree that the level of SPAM is staying about the same.  Every so often a "Type A, motivated, productive" spammer get through, and at one time posts a whole bunch of stuff everywhere.  And all that stuff then gets deleted within a day AT THE MOST. And I can not remember the last time I saw any porn SPAM here....... mainly it seems to be kitchens and skin care.

 

best,

 

....................john

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Loggin in this morning at 9 a.m. Swiss time I saw at least 6 if not more spam posts (all from the same author). I was really furious when I saw that, because newbies or potential newbies could get the wrong impression. I had to leave the house, or I'd have posted earlier.

 

I will discuss this problem with John and with the Board members.

 

Evelyne

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Since I seem to report spam on a nightly basis alot I would suggest doing something-As a mod on another site the we always mod the 1st few posts and never have spam.

I aggree with Arnold -( About three out of four new threads here are spam. That will drive readers away. I suggest that the first one or two posts from new members should be moderated.)

If you can do not like this idea maybe another way. But that would free me every night doing spam patrol.

I think tthe spam does drive away readers.Thats one of the reasons I report so much of them

Mark

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Reports here are not necessarily about spam. A report can be posted about any objectionable content as the report area tells you when you push that button. For those of you who have never reported anything, there is an field in the report area to report what you find objectionable. This could include language, content, or as this strand implies. . . spam.

 

use this tool . . . judiciously and sparingly!

 

Best,

Pres

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<snip>

And another consideration for the board  .... "Off Topic" section.  For people that like to discuss non professional interests like pets, games, etc.

Now, I like this idea. It would be another avenue in growing to know each other better. One never knows where ones next great idea is going to come from. Sometimes it comes from a casual remark in a completely unrelated subject. ;)

 

As for the SPAM issue, I think our Mods are doing a great job. It's only if I'm suffering a bout of insomnia that I ever see any evidence of SPAM. Sure, SPAM is annoying, but it's not the end of the world. It certainly isn't reason to overburden the moderators who work in a completely volunteer position. Unless you have ever served in this position, you really have no idea of how much work is involved. Unless someone comes up with a viable solution that doesn't create more work than the moderators already have, I say let sleeping dogs lay. :)

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If you could run all first posters through something that does a word count then you could probably catch most of the spam. Real first posters rarely post a wall of text. The spammers might change the way they post but most seem to be a big block of gobbledygook with a few links to websites.

 

Could you moderate longer posts with website links?

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gee I have never ever noticed even one spam posting and I am on here way too much albeit during the day, early evening.

 

Try 7am GMT. If I'm online then I spend more time "reporting" than reading or contributing. It would be easier if we could just push the report button without having to add a comment. I just feel that with a click your e-mail type buffer, the mods would have less work to do!

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To help put the topic in some perspective, I'd like to share an excerpt from one of the Administrators that was part of a discussion the moderators were having on spam shortly after agreeing to be a moderator.

 

"One thing to remember is that Ceramic Arts Daily (both the content posted in the features as well as this forum) have incredibly good Google ranking by design, and that makes us that much more visible to spammers and link placers. If you consider that CAD as a whole had 3.4 million visitor sessions and 8.5 million page views last year, it's a wonder more doesn't get through."

 

Yep, some gets through. It is frustrating. But even more frustrating is when going to delete a spam posting, I see that the spam post had 23 views. C'mon folks, you can tell by the title its spam . . . do you really need to check it out? That only encourages them.

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As one of the early-birds online almost every day (CST), I get a chuckle at the pharma/weight-loss/seo/whatever spam posts.  I think the moderators do well to keep it to a minimum annoyance.  Adding other early morning & late night moderators as spam-inators might cut it down even more.

 

-Paul

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I think last night was an exception to the number of spammers.  Usually I do not check forums at that time of the morning.   There were quite a few spam posts ... more than 10.    And most do have links.   I checked on another forum I'm on and posters can not post links until they have made something like 5 posts.    The moderators review and giving the ability to post links. 

 

I would never want to discourage someone like Chantay from posting here.   Never.

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Yep, some gets through. It is frustrating. But even more frustrating is when going to delete a spam posting, I see that the spam post had 23 views. C'mon folks, you can tell by the title its spam . . . do you really need to check it out? That only encourages them.

 

I work my way through all "unread" posts by clicking on "Next Unread Topic" at the bottom, therefore I have no idea what the next topic will be.  So, that could be why 23 views.

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Yep, some gets through. It is frustrating. But even more frustrating is when going to delete a spam posting, I see that the spam post had 23 views. C'mon folks, you can tell by the title its spam . . . do you really need to check it out? That only encourages them.

 

I work my way through all "unread" posts by clicking on "Next Unread Topic" at the bottom, therefore I have no idea what the next topic will be.  So, that could be why 23 views.

 

 

Took me a while, but I found the Next Unread Topic button.  Wasn't aware there was such a thing.  I also found a View New Content button at the top -- that was a surprise, too; gives all the new posts by title for whatever period you ask and you can click on down the list and skip those of no interest.  More features to the forum than I have time to learn. 

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    While you're deciding what to do about the forum spam, don't leave out the "Gallery" spam.  We

don't need to see 18 different stamps pushed in soft clay to get the point what a stamp does. 

Two stamps and an external link will do.  Only in my humble opinion.

     The spam starts about 12:01 a.m.  Only spam can be annoying and amusing at the same time.

see ya,

Alabama

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I thought I would put my two cents in, I post on another ceramics forum and to cut down of spam and to cover expenses they asked for a low cost joiner fee.  It supposedly made a huge difference in the fight against spam.  I was one of the first members and they told me I didn't need to pay, I was happy to pay.      Denice

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Yep, some gets through. It is frustrating. But even more frustrating is when going to delete a spam posting, I see that the spam post had 23 views. C'mon folks, you can tell by the title its spam . . . do you really need to check it out? That only encourages them.

 

I work my way through all "unread" posts by clicking on "Next Unread Topic" at the bottom, therefore I have no idea what the next topic will be.  So, that could be why 23 views.

 

 

Having reported another two spam posts this morning, (late for me it's now 10am GMT), set me wondering.

 

If 23 views of the spam, how many reports?  

Do the same people report most of the spam?  If yes, is there a way to give those people the ability to delete the spam?

 

Just thinking out loud.......

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