OT: Insights on Message Boards

Ok, may be more tunnel vision than insight, but just wanted to throw out a few thoughts that might be helpful to those new to using message boards. The topic of questionable guest posts was brought up in another thread, but rather than derail it or keep it alive, I figured I'd post this expanded commentary separately.

Review: A guest post, or even a new member post, that is totally generic is most often (but not always) not a legitimate poster. I don't know what posts like that stand to gain unless a link was stripped out of the original message or the screen name is a website. A quick Google search can show if that screen name has joined multiple sites in a short time frame. If not, there is always a chance it is someone really looking to discuss cpap but just didn't go that far in their first post and was testing the waters. My philosphy is I'd rather err on the side of welcoming a spambot than ignoring someone needing help, but I don't want to waste valuable time. In prior discussion there was an example (s?) of such a post being from a person who later joined. They may have not come back for help had they been ignored.

Other Tips: This case is very different, but I had an experience on another site from a real person that I quickly saw was looking for a sucker. Their story was compelling. I posted a reply. They sent a private message, saying there was a long explanation, so they'd prefer to send it by email so there would be no length restrictions. I replied by PM telling them I was not a medical professional, really couldn't be of any futher help, and they needed to consult a physician. They were very insistent with repeated PMs, desperately needing to talk to me - with multiple reasons why it must be by email. Either they were looking for email addresses or someone who would send them money to help their suffering family member get the medical help they needed. So, just because a person is discussing the board's topic doesn't make them legitimate. Besides spammers, there are scammers.

Another "watch out" can be a spam resurrecting an old thread and it getting replied to in a domino effect with time consuming heartfelt well wishes that are no longer relative. (Did that one a few times myself. ) Just takes the first person to not notice and post a reply and thereafter the posters see the last post and think it's current. But a lot of good discussions have come out of those threads. (This is NOT the same as someone doing a search and finding a topic from the past they wanted more input on, though when the original thread was helping an individual it might be best to start a new thread on the topic just for clarity of purpose.)

I know this is Message Boards 101 for most users, but some mention this being the first time they have gotten involved with a forum like this. I was not familiar with message boards until my cpap struggle forced me to use the internet for more than research. Hope those veteran message board users who find this elementary will not be offended, as it is intended for anyone who might not have already gained these experiences.

Kathy

Thanks so much for taking the time to post this advice. As someone new to cpap -- and thru that experience (& specifically this forum) came to appreciate the idea of message boards -- I am grateful for your post.

Thanks for that info.

I'm relatively new here, myself, and I have a question about this particular forum. Is there a way to mark threads that are of no interest to me (i.e., an "ignore" feature) so that they wouldn't show up anymore? I've searched the help topics here and haven't found an answer to this question. TIA

BleepingBeauty wrote:Thanks for that info.

I'm relatively new here, myself, and I have a question about this particular forum. Is there a way to mark threads that are of no interest to me (i.e., an "ignore" feature) so that they wouldn't show up anymore? I've searched the help topics here and haven't found an answer to this question. TIA

You know, that's a really good question! Unfortunately, I don't have the answer to it.

You can ignore people, but not posts. Click on User Control Panel, then Friends and Foes, then Manage Foes.

Kathy,

It would help newcomers if this post could be restarted every few months. When I joined in January, I listed my personal e-mail address, (I missed the advice warning against that) and immediately got an e-mail from some one who could scarely write in English - As I remember he was from an Island off the coast of Africa. I deleted the e-mail and my e-mail address.

You are so right - when you are on a forum, there can be coasters just watching and waiting for the naive/trusting person.

Jan

Kathy, as a relative newcomer to forums and not too computer literate, this was very enlightening. Can this be added to New Users ?

Also keep home addresses and phone numbers out of the posts. I have seen a couple and PMed those who put them in the post by accident letting them know it probably would not be a safe thing to do.

I would suggest that we help each other and let users know that they may have private info in their posts so they can edit it out. For users who like to quote, please help by removing accidental private information too. That helps users who later have to edit out an address or phone number later on.

As a general rule of thumb I don't even put phone numbers or addresses in PM's. I will put my "real-mail" address in a PM where the number or address can be exchanged, but I try to keep all of that kind of stuff off of the forum server.

Great note Kathy!!!!! I too think it should go to the "new users" section......

cheers
goose

kteague wrote: Other Tips: This case is very different, but I had an experience on another site from a real person that I quickly saw was looking for a sucker. Their story was compelling. I posted a reply. They sent a private message, saying there was a long explanation, so they'd prefer to send it by email so there would be no length restrictions. I replied by PM telling them I was not a medical professional, really couldn't be of any futher help, and they needed to consult a physician. They were very insistent with repeated PMs, desperately needing to talk to me - with multiple reasons why it must be by email. Either they were looking for email addresses or someone who would send them money to help their suffering family member get the medical help they needed. So, just because a person is discussing the board's topic doesn't make them legitimate. Besides spammers, there are scammers.

EEEECK!!!! Let me say right here and now, I'm not a spammer or a scammer! I've sent alot of PM messages to folks on this forum, inviting them to write to ME, and giving them MY email addy. They have the choice whether to write me or not. But I am offering them something - not wanting to take something from them!!! And I swear I don't do anything with their email addys, other than delete the emails once I've replied!!!

For anyone who hasn't written me back, because you think I'm scamming you, NOT! I respect you for preserving your privacy. It's completely up to you if you want what I'm offering. It's just my calling in life to offer it.

Well written, Kathy. Thanks for letting me add my two cents.
Babs

tattooyu wrote:

BleepingBeauty wrote:Thanks for that info.

I'm relatively new here, myself, and I have a question about this particular forum. Is there a way to mark threads that are of no interest to me (i.e., an "ignore" feature) so that they wouldn't show up anymore? I've searched the help topics here and haven't found an answer to this question. TIA

You know, that's a really good question! Unfortunately, I don't have the answer to it.

If you've replied to a thread, you are automatically "subscribed" to it. If you don't want to get messages notifying you there are new posts to the thread, you can "unsubcribe" from it. With that thread open, scroll to the bottom of the screen. In the lower left hand corner, you'll find the "unsubscribe topic" link. Click on that, and away you go!

Good you asked. More folks want to know, I'm sure.
B.

I've been part of message boards for over 15 years..each one is unique in it's approach to posters but pretty universal about spamming.

I just want to make a note about one comment you made. You mentioned old posts resurfacing and the originator long gone and feel that bumping these threads is some kind of spamming. Pretty much every board I've ever been on has always bumped old threads for common questions. Actually on many of them will answer a new thread asking a common question with a generic "please do a search on this topic, you'll find many threads that should answer your question".

I'm not saying it's the best way to do things as many people (especially new to forums) need to have their own little space of it. I know that kind of answer can be off putting to many though. I know when I first came on here I actually went back through many many pages looking to see if questions I needed answers to were already answered. Most of them had, so no need to comment or bump as the case may be but if a question led to another one, or clarification I would not hesitate to bump a thread with a follow up to a question regardless of who asked it originally. I don't think bumping an old thread necessarily means it's spam.

(I got a new twist on spam today btw...spam sent via PM's on a political board I'm on, great )

Froro wrote: . . . You mentioned old posts resurfacing and the originator long gone and feel that bumping these threads is some kind of spamming. . . .

Froro,

I believe what Kathy may have been referring to is when a spambot posts to an old thread, which bumps the thread up, then a member deletes the spam, so that the last post in the thread, which is actually very old, appears to newbies to be a recent post. That tricks them into responding to a very old post. That may be somewhat unique to this board due to the fact that all members delete spam, so the old thread stays bumped up in the list with no clue that it is old, other than the date on the, now, last post.

It is good for newbies to know that, since I know from experience that it is embarrassing when you spend time replying to a specific problem someone had years ago. It took me a while to learn to look at the date on the last post of a thread to see how old it is, in case there has been an attack of the spambots.

But I agree that old posts resurrected that way can be very informative. I think it is often the words that attract the spam that are unique discussions on this board.

And I don't think anyone here minds it when a human resurrects an old thread, as Kathy explained in the italicized part of her excellent post above.

Newbies are, of course, like any poster, welcome to resurrect any old post they want. No rules.

Only helpful hints.

jeff

Babette wrote:If you've replied to a thread, you are automatically "subscribed" to it. If you don't want to get messages notifying you there are new posts to the thread, you can "unsubcribe" from it. With that thread open, scroll to the bottom of the screen. In the lower left hand corner, you'll find the "unsubscribe topic" link. Click on that, and away you go!

Good you asked. More folks want to know, I'm sure.
B.

Thanks, Babette. I'd figured that part out, but it's good that you posted the info for other newbies who might not know how that works.

My question upthread was specifically geared towards the ability to tag threads of no interest with an "ignore" feature, so that that particular thread would disappear completely (on my screen only, obviously). There are SO many threads here, it's time-consuming to have to scroll past all those to which I can't contribute anything of value or in which I have little or no interest.

I think I'm S.O.L. on that, but if there is a way to do what I'm talking about, please educate me. TIA

Babette wrote:If you've replied to a thread, you are automatically "subscribed" to it. If you don't want to get messages notifying you there are new posts to the thread, you can "unsubcribe" from it. With that thread open, scroll to the bottom of the screen. In the lower left hand corner, you'll find the "unsubscribe topic" link. Click on that, and away you go!

Good tip, Babs.

I never get messages notifying me that there are new posts to a thread I've replied to. So I don't have to go through scrolling to the bottom of the screen with the thread open, or click anything to "unsubscribe" to that topic.

The reason I never have to do that for topics I've replied in is probably because... in my User Control Panel - Board Preferences - Edit Posting Defaults, I marked No to "Notify me upon replies by default."



Probably most people do want to be notified if there are replies to a topic they've posted in or have started. If so, they should have "Yes" checked. I figure I'll go back to that topic eventually, so I don't want to receive notifications about further replies in it.