Niggles - PM and offsite links

Okay so I been here a month or so now and all in all it's a great board, good crowd and all but I can't help but notice the glaringly obvious missing bits, when compared with almost every other chat forum I've been on -namely the lack of IM and this strange, vague rule about offsite linking (something about changing the colour - I don't even know what that's supposed to mean)

I don't want to start an argument or anything - it's your board, I'm just a guest here but I figured I'd put forward the case just in case there's any possibility of reconsideraton. If not it's the last I'll mention it - promise!

IM's - I've been on a lot of forums since the internet started and IM's have been an essential way for people to trade email adresses, phone numbers or just conversations that, for whatever reason, don't belong in the public forum. I've made a lot of friends online over the years and without IM's we'd never have met up IRL and drank beer together which, after all, is the cornerstone of civilisation. Without IM the board is only half way to being a truly social platform - we kind of get to know each other but not quite.

Offsite links - The internet works by hypertext linking. It allows us to share information in a way which was impossible 20 years ago. Right now, rather than sharing useful information, a lot of the time users can only respond to questions from other users by dancing around the issue and providing clues and hints rather than straightforward links. Like when Neo answered my question about clicker training he had to tell me what to type into Google, rather than just link me direct to the sites he was talking about. This really just makes no sense at all to me. And I'm not the only one - without a decent amount of relevant offsite links search engines like Google will demote you rank in comparison to other similar sites which do have plenty links, meaning you'll appear lower down on the listings. I can only think it's some paranoid fear that if anyone finds out there's an entire internet outside this site they'll leave and never come back. Obviously this notion is ridiculous but what other reason can there be?

Anyway I've said my piece. Give it some thought and maybe you'll feel like changing your policy. Either way I've tried. I'm done now.

Im's i stopped because people was spamming in the future i may think about putting them back on.

Link's i stop it because someone got robbed from a pet shop site & she was trying to blame this forum for it but we are talking about allowing it again.

Cheers!

Spamming is a problem with all forums I guess. SpamBot's being the main thing that makes being a mod a PITA.

With regards the linking issue I'm sorry to hear you got burned caught in the middle of something so stupid but most forums come with standard disclaimers in the T&C relating to this and, if they're not specific enough I' sure you could edit it to the effect that "staffy forums do not endorse any links posted... etc"

Anyroads, cheers for answering. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Agree..
IM/ PM is verry useful, never come across a forum where it is not part of the scene.

As for links - was very confused on this one too.
SHould be able to post links...

On a positive note.
One of the best forums, and defo best Staffy forum without doubt.
Very nice people. !!!

And i f I could PM....
I would PM "P3nT4gR4m" with congratulations on a well put together and reasoned debate on the subject.
Top job!.

I know some places only allow PM facilities to it's regular users who have over so many posts...

x

That's one of the standard anti-spambot measures, along with not allowing new users to create new topics until a certain number of posts have been made and moderator approval requirements for the first few posts. There are plenty of modules out there for dealing with bots. I've never modded a PHBB forum but if it's anything like SMF even the vanilla install admin panel should have plenty anti spam options, just check all the boxes.

As I'm sure I've mentioned before (feel free to ...) I'm a member of verious forums, as well as a mod on one. Agreed, spam will always be a problem, but it has never prevented a PM system from functioning. We have a fairly simple measure - any new members have to have their first post "approved" by a mod before it is made visible on the forum. All it takes is for one of us to go through the list and approve any genuine posts, and any spammers are instantly banned. Obviously, this isn't an ideal solution - I think site admin are looking into alternatives - but it works well enough.

Given that most of my internet-time is spent on car forums, PMs are essential for the inevitable buying/selling of various parts and accessories. Obviously, this isn't the case here (no "for-sale" section), but I have also met and made good friends with various members. None of these details would have been passed on without PM, as I have no intention of posting it on a public forum.

Obviously, there is always a risk of people abusing the PM system. A simple disclaimer in the site rules to say something along the lines of "the website cannot be held responsible for the content/opinions held by its members" would suffice, as well as a warning that anyone who abuses the PM system with spam etc would either have the PM facility removed or be banned completely.

The same can be said for posting links: "we are not responsible for the content of any website posted on this forum, and cannot be held responsible for any damages/losses incurred." Basically, a standard "you use it at your own risk, and if you misbehave you will have privileges removed or be banned" sort of thing.

Sorry, I don't mean to sound like I'm telling you how to run your website (god knows, I get enough of that myself ), but thought you might like to hear a different take on things. I'll echo the above sentiments though - this is an excellent forum that you obviously work very hard to upkeep.

i kind of just like it the way it is

glad i foudn this.. i thought i was going mad haha