Registering and using real names

[JSchmidt]

With the current influx of spammers, etc, I wonder if it was worth controlling registration and initial posting?.

Here's a couple of 'rules', that I've seen used on other sites:

Real name must be used, either in username or in the post. Granted, you can easily pretend to be someone else, but it seems to work pretty well as a basic measure against spamming.

Registration has to be approved by a moderator and is not automated.

First 5(?) posts will be moderated, before full posting priviliges are given.

This does mean a significant increase in the moderators work load,so a few volunteers would have to be found..I can't imagine that being a problem, however.

Jakob

[h2o]

Real name must be used, either in username or in the post. Granted, you can easily pretend to be someone else, but it seems to work pretty well as a basic measure against spamming.

It makes it easier to spot spammers, but hit won't really hinder them. Besides, if you force this rule then make sure there is a custom field for "your real name" when you register, or 90% of the posts will be of the type "I have to inform you that our rules state that you have to put your real name in your signature or username".

Registration has to be approved by a moderator and is not automated. I hate this feature. If I find a forum and want to post in it, then I want to be able to do it right away. It really just pisses people off and we will possibly lose a lot of "serious" members.

First 5(?) posts will be moderated, before full posting priviliges are given. See above.


My solution would be to increase the number of moderators, but let them do ordinary "moderating" tasks, like remove obvious trolls, etc...

[splice]

All of these suggestions can't be implemented without a solid team of moderators. From what I've seen of Kendo-World so far, either moderators are way overworked and cannot cover the whole board, or they are very light-handed when it comes to moderating threads.

On E-budo, moderators go so far as to make sure no user registers and uses two different accounts, and in some threads will call out users who claim to be living somewhere (the common one: Japan) when their IP clearly shows they are somewhere else (the United States). I doubt moderators here do anything similar.

Some of your suggestions certainly would contribute to making the board more solid, and perhaps less of a haven for anonymous experts. However, that doesn't seem to be the audience targeted by kendo-world, and those who want discussions like that know where to go to get it. I'm a member of various boards, some anonymous ones, some upright ones, some private ones. Every one has its niche and purpose, and so does kendo-world.

[Kenshi]

I was actually wrote something on this earlier today then thought "nahhh" ... the reason being not that I think its not a good idea, but that I think most people will just refuse. Ive had a couple of beers now, so its easier to comment on Jakobs post!!!

I am definetly for :

a) people using their real names (your username can be anything, but you should sign your real name)

and

b) more moderators being created (There are 151 pages of users with 30 users per page on the member list... thats 4530 users.... 2 moderators aint enough). I think we could easily pick a number of people do moderate the various sections here.

This system has worked for years successfully on ebudo, so there is no reason we cant do it here. We could even create a Ruroni Kenshin section and have a moderator there as well (the sweet bliss).

I have been a member of this forum since the very beginning (before some members of the board even heard the word KENDO) and dont often post for various reasons. Mostly I dont like posting things just to be attacked/questioned by anonymous people..... most likely 14 year old American Kenshin fans. I imagine that there are a number of other people that would like to post but dont because of the often trivial nature of the posts in this forum. We need these people to get involved, not stand on the at the side.

Ive always used my name and anyone can find out about me if they want. Im not ashamed by anything that I have posted here and often write things then consider deeply before I post. I often reconsider posting. I wish some other people would do the same (ie think).

At any rate, its Alexs and Hamishis Frankenstein, so its they that decide.

As Splice and H20 said (Am I speaking to some WWF fighters or something? No offence) said, we would a) need the KW team to devolve the power and b) have a bunch of dedicated moderators.

Jakob, Im with you.

[JSchmidt]

The moderated registration and moderated first x-amount of posts is used on a couple of the 3D-related BBS I read. It has meant that the professionals actually stick around and some 3rd party software companies even use them as their 'official' BBSs.
It does stop people from posting 78 irrelevant posts in one day!.

Yes, a team of moderators would be needed, but I don't see that being a major problem, unless Alex & Hamish wants to keep full control.

Oh and having a manga/anime sub-section might not be a such a bad idea :)

Jakob

[Miravil]

I imagine that there are a number of other people that would like to post but dont because of the often trivial nature of the posts in this forum. We need these people to get involved, not stand on the at the side.


That happens to me many times. Clicked the quote, then decided not to quote wondering what is the consequenses.

I'm alright with using the real name for registration. The rest is just so so.

[Fonsz]

The Anime section sounds very promising.
I would like to contribute to this that there should be experts who will answer questions about their expertise. We can choose the experts and if they like they can answer said questions. If the questions are silly then they can say so in their own style(?). I propose that Hai Hai should do the ones about bogu. Maybe the questions can be categorized and made sticky. Just like the IBU and the hakama folding thread.
Whaddaya say?

[emitbrownne]

I hate this feature. If I find a forum and want to post in it, then I want to be able to do it right away. It really just pisses people off and we will possibly lose a lot of "serious" members.


I admit it bugs me too but If they are serious they will wait and then express thier opinions. You will lose the fly by night troll.

Paul Walsh
Do-Shin-Ken-Yu-Kai
Bolton

[Lucien]

FWIW I believe Jakob's ideas are good. I have seen this system in place for other boards and it works really well.

Yes, there are many posts saying 'Daear newb, You must display your real name in your posts...' but this is more than offset by the higher quality of posts.

It also acts as a deterrent to people who just want to get to 100 posts or throw daggers from the shadows - something that seems to be happening a lot recently and deters me from posting.

Of course, it is up to the kindly souls who administer this forum to decide, but I am guessing there'll be enough volunteers for the job...

[Neil Gendzwill]

I like the real name idea. Like George, I stand by everything I post - my name (and picture) is attached and if I say something stupid I'm sure I'll hear about it.

As far as E-budo goes - good rule, it's just poorly designed. They should force every user to have their real name as their handle, or automatically put it into the sig. Another problem with e-budo is all the non-moderators who try to moderate. It just adds a lot of unnecessary crap. There's a very good rule over at another forum I visit - no talking about the boards on the boards. The mods do all the thumping there and if you try to mod yourself you'll get a warning.

[Kenshi]

so.... get your names on your sigs then everyone, if you are in. id rather people just did it rather than making it a rule. you know, respect... something that kendo does teach to us and thats missing in modern life. consider it like sonkyo.

we do need some new mods tho.

[piggy]

and in some threads will call out users who claim to be living somewhere (the common one: Japan) when their IP clearly shows they are somewhere else (the United States). I doubt moderators here do anything similar.

i use the italian flag to show my ethnicity and the location obviously to show where i live. i figured that would be pretty reasonable.


also, yes i think we need more moderators.

I put my name in my signature to let every one know who i am and like Neil Gendzwill said, if i say something dumb, i'll hear about it. i've heard about it before so now i'm very careful as to what i post.

[Paikea]

A lot of garbage would never be posted if the identity of the author was known. Once in a very long while, a poster is actually more interesting because you don't know who they are but that's 1:1000. Special dispensation at the moderators discretion?

[Galo]

I go with Jakob and Neil.
My suggestions, some already mentioned, some a little different.

- Last name on signature (enforced by a mandatory field in the registration/profile sections).

- One moderator, preferrably (sp?) someone expert in the matter, for each sub-forum. (I hope that's not such a big number... around... 20 mods, maybe?)

- A team of assistants might also help. Their job would be to surf the forums and identify potential trolls, missplaced threads, pointless/closable threads and pass the word to the mods. This way, the mods have more time to do what they're supposed to do (MODERATE) and need less time to check throu the whole site. The assistants don't need to have any power to ban users, close threads or posts. They just "patrol" around. Users will know they're being "watched" ;)

- The anime sub-forum is ok. Would pull into it all those "is hiten mitsurugi a real ryu?" questions in one place, and make it easier to control.

- A "Welcome" thread/sub-forum. Maybe this is just me, but I feel is pointless that there are a lot of newbies that come in and open a new thread to just say "hi!, I start kendo tomorrow (or next week, month or year; you pick). I'm very excited". Then we have dozens of threads like those. One thread for that matter should be fine. I think. =)

Well. Guess that's it. =)

[Lloromannic]

With the current influx of spammers, etc, I wonder if it was worth controlling registration and initial posting?.

Here's a couple of 'rules', that I've seen used on other sites:

Real name must be used, either in username or in the post. Granted, you can easily pretend to be someone else, but it seems to work pretty well as a basic measure against spamming.

Registration has to be approved by a moderator and is not automated.

First 5(?) posts will be moderated, before full posting priviliges are given.

This does mean a significant increase in the moderators work load,so a few volunteers would have to be found..I can't imagine that being a problem, however.

Jakob

I agree. Maybe we shouldtry to keep this threadnear the front page by adding regular bumps/suggestions (or a mod making it a sticky)

[splice]

I don't agree with signing my name until this is implemented as a rule by administrators. Otherwise, all it does is make you more public, and therefore more prone to attack by anonymous experts. It's way easy for anyone to find a bunch about you, your style and school with your name, and then just randomly criticizing whatever they feel like, with you unable to respond because the other refuses to play fair and decides to hide behind his alias.

Until we have a level playing field, I don't see a reason to start signing with our names. Those that would give it out freely anyway will do it, and those who want to stay anonymous for whatever reason will stay anonymous, and it's the latter that really need to be forced away from the shadows.

[Lloromannic]

I would add another rule:
Don't create more than one username, especially if you were banned.

[splice]

i use the italian flag to show my ethnicity and the location obviously to show where i live. i figured that would be pretty reasonable.


And I've never said otherwise. I speak mostly of cases where the poster will say "I live in Japan, so I know" and it turns out they really don't, since they live in the USA. And so on. Willfully obscuring their origins to claim qualifications they don't have. It doesn't happen often on e-budo, since they will pick up on that quickly and even ban you.

On Kendo-World, where you can register an account minutes after getting another one banned, and you can keep on posting... Moderation guidelines are lax, and fact-checking by moderators? I think that's non-existent.

[Kingofmyrrh]

I'm definitely in favour of Jakob's proposals if it'll help us stem the increasing flow of crazies that seem to pop up constantly. I don't really like using my real name on the internet (although far more people call me king/myrrh than by my actual name in real life, which is somewhat disturbing), but I guess it'd be worth it in this instance, even though there are already loads of people who know who I am. Lost anonymity is a worthwhile exchange for less fools, I guess.

[piggy]

splice, sorry for the misunderstanding. what i said sounded mean but i didn't mean it to be. i only wanted to say what i did for myself.

another idea that came to my head is there should be a system that would ban someone if they got enough votes against them from other members on KWF. like you'd go to see thier public profie and it would give you three options, put them on your friends list, ignore them or make an annomous vote against them.

i remember playing a game with that system to keep annoying people or cheaters out of the hosts online game and it worked very well.

[Grenamier]

I think much of the grief has been coming from young kids who aren't actually studying Kendo or Iaido or anything else besides an anime series. Our suggestions are really aimed at those few, at the risk of alienating serious Kendoists or making it difficult for them to join in useful discussion.

My first suggestion is that new members who are able to show that they are students registered with a dojo should not have restrictions on their posts. Part of registration can be naming your dojo and your dojo's website/phone number. The name of the dojo would automatically become part of the signature. If the member is a bad apple and causes trouble, the moderators can try to verify membership. I think most people who actually study kendo at a dojo have a sense of giri in terms of representing their dojo.

I stop short of saying that all members of KWF should belong to a dojo because often we see people who are genuinely interested in kendo and want to know a bit more about it before they jump in with both feet. How not to make them suffer for the sins of others before them?

My second suggestion is designating a forum that's as open as the forums are now, so that anyone can register a name and post there. We could keep it sane by weeding it heavily with perhaps 3 or more regular assistants or moderators that simply delete useless posts at their discretion.

Yes, there is potential for abuse, but figuring out which people can be trusted as moderators is a separate issue. I think this could also act as an "audition". If some people are going to be a nitwits, it'll usually show up right away and they can be rejected before they get a chance to pollute other forums.

On the real name issue, I support having them shown and I've had my name in my sig since I started here. But there is a privacy issue that has to be addressed. A nut bar might really take objection to a posting and go tracking a person down to settle things in person. I wouldn't want Hai Hai to wake up one morning with a carton load of Halls candy in his bed...

I've said my peace, have at me.

[Paikea]

Good ideas, all of them. By now, I'm sure Hamish and Alex are wondering "what's in it for us"? since this forum is only a time and money drain on them to support their real reason for existence, Kendo World Magazine. What's their motivation to do anything different?

Serious kenshi are the ones with KW Mag subscriptions?

(oohhh...666, maybe time to sign up with new username and leave Paikea at a significant numerological value to inflame the puritans?)

[tattooedasshole]

I would add another rule:
Don't create more than one username, especially if you were banned.
Ban the IP addy instead of the user. You can still get around it(proxy's), but unless you change IP's, you ain't getting on.

[Grenamier]

Good ideas, all of them. By now, I'm sure Hamish and Alex are wondering "what's in it for us"? since this forum is only a time and money drain on them to support their real reason for existence, Kendo World Magazine. What's their motivation to do anything different?

Serious kenshi are the ones with KW Mag subscriptions?


I used to be a regular reader on Slashdot, which I'm not sure if many people would be familiar with here. Before blogging was blogging and when people were still quite impressed with static webpages, that was a great place for geeks with technical knowledge to have useful and insightful discussions. Years later, I don't recognize the place now. It was slowly overrun by ignorant kiddies with no real background to speak of, but full of religion over bits of software.

It was a decline that started slowly at first and just kept sliding. The guys who ran the site knew it was happening and keep fiddling with the moderation system believing that the community will police itself given the right structure for rating posts. I disagree. So many of the people who post on open forums these days are literally and/or figuratively children and they need a parent to lay the smack down from on high. That's why I sort of lean towards the authoritarian suggestions.

I would hate see to KWF get overrun the way Slashdot has. This is such a valuable place for Kendoka to learn and share and it needs to be protected to remain so. If labour-intensity is a problem, then I would volunteer to help moderate or do verification or anything else that would help keep the weeds out of this garden.

And I do happen to be considering a KW subscription.

[Sepiraph]

I would hate see to KWF get overrun the way Slashdot has. This is such a valuable place for Kendoka to learn and share and it needs to be protected to remain so. If labour-intensity is a problem, then I would volunteer to help moderate or do verification or anything else that would help keep the weeds out of this garden.

I seriously doubt KWF would end up anything like Slashdot. First of all, I would guess that Slashdot has easily over tens of thousand, if not hundreds of thousand of hit each day. I doubt that KWF would get that much hit in a month. Because the volume is very different, the problem that Slashdot faces is different than the ones KWF faces and much more difficult to control.

The main issue that KWF faces is trolling, which is pretty much common across all forums. What KWF needs is probably more moderators as I rarely if ever see a thread locked due to flaming/trolling. Trolls can also be dealt with once you IP ban them. Lastly, if people just stop responsing to trolls' thread, the trolls usually lose interest and leave the forum.

Regarding the real name thing as username, it is quite not necessary because most forums don't need it and they do just fine. I also think alias is much more interesting than people's names (which is a bit lame).

[Kenshi]

In the 3 years my name has been available here, no one has ever done something to compromise my privacy.

Still, Mr or Ms Splice's comments about "not doing it till its mandatory" and "level playing field" I think are fair and understandable comments.

I think the idea about adding your dojo (start doing it!) is very good as well. This, plus your name, will cause a lot of people to stop and think before they hit submit.

>I also think alias is much more interesting than people's names (which is a bit lame).<

Do you think I like the name "George" ?!? You have to be kidding. Id rather have a cool handle, but that does absolutely nothing for my credibility. Sorry to say, but I think that this point is null and void in this discussion, and kind of brings it down. You can still have a cool handle, and call people by that name, but I want to know that you are ready to stand by your words (and that you actually thought about them) and that you are serious.... thus the request by Jacob and a few others to "put up" and write your name (and your dojo). Not a bad idea, nor an infringement of your personal liberty or cool factor.

[kendonewbie]

Name on sig, hm? Sure, why not. Not posting my last name on it (call me paranoid..)

[h2o]

Ban the IP addy instead of the user. You can still get around it(proxy's), but unless you change IP's, you ain't getting on.
Problem is, most internet connections use dynamic IP, so you'd have to ban a whole range of addresses to "get rid of them". And then they would only sign in on another computer to bypass it. IP filtering is not going to work until we all have our very own unique IPv6-address... which will probably never happen.

[crabbi]

I think it's fine the way it is...

[Alex_McGrady]

I think it's fine the way it is...

THE CRAB HAS SPOKEN!!!! I think it is fine too. No need to go overboard just because of a few nutt balls....

Alex

[Kingofmyrrh]

My first suggestion is that new members who are able to show that they are students registered with a dojo should not have restrictions on their posts. Part of registration can be naming your dojo and your dojo's website/phone number. The name of the dojo would automatically become part of the signature. If the member is a bad apple and causes trouble, the moderators can try to verify membership. I think most people who actually study kendo at a dojo have a sense of giri in terms of representing their dojo.
I'm not sure about this. In the last few months we've seen plenty of people who were affiliated with well known dojo (beginners) come and make a nuisance of themselves, so I'm not convinced that this would make much difference. Furthermore, it would be a shame to see good dojos getting a bad reputation because of the actions of a couple of their beginners.
I was thinking about the only other kendo forum that I know - ichinikai - which seems to be a fine example of a forum that functions perfectly well without people using their real names (I don't think there's a single person there who uses their real name, although some are known). They don't really do much in the way of moderation either, since I guess most of the kids there are actually comitted practitioners and are more interested in real discussion than talking trash. Clearly this isn't the case here, as every wannabe samurai seems drawn to us, so moderation is probably a good idea, but, as I've said, I'm not convinced about the real names thing.

Who would I have as moderator? Someone like Neil, Jakob, or DCPan for level-headedness, and also Paikea to send the kids packing!

[mingshi]

Finally, we come up with a trick that will reveal the identity of those international men of mystery - Hai hai and Mad god to name a few.

Nice try everyone!!

[Sepiraph]

Do you think I like the name "George" ?!? You have to be kidding. Id rather have a cool handle, but that does absolutely nothing for my credibility. Sorry to say, but I think that this point is null and void in this discussion, and kind of brings it down. You can still have a cool handle, and call people by that name, but I want to know that you are ready to stand by your words (and that you actually thought about them) and that you are serious.... thus the request by Jacob and a few others to "put up" and write your name (and your dojo). Not a bad idea, nor an infringement of your personal liberty or cool factor.

If what you mean is that you wanted to have people's name in their profile or sig, then I don't object. However, if you wanted people to register using a name (like you've done, I might add), then I stand by what I've said. I don't think it's a moot point at all because you'd lose a bit of personality behind people's username.

[Mugu]

Finally, we come up with a trick that will reveal the identity of those international men of mystery - Hai hai and Mad god to name a few.

Nice try everyone!!

LOL good one Jenny. I'm sure we are all waiting to find out who Hai Hai really is :D

I think using our real names might be good for getting know all Kenshi better so when we go to a taikai, we won't have that "I was sitting behind you and filming you, but you didn't know I was there. But I know you though! Remember me??"

Though, I don't know if this will do any good forcing someone to reveal their real names. How the heck that you know it's their real name? You're not going to background check all of them or anything... are you? :D (I think I can get you discount if you do coz I work at a background checking company, hehe) When someone has a name like "Jesus", "Zeus", or even "Nebukanezzar". Are you going to argue that they're faking their names? It's a tough one...

I say we should put up a quiz of basic kendo terms and stuff, and before the user registers they have to answer ALL of them correctly. If they can't get 'em right, tell them to go away :D

[Kingofmyrrh]

LOL good one Jenny. I'm sure we are all waiting to find out who Hai Hai really is :D

I think using our real names might be good for getting know all Kenshi better so when we go to a taikai, we won't have that "I was sitting behind you and filming you, but you didn't know I was there. But I know you though! Remember me??"
Two reasons why anonymity must be preserved! We need to give the next Musha a chance to come across as a real psycho, and I'm afraid that anonymity is pretty much essential for that!

[Miravil]

I say we should put up a quiz of basic kendo terms and stuff, and before the user registers they have to answer ALL of them correctly. If they can't get 'em right, tell them to go away :D

Umm... what happened if those who are keen to know more about kendo but haven't get started or know nothing about it yet? I don't think they'll be able to answer all the questions. :ponder:

[Paikea]

Finally, we come up with a trick that will reveal the identity of those international men of mystery - Hai hai and Mad god to name a few.

Nice try everyone!!Like I said, special dispensation for special people. Except Mad-God, who is not special.

[tattooedasshole]

Problem is, most internet connections use dynamic IP, so you'd have to ban a whole range of addresses to "get rid of them". And then they would only sign in on another computer to bypass it. IP filtering is not going to work until we all have our very own unique IPv6-address... which will probably never happen.
I'm pretty sure that dynamic IP's are just for LAN situations. The internet is a WAN, and I'll eat my hat if you don't have a static IP. Get a prog called MyWanIp, you'll see that your IP won't change (they are usually assigned to the modem, not the computer).

[Neil Gendzwill]

I'm pretty sure that dynamic IP's are just for LAN situations. The internet is a WAN, and I'll eat my hat if you don't have a static IP.
Hope your hat is quite tasty. Static IP is an extra cost service for most ISPs. I know, because I pay the extra so that my modem works OK with my company's VPN. The IP will likely stay the same so long as your modem has a continuous connection with the provider. But if the connection gets reset, most people's modems will be assigned a different IP.

[splice]

Just backing up Neil on this one... I'm a network technician (and I've done 6+ years of support for national ISPs), so I speak from solid knowledge here.

If you're using dial-up, unless you sought out a static IP and are paying for it, you've got a dynamic IP. If you use ADSL w/ pppoe, unless you requested a static IP and are paying for it, you're very likely to have a dynamic IP. If you're on cable internet, unless you requested a static IP and are paying for it, you're most likely to have a dynamic IP. Static IPs are much more common on business services, and sometimes exclusively so (stupid sympatico...).

For the latter two cases, however, you can get a semi-static IP by just having the connection run on a server and never shutting down the connection. Some ISPs do timeout idle connections and force a renew, however, so you'll get a different IP at regular intervals. You might get lucky, however; I regularly kept my IP for months at a time with my past cable provider.

You might have a static IP for the local interface to the provider's system, but your PPPoE interface itself will be dynamic IP assignment, and your IP on the local interface is not publically addressable anyway.

Sure hope that hat is tasty :). Try it with ketchup. Everything tastes better with ketchup.

Quick edit: If you shut down your connection and bring it back up soon after, you're likely to get the same IP as the DHCP server might not have leased it to anyone else in the meantime, or might be configured to hold the IP for you for a certain time. But a disconnection for a longer period (a few hours, a day) would get you a different IP. That might be why you think your IP is static if you're not disconnected often and only for short times.

[The great I AM]

I agree with most hear about anonymity (sp), and even though alot of people know who I am anyway, I'm gonna put my name and dojo in my sig.


Power to the people. Or the serious sensible ones at least. Or, maybe the ones who think they are sensible. Or just the ones that think. Er. Maybe.

[Andou]

Hmm. Perhaps people will read this and then get the idea that to really get across that your identity must be accessable. I'm not sure...I think that some of the members here would rather be known amongst the veteran KWF members because they've been around and have contributed to the forums but still remain anonymous to the guy who joins for 35 minutes just to post a challenge to all of the world's Kenshi. Although I put my name in my signature so people actually know who the heck I am, I figure if you plan on staying on KWF and not putting your real name in your handle or sig, it will be found out eventually by those who have been here and will stay. After that, I don't think it'll be too hard to be generally accepted around the forums.

Just my thoughts.

[tattooedasshole]

Hope your hat is quite tasty. Static IP is an extra cost service for most ISPs. I know, because I pay the extra so that my modem works OK with my company's VPN. The IP will likely stay the same so long as your modem has a continuous connection with the provider. But if the connection gets reset, most people's modems will be assigned a different IP.
Well now. I've had my internet through both videotron and rogers, and both have static IP's, assinged to the modem. And no, I didn't have to pay to get a static IP. Didn't keep a continous connection either. I can shut off my rogers modem for hours, and MyWanIp shows the same IP addy when I re-connect. I only connect for a couple of hours a day, the modem is off other wise. Always the same addy. Videotron told me straight that the IP is static, assinged to the modem.


And yes, ketchup did help. But still so dry....

[Kingofmyrrh]

I agree with most hear about anonymity (sp), and even though alot of people know who I am anyway, I'm gonna put my name and dojo in my sig.


Power to the people. Or the serious sensible ones at least. Or, maybe the ones who think they are sensible. Or just the ones that think. Er. Maybe.
Since when have you been 'Stuart Gibson'? People who actually know you in real life won't be able to figure out what's going on... put your real REAL name, Gibbo!

[Kenshi]

Stuart Gibson = No
Gibbo Gibson = Yes

Sepiraph - i am not talking about user name at all.

[The great I AM]

Just for George and Kingofgrrrr

[Fonsz]

I thought the phrase was "for King and Country?"

[splice]

Well now. I've had my internet through both videotron and rogers, and both have static IP's, assinged to the modem. And no, I didn't have to pay to get a static IP. Didn't keep a continous connection either. I can shut off my rogers modem for hours, and MyWanIp shows the same IP addy when I re-connect. I only connect for a couple of hours a day, the modem is off other wise. Always the same addy. Videotron told me straight that the IP is static, assinged to the modem.


And yes, ketchup did help. But still so dry....

That's very interesting. I was on videotron for years, and my folks are on it at the present. We've never had any kind of static IP addressing, and it wasn't even available short of high-priced business plans, like I said. In fact, I just phoned them right now to ask (would be useful for my brother's servers), and I've again been told that there is no static IP addressing to be had in residential plans anywhere.

As for rogers, I was a tech there for a long time, but I quit some 3 years ago. It was the same story there, no static IP available at all. In fact, as far as they're concerned, they quite clearly show that static IP is a business service (see here (http://www.shoprogers.com/business/businesssolutions/dedicated.asp), or go to their website and look for "static IP" in business services) for $199 a month for the full connection.

Now, I'm not disputing that you're keeping the same IP for a long time, that's quite possible. The tech you spoke to might have said that the IP is functionally static, even if it is really dynamic it might never change. But it's still dynamic IP addressing, unless you're paying business rates.

[h2o]

Hope your hat is quite tasty.Well, I actually have a static IP, so unfortunately he won't have to eat his hat. :D

Or, perhaps he will, if I think about it...
My IP is assigned by DHCP, (dynamically, that is) but my ISP always gives me the same address (yes, always, I am guaranteed a static public IP), so I think tattoedasshole might have to eat at least half his hat :D

[kendonewbie]

For people reading this and wondering why we would try keeping people out, read this first: http://www.kendo-world.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4700. The banned user in this thread made mulitple usernames....all of which were found and banned...but only because he was stupid and did the same things over again...

[tattooedasshole]

Well, I actually have a static IP, so unfortunately he won't have to eat his hat. :D

Or, perhaps he will, if I think about it...
My IP is assigned by DHCP, (dynamically, that is) but my ISP always gives me the same address (yes, always, I am guaranteed a static public IP), so I think tattoedasshole might have to eat at least half his hat :D
Too late....all gone.....tastes horrible......ketchup....only mild help......:confused2

As per videotron, my IP was static (typed into network properties), but they were having problems getting me connected. With rogers, i know it's assigned by DHCP, but no matter what I try, it wont change the IP. For all intents and purposes, it's static.

[DarQik]

[QUOTE=tattooedassholeAs per videotron, my IP was static (typed into network properties), but they were having problems getting me connected. With rogers, i know it's assigned by DHCP, but no matter what I try, it wont change the IP. For all intents and purposes, it's static.[/QUOTE]Static happens--but dynamic is more common. In some locales dynamic is static for all intents and purposes as the same IP lease may be renewed for years. If it's not truly static, then it's just luck. (Yeah, I've entered my dynamic IP as if it was static after it was valid for a week, and used it for a couple months without issue too on local cable.)

Also, for goof-ups posting from inside university campuses, they might only pass out the proxy IP.

If IP bans are to be considered, I'd suggest that they should be temporary by automated process--meaning it does not require someone to clear the ban after 1-2 weeks. They also mean more work dealing with people asking for bans to be lifted.

Slashdot is more in the hundreds of thousands/hour range. They said (http://slashdot.org/faq/slashmeta.shtml) they serve about 3 million pages a day last July.


Unfortuneately, mod solutions and things that slow registration are probably the best route. Tracking user IP's for mod's to consider when accepting registrations or banning accounts might help. (Some boards tag IP's to posts, registrations, and each login--depends on the level of paranoia and db size.)

The only other solid method to cut down on bad registrations is to establish a method that requires a trusted user to provide references new users for new registrations. Of course, that severe limits new registrations...

I wouldn't object to the tiered structure used for poster benefits (the 100 post barrier). That would mean both, exanding the boards and limit posting to a certain tier of boards. Handing out mod points to posters over time rather than just when they've beaten out enough junk posts (I love seeing 2nd day posters with twice as many posts as me).

Anyway, it's painful for the admins who have to do the work and make the choices. I appreciate the rotten, time consuming, behind the scenes work you guys do. Even though, I'll never really know the scope of your efforts.

[Paburo]

this is my view as an administrator of a humble kendo forum of around 270 users (the biggest in spain tho)... i think i have a fair amount of hours per week to moderate and still, sometimes i find myself overworked with all the threads and users.

now, this kendo forum has 4500+ users and just 2 moderators?? c'mon... no wonder it's so damn chaotic. it wasn't like this years ago when i registered...

nowadays you come and find 450970945 new posts on each visit... how come? it's only logical if the newbies come and ask the same things over and over and over without using the search button.

there are bogu threads on the shinai section, offtopics on the kenjutsu one, and its all where it shouldnt...

-who is there to blend in the similar or the equal threads into one?
-who is there to move the offtopic threads to the place they belong to?
-to delete spam and ban users if necessary?

i think writing our names on the signature is not the key solution(i've used my name in my username, along with my dojo and my contact info since the beggining btw, and a bunch of other ppl do as well, but that alone doesnt make this forum more navigate-able whatsoever...).

what this forum is screaming for is mods. to keep things organized. to be able to keep similar threads and the same questions merged into one single thread. to keep each thread in its own section. to guide newbies who still don't know how this thing works. to control spammers and jokers. and all that stuff one person alone cannot do, unless you admin a really small forum, not this monster.

it's sad, cause this forum used to be much more easier to read and follow logically... i would enjoy reading if not all, most of the posts everyday back then. now with all the fuzz i feel i'm wasting my time reading all the same stuff over and over looking for that one hidden single thread in the mess that holds something new and interesting.

[ratdeau]

Perhaps we should systematicly rate the threads (especially the crap ones).
It could be easier to see what people think about posts.

[ReKru]

... the guy who joins for 35 minutes just to post a challenge to all of the world's Kenshi.

If he needs 35 minutes to post a challenge, I think even I could beat him with some kata waza :D
Hope he gets my name right - people discover the funniest letters when they try to write it.

[piggy]

For people reading this and wondering why we would try keeping people out, read this first: http://www.kendo-world.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4700. The banned user in this thread made mulitple usernames....all of which were found and banned...but only because he was stupid and did the same things over again...

kendonewbie, that thread was halarious! how did i miss something like that? i almost wish he wasnt banned so the thread would go on.

[kendonewbie]

it does...he made a 3rd name.....and says the same thing over again. Idiot. Anyway, i'll see if i can find the 3rd one...actually, Kaoru would know better than i would. Ask her about it the next time she's on.

[Andoru]

I've had my name on ever since I joined Kendo World. Of course, I stand behind the things I said, and I stand corrected for the things I said wrong.

Last year, a certain individual from Australia actually threaten to launch legal action against me if I didn't withdraw certain things that I said on this forum. That individual was able to identify me (using my name) through my local kendo renmei. Naturally, I resisted as much as I could, arguing that I have the right to free speech (subjected to the rules on this forum) and that whatever I said wasn't even direct or explicit in the first place. There were far worse posts in the thread - but I was picked on simply because I happen to be in Australia. That individual actually brought this issue to the attention of the executives of the national and state renmei, obviously trying to cause me plenty of grief. In the end, I decided to contact Alex and withdrew 2 of my posts - there was no point dragging this issue any further. I find the whole incident rather interesting on hindsight since I'm not known for being a "people basher". Some people are just too sensitive.

Anyway, the point is, be careful of what you say. There are senseitive people around with deep pockets and a trigger-happy finger.

[ReKru]

I've had my name on ever since I joined Kendo World. Of course, I stand behind the things I said, and I stand corrected for the things I said wrong.

Last year, a certain individual from Australia actually threaten to launch legal action against me if I didn't withdraw certain things that I said on this forum. That individual was able to identify me (using my name) through my local kendo renmei. Naturally, I resisted as much as I could, arguing that I have the right to free speech (subjected to the rules on this forum) and that whatever I said wasn't even direct or explicit in the first place. There were far worse posts in the thread - but I was picked on simply because I happen to be in Australia. That individual actually brought this issue to the attention of the executives of the national and state renmei, obviously trying to cause me plenty of grief. In the end, I decided to contact Alex and withdrew 2 of my posts - there was no point dragging this issue any further. I find the whole incident rather interesting on hindsight since I'm not known for being a "people basher". Some people are just too sensitive.

Anyway, the point is, be careful of what you say. There are senseitive people around with deep pockets and a trigger-happy finger.

That sounds bad. I wonder how this guy practices kendo? Threaten to sue everyone who touches him with a shinai? :confused2
Got an insurance some time ago to cover my legal expenses should I get sued, after an ugly incident with my landlord (I was right, but couldn't afford going to court, so I had to pay him his ripoff claims or go to court :angry: ).
As you say, there are 'sensitive' people around with deep pockets and a trigger-happy finger - not just on internet messageboards.

[Hisham]

Perhaps we should systematicly rate the threads (especially the crap ones).
It could be easier to see what people think about posts.

I agree, that feature should be used more often. About the questions that have already been asked and answered, older members shouldn't re-answer them, just point the fact that there's a search engine or post a link to the thread where that subject was discussed.

[Theodore]

I was actually wrote something on this earlier today then thought "nahhh" ... the reason being not that I think its not a good idea, but that I think most people will just refuse. Ive had a couple of beers now, so its easier to comment on Jakobs post!!!

I am definetly for :

a) people using their real names (your username can be anything, but you should sign your real name)

and

b) more moderators being created (There are 151 pages of users with 30 users per page on the member list... thats 4530 users.... 2 moderators aint enough). I think we could easily pick a number of people do moderate the various sections here.

Here is a forum (http://www.refugeforums.com/refuge/)(it's about duck hunting) which has a number of moderators for each discussion topic. It works quite well but the moderators have to be dedicated. I've done some moderating on the Idaho forum while the main moderator was on vacation. They've since added 2 moderators per sub-forum.

[Hyaku]

Well I suppose what I think goes without saying.

It's a Kendo Forum and I would like to see a bit of honest straightforward Kendo spirit with real names. You say who you are and if you screw it up you only have yourself to blame. I see no point in hiding. If anyone has some worthwhile comments it does not make them any less of a person. Saying who we are does not make us any less credible if we know what we are talking about and have the experience and knowledge to back it up.

On "any" forum a troll is a troll and should not be tolerated.

[Andou]

Well I suppose what I think goes without saying.

It's a Kendo Forum and I would like to see a bit of honest straightforward Kendo spirit with real names. You say who you are and if you screw it up you only have yourself to blame. I see no point in hiding. If anyone has some worthwhile comments it does not make them any less of a person. Saying who we are does not make us any less credible if we know what we are talking about and have the experience and knowledge to back it up.

On "any" forum a troll is a troll and should not be tolerated.

I agree with that. I mean, the purpose of this forum is to spread knowledge amongst fellow kenshi, right? So why not get to know each other? Well...aside from making enemies at least. But personally, I think we do need more moderators and that people should know the users' real names, but I don't know if that'll happen. My modest contribution is that I'll keep my dojo name as well as my first and last name on these forums to back-up what I just wrote.

[Lucien]

Perhaps we should systematicly rate the threads (especially the crap ones).
It could be easier to see what people think about posts.

I think this is a good idea. I have also started adding and subtracting to people's reputation as I think this will give them a good idea how much they are adding to or taking away from a thread. it is also quite fun.

[DarQik]

I've seen several mod-points systems used. They can be effective.

In some systems, users can spend mod-points to lower rankings and kill off threads/posts making trolls vanish; and spend mod-points to reward and designate good threads/posts (kind of like the current star things).

Of course, it takes a lot of effort to get one of those setup and running correctly... :disapp:

[Lloromannic]

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