Bitcoin Forum

So, I don't really know what you need to call yourself a "tipster", but frankly, I think my little niece could do the same job those guys do.

There's a huge amount of tipster threads currently clogging up the gambling sections and most of them (not all) are just cheap excuses to spead referral links.
Apparently, that's no problem with moderation.
Despite the fact, that referral links usually are a huge no-go, they seem to be acceptable for tipsters, if they just make up a reason why team X wins game Y.
Naturally I would be going by the (unofficial, I'm well aware of that) forum rules and just report most posts with a ref-link in them.

Previously, they all (or at least most) got deleted. With tipsters, this seems to be differently. Here, I disagree. I consider those tipsters and their threads mostly worthless, and as a result spam, even more ref-spam, if they include their reflinks like most do.

Let's have a look at some of the crowd. I'll be starting with Zilara12 (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=683948), a nitrogensports.eu affiliate.
The user currently runs 3 active threads in the gambling section, one for dota2 (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1418510.0), one for csgo (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1283985.0) and one for league of legends (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.0).
Despite the fact that these all violate the newly added marketplace rule in which reasonably similar offers have to be united in one thread (all are esports tips, that's rather close to each other, isn't it?), let us have a look at the content of these "tips" they share, take this one (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15581695#msg15581695).

And now we'll single out the ref links

Now let's do the same again, just this time, let us search for acutal constructive content.

And that's it.

That post is mostly bullshit, either overloaded with ref-links, or with crossreferences with the other tipster thread by the same user, filled with the same ref-links.
Contentwise, that is very, very little. On top of it, the users craps on all marketplace rules, for example the 24 hours bump rule. I'm gonna use default forum time here and only focus on the LoL thread.

July 03, 2016, 01:04:03 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15453943#msg15453943
July 03, 2016, 11:06:10 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15459472#msg15459472 ("Update")
July 04, 2016, 06:49:33 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15469055#msg15469055 ("#19 LoL Prediction")
July 05, 2016, 02:10:59 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15477932#msg15477932 ("Update")
July 06, 2016, 11:20:03 AM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15488034#msg15488034 ("Update")
July 06, 2016, 08:53:48 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15493743#msg15493743 ("#21 LoL Prediction")
- here's the first time the 24 hour bump rule gets kept-
July 08, 2016, 10:24:33 AM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15512071#msg15512071 ("#22 LoL Prediction")
July 08, 2016, 02:15:24 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15514361#msg15514361 ("Update on #22")
July 08, 2016, 11:37:48 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15519180#msg15519180 ("#22 LoL Prediction")
July 09, 2016, 02:48:09 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15525337#msg15525337 ("Update on #22")
July 09, 2016, 02:55:38 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15525420#msg15525420 ("#23 LoL Prediction")
July 09, 2016, 09:46:10 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15529574#msg15529574 ("Update on #23")
July 10, 2016, 01:04:04 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15535912#msg15535912 ("#23 LoL Prediction")
July 11, 2016, 09:34:04 AM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15545140#msg15545140 ("#24 LoL Prediction")
July 12, 2016, 11:33:48 AM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15557506#msg15557506 ("#25 LoL Prediction")
July 12, 2016, 01:47:51 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15558836#msg15558836 ("Update on #25")
July 13, 2016, 09:14:47 AM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15567629#msg15567629 ("#26 LoL Prediction")
July 13, 2016, 12:04:07 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15569283#msg15569283 ("Update on #26")
July 14, 2016, 12:27:48 PM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15581695#msg15581695 ("#27 LoL Prediction")
-once again a 24h+ wait-
Today at 02:16:46 AM - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1499616.msg15599863#msg15599863 ("#28 LoL Prediction")

---

If we're talking about a spam problem this forum has, that right there is certainly a part of it.
"Tipsters" running 3 seperate threads full of ref links and bumping each of them almost twice as often as they'd be allowed.

Personally I don't mind ref links in the tipster threads as a least they're putting some effort in and offering you some advice (you don't have to take it or click on the links), but I've warned people before for unnecessarily multi-posting so if you report those they will get deleted and if they continue a ban etc. Maybe a Tipster section / discuss about gambling sub could be created. That would then clear up a lot of the crap from the Gambling section.

I would gladly welcome that change.

i dont even notice the tipsters its more the dumb questions people ask in that section so yes a FAQ sub section please

A section for pointless gambling discussion would be great. ;D

Tipster thread is a goldmine.
Very easy way of scoring a lot of posts in a gambling section which is paid double in most
signature campaigns. As long as tipsters are allowed in gambling section, that kind of posts
will clutter the boards.
Special non-gambling space for those tips is necessary, bet it will get less crowded than.
Right, referral links should be also eradicated or at least strictly and clearly forbidden, just like on other boards. Double standards are a no go! 

The sad part is,even though I have tried reporting posts from the Gambling/Tipster threads,no action is ever taken.To be specific check out this user Zilara(or whatever his name is) ,posts multiple times in a row with signature in less than 24 hours.I reported him around 5-7 times,no action was taken.I gave up.The case is similar with the user hermansh0 (which I called out last week) no action is taken,he's still on the spamming spree,40 posts a day.

So far they wear a signature of the campaign which has no rule like negged users aren't allowed or campaign without rules which plays a crucial role in cutting down spammy posts, they will spam like that. They only care about money and nothing else.

The one I picked out for an example doesn't wear a paid signature, they are posting like that to increase their ref-earnings from sign ups via those threads.
IIRC quite a lot of the tipsters are either unpaid (sportsbet.io stammers are) or not organised in a campaign to start with.

That's true bro . its so annoying they're spreading there ref. link then they will give useless tips that's not really work . then last time I lose because almost 0.4btc because of that tipster that told me go on that because he told me its 100% sure win then it ending up losing .got so stressed lmao

You know what else is annoying ? Quoting the entire damn post to make a silly point.

Are you specifically talking about Zilara (the above mentioned tipster ) here ? If you lost 0.40 just because he convinced you to bet,he shouldn't be a tipster in the first place,secondly you shouldn't be taking tips if you're no idea about the games at all,that's a bit off topic here.IMHO there should be a criteria set for anyone to run tipster threads.Out of the 100 I only feel CarlosPaul and Joca deserve to run these threads.

This should be done long time ago. The best way to organize it, is splitting current gambling section into: "General Gambling Discussion" and "Gambling Services Discussion".
In time maybe we could introduce new sections for example: "Tipsters Section" etc.

I support the idea meanwhile if we consider that the sig/comp won't pay for the first one which will likely happens, the second one will replace the gambling section in a whole. That's just my opinion
Tipster/general gambling discussion? Maybe it will works..

Actually, that may be a good compromise. Instead of having too many sections (because a Tipster section would be either empty or filled with useless "tipsters" that don't know a thing about the sports) you can combine general gambling discussion with tipster threads because certain sports events already have their threads in the gambling section to discuss.

Being a tipster myself, I do agree with this. There have been a lot of members on the gambling section who haven't been caring about their stats or how well they do in their tipping. But they only care about randomly pasting a tip so it earns them money on the sig campaigns.


I doubt that will happen though. If the thread is a popular one( I will give Joca's thread as an example), then the people who follow are usually gamblers. So anyone who is paying for sig campaigns are more likely to pick a new gambler to their site, and if say it was being advertised in another gambling website, then it is unlikely that by seeing those ads people would all of a sudden shift to a new site. 

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1091704.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1166089.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1570867.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1570867.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1253729.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1331871.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1505670.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1546368.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1546368.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1562448.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1571440.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1408235.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1431297.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1568660.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=610339.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1249010.0
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1366532.0

all on the 1st page

As already discussed, Lutpin makes a fair point in regards to this being a problem. Not only are the individuals in question breaking several rules themselves, they are usually letting their threads become (yet another) spam infestation. At least what they could do is:
1) Use self-moderated threads (frequent edits and deletions).
2) Adjust & follow the rules.
3) Stop spamming their referral links.

I still think that it should not be acceptable for them to constantly break several rules.

That may help indeed. However, that only moves the problem into a subsection, it doesn't actually solve it.

Yes. There should be a "Gambling discussions" subforum. Both the "Tipsters" and the "Discussion" threads are very low quality (mostly signature and ref spam.) There are "discussions" with thousands of replies on the question "is gambling profitable"... it's just insane really.

I actually made an user script that allows you to "Ignore threads" just because of the insane spam in the Gambling forum (script here: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1451483.0) The subforum idea has come up many times, see also this topic from 1 year ago with more arguments: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1162790.0;all Right now my Gambling forum looks like this (just see how many are "discussions/tipster" topics):

https://i.imgur.com/ZTV6yUA.png

If the Gambling forum would be only topics with sites (who put effort into making a good website etc), I think the quality would be much better. In the end bitcointalk is still the center of the bitcoin gambling community, but the Gambling forum itself is very disappointing. A simple "Gambling discussion" forum would help. The rule could be simple, no paid domain with real website = in subforum.

We're currently discussing what to do about it. If a new sub isn't created most of the crap will likely just be locked or trashed and no longer permitted. That sub was only really for bitcoin-related gambling and for sites to promote themselves but as we can see it's been taken over by so called 'tipsters', people discussing whether gambling is 'good or bad ' in every imaginable way possible and people talking crap about every league of sport in the world (which most of the time has nothing to do with gambling).

Maybe you have me in mind, but I'll figure a few things : I'm not paid double by my signature campaigns, since I'm not rewarded at all for that and then I've never got someone to use my referal links so I don't see any problem to this.

It's not just one person but the whole. Currently tipster threads and people talking about sports have swamped the Gambling section. Most people don't want to see either. Many people think tipster threads are just pure ref spam and arguably they should be removed under the rules. Personally, I don't mind the threads if you're putting in a bit of effort and people are following or enjoy your tips then the tiny bit you might make from refs is fine by me, but I think they should be put into their own sub so everybody doesn't have to see them.

A few suggestions to a lot of threads on the forum.

1. Delete repeated topics. (Should I invest in a casino, Person discovering martingale, Staying away from gambling etc.)
2. Post a policy on tipster threads to lock the threads after a tip is posted.  - Most of the tipsters might just be giving tips for referrals or tips, None of them really require any inputs from other members on those tips. If the tippster have been doing well, people have a choice to follow else they can just ignore the thread.
3. Just delete irrelevant topics - Have to be strict on this, to prevent spam. Topics like this do not contribute at all. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1580541.0  

Taking the problem by the inverse will help understanding it. If the perfect gambling section is composed of promotional thread of well-established gambling sites, why a a whole section whould be needed, if only ten threads share it ? That's those threads that need a clean dedicated section, not the inversion in my opinion.

I did have you in mind, amongst others. I told you in your thread to stop violating the forum rules, and you still are doing it (I've reported a fair amount of your posts after my comment in your thread for that reason).
Further, I don't think a mere amount of threads makes something worthwhile. There are countless tipster threads, but I don't think we should make the Gambling section a tipster-spam only section based on that. Same goes for the "discussion" aka. "Is gambling a scam?" or "What do you buy when you win in gambling?".
Even though those threads might be more present than the threads of sites which are promoting their servises, presenting new things and in which the actual gambling discussion takes place, I don't see the former to have any value over them.
It's the tipsters and the spam-talk that needs to be seperated into another section, not the threads for which the gambling section was initially created.

I'm now very careful because I know you are watching me, so no, now, I'm not violating it anymore, but my thread isn't the purpose of this topic. There aren't so many tipster threads that I'm aware of and that are long-running and serious for the future. Except spam-talk, as you say, tipster threads and promotional threads, I don't see anything else in this section. Well, you have the topics that contain hundreds of pages about a special league, but that's only a small part of all the content present there.

That is a really good idea, so those who do not want to see referral links will not bother clicking on the tipster sub-section ;)

Not many 'tipsters' get paid for their tips. It's pretty much a pointless exercise starting a thread calling yourself a tipster. Mostly it's people desperately hoping to get paid for their tips.

Joca97 is good though, a couple of others too but my memory is crap.