Newbie restrictions (Please discuss forum policy here.)

[theymos]

There needs to be both a post and time limitation, so trolls can't "age" many accounts. I'd do that if SMF supported it.

[whirlpool]

I'm in the same situation. ^

[bitcoinewbie]

bitcoinforums.net has a better interface and doesn't ban people based on their opinions. It just doesn't have alot of users yet. It even has a chat room 

[lost in the wild]

I registered last summer and have done several successful trades via PM in the last few days. But I guess running at the mouth about nothing in particular is what I really should have done to be trusted!

The forum moderators have put this system in place quickly in response to an obvious attack.

My suspicion is that it will be tweaked in the coming days and weeks.

Honestly, it has improved the quality of the main boards.

It's inherent in any online community that becomes popular or experiences quick growth.  Newbies come in and ask the same questions over and over.  Mix in the chance for big profits and loss in fiat currency, and the problem gets really big.  Anyone who has ever looked at a Yahoo Finance board for a thinly traded stock that is experiencing huge volatility will know that what we've seen here is mild.

I remember helping to deal with this issue in the late 80's (pre-http) on a mailing list.  We ultimately moved to a moderation system that would not work here, but we were only dealing with OT and repetitive posts, not the active attempt to manipulate the price or trust in the system.

[BiggieJohn]

so we are stuck in the kiddie pool until we hit 50 posts ?

[mouse]

Hi,

can you please ask freespirit http://forum.bitcoin.org/index.php?action=profile;u=12345 to contact mouse at #bitcoin-otc

Thank you kindly


Done.

[ansible adams]

I registered last summer and have done several successful trades via PM in the last few days. But I guess running at the mouth about nothing in particular is what I really should have done to be trusted!

The forum moderators have put this system in place quickly in response to an obvious attack.

My suspicion is that it will be tweaked in the coming days and weeks.

Honestly, it has improved the quality of the main boards.

It's inherent in any online community that becomes popular or experiences quick growth.  Newbies come in and ask the same questions over and over.  Mix in the chance for big profits and loss in fiat currency, and the problem gets really big.  Anyone who has ever looked at a Yahoo Finance board for a thinly traded stock that is experiencing huge volatility will know that what we've seen here is mild.

I remember helping to deal with this issue in the late 80's (pre-http) on a mailing list.  We ultimately moved to a moderation system that would not work here, but we were only dealing with OT and repetitive posts, not the active attempt to manipulate the price or trust in the system.

Yeah, I've run a forum for several years myself, and I know how annoying it is dealing with a flood of idiots or spambots registering. But I've always been a fan of using time registered, coupled with a little posting to prove you're not a bot, instead of post counts. People who post inane stuff 100 times are worth far less than people who make a few decent posts. Giving out favors for high post counts just encourages white noise posting.

[biggun]

But But
I dont feel like a newbie.

Oh well. Not gonna stop me from reading the forums I suppose.

[TGE]

so we are stuck in the kiddie pool until we hit 50 posts ?

Yup...don't forget your water wings! lol

[HarryStamperOil]

Would you mind sending a PM for me? I'm trying to work out a transaction possibly gone bad. Contact me at email@gmail.com (Done.) and I'll tell you who and what I need to be sent.

[MoonShadow]

Limiting expression is not our style.  This was put in place due to an influx of trolls and scammers as a direct result of the media attention and the army of co-ops who think that the rest of us don't know that they work for Chuch Schumter.  All of these accounts have less than 50 posts, and we know that to can be messed with.  This is only a temporary measure.  Please stay tuned.

[Crystal Excursion]

Yes something had to be done, Though my posts may have an element of whimsy, I actually do trade Quartz Crystals for BTC. I have only 19 posts or so, and the restriction will prevent me from negotiating via PM, I support bitcoin and what it represents, If you are able to grant me a little slack it' would be appreciated, but a few more posts in Newbies is not much to ask.

Thank You Moderators.

[bitcoinewbie]

It is a very stylish forum with lots of features that this one lacks, but true, not many users yet. however I can definitely see it becoming the new hot spot considering the new set of censorship laws put in place over here.

[lost in the wild]

There needs to be both a post and time limitation, so trolls can't "age" many accounts. I'd do that if SMF supported it.

Agreed.  However, the trolls mostly came in because of the news about bitcoins.  Any troll who registered long before the news influx happened would actually be a troll that requires very serious examination.  That would imply some type of pre-knowledge of the news push.

This is much more than an attempt to keep trolls to a minimum, It is an attempt to keep anything out that disagrees with the whim of the current mod on duty. It is ironic to see this happen at a forum about an open-source program. I'm not saying the troll issue should not be dealt with, but a simple +/- system where too many minuses ends your thread or at least moves it to junk would suffice. what we are seeing is this - mods think trolls caused decline, mods obviously want btc to go up, mods begin censoring in hopes btc will go back up. however, artificial manipulation of the markets will not work long run. go ahead and delete this now if you must, if one person sees it is was worth it.

There is a balance between a group-think echo chamber and the need to allow intelligent challenges.

I'm not seeing evidence that intelligent counter discussion threads are being wiped out.

You need to realize that for months the bulk of the users of this forum have developed a community with a definite identity and sense of unwritten rules.  The dual influx of active trolls attempting to disrupt that and clueless newbies shifting that zeitgeist, has seriously altered that online community.

I've been reading for just a few weeks and posting for less than a day.  I like the community the way it was when I started reading.

We're seeing a reaction that isn't ideal, but is better than what we had before this newbie ghetto was created.

In the end, I suspect the requirements for posting will change as will the community.  But, I hope that they continue to actively work against trolling that is trying to destroy the community.

[foxcartier]

Had problems posting for a few mintues, kept giving me errors... Anyways I'm going to do everyone's right meow, ansible yours is done

[Crazy]

Someone bought about 9.5k BTC. I think this massive crash in price is due to one big sale (~24k BTC) which induced a panic. Since there are so few bitcoins available, it only takes one guy with a lot of hoarded coins cashing out to drop the price 25%, which causes everyone to freak out and sell everything. I think we will see the price stabilize in the next 24-48 hours.

Awesome post, thanks. I wasn't aware someone dumped that many BTC but it certain explains a lot. That, coupled w/ decreased usage via Silk Road and speculative trading puts everything together nicely.

[marhjan]

It would be nice if you could restore access to PMs so that transactions/discussions that were in progress can at least be continued/finished.  I understand a lot of trolls flooded this forum, but this action seems rather extreme to me.  Shrug...  I'm not much of a poster, not sure how long it will take me to get out of here.

[Astrohacker]

I request to be whitelisted. I've written only high quality content.

[Disposition]

sigh, I usually lurk, and been here FOREVER I can't believe now I ACTUALLY HAVE to spam to post correctly...

[Braden]

I agree. I was engaged in active non trolish discussions, and this sort of retroactive punishment seems unreasonable. Also, trolls can just spam to 50 posts. This only deters people who are actually interested in bitcoin.