Is BCT dead and most of the traffic just mindless AI zombies now?

[Satofan44]

I'm curious: isn't a moderator paid to be a moderator? If they aren't paid, there's so much money sitting in forum's cold storage that could be used to fund moderators that actually moderate.

Another thing to consider is that there hasn't been a shakeup in the moderation team in over a decade. About 5 years ago I started a thread pointing out how moderation was getting stale and the response was "what else do you want us to do? we handle all the reports." Well clearly there's a few other things the mods could be doing these days.

Reporting many posts is one of the worst possible uses of time when users rarely get banned. It does make sense for AI bots or spam accounts as they get banned fast.

If I was a mod I would work on coming up with a system to objectively categorize useless posts and then issue temp bans and sig bans to those who have 10+ reported posts deleted. I'd try to make it a waste of time and money for campaign managers who insist on hiring low-quality posters while simultaneously encouraging said posters to improve their post quality.

Simple measures like that would go a long way here, meanwhile we have a very shitty moderator team which mostly consists of people who don't care at all about Bitcoin -- giving excuses is always the easy way out.

[SamReomo]

Read my posts here https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5557608.msg66125571#msg66125571 and the replies that follow then convince me that the forum isn't mostly populated by mindless bots now.

Well, there are some members who only post because they want to complete their weekly post quota and that's why they don't care much about reading the actual topic or post before writing their posts. For them only completion of weekly posts is important, and quality discussion doesn't play any role for them.

These days in gambling boards most members do that but there are members who make more than 5-10 posts a day but those are quality posts not just posts to meet their weekly quota. I would say that the forum still has so many good members who share their personal opinion and genuine knowledge, and due to those people the forum is still the best crypto forum in world.

[arhipova]

Read my posts here https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5557608.msg66125571#msg66125571 and the replies that follow then convince me that the forum isn't mostly populated by mindless bots now.

Well, there are some members who only post because they want to complete their weekly post quota and that's why they don't care much about reading the actual topic or post before writing their posts. For them only completion of weekly posts is important, and quality discussion doesn't play any role for them.

These days in gambling boards most members do that but there are members who make more than 5-10 posts a day but those are quality posts not just posts to meet their weekly quota. I would say that the forum still has so many good members who share their personal opinion and genuine knowledge, and due to those people the forum is still the best crypto forum in world.

Honestly, you can almost feel it when someone is typing just to hit their required number. They sound like:
“Bitcoin is good. Blockchain is also good. Gambling is sometimes good. Life is good. Please count this as a post.”

[JollyGood]

Not only the names that specifically mentioned in that post, there are far too many that do not read posts or threads in order to understand any context yet they would post. Those reading the posts would conclude they were made for the sake of posting (to meet the campaign quota in order to receive payment or increase post count) yet they would not stop at other threads too.

Whether mindless bots or not, the forum has huge numbers of farmed accounts that earn via signature campaigns by posting low quality context.

Read my posts here https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5557608.msg66125571#msg66125571 and the replies that follow then convince me that the forum isn't mostly populated by mindless bots now.

[lovesmayfamilis]

Not only the names that specifically mentioned in that post, there are far too many that do not read posts or threads in order to understand any context yet they would post. Those reading the posts would conclude they were made for the sake of posting (to meet the campaign quota in order to receive payment or increase post count) yet they would not stop at other threads too.

Whether mindless bots or not, the forum has huge numbers of farmed accounts that earn via signature campaigns by posting low quality context.

An interesting person, who unfortunately left the forum, once confided to me that there are people on the forum with whom it's as if you're sitting at the same table and conversing. Unfortunately, this method of communication is becoming very rare, and between the posts of those who read, there are regularly posts from those who, by quoting, contribute nothing new, merely echoing in the hopes of approval and merit. It's hard to find someone to sit with when the conversation devolves into a tenth-generation paraphrase. Perhaps those who engage in such conversations should learn the rules of etiquette and avoid being "a Chinese dummy nodding their head," but instead try to understand the topics being discussed and remain purely an observer.

[SamReomo]

Honestly, you can almost feel it when someone is typing just to hit their required number. They sound like:
“Bitcoin is good. Blockchain is also good. Gambling is sometimes good. Life is good. Please count this as a post.”

Such phrases are often used by those members who actually want to complete the required posts data. A good member gives more than enough time to first read the OP and then the posts of others members and when he/she knows that he/she can share some valuable information directly by quoting OP or by quoting posts of other members, then and only then he/she writes the post.

While on the other hand, the ones who want to complete their weekly requirement don't give much time to reading and directly jump into the discussion by writing generic information and nothing else. When someone checks gambling boards then there are members who write very long posts but no one really wants to read such long posts which lack good information.

[krishnaverma]

Traffic is reducing here but that is common with all forums.

Most of the traffic for online communities is going to bigger players like reddit. I was reading a post where google partnered with reddit and its data would be shared with Google. It is obvious that for this favor, Google will also give benefits to reddit like higher authority and ranking.

[JollyGood]

The person you refer to that had left the forum had a valid point. How many posts can you read nowadays in any thread that demonstrates a conversation took place (or was taking place) rather than posts being made to meet campaign quotas? There are exceptions, for example in several boards you will find conversations flowing but the overall feel of decline increases.

An interesting person, who unfortunately left the forum, once confided to me that there are people on the forum with whom it's as if you're sitting at the same table and conversing. Unfortunately, this method of communication is becoming very rare, and between the posts of those who read, there are regularly posts from those who, by quoting, contribute nothing new, merely echoing in the hopes of approval and merit. It's hard to find someone to sit with when the conversation devolves into a tenth-generation paraphrase. Perhaps those who engage in such conversations should learn the rules of etiquette and avoid being "a Chinese dummy nodding their head," but instead try to understand the topics being discussed and remain purely an observer.

[mindrust]

Traffic is reducing here but that is common with all forums.

Most of the traffic for online communities is going to bigger players like reddit. I was reading a post where google partnered with reddit and its data would be shared with Google. It is obvious that for this favor, Google will also give benefits to reddit like higher authority and ranking.

Reddit is a bot-fest too. In most cases it is more useful compared to bitcointalk but I also see way too many rubbish posts. Also it is a democrat party shit hole. Whatever sub you visit there is always one sided against Trump/Republicans and pro democrat. After a while it gets painful to read, not because they hate republicans, the problem is you can’t read a post that give info about the title unless you read how much much they hate Trump and how terrible republicans are. It gets tiring very quickly. AI responses beat both reddit and bitcointalk at this point. Actually it is better than almost everything on the internet nowadays.

[Wind_FURY]

AI / Shitposters / sig spammers / trolls / large farms trying to sway opinion. It's what most of the internet is today.

Here where there is actual money being discussed and people trying to scam their way into it it's going to be worse.

Lets be honest for Ayre to spend a few thousand dollars a month (at most) to pay a few dozen people to spam here it's really pocket change to him.

Do you really think all the pro knots people were real too? I know you know better but it's the same thing.

-Dave

Did everyone notice that the Knots people/filterbois in BitcoinTalk were newer accounts? Plus the way they were talking is as if they're already are familiar in the forum.

  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I'm not accusing anyone of multi-accounting, but as you posted it shouldn't be a big surprise if the forum is being Sybil Attacked to sway opinion.

[OgNasty]

Read my posts here https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5557608.msg66125571#msg66125571 and the replies that follow then convince me that the forum isn't mostly populated by mindless bots now.

It is a problem that is only encouraged by the system. As soon as real world Bitcoin users got overtaken by lifelong forum users with a thirst for power who wanted to control the DT network, it was over. Instead of fighting against these users who systematically attacked every person here doing anything until they were all gone, the system encouraged it. Now we have this. You reap what you sow.

[nutildah]

Most of these vocal, newer accounts strike me as organic: Knots believers who were motivated to join the forum to express their opinion... although there's definitely one or two who are not new to any of this. There isn't too many of them altogether tho, and if they are getting paid to sway opinion, whoever hired them should know they're doing an awful job. If anything they've only helped unify us on a few different issues.

[Wind_FURY]

Read my posts here https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5557608.msg66125571#msg66125571 and the replies that follow then convince me that the forum isn't mostly populated by mindless bots now.

It is a problem that is only encouraged by the system. As soon as real world Bitcoin users got overtaken by lifelong forum users with a thirst for power who wanted to control the DT network, it was over. Instead of fighting against these users who systematically attacked every person here doing anything until they were all gone, the system encouraged it. Now we have this. You reap what you sow.

Another viewpoint posted in the topic is about signature campaigns, and how users sometimes "shitpost" to reach the weekly quota. Although, I would hate for signature campaigns to go because it helps me stack sats, removing them could improve BitcoinTalk's shitpost/spam problem.

What's theymos' thoughts on this issue?

[The Sceptical Chymist]

I miss the old days when we were all united against bcash and bsv.

That and about a hundred other reasons--though I might add that whilst there might have been a united front against those forkeroonies, there has always been drama, fighting among senior members of the forum, trusted members going rogue, and a devil's buffet of other things that always gave me a feeling that there was a palpable tension between a lot of different people and that the only thing that kept them from murdering each other was the damage to their forum reputation such a thing might cause.

I'm not done reading this thread, but I'm noticing that some members who are probably on the same side of the issue (whether it's AI use or just general shitposting) are talking past each other, and that isn't something I've seen much of in my time here.  I've also noticed that the last few posts by LoyceV sound like ones I could have easily written myself, i.e, sarcasm mixed with fast-dripping venom. 

Bitch, you betta not be jackin' my beats else you might find my bicycle tire tread marks on your rubbery forehead.
GOD I love this forum!!

[Wind_FURY]

I miss the old days when we were all united against bcash and bsv.

That and about a hundred other reasons--though I might add that whilst there might have been a united front against those forkeroonies, there has always been drama, fighting among senior members of the forum, trusted members going rogue, and a devil's buffet of other things that always gave me a feeling that there was a palpable tension between a lot of different people and that the only thing that kept them from murdering each other was the damage to their forum reputation such a thing might cause.

I'm not done reading this thread, but I'm noticing that some members who are probably on the same side of the issue (whether it's AI use or just general shitposting) are talking past each other, and that isn't something I've seen much of in my time here. I've also noticed that the last few posts by LoyceV sound like ones I could have easily written myself, i.e, sarcasm mixed with fast-dripping venom.  

I'm not going to accuse any person of being nefarious, nor will I post some names, BUT I have noticed that some users have been posting in that sort of "style".

 🤔

Bitch, you betta not be jackin' my beats else you might find my bicycle tire tread marks on your rubbery forehead.
GOD I love this forum!!

?

 

[JollyGood]

Your contribution to the forum came to almost zero before you were enrolled in your current Bitz signature campaign. All you mostly did was to post in your Services thread reminding campaign managers you signature space was available for rent.

Now that you have to meet the post quota in order to be paid, I am sure we will be seeing a lot more of you.

Traffic is reducing here but that is common with all forums.

Most of the traffic for online communities is going to bigger players like reddit. I was reading a post where google partnered with reddit and its data would be shared with Google. It is obvious that for this favor, Google will also give benefits to reddit like higher authority and ranking.