Suggested solution to the spam problem

[Enn49]

I have emailed Josh again. This is what I've written:-

"Please, please, please can you do something soon to stop all the spam? There are a couple of threads currently on the subject and people are really getting fed up with it all. I clear it as soon as I log on in the mornings and it’s now taking me 45 minutes just to clear all that has been posted while I’m not online. Neither of the US mods do anything at all, certainly not clearing spam and it worries me that if I’m ill or unable to use the net then there is no one to clear the rubbish and the forum will be swamped.
It’s such a great forum, very friendly and helpful, it would be such a shame to lose it and we are in danger of losing it if the situation is not improved soon."

 

[Pasodama]

Thank you, Enn, for sending that email and sharing it with us.

Out of curiosity, what does reporting spam accomplish?
Does it automatically delete, or hide, a thread if it is reported?
If not, does it make it easier, for you to clear all the spam, if it is reported vs. when you log in, see all the spam yourself, and delete each spam thread one by one?

BTW Sometimes there may be more, I don't really know, but last night (in the U.S.) there was one point, when I visited the forum, where I saw that 52 robots were on here.

 

[Enn49]

It does make things easier for me as then all the spam is in the reports list and I just work through it instead of having to sort out what is spam and what isn't. Whether reporting hides them or not I don't know as I see them all anyway even after I've deleted them.
Not all robots are spammers.

 

[Pasodama]

Got it.
If it helps you, then whenever I am on here, I will report them.
Hopefully, if more than one person reports the same spam thread, it doesn't cause any problems.

 

[Enn49]

Got it.
If it helps you, then whenever I am on here, I will report them.
Hopefully, if more than one person reports the same spam thread, it doesn't cause any problems.

Thank you. I don't think 2 reports will make any difference, if it does I'll let you know.

 

[MassExodus]

The one site I can stand, the one that's neither anal retentive nor restrictive, and the owner could give a **** about it. Irony at it's finest. How much does it cost to run one forum? Im sure it's negligible. I would gladly purchase this forum, pay the bills, if that's possible. Josh? Too many good forums with potential end up as memories, not just for the spider hobby either. If I was the owner, I would give Enn whatever she needed, and appoint one other mod, from the US. Only bans would go through me (of members, not spammers) If Josh wants to sell, I'm buying..

 

[CrypticSpider]

I have emailed Josh again. This is what I've written:-

"Please, please, please can you do something soon to stop all the spam? There are a couple of threads currently on the subject and people are really getting fed up with it all. I clear it as soon as I log on in the mornings and it’s now taking me 45 minutes just to clear all that has been posted while I’m not online. Neither of the US mods do anything at all, certainly not clearing spam and it worries me that if I’m ill or unable to use the net then there is no one to clear the rubbish and the forum will be swamped.
It’s such a great forum, very friendly and helpful, it would be such a shame to lose it and we are in danger of losing it if the situation is not improved soon."

Any response, @Enn49 ?

 

[CrypticSpider]

How much does it cost to run one forum?

The cost is greatly variable. You must factor in the cost of a serverhost according to what "plan" you want, how much space/tech support, domain-name fees, etc etc, the list can be quite daunting. Just a transfer of ownership is a NIGHTMARE to go thru, should Josh sell you this forum. (highly unlikely)

If I was the owner, I would give Enn whatever she needed, and appoint one other mod, from the US. Only bans would go through me

Therein lies the mistake that Josh made, when he set these forums up. He is the ONLY "master admin". Therefore, since he is so unavailable, the forums more or less fall into ruin from lack of upkeeping. One Admin CAN run one forum, but it's ideal to have at least ONE other one to back up for times he is not available. Now. Since he is so scarce, he actually needs TWO trust-worthy people to share admin duties, ideal if these 2 have server-level experience..

The ideal support this forum needs is 2 more admins with experience in SERVER-LEVEL work as well as forum - 2 "supermoderators" to take up some slack from the admins, and however many "moderators" one deems necessary.

The one site I can stand, the one that's neither anal retentive nor restrictive

This IS a nice little forum, as well as the others Josh has. I know a lot of forums from the past that went down due to lack of care, upgrades, etc.

 

[Enn49]

Any response, @Enn49 ?

Not yet, I've just emailed him again.

 

[CrypticSpider]

Not yet, I've just emailed him again.

*sighs*

One can only hope.... and keep our fingers crossed that he finds and reads your emails.

 

[Josh]

I've toughened our spam prevention rules. Members will need to be manually approved.

 

[Enn49]

I've toughened our spam prevention rules. Members will need to be manually approved.

Thank you Josh, let's hope it works.

 

[Pasodama]

Thanks Josh. Hopefully this will help.

 

[Enn49]

The great news is Josh's system seems to be working there have been only a handful sneaked through this morning

 

[CrypticSpider]

Thank you, @Josh