Thread: Message filter for language

This is a suggestion in the light of a recent post that was made which got to my email inbox. Someone had registered to SRP and started to post offensive, filthy sex stories. This post was in a thread that had been inactive for a while so the thread became reactive and the post was emailed to anyone who had subscribed to the thread.

I have since spoken to a mod and it has been deleted (thank you ByronTodd) but the fact remains this could be easily rectified. Simply create a filter which auto blocks posts which contain key words. If you need examples of words to block just check out the post that was deleted. Its littered with them.

This would also remove some of the work from the shoulders of our busy mods. I'm not talking about heavy censorship here, but if you had this message in your inbox you'd doubtless feel the same as I did.

Personally, I would lose all interest in this forum if such a device was installed! It may protect the delicate feelings of some, but it would likely change the content without concern for the context of our own posts!
Mindless censorship? no thank you!

To avoid hurt feelings and any amount of tension, I will simply respond with a nod and a "thanks" application. Do as you will, but we are all grown people.



Adam

the biggest problem with filters is that they are in practice a blunt instrument. There are forums I use where people have words censored because they have what could be seen as a *swear* (and how this is defined is in itself open to contention) word aspart of their spelling- assessment, for example, was censored.

The post I refer to was completely unrelated to the thread, was simply a new user spamming the forum for the sake of it and was pornographic. Every second word was derogatory. If anyone could get away with posting that here I wouldn't be here. Fortunately the mods do a grand job of deleting these posts as soon as they are made. You may not notice it but they do. In a sense that censorship is already in place. A filter would only make it easier for them.

But if you want to make the mods work as hard as they do at the moment then i'm sure they'd appreciate your sentiment

Originally Posted by sidneykidney

But if you want to make the mods work as hard as they do at the moment then i'm sure they'd appreciate your sentiment

I didn't realize that I was such a wicked overlord! I shall repent of my ways immediately!


Wheres my whip so that I may flagellate myself...hmm...20 lashes ought to do it!

Originally Posted by JMS

I didn't realize that I was such a wicked overlord! I shall repent of my ways immediately!


Wheres my whip so that I may flagellate myself...hmm...20 lashes ought to do it!

Quite right. In fact, best take 50 just to be on the safe side. Do you need a hand with that whip?

I thought you might think 20 was too few, so I gave myself an even 100 lashes! I hope you approve!

A filter that prevents users from posting certain words really wouldn't be a terrible thing if it was limited to words that really have no place in public. Just filter the worst out... pick 5 words and limit it to that. You know Zeepk, Kriegar, etc...

I wouls also say to put a filter preventing members from posting links until they have 10 or 20 posts just to ward off the spammers.

Originally Posted by Mike_ratliff

I wouls also say to put a filter preventing members from posting links until they have 10 or 20 posts just to ward off the spammers.

Now this makes sense to me!