[Elliott]

I have an idea to make the infamous Spam Forum a little better.
How about changing it's current title and description to:

"Fun and Games
Host all your text games, jokes, and fun topics here.
Posts do no increase your total post count"

This way, it will take the focus off total random and annoying crap, and make it a place for fun topics, and games such as "1 word story", "Poster above and below me" etc. etc.

Hopefully, this will make it less spam, and more fun. So rather than random crap that is just annoying and hard to moderate, it can be a place for fun, games, and posting likes to flash animations etc. etc.

Any takers?

[Andross]

Agreed. The name spam forum implies that people can post numerous annoying posts and topics, rather than something that's just a fun topic to have fun in.

[Elliott]

Well, thats one person supporting this idea. Thanks Andross, anymore? It's a good idea as it will hopefully stop pointless annoying crap being posted there, which I'm sure we all hate.

[Blade Lord Lyn]

I like this idea. Like a "Word Game" area. Spam just means go crazy, but at least it'll be more controlled with the change.

[Nick Presta]

Perhaps a more, constructive name, is required now that we have seen the large crap that is the spam forum.

[Elliott]

So far it is unanimous. Hopefully Max will see this sometime in the next couple of days and make an official announcement (we can only hope).

Fixed spelling for you. -Nick

[Ravenblade]

whereas i do have to agree that the "random crap" is getting out of hand..i dont think its fair to deny people the right to do it...i mean..you guys dont really seem to post in the spam areas anyways from what ive seen (although im sure you'll say you would if it was less random or whatever). Perhaps if we split it down the middle with the more useless, random post area and the your fun and games area (which would be moderated as other areas). Im not going one way or the other on this but it does seem a little harsh for the people whom i know will be affected.

EDIT - did you mean unanimous?...if so then dont take what i said as a negative, i was sitting on th fence being objective really.

[TheDogWho]

Although most of my posts are in the S and T Forum, I agree.

[TobiasMar]

Well I think it is fine the way it is now exept I think something needs to be added to part of the forum's description in bold:
No flamming or posting pornography!

[Issac_Zero2]

Yea...
Spam misleads the new members into thinking its a place to do anything they want, such as mischief...

[Elliott]

The whole Idea of a forum is discussion, and socialising. Every other board's focus is on that. On every other board, you are either discussing, or socialising with other members. Except the spam forum. There is too much (well, any is too much) random crap, and pointless posts in there. I think changing the forum's description and titile, and adding a few minor rules there, would stop all that. So instead of a place where people post things like 1 word posts, or just a smiley, you could actually have little games, and fun topics there. Now, dosn't that sound a whole lot better?

[Echo_djinn]

I also agree. Bring some rules even into the spam forum can bring some order to forum. Even though I admit I spam alot, the idea agatio has will make the place seem like a chat + game room rather then a room were you post mindless trash. I will miss it so....

[Zxor]

I don't agree I like spamm testing forum, u do anything and Everybody reads it so it is fine, I don't see a need for that

[Elliott]

You're not getting the point Zxor. I want this to happen so there is some order, not toal random crap being posted. If people aren't mature anough to hold proper discussion, and have some fun, and just just come here to post random and and annoyong crap, then they should leave.

[ForteGX]

I think this is a pretty solid idea, Agatio. I really do miss when the Spam Forum was mostly games and such, but now it's evolved into a "Random Trash" board...

A title change may really turn the attitude and atmosphere there around.

[Elliott]

ForteGX, on Dec 1 2004, 03:05 PM, said:

but now it's evolved into a "Random Trash" board...

Exactly my point! Which is why chaning the name from "spam" to "fun and games" WILL create a whole new atmoshere, and make it a more enjoyably place for all!

[Mallick]

I think this is a great idea, the spam forum used to be fun, when we were playing games, and stuff, but now that it's all random stuff...it's getting rather annoying.

A new title and description could make it what it used to be. :smile:

[Ravenblade]

its a tough one to decide to be honest...i am totally apathetic about what happens to the spam forum i can adapt one way or the other and of course just avoid tpoics that are too ridiculous. However you have to appreciate that a lot of people love the forums for the way they are now...i think some recent happenings have been unfortunate, and i must agree that i avoid a lot of the randomness now, however it doesnt happen ALL the time...

The other side of the coin is...some new users come along and thats all they do...but i dont think that will change by altering the name of the place. If we DO go with this plan which is a pretty good one, what if we kept the random topic open just for those who would miss it if it went?

surely you guys could cope with ONE random area? you wouldnt even have to post there...

[Elliott]

Splitting into 2 different boards defeats the purpose, becuase there will still be a stupid random crap area, and the idea of me making this topic is to try and remove that.

I just think it's stupid that the whole forums focus seems to be on spam now, e.g: spam clan, couples topic, random topics. And have a loot at many members profiles, more than half there posts are in the spam forum! It's ridiculous. No offence to Max personally, but making a spam forum was probably the worst mistake he ever made for this forum.

The spam forum attracts member who like to spam, they see "spam forum" and think, "well, this forum is leniant on spam". It's a bad message to send to newcomers here, and changing the title and description, would hopefully change that.

[Ravenblade]

you're not wrong about that last bit actually...ok im persuaded for whats its worth. I must say though i have no noticed ver many spam posts outside of non spam areas so people cant be convinced its VERY leniant. However you are right...

[Elliott]

I don't see how people can think spam is good in the first place!? It's pointless crap that is never funny, and always annoying. It's really frustrates me how this forum used to be a great place for discussion, now the focus is on some hellhole of a spam board, and that's where everyone "hangs out" so to speak.

[Ravenblade]

Possibly thats because many of the golden sun issues have been discussed already and new posters get complained at for reviving them or making a new version of the same topic. It would all calm down if anothrer GS game was released i am quite certain.

[Elliott]

Probably not. And I wasn't refering to just the GS topics. I mainly meant the off-topic forum, where a third of my posts have gone. That used to be the most used board, and it was the best. Now it's hardly active and most of the topics are boring, repeats or just downright lame (e.g "whats the baddest thing you ever did").

Hopefully chaning the title and description (what this topic is all about by the way), will make the spam forum a little more fun, still relaxed, but fun, and not so pointless.

Have a look at shiningforcecentral forums, they have a fun and games forum exactly the same as what I am suggesting. Thats what I want the spam forum to become.

[Issac_Zero2]

Yea,
If people want to spam or just say random stuff, do it in a chat room or something...

This is a forum, a "public" place and not all people can understand when people post random stuff...

In this spam forum, I see people talking as if it was on AIM or MSN, one or two words...

[Elliott]

Well Issac, you never cease to amaze me. Thats exactly 100% right.

If you want to post random, annoying crap with each other, do it on MSN.

This a public discussion medium, for discussion and socialising.

If the only reason you come here is to post random annoying crap, do it some place else.

If you are incapable of holding sensible discission, leave, now.

Fun is fun, and thats pefectly fine, but the level of random, annyoing, over-the-top, crap, has gone too far now. It's time for a change IMO.

[Issac_Zero2]

Yea, I mean, if you post (e.g: blagh) you won't understand...
That leads to confusion and not everyone can understand what people post random here...

Fun is fun...
Random, immature posts aren't...

[Elliott]

Well, this idea seems to be getting a good reaction, I'm still wondering when or whether Max will see this or not though.

[Sea of Time]

That's a good idea. There's to many polls like the no no no polls that are not just spam, they're a waste of space on these forums.

[Ravenblade]

i would still dispute who defined what socialising was and the grounds on how you could do it...i would also expect a quite severe plummet in membership for a while and possibly indefinately (although i know you would support that).

However you're right...the number of times i read a topic and just gave up and left it cos i didnt know what was going on is getting considerable. Plus i cant really compare the current state to what it used to be like seeing as how i wasnt here. Im still not convinced that its really necessary though...people dont spam in non spam topics very often that i've seen and we could just have a separate section for fun and games thus meeting your needs and the needs of the random spammers. I dare say im about to be told how wrong i am though...

[musicman2059]

I agree with this. It's just gone... mental in there. Pages upon pages of crap end up in there every day. (such as people posting a message across 10 consecutive posts, etc...) There needs to be some sort of control.

[Ravenblade]

actually thats a good point...i had forgotten about such things as people trying for 100 consecutive posts...that is very annoying. I guess i agree too then. Certainly its worth trying.

[Issac_Zero2]

I've noticed that most people's posts are in the spam and that's just not what Max wanted, I'm sure...

This is a GS site, so we should discuss about GS, but instead people are talking about some random thing...

I don't mind the spam, just not the pointless, non-funny, completely irrelavent posts...

I enjoy seeing people have fun, but one word posts and uneeded posts belong inside chat...

If you wanna spam like crazy, do it in chat becuase its just more understandable that way...

[kate]

I think what you're saying is right, agatio, there is far too much one word annoyingly random posts in spam, and I hate having to sift through sooo many pages of worthless junk to figure out what the topic (if you can even call it a topic) is half the time. But I think that changing it to what you're suggesting isn't the right course of action. At a fairly small forum that I used to go to, spam meant that you could talk about anything you wanted in the topic (so the actually topic's point could shift freely without having to create a whole new topic for it) but you couldn't "spam" really (you could have less then five words, but no pointless posts) I think if you adjusted your suggestion to include a topic like that, it might be better...and I'm sorry if none of that makes any sense at all...

[Nick Presta]

Actually, the reason WHY Max made a Spam Forum (As far as I can tell) is to have a place that isn't entirely moderated (except for pr0n, etc) and is just a place where people can mess around and get the spamming out of their system so it doesn't clog up the forums.

Most forums have one and ones that don't often has a lot of posts in places that aren't needed.

[Sea of Time]

nick1presta, on Dec 3 2004, 06:28 PM, said:

Actually, the reason WHY Max made a Spam Forum (As far as I can tell) is to have a place that isn't entirely moderated (except for pr0n, etc) and is just a place where people can mess around and get the spamming out of their system so it doesn't clog up the forums.

Most forums have one and ones that don't often has a lot of posts in places that aren't needed.

It was also meant for things like
Da Spam Clan
and
That Random Topic

not junk that involves a poll with things that are just, well, stupid and make no sense.

[Elliott]

Those thing annoy me most.
If it was a fun and games forum. It still wouldn't have to be entirly moderated. And there would be no rules as such, just loose guidelines to prevent totally random annoying stuff which no one likes.
It would still be a loose, free environment, minus the random annoying junk.

[Issac_Zero2]

nick1presta, on Dec 3 2004, 07:28 PM, said:

Actually, the reason WHY Max made a Spam Forum (As far as I can tell) is to have a place that isn't entirely moderated (except for pr0n, etc) and is just a place where people can mess around and get the spamming out of their system so it doesn't clog up the forums.

Most forums have one and ones that don't often has a lot of posts in places that aren't needed.

Yes, but look at these forums...
The other sections have nearly died, while spam is getting 100 posts a day...
There is just way too much spam...
"Bandwith isn't free" as many people say...
I don't mind about the spam alot, just the amount of it...

[Someone Else]

Well, in my recent inactivity playing Maple Story I too have realized, when I think about it, that the Spam Forum was best when it was mostly games, rather than random posts like 'Tomato soup is good'.

The games were the best, but no one cares for those anymore...

[Sea of Time]

I think that the spam forum might be best gone. If you want to spam, go somewhere else. This is a GS website, and GS is what we should be talking about.

[Kikuichimonji]

hmm, this is "my two cents"

The spam forum has gotten out of hand. There was one random topic (thus it's topic title), but now most topics are "random topics"

And it this isn't funny, it's annoying, especially when you come after a few days and you have to sift through to find some somewhat relevent posts

And there isn't much point suggesting people to do so, people do it anyway

final note, random crap= we have a thing called M-S-N

[Elliott]

People won't learn by saying "stop spamming" to them.
Either we change the title and description like I am suggesting here, or remove it alltogether. The latter is what I support most.

[Kikuichimonji]

But agatio, with that I disagree, not on my personal belief but for the well being of the forum itself

I feel forums should be a place to be somewhat relaxed too

maybe some sort of middle way would be more appropriate (like your first option)

[Elliott]

Relax, but not spam. If you want a place to relax, then make the fun and games forum by all means. But the very idea of a "spam forum" is ludicrous to begin with.

[Issac_Zero2]

There is a huge difference between spam and Fun/Games...
Fun and Games: Relaxing, yet non-random posts...
Sure, it can be fun, but just not pointless...

Spam: No rules, at all...

Its really a shame in how the Spam section evolved into this way...
It was really a nice place to go to...
Now, you got new members learning from other members and then start posting pointless replys...

[Elliott]

I agree, it was a good place months ago, I used to go there frequently for a laugh. But now, to get a laugh, you must through pages of annoying and irrelevant posts. Not good.

I just wish Max would see this and say his piece.

[Someone Else]

Perphaps we should have seperate rules for Spam, eh? As well as a title change then?

[Elliott]

Rules and a title change should do the trick IMO. Every once in a while I have a browse through the spam forum, and every time, there's nothing worth posting in. Very bad.

[Someone Else]

Ofcourse, I think we should still have a random spam place though, that's where TRT3 can come in. It'd be like the Advertise Your Site topic, like how it's 'illegal' to advertise anywhere else except in that topic.

[Elliott]

I guess restricting the whole random thing to 3 or 4 topics. (I think the couples topic, the random topic, and the spam clan topic should saved, as people are "attached to them"). Thats fine IMO, but any other randomness should be 'outlawed' and the title and description changed.

[Silo STATIC]

Back when I was Zaffa, I remember creating a Relationship topic in the Off-Topic forum. Maybe we should drop the GSSF Couples topic and get back to a topic that's post-worthy.

And I'm glad someone supports the safe-keeping of TRT. This topic nearly saved everyone from flooding the Spam/Testing forum tremendously. Unless, by some matter of opinion, that you think otherwise about that reason, then that's okay. It's whatever you believe.

The Spam Clan? That's just a second-hand rip-off of TRT (sorry, WD). It would be better if it were a part of TRT, since it wouldn't waste amount of space.

[Elliott]

Ok, I vote merging those 2 topics, deleting the couples topic and replacing it with the relationship topic. And changing the board name and description.

[Issac_Zero2]

Wow, for once, I'm going with TRT...
Great idea guys, reducing the spam and keeping all of it cramped up into one topic...

[Silo STATIC]

Well, I know it's not needed, but I'm gonna see what Icy thinks about it. I mean, she played a big part in the Couples topic, and it may break her heart (I just can't stand hurting others that way).

[Elliott]

The couples topic is a joke. It's 95% random spam posts, and 5% actual people talkng bout GSSF couples. It's not serious, so how someone can get sentimentally attached to 130+ pages of random crap generated by HTML CSS PHP and JS is beyond me, but go ahead, ask icy.

[Silo STATIC]

Agatio, on Dec 12 2004, 01:01 AM, said:

The couples topic is a joke. It's 95% random spam posts, and 5% actual people talkng bout GSSF couples. It's not serious, so how someone can get sentimentally attached to 130+ pages of random crap generated by HTML CSS PHP and JS is beyond me, but go ahead, ask icy.

And that kind of spam belongs in TRT. I admit I don't really understand, as well, why people continue to spam like that in what are supposed to be meaningful topics.

[Elliott]

Because it's a spam forum!!! The whole point of this topic to change that!!! If you want to post random crap, thats what the random topic is for!!! BUT, no matter how many times you tell people that, they will continue to spam in every topic in the spam forum. The only way to stop it is to CHANGE THE TITLE AND DESCRIPTION. Why has it taken 3 pages to realise that?!?!!?

[Lightning Star]

woah there, simmer down now. look, why don't we create a whole other random spam forum just by itself? that way none of the random spam haters can get tiffed?

[Nick Presta]

Because, in our progress on this forum, we have come to realize (hopefully) that posts with substance and meaning are better than random crap that doesn't have anything to do with anything.

With TRT and a meaningful board, everyone can be happy.

[Silo STATIC]

Maybe when the Spam/Testing forum changes, Max could allow the post count changes. Either way, I'm seconding n1p's opinion.

[Meglo]

I think that we need to have a definition of spam more than anything else. The misinterpretation that seems to be coming across is that spam means that anything goes, no matter the thought that goes into it or the type of post it is.

I think that the best way to define the ideal forum we'd like to change the Spam Board to is as making it a forum for fun and absurdity, not necessarily a "spam forum". We can be random and joking to an extent, but there should be rules, if relaxed ones.

What should be against the rules of the spam for to a reasonable point:

• Excessive and/or random posting of smiles, links, exclamations, and advertising.*
  
• Intentionally flooding a topic with your posts.
  
• Posting with the goal of annoying others. (To a point)
  
• Responses to a thread that has nothing to do with the topic at hand, or intentionally or unintentionally brings the thread off-topic. (To a point)

*- Random being off topic, unneeded, or thrown in with no purpose whatsoever. I don't necessarily consider a post containing nothing more than an emoticon as spam. Emotes are used to convey emotion that you generally can convey easily with text on the internet. A reply to a joke with nothing more than a :D wouldn't be usually be considered spam. However, a post containing 7 or more smilies that have nothing to do with anything at all should indeed be against the rules.

---

And please don't tell me you're serious about "Fun and Games". "The Lounge", "The Corner", "Up for Rent"...anything but "Fun and Games". It just sounds so kiddie. >_<

[Elliott]

Meglo: Maybe not "Fun and Games" persay, but something along those lines that implies a relaxed and loose environement, while not encouraging spam. Why don't you suggest a name that isn't "kiddie".

lightningstar: creating a new forums aswell as a spam forum is just idiocy. It's just leaving the spam forum the way it is (random annoying crap), and then creating a new one for fun and games and humerous posts.

Silo: post count changes are a bad idea for this "fun and games" forum. The only posts that shoulk count towards your total are worthy ones. The "fun and games" forum will not have those. They will be on topic, un-random and even humorous, but nothing that should count towards your total post count.

Quote

With TRT and a meaningful board, everyone can be happy.

Is Nick the only one here with practical and sane ideas?! (good idea Nick).

[PiersDM]

I thought what Nick said was brought up a long time ago.

Anyways, I'm all for this change, but you have to let spammers have fun (to an extent) with their friends.If you don't, you might lose some nice members, like Wind Dude, or Kiku.

[Someone Else]

I'm for this change too, but it's fun to be a bit random on occasion. So yeah, the TRT thing I suggested is good.

Now if we could get Max to look at this topic we might make some progress.

[Meglo]

Quote

Meglo: Maybe not "Fun and Games" persay, but something along those lines that implies a relaxed and loose environement, while not encouraging spam. Why don't you suggest a name that isn't "kiddie".

I'm fine with most anything...it's just that when I hear "Fun and Games" I get the mental picture of elementary-grade children playing hopscotch at school. :(

[Elliott]

Max has seen this topic and read every post Wind Dude, he's not replying as he wants to let it go for a while, and see what happens.

Ok, so not fun and games. I can;t think of anything, but something with a relaxed feel would be best.

Quote

Anyways, I'm all for this change, but you have to let spammers have fun (to an extent) with their friends.If you don't, you might lose some nice members, like Wind Dude, or Kiku

Thats why we leave TRT so people who want to to go nuts and spam for their life can still do it, but keep it confined to one topic.