Let's talk about infractions

[Rob]

Autoban cutoffs:
3 points: 1 day TO
5 points: 3 day TO
10 points: 1 week TO
20 points: 1 month TO
25 points: permaban

There are also custom infractions allowed, where mods can specify the reason and the points. It's pretty much like the TO system, except you only get warnings for small things like AOLisms. In the old method you'd get TO'ed immediately.

This thread is for you guys to tell me what you think, what would make this better, etc.

One idea I had is to have a public list of infractions as they happen. Kinda like the Ban Kamp. A lot of people have complained that they miss reading the Ban Kamp.

[John Travolta]

EDIT: nevermind.

[Rob]

Minor would be someone who doesn't know how to contribute. Major would be someone posting "COCKS COCKS COCKS COCKS"

[Assassin]

I don't think the Ban Kamp would be amusing to look at if the infraction reasons are already a determined list

[Rob]

I don't think the Ban Kamp would be amusing to look at if the infraction reasons are already a determined list

What if I got rid of the list and had custom infractions only?

This is a question to the mods too.

[spaj]

I believe it'll work effectively enough.

But then that raises the question of whether or not warnings will be enough of a 'threat' to convince the poster to avoid posting like an idiot again. I suppose that's up to them.

It looks relatively fair to me, at least.

[Assassin]

What if I got rid of the list and had custom infractions only?

This is a question to the mods too.

With that, I think infractions would be pretty cool.

[Audioslave]

That's pretty much what the TO system was.


So yes, that works well.

[ne3]

Unlinked NSFW image should be 10 points, I don't have any specific reason why, it just feels right to me.

I also thought you should make some kind of penalty for double-posting. It pisses me off when people post just after their own post 2 hours later because they saw they had to reply at some post.

Also, I'd like to know what you mean by "Shitting Showcase". Would that be posting a lot of shitty crap that you spend 5 minutes on making or that you're already aware of how much it sucks?

[Chef.]

What if I got rid of the list and had custom infractions only?

This is a question to the mods too.

This list is sufficient.

Should work as a solid system.

[Assassin]

With the arrival of infractions, will there be modded strictlier?

Oh yeah, and won't there be any problems with the system?
For example: I get 5 points at once for posting nsfw images, is there a chance it will give me a 1 day ban because I also have 3 points immediately

[Dark2.0]

I got a question would the points stay with you forever or would they decrease over time if you didnt make an infraction?

[Assassin]

What if I got rid of the list and had custom infractions only?

This is a question to the mods too.

I got a question would the points stay with you forever or would they decrease over time if you didnt make an infraction?

I think it will be gone after 1.5 week or so I think because it says something like that in my infraction

[Coconuts]

The points dissapearing is good. I don't really like the points system, however. Shitting in the showcase should be only intentional shitting like if you're like "My comic sucks ass, but I'm posting it anyways." Not if you think it's good, but others think it's shit. That just makes people who don't get better because they get warnings for stuff they thought wasn't bad.

I like the old system best. Custom phrases were good, too. How about you have one automatic phrase and if the mod wants to add a custom phrase, they can.

I really don't want the idea of warnings instead of T.Os and points. I just feel you'll end up with a lot of people getting permabanned and others who were banned for and unjust amount of time. The old modding system worked really well. This is one of the best run forums around, you don't need to change it.

[Intestiny Destiny]

Yeah, that's pretty much it. Have custom infractions. Everything on that list seems to be about right. Just have the Mods use that as a guide.

To be honest I'm sorta back and forth about this. TOs wasn't a bad system even with some people feeling unjustified. It just relied more on the mods personal choice. Just a more elaborate form of a normal ban. Infractions are a more standardized ban system.

There should be a standard for the amount of time it takes for the infractions to be lifted. 10 days? Or is that left up to the mods?

[BAN ME PLEASE]

Custom Infractions could work well, but really the old system is best. I mean, there are so many "unfunny jackass posts" or "bad post" or "bad post (intentional)" to be determined. Sure AOLism is pretty straight foward, but one person may think one post is an intentional bad post, while the other may think it's an unfunny jackass post, while another may think its just some funny post that someone put. There's too many variables.

[Derelict]

The minor infractions should expire after a shorter amount of time. It would be sort of silly to carry scars from when you were a newb until, say, you became a mod a year and a half later.
I really don't want the idea of warnings instead of T.Os and points. I just feel you'll end up with a lot of people getting permabanned and others who were banned for and unjust amount of time. The old modding system worked really well. This is one of the best run forums around, you don't need to change it.
Well, if someone were to get permabanned and it was unjust (Assassin gets T.O.'d a lot but he's still a contributing member) then there's nothing stopping the admins from unbanning them with probation or something. Maybe adding points on immediately. Sort of like a second chance.

I doubt they'll go for that though. A permaban is meant to be permanent after all.

[Mr Anorexia]

If you get banned by the autoban would you lose the custom title?

[Beefynick]

I think the point system is fair. It is worked out so everyone gets fair treatment

I think the points system will work out well.

[Clerlic]

I like that, I like that very much! People might not like it at first, because "the old system worked fine", but I'm sure everyone will get used to it. It's not like it's some kind of a law anyways, admins can always change it on will.

PS. Rob's avatar makes me feel uncomfortable.

[Dragonkiller]

Will there be a new ban kamp?

[BKS]

Very nice. Even though I got 3, I like it.

Perhaps good posts or stuff like that subtract points?

[Far]

Very nice. Even though I got 3, I like it.

Perhaps good posts or stuff like that subtract points?

Why should you be rewarded for doing what you should be in the first place?

[Rob]

I got rid of the premade list completely. All infractions are gonna be tailored to the offense, by the mods.

There's also gonna be a discussion forum for infractions. Only admins, mods, and elites can post there. Otherwise it'll be a complete madhouse. Everyone can view it though.

[Kwanza]

I got a question would the points stay with you forever or would they decrease over time if you didnt make an infraction?
An infraction will expire exactly 3 months from when it is given out.

[Rob]

The Shit Dump is now live.

[BAN ME PLEASE]

can I post there

[Rob]

can I post there

No, but I can make a thread about you.

[Tempest]

I assume the threads in the Shit Dump are made automatically when an infraction is added? If so, I don't know if it's possible, but it would be nice if when someone has an infraction added and they already had a thread made, it would add it as a reply to that thread, not a brand new.. Otherwise, I'm sure you know that forum is gonna fill up FAST. :P

[Rob]

I renamed it to User Dump so it's more descriptive. I don't think it'll fill up any faster than the Ban Kamp. Only difference is each entry is a thread, so things might jump around if we argue about an infraction.

[Quadros]

Thing is, I loved explosm for the grammer nazi it was. And the reasons the mods gave for banning someone. Also, people could get perma'd for just being long term offenders. I mean, Assassin or Copyfag could easily rack up 25 points in three months. I really don't think you should introduce a system that has the potential to ban members like that without an admins express say so. Then again, I don't think Manchester united should win the premiership again, so feel free to fuck my opinion in it's gaping ass.

EDIT: Yes, I reconize the hypocracy of me complaining about a lack of grammer nazism then spelling five words wrong. Fuck you.

[Intestiny Destiny]

Can permabans not be based on points? Have it seperated.

An infraction will expire exactly 3 months from when it is given out.
I think it should be shorter.

[Tweek]

I don't know about this system.
Whereas the old system could be overly harsh at times to new posters, this sytem seems to be harsh to everyone, even posters who are regular contributors.

[Rob]

Infractions are handed out like TOs only in smaller doses, so I don't see how it's harsher to anyone.

[Quadros]

I don't know, I just think that the TO system worked so well, why change it?

[Mr Anorexia]

Yeah I agree, I'd rather get a hardy TO rather than a little ol' infraction :(

[fabz]

Let's say we have a terrible poster and that poster racks up 25 points in three months, does that qualify for a Permabanned? Or do the points go to zero everytime you get a TO?

[Rob]

Let's say we have a terrible poster and that poster racks up 25 points in three months, does that qualify for a Permabanned? Or do the points go to zero everytime you get a TO?

They stack up. As for the 3 months being too long, what would you recommend?

The way I see it, it's REALLY hard to get 25 points in 3 months without being a complete jerk. What makes stacking points nice is that the forums kindly remind us when someone's continually fucking up by taking care of the incrementally longer TO's automatically.

I could raise the permaban limit to 50 or something.

[Tweek]

I just thought that since the infraction points accumulated, ultimately leading to a permaban once too many were reached, it seems a little impersonal.
I don't know, maybe I missed something or completely misunderstood the entire concept.
I just prefer things how they were before, even though the forums go faster now.

[fabz]

I dont think its an unfair rule with the three months. I just wanted to make sure. I think you should make it shorter. Like two months or something. If you cant get the idea from the first few infractions that you're posting isn't that good, then maybe you don't understand this place.

[tanzfete]

There wasn't really any reason to change the banning system. I thought it was fine before.

[Kwanza]

We didn't go out of our way to do so, but to avoid future problems, we're taking full advantage of systems created for vBulletin.

[GSOM]

Bring back flagging.

[JonC]

I got rid of the premade list completely. All infractions are gonna be tailored to the offense, by the mods.

There's also gonna be a discussion forum for infractions. Only admins, mods, and elites can post there. Otherwise it'll be a complete madhouse. Everyone can view it though.

It's just my opinion, of course, but I honestly think that I should take part in something like this, I've been a member of Explosm long enough and regardless of how long my posts are, they can be contributing.

Just a thought.

[Werty]

The only reason I don't like this system is because of the lengths. I mean, a day for three points seems a little harsh, dunnit? Or are points somewhat hard to get? I mean, if you're not just handing them out like pieces of candy, and people have to do some stupid shit to get a single point, then this makes sense. Just saying, though.

[Gudizere]

I think it's a fantastic idea, although i feel 3 month's before they dissapear is too long. But also : Doesn't that mean people only get permabanned for 3 month's? Or is it really a permaban?

[Rob]

Points are as hard to get as TOs were. 99% of you guys have absolutely nothing to worry about, because you aren't retards. Most people will never get past 0 points.

[Werty]

Ahh, well, in that case this idea has my vote.

[Mr Anorexia]

I'm still in favor of the regular TO system.

[Mirrorman]

Yea, this should really work. Is there any way of knowing my infractions points, other than swimming through the thread tho?

[Assassin]

3 months is really long on a forum like explosm. I'd rather suggest 1 month or 1.5 months.

The permaban thing should be seperate, imo.

Oh yeah, and could you put the list back, so we can have an example of how many points we get for doing what

[Clerlic]

Oh c'mon guys, try it out first.

[CaptainGod]

Sounds like a great idea but I think that 3 months is too long, Like Assassin said, I think you should make it 1.5 months.


and

Bring back flagging.
Not that I was around when flagging existed but it seems like a cool idea.

[beermonster256]

The way I see it, it's REALLY hard to get 25 points in 3 months without being a complete jerk.

Seconded. If you don't get the hint from making a few posts that cause you to gain points then you shouldn't really be posting in the first place. I think the points system is a good plan, but there should be some ground rules that everyone knows about and can access rather than leaving it 100% up to the mods personal opinion. When I say that I mean things like AOL-isms and stuff that people who are new to the forum might not necessarily know about straight away.

Also, I think the idea of a "shitty thread/post" should be agreed on by more than one mod before someone gets penalised for it. Just because one person thinks that a particular statement or idea is rubbish doesn't necessarily mean that everybody will, so I think a degree of collaberation between the mods on that might be something to think about.

[Rob]

We'll get the ground rules back up very soon.

[El Mojado]

I think instead of getting permabanned I think we should give them a large TO. If they get the large TO 3 times then a permaban is acceptable. Its basically what happend in the Noobonic Plague, if they got TO'ed 3 times then permabanned. But thats just my opinion.

[Assassin]

I think instead of getting permabanned I think we should give them a large TO. If they get the large TO 3 times then a permaban is acceptable. Its basically what happend in the Noobonic Plague, if they got TO'ed 3 times then permabanned. But thats just my opinion.

I'd rather have a permaban than a uber large TO. Then at least people could say "let him back in :argh:" but with a TO the mods can just say "stfu he'll be free again someday"

[El Mojado]

I'd rather have a permaban than a uber large TO. Then at least people could say "let him back in :argh:" but with a TO the mods can just say "stfu he'll be free again someday"

:think: You do make a good point. But then again why risk getting your account permabanned? And when I mean a large TO, I'm talking about a month's worth. Not really large but its not really small.

[Kwanza]

I'm still in favor of the regular TO system.
This essentially is like the old TO system. Only difference is, there is no 6 hour bans, and we have a direct tally of your offenses, and you're punished based on that.

More severe bans are no longer based on how well a moderator's memory serves him/her on your past offenses.

[sexlexic]

Ahem. Mod and leet powers gone whatthehell?

[Assassin]

Ahem. Mod and leet powers gone whatthehell?

Didn't they tell you, you're delited, you're just like us now :evillaugh:

[Rob]

Ahem. Mod and leet powers gone whatthehell?

You weren't modding any forums. I got rid of all the mods in the usergroup until I assign them back through the forum settings. It's all complicated and stuff.

The elite thing was an accident. Fixed!

[sexlexic]

Da's cool. I don't mind if you don't want me to be a mod anymore, by the way. It was really fun but I probably won't be very good at keeping it up when I go to uni in October anyway. :shobon:

[Intestiny Destiny]

Rationalizing. :banjo:

[Kwanza]

Da's cool. I don't mind if you don't want me to be a mod anymore, by the way. It was really fun but I probably won't be very good at keeping it up when I go to uni in October anyway. :shobon:
You were doing a good job, so we'd definitely want you back. Give us a while to sort things out.

[letteratlantic]

Shoop da woop. I don't intend on getting any points, so I'm willing to give it a shot.

[TireVengeance]

The word Infractions is too long.

Fix please.

[Niki]

In my opinion, three months is too long. I think that every week or two weeks, one point should be taken off (Unless it's a permaban, of course).

[Newbienice]

I like this idea.

If it's going to be somewhat hard to get points (Actually be a dumbass or whatever) 3 months still seems a little long. I think 1 month might be a little better.

I still like the idea though.

[Rob]

I think 1 month is too short. Someone can easily be annoying as hell at a slow enough pace to evade a 1 month infraction expiry and not get banned.

[Oinohtna]

In my opinion, three months is too long. I think that every week or two weeks, one point should be taken off (Unless it's a permaban, of course).

I think that might work better than points simply disappearing after a month. If you lost one point every week then it would be much easier to keep track of who was actually being a dumbass. Eventually, with good behavior, you would be back down to zero points. The only difference is if you keep screwing up it continues to add. If all the points erase after a month, that just means you can rack up 24 points then stop talking for a few days while they reset back to zero.

[Far]

At first 3 months felt a little excessive to me but now it seems like a pretty decent amount of time. I think I'd still prefer a Ban Kamp style way of displaying the infractions but the User Dump isn't completely awful.

All in all it's sufficient and other then looking at others infraction reasons I doubt I'll ever have any experience with it so I don't really mind either way.

[Intestiny Destiny]

I think 1 month is too short. Someone can easily be annoying as hell at a slow enough pace to evade a 1 month infraction expiry and not get banned.

Compromise and go for 2.

[Rob]

I think the User Dump gets a lot more wrongful infracs righted than the Ban Kamp did with TO's, since there's a thread for each one.

Also, you guys can't see it but there's a report forum for mods that works the same way as the user dump. The report forum and the user dump together create more levels of control, so it's less about the mods doing whatever they want and more about you guys making the reports, mods reading the reports and giving the infractions, and then other mods, super mods, and admins checking out the infractions and reversing some.

It's complicated but I think it's better and gives you guys more control over what gets dealt with.

[Intestiny Destiny]

Wouldn't things be more interesting if the ones who get the infraction are able to post in their infraction thread?

[Rob]

That's really complicated to do. I could let everyone post there. I just think it would be a complete madhouse though.

[Mr Anorexia]

Yeah that would be a horrible idea.

[Matterialize]

I think the User Dump gets a lot more wrongful infracs righted than the Ban Kamp did with TO's, since there's a thread for each one.
I could let everyone post there. I just think it would be a complete madhouse though.

I disagree, I think it would only help deter people. It's already a better Ban Kamp list, and by letting offenders post there it'd be like the Refugee forum thingie as well. Except, everyone could see everyone's threads.

Would it be possible to have a user's infraction list in their profile? It could keep a user's infractions organized if for any reason someone needed to view them all, as they're listed chronologically in the User Dump.

[BAN ME PLEASE]

Ya I was going to post that the infracteed should be able to post in their infraction thread. But if you can't do that right I think it should be all or nothing, and really nothing is better. Or else you'd have the spamers post 'omfg lol' and the newbs post 'wtf iz dis lol' and everybody else saying 'um guys stfu' and there'd be 20 posts per infractee in their infraction thread saying how they shouldn't have gotten it.

[Niki]

Rob, your avatar is hypnotic if you stare at it long enough.
And I still stand by my idea of -1 point per week.

[Rob]

Would it be possible to have a user's infraction list in their profile? It could keep a user's infractions organized if for any reason someone needed to view them all, as they're listed chronologically in the User Dump.

Right now it's viewable to mods. We're working on a way to make it viewable to everyone, so people can see their own and others' list and points.

[CnGy]

To be honest I read the rules once, when you first made them. Haven't looked at anything rule related since. The infraction thing sounds catchy, but I feel like you just added points and changed the name.

I still say that the points should be visible on the person, publically or something.

Like demerits.

MARKS OF SHAME.

[CharlieH]

As long as this:

USER WAS PUT IN TIMEOUT FOR THIS POST
Reason: Argueing pointlessly about infractions.

Doesn't go away, i will be more that happy with whatever punishment system you choose.

[Assassin]

MARKS OF SHAME.
More like marks of win

[junglebunny]

Infractions are gay

[John Travolta]

Awesome that you got one for that post, jb.

[junglebunny]

:hf:

[chickensgocluck]

In my opinion. If its not broken, why fix it?
But im a still a "Complete Newb" or whatever so who's listening to me : ).

However, I do think that you should seperate the permbans and the TO's. It does seem a little harsh that a bunch of little things could get you banned over a period of three months.

Or as an alternitave(misspell?) you could either up the amount of points required to get a permban to 50, like Rob said, or lower the amount of time it takes for your points to go back to zero by a month or a month in a half.
Three months(twelve weeks) is a long time. For those of you still in school. Think, 9 weeks is a quarter of a semester. And thats along time. O.o

Of course im not sure how strict the rules are yet. I know if you spam random crap all over the forums about how your towel got all sandy at the beach your sure to get permbanned, but untill the rules are back up i don't know how easily 25 points will be to get.

[Kyoshi]

Actually i think its a good idea, actually a little soft perhaps?
If a user post, previous example ; "COCK COCK COCK COCK" then how contributing to the forum can he be then. If a person chooses to post something like that, he must have a serial issue, and 2 posts like that could get him banned in my opinion?

But i like the idea. Though i think the TO avatars are awesome!:thup:

[Savaril]

I think you should keep both so the mods get to slack off.
they can deal with things Infractions cannot deal with. :D?

[Jose]

glad I read this before I bombarded this place with Penis referrences.

I wouldn't have anyway, but it's just the same to know that now.

[Nex_Nox_Noctus]

Autoban cutoffs:
3 points: 1 day TO
5 points: 3 day TO
10 points: 1 week TO
20 points: 1 month TO
25 points: permaban

There are also custom infractions allowed, where mods can specify the reason and the points. It's pretty much like the TO system, except you only get warnings for small things like AOLisms. In the old method you'd get TO'ed immediately.

This thread is for you guys to tell me what you think, what would make this better, etc.

One idea I had is to have a public list of infractions as they happen. Kinda like the Ban Kamp. A lot of people have complained that they miss reading the Ban Kamp.


Well, that sounds fine and dandy, except with everybody shitting on me and being as vulgar and fucking retarded as they felt like, I just got banned for an AOLism.

So actually seeing a restrictive system in place (and being enforced) would be great, but how about also TELLING people exactly why they've been banned, as the only reason I could get until today (which I then had to sift through endless infraction posts to find) was "AOLisms/Retarded Post" and it didn't even tell me which one it referred to.

Also, what happened to freedom of fuckin' speech? I thought you guys were all about that, but I get a 3-day (maybe two? Not sure) ban for saying *lol*?

Also, I've never used AOL in my life, and won't, because from what I've seen of it, it's a nazi-controlled piece of shit. *lol* (and other acronyms) have long belonged to every other single piece of the internet for a LONG damned time.

P.S.
---------

John Travolta quite pleasantly suggested that I should send you (Rob) and the other creators of Explosm my fan art, multiple times, in seperate e-mails each individual strip. I'd like to thank him for that suggestion, but only after I clear it with you. Is that okay? Should I do that?

*if your sarcasm detector didn't pick anything up, please adjust and try again*

[Tweek]

Nex, you're such a little bitch.
So you got banned for saying lol. Get over it. Go to your User CP and it says what the last infraction you got was. Click on the thread and it has a copy of the message.
Don't go whining when you get banned for not following the most basic rule this site has.

[Zebbs]

Yea, this should really work. Is there any way of knowing my infractions points, other than swimming through the thread tho?

Check your User CP.

[Assassin]

Well, that sounds fine and dandy, except with everybody shitting on me and being as vulgar and fucking retarded as they felt like, I just got banned for an AOLism.

So actually seeing a restrictive system in place (and being enforced) would be great, but how about also TELLING people exactly why they've been banned, as the only reason I could get until today (which I then had to sift through endless infraction posts to find) was "AOLisms/Retarded Post" and it didn't even tell me which one it referred to.

Look in the User Dump or in your User CP. In the title it says the reason of your ban, inside the thread you find the post that you got infracted for. Can't find your thread in User Dump? Use the fucking search function. If all this doesn't tell you enough why you got banned, you are stupid.

Also, what happened to freedom of fuckin' speech? I thought you guys were all about that, but I get a 3-day (maybe two? Not sure) ban for saying *lol*?
You're a retarded piece of shit. I won't get an infraction for saying that to you, so stfu with your freedom of speech. "lol" is a word for retards and it's even more retarded with those gay stars. That's why you got banned. Because we don't want the image that this forum is full of retards.


Also, I've never used AOL in my life, and won't, because from what I've seen of it, it's a nazi-controlled piece of shit. *lol* (and other acronyms) have long belonged to every other single piece of the internet for a LONG damned time.
It's an AOLism. Get over it. Even if it wasn't, it's still retarded. So fucking what that it has "belonged to every single piece of the internet for a long damned time"? So does porn, it doesn't mean that you can go ahead and post it here.


I think it's pretty stupid that we can't view the forums like we used while we were banned.

[Frank]

I think we should get an email or something that actually lets us know when we've received points. Saves us having to look at our profile or something every now and then just to make sure we havent recevied any points.

[junglebunny]

I think infracted users should be able to respond to their own User Dump threads, because that'd be funny.

Also they should be able to lurk :mad:

[Spastic]

I don't really like the idea of being able to be permabanned from infractions, then it just seems like the longer you are here the more likely you will be banned, typos and the few accidental "lol" remarks would add up over time.

[Assassin]

I think infracted users should be able to respond to their own User Dump threads, because that'd be funny.

Also they should be able to lurk :mad:

Exactly what I was thinking.

[Joho The Hobo]

I don't really like the idea of being able to be permabanned from infractions, then it just seems like the longer you are here the more likely you will be banned, typos and the few accidental "lol" remarks would add up over time.

I agree with this, and think that the "-1 point per week" idea is the best one here. Otherwise I'm gonna be one of the newbs who has scars from their first few weeks here.

And also I think permibans should be seperate. Or that a mod or someone has to agree before the user gets banned for 25 infactions. Or maybe they could all vote, i dunno.

[Niki]

A lot of people agree with the -1 point per week idea, maybe you guys could enforce that? It's a lot better than having to wait three months for accidentally saying 'lol'.

[Vortex]

I think it's pretty stupid that we can't view the forums like we used while we were banned.

I was going to post that, but I got beaten. But yeah, we should still be allowed to atleast view the forums while we're banned. Other than that, I don't have a problem with the infraction system over the old TO system.

[Joho The Hobo]

One thing I reaLLY love about infractions (only noticed this today) is the little red/yellow card at the bottom of offending posts. Its great! You can click it and laugh at aomeone being called an "unfunny jackass"! Also it stops people asking why they got the infraction - the reason is right there.

[Oberlin]

Back to the topic of people posting in User Dump, I say let them. But make shitting THAT up a severe offense, worth maybe a 5-point infraction or so.

[InTransit]

Guys, each infraction expires 3 months from the infraction date.

[Niki]

We know that's when it expires, we just think it's not the best idea.

[Evil Kiwi]

Minor would be someone who doesn't know how to contribute. Major would be someone posting "COCKS COCKS COCKS COCKS"
Serving a fine example, I see... ;)


Nah, j/k.

Really, I give all of you my advice... post smart and responsibly, and you'll never get in trouble. I've only had a single infraction in all my internet history! :D

[Spastic]

Guys, each infraction expires 3 months from the infraction date.

I didn't know that, i think the infraction system is fine then.

[Phrozt]

Serving a fine example, I see... ;)


Nah, j/k.

Really, I give all of you my advice... post smart and responsibly, and you'll never get in trouble. I've only had a single infraction in all my internet history! :D


You *should* get an infraction for saying j/k (aolism), but you probably won't, because generally chicks are given more leniency, even while violating the same principles.

The fact of the matter is that this huge structure of a banning system just makes it frightening to post on here, and induces a fairly large amount of tension to what should be a fun and off-the-wall place. Every post I've made, I'm thinking, "gee, did I misspell something? Not capitalize something? Post too many ellipses? Is [some example] considered an AOLism by the moderators?"

Thing is, I'm pretty sure that by now, everyone knows that banning is subjective. Most "aolisms" that people post come from people who've never even used AOL. "AOLism" is basically a word to say, "I don't like the way you typed something in internet lingo." That, along with other "custom bans" basically allows the admins to treat you like their bitch in whatever flavor they please.

This, to me, is what makes this forum stressful to post on... which coming from the same place that makes fun of AIDS/cancer/death/sex/whores/superheros is incredibly surprising.

What am I getting at? Keep your TOs if it makes you feel better... but this system that eventually leads to permabans for things that people regularly do by accident is insane; leave permabans for people regularly posting scat porn/viruses/bestiality/other hardcore stuff. Take the posts on here with at least a FRACTION of the grain of salt that you'd expect anyone reading any of your comics should take.

EDIT: You look at the board icons (the laughing heads) and you think, "LOL! This seems like a funny place!!" Then you read the "User Dump" and you're like, "are you fucking serious? Now I have to go back and edit out my 'lol' so I don't get banned... on a board that makes you literally lol..."

[Evil Kiwi]

First of all, I'm a guy, for clarification.

But yeah, it's a tough place.

I really think... (and no offense to the mods and admins... this is just constructive criticism) ... that frankly, you need to be extremely careful not to push over the border of trying to run an organized and civilized forum, and just being plain forum nazis.

Again, no offense. I think it needs to be said. I may be a newb to this forum, but I know my forums. And I also know what a forum does and does not need. However, it's your forum. Treat it how you see fit!

[Raxo]

Just try not to be a dumbass. It's that easy.

The rules are there so that the forums don't turn into a muddle of retards typing.

[Intestiny Destiny]

This isn't about infractions, but I've got no other place to put this.

The time stamp sucks. I want to know when someone posted. Not how long ago.

That is all.

[Explicit]

not really a subtle way to teach someone a lesson...

i wouldn't be surprised if you gave me a few points for some weird overreacted reason.

[Tweek]

This isn't about infractions, but I've got no other place to put this.

The time stamp sucks. I want to know when someone posted. Not how long ago.

That is all.
Yeah, it really does suck.

[Rob]

I think I've said it before, but mods aren't supposed to give ANY infractions for accidents. Putting fifteen ellipses in a post or ending it with LOLOLOLOL are not accidents. That just means you're retarded.

[Assassin]

We should be able to lurk

[Fodniethan]

The fact of the matter is that this huge structure of a banning system just makes it frightening to post on here

OH GOD NO AN INFRACTION :wail:
It's just an internet forum, how is it frightening?

[Bigglesworth]

"This one time, at ban kamp...." haha

Anyways, I think your punishment system is pretty good. A lot better than the punishment system at the last forums I was a part of. I posted this comic (http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/7072/okeefecomicws0.jpg) in their art section, and got banned for six months, hahaha. So I like your system.

[Glurf]

I laughed at that comic.
I think the infraction system is fine, since they do expire. The only way to get permabanned is to be an idiot many times in a short period of time, which is why you should be banned anyways, the system works!
Also, Bigglesworth, who posted the ban kamp thing first? Was it you?

[Bigglesworth]

Oh, I just thought of that when I saw the phrase "ban kamp." But I wouldnt be surprised if someone thought of that before. I was thinking of making it into a comic, but I couldnt think of anything funny and suiting to replace a flute with, haha.

[Phrozt]

I think I've said it before, but mods aren't supposed to give ANY infractions for accidents. Putting fifteen ellipses in a post or ending it with LOLOLOLOL are not accidents. That just means you're retarded.

I use ellipses in my posts and I'd love to have a tard-off (a contest to discern who is the most retarded) with you. I don't think I'm better than you, or that I can "outsmart you with my mighty brain," I'd just like to prove that intelligent people sometimes have a different way of speaking, not necessarily conducive to their environment.

And yeah, it is a bit frightening on these boards. I chat on boards where pretty much anything goes, but the idiots do get dealt with in force by the regular community. If someone is completely idiotic, they will be put in the spotlight, ridiculed, and generally their idiocy will appear in peoples' sigs just to remind everyone HOW stupid that particular individual is.

I guess I'll just stick to what I originally said, that I wish the mods here would take posters w/the same grain of salt they'd expect people to take their comics... which are absolutely great, but also insane if thrown on an uptight crowd, which is what the mods seem to suggest w/their rules.

Here's a few examples:
http://forums.explosm.net/showthread.php?t=4118 - banned for not being on topic, when it actually has absolutely EVERYTHING to do w/the topic.

http://forums.explosm.net/showthread.php?t=4057 - COMPLETELY subjective. No other way around it.

http://forums.explosm.net/showthread.php?t=3939 - Doesn't look like "... ... ... .. LOLOLOLOLOLOLL ... .... .." to me.

http://forums.explosm.net/showthread.php?t=3926 - So you actually ban/give infractions for people who are trying to uphold your standards??? What the hell is that? You can't win for losing apparently.

http://forums.explosm.net/showthread.php?t=3923 - Apparently two people had to mod on the same topic because mods weren't doing their job... and then they get infractions for it.

http://forums.explosm.net/showthread.php?t=3879 - What the hell is fake beef?


If you look at these examples, they are incredibly subjective or just plain bassackwards. That's why it's frightening to post here. Who knows what the mods will or won't be angry for on any given day? Rules? Only loose guidelines so that if the mods are PMSing, they can justify their menstrual flow. It's ridiculous.

[Joho The Hobo]

It's called "going mad with power". It's a problem, but changing the infraction rules won't help, we need mods to not be so moody.

No offence mods...

[Assassin]

Who cares?

[Rob]

If you look at these examples, they are incredibly subjective or just plain bassackwards. That's why it's frightening to post here.

Most of your examples are from forums with specific rules in place so the forum doesn't get ruined. For example, a guy linking to a CAD comic in the debate forum is gonna get an infraction, because it has nothing to do with the debate. It's not even his argument, it's just an anecdotal post.

The beef forum has its own rules as well.

Backseat modding is against the rules because it's annoying and derails threads, when we already have a report system.

Your examples suck and I think you're trying to make this place out to be worse than it is. None of our infractions are out of line, except in a few cases which are usually complained about and resolved quickly. Those are often just accidents or misreadings on the mod's part.

[bizzle]

I got infracted for the same post twice. The first time it was reversed. Super sux.

[Phrozt]

How is telling someone that you don't like their post *not* subjective?

Also, did you even read the CAD comic or did you just look at the fact that it came from CAD and assume that it's not relevant? Comics generally cover a broad scope of ideas and issues (take, for example, explosm.net), so I don't understand why it's so hard to accept that a comic has relevance to the topic. It served a purpose to refresh the point of view being discussed in a funny manner.

Also, when I made my previous post, I just went through the first few I found in the user dump. I'm sure that, if I actually spent some time looking at them, I could find a laundry list full of shady infractions, and as people have mentioned numerously on this thread, those "not-so-needed" infractions build up to an actual ban that the user most likely won't deserve.

EDIT: and for the record, some of the funniest threads I've read are derailments from the original topic.

[Assassin]

Who cares?

[Rob]

I don't understand why it's so hard to accept that a comic has relevance to the topic.

It was in a Debate Zone thread.

I don't think there's any way to make this system more lenient without letting the forums get driven into the ground by shitty posts and 4chan memes.

A lot of you people are incredibly whiny, and I get the feeling people just love arguing with rules, no matter how fair they are.

Dumped.