Why can uregistered people still post? Why hasn't it been banned?

[NX70BOY]

Yes I know this is getting really old, but doesn't the majotity of people here agree that Unregistered people shouldn't post? Why haven't we made this happen? :confused:

[Unregistered]

Why does it really matter? So you can collect personal information about me? What is the purpose of that? I thought the internet was a free medium in which I could express my views. Does it really make a huge difference if I am registered?

[NX70BOY]

I'm not saying all Unregistered people who post are bad, or that we want to find information about you. (FYI you can register without giving out anything but your email...and you can also hide that.) It's just that some people who post unregistered, say bad things about other members, or false rumors...etc. mostly because they're unidentified. If you register, you have somewhat of a reputation. (as someone said in a previous thread.) Plus it takes hardly anytime at all.

[Unregistered]

Do you ever get bad people who are registered saying bad things? Personally I am registered, but I'm using my computer at work and havn't bothered to sign in. When I registered, I used falty information for all the fields, including the email. So to me it seems to take out any point of registering in the first place. I do see your point, but there are so many websites asking you to register, and I think it's pointless because you can enter faulty info anyway, it's not like you are opening up a bank account or anything.

On an unrelated topic, and it should probably be another thread....I hate it when people ***** about other people posting questions and topics that had surfaced last week or a few months ago and then they get upset and tell users to go findt he thread. In case people haven't noticed, history repeats itself among the human race, and I feel that regular users of this site who see that stuff should just be polite and skip to the next topic which interests them. For some reason it's like the newbie's are stepping on regular's turf, like a home invasion or something. we are ll newbie's at one point or another, so why don't we all remember that and show some more respect.

Anyway, that's my rant for the day,

Cheers,

Mr. Unregistered.

[Palm Cow]

Wait wait, don't you need to check your email to get an activation code that is sent to the email address you fill in when you register?

[Verbalxxx]

That you do, so I set up a hotmail account to receive the registration info and all of the other spam that exists in the world. Do you think that if you have a problem with something you'd be able to reach me at that address? good luck.

p.s. my identity has been revealed, I am Mr. Ungreistered.

[Verbalxxx]

I guess my biggest gripe is that yet another person wants info about me in some fashion....even though I realize it is very limited info...but still, the thought that I am being plugged into yet another database.

[vansouza]

If you have enough fear of loss of privacy to create a fake email account, then why internet at all... are you so special that we want to know something private about you? The very moment you logged on with your ISP you lost your privacy... that smell in the air is coffee... get it? good...

[Verbalxxx]

Originally posted by vansouza
If you have enough fear of loss of privacy to create a fake email account, then why internet at all... are you so special that we want to know something private about you? The very moment you logged on with your ISP you lost your privacy... that smell in the air is coffee... get it? good...


Ya, but the ISP that I'm using isn't connected to me in any way whatsover. Regardless, as a victim of identity fraud myself (and let's not get too carried away, because I am not suggesting in any way that you would fall victim to this by registering with the webiste.) I think our society is getting too carried away with collecting little tid bits of information. I'm not important myself persay (*sigh*) but demographically and statistically I could play an important role in marketing....which, I think with the amount of spam and pop-ups these days is a valid concern. Remember those innocent days (not too long ago) when your privacy wasn't invaded by an irritating pop-up? I can't tell you the number of times I have been writing an essay and a pop up advertising a small miniature camera so that I can spy on my neighbours. Anyway, I'm getting carried away now.

[DazalC]

I'll do excactly what i'll tell you not to do.
you say that you want unregistred users banned because they create a lot of posts, or they "flood" some forums with "stupid" posts, but u are creating a lot of unuseful post complaining about this... so u are doing the same as them, and i am doing that too, but with the hope u stop complaining about unregistred users;)

Bye!

and sorry for my bad english:P

[*YellowRose*]

Originally posted by Verbalxxx
I can't tell you the number of times I have been writing an essay and a pop up advertising a small miniature camera so that I can spy on my neighbours. Anyway, I'm getting carried away now. I agree with you . . . pop ups are incredibly annoying. That's one of the main reasons I use Firebird (aka Phoenix). (Actually turns freewarepalm.com into an enjoyable site)

Also ~ interesting CS factoid ~ registering gets rid of the pop ups at this site.

In addition, all that's required here is an EMAIL addy . . . doesn't have to be your 'main' one. Hotmail doesn't require ANY personal info on you to get an account, unless you sign up for that .net passport stuff.

[hherbzilla]

YellowRose, what's the thinking with the mods? Any hope in making registration a requirement?

[NX70BOY]

Ok guys, wasn't trying to start waves. Point well taken Verbalxxx. I just don't think it would be horrible if we made it mandatory to register. I promise I won't start another thread about this and complain anymore. I'm done.

[rldunn]

Well, speaking for the mods, the person who makes the final decision on this is Reggie, and I think he's unclear at this point about what to do. Requiring registration to post makes some things better (probably fewer flame bait threads, FAQ threads, etc) but some things worse (turn some people off from the site; potentially miss out on insider tips, etc). There have also been a lot of bad unregistered posts lately, but these things tend to go in waves, so is a fix necessary or will it get better on it's own. It's a tough call. If it were up to me, I would probably leave it as is for now, though I'm a lot closer to wanting to ban unregistered posters than I was a few weeks ago.

[hherbzilla]

I'm sure it's a tough decision. Thanks for sharing, rldunn.

[Unregistered]

you might try a hard reset

[hherbzilla]

Originally posted by Unregistered
you might try a hard reset Hmmm...is that a joke or case in point?

[Unregistered]

If you require people to register to post then I hope the Mods will tighten up their moderation of registered users. You have several frequent flyers here who do their own brand of trolling and posting nonsense.

[rldunn]

I've seen this comment made quite a few times lately. Trust me, there is a lot of moderation going on at this site, with nearly all of it behind the scenes. We have members here from all over the world and many have their own style. If someone is getting out of hand, or if a thread is getting completely off-topic, something will be done, but IMO, overmoderation is often worse than no moderation at all. I think the place is a little friendlier when a policy like that is in place. But I do want to assure you that the policies are applied evenly, so it doesn't matter if someone has 2 posts or 9,000 posts; if they do something that requires moderation, it will be done.

[Baloo]

OK, back up the register truck here a second.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Question asked: Why should unregistered be able to post? They are able to hide behind the fact that they are not identified.

Answered: Because I don't want to give you information about me before posting for fear of more spam.

Answer to answerer: Then just use an email such as Hotmail to recieve your registration. You don't have to give Hotmail any personal info and can dispose of the address after getting registered.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Then I have to ask, why require people to be registered if the information they give may be more misleading then just saying "unregistered"?

Personnaly I understand both sides of the debate and could come up with reasons for either, however unless a more rigid and time consuming checking process is in place for the purpose of ID verification, why bother to require registration.

If you don't register, there are benefits you don't realize, such as notification when a topic you are watching is responded to. I also see more flaming by registered users then non-registered.

What moderation exists seems to suffice.

[hherbzilla]

I don't see a big problem with flames, personal attacks and otherwise rude behavior. My biggest frustration is the lack of identity. All of the unregistered posts blur together. There's no sense of history because you can't link a name (and avatar) with a discussion.

When people have registered, you begin to learn what Clie they have, what software they use, what sort of technical skills they have (or don't have), where they live (whether country, coast, state or city), etc.. This makes it much easier to talk about things in the threads because you have some background to rely on. Ideally, this allows for a shorthand for both the poster and the reader: I don't have to repeat all of my info each time I post because there's some memory associated with me/my posts... but the regulars still know enough to respond. This is what REALLY builds the sense of community here... and even helps foster friendships.

Registering also provides some sense of accountability. If "MaxClieStud" is usually posting incorrect info/crap, I know to not put much credence in his posts. However, if he's always helpful and insightful, I'll pay special attention to his posts. This helps me filter out the things that waste my time from those that are worthwhile.

I think it boils down to this: Registering is the proper etiquette in forums such as this.

[NX70BOY]

Well said hherbzilla.

[LockeEVP]

im in favor of banning them because of the recent issues.

[Spiral]

But I think most people didn't join the forum right away, i posted a little as unregisteired before I registered, if a newbie needs help, they want to ask it quickly, without having to go through all the work of activation and such, and then if they like the forum they have a greater chance of registering.

[mrdeucie]

Maybe we should require people to change the "unregistered" title to something else then. I have been on other boards where you have to sign in with a name everytime, but does not require registration. Although it is not a UBB/VBB based board.

[Unregistered]

Hello
i'm posting this reply from france so do you mind excusing my poor english please.
I'm very interessed by the debate about the possibility to post for unregistered users, and as you can see i'm on of them (may be i'll change that quickly because of my interest in cliesource). My opinion is that most of the democratics countries have laws to assure the right to speak and express differents opinions, and US is the first on those countries. Well can we now consider cliesource as a countrie were those rights are respected, and the moderators the people allowed to make the posts respectuff of the forum rules, the countrie rules in fact ! As a reply you could say that the registering should be a kind of nationality, a priority to have the right to speak in cliesource. And you would be right. But if you're right i'm not allowed to speak. Finally i think that the possibility of expression in the world, and in cliesource, is a long long time debate, but the first of the human rights. Anf for cliesource specifically i think it is a source of enrchissment, good news and interresting debates like this one.

Sylvain

[Unregistered]

this is really a tough call.

[kdn102]

Originally posted by mrdeucie
Maybe we should require people to change the "unregistered" title to something else then. I have been on other boards where you have to sign in with a name everytime, but does not require registration. Although it is not a UBB/VBB based board.

There are several problems with this, already up in one of those last 15 or so threads about registering.  You can easily spoof someone who up to now has a good rep.  And all of the "That's not me's" the original unreg says will fall on deaf ears.  I also agree with the French unreg.  This can be considered a community.  In all communities to express your opinion you need an identity.  The only anonymity available in the world up to this point have been letters to the editor.  If you wanted to make a point you had to get in front of a group of people and show yourself.  Ok, sure, you had black bars on TV to protect the innocent, but in those instances you are relying on the TV show/station to verify the source was good.

There has been a large wave of thoughtless posts recently.  It is annoying and may only be just a mild breakout that will go away.  The fact still remains that it's pretty easy to register here and make a name for yourself.  I know not all unreg's are staying that way to be deceptive about facts/identity, but a good percentage are.  I never posted (intentionally) here when I was not yet registered.  I read the board and saw what people had to say.  I liked what I saw so I registered.

I think as a temporary solution that we prevent unreg's from starting new threads.  Like one of those credit card companies likes to say "Memebership has its privileges"  If the only thing that goes away from registering is ad's then there really isn't much point in having registration at all.  We're all so used to ads these days we are starting to tune them out, at least I am.  Again, it's not like you need to provide a blood sample or your mother's maiden name.  Even if you fake the info, at least we have a name to tie with the opinions.

That's my 2 bucks worth...

[mrdeucie]

Originally posted by kdn102


There are several problems with this, already up in one of those last 15 or so threads about registering.  You can easily spoof someone who up to now has a good rep.

The other website I was referring to also gives you an option to have a password so no one else can have your exact name.

[stronggeek]

I see what you are saying though at least in the united states, one does have to "register" as well to be able to speak(vote) or be heard.

Originally posted by Unregistered
Hello
i'm posting this reply from france so do you mind excusing my poor english please.
I'm very interessed by the debate about the possibility to post for unregistered users, and as you can see i'm on of them (may be i'll change that quickly because of my interest in cliesource). My opinion is that most of the democratics countries have laws to assure the right to speak and express differents opinions, and US is the first on those countries. Well can we now consider cliesource as a countrie were those rights are respected, and the moderators the people allowed to make the posts respectuff of the forum rules, the countrie rules in fact ! As a reply you could say that the registering should be a kind of nationality, a priority to have the right to speak in cliesource. And you would be right. But if you're right i'm not allowed to speak. Finally i think that the possibility of expression in the world, and in cliesource, is a long long time debate, but the first of the human rights. Anf for cliesource specifically i think it is a source of enrchissment, good news and interresting debates like this one.

Sylvain

[apccpe]

Here it is i'm a now legaly allowed to speak

[n2ifp]

Originally posted by apccpe
Here it is i'm a now legaly allowed to speak

Great, good going, congrats!

Welcome to Cliesource :)!

[oneeyesquare]

Not allowing unregistered's to start threads might also cut down on the repetitive posting of question threads that have been covered a zillion times. How many times has the "transfer movies to Pc thread been posted? Rather than posting prematurely, these posters might actually take the time to do the search for the answer. There is a tendency for some newbies to treat forums as a giant personal answer board without taking the time to do the research.The ability to do so w/o registering seems to increase that abuse tendency.
I love forums and have used them extensively for researching upcoming purchases. You can learn more in a day on a board than in three days of reading reviews. I'm not espousing that no one ever ask questions, be they dumb or intelligent, but that there be some hurdles/requirements before they get to that point ..and possibly do a little reading beforehand...

[hherbzilla]

Originally posted by oneeyesquare
...There is a tendency for some newbies to treat forums as a giant personal answer board without taking the time to do the research... That's one of the things that irks me... especially when people use that as a reason to NOT register: "What if I'm just looking for a quick answer? I just want to post my question and not bother taking the time to register." Hmmm, so it's important that you get an answer to your question but not worth taking the time to register (or search)? The way I see it: if you're having a problem and need some help, then getting an answer should be worth the miniscule amount of time it takes to register. Or if you don't want to register, then at least take the time to search for an answer instead of blindly posting.

[oneeyesquare]

I've noticed the same abuse on a lot of boards I visit across a wide spectrum of interests. I hate to say it but 80% of the time I think it 's laziness (I expect you to answer my question types ), 15% of the time I think it really raw newbies(totally new to internet, still learning how to read a web page types) and the remainder are people really perplexed and couldn't find the answer they needed. Also the majority of sites I visit do NOT allow unregistered posters, but most all allow lurking. ClieSource is unique in that aspect...

[Roni]

perhaps some limit could be atleast tried to make to allow only n-number of postings per a day should be allowed to come from a specific ip address when it's un-registered? it could atleast cut the worst out,
also i think making a special forum where the unregistered could post, and not anywhere else could work

[PEG-SJ30]

Here's another reason to lock out Unregistered posters: http://cliesource.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=14457

Resorting to death(or "hope-you-get-hurt-real-badly)-threats is a big no-no. I hope that appropriate action is taken by the moderators.

[Unregistered]

How is your answer any different?

[abosco]

Or yours?

[Unregistered]

Read the thread on the link if you are really interested.

yeah, registering sure helps a person make intelligent posts :)

[hherbzilla]

Originally posted by Unregistered
Read the thread on the link if you are really interested.

yeah, registering sure helps a person make intelligent posts :) My contention all along is that the main benefit of registration is the poster's documented history. With an unregistered poster, I don't KNOW if they're intelligent or not. With a registered poster, I'm able to get a sense of that over time and can ignore what they say (even block them) or at least take their posts "with a grain of salt."

[kdn102]

Very well stated.

Originally posted by hherbzilla
My contention all along is that the main benefit of registration is the poster's documented history. With an unregistered poser, I don't KNOW if they're intelligent or not. With a registered poster, I'm able to get a sense of that over time and can ignore what they say (even block them) or at least take their posts "with a grain of salt."

[Unregistered]

So the whiny whiny little CLIE crybabies start their whining all over again. No wonder the adult and intelligent members abandoned this months ago. What a sack of morons.

[stronggeek]

A... You're still here.

Originally posted by Unregistered
So the whiny whiny little CLIE crybabies start their whining all over again. No wonder the adult and intelligent members abandoned this months ago. What a sack of morons.

[Unregistered]

one can always hope things would change but each site has its own culture and personality and "whiny whiny little CLIE crybabies " happens to be the one here.

[kdn102]

But isn't that in essence registering?  The only difference here would be that you would have to provide an email address which can easily be obtained for free and anonymously from many places.

Hmmmm, maybe that could be the halfway mark between the registered and unregistered users.  Allowing a username/password only option that would expire after so many days if not used....

Originally posted by mrdeucie


The other website I was referring to also gives you an option to have a password so no one else can have your exact name.

[kdn102]

Speaking of intelligence, "name calling" is the first sign of a lack of intelligence.

Originally posted by Unregistered
So the whiny whiny little CLIE crybabies start their whining all over again. No wonder the adult and intelligent members abandoned this months ago. What a sack of morons.

[rldunn]

Ok, ok, this thread is getting out of hand. Let's avoid all the name-calling. If anyone has something that adds something to the discussion, either for or again unregistered posting, then go for it. But if there's many more flamebait posts or name-calling, I'm just going to shut down this thread.

[yOyOYoo]

most mature boards do not have unregistered users posting. There must be some reasoning behind it.

If any of you guys recall when Palminfocenter used to allow unregistered people posting, you will remember that their forums basically went to crap. Now, when someone really has something to say, they must back it up by being registered. This eliminates a lot of the crap that unregistered users post.

[Roni]

my opinion is that unregistered members should be allowed to post - but their posting abilities crippled by for example allowing only total n-number of unregistered posts per day per forum, or something like a cookie or ip-track to allow a specific unregistered user to post only once in a few days or something like that

[PDA gadgetfreak]

Originally posted by hherbzilla
My contention all along is that the main benefit of registration is the poster's documented history. With an unregistered poster, I don't KNOW if they're intelligent or not. With a registered poster, I'm able to get a sense of that over time and can ignore what they say (even block them) or at least take their posts "with a grain of salt."

I agree completely with hherbzilla. After reading the threads for a while you can get a sense of the level of knowledge of the poster. I read these boards for several months without posting to get a feel for the forum before registering and then posting. I always felt that if I was willling to contribute, I should also register. I have mixed feelings about weither posters should be required to register to answer or ask questions. I do however feel that you should be registered before you are able to start a threat.

hherbzilla you have a good way of encouraging people to do a search. You always do a search for them and post the link. I'm sure that some people, especially new ones here don't really think about searching the previous posts. You guide them and help them without just saying "search the threads". :D

[ppc]

Originally posted by rldunn
Ok, ok, this thread is getting out of hand. Let's avoid all the name-calling. If anyone has something that adds something to the discussion, either for or again unregistered posting, then go for it. But if there's many more flamebait posts or name-calling, I'm just going to shut down this thread.

PIC forums are terrible. Just Mike Cain and someother idiot yelling at each other all the time.

They must get pissed off that Palm always seems to get it so close but yet so wrong everytime they come up with a new design.

Look at their totally disjointed product line now. There is clearly no market plan for this company. The last decent Palm was the Vx. Thank goodness Sony keeps the OS alive or Big Bad Bill would have all the market by now.

Even so, Sony really needs VG in the T series. What happened to the T380 or whatever it was? Time to get proper memory too!