Vexatious Vandals

[jeffed]

I refuse to comment on threads initiated by new members whose only purpose is to harass and gain frivolous attention. "Ignore them and they'll go away," is the best policy. But how are they getting through the screening process, Tim, when they must give their email address to become members?

[J i m m y]

I know that you were directing the question to Tim but which members/threads/posts are you referencing, jeffed? (Feel free to PM if you don't want to mention anything in a public setting.)

We've gotten a multitude of new members who obviously only wish to "spam" the forum (I still hate that term) with their cheap drugs and marital aides. You should see some of the ones I've deleted. One of the first ones I ever got to gave numerous links to adult novelties and--get this--also seemed to contain half a recipe for cooking golden turkey.

JB has mentioned to me in private that an option to ban IP addresses would be the way to go since these banned members just register under different names...repeatedly.

One neat feature of the forum software is that moderators have a chance to preview new threads/posts/visitor messages before they make it onto the forum. I accidentally used the wrong option with the generic Flagyl guy so, hitting "approve thread" instead of "unapprove thread"--hence the reason that it was visible.

And then we have members who join up with the sole purpose of spamming the site with the items that they're trying to sell. They never contribute anything worthwhile to discussions and I would personally ban them if I were owner of the forum. Where Tim stands on these members is still unknown to me but I've been meaning to ask him.

[jeffed]

Thanks, J i m m y, for getting rid of our latest irritant on the main page. It was beginning to bug me.

[J i m m y]

My pleasure, sir, and my apologies for not paying attention the first time around.

I'm glad that you brought this topic up. If anyone comes across this bogus stuff, please feel free to PM JB or myself. JB's pretty quick on the draw and gets most of these bozos before I even have a chance to review items awaiting moderation.

[jeffed]

You and JB are obviously doing a great job behind the scenes. Thanks on behalf of all of us, buddies.