C&F vanishing...

gonzo914 · Post by **gonzo914** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 7:50 am

Wanderer wrote:It's a pain in the butt to keep blocking it.

You would do us all a service if you would post instructions on how to do that.

Tyler · Post by **Tyler** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 8:16 am

gonzo914 wrote:
Wanderer wrote:It's a pain in the butt to keep blocking it.
You would do us all a service if you would post instructions on how to do that.

Please, do tell....

Wanderer · Post by **Wanderer** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 3:59 pm

gonzo914 wrote:
Wanderer wrote:It's a pain in the butt to keep blocking it.
You would do us all a service if you would post instructions on how to do that.

Get Mozilla Firefox. You can do that here: http://www.mozilla.com/firefox/

Get the adblock extension for Firefox. You can do that here: http://adblock.mozdev.org/
Treat any avatars you don't like (typically political or aniamted ones for me) as an ad--right click on it and choose "Adblock this image"

Presto!

In Cran's case, I'm seriously considering blocking all of his content on phhBB boards entirely, even though I really don't object to what he has to say most of the time...I often do find his avatars objectionable and am finding reasonable efforts to prevent myself from being subject to them to be ineffectual.

To block someone entirely, you need phpBB User Hide, but the version that's "official" doesn't work with firefox 1.5 or later. Version 1.3 does, but it's not official, and has disappeared somewhat from the net. I found a link in Norweigan (?) here: http://rapidshare.de/files/10956477/php ... x.xpi.html
It works great. I don't know why it's disappeared off the net.

Jack · Post by **Jack** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 4:33 pm

Wanderer wrote:
gonzo914 wrote:
Wanderer wrote:It's a pain in the butt to keep blocking it.
You would do us all a service if you would post instructions on how to do that.
Get Mozilla Firefox. You can do that here: http://www.mozilla.com/firefox/

Get the adblock extension for Firefox. You can do that here: http://adblock.mozdev.org/
Treat any avatars you don't like (typically political or aniamted ones for me) as an ad--right click on it and choose "Adblock this image"

Presto!

In Cran's case, I'm seriously considering blocking all of his content on phhBB boards entirely, even though I really don't object to what he has to say most of the time...I often do find his avatars objectionable and am finding reasonable efforts to prevent myself from being subject to them to be ineffectual.

To block someone entirely, you need phpBB User Hide, but the version that's "official" doesn't work with firefox 1.5 or later. Version 1.3 does, but it's not official, and has disappeared somewhat from the net. I found a link in Norweigan (?) here: http://rapidshare.de/files/10956477/php ... x.xpi.html
It works great. I don't know why it's disappeared off the net.

I've already done that (blocked a user's posts with mozilla) but a large poriton of the time I actually access C&F from the library so it's not really effective.

What I wish was available here is board-specific blocking. For example, on another forum I belong to, it's possible to block other members from sending you PMs and you can also turn off all their posts and responses from your view. What you do is to log in to your account, and go to "My Settings" and click on a little box that says "Block this user's posts" or "Block PMs from the following users." I like that system because it allows you to log in on any computer and after you're logged in, your settings are already there.

But it's my impression that that kind of thing has to be implemented at the moderator level in order to be applied correctly...

Wanderer wrote:
Cranberry wrote: We don't go to the same school.
Hey, Cran...I realize this is off topic a bit..but would you mind not changing your avatar every couple of days? It's a pain in the butt to keep blocking it. K' thanks

I'll change it as often as I please. Making (and copying) avatars is an art or sorts, and I enjoy that art.

Rich (i.e. the moderator who nobody seems to remember exists anymore) has told me there's no problem whatsoever with changing your avatar over and over and there's also no problem with having political and religious avatars as long as you don't have naked people or Joan Rivers or other obscene stuff like that.

P.S. I've said this before, but I don't mind when people "hi-jack" my threads to an off-topic area. I encourage it, because that's how "normal" conversation usually goes anyway--you don't just keep talking about the same thing on and on!

Wanderer · Post by **Wanderer** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 5:27 pm

Cranberry wrote: Rich (i.e. the moderator who nobody seems to remember exists anymore) has told me there's no problem whatsoever with changing your avatar over and over and there's also no problem with having political and religious avatars as long as you don't have naked people or Joan Rivers or other obscene stuff like that.

Sure, no problem. I didn't really see my request as a moderator issue. I wasn't demanding anything of you, and certainly wasn't prepared to make some complaint to the moderators. It was more of a friendly request, you know, like you might ask someone to quit swearing, even though you may be in an adult bar, and we have freedom of speech in this country. You're perfectly within your rights to tell me you don't intend to accomodate my request, as you have done. In a bar, I may grumble about impoliteness and take myself elsewhere. Here, I have other options.

Cranberry wrote: I'll change it as often as I please. Making (and copying) avatars is an art or sorts, and I enjoy that art.

No problem. Your perogative. Welcome to the killfile (as they say on usenet).

Lambchop · Post by **Lambchop** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 10:50 pm

Cranberry wrote: I've already done that (blocked a user's posts with mozilla) but a large poriton of the time I actually access C&F from the library so it's not really effective.

That would be ME!!!!!! I'm the most-honored blockee!

That's right, friends! Unless you quote me, he doesn't have to see me!

To my great regret, the process doesn't go both ways. He can continue to inflict himself on everyone, including me, while preserving himself from the sight of fuzzy lamblets.

Seems a little one-sided. Like I said, unless you quote me.

Cranberry wrote:Location: An overcrowded lonely world

Gee, I wonder why that is?

Caj · Post by **Caj** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 11:16 pm

Wanderer wrote:To block someone entirely, you need phpBB User Hide, but the version that's "official" doesn't work with firefox 1.5 or later. Version 1.3 does, but it's not official, and has disappeared somewhat from the net. I found a link in Norweigan (?) here: http://rapidshare.de/files/10956477/php ... x.xpi.html
It works great. I don't know why it's disappeared off the net.

It's funny how web-based discussion boards are just starting to evolve to the point that Usenet was at decades ago.

On Usenet I can block posts by individuals, posts containing certain words or phrases, and with a little script I block entire threads that are started by specific individuals who are known to start fierce flamewars.

Usenet has the right approach: the remote server is nothing but a repository for posts in raw text, and all of the display and formatting is handled by the client. You have complete control over how it is organized on-screen, and there are many different programs to do it. Some will arrange threads as flat lists, some will arrange them in trees, etc.

I use trn, which is entirely text-based and runs in the terminal. The lovely thing about trn is that it draws a very accurate map of the thread in the upper right-hand corner, showing who is replying to whom. It makes it very easy to wrap my brain around a conversation and navigate it quickly. Other graphical newsreaders try to draw the thread as a long bulleted list (google groups does this) and it just comes out as a giant sprawling indented mess, communicating nothing more than the fact that too many people are talking at once. I am impressed that trn does a better job using only a block of 6x31 ASCII characters.

Caj

Walden · Post by **Walden** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 11:41 pm

Lambchop wrote: To my great regret, the process doesn't go both ways. He can continue to inflict himself on everyone, including me, while preserving himself from the sight of fuzzy lamblets.

Seems a little one-sided. Like I said, unless you quote me.

I don't know. You could block Cran's post as easily as Cran can block yours. It seems fair enough.

Wanderer · Post by **Wanderer** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 11:42 pm

Lambchop wrote:
That's right, friends! Unless you quote me, he doesn't have to see me!

Actually, since version 1.2, phpBB User Hide blocks quotes too.

Wanderer · Post by **Wanderer** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 11:55 pm

Caj wrote: It's funny how web-based discussion boards are just starting to evolve to the point that Usenet was at decades ago.

I'm not sure that's entirely true. Web boards have a much easier interface, and some features lacking in Usenet, like private emails and a box to store and save them in. The moderation system is better, as well, and you don't have to worry so much about bots somewhee in the chain polluting the conversation or forging cancel requests for messages. Also, we have all of the messages from day one here, whereas your typical usenet server doesn't have nearly that kind of repository...a few days at best for extremely busy groups. The quote system is really nice here, too, and is [div] tagabble, so that quotes can be blocked readily if you have the User Hide plugin. Plus it all works in your browser without having to install yet more third party software. And while usenet software is pretty good at tracking threading, phpBB does a better job of keeping topics encapsulated (barring inevitable topic drift, of course).

Naturally, some features *are* lacking, such as binary attachment capability and the ability to scrape all binaries from the group, the ability to get all of the messages offline and read them, and kill files. That's more of an indication of what the developers of phpBB have been focusing on than it is an indication of anything else.

Lambchop · Post by **Lambchop** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 12:48 am

Wanderer wrote:
Lambchop wrote:
That's right, friends! Unless you quote me, he doesn't have to see me!

Actually, since version 1.2, phpBB User Hide blocks quotes too.

Oh, well, I'm sure his curiosity gets the better of him. If it didn't, he wouldn't keep checking in from the library.

Most people, I think, just ignore what he writes, but those glaring, flashing, scrolling, grotesque, violent, creepy, proselytizing and completely tasteless avatars just smack you in the eyeball. Which, now that he's refused a polite request to tone them down, is apparently his intent--assault by avatar.

Flyingcursor · Post by **Flyingcursor** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 6:09 am

Lambchop wrote:
Wanderer wrote:
Lambchop wrote:
That's right, friends! Unless you quote me, he doesn't have to see me!

Actually, since version 1.2, phpBB User Hide blocks quotes too.
Oh, well, I'm sure his curiosity gets the better of him. If it didn't, he wouldn't keep checking in from the library.

Most people, I think, just ignore what he writes, but those glaring, flashing, scrolling, grotesque, violent, creepy, proselytizing and completely tasteless avatars just smack you in the eyeball. Which, now that he's refused a polite request to tone them down, is apparently his intent--assault by avatar.

....And in this corner......

Cayden · Post by **Cayden** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 6:29 am

Wanderer wrote: Actually, since version 1.2, phpBB User Hide blocks quotes too.

But it is still not updated to work with Firefox 1.5 is it?

Wanderer · Post by **Wanderer** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 7:26 am

Peter Laban wrote:
Wanderer wrote: Actually, since version 1.2, phpBB User Hide blocks quotes too.
But it is still not updated to work with Firefox 1.5 is it?

the version 1.3 that I linked above works with firefox 1.5. I don't believe it's been submitted for approval. The guy who wrote it used to have it on his personal web page, which has since expired and been turned into a lichen portal, so no idea what the ultimate disposition of 1.3 will be.

http://rapidshare.de/files/10956477/php ... x.xpi.html

I specifically installed that version to test here before I recommended the link. It may not "auto install" in firefox...I ended up downloading the hqx to my desktop, and then dragging the file into a firefox window which initiated the install procedure.

emmline · Post by **emmline** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 8:54 am

Dudes. Get real. You actually have to spend 10 seconds or better looking at Cran's (or anybody else's) flashing, scrolling avatars to take in the content. Why don't you just NOT do that.

If you're really intent to spend the amount of time it must take to target specific avatars for blockage, it occurs to me that you ARE reading them, and that it's the message you're objecting too, at least in large part.
How about just don't read them?

There's no way you're going to rid your internet experience of all flashing, changing, offensive(to you,) stimuli.

I'm not saying this because I agree with Cran's ideologies for the most part, just because it ain't that big a deal.