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Pastimes : SI Message Filtering - Pros and Cons -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: John O'Neill who wrote (217)	5/23/1998 2:59:00 PM
From: Zeuspaul	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 263

1) Why would you not want to have the option to exclude a poster if the decision to filter it out it was yours only? I believe some would use the option to create a private chatroom. I read one thread ( Ballard) that may have such a potential. The minority poster on that thread makes a lot more sense to me than the majority view. The minority view has been ridiculed. I believe an exclusionary option would be used by a majority on this thread to the detriment of the thread. 2) Why would you want to force someone to scroll thru your posts even if that person has determined that your current posting style offends them & would like to temporarily filter your posts out?. I believe this is a bandwidth issue. You do not need to read posts that you do not want to if you exercise the NEXT option. Some posters with cable modems have indicated that their concern over irrelevant posts or out of line posts is superceded by their modem speed in conjunction with the NEXT option. I do not have fast Internet access but sure do want it. Hopefully this will be an option for more of us in the not to distant future. SI is a successful site. I find it difficult to accept the argument that it will become a YAHOO nightmare as it has achieved its success in its present format. I believe the POST-RESPONSE format is the essence of the SI success. Picking and choosing responses has its role too but it is more of a documentary format. I think filtering should be addressed as an after thought, in a more sophisticated search routine. I would rather have the right to censor for myself..even if I never used it, rather than having SI hire more staff to censor or temporarily suspend posters for me based upon their standards. Either way SI should censor some posts and some individuals. I do not see how it can be done without staff, too many posts, too many issues. Zeuspaul

To: John O'Neill who wrote (217)	5/23/1998 8:21:00 PM
From: Dick Smith	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 263

Why oppose filtering--- Zeuspaul isn't the only Si member who opposes filtering, so I'm going to answer John O'Neill's question "Why would you not want to have the option to exclude a poster if the decision to filter it out it was yours only?", too. Disruptive discussion is a problem. But making it easier to skip posters will not discourage it... it will provide an excuse for more disruptive posting. "You can just skip it," they'll reply. Further, the ability to skip those who disagree with you will make it difficult to have a thread which contains a coherent discussion. This is very bad for those of us who are trying to read the entire thread, because it's likely that the thread will break into separated, redundant discussions being held by those who disagree. We need tools for rational, calm discussion. Turning your back is not one of those that has been useful in the real world, and many of us think that it would not be useful here. Dick

To: John O'Neill who wrote (217)	7/8/1998 7:28:00 PM
From: Hadji	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 263

1) Why would you not want to have the option to exclude a poster if the decision to filter it out it was yours only? (AND the exclusion affects you only, no one else!) 2) Why would you want to force someone to scroll thru your posts even if that person has determined that your current posting style offends them & would like to temporarily filter your posts out?. I would rather have the right to censor for myself..even if I never used it, rather than having SI hire more staff to censor or temporarily suspend posters for me based upon their standards. ==== Dan