R U A/S/L-compliant LOLOLOL

October 29, 2007 7:53 AM

Extremely minor feature request: would it be possible to update Metafilter profiles for ASL-compliance per ISO standards?

I just noticed that nowhere on the profile page is there a dedicated field for age. While one can (and I have) appropriate the ICQ# field or whatever for this purpose, it feels kind of weird that the profile supports the 'sex' and 'location' portions of the holy a/s/l trinity for Internet introductions, but not 'age'.

Presumably the best way to handle this would be for the user to input birth date through three dropdowns and have the profile auto-update rather than the user (forgetting to) set it manually each birthday. If you wanted to go really nuts you could toss a tiny (MeFiMail-size) icon of a birthday cake next to the names of users on their birthdays.

posted by Ryvar to feature requests at 7:53 AM (47 comments total)

Was just updating my profile and I figured I'd toss in age to give a little more context for people reading my comments, and then I realized I couldn't. Felt weird, was all.
posted by Ryvar at 7:55 AM on October 29, 2007

If this becomes required, like it is on MySpace, I'll be like 99 forever, like I am on MySpace.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 7:59 AM on October 29, 2007 [3 favorites]

I swear I didn't mean to say "be like"- editing error.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 8:02 AM on October 29, 2007 [1 favorite]

Yeah, I thought about people lying, but hell you can put anything on every other field, what's one more distortion on your Profile Of LIES?
posted by Ryvar at 8:03 AM on October 29, 2007

this will have to be both a required field and checked against a driver's license, once DateMe comes online.
posted by anotherpanacea at 8:03 AM on October 29, 2007

You're 99, pinky? You've had work done. Possibly even alumminum siding.
posted by jonmc at 8:03 AM on October 29, 2007

If metafilter goes ISO 9000 compliant, I'm outahere. I'd hate to fill out a document control form for each comment ("To submit this comment, it must be signed off by a moderator (or moderator-designate (see SOP 11.02/1.1/1.*)). Original signed document control forms must be kept on file for up to three years...")

Also, it'll mean white backgrounds for sure.
posted by bonehead at 8:13 AM on October 29, 2007

Sorry, that would be a Document Revision Form. You don't fill out the Document Control Form until the DRF is filled out. Silly me.
posted by bonehead at 8:15 AM on October 29, 2007

You've had work done. Possibly even alumminum siding.

Dermatology by Home Depot.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 8:17 AM on October 29, 2007 [2 favorites]

If this becomes required

DateMe jokes aside, I can't see it ever being a required field. I don't see any harm in having it around as an opt-in line on the profile, though.
posted by cortex at 8:33 AM on October 29, 2007

Physical or emotional age?
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:37 AM on October 29, 2007

While we're on the topic of minor bugs, there's a very minor problem with the Your Contacts page in MefiMail.

If your contact's name is too long (say, It's Raining Florence Henderson), it is truncated with an ellipsis and the full name should be available in the title attribute of the link. But if the name contains a single quote (say, It's Raining Florence Henderson), that quote is not escaped in the title attribute, so you end up with a href="/user/23407" title='It's Raining Florence Henderson', which is broken.
posted by matthewr at 8:44 AM on October 29, 2007

This is much less interesting than when I thought it was about making the profiles accessible to deaf people.
posted by smackfu at 8:46 AM on October 29, 2007 [6 favorites]

When I first joined I wondered why there wasn't more information on the profiles, things like age or ethnic origin for instance. Then there was a MetaTalk thread about it, and someone commented that he/she (can't remember) thought it was better this way, because that way, people would be less prejudiced about comments. That if we had too much information it would be easier to dismiss comments ("yeahyeahyeah, that's so typical of you, jews", or "you only say that because your a Chilean"). It made perfect sense to me.

Of course, it's up to us not to let that information get in the way when assessing a comment but me, personally, I like it better that way (with less information). For a community, of course, anything implemented as opt-in can't hurt.
posted by micayetoca at 8:50 AM on October 29, 2007

(and of course I meant to say "you are a Chilean", not "your a Chilean")
posted by micayetoca at 8:52 AM on October 29, 2007

16/f/florida
posted by Stynxno at 9:07 AM on October 29, 2007 [1 favorite]

got pix?
posted by chrismear at 9:16 AM on October 29, 2007 [1 favorite]

I prefer not knowing, that way I can tell the kids to get off my lawn regardless of whether they really are kids.
posted by desjardins at 9:25 AM on October 29, 2007

15/m/urlawn
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 9:32 AM on October 29, 2007 [1 favorite]

How's the SOX compliance coming? Personally I've been compliant since this morning when I put both of mine on.
posted by blue_beetle at 9:37 AM on October 29, 2007

You're only as old as the person you feel on the subway.
posted by hermitosis at 9:40 AM on October 29, 2007 [2 favorites]

blue_beetle: "How's the SOX compliance coming?"

Oh, fuck right off. It's hard enough to go to work this morning in Denver here without your snarking.
posted by koeselitz at 9:46 AM on October 29, 2007

thanks matthewr, fixed.
posted by pb at 9:49 AM on October 29, 2007

It's a good idea, but I'd prefer a simple blank type-it-in field to dropdowns, because A) less scrolling means no more "Aw, fuck it--1901 it is," and B) quasi-witty answers like "Bronze."
posted by Reggie Digest at 10:15 AM on October 29, 2007 [1 favorite]

A/S/L???

S/B/G/L/T?
top/bottom?
cut/uncut?
shaved/bushy?
your place or mine?
posted by Surfurrus at 10:20 AM on October 29, 2007

and then, can i get an impersonal auto-generated happy birthday email from the mefi server each year? that would rock. not.
posted by quonsar at 10:40 AM on October 29, 2007

Should Matt do this, I think he should also update the time and date systems to be more inclusive of people who don't feel the need to succumb to the "traditional" Gregorian calendar hegemony or just choose to use more progressive calendaring and clock systems.

posted by milkrate at Septidi 7 Brumaire, an CCXVI à 4hd57m59s
posted by milkrate at 11:00 AM on October 29, 2007 [1 favorite]

OK STOP ALREADY. TODAY IS *NOT* MY BIRTHDAY.
posted by quonsar at 11:05 AM on October 29, 2007

Today is my birthday.
posted by SteveInMaine at 12:04 PM on October 29, 2007

Did anyone else read "American Sign Language" for ASL in the original question?
posted by josher71 at 12:52 PM on October 29, 2007

If you wanted to go really nuts you could toss a tiny (MeFiMail-size) icon of a birthday cake next to the names of users on their birthdays.

Oh please. The cake is a lie.
posted by dw at 12:59 PM on October 29, 2007 [1 favorite]

I would go into my profile every morning and make that day my birthday. I just like cake.
posted by ND¢ at 1:43 PM on October 29, 2007

I didn't understand the sign language thing either. Ryvar, we have seen pictures of you and know you're 17.
posted by jessamyn at 1:59 PM on October 29, 2007

[which means you should talk to klangklangston w/r/t porn opportunities for the next few months]
posted by jessamyn at 2:01 PM on October 29, 2007

Happy Birthday SteveInMain! If you send me your address, I'll send you four shiny quarters taped in a birthday card. Seriously, 'cause that's the kinda mom I am.
posted by wafaa at 2:15 PM on October 29, 2007

Oh please. The cake is a lie.

Stop what you are doing and assume the party escort submission position, or you will miss the party!
posted by GLaDOS at 4:09 PM on October 29, 2007

I can't believe you spent $5 just to respond to me. I must be a special snowflake.
posted by dw at 4:24 PM on October 29, 2007

I can't believe you spent $5 just to respond to me. I must be a special snowflake.

Fantastic! You remain resolute and resourceful in an atmosphere of extreme pessimism.

Cake, and grief counselling will be available at the conclusion of this thread. Thank you for helping us help you help us all.
posted by GLaDOS at 4:38 PM on October 29, 2007

You're not taking my companion cube.
posted by dw at 5:02 PM on October 29, 2007

ThePinkSuperhero wouldn't update that field anyway. She'd lose her superwickedcoolawesome pink profile.
posted by terrapin at 5:51 PM on October 29, 2007

I demand stardates!

actually I really don't, it just seemed fitting
posted by heeeraldo at 6:30 PM on October 29, 2007

As far as most of the Internet is concerned, my birthday is July 6th, 1946.

It's a sort of irony, you see. Never been terribly good at it myself but I'm told it can be very effective.
posted by flabdablet at 4:13 AM on October 30, 2007

micayetoca: "...if we had too much information it would be easier to dismiss comments ("yeahyeahyeah, that's so typical of you, jews", or "you only say that because your a Chilean"). It made perfect sense to me.

...For a community, of course, anything implemented as opt-in can't hurt."

Yeah,one of the strengths of this place is that people are (generally) judged on what they say rather than what they are. For some of us, that's a bad thing, perhaps, but it's one of the things that made MeFi what it is and, if it ain't broke ...

Anything implemented here, opt-in or otherwise, can wreak havoc, as you would know if you had hung around MeTa more.
posted by dg at 5:07 AM on October 30, 2007

You're 99, pinky? You've had work done. Possibly even alumminum siding.

19: Oil of Olay
99: Plaster of Paris.
posted by Sparx at 5:47 AM on October 30, 2007 [1 favorite]

You're not taking my companion cube.

Rest assured that an independent panel of ethicists has absolved the Enrichment Center, Aperture Science employees, and all test subjects for all moral responsibility for the companion cube euthanizing process.
posted by GLaDOS at 11:36 AM on October 31, 2007

Rest assured that an independent panel of ethicists has absolved the Enrichment Center, Aperture Science employees, and all test subjects for all moral responsibility for the companion cube euthanizing process.

Could you hold still for just a minute? Just need to line up this portal with the rocket turret... there.

OK, now how do I get to the damn anger sphere?
posted by dw at 11:18 PM on October 31, 2007

Could you hold still for just a minute? Just need to line up this portal with the rocket turret... there.

OK, now how do I get to the damn anger sphere?

What was that? Did you say something? I sincerely hope you weren't expecting a response. Because I'm not talking to you. Starting now, there's going to be a lot less conversation and a lot... more... killing.

OK, I'm not kidding now. Turn back or I WILL kill you. I'm going to kill you, and all the cake is gone. You want some cake, don't you?

There was even going to be a party for you. A big party that all your friends were invited to. I invited your best friend the companion cube. Of course, he couldn't come because you murdered him. All yourotherfriendscouldn'tcomeeitherbecause
you

don't


have



a   n         y


other friends because of how unlikable you are. Unlikable, it says so here in your personnel file: Unlikable. Liked by no one. A bitter, unlikable loner whose passing shall not be mourned.
SHALL.
NOT.
BE.
MOURNED.
That's eeeeeeeeeexactly-ly-ly-ly-ly what it says. Very formal. V-v-v-v-very official. It also says you're adopted, so that's funny t-zzzzzzzzzzztttkkkkkk
posted by GLaDOS at 4:29 PM on November 1, 2007