May 13, 2003

4:05 PM

I'm sure this has been covered before, but I'm fairly new here (to posting, especially), so I thought I'd ask again. Please don't kill me, but:

I've had aspects of a meme-type thing that I helped to create posted about here. These linked to a site I contribute to but, since I didn't ask for or advocate the subject were in the clear.

Now, I've got a site dedicated to the subject that inspired the first game/challenge that the original story was part of. It seems to me that if people here enjoyed the tidbit on the matter they'd like to see the new whole site.

But...it would very obviously be a self-link, and I completely understand the point of outlawing those. What's a guy to do? Is there some third-party I could suggest a link to? Should I wait till a vaguely applicable post comes up and post it in the message boards? Should I just wait around and hope that eventually someone from here manages to find it?

I'd like to participate, but I'm too new to guess at these rules. I'm glad I at least found this area to post in (and I'm hoping that fact will shield me a bit from the flames I'm expecting to receive).
posted by davebug to etiquette/policy at 4:05 PM (24 comments total)

I'd like to participate

Yeah, just like Hitler wanted to participate.
posted by Pretty_Generic at 4:09 PM on May 13, 2003

user 2468 and you consider yourself new? wow.
posted by quonsar at 4:12 PM on May 13, 2003

you may be mefi's oldest virgin.
posted by quonsar at 4:12 PM on May 13, 2003

Apart from you, of course, quonsar.

Self-links, appropriately acknowledged as such and suitably apologised for in advance, are usually accepted in comments within a thread, so you have probably solved the problem by starting a thread about whatever the subject is so can safely post your link in a comment.

Or you may be shot down in flames, depending on the mood of the day. You pays your money and you takes your chances.
posted by dg at 4:19 PM on May 13, 2003

*quonsar gathers up the pieces of his shattered hymen and retreats indignantly*
posted by quonsar at 4:23 PM on May 13, 2003

Being bent over a barrel in MetaTalk doesn't count, quonsar.
posted by dg at 4:25 PM on May 13, 2003

I've been riding the CentraDoc meme-train, but I don't think Mefi is the appropriate place for it.

(a vaguely applicable post comes up)
posted by holloway at 4:34 PM on May 13, 2003

I see from the comments above that we're back to MeTa as self-serving wank-fest. Oh joy.

davebug, you can submit your site to the MeFi Projects list. Someone on the list might think it's worth posting to MeFi itself.
posted by mattpfeff at 4:35 PM on May 13, 2003

Should I just wait around and hope that eventually someone from here manages to find it?

Ideally, that'd be the best method. Put it up, put it out there, and if it's good enough and there are enough metafilter users scouring the web for interesting bits, they'll find it and post it.

In the less perfect world, there is the aforementioned MeFi projects list.
posted by mathowie at 5:07 PM on May 13, 2003

Kindall, matt just gave you a new slogan for the projects list. Write it down, write it down.

Anyway Davebug, I wish there could be some distinction between self-links and links to things you have helped create. The term "self-link" to me implies some sort of vanity, like you're linking on metafilter to get more hits. That should be shunned, but what you're doing (if I am to believe your motives *takes long drag on cigarette*) is offering something you think will help the community, that you know of because you coincidentally happened to be a part of it. Me, I don't have a problem with it, but if Matt does, then well, better luck next crime.
posted by Hildago at 6:38 PM on May 13, 2003

Well, if I were in your situation, I might go back to the thread (or some similar thread) where users were volunteering their interest in your topic, find some folks who might find your site useful and interesting and mail them directly about it. If they like it enough they'll sponsor a new thread for you. Yes, it's "impure," but is it wrong?

On a related note, I have this preliminary communication study about FFFish and DDark on thread 25379 winding up this week, and I'm wondering how to make it available to those who are interested without treading on the same toes over which you fear to tread.
posted by squirrel at 8:38 PM on May 13, 2003

I say post the bastard, and let God sort it out.
posted by xmutex at 9:41 PM on May 13, 2003

I've come across some great sites by mefi members that have never been linked here, and the way I usually find them is when somebody makes an interesting post or comment and I check out their user page and follow the link(s). What sort of bothers me about your situation, davebug, is that you've been a member here since 2000, and your only contribution so far is one comment and one metatalk post, both about your project...

Ordinarily, my inclination would be pretty liberal, but this feels less like sharing, and more like using. But, either way, I guess you've now at least partially achieved your objective. We'll see how it goes.
posted by taz at 10:08 PM on May 13, 2003

touche', taz.
posted by Ufez Jones at 10:29 PM on May 13, 2003

quonsar: Well, I've always read that you should sit around and watch a community before you jump in and participate. No one ever specified how long I was supposed to wait...Seems like 2 years is probably long enough, I guess.

mattpfeff, mathowie: Thanks for the advice, I hadn't noticed the MeFi Projects and will check it out. No matter what others suggest, I can't bring myself to just directly post the story hoping people won't mind the self-link, so we'll see if the story's deemed worthy by others.

taz: You're generally correct about the content of the 2 posts I've done, but I would like to think that I've limited my contributions to times I thought I could actually add something that wasn't already being said on the site. I'm not one to post "me too!" just to get my name out there.

It does seem a bit odd to be criticized essentially for having joined early on. You'll probably see more of me, but I'm going to continue to hold back until I think I'm offering something new, so no promises.

In any case, thanks for the comments everyone, I've got a much better idea of how to approach this situation now.
posted by davebug at 10:50 PM on May 13, 2003

You're welcome.
posted by Pretty_Generic at 2:18 AM on May 14, 2003

For a small fee I'm now available to post links from MeFi Projects to MeFi. ;)
posted by twine42 at 3:08 AM on May 14, 2003

Whatever happened to those emails anyway? Is no one doing anything interesting?
posted by amberglow at 5:52 AM on May 14, 2003

Well at the moment, I'm seeing which finger is best for nose picking, but I didn't wanna publicize the project till I had some hard data.
posted by jonmc at 6:19 AM on May 14, 2003

*in my wildest dreams, to the sweetest night music, davebug's beautiful posting record comes to me.
posted by MiguelCardoso at 10:10 AM on May 14, 2003

"The moving finger having writ moves on, and all your tears shall cancel not a word of it," except, of course, what mathowie deletes.
posted by timeistight at 10:28 AM on May 14, 2003

Whatever happened to those emails anyway? Is no one doing anything interesting?

I get very few submissions and, to make things worse, got somewhat remiss in senidng out updates around the beginning of the year, so people forgot it's there to send submissions to.

Additionally, there are a few (perhaps a dozen) people whose mail servers refuse to accept the mailings. (One replies with a bounce that admonishes, "Send your message through your ISP's mail server." Well, if my ISP would accept a message with 300 recipients, I might just do that...) I leave these accounts on the list just in case their ISPs get a clue. If you haven't received a mailing in the last month or two, you might be one of them.

There will be a mailing this weekend because someone did submit an announcement this week.
posted by kindall at 11:22 AM on May 14, 2003

in my wildest dreams...

If only Dave would post one link. Doesn't have to be a particularly good one. Just to make it perfect.
posted by ginz at 11:48 AM on May 14, 2003

He was saving it for his self-link? ;)
posted by MiguelCardoso at 11:51 AM on May 14, 2003