Chatfilter Guidelines April 9, 2006 5:54 AM Subscribe
Why was this deleted as "chatfilter" while countless indistinguishable threads weren't? [more inside]
Here's what somebody has to say about your concerns
posted by Mayor Curley at 6:08 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by Mayor Curley at 6:08 AM on April 9, 2006
Chat: "I like X. What do you like?"
Question: "I like X. What else will I like?"
posted by gleuschk at 6:11 AM on April 9, 2006
Question: "I like X. What else will I like?"
posted by gleuschk at 6:11 AM on April 9, 2006
Two things that I think tend to distinguish chatfilter AskMe threads from others, or things that bring out the flags on chatty AskMe threads.
1. When the question is a pretty straightforward "What is your favorite X" without any other information about the poster or why they want to know.
2. When the poster says some variant of "I'll go first, my favorite X is ...." in their question.
If you want a more specific answer, the four threads you linked to are all looking for music recommendations in the vein of "I like X, what else would I like?" and the first one is asking "What is your favorite X"
So, answered another way, the four threads you linked to are not indistinguishable from the first one. They are distinguishable in that they had a problem to be solved, the first one just seemed to be an open thread about people's favorite pop music.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 6:12 AM on April 9, 2006
1. When the question is a pretty straightforward "What is your favorite X" without any other information about the poster or why they want to know.
2. When the poster says some variant of "I'll go first, my favorite X is ...." in their question.
If you want a more specific answer, the four threads you linked to are all looking for music recommendations in the vein of "I like X, what else would I like?" and the first one is asking "What is your favorite X"
So, answered another way, the four threads you linked to are not indistinguishable from the first one. They are distinguishable in that they had a problem to be solved, the first one just seemed to be an open thread about people's favorite pop music.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 6:12 AM on April 9, 2006
the four threads you linked to are all looking for music recommendations in the vein of "I like X, what else would I like?" and the first one is asking "What is your favorite X"
I kind of get your point, but the recommendation-type questions are usually nothing but invitations for open threads, and the "what's your favourite?" are implicitly asking for recommendations, so in practice I don't think this distinction exists. It seems like you're just being petty about wording.
posted by cillit bang at 6:24 AM on April 9, 2006
I kind of get your point, but the recommendation-type questions are usually nothing but invitations for open threads, and the "what's your favourite?" are implicitly asking for recommendations, so in practice I don't think this distinction exists. It seems like you're just being petty about wording.
posted by cillit bang at 6:24 AM on April 9, 2006
But surely it's quite likely that the person asking "what is your favourite X?" wants to know so they can find things they might like. Seems silly to punish them for the phrasing when their motivation and the end result are likely to be exactly the same as with the "what else would I like?" version.
posted by reklaw at 6:25 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by reklaw at 6:25 AM on April 9, 2006
i think all questions that amount to "i (want to) like this kind of thing, what should i try/what do you like" are useless and i flag all of them. most of them don't get deleted; so be it.
however, i think that the possibility of deletion creates a great many more of these type of useless/borderline/chatfilter posts than we would otherwise see. a person thinks, "hm, this *might* break the guidelines and be an answerable, chatfilter, purely matter of taste question, but i'll post it anyway. surely it will be deleted if it's too chatty." really, the person should be thinking, "drat. this really just calls for an opinion rather than a recommendation. guess i'll just ask the guys at work."
[where an opinion = a song i really like and a recommendation = a hairstylist who was reasonably priced and did exactly what i asked]
posted by crush-onastick at 6:31 AM on April 9, 2006
however, i think that the possibility of deletion creates a great many more of these type of useless/borderline/chatfilter posts than we would otherwise see. a person thinks, "hm, this *might* break the guidelines and be an answerable, chatfilter, purely matter of taste question, but i'll post it anyway. surely it will be deleted if it's too chatty." really, the person should be thinking, "drat. this really just calls for an opinion rather than a recommendation. guess i'll just ask the guys at work."
[where an opinion = a song i really like and a recommendation = a hairstylist who was reasonably priced and did exactly what i asked]
posted by crush-onastick at 6:31 AM on April 9, 2006
If they get flagged by a bunch of people, they get deleted.
posted by Roger Dodger at 6:46 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by Roger Dodger at 6:46 AM on April 9, 2006
I think because the others are asking for advice, and this one isn't? Not saying I agree or disagree, but that seems to be the difference between them.
posted by Bugbread at 6:58 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by Bugbread at 6:58 AM on April 9, 2006
*sigh* MeTa posts like this are why Matt won't give us [comment deleted] markers. This has been done to death here; folks need to just get over the fact that some chatty AskMes are framed sloppily and get deleted before they encourage other folks to post even more sloppy and chatty questions. Matt and Jessamyn have made it more than clear that they'll happily repost these questions if the asker actually asks for help with something. Why is it necessary to continue questioning this kind of deletion?
It seems like you're just being petty about wording.
No. The distinction may be small, but it's not petty.
posted by mediareport at 7:09 AM on April 9, 2006
It seems like you're just being petty about wording.
No. The distinction may be small, but it's not petty.
posted by mediareport at 7:09 AM on April 9, 2006
March 16 thread that's almost an exact duplicate of this one, found with a MeTa search for "chatfilter AskMe."
"What is your favorite X" AskMes are almost sure to be deleted (well, as sure as anything around here). "I like X, what else will I like?" AskMes are almost sure to remain. Why is that so hard to understand?
posted by mediareport at 7:17 AM on April 9, 2006
"What is your favorite X" AskMes are almost sure to be deleted (well, as sure as anything around here). "I like X, what else will I like?" AskMes are almost sure to remain. Why is that so hard to understand?
posted by mediareport at 7:17 AM on April 9, 2006
It seems like you're just being petty about wording.
I've argued (and lost) this one in the past.
Bad: what makes you happy?
Good: my teacher assigned me a paper with the topic, "What makes you happy?" I'm a pretty depressed person, so I don't know what to write. Please give me ideas: what makes YOU happy?
To me, these questions are identical. I don't get how the REASON someone is asking makes any difference. But to many people here, it does. And it makes a difference to the people who run the site. So you might as well resign yourself to it. Though it irks me a little, it's really not that hard to phrase questions in a way that makes the powers-that-be happy.
posted by grumblebee at 7:31 AM on April 9, 2006
I've argued (and lost) this one in the past.
Bad: what makes you happy?
Good: my teacher assigned me a paper with the topic, "What makes you happy?" I'm a pretty depressed person, so I don't know what to write. Please give me ideas: what makes YOU happy?
To me, these questions are identical. I don't get how the REASON someone is asking makes any difference. But to many people here, it does. And it makes a difference to the people who run the site. So you might as well resign yourself to it. Though it irks me a little, it's really not that hard to phrase questions in a way that makes the powers-that-be happy.
posted by grumblebee at 7:31 AM on April 9, 2006
grumblebee, I think the latter would be out on the 'homework' clause.
but yeah, people have to make some kind of attempt to ground their question in practical or personally central concerns, rather than allowing it to come off as 'i'm bored, might as well get people talking about something'. The idea of chatfilter is that people don't so much care about the information as the interaction. I think this is largely true of askme in general, since so many of the questions asked could be solved by google or talking to your doctor / vet or whatever, but the questions which make the cut are at least as concerned with information as interaction. The ones that get killed are those which seem to be more interested in the interaction, where the person seems to have no reason beyond idle curiosity and a general interest in starting a conversation.
Obviously there are going to be questions that are on the line, and then it's a little bit a question of luck/mood/etc whether it stays or not.
posted by mdn at 7:57 AM on April 9, 2006
but yeah, people have to make some kind of attempt to ground their question in practical or personally central concerns, rather than allowing it to come off as 'i'm bored, might as well get people talking about something'. The idea of chatfilter is that people don't so much care about the information as the interaction. I think this is largely true of askme in general, since so many of the questions asked could be solved by google or talking to your doctor / vet or whatever, but the questions which make the cut are at least as concerned with information as interaction. The ones that get killed are those which seem to be more interested in the interaction, where the person seems to have no reason beyond idle curiosity and a general interest in starting a conversation.
Obviously there are going to be questions that are on the line, and then it's a little bit a question of luck/mood/etc whether it stays or not.
posted by mdn at 7:57 AM on April 9, 2006
Thanks all. I understand the idea of there needing to be a problem solved but "I don't know which records to buy" seems so flimsy as a problem that it might as well go unsaid.
posted by cillit bang at 8:09 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by cillit bang at 8:09 AM on April 9, 2006
I dunno. If you agree that chatfilter is a bad thing, then you have to draw the line somewhere, right?
posted by Afroblanco at 8:15 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by Afroblanco at 8:15 AM on April 9, 2006
Survivability is, as a function, not boolean but probabilistic. Every question has some chance of being deleted, but for most questions that's awful low; let's say the general value is P = .99 survivability.
Chatfilter drops P significantly, and moreso depending on the formulation of the question. It doesn't mean the question will or won't get deleted, it's simply more likely.
posted by cortex at 8:17 AM on April 9, 2006
Chatfilter drops P significantly, and moreso depending on the formulation of the question. It doesn't mean the question will or won't get deleted, it's simply more likely.
posted by cortex at 8:17 AM on April 9, 2006
I think it's clear that deletion of these questions is more about how the question is framed than the actual subject or request. As Zetetics noted last time we discussed this, "The result is that chatty questions are just fine here, provided you jump through a hoop by lying about why you’re asking and are properly cunning in your phrasing."
posted by monju_bosatsu at 8:22 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by monju_bosatsu at 8:22 AM on April 9, 2006
I was surprised it was was deleted. (Six weeks ago.)
It seems like any other "recommend some music" question, which are all pretty chatfilter, but obviously chatfilter that is allowed. I figured the admins were just having a bad day.
posted by smackfu at 8:26 AM on April 9, 2006
It seems like any other "recommend some music" question, which are all pretty chatfilter, but obviously chatfilter that is allowed. I figured the admins were just having a bad day.
posted by smackfu at 8:26 AM on April 9, 2006
it's quite likely that the person asking "what is your favourite X?" wants to know so they can find things they might like
You might as well just go to allmusic and start clicking things at random.
posted by Wolfdog at 8:33 AM on April 9, 2006
You might as well just go to allmusic and start clicking things at random.
posted by Wolfdog at 8:33 AM on April 9, 2006
There's no way to defend the existence of that one, Wolfdog.
posted by smackfu at 8:43 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by smackfu at 8:43 AM on April 9, 2006
"The result is that chatty questions are just fine here, provided you jump through a hoop by lying about why you’re asking and are properly cunning in your phrasing."
Yes, but there's nothing wrong with that. You're quoting someone else, but I'd expect that as an attorney, you'd see why this makes sense.
There's a lot of ambiguity in the world and as a general rule, if you're going to try to draw the line where there's ambiguity, it's best to try and "hook" the drawing of the line on something that is clearly testable. It doesn't mean that what is being tested for is presumed to be the general aim of making the distinction, but rather that it's a (relatively) clear indication of the distinction that you're trying to make.
It's such a highly abstruse and technical concept that it's the sort of thing only supergeniuses are comfortable with, but I suspect that the rest of we dullards can figure it out, if we try. There's a technical term for this, it's called "a rule of thumb".
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 8:48 AM on April 9, 2006
Yes, but there's nothing wrong with that. You're quoting someone else, but I'd expect that as an attorney, you'd see why this makes sense.
There's a lot of ambiguity in the world and as a general rule, if you're going to try to draw the line where there's ambiguity, it's best to try and "hook" the drawing of the line on something that is clearly testable. It doesn't mean that what is being tested for is presumed to be the general aim of making the distinction, but rather that it's a (relatively) clear indication of the distinction that you're trying to make.
It's such a highly abstruse and technical concept that it's the sort of thing only supergeniuses are comfortable with, but I suspect that the rest of we dullards can figure it out, if we try. There's a technical term for this, it's called "a rule of thumb".
posted by Ethereal Bligh at 8:48 AM on April 9, 2006
Poster of thread in question here. I too was surprised it was deleted, as it seemed identical to N other threads, including a few of my own which weren't deleted. Didn't make a MeTa post not to seem whiny.
FWIW, I think the distinction between ways of phrasing the question is entirely meaningless, and the thread in question was not veering off into any uncalled-for chattiness, certainly much less than a large number of AskMe threads.
And for the record, my intent was to find new pop to listen to, sorry if I didn't spell it out.
posted by signal at 8:50 AM on April 9, 2006
FWIW, I think the distinction between ways of phrasing the question is entirely meaningless, and the thread in question was not veering off into any uncalled-for chattiness, certainly much less than a large number of AskMe threads.
And for the record, my intent was to find new pop to listen to, sorry if I didn't spell it out.
posted by signal at 8:50 AM on April 9, 2006
Uh-oh, self-outing.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 9:22 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by mr_crash_davis at 9:22 AM on April 9, 2006
Damn it -- I love these "what's your favorite current music" threads and derive great value from them. Seriously. For the past year or so, most of the new music I try has come from these threads. I love to track down all of the suggestions and give them a try. This thread wasn't worthy of deletion.
posted by jdroth at 9:47 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by jdroth at 9:47 AM on April 9, 2006
The phrasing of the question is important because it shapes how people answer. Good answers take into acount the poster's specific situation, goals, constraints, etc. Good answers come from people who aren't just thinking, "I would do X" but are trying to actually answer "Here is what *you* should do."
Ex: "I like the Life Aquatic soundtrack. What else should I listen to?" (emph mine). Answers would be: "You should check out..."
Not-so-good answers ignore the poster's specifics. Not-so-good answers simply reflect the answerer's life and prejudices without taking the original poster into account. Not-so-good answers are basically "I like X," without further explanation about why the poster might like X, based on actual facts brought in from the poster's question.
Ex: "I like Girls Aloud. What do you listen to?" Answers would be: I like..."
"What's your favorite X?" pretty much precludes good answers. The only possible answer is a not-so-good answer.
There are of course going to be questions that don't fall exactly into these categories, but good questions (which I really define as questions that lead to good answers) are going to be much more from Column A than from Column B. Relationship questions, for instance, often inspire good answers that start with "In a similar situation, I ....", but good answers that start that way will still take into account the poster's unique circumstances.
posted by occhiblu at 9:47 AM on April 9, 2006 [1 favorite]
Ex: "I like the Life Aquatic soundtrack. What else should I listen to?" (emph mine). Answers would be: "You should check out..."
Not-so-good answers ignore the poster's specifics. Not-so-good answers simply reflect the answerer's life and prejudices without taking the original poster into account. Not-so-good answers are basically "I like X," without further explanation about why the poster might like X, based on actual facts brought in from the poster's question.
Ex: "I like Girls Aloud. What do you listen to?" Answers would be: I like..."
"What's your favorite X?" pretty much precludes good answers. The only possible answer is a not-so-good answer.
There are of course going to be questions that don't fall exactly into these categories, but good questions (which I really define as questions that lead to good answers) are going to be much more from Column A than from Column B. Relationship questions, for instance, often inspire good answers that start with "In a similar situation, I ....", but good answers that start that way will still take into account the poster's unique circumstances.
posted by occhiblu at 9:47 AM on April 9, 2006 [1 favorite]
In other words, I can answer a "What else would I like" without actually loving any of the bands I suggest; I'm suggesting them because I think the poster would like them. In answering a "What's your favorite," all I'm doing is making a comment about me and not really considering the poster at all.
And presumably this resource is here to help others, not just to talk about ourselves.
posted by occhiblu at 9:50 AM on April 9, 2006
And presumably this resource is here to help others, not just to talk about ourselves.
posted by occhiblu at 9:50 AM on April 9, 2006
uh... signal == skree?
posted by RustyBrooks at 10:06 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by RustyBrooks at 10:06 AM on April 9, 2006
Occhiblu's answer makes sense to me.
Q: "I like Eminem and Snoop Dogg. What other artists do you think I'd like?"
A: "You might like Dr. Dre. He produced Snoop Dogg, and has worked with Eminem." - Markable as best answer.
A: "You might like Beethoven. He composed classical music." - Not markable as best answer.
Q: "I like Eminem and Snoop Dogg. Who do you like?"
A: "I like Dr. Dre. He has phat beats." - Markable as best answer.
A: "I like Beethoven. He composed some mean symphonies." - Markable as best answer.
When any answer, as long as it's on-topic, is equally markable as best answer, there's a problem with the question.
posted by Bugbread at 10:13 AM on April 9, 2006
Q: "I like Eminem and Snoop Dogg. What other artists do you think I'd like?"
A: "You might like Dr. Dre. He produced Snoop Dogg, and has worked with Eminem." - Markable as best answer.
A: "You might like Beethoven. He composed classical music." - Not markable as best answer.
Q: "I like Eminem and Snoop Dogg. Who do you like?"
A: "I like Dr. Dre. He has phat beats." - Markable as best answer.
A: "I like Beethoven. He composed some mean symphonies." - Markable as best answer.
When any answer, as long as it's on-topic, is equally markable as best answer, there's a problem with the question.
posted by Bugbread at 10:13 AM on April 9, 2006
There's a technical term for this, it's called "a rule of thumb".
Yes, but there are two problems with this particular rule. First, it doesn't identify any functional distinction between questions. I'm of the opinion that a question that asks, "I like genre x, what is your favorite song in that genre?," will elicit identical answers to a question that asks, "I like genre x, what songs in that genre should I listen to?" Either both should stay, or both should be deleted. Personally, I think they should both stay, barring other problems with the questions. Calling one chatfilter and the other not doesn't make any sense.
Second, even assuming that the rule made sense, it's applied erratically at best. Browsing through the music tag, in particular, reveals a substantial number of questions that simply aren't distinguishable from those that get deleted. I realize that this is a function of a limited number of moderators, but there's a fundamental issue of fairness when the rule is applied so inconsistently.
Finally, I'll simply repeat my opinion about these questions. The people that ask these questions, no matter how they phrase the question, are seeking recommendations for new music to listen to. That seems like a perfectly good use of AskMetaFilter, and frankly, some of my favorite threads have been the result of the "what is your favorite x" questions.
posted by monju_bosatsu at 10:34 AM on April 9, 2006
Yes, but there are two problems with this particular rule. First, it doesn't identify any functional distinction between questions. I'm of the opinion that a question that asks, "I like genre x, what is your favorite song in that genre?," will elicit identical answers to a question that asks, "I like genre x, what songs in that genre should I listen to?" Either both should stay, or both should be deleted. Personally, I think they should both stay, barring other problems with the questions. Calling one chatfilter and the other not doesn't make any sense.
Second, even assuming that the rule made sense, it's applied erratically at best. Browsing through the music tag, in particular, reveals a substantial number of questions that simply aren't distinguishable from those that get deleted. I realize that this is a function of a limited number of moderators, but there's a fundamental issue of fairness when the rule is applied so inconsistently.
Finally, I'll simply repeat my opinion about these questions. The people that ask these questions, no matter how they phrase the question, are seeking recommendations for new music to listen to. That seems like a perfectly good use of AskMetaFilter, and frankly, some of my favorite threads have been the result of the "what is your favorite x" questions.
posted by monju_bosatsu at 10:34 AM on April 9, 2006
Good catch, crash_
I wish I could pay as much attention as some here, an inadvertant display of the privates is one of the finest sights in all MetaLand.
As EB says, this is a measure of chance: if the mod sees and discounts, the thread gets smoked, if it passes because the sky outside is blue and there's no time to waste on the green, the thread survives.
I'm grateful both for the ones which get by and the ones which breathe dirt because a little popular cultural relaxation never hurt, but a lot of cultural relaxation hurts just about everyone.
posted by NinjaTadpole at 10:42 AM on April 9, 2006
I wish I could pay as much attention as some here, an inadvertant display of the privates is one of the finest sights in all MetaLand.
As EB says, this is a measure of chance: if the mod sees and discounts, the thread gets smoked, if it passes because the sky outside is blue and there's no time to waste on the green, the thread survives.
I'm grateful both for the ones which get by and the ones which breathe dirt because a little popular cultural relaxation never hurt, but a lot of cultural relaxation hurts just about everyone.
posted by NinjaTadpole at 10:42 AM on April 9, 2006
Yes, but there's nothing wrong with that.
Except that it is often seen as arbitrary or unfair as it appears to hinge on trivial peculiarities of phrasing rather than matters of content, will disproportionally
affect new users and those too naïve or honest to properly phrase their question, and results in the deletion of many otherwise interesting and even useful answers.
As a rule of thumb, I suspect it could be better. I have failed to understand the intent, so I’m not sure what to suggest instead. However, as long as we have this rule as it is currently applied, we should expect that people will continue to ask why.
The phrasing of the question is important because it shapes how people answer.
I doubt that is true in these examples.
However, questions like “what are your favourite. . . “ are distinct from “since I like. . . what else wood I like“ questions. I would ask the former if I were looking for things that are appreciated by others, but different from what I already know I like.
When any answer, as long as it's on-topic, is equally markable as best answer, there's a problem with the question.
I don’t understand why this must be true.
posted by Zetetics at 10:56 AM on April 9, 2006
Except that it is often seen as arbitrary or unfair as it appears to hinge on trivial peculiarities of phrasing rather than matters of content, will disproportionally
affect new users and those too naïve or honest to properly phrase their question, and results in the deletion of many otherwise interesting and even useful answers.
As a rule of thumb, I suspect it could be better. I have failed to understand the intent, so I’m not sure what to suggest instead. However, as long as we have this rule as it is currently applied, we should expect that people will continue to ask why.
The phrasing of the question is important because it shapes how people answer.
I doubt that is true in these examples.
However, questions like “what are your favourite. . . “ are distinct from “since I like. . . what else wood I like“ questions. I would ask the former if I were looking for things that are appreciated by others, but different from what I already know I like.
When any answer, as long as it's on-topic, is equally markable as best answer, there's a problem with the question.
I don’t understand why this must be true.
posted by Zetetics at 10:56 AM on April 9, 2006
will disproportionally affect new users and those too naïve or honest to properly phrase their question, and results in the deletion of many otherwise interesting and even useful answers
Oh, please. What is it about "You can resubmit the question with minor modification to better fit the AskMe guidelines" that's difficult to understand?
posted by mediareport at 11:16 AM on April 9, 2006
Oh, please. What is it about "You can resubmit the question with minor modification to better fit the AskMe guidelines" that's difficult to understand?
posted by mediareport at 11:16 AM on April 9, 2006
Apologies for the tone of that last comment. Seriously, it was unnecessary.
posted by mediareport at 11:23 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by mediareport at 11:23 AM on April 9, 2006
I think the upsidedown question mark was just too annoying.
posted by 6550 at 11:33 AM on April 9, 2006
posted by 6550 at 11:33 AM on April 9, 2006
Well, its difficult to understand only in the sense that it seems so very petty. It suggests that there’s nothing inherently wrong in the substance of the question but, because the asker didn’t preface the question with ‘Simon says’, it was deleted.
Btw, how often are such questions re-submitted? And, how many deleted answers are re-posted?
Perhaps its my fault for misunderstanding how this works, but the suggested procedure just strikes me as very silly. Could we not just edit a stock phrase into the question if that’s all that’s required?
(the last comment didn't seem that harsh - apologies if my reply does)
posted by Zetetics at 11:37 AM on April 9, 2006
Btw, how often are such questions re-submitted? And, how many deleted answers are re-posted?
Perhaps its my fault for misunderstanding how this works, but the suggested procedure just strikes me as very silly. Could we not just edit a stock phrase into the question if that’s all that’s required?
(the last comment didn't seem that harsh - apologies if my reply does)
posted by Zetetics at 11:37 AM on April 9, 2006
quonsar wrote...
a shushing a day keeps the bad noise away.
Which is really the point, I think.
People complaining that the guidelines aren't rigorously enforced should probably take two deep breaths and step away from the keyboard. As long as there is some enforcement of the guidelines, the community at large will be reminded of their existence and presumably attempt to adhere to them, lest their next question be deleted.
In fact, from a training standpoint intermittent reinforcements work much better than consistent ones. Occasionally whacking someone on the nose is probably a better enforcement of the guidelines than rigorously picking out every suspect post would ever be.
posted by tkolar at 12:52 PM on April 9, 2006
a shushing a day keeps the bad noise away.
Which is really the point, I think.
People complaining that the guidelines aren't rigorously enforced should probably take two deep breaths and step away from the keyboard. As long as there is some enforcement of the guidelines, the community at large will be reminded of their existence and presumably attempt to adhere to them, lest their next question be deleted.
In fact, from a training standpoint intermittent reinforcements work much better than consistent ones. Occasionally whacking someone on the nose is probably a better enforcement of the guidelines than rigorously picking out every suspect post would ever be.
posted by tkolar at 12:52 PM on April 9, 2006
tkolar: As long as there is some enforcement of the guidelines, the community at large will be reminded of their existence and presumably attempt to adhere to them
And if they're completely arbitrary, the fear will keep people acting right.
posted by yerfatma at 2:53 PM on April 9, 2006
And if they're completely arbitrary, the fear will keep people acting right.
posted by yerfatma at 2:53 PM on April 9, 2006
Once a question is deleted, does the poster still have to wait a week before posting another one? Or is the count reset, allowing the poster to re-post a better-phrased question immediately? (Pardon me if this has been asked and answered a million times.)
posted by jayder at 3:13 PM on April 9, 2006
posted by jayder at 3:13 PM on April 9, 2006
They have to wait.
posted by crunchland at 3:48 PM on April 9, 2006
posted by crunchland at 3:48 PM on April 9, 2006
Perhaps it's just a subtle difference in phrasing, but I don't think the following two things are the same:
1) What's your favorite X?
2) Can you make a recommendation, based on my preference, Y?
posted by scarabic at 4:33 PM on April 9, 2006
1) What's your favorite X?
2) Can you make a recommendation, based on my preference, Y?
posted by scarabic at 4:33 PM on April 9, 2006
The question Wolfdog linked that wasn't deleted is "What CD are you currently in love with?" Arbitrary AND capricious.
posted by smackfu at 6:34 PM on April 9, 2006
posted by smackfu at 6:34 PM on April 9, 2006
What if everyone listened to Belle and Sebastian? How would the world be different?
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 4:20 AM on April 10, 2006
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 4:20 AM on April 10, 2006
They have to wait.
I'm pretty sure there have been times when the poster emailed a revised question to Matt/Jessamyn and it went up pretty quickly, like that day.
posted by mediareport at 8:28 AM on April 10, 2006
I'm pretty sure there have been times when the poster emailed a revised question to Matt/Jessamyn and it went up pretty quickly, like that day.
posted by mediareport at 8:28 AM on April 10, 2006
You know how we could significantly and instantly reduce the number of annoying, wanky, self-regarding, pointless threads? Bin MetaTalk. Entirely. I'm serious.
posted by Decani at 5:15 PM on April 10, 2006
posted by Decani at 5:15 PM on April 10, 2006
You know how we could significantly and instantly reduce the number of annoying, wanky, self-regarding, pointless threads? Bin MetaTalk. Entirely. I'm serious.
You are? You really think the people who post to annoying, wanky, self-regarding, pointless threads would suddenly lose that urge and not just shift over to the Blue and Green?
posted by tkolar at 6:07 PM on April 10, 2006
You are? You really think the people who post to annoying, wanky, self-regarding, pointless threads would suddenly lose that urge and not just shift over to the Blue and Green?
posted by tkolar at 6:07 PM on April 10, 2006
You are? You really think the people who post to annoying, wanky, self-regarding, pointless threads would suddenly lose that urge and not just shift over to the Blue and Green?
I think the number would be reduced, because Metatalk encourages it. The blue/green doesn't. So we'd only get the most incorrigibly petty, anal, control-freak, censorious, school-prefect-mentality shitheads doing it over there.
posted by Decani at 6:58 PM on April 11, 2006
I think the number would be reduced, because Metatalk encourages it. The blue/green doesn't. So we'd only get the most incorrigibly petty, anal, control-freak, censorious, school-prefect-mentality shitheads doing it over there.
posted by Decani at 6:58 PM on April 11, 2006
From a single user's perspective, "bin MetaTalk" = "don't read MetaTalk."
I do sometimes read MetaTalk, but since I hate politics, I never read any of the political posts on Metafilter. I just skip past them. Works really well. I'm totally unbothered by "politicsfilter." It goes under my radar.
posted by grumblebee at 2:31 PM on April 12, 2006
I do sometimes read MetaTalk, but since I hate politics, I never read any of the political posts on Metafilter. I just skip past them. Works really well. I'm totally unbothered by "politicsfilter." It goes under my radar.
posted by grumblebee at 2:31 PM on April 12, 2006
From a single user's perspective, "bin MetaTalk" = "don't read MetaTalk."
Very possibly. Kinda like how from my perspective "Meta: OMG lookit this awful, protocol-violating FPP on the blue" = "Don't read that awful, protocol-violating FPP on the blue".
We could kill two birds with one stone here.
posted by Decani at 6:19 PM on April 18, 2006
Very possibly. Kinda like how from my perspective "Meta: OMG lookit this awful, protocol-violating FPP on the blue" = "Don't read that awful, protocol-violating FPP on the blue".
We could kill two birds with one stone here.
posted by Decani at 6:19 PM on April 18, 2006
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(And yes, this has been bugging me for 6 weeks)
posted by cillit bang at 5:54 AM on April 9, 2006