July 2001 Archives (all archives)
July 31
one million pageviews in a single month
MetaFilter tops one million pageviews in a single month.
Stats for July barely squeak past the elusive 1 million mark, but the site finally makes it. I usually don't care too much about the stats (they're mostly done for the sake of curiousity with regards to referrers and bandwidth use), but I was amazed to see such a large number at the "requests for pages" total.
Thanks everyone for contributing and visiting.
Stats for July barely squeak past the elusive 1 million mark, but the site finally makes it. I usually don't care too much about the stats (they're mostly done for the sake of curiousity with regards to referrers and bandwidth use), but I was amazed to see such a large number at the "requests for pages" total.
Thanks everyone for contributing and visiting.
Seattle Meetup
Seattle Blogger Get-Together, Friday, August 3rd, at the Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery downtown. 1333 5th Ave, downtown Seattle. Reservation is for 6pm, come as you can. Bring your friends, party all night. Pool, American food, "great beer".
Reservation is under my name (Dan Sanderson), in case we're hard to find. Could be a small group, could be a big group, you'll have to show up to see which.
No RSVP necessary, but if you're planning on coming, email me and let me know how many in your party, just for the sake of keeping track of things. Also please feel free to forward this invitation to any Seattle bloggers I forgot to include. (Non-Seattle bloggers that happen to be in the area are, of course, invited.)
Hope to see you all on Friday!
-- Dan of BrainLog
Reservation is under my name (Dan Sanderson), in case we're hard to find. Could be a small group, could be a big group, you'll have to show up to see which.
No RSVP necessary, but if you're planning on coming, email me and let me know how many in your party, just for the sake of keeping track of things. Also please feel free to forward this invitation to any Seattle bloggers I forgot to include. (Non-Seattle bloggers that happen to be in the area are, of course, invited.)
Hope to see you all on Friday!
-- Dan of BrainLog
Best threads get least comments
There are times when I see threads like the one on Clippings or the physics simulation lab and I could express that these threads have a value that cannot be measured by the number of comments. It is too bad that threads that inspire outrage and contention gather more comments, and as such, appear to have more value to the community.
July 30
Blogger sells ad space
Blogger sells ad space. Don't panic. It's only the last ditch cry of the "free web".
Haiku-posts are stale.
By the power vested in me, I, Shadowkeeper, declare haiku-posts to be officially passe.
Well. I guess that's settled.
Well. I guess that's settled.
How about an onionBot?
How about an onionBot? If a post goes, say, more than 6 comments without mentioning The Onion than an emergency system would be activated and insert 'This sounds like a article from The Onion,' or some veriation thereof, as the 7th comment. Then, and only then, would all be right in the MeFiverse
NYC Meetup
Again, a non-virtual Metafilter gathering in NYC should be proposed. Cool/odd/appropropriate location? Williamsburg, BK, or within line of sight of the computer. Does anyone know anyone who owns or has connections with such a venue?
July 29
An actual porn site; found
Browsing the recently updated list of sites on Blogger, as I occasionally do, I noticed this site on the list. I was expecting a girl with a sarcastic take on life, or a similar cliché; instead, I got an actual porn site. (With plenty of html and blogger tag errors.) Is this simply the natural progression of things, or something dastardly and the... erm... artificial progression of things?
3 or 4 choices? Bug
During today's name-server downtime, I noticed that when I connect directly to the IP, I can't list threads by "my comments". The listing menu only had three choices. When I access through "www.metafilter.com" I can; the menu has all four. I have no idea why this might be.
congratulations are in order [wedding]
July 27
Use the MeFi sidebar to draw attention to recent MeTa threads?
I posted this in another thread, but since you can't see new posts on MetaTalk, I decided to post it here. Would it be a good idea to list recent MetaTalk threads in a section of the right sidebar?
Also: would dates be better than days for right sidebar posts (7/27/01 instead of Friday)? Kind of like filepile. It's hard to tell how stale the news is with just days...
Also: would dates be better than days for right sidebar posts (7/27/01 instead of Friday)? Kind of like filepile. It's hard to tell how stale the news is with just days...
Six posts in two days
Six Front Page Posts In Two Days -- newbie sets new posting record?
I'd love an advanced search.
I'd love an advanced search. Parameters in addition to content would be:
* Username
* Date range
* Boolean or "Google like" (see below) search
The biggest bang for the buck in my opinion is the content plus usernames... There are a ton of useful applications of this search.
Note: "Google-like" refers to that quality of always being able to find what you're looking for. Okay, only kidding. Actually I'm thinking of quoted phrases & exclusions.
* Username
* Date range
* Boolean or "Google like" (see below) search
The biggest bang for the buck in my opinion is the content plus usernames... There are a ton of useful applications of this search.
Note: "Google-like" refers to that quality of always being able to find what you're looking for. Okay, only kidding. Actually I'm thinking of quoted phrases & exclusions.
July 26
Was MeFi down earlier?
Mefi down a few hours ago?
Pagination Pony for Personal Pages
could the "http://www.metafilter.com/search_posts.cfm?user_ID=xxxx" page be split up into multiple pages? Kind of a "page 1 of 12" deal. When trying to read through the comments of our more senior members, the download time is reminiscent of post 1142.
MeFi in the referrals, but no links. Odd?
I'm not sure if this is the correct place to post this, but in the last couple of weeks, the URLs of three different MetaFilter threads have shown up in the referral stats for my website. When I've checked the URLs, I've found no links to anything on my site. Does anyone know why such MetaFilter threads would be showing up in my stats? Is this happening to anyone else?
I use SiteMeter to monitor my stats... I don't know if that's part of the problem or not.
I use SiteMeter to monitor my stats... I don't know if that's part of the problem or not.
Where's that spring-loaded running shoes post?
Am I just stupid? Neither the MeFi Search nor Google's site-specific search are yielding the thread on the russian spring-loaded running shoes that help you go thirty miles an hour.
Did I just imagine that they exist? Or can someone else find that thread?
Did I just imagine that they exist? Or can someone else find that thread?
desktop weblog client; no comments
Handx released a desktop weblog client. You have to upload to a space that supports php or perl, but it's small, fast, free, and probably more reliable than blogger. (although blogger has been *great* lately). These are the same folks who made the palm weblog client. I've installed both and they work, but are probably not for beginners.
A gentle rebuke
I just wanted to point out quite possibly the most nicely worded double post notification I've ever seen, as an example of etiquette done right.
User Statistics
Perhaps a way, if not to tell *who* is currently logged in, at least a count of how many Mefites are in the house? I ask only because I'm on the other side of the Pacific from most of you (or the other side of the Eurasian landmass), and, well, etc.
July 25
Notify when you MeTa, kids
So I mentioned this here, but I'll ask here as well:
How about a way to remind people when they create a MetaTalk thread that they should invite/inform interested parties? I don't know how you'd do it -- maybe a popup the first time someone hits the site after the thread has been created (like the joke popup the other day).
How about a way to remind people when they create a MetaTalk thread that they should invite/inform interested parties? I don't know how you'd do it -- maybe a popup the first time someone hits the site after the thread has been created (like the joke popup the other day).
Self-linking is a no-no.
Posted here to keep me from bringing it up on MetaFilter: If you're going to link to your brother's page (domain whois), admit it.
July 24
Duplicate names are possible.
It is possible to sign up under the same name as someone else, using a [SPACE] before the username. That is a bad thing.
Maybe YOU've seen it before
I'm bothered that some people seem to think they should control the content of this site to their liking.
Do I know those guys?
Is that Matt and Jack on the Mitsubishi Eclipse [Start the commotion] commercial? Just maybe the glasses and the haircut. Who are the female models in that spot anyway?
[Links to photos and a .mov file]
[Links to photos and a .mov file]
Finally: a thread that doesn't make the Baby Jesus cry.
Finally: a thread that doesn't make the Baby Jesus cry.
Been-there-done-that Button Pony Request
Been there/Done that:
A button so that if a significant number of readers mark a post as a duplicate or just really boring, etc. then your preferences filter it out. So if someone were to post AYBABTU again, annoyed readers would mark it, and those who came later wouldn't see it unless they turned off their filter.
A button so that if a significant number of readers mark a post as a duplicate or just really boring, etc. then your preferences filter it out. So if someone were to post AYBABTU again, annoyed readers would mark it, and those who came later wouldn't see it unless they turned off their filter.
July 23
You can't post a link on Opera/Linux
You can't post a link on Opera/Linux: the "Post -> Wait" button just takes you back to the preview page.
July 22
We got ourselves a website
We got ourselves a website: alt.guitar.bass doesn't have any posting guidelines, or a benevolent dictator, or a separate site to bitch about what the proles are doing. Yet it's helpful, friendly (to the point where people notice), and self-regulating. It's also expanding to a website (above) and a binaries newsgroup for pictures and mp3. Despite having long, abusive flamewars, it's a solid community.
July 21
Search Comments by User?
Comment Search. A friend of mine just started reading metafilter and she wanted to read where I've made comments in the past. (Not sure why, but..) Is it possible to search for comments made by other people and I just don't realize? Is it unwise due to bandwidth considerations? Just curious.
July 20
HAHAHA...love the pop.
I pity the fool! HAHAHA...love the pop. And it worked--I toddled right over and donated. Good on ya, Matt.
This is why I fear for Metafilter.
"I thought I told you to go screw yourself, you fascist piece of shit."
This is why I fear for Metafilter. Not that people get away with this--he got called on it--but the fact that people feel it's necessary or desirable to say things like this to each other, increasingly, in all kinds of contexts. I don't care how vehemently you disagree, nobody here is "a piece of shit." I'm not asking for "sanctions" or anything, just wondering: is there any way to cultivate a sense of civility here, or should we just give up and leave the place to the jackals?
This is why I fear for Metafilter. Not that people get away with this--he got called on it--but the fact that people feel it's necessary or desirable to say things like this to each other, increasingly, in all kinds of contexts. I don't care how vehemently you disagree, nobody here is "a piece of shit." I'm not asking for "sanctions" or anything, just wondering: is there any way to cultivate a sense of civility here, or should we just give up and leave the place to the jackals?
Pony - filter out semi-committed-participants
Obnoxious feature request: A user preference that allows me to avoid seeing all contributions by people who don't provide an email address or home page address in their profile.
What is MetaFilter to you?
What is MetaFilter to you? What works and what doesn't?
From the mists of time....
Let's respect MeFi's past, while looking to chart its future. I've scanned through the archives and pulled up some of the more important threads in my time on MeFi, and I encourage you to do the same.
Sorry to hear your Mr Catfood died
It's a meme! Sorry to hear your Mr Catfood died
An eerie silence descends upon metafilter
No new threads.
I've logged out and then back in. I've restarted my browser, computer and net connection. I've dug up the fiber in front of my home. I've short-circuited the breakers at the Pacbell CO, instigating the start of their a massive emergency power generator.
And yet no new posts since this one at 3:57pm.
I've logged out and then back in. I've restarted my browser, computer and net connection. I've dug up the fiber in front of my home. I've short-circuited the breakers at the Pacbell CO, instigating the start of their a massive emergency power generator.
And yet no new posts since this one at 3:57pm.
July 19
July 19 was goshdarnitall a GOOD day
Now introducing : a 'Metafilter is getting better thread'! Is it just me and my interests-tunnelvision, or were the posts on July 19 just goshdarnitall more high-quality than has been the case sometimes of late? A little heavy on the flash and alcohol (two great tastes that go great together), but nary a single post of the 'Big Brother/Survivor' variety to be seen!
Blank page bug
What ... Just ... Happened?
I came here a few minutes ago and there was nothing but a big white space and a line that said that the URL didn't exist.
It was scary.
I came here a few minutes ago and there was nothing but a big white space and a line that said that the URL didn't exist.
It was scary.
If it would be the best of the web, can I upload it?
If something can't be found on the web (private bbs, email meme etc.), is it appropriate to upload it to your own site, clearly label it as not yours and then link to it on metafilter? What if there is an original website, but it's bogged down? Is alright with certain media types (a video clip), but not ok with other stuff (a list of funny things kids have said, which would be a crap post anyway)?
Do we need a posting limit?
Mistyped URLs Break MeFi
Every once in a while, posts like this pop up where someone types an incorrect URL, usually forgetting to include the http://. It's an honest mistake, but did you ever think about adding a simple regex to correct URLs on the fly?
MetaTalk isn't as good as it was in the old days (7/19/01)
MetaTalk isn't as good as it was in the old days.
July 18
It's too easy to post to the wrong part of Metatalk
It's too easy to post to the wrong part of Metatalk.
Dreaming about...being me?
I Had A Dream in which a cute woman was flirting with me. Then, at some point, I revealed that I was ParisParamus. She proceeded to run away. Despite running towards her and into a building, I could not find her again. Then, the dream ended. What does this mean?
I Had A Dream
I Had A Dream in which a cute woman was flirting with me. Then, at some point, I revealed that I was ParisParamus. She proceeded to run away. Despite running towards her and into a building, I could not find her again. Then, the dream ended. What does this mean?
Who is baby jesus?
Who Is Jesus?
30 minutes without the webs!
Plastic.com has been down for at least the last 30 minutes... Their web servers respond, but with a blank HTML document. (I didn't think this warranted a front-page post, but it might if this goes on for much longer.)
July 17
In-jokes grow old quickly
I, for one, and ZippitySick of ZippityBop.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I think they are all winners
Winners! (Actually I think they are all winners).
AIM Username on Profile Pages Bug
Teeny tiny bug time: In the AIM link on the user profile pages, any screenname with a space character breaks the URL. For example, pikachu lolita's AIM link gets shortened to just "pikachu" when clicked on.
Easy fix, change space characters to plus symbols. In other words, change this to this.
Easy fix, change space characters to plus symbols. In other words, change this to this.
July 16
Metafilter user homepages - where can I find them?
Does anyone recall the link that lists all the Mefites homepages in random order?
Is it just me, or is the site slow today?
Is it just me, or is the site slow today?
July 14
Mefi closing? For serious sez #1
Mefi hacked again? I was reading this thread and someone posting under your name said this:
k10k and Dreamless are taking breaks, not closing permanently.
As MetaFilter will, from August 6th to August 20th. I'll be in Australia, and will be taking the site down during my time away, to ensure I don't have any reason to worry about the site while I spend my vacation/honeymoon relaxing.
How do you publicise your weblog?
where do you guys go to publicize your projects? not that i'm a media slut or anything, but i've lately been writing some python scripts that would do away with the need to use a service such as Blogger or even GreyMatter. i get maybe a couple of hits every now and then, and those probably from blogger's last 10 updated list. if i stop using blogger, the one or two emails i do get every month or so will stop.
sorry if this seems like a sort of taboo subject, but i'm honestly curious. do ya just google? what sorts of resources are there for people to search for weblogs or publicize new ones?
sorry if this seems like a sort of taboo subject, but i'm honestly curious. do ya just google? what sorts of resources are there for people to search for weblogs or publicize new ones?
July 13
Why aren't there link to new comments on MetaTalk?
This is less a bug and more of a question about an inconsistency between MetaFilter and MetaTalk. Namely, that the new posts (i.e., 53 comments (3 new)) announcement is a link to the new posts on MeFi but not on MeTalk. Why the difference?
Why Was My X10 Post Removed?
I just submitted a link to X10 (spycam company)'s website where you can click a link that will disable their popups. I believe this link has been killed - first I thought it was just a browser error, but this appears to not be the case.
Just out of curiosioty, what's the reason that this link has been killed? AFAIK, there's no child pornography or other vile content linked to from the X10 pop-up opt-out site, and this might be something that other MeFi readers would be ecstatic to learn about.
..? atfrost
Just out of curiosioty, what's the reason that this link has been killed? AFAIK, there's no child pornography or other vile content linked to from the X10 pop-up opt-out site, and this might be something that other MeFi readers would be ecstatic to learn about.
..? atfrost
Is it possible to edit a post after posting to the front page?
Is it possible to edit a post after posting to the front page? I apparently left off a closing .lt. and want to fix it but can't figure out how.
I'm a gelato man, myself
MetaTalk login logout bug report
More logging-into-MetaTalk pain and dismay...
I'm at a new job as of this week and so am using a new computer, and I can't log in completely (it seems) to MetaTalk... I can log in and show up as logged in on the front page of MT or on a category main page, but when I click through to a thread there's no logged-in indicator and no posting form.
Similar/related to a problem where I can't seem to log *out* of (some pages on) MetaTalk, from home.
Matt, I emailed you about the latter a month or two ago, not sure if you got it though... if you did & are aware of the problem, please disregard this bug report and just work on getting me that pony.
I'm at a new job as of this week and so am using a new computer, and I can't log in completely (it seems) to MetaTalk... I can log in and show up as logged in on the front page of MT or on a category main page, but when I click through to a thread there's no logged-in indicator and no posting form.
Similar/related to a problem where I can't seem to log *out* of (some pages on) MetaTalk, from home.
Matt, I emailed you about the latter a month or two ago, not sure if you got it though... if you did & are aware of the problem, please disregard this bug report and just work on getting me that pony.
He came from under the bridge
This fellow, seems to be one a dem dere trolls....
July 12
Reality TV Links
Do we really need to discuss Survivor, Big Brother, The Real World, etc. on Metafilter? Two links in as many days about this stuff makes me cringe. It's bad enough hearing people talk about these shows everywhere you go, does this community need to "go there" as well?
Too much reality tv
Do we really need to discuss Survivor, Big Brother, The Real World, etc. on Metafilter? Two links in as many days about this stuff makes me cringe. It's bad enough hearing people talk about these shows everywhere you go, does this community need to "go there" as well?
July 11
Finding a specific post by post number without knowing thread?
Is there a way to find a specific post by post number without knowing which thread it's in? (Other than binary searching by hand through all of MeFi?)
MetaFilter quality declines while stupidity is on the rise
Point CounterPoint - When I first came here, there was some serious discourse on topics. In the last year, this has simply decended into stupid banter (right-vs-left, SUV-vs-environment).
OK, the arguments are fine. However, the nature of the arguer has changed here on MeFi. No longer do we have people with a view. Now we get the reply post that goes after the poster and not the idea.
OK, I am tired. Been a long day and I can't really articulate this fully. In a short sentence: Mefi, despite the intelligence of its users, is looking pretty damn stupid these days.
Argue the point, not the person (or ideolgy)
(drawing concentric circles on my chest)
[Ok, I have only recently registered with MeFi. However, I have been online since the mid 80s, so cut me a little slack.]
OK, the arguments are fine. However, the nature of the arguer has changed here on MeFi. No longer do we have people with a view. Now we get the reply post that goes after the poster and not the idea.
OK, I am tired. Been a long day and I can't really articulate this fully. In a short sentence: Mefi, despite the intelligence of its users, is looking pretty damn stupid these days.
Argue the point, not the person (or ideolgy)
(drawing concentric circles on my chest)
[Ok, I have only recently registered with MeFi. However, I have been online since the mid 80s, so cut me a little slack.]
Politics and demographics.
Ideology versus Scalability; Conservative versus Liberal; Kant's Categorical Imperatives versus the Scottish "Common Sense" philosophers; Yanks versus Brits; Democrats versus Republicans; Kudos from Sardine; and startling Mefi Demographic information!
Second Anniversary of the First (Extant) Post
I know the anniversary of the domain name has come and gone, but did you know that the oldest extant post to Metafilter will have its second birthday on Saturday? Planning anything special?
July 10
Blogger is experiencing DNS problems at the moment
I didn't think this was important enough to post on the main MeFi page, but thought I'd pass it along here...
According to evhead.com, Blogger is experiencing DNS problems at the moment. If you just can't live without it, try going to http://64.41.146.214/.
According to evhead.com, Blogger is experiencing DNS problems at the moment. If you just can't live without it, try going to http://64.41.146.214/.
Opening up registration again?
After/Upon the deluge. I feel somewhat self-conscious writing this since I only discovered Mefi in March. Nonetheless, I wonder if Matt has considered how to re-open Metafilter to new members. At this point, the pent-up demand is likely quite large, which could cause a kind of chaos. So I would suggest the when the gate re-opens, it be done in phases: maybe a certain number of posters per-day or per-week for a certain number of weeks; it's how we would do things back in Paramus. Just a thought.
July 9
Sorting "My Comments"
Not exactly a bug, but this seemed like the most relevant place for this question:
Hey Matt! What happened to the handy dandy "my comments" sort?
Hey Matt! What happened to the handy dandy "my comments" sort?
No Blockquote?
when I use blockquote, it screws up the formatting for the rest of the page (margin way-left). what should I be using instead?
Author Douglas Rushkoff contributes to thread on his novel
Douglas Rushkoff contributed to this thread about his new online novel. The thread is slipping down the page rapidly, so I thought I'd post a message here to bring attention to it.
MetaFilter jargon.
MeFi's secret language has been growing by leaps and bounds lately. It's always more fun when you're in on the joke, so here's the spot to post glossary definitions.
MeFi's secret language
MeFi's secret language has been growing by leaps and bounds lately. It's always more fun when you're in on the joke, so here's the spot to post glossary definitions.
Can't change the number of days displayed on front page
I don't know if lurkers get to post bugs -- (I haven't earned my posting rights yet -- does that mean I don't have feed back rights?) -- But... Since the server move, I can't change the number of days that displays by default on the front page.
Linkless post proves irksome.
This is getting tiresome. What baffles me is why people even respond in a thread without a link. If I wanted that type of discussion, I'd go to Salon.
July 7
Scholarship competition: followup needed
So, when will we hear the results of the scholarship competition? My understanding is that the most-vote-getter wins, but I was expecting a sidebar link about it, if not a ticker-tape parade, at least !
July 6
Opera5 users can't see the right bar
Opera5 users can't see the right bar on the hope page... any help there? This also happens in NS4.
Could someone explain the pancake thing?
Could someone explain the pancake thing?
More Inside
Is there any thing uncouth about being the first person to post to your own link? Like **MORE INSIDE** or what I just did? All, it would seem to get it filtered to the top of recent comments.
Instant weblog software!
I was just thinking (but only briefly): What if you took a simple guestbook script, tweaked it so new entries went on top, then password protected it. Oila! Instant weblog software! Granted, you would have to hand code the templates and such, but it seems like it might work.
July 5
Giving your own weblog a "via" credit
Behold a new form of self-linking: Giving your own weblog a "via" credit when posting a link here. (Via Waxpancake)
July 3
i just want to make a quick comment about the post on stuttering.
i just want to make a quick comment about the post on stuttering. c'mon folks, can we not keep the level a little more intelligent than this?
What's an RSS Channel?
What's an RSS Channel?, and Why?
Server burp?
Today's comments to luser's post, $95,000 check/antique browswer emulator, seems to have been entirely deleted. I've read 2 of the 3 comments and it looked mostly harmless. Server burp?
Spoiler warnings - do we need them?
SPOILERS -- Eh, is this an alt.fan convention people should expect? I'd rather not have worry about it.
Firda made a Weblog Hipness Quiz
It's inevitable: Firda made a Weblog Hipness Quiz, with aggregated results here.
Yeah, I got a 30. But I lied about one of the answers.
Yeah, I got a 30. But I lied about one of the answers.
July 2
Can we have more IM options?
More IM options. Not to seem to sad but I don't have an AOL screen name. Nor do I have an ICQ number. I do have a Yahoo! Messenger thingy. An MSN Messenger wotsit and (more importantly) a Jabber address (nrichards@jabber.com). What about adding some more fields for the most popular ones and a 'write in' for the Open source client of your choice.
Just like something out of the Onion!
Maybe it's just me, but if just one more person says that any random amusing, ironic, or unusual news story is "just like something out of The Onion!", then I'm going to be forced to go on a massive, multi-state killing spree, and I'm going to take the time to lovingly spell out "METAFILTER MADE ME DO IT" with my victims' entrails.
July 1
TheAge Blog Gone
Blog-be-gonne. We've talked a fair bit about corporate blogs starting up... is this the first one to shut down?
Obits Callout
Welcome to meta-obit.com. I know we've sort of covered this recently, but this is getting ridiculous.
MeFi stats June 2001
Metafilter stats have been updated for the month of June. This month, we see that although user growth has leveled off, front-page threads and comments are still growing fast.
How to be a MeFite
Do not not participate in writing- positively- to a first-time personal interest thread, unless it is not not positive universal thinking, and especially not, if it is not not controversial. And especially not, if it is italicized. (And other handy rules for graceful living)