[british]

Recently I've been having a flock of new members on my forum, which is good, but they tend to be a little too overzealous in their posts.

• They don't care about spelling (like "graet" instead of "great")
• They write in their native language
• They don't use the correct vb codes
• They post a bunch of one-word replies
• They go totally NUTS with the smilies

(you can see how annoying that is!)

I don't want to go after each one like some kind of cop, but I don't want to spend all my time on the forum editing their posts either. My biggest concern, I guess, is that they'd turn the discussion childlike and put our more "mature" members off.

I've tried using the Infraction System that comes with the new version of vbulletin, but that was even worst! They got a pm saying "you have received a warning" and even though I was very polite, they took it the wrong way and stopped posting all together. Some even threatened to leave.

How should I handle this?

[Will]

For the smilies, limit it to like 2 images per post or something

Also make it so there has to be like 100 letters for a post or something like that.

As for the spelling.. you cant really do anything about that unless.. theres a hack that is a spell checker and before they post it will check the words and if they are miss spelled it will do like did you mean "great" or something like that.

For the language make it a rule that all posts have to be English (or whatever your main language is) and if they don't listen warn them or ban them for a day and if they keep doing it ban them completely

Or if you dont want to do that.. just ban them

[british]

Originally Posted by will

For the smilies, limit it to like 2 images per post or something

I can't because we have a Picture section on the forum, and it's important that members keep contributing as many images as possible at once.

Also make it so there has to be like 100 letters for a post or something like that.

I can't do that either because we often post comments like "thanks for the info" or just one word like "awesome!" even though it's against the rules. (I've been somewhat lenient on that one because sometimes it's appropriate. I don't condone it however when it's a systematic behavior.)

As for the spelling.. you cant really do anything about that unless.. theres a hack that is a spell checker and before they post it will check the words and if they are miss spelled it will do like did you mean "great" or something like that.

Good idea. I'll check vbulletin.org if they have such a hack. Also, do you guys know if a "syntax" checker exists?

For the language make it a rule that all posts have to be English (or whatever your main language is) and if they don't listen warn them or ban them for a day and if they keep doing it ban them completely

I did, but this member in particular doesn't speak very well English and posts in her native language only when replying to another Italian members. It's not very pleasant for the rest of us, but at the same time this member has been contributing A LOT of material to the forum. Banning her would seem too extreme, and not really at our advantage.

[Jolteon]

If your using vBulletin, you can limit how many images per post, try using that, if you are on vB. If your not, I don't think its as easy.

[Ryan]

First make sure that you are leading by example. Also, give more attention (response) to the people who make thoughtful posts.

Then...when people make sub-par posts, send them a PM letting them know that you appreciate their participation, but you would like for them to put some more thought into their posts. If you send somebody a PM, and they still make bad posts, send them a warning...If they don't like it and leave because of it, oh well...but you really only have 2 choices

1) Keep them in the forums and let them say whatever they want...and risk losing good and potential members

2) Communicate and possibly warn or ban them. This may decrease the quantity of posts in your forums, but it will increase the quality

I also don't think it's asking too much to require that all posts be in English. Don't let people post in Italian...When they do, delete their posts and ask them to post in English...if they say no, ban them...I know, sounds a bit blunt, but you've gotta do these things to maintain some sense of community.

[Damir]

Can you tell us what is your forum about, and what kind of users do you have there?

[MrMedic]

Originally Posted by british

Recently I've been having a flock of new members on my forum, which is good, but they tend to be a little too overzealous in their posts.

• They don't care about spelling (like "graet" instead of "great")
• They write in their native language
• They don't use the correct vb codes
• They post a bunch of one-word replies
• They go totally NUTS with the smilies

I don't want to go after each one like some kind of cop, but I don't want to spend all my time on the forum editing their posts either. My biggest concern, I guess, is that they'd turn the discussion childlike and put our more "mature" members off.

I had problems similar to this before. Look, you're just going to have to make it clear through your rules, and the enforcement of them that certain things are expected of members, and if they can't comply, they're going to get banned. Is it a fun thing to have to do? Absolutely not; but that's what part of being an administrator is about.

I am curious BTW, do your rules cover their behavior? If not, then perhaps it'd be a good idea to rectify that.

For example, the excessive smilies and failure to post in English violate this rule of mine:

Members should post in a way which is consistent with "normal writing". That is users should use plain English, not post excessive numbers of emoticons, large, small or coloured text, etc. Similarly users should not SHOUT or use excessive punctuation (e.g. ! and ?) in topic titles or posts. Users consistently abusing this will typically be warned for a first offense and suspended for any subsequent offenses..

The one worded replies violate my spam policy, as they fall under the SPAM acronym (Stupid Pointless Annoying Message(s) ). Unfortunately, it wouldn't really seem right to penalize someone for incorrect vB codes though....

Originally Posted by british

I've tried using the Infraction System that comes with the new version of vbulletin, but that was even worst! They got a pm saying "you have received a warning" and even though I was very polite, they took it the wrong way and stopped posting all together. Some even threatened to leave.

Your loss..... of a headache that is. I highly doubt that they didn't know better than to post in the fashion that they have been. Warnings are meant to serve as a kick in the butt, saying that they've gotta get their act together. If they can't accept the fact that you're cutting them a break, not issuing suspensions, and see that as an opportunity to fix things, then they've got some issues (unless your warnings have mini-punishments attached or something; but even then its still extreme to threaten abandoning your site).


Regards,

[british]

Thank you all for your suggestions.

I'd like to keep a relaxed atmosphere on my forum, which is hard because it can quickly slipped into a kindergarten if I don't say anything, and it can just as quickly turn into a jail-house if I do.

Incorrect vb codes doesn't warrant a penalty, I agree. However what gets my blood up is that they can see it's the incorrect coding, but they nevertheless keep using it over and over and over again... So I have to go back and edit each one of their postings, which takes an additional 30 minutes of my daily "merging, splitting, and moving" duty.

I've written up rules about excessive use of smilies and systematic one-word replies, but no one reads them (I mean come on, who does read those?) I've sent nice PMs to posters who broke them, and got 50% of "sorry, I didn't know!" and 50% of "take a chill-pill!"

I wish there was some modifications with the Infraction System that would allow me to point-out "problems" to posters, without giving them warnings. I also think the "you have received a warning" pm is a bit too intimidating. How about "Oooops, you've made a mistake" or something like that, but less cheesy?

[Ryan]

Go to your Phrase Manager in your ACP and change the text for the phrase $vbphrase[warning_received]

[british]

Neat! Do you know how I can insert the rules at the bottom of the new thread/post template, as a constant reminder of what not to do?