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Right Matt, Enough Is Enough - Let's Sort This Place Out Once & For All
24-08-2011, 03:36 PM
Post: #1
Rainbow Right Matt, Enough Is Enough - Let's Sort This Place Out Once & For All
The time is long overdue for something to be done about Sims Forums. The place is a day to day disaster and has been for months on end.

Cororon has announced she's left, someone who has been a loyal member since Sims 2. Sad

If even she's giving this place up as a lost cause, it's time to say enough is enough, get something done, or put this forum out of its misery and we'll all go to other Sims forums or our separate ways.

Spammers

The current site has been overrun with spammers ever since it switched to this new version. Whatever anti-bot software you are using, the bottom line is that it doesn't work.

This needs to be sorted now. Not next month, not "when there's time", now. It has gone on long enough.

Those who are supposed to be admins or moderators are not on here anywhere near often enough to do the job of clearing it. But they should not be having to clear it in the first place. Every other Sims forum around manages to prevent spambots so why should this one be the exception to the rule?

By the time the spam is cleared, the damage is done - people coming here see a forum with lots of spam on it, assume the site is abandoned or at the least badly maintained, and go elsewhere.

Can you PLEASE change the sign ups to this website so that the first five posts any new person makes have to be moderated? The sign up system for detering bots does not work and so something else needs to be done. This way spammers can be detected and banned before they cause damage.

Yes, it's tough on newcomers waiting to have posts moderated, but until the current problems can be resolved it is the only one that can be actioned. A notice could always be put up to explain the situation, or an auto-message sent on initial sign up to explain it.

If you don't know how to solve the spambot problems, try asking Dragonfly, Jonesi, Snooty, Zeri or one of the other big forum moderators how they keep the spambots at bay. Why not even ask Cororon? She's a moderator now at Simpletons and they never seem to have these problems SF does.

Redundant Forums

Until the situation improves at Sims Forums, I suggest that all other parts of Sims Forums bar Community and Feedback be shut down and Off Topic be renamed General Discussion. This will make it easier to detect and shut down those spambots that are still getting through.

It will also add some cohesion to what is otherwise a real mess. There is no point at all in us having six separate sections with thirteen different forums and seven sub forums when there are only two people visiting here on a regular and contributing basis any longer - Ahmed and Bobert - and perhaps another four irregular such as Cororon, Simman and I.

Okay, limiting the number of sections of the forum is a bit of a comedown, but it means all new members will no longer find themselves talking to an empty room, no longer posting in sections no one visits. Tighten up the places people can post, and we stand a far better chance of an active and lively forum again.

Admins/Moderators
I see Admins and moderators coming in here who do not even attempt to converse with any of the new people or welcome them on board or do anything to make me or anyone else feel inclined to stay. They have no interest in making anyone wish to continue posting here.

Even Cororon I've noticed gets treated at times like the Invisible Girl, and she's been here since March 2008! No wonder she's walked. Angry

We have "Super Moderators", "Founder Moderators" and whatever else (what's the difference between those and a "moderator" anyway?), and their sole contribution to this place now is clearing away the spambots (eventually) and moaning how dead this place is but do nothing at all to make anyone here want to spend more time posting.

It's clear that whether they care to admit it or not they find this place a chore. Their "clique" has largely left to do other things, and they can't be bothered with the rest of us that have remained behind or have joined since those earlier days.

I say that being the case it is time to do them a favour as much as Sims Forums and relieve them of their duties. Cassie was removed because she was not doing the role she was appointed to, let's clear out the others who moderate only when they feel like it.

Keeping people listed as staff for old times sake when their actions show they have no true interest in this place anymore or only when they "feel like it" is counterproductive for Sims forums and depressing for the rest of us. All they're doing is turning up and seeing if SOMEONE ELSE has made things better, more active and so on. They've had their chance, they've had their day, it's time for them to step down and new people to step up to the mark.

Before any of them protest that they are here all the time, you don't demonstate it. You don't talk to any of the rest of us here, you post once in the bluest of moons and only then to say how quiet the place has become or to issue out orders to us.

ie."do not reply to spambots, use report only", "do not post in wrong threads", "do not post in dead threads", "thread locked because I say so", "stop trailing your knuckles along the grounds", etc.

Make Ahmed and Bobert administrators, moderators, etc and get rid of ALL the rest bar Matt (it is your forum after all Matt!). Ahmed's in Egypt, Bobert's in New Zealand, that means we'd have moderators from separate halves of the globes and in theory a 24 hours watch on this place - something which doesn't happen now.

From a recruitment perspective, they may also feel a lot more inclined to encourage other Sims players they know to come here if they were the ones helping to run the place. Others also may decide to come back if there's new people at the front.

Format

Can we have the OLD forum format back please and be rid of this hideous chunky green one?

The move from SimpleMachinesForum to myBB has been a disaster. Whatever issues it may have had, nothing compares to the damage myBB has done to this place. It has saw this board riddled with spam and lost us what active members there were.

The old members clearly don't like it and have been largely staying away from this place ever since the change. It no longer feels like home to them. Can we not have the old format of the forum back please?

Thanks Matt for keeping this place up

I'm hoping that what I've said will be taken in the spirit meant. This time last year I saw the only Sims forum outside of the main one I was in die after months of neglect. Another one I was in folded a few months back. In both cases it was down to those in charge simply giving up. It was depressing to watch and know there was nothing I could do about it as those in charge didn't care and were running down time until the server renewal date.

That SF remains up is at least a sign that although you are very busy with family commitments there is the will to keep the place alive and see it back to its old self again.

But there needs to be changes. The Pets expansion is on its way, and we may pick up some new people at that time, but only if this looks like a forum worth posting in or at least giving it a try. Right now it's like the man down the road from mine's front garden (it is overgrown with a shopping trolley on it that has mouldering cardboard boxes and a traffic cone).

Either we fight back and show we are still an active forum or we give up.

What's it to be?

Confused

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24-08-2011, 07:01 PM
Post: #2
RE: Right Matt, Enough Is Enough - Let's Sort This Place Out Once & For All
I've PM'd you a reply to this but basically I have to apologise and accept full responsibility for what the forums have become. I admit to neglecting them and for that I'm sorry. I realise that it's just an excuse and it doesn't really help, but real life, family, work etc have stopped me visiting here as much as I should.

I will try and improve things as mentioned in the PM to you.

I'm always happy to help! If you need anything, just send me a personal message (PM) and I'll try help if I can...
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24-08-2011, 11:17 PM
Post: #3
RE: Right Matt, Enough Is Enough - Let's Sort This Place Out Once & For All
Thank you Minty for taking the time to write what I think many of us feel. I don't know if moving the forum to createforumhosting.com could solve the problems with spam. The Simpletons is on createforumhosting and we never have spam messages. And we have many forum skins to choose from Tongue

I don't post here any more -cough- Shy but I will stay a member and see how things are going.
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25-08-2011, 11:16 AM
Post: #4
RE: Right Matt, Enough Is Enough - Let's Sort This Place Out Once & For All
I totally agree. Something needs to be done about the spam.

I visit the site most days and I'd definitley have a go at moderating. I don't know how good I'd be, but I'd give it a try. Of course, I
pretty busy with school at the moment with exams coming up in November but after that, I'd be prepared to dedicate some time to SF.

Viva SF! (lol)

[center][Image: jZwBSkZFApwr9ym65iLlFoaGo1_500.jpg]
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25-10-2011, 04:27 AM
Post: #5
RE: Right Matt, Enough Is Enough - Let's Sort This Place Out Once & For All
I blame Sims 3 for the near-death state it's in. It seems as though Sims 3's release really threw our site off it's hey-day. I want to come back, but work schedule doesn't allow for much time these days. Plus life got in the way - I got married in March and just moved into our first place in Sept. - so though I don't have much of an excuse to why I disappeared either, I just want to apologize. I wanna try to be around more. Sommie and I were actually just talking on FB about trying to draw people back here again, some of the oldies. I know Mike and I have discussed it a couple of times. We all miss the place, but the navigation of the site is hard for some of us - like me.

Member since March 17th, 2008
Forever and Always, a SimsForums Oldie
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25-10-2011, 09:05 AM
Post: #6
RE: Right Matt, Enough Is Enough - Let's Sort This Place Out Once & For All
Congratulations Majick, I didn't know you got married!!

I'll work on the navigation and try and make things a bit easier for us all.

I'm always happy to help! If you need anything, just send me a personal message (PM) and I'll try help if I can...
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