Strategic use of the “Ignore List”

[kotik]

Hi all,

Hopefully I'm not being overly irritable, but owing to the stir I've seen in a couple of threads lately, and in the meantime running across one of my own pet peeves one too many times, I dug into some of the site's functionality and thought I'd share the results.

First a disclaimer: I'm not a frequent poster by any means, I think this is my second or third post. So I'm a freeloader, but I do enjoy keeping tabs on the discussions on the board.

A lot of that enjoyment is thanks to some of the frequent posters who have knowledge, love for the sport, and the awe-inspiring patience it takes to talk to and advise an endless stream of diver that are doing something that's new to them, just as it was new with countless others before. I see you share your thoughts and experience with people with courtesy and respect each time, and I'll take this opportunity to salute you. I'm sure most fans of the board would know who I'm talking about, and just maybe you yourselves know who you are.

But, you wonderful folks that I'm saluting, I also believe this-- there are some posters on the board that are a waste of your time and breath. There are those who aren't here to learn, aren't here to teach, who don't have anything to say but who chime in constantly, whose whole enjoyment seems to be to say the most idiotic thing they can think up at the moment to see who'll bite.

The “Scubaboard champions” that I admire so much may not consider what I detail below as an option for themselves because of their own principles. On one hand, sometimes people can behave badly and later repent, so those who are here trying to help people might be very reluctant to give up on anyone. On the other hand, the champions also play a role as defenders of the weak-- if you give the bad element free rein to spout whatever poop they feel like then someone who doesn't know any better just might listen to the wrong message.

Me though... as I said, I'm largely a freeloader, and my own principles are pretty flexible sometimes. For those of you out there who are, like me, comfortable with cutting a few losses, and who have positively identified one or two members as being someone who will NEVER have anything to say that you care about hearing, you have some relief available. It's the Ignore List, and it goes like this:

--Go into your User CP and click the “Edit Ignore List“ (in the “My Account” section)
--Type in the member name that's on your mind and click the Okay button

And then, maybe most importantly, comes the follow through-- next time around, when you see that this person chimed in again, remind yourself that you blocked it for a reason, and don't worry about it

Happy diving to all!
--Eric

 

[k ellis]

there are some posters on the board that are a waste of your time and breath. There are those who aren't here to learn, aren't here to teach, who don't have anything to say but who chime in constantly, whose whole enjoyment seems to be to say the most idiotic thing they can think up at the moment to see who'll bite.

Sadly you are right. There are so many people on here who instead of being constructive and supporting the sport they look for any reason they can to make someone else look like an idiot to build their own ego. Ive had run ins with people who criticized my opinions and instead of politely voicing their opinions they found it neccessary to make others believe their testosterone levels were higher then they actually were

I agree with you and for all who read this thread please remember Scuba is not a sport to show every one you taught Jack Cousteau how to dive its one you should want to share with newer divers and those of your own experience and better experienced even. I have heard others bash new divers into the sea bed about how horrible they silt out and how they cant stand to dive with them

I have been bashed for my opinions on Nitrox and I have been bashed because I spoke opinions on other issues but it is what it is. Usually the experienced ones are the ones who politely correct you and the ones who come in fist blazing are the ones you would really rather not dive at all with

 

[redacted]

I have been tempted but have never used that function. In spite of how much I have disliked the posts of some members, I have yet to find anyone who did not help me understand something to my benefit. I decided the ignore feature is just an easy way out of a bit of work and I'll be better off without it.

 

[vladimir]

Hopefully you can read this message, Kotik.

I have added a couple of names to my very short ignore list recently. People who are so consistently negative I have no desire to read what they have to say. I do come here for leisure, after all--usually a 5-minute respite from work in between chat pop-ups. Why spoil it?

 

[TSandM]

After several years of irritation, I finally put someone on ignore a while back. Unfortunately, it doesn't work very well -- because the person I'm ignoring often gets quoted, so I end up reading the posts anyway! That's where the "I blocked this for a reason" mantra has to be chanted vigorously

 

[mikemill]

Another way that I find easier:
Click on their name and open their public profile (I like opening it in a new tab). Click on "Add to Ignore List". Click yes. Person is now ignored.

 

[annasea]

Of note, though, is the fact that unless something has changed with the new board, no one who is considered 'staff' on SB can be put on ignore. This includes subforum leaders, mods, etc.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

After several years of irritation, I finally put someone on ignore a while back. Unfortunately, it doesn't work very well -- because the person I'm ignoring often gets quoted, so I end up reading the posts anyway! That's where the "I blocked this for a reason" mantra has to be chanted vigorously

I can't help it if people like to quote me.
(Oops! You probably can't read this anyway.)

 

[inventor]

Why is this thread blank?

 

[Quero]

kotik, kudos to you for knowing how to make your own board use pleasant! You call yourself a free-loader, but I prefer the more usual forum term, lurker, because lurkers often observe for quite some time and then decide to contribute, little by little. I have observed that the members who have been lurkers for a while are often more thoughtful posters than those who register and then plaster the board with every notion that pops into their heads. I hope you'll continue to contribute.

I haven't personally invoked any Ignores (yet) as a way of spraying Round-Up on what I consider "forum weeds," but I have a lot of self-discipline, and I can usually just slide my eyes past posts by my least favorite frequent contributors. If I'm sometimes drawn to reading them, I can always resist replying (though occasionally to get an imagined response out of my system, I'll sometimes type a reply and then close the window rather than hitting the Post Reply button). This keeps me out of trouble, for sure!

Similarly, using Ignore might keep out of trouble others who have a harder time resisting the urge to launch a return volley when faced with the "rantings" of their ScubaBoard nemeses.