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How about a temporary "self-banning" mechanism

  • 11-05-2020 10:03pm
    #1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 20,825 ✭✭✭✭


    Hi,


    I don't know what the right word would be. I think that it would be a good idea to have a kind of "self-banning" button whereby a person could temporarily remove their own posting privileges for say a day or a week.


    Log in - press the big red button - click on "are you sure" and then not be able to post anything for 24 hours (or whatever).


    Sometimes I might go a while without checking the site at all, but then there'd be days when I'd be in front of the computer and looking for distractions and then getting involved in things I shouldn't be bothering with.



    If someone is annoying me and I decide not to respond, I might check back a few hours later and see some smart arse response and then given into temptation and respond. Whereas if I'd pressed the button, I couldn't.



    I know that you can say there is self control and all that, but occasionally you get dragged into things. And you might not want to go the whole hog of deleting your account.
    Post edited by Shield on


Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 22,656 ✭✭✭✭Tokyo


    Seems like an unnecessary use of the dev team's time IMO, to hardcode into the site a function that compensates for user's self control.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 20,825 ✭✭✭✭Donald Trump


    Well it shouldn't be that difficult. But if your people wouldn't be up to the task then it's a moot point.

    I'd imagine that your back end simply has a few different roles assigned for different categories of users. And under the "regular user" role you'd just need a privilege to "temporarily turn off" your own posting ability. The reason I said "self-banning" is simply that that mechanism to remove posting ability already exists under moderator role.

    For example, a moderator can ban my account for 1 week say if they want. They can probably also ban other moderators. And possibly even themselves. There might be security issues why you don't want that for admins, but lets assume you don't consider that and suppose that even the admins could ban themselves or each other. If a moderator can ban themselves now, then it wouldn't be a big leap to allow an individual user to do so. I'm guessing that the moderator just sees a button to ban a user, they click it and pick a duration. Can they do it to themselves?

    I'd imagine that technically it's an easy issue to solve and you wouldn't need a dedicated push to production as it's not urgent. The back end probably already has the fields to do it and it would just be a matter of putting something on the front end to trigger it. You could mess around with it and migrate it up whenever with some other fix.

    What would the business reason be? Well boards isn't a charity. You are making money from the users. A user temporarily removing their access is more likely to come back than someone who closes up their account. You see a fair few closed accounts on some old threads. People get fed up and close their threads and leave.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 22,656 ✭✭✭✭Tokyo


    Well it shouldn't be that difficult. But if your people wouldn't be up to the task then it's a moot point.


    I'll be sure to pass your regards along to the dev team.

    <snipped for brevity>

    I'd imagine that technically it's an easy issue to solve and you wouldn't need a dedicated push to production as it's not urgent. The back end probably already has the fields to do it and it would just be a matter of putting something on the front end to trigger it. You could mess around with it and migrate it up whenever with some other fix.


    To be fair, you are making quite a lot of assumptions there. Boards doesn't run a vanilla version of vBulletin, it has been customised to a large degree over the years and uses its own proprietary modding tools to ensure that different categories of user mod/CMod/admin have access to the resources they need, don't have access to the resources they don't, while still respecting issues such as privacy and so on. It would require a bit more than just manipulating already existing functionality IMO.


    But either way, if you did self ban as you described, you can still read boards by logging out. And I would imagine that if a person is so caught up in posting on boards that they can't just take a step back and concentrate on something important then I don't think a self ban is going to stop them. The other side of the coin is that it could actually encourage people to register a new account to get around their self imposed ban, creating issues of a different sort.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 12,638 ✭✭✭✭OldGoat


    I remember there used to be many requests for temp bans particularity from those approaching exams who didn't have the self discipline to stay away from Boards. I think the mods would handle it as a favour.
    (IIRC) There was also a thread in Cuckoos Nest where a posting in that thread would result in a ban. :)

    I'm older than Minecraft goats.



  • Closed Accounts Posts: 40,061 ✭✭✭✭Harry Palmr


    On a previous account I asked a mod to ban me from conspiracy theories for my own mental health. This was in the aftermath of September 11 attack and all the nuts came out of the woodwork. :)


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  • Administrators, Social & Fun Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 78,393 Admin ✭✭✭✭✭Beasty


    On a previous account I asked a mod to ban me from conspiracy theories for my own mental health. This was in the aftermath of September 11 attack and all the nuts came out of the woodwork. :)

    Just done a quick check.....


    ....you've posted in CT with this account when that ban was not lifted:eek::eek:




    :pac:


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