Forum Nonsense!

I think off-topic threads are a lot more popular than regular ones, so they attract more attention and we only hear about them. I don't think the proposal has much chance because forums have nothing to do with live games. Plus it would be unfair to serious people. The only thing that might reduce it a little is making off topic threads not elligible to be on the hot topics list, or create a seperate one without it. Therefore, all the spammers will immediately look in the off topic list, and the serious people go to the regular list. That's my opinion.

My post has nothing to do with off topic or regular threads. It's about forcing those that post, to invest some time in the site before doing so.

+1 like the probationary period thing.

(The Annoying vs The Educated and Annoying ) vs us.

Still The Annoying vs us.

Yes, they post away in off topic threads. It would draw them away, like a magnet

Could it be that it only seemed like a delight, just like in the old Saturday Night Live years where everyone was flying high?

Most people who don't spend to much time are in off topic threads

chessdex

Off topic threads don't appear in hot topics.

I would think serious people would not have an issue with restrictions for new members. One look at the forums and they would understand.

I think they do, correct me if I'm wrong. New members might not even play live chess, but only do chess tactics and chess mentor, and other instructional learning. New members aren't a problem for quality of the forums

I'll have another go at explaining this, as it seems that some have not grasped the premise.

At the moment, we have a site that allows anyone to sign up within a couple of minutes. After that, they have full privileges to:

1. Spam advertising... football, fake passports, leather goods etc.

2. Spam crap thread after crap thread.

3. Troll threads until they are banned.

And then what? of course they open another account and continue on their merry way.

The present system is convenient for them, altogether too convenient. You might even say that it encourages this sort of behaviour.

A forum qualification would form an inconvenience for them.

There used to be a time when staff actually posted in threads like this, and one thing I remember is when they would tell newer members to look through old threads prior to creating a new one on the same subject.

Well said (written?), although, I now currently own many passports.

But...that's no way to get everyone to look at you, and that is the high calling of the set young in mind or emotionally.

I still like the idea of a $100 deposit say for 6 months good behaviour.

That would be $100 for the kitty, absolutely.

I'm agi'n it.

I'll be the treasurer.

It would be a nice way to renew your swimming pool.

I need new speedos, too.

Lol.

That helps a little, but chess.com has always had poor search function.  Some topics will jump out at you, but others, even though covered in great detail, are just about impossible to find.  Most people find it much faster to just ask again.

Chess.com also makes it difficult for someone to reference a particular post that might address a question perfectly.  You can't cite an old post number or thread page number with any confidence because of chess.com's policies of removing and renumbering posts and repaginating.  And they made it even worse when they removed the actual time stamps a couple years ago and replaced them with the relative age stamps.  Before, even without knowing the specific post number someone could pretty quickly find a post if they knew approximately when it was written.  But instead of quickly zeroing in on, say, the first week of April 2011, now you're faced with an entire year's worth of posts that all say "2 years ago".  Stupid move to make that change.

Edited for clarity