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ONE WEEK OF POSTING LIMITS

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Tom Coates

12:36 / 12.06.02

As an experiment, we've instituted a one week posting limit of ten posts per day. It's not meant to imply that we're posting innappropriately, but it is meant to help us all think about what kind of debates and conversations around the board are actually most important to us... I'd be interested to know what kind of experience people have of this temporary policy...

Shortfatdyke

13:42 / 12.06.02

well i don't know how i'm managing to respond to this as i've already hit my limit today, but it's had the desired effect - a kick up the arse - and i will be giving much more thought to where i post.

good idea, tom.

Murray Hamhandler

14:59 / 12.06.02

I often post an average of 10 posts a week, so it doesn't directly affect me, but sometimes there are more threads in a given day that I'd like to respond to than there usually are. Given my limited computer access, it would be a shame if I were cut off from an interesting conversation and then not able to come back to it for a couple of days.

Tom Coates

16:01 / 12.06.02

I've opened the limits on posting up a bit to fifteen posts per day (but limited starting topics to a mere 5 a day), so maybe that will make people less tense. But try and work on the principle that you should be posting around ten a day, just in case those limits are constricted again. Remember - this is not about punishment or anything, it's a bit like Lent. One week of suffering may reinvigorate the discussions that we're having...

grant

18:24 / 12.06.02

How is "24 hours" decided? because I've just gotten some strange restrictions - posting two messages, then unable to post any for violating boundaries. Is it hour-by-hour? Minute-by-minute?

And, I realize the immediate answer is "no," but, is there any way to get a counter for how many posts you're on per period?

Slim

20:45 / 12.06.02

Tom is a damn dirty pinko!

Mr Wolfe

21:18 / 12.06.02

Heh.

Turk

00:28 / 13.06.02

For goodness sake man, don't call it a limit! That means target in anybody's language!

SMS

02:06 / 13.06.02

I support this experiment.

Goodness Gracious Meme

12:12 / 14.06.02

moi aussi. especially if it means people avoid wasting posts on shitflinging and stirring to the detriment of interesting topics....

Elijah, Freelance Rabbi

12:31 / 14.06.02

i dont know if it is because of the limits or other factors, but things seem slow on the board last 2 days.
also, i think the limit should roll over calendar day, not 24 hour period.

sleazenation

13:04 / 14.06.02

eerrr elijah - considering we are not all in the same time zone one mans day will be another man's 24hour period...

Tom Coates

15:09 / 14.06.02

Things will necessarily be slow as people decide whether or not to expend their posts on more frivolous threads. Don't worry - this isn't forever!

STOATIE LIEKS CHOCOLATE MILK

15:14 / 14.06.02

I originally thought this was a bad idea... but didn't actually notice until it was pointed out that it'd started... although I've been posting a lot less the last few weeks- too much irl stuff getting in the way.
No idea how much I've posted today... but hopefully this one'll get through!
Go for it. See what happens. I'm now coming round to the idea that it is a good thing to do.

Our Lady of The Two Towers

16:13 / 14.06.02

I'm with the red rodent on this one. Seems to be working fairly well.

Trijhaos

20:57 / 22.06.02

Is this still in effect? Has our one week gone by?

Less searchable M0rd4nt

21:28 / 22.06.02

Yep, a couple of days ago.

Tom Coates

10:42 / 23.06.02

I haven't turned it off yet, and I probably should. I'm not sure what I think of the week as an experiment. I don't know if I could legitimately claim that it's had a particularly sizeable impact, but then again I wonder if that was because we were too liberal with the posting limits. If it had been ten posts a day, do you think people would have noticed a more significant improvement? Do people miss being able to post completely freely?

Trijhaos

10:54 / 23.06.02

Well since we're used to the idea of limits on our posts, what about knocking the limit of posts down to 10 for a week?

Our Lady of The Two Towers

16:34 / 23.06.02

There was a point in the middle of the week where I ran out of messages which was a bit irritating. Are there forums that are free from this rule, or is it done on the posters, so I can only post 15 and that's it? Because I think that it should be say 10 posts AND unlimited posts in the Policy and the Gathering, or can this not be done?
(I say the Policy for obvious reasons, Gathering for cliquey reasons

and based on the fact that sometimes meetings are arranged at the last minute which is a bit irritating if you've used up your allowance, as I found with Plums thread at the beginning of last week).
Otherwise, let's take it down to ten and see what happens.

Spatula Clarke

19:09 / 23.06.02

Yes. Knock it down to ten a day for a week or so. Not sure that even that's going to make any noticable difference, but it's not as if anyone's really going to have any legitimate complaints if it's only for a trial period, anyway.

rizla mission

08:58 / 24.06.02

The only time I've found it a problem is when, for one reason or another, I hit Barbelith twice in the same 24 hour period.. y'know, like one day I'll log on at 5pm, and then the next day I'll log on at 1pm and only have one or two posts.. but it's not a big deal really.

We're The Great Old Ones Now

12:28 / 24.06.02

I'm worried about this. I'm just posting less, and seeing fewer things I want to post to. I don't get involved in the incidental discussions, only in the ones which are directly related to things I'm thinking about, and I'm less inclined to post a spread of new topics to juice up a forum and to see what's about. I'm not really posting to the Conversation at all, and I see fewer discussions with the sense of immediacy I treasure on the board. Certainly, I'm not about to post a gag.

I'm sorry, I just think this is a bad idea. I mean, if it's about bandwidth, I get it, but as some kind of focusing tool, I think it's going to focus us out of existence.

Persephone

12:43 / 24.06.02

*sigh*

I agree with Nick.

Our Lady of The Two Towers

12:55 / 24.06.02

I wouldn't want to see this as a long-term thing, but as an exercise for a week or two, I think it's valuable. The problem tends to be that I almost have to go through things twice, once to see what's been written, the second time to add my views in conversations I think important enough to contribute to. And I'm saying more further down the board because that's just the direction I read from.

The Return Of Rothkoid

13:45 / 24.06.02

I'm with the naysayers. I find the risk of running out of posts leads to looking around less. It's pretty quiet around here; there's less noise, but there's also much less signal, too.

Spatula Clarke

14:12 / 24.06.02

All that may be purely coincidental, that the posting limits have just happened to be imposed as the board's going through one of its slack periods.

We're The Great Old Ones Now

14:18 / 24.06.02

[sniffle]

*sigh*

I agree with Nick.

Am I that bad?

[sniffle, puppy eyes, world's smallest violin, exeunt omnes retching]

Persephone

15:03 / 24.06.02

You doofus.

It could have been a ~romantic~ sigh.

We're The Great Old Ones Now

15:37 / 24.06.02

Goodness me.

That's probably indicative of my world recently - haven't seen nearly enough romantic sighs.

And yes, I am indeed a Doofus of the nation of Doofia on the mighty continent of Doof, which spans the northern hemisphere of the ancient and elemental world of Doofonium.

[sigh]

Less searchable M0rd4nt

18:09 / 24.06.02

Yeah, I thought the board had been dead lately. I suppose a good test would be if the limit was removed and then replaced in, say, three or four weeks. If the same thing happens (ie the board going a bit quiet) then the posting limit might be to blame...

Jack Fear

18:47 / 24.06.02

Or ir could be that school's out, and out student population is back at home and away from their free university 'net access.

I'm just sayin', is all.

Trijhaos

18:56 / 24.06.02

It could also be because people are taking advantage of the warm weather to go out and do stuff away from the computer.

Ierne

19:32 / 24.06.02

Has there traditionally been a slump around this time period on Barbelith, though? I've only been here for slightly over a year, and I don't remember last June being quite as slow as this.

Jack The Bodiless

20:16 / 24.06.02

Don't forget that Flyboy and Rothkoid don't have regular net access at the moment. That could account for a good sixty percent of lost traffic.

The posting limit is simply a bad idea. Everyone has different habits, and different amounts of time that they can afford to spend here, and most threads update daily. Part of the charm of the place is that people feel compelled to discuss, not simply to post a message and then to retreat for the day. The way it's working at the moment, people will either use whatever online time they have to contribute to one specific forum, neglecting the rest (like a generous hunk of roule spread warmly across a middling-size garlic & coriander biscuit), or will spread themselves thinly across as much of the board as they can (like ragged clouds of Marmite skidding across a toasted granary doorstep).

It will end in tears. Tears like rain. Mark me.

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