Dropped in on Unk's and it's all messed up; then saw warnings on CS and CF that trolls were on the loose. Can they get to a password protected forum? If we have to bail and head to the other site; is there any way to password protect it?

Folks, if you don't have the other site bookmarked, you might want to do it soon, just in case.

What a pain in the patootie!!

-- Anonymous, November 25, 2001

Answers

Why would they be buggin' nice peaceful, sometimes firearmed people like homesteaders? Audio/ visual club on hiatus?

-- Anonymous, November 25, 2001

CS has had an infestation of trolls for a couple of weeks now, not counting bin jr. who started in before that. I haven't seen him around recently (yay).

GICC was closed down due to trolls. They have a different board now.

Yes, our alternative board can be passworded. It isn't at the moment, but I can do it quite quickly if it's ever needed. So far, trolls haven't gotten past our password here. I'm more worried that Lusenet will crash and never recover one day soon.

I get very frustrated because 2/3 of the people who received passwords here NEVER post anything. When I am feeling really cranky about that, I have fantasies of posting a roll call, then changing the password and giving it only to people who have responded to the roll call. So far, it's been too much like work, and besides, Jim might not like it if I did that . . . .

-- Anonymous, November 25, 2001

I think you should make 'em stay after school, Joy!

I hope Lusenet doesn't crash permanently...I like this set up better than ezboard (but I'm sure I'd get used to it!). Sure wish these trolls would quit. They get everyone so fired up! At one of my webtv user groups there's a poster who is "whining" about the lousy treatment on a homesteading site...wonder if it's the same troll??!!

-- Anonymous, November 25, 2001

The trolls at Unks have been way out of control for some time. Ever since LadyLogic "returned" there's been a lot of problems ("she" has been around for years.)

Sometimes I drop by Poole's Roost (some of the same players) but I haven't for quite a while...usually the posts there are somewhat more intelligent, and I think Stephen Poole moderates his forum more closely. Unks has always been, well, Wild Wild...

I'm glad Ken has been deleting crap over at CS. It gets tiresome, indeed...

-- Anonymous, November 25, 2001

Can any of you more techno-savvy folks tell me if it's possible to embed a virus in a forum post? I tried to take a look at the carnage over at Unk's and I kept getting all these strange Javascript error messages popping up. It made my computer lock up, but my laptop tends to freeze up if you even look at it funny so that was probably just a coincidence.

-- Anonymous, November 26, 2001

I haven't looked at Unk's since a couple of days ago. It looked like a real mess and wouldn't even download on my computer. I see on the Freedom forum this morning that there was an "invitation" to Unk's if you really wanted to be free. There was one on CS that I think Ken deleted because it wasn't there this morning. I also have a fear that we will lose this format and lose all the CS archives. I have been trying to download and save the threads that have information I want to save. (like the gardening, mulching, and various other stuff that I was most interested in)

-- Anonymous, November 26, 2001

I just checked over at Unk's and he's shut the forum down.

-- Anonymous, November 26, 2001

I don't know, I looked at Unk's and Poole's Roost and Timebomb whatever, and it's like they gave computers to everyone in the insane asylum or something. They all seem to be nuts!

-- Anonymous, November 26, 2001

yeah joy, absolutely nuts. I couldn't figure out if there was any thread of sanity anywhere and just gave up trying.

-- Anonymous, November 26, 2001

Hi Joy,

Would it help your frustration if those of us that don't usually post asked to be taken off the membership list? I don't post all that often on any of the forums (am not a chatty person) but do read several of them and post from time to time.

I don't think most of my posts here would be very welcome. Everyone says they want to be open minded and hear opinions unlike their own, but then the attacks begin. Now if we were all literal neighbors I know we would get along great (I do make a good neighbor :-) ) but posting on internet forums when people don't really know each other, seems to cause a lot of misunderstandings.

-- Anonymous, November 26, 2001

I understand that mind set, Terry. Thats what happened to me on Country Families and when you get all those negative replies piling into your email box its so degrading and hurtful! My post literally started as a question and ended up with me looking like some sort of anarchist! I have asked the moderator there to remove me from her mailing list so that when she sends out one of her "Hurray for us we are a wonderful friendly loving forum" I don't have to gag. she says she can't. Argh. I like it here so far. More open minded and chatty than CF but not as homesteadery as CS. I feel like I have been accepted into a nice circle of friends but then again I haven't rocked any boats...YET!! :o)

-- Anonymous, November 26, 2001

Alison, I'm really sorry that you received the e-mails you mentioned - I just don't know what is wrong with people sometimes. The moderator at Country Families didn't allow any online nastiness or bashing or belittling though (at least I don't recall seeing it) and that is what I like about that forum.

I don't want to have to "constantly defend" my opinions(as I have had too so many times in real life). I want to hear about others interesting lives (not tell them how to live them), learn new things and share when I can be of some help. I want to be able to relax and enjoy a forum. I don't ever want to offend someone else online and am willing to be extra careful not to and appreciate it when others do the same.

-- Anonymous, November 26, 2001

Terry, sorry that you had problems and have had to defend your position. I don't fall into the trap of defending my opinions or positions. I'm not likely to change anyones mind about their political beliefs, religion, world trade or any number of other things so I have a self imposed rule. I'll state my position and maybe respond once to clarify something. Very, very seldom will I get sucked into a continuing debate about anything. Most issues are too complex to change anyones mind over on the internet or even to adequately explain your position. And why would I think that I have to change their minds? Why would I care? I've been on the internet ever since Gore invented it (yes, he did!) and I've yet to see anything on here that's worth arguing about or losing cyber-friends over. Dang, I'm sure there was a point to this but I forgot what it was. Must be passed my nap time.

Oh, before I forget again, Allison. You have rocked the boat! If there's a knock on your door, be careful. It's amazing what you can get guys to do for a case of beer, even in NS. And they don't use big words either, just kinda grunt. I hired a couple of guys from here but they drank the beer and missed the bus. Wish I had my beer back.

Wildman, (still confused)

-- Anonymous, November 27, 2001

Terry, I have really thought a lot about your post and you not feeling like your posts would be welcome. You made the comment that if we all lived in the same neighborhood we would all get along. I think that is really an accurate statement because in my neighborhood we have ALL kinds of people and we all get along more or less.

Now right next door we have a really foul mouthed jerk (as far as I am concerned) but we are civil and respectful of each other for the most part, even though we would not be inclined to sit down and have tea together. When his father died we went to the funeral and when my truck broke down 100 miles from home he drove my hubby to get the truck back on the road. In other words, we are there for each other even though we don't socialize and have opinions that are MILES apart on most everything. We just don't talk about it.

After a bunch of time on these forums I have learned to look at them as neighborhoods. Some I visit on occasion and would not want to live in them. Some I like to live in but there are people that would be there for me and I would be there for them, but we most likely would not drink tea together if we lived next door.

Most people that participate on the forums really regularly and often I can recognize in the first line or two of their posts. Some I read because I enjoy what they write or am interested in their opinions. Some I just scroll on past as soon as I know who they are because for the most part they are predictable and I most generally don't agree with them or even like them for that matter (although I respect their right to have their opinion and would not attack them personally on purpose)

Anytime I have gotten into real problems on these forums was when I thought it was important to be "right" or I took some disagreement personally. I have been attacked publicly and privately for my opinions and attacked personally several times both publicly and privately. I have done it a couple of times myself and have always been sorry about it.

I guess what I am trying to say is...........I hope you will post what you want to post and let the chips fall where they will. There were a lot of splinter forums from CS and this is one of them. I happen to think it was a very good thing and enjoy being able to go to CS for mostly homesteady type stuff and some of the other forums for the more political or religious debates.

I have experienced a lot of personal social type growth by participating on these forums. Learned about my own strengths and weaknesses and seen a wonderful variety of opinions and personality types. I would hope that you would participate here and feel welcome, but would understand if you chose not to. We all have to go where we feel most comfortable. hugs

-- Anonymous, November 28, 2001

diane! Very well said!!! Indeed!

-- Anonymous, November 28, 2001

Diane and Wildman,

Thank you for your comments.

-- Anonymous, November 29, 2001

Poole's Roost II is closing at the end of this week.

I am SO glad we went to password protection! I just truly hope LUSENET stays up.

There goes the neighborhood....

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2001

I worry that some of those trolls have computer skills and can hack their way in here. I don't know enough about it, so maybe that's why I worry about it.

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2001

yeah, but we're so boring.....zzzzzzzz.............

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2001

Hmmmm. Maybe we should come up with a plan of how to respond if they do break in here. You know, have a plan, everyone copy and save. Then if there's a troll attack, Jim or I could post, everyone go to Plan A or Plan B or whatever. One that spring to mind would be for everyone to just disappear, shut up, no replies. Jim and I would work on fixing and deleting, but that would be it. I think they'd go away with that much boredom on their hands. Or maybe we could post excrutiating minutae of the most boring subject we can think of! :-D

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2001

Hey Joy...How 'bout if we just change the subject to feminine hygiene (Alison's idea in another post!) OR use big words :-)??!!

Like Polly said...this is a pain in the patootie!

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2001

yes joy, excrutiating minutae would be interesting. Like would you like to know what I had for breakfast and why??? ;>)

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2001

I'm guessing that most (if not all) of the trouble-makers on the other forums are men or boys so a discussion on feminine hygiene would probably do the trick, IMO. :-)

One thing I've been thinking about is making sure we have an updated list of all member's e-mail addresses. That way, if we do experience the unlikely event that trolls storm the gates, Joy and I will be able to contact everyone with a new password for the forum.

I do think it's unlikey that we'll get any trouble-makers here with the forum now password protected. The password is a pretty long alpha- numeric string that doesn't correspond logically to anything that would even give them a HINT of how to go about breaking it.

A more likely scenario would be that someone here secretly gives out the password to someone that has no business having it - thus opening the door for potential trouble-makers.

The password is the strength (and unfortunately the weakness) of the forum. If folks here don't share it with non-members there really shouldn't be any problems.

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2001

BTW, my opinion of what went down with Uncle Deedah's, Dennis Olson's, and Poole's forums is that it was a carry-over from Y2K hostilities - nothing more. Some people just have long memories and too much time on their hands. Not to mention some serious mental instabilities (Charles P. Reuben aka CPR comes to mind)...

What's going on over at Countryside in not related to what happened at the other two forums. The people who are bothering CS have come from a forum in North Carolina. They look to be bored and are having a little fun at Ken's expense, unfortunately.

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2001

Fortunately, I think Ken has a pretty tough hide. And apparently, a handle on his temper. I haven't seen him explode yet. Though there may be a lot of abused furniture at his place! :-{

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2001

Joy, I don't think your suggestion of just shutting up and not replying will work. You should know by now that I can't do that! I'd probably be the only one talking to them but I'd be here typing away. It's got a chance if you can block my post!

Minutia, I thought that's what I had been doing.

Marcia, you and Alison know how to get me to leave don't you? Feminine hygiene is the only reason I'm not a cross dresser. I didn't have anything feminine to hygiene.

Jim, you said we wouldn't have any problems as long as we didn't give the password to non-menbers? Uh, that's not allowed? Opps, sorry.

I think we're pretty safe. We don't like to argue so that shoud send them on their way if they do show up. We don't like to argue, do we?

Wildman

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2001

Wildman, you ARE kidding aren't you??!?!?!?! PLEASE tell me you didn't give out the password! You're giving me gray hair!

-- Anonymous, December 01, 2001

Yes, I'm hoping that this is a very late (early?) April Fools joke! Please tell me that is the case, Wildman. :-/

-- Anonymous, December 01, 2001

Joy, join EM (who is blond) and me (who pulls them out) in the gray hair dept.

Oh, you two! I just wish I could take credit for an April Fool joke but I didn't even realize it was the beginning of the month. I'm so far behind the times.

I'd love to just stop here but that would be cruel. NO, I did not give out the password because when Joy gave it to me, she threatened me with bodily harm if I passed it around. And a couple of times since come to think of it.

By the way Jim, I'd like to talk to you about her violent nature! Is something going on with her or do I just bring out the best in her?

Wildman (just a grinnin')

-- Anonymous, December 01, 2001

Wildguy, I'm a peaceable sweetheart type, just ask anyone here! {Youse guys who are thinking about disagreeing, remember my 'family' connections!} Must be something about YOU that brings out the rottweiler in me . . . :-P

Guido, er, that is, JOY!

-- Anonymous, December 01, 2001

Wildman (whispering softly) there is a whole lot going on here that you just don't understand.........watch it buddy.....things can get really tough if you mess with the "family"!!!

-- Anonymous, December 01, 2001

Diane, I had a feeling that all wasn't right in The Land of Oz, but I wasn't sure I'll try to tread more lightly from now on.

By the way, who sent me the joke on "20 ways to tell someone their zippers unzipped"?

Wildman (aka lightfoot)

-- Anonymous, December 02, 2001