So, minutes ago I was on a thread where a poster that had been banned had posted (not a recent post, I mean it wasnt a glitch where someone banned had managed to post despite being banned), and the green light/active of said banned was lit on his post.
You can still log in with your banned name/IP adress to read the board?
And if you do, your green light will be lit?
Good question.
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… We need a volunteer in aisle six! *
Wild guess-clear your Internet cache.
We don’t always ban the IP when we ban a poster. And banning someone doesn’t seem to kick them out of the MB, seems like some of them stay logged in for a while. I’ve noticed this when banning spammers, in particular…it seems like they register, reply to the confirming email, make ONE spam post…and then keep the window open for that thread. I don’t know why they do this. Maybe they refresh now and then to see if they get replies? Who can understand the mind of a spammer? The only reason I try to understand spammers is in order to become more efficient in preventing spam.
You can read the boards if you’re banned, but if your IP address isn’t banned, but you can’t if your IP address is banned. Or so I understand.
I would guess that the system does not update status instantly … but at some point it runs some sort of script and updates and the status changes at that point. Probably depends on other loads/demands on the system
But this was a case where I had been on a page with posts from that poster, and he was marked as banned, and not active. Just, yesterday, for the first time, I saw the banned, on that thread, marked as active. Found it weird (IIRC you lose your active status if you dont do anything on the dope for a while). It really looked that, as though poster was denied posting rights, he could and would still log in with his banned identity, and then the forum would mark him as active.
Maybe you could clear up what the green light/active status thing means exactly (when is it lit exactly?)
Banning a poster who’s currently online should cause the status light to flash, quickly at first, and then with gradually weakening pulses until they finally flatline.
That’s how I’d do it, anyway.
My understanding is that banning someone prevents them from posting, not reading. If they left their sign-in cookie after being banned, they’d show up as active (meaning, having a window or tab open at the SDMB) when reading here.
Hey, if I had MY way, banning someone who’s online would give them an electric zap. I’ve been campaigning for a cyberslap function for over a decade, now, too.
Aren’t a lot of/most spammers spambots? They probably don’t do the bot equivalent of “closing the window” because their programmer didn’t bother to put that command in.
No, on the day of banning, their red status light flashes black and red. When the banning is complete, it turns black, and they report for Renewal.
First principles, Clarice. Read Marcus Aurelius. Of each particular thing, ask: What is it in itself? What is its nature? What does he do, this man you seek? Look for severe childhood disturbances associated with canned ham. Our spammer wasn’t born a hot single in your area, Clarice. Oh, no, he was made one through years of systematic low credit scores and mortgage refinancing. Our spammer hates his penis size, you see. He always has, and he thinks that makes him push herbal viagra. But his pathology is a thousand times more savage and more terrifying. He wants to be reborn, you see. Our spammer wants to be reborn as an area mom who discovered two dollar tooth whitening, Clarice. And he will be reborn.
(Does that make the mods our sandmen?)
Awesome!
I prefer Sun Tzu.