And how would you find all these amazing insights if there weren’t a bunch of people who are willing to pay to post? Can you not connect the fucking dots and realize that if a tonne of people here are pissed off about this, it will indeed affect your future enjoyment of the board? Jesus, how fucking shortsighted can posters like you and gazpacho be? Regardless of how enlightened you brainiacs are, this was a bad decision because it’s pissed off a vast majority of the unenlightened posters, including all the mods it seems. But hey, as long as you’re able to gain insights, what difference does it make if a big chunk of the population leaves and a bunch of moderators are alienated? :rolleyes:
Here is how the SDMB is now competing with other forums: Paying members get banner ads, 2 minute delays time on searches, no actual decision makers have a login name, 2 year out of date software with tech people frightened of well distributed hacks or plug-ins. How many newbies are going to sign up for that?
Ahem…is it really necessary to point out to you that:
a) The advantages I was speaking of pertain to the board as it has existed up to this point.
and
b) Of course I know it would affect my enjoyment of the board if a sizable number of people were to bail over this silly issue; why do you think I’m so concerned about the overreaction to it? I can hardly believe you would be so stupid as to even ask such a question.
I’m not belittling their concerns so much as I am mystified by the magnitude of theresentment over them. I doubt there’s been outrage this widespread around here since 9/11. Good griefin’ fuck!
It’s most amusing the cute way you keep trying to assume the mantle of intellectual superiority in this little joust of ours. Does it tax your little brain just a tad too much to be able to grasp that, given that I’m mystified by the reaction to these ads, I would also be mystified as to the outrage that causes this reaction?
Well, I’m off to bed now so I’m afraid you’re going to have to call yourself an idiot for the rest of the night.
I read [post=9225318]your post[/post] in the other thread, and perhaps I was a little harsh. I still think you are giving off “belittling vibes” (eg “bail over this silly issue”). Even if it’s unintentional it certainly isn’t going to help mollify anyone. If you have real concern it could be better served.
Okay, I’m still here. Perhaps you’re right. I was just attempting to bring a little perspective to the issue and not really trying to insult anyone. I can see I went about it in the wrong way. I apologize for that remark.
I think the boycott idea is a good one, but better directed against the ads themselves. I propose a grassroots campaigne to boycott the ads. We just refuse to click them. Ever. If enough of us get on board, I think it sends a better message. I don’t TPTB will notice a posting boycott, but I think they will notice a permanent, unanimous ads boycott.
I opened a thread to promote my idea, but it got closed as it was superceded by this one.
The problem is that I really think that the reader management gives a fuck about the boards only if they can make them a decent amount of money. If they can’t then it is just a waste of time and money and they will be shut down. It sucks but the only real thing to do about it is for us the readers of the board to do is shift in en mass to some boards that we host and manage for our selves.
This is why, even though it’s not perfect, I keep pimping AdBlock in all the Banner Boo-hooing threads. Block the ads, you won’t click them (even by accident) and thus will effectively be boycotting them in the only way they’re going to be concerned with - their wallets. Plus, they’ve pushed me to block the Google ads, which I did previously click on at about the rate of one or two a month, so they’ve lost my click through revenue there as well.
So yes, you can ad me to the Banner-Click Boycott list, since I’ve now blocked them effectively, I won’t be clicking on them, ever.
And…again? What did the whiners win before? I only remember 4 other board wide hissy fits: pay to post, which the whiners lost, googleads, which the whiners lost, no swears in titles, which the whiners lost (although I guess there were two sides of “whiners” there, the ones who wanted a rule against swearing and those who wanted no such rule) and the war against 2 minute search restrictions, which the whiners lost.
This, if I’m counting correctly and if the game is truly over, seems to be the only one the whiners have won. What am I missing?
