# If you could filter User names then you **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [August 27, 2000, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935 "2000-08-27T15:41:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2000, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/1 "2000-08-27T15:41:24Z")
could filter out messages from those you don’t want to read. Fun, huh? We used to be able to do that on our BBS. ---
**Author:** ![Hi\_Yo\_Ag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c77e96/32.png) [@Hi\_Yo\_Ag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hi_Yo_Ag)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2000, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/2 "2000-08-27T15:49:14Z")
That makes no sense. If someone had a “handy filter” turned on, it would look like I was answering no-one right now. ---
**Author:** ![Hi\_Yo\_Ag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c77e96/32.png) [@Hi\_Yo\_Ag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hi_Yo_Ag)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2000, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/3 "2000-08-27T15:51:07Z")
Which BBS was that you had it on. How did it work? Sounds like you’d try it and then go right back to the regular view. ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2000, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/4 "2000-08-27T18:07:43Z")
That doesn’t sound like very much fun, **Handy.** Sometimes the posts from the posters you love to hate are the most fun of all. The Pit would wither away if we installed a filtration system. You know pure filtered water doesn’t taste very good. It’s the “other stuff” that makes it–interesting. ---
**Author:** ![voguevixen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5ac83/32.png) [@voguevixen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voguevixen)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2000, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/5 "2000-08-27T19:28:33Z")
I agree with handy, there are some posters whose very name makes my blood boil. I’d love to be able to not have to wade through a bunch of crap to get to the posts by people I enjoy reading. ---
**Author:** ![And\_Salt\_to\_You](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e8cbc/32.png) [@And\_Salt\_to\_You](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/And_Salt_to_You)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2000, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/6 "2000-08-27T19:56:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by voguevixen \* > \*\*I agree with handy, there are some posters whose very name makes my blood boil. I’d love to be able to not have to wade through a bunch of crap to get to the posts by people I enjoy reading. \*\* I agree with you, and the first one I’d like not to wade through is Duck Duck Goose. I can’t see why there has to be so much filler in all her posts, a lot of which are of-topic to start with. ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2000, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/7 "2000-08-27T21:11:03Z")
Allow me to quote from [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/) page, which you might not have seen: > [@](#): > > [About This Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/forumdisplay.php?forumid=2) > For technical questions and concerns about the SDMB. This is also the place for practice posts. > > [snip snip] > > [The BBQ Pit](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/forumdisplay.php?forumid=5) > If you gotta flame, do it here. This is the place for all complaints and other discussion regarding administration of the SDMB Also strikes me as somewhat odd to hijack a thread to complain about someone else being a hijacker. However, since we aren’t in the Pit, I’ll just offer this as some friendly technical advice about the SDMB. If you’re counting votes on the OP, put me down for what Duck Duck Goose said. I like my [drinks](http://www.laphroaig.com) complex and full of character. ---
**Author:** ![voguevixen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5ac83/32.png) [@voguevixen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voguevixen)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2000, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/8 "2000-08-28T00:36:02Z")
See that’s the beauty of it. For us narrowminded simpletons, we can filter out any distractions. For you complex high minded types, you can leave it as crazy and multifaceted as you like! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![MysterEcks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@MysterEcks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MysterEcks)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2000, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/9 "2000-08-28T00:49:31Z")
Interesting idea–filter out the posters you don’t like. Then, after a few weeks, someone would no doubt start a “Post Your Filter List” thread–probably in MPSIMS, though it would have to be moved to the Pit after the third post or so–which would start the biggest board war yet. (Though not as big as it could be, since the warring parties would have half their enemies filtered out to begin with.) Or, conversely, you could just remember who you don’t like and not read their posts. Very low-tech, and all that, but it would work. ---
**Author:** ![voguevixen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5ac83/32.png) [@voguevixen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voguevixen)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2000, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/10 "2000-08-28T01:03:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MysterEcks \* > \*\*Then, after a few weeks, someone would no doubt start a “Post Your Filter List” thread. > \*\* Oh good, that would simplify things, since anyone dumb enough to answer a thread like that would go on my list immediately. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2000, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/11 "2000-08-28T01:46:35Z")
Some BBS systems and a lot of newsgroups offer this kind of filtering; you make a list of the screen names/email addresses you never want to see and – poof! – you never see any posts they generate. We do not currently have this capacity in our system. All I can advise you to do is when you see a name you dislike, hit that “page down” button and keep on going. BTW, any more “hijacks” and attacks on other posters and this thread is over. If you have a problem with someone, take it elsewhere. your humble TubaDiva Administrator ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2000, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/12 "2000-08-28T16:29:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TubaDiva \* > All I can advise you to do is when you see a name you dislike, hit that “page down” button and keep on going. It seems to me that the “do a shot” rule applies to many more situations in life than I originally suspected. If you see a name you dislike, do a shot. If the post under that name gets your blood boiling, do a shot. If you respond to the post, do a shot. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2000, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/13 "2000-08-28T16:31:04Z")
My wonderful newsreader has a user word, subject word, etc filter that I use. So ads & things I don’t have to read, posts from people I know are going to be dumb I don’t have to read. Thus, a 5000 topic newsgroup becomes only 200 after it filters the spams, etc. The BBS that I used was MGS in Monterey Calif. Our filter worked very well & a lot of people used it. Sometimes you wouldn’t be able to give a forgive message to someone cause you filtered them so you’d ask one of the other users to tell them what it was. Tuba, yes, we know you don’t have it. THe question is, do you have the option to have it? ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2000, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/14 "2000-08-28T17:10:10Z")
The people at vBulletin might be better able to address this. Their Suggestions forum is at this URL: [http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=2](http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=2) ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2000, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/15 "2000-08-28T19:10:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by handy \* > \*\* > Tuba, yes, we know you don’t have it. THe question is, do you have the option to have it? \*\* I should have been more explicit. It’s not an option in the vB software as it currently stands. your humble TubaDiva Administrator ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2000, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/16 "2000-08-29T00:21:43Z")
Bah! We don’t need no steenkin’ filter! We gots moderators. Even better. Anyone who tries to spam or be truly irritating in any other way gets shut down. All hail the mods!! ---
**Author:** ![Lux\_Fiat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bc79bd/32.png) [@Lux\_Fiat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lux_Fiat)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2000, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/17 "2000-08-29T08:58:12Z")
'Sides, ya can’t exactly be fighting ignorance while employing a device to make you willfully ignorant of whole categories of posts. A filter would sorta run counter to the spirit of the board, methinks. ---
**Author:** ![voguevixen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5ac83/32.png) [@voguevixen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voguevixen)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2000, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/18 "2000-08-29T19:43:34Z")
Hmmm…my list is starting to get LONG. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2000, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/19 "2000-08-30T16:52:51Z")
I could put my name on my list then I wouldn’t have to read my posts again. ---
**Author:** ![ren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@ren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ren)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2000, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935/20 "2000-08-30T23:13:54Z")
and how many times would you repost, before you realized why your message wasn’t showing up? 😉 wonder what the record is for that sort of thing… [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-filter-user-names-then-you/30935.md?page=2)