When a user clicks “New Thread”, send him / her back a sequence number. Then pass the sequence number back to the server via a “hidden” in the form and reject any new thread creation from the same user / sequence number combination. This might help a bit with the multiple thread creation problems. Just a suggestion.
The people in charge of the SDMB don’t seem to read a lot of the threads on the boards. I’m still waiting for them to get back to me re: my post in this thread. It’s been so long I forgot what I said and had to go back and read it again. :smack:
Maybe if we bump the thread often enough (:D) or I’ll check and see if the moderators have email.
[hijack]Did you base your username on the group?[/hijack]
I’m not sure of the status of the SDMB development team. I surely don’t want to slam them for running this fine board, but it seems like a few minor tweaks here and there would make things much better.
My name came from an old Merle Haggard song. I really don’t care for CC and water, I just thought the name had kind of a ring to it. 
But can I borrow a Scantron?
Actually these database problems have been fixed in the newest version of vBulletin. (www.vbulletin.com)
They are currently on Version 3.7 Beta and I am sure that when they release the full version in the next couple of months they will update the board here.
It’s not really an issue that could be fixed from some code anyway, most of these problems are arising because the server is overloaded. Too many simultaneous connections for the mysql server to handle.
Moving this to About This Message Board.
As soon as we GET a SDMB development team, they might read your suggestion.
We don’t have a message board development team. We’ve got Jerry the Wondertech, who does what he can when he can. The message board does not make money, in fact I understand that it costs the Reader quite a bit. Jerry is basically the IT guy for the whole Reader, so he always has a lot to juggle around, and the message board is the last priority.
We don’t implement hacks to the software unless they’re VERY simple, VERY necessary ones. The more hacks, the more strain on the software, and the more likely it is that the boards will crash or go buggy in some weird way…at least that’s my understanding. We wanted to be in the Beta release of the latest version of vBulletin (at least some of us on the staff did, personally I hate being a Beta tester) but we’re gonna have to wait for the official release.
As for the ignore rule, we put that in place because otherwise there would be too many people abusing “PLONK!” We’ve seen it happen too many times on usenet. Personally, I wouldn’t worry about being on someone’s ignore list. The message board is too big for everyone to answer everyone else. On the other hand, it’s big enough so that important questions WILL get asked and answered several times over. This is, for example, the umpteenth time one of the staff has had to explain about our board development team AND about the ignore list.
Who is “PLONK,” and why would they be abused?
Is that a real question, or are you just funning around?
Please, do tell. I have no idea what PLONK is and a search of this forum turned up only this thread. I also tried the NetLingo list of acronyms to no avail. 
“Plonk” is used by people in newsgroups/usenet to indicate that a poster has just been put on one’s ignore list. For instance, had this been a newsgroup, and I had just quoted a poster and then added “PLONK!” that would have meant that I had just put that poster on my ignore list. Ignore lists in newsgroups are different from the vBulletin system, back when I was in newsgroups I didn’t even SEE the posts by my ignored posters. From what I understand, on vBulletin, I can see a listing for my ignored poster but in the body of the message it will say something like “This poster is on your ignore list, to read the post click here.” I’m not sure exactly what it says, as I am not allowed to put any user on my ignore list.
Not discussing who is on your ignore list is sort of an extension of not feeding trolls. Also, can you imagine what would happen if someone came out with an outrageous statement? We’d be hearing “PLONK!!!” forever.
I’d never heard the term before, honestly. Yes, it was a real question.
I was on USENET as far back as 1989-1990, and I never heard of “PLONK” either, Dan, so don’t feel bad. I now know people used it, but I didn’t see it - or maybe they did and I just forgot since it was so common…? Some people don’t remember “Warlording” either (but I do) even though it was pretty common. USENET was a multicoloured tapestry then, not the…ugh…it is now.
Back in the really old days, when I was young, prisoners who weren’t worth anything for ransom usually justed walked the plonk.
I was on pre-Net systems as far back as 1985, and if it was used then I’ve forgotten it completely. But now I feel wiser for knowing.
Hmmmm, maybe it was just on the newsgroups I was on, but “Plonk!” was generally understood as being the sound of someone being put on the ignore list. I was reading several diverse groups, too.
I see it on the NASCAR newsgroups, which tend to get a lot of trolls. An example usage from a week ago.