First off, I realize this might be in the wrong forum since it’s not exactly a discussion about entertainment so if the mods disagree with my posting here accept my apologies and do that voodoo you do. I’m posting it here since its not a rant or pitting, and it likely would go totally unnoticed in ATMB.
In many threads around here, especially Lost and 24, where spoilers are rampant and expected I’m seeing a trend of folks using spoiler boxes to obscure the entirety of their post or adding spoilers without any indication of what’s being spoiled.
In the forum rules, this is discussed when explaining how to use spoilers.
It’s abundantly clear that in the Lost thread there will be spoilers about the coming week’s episode and details revealed within previews, commercials and future episode guides and titles. Occasionally however you’ll see a spoiler box with no indication of what’s being spoiled, and the magnitude of the information. I’m personally of the type who doesn’t mind reading previews and episode guides so I’ll usually view most of the spoilers and I enjoy wild speculation. However, it sucks if I gamble with a totally blind spoiler to find some insider information on a major plot point several weeks off when I was merely expecting a comment about next weeks previews or a cast member on IMDB.
An example was when this big spoiler about the future of a major character on Lost was revealed without any preamble aside for the word “Spoiler” over a month and a half ago.
Ana Lucia is going to be killed off.
I’d have never viewed that spoiler had I been forewarned about it’s magnitude or how far into the future it would be.
Anyways, it’s not really a bitch session, I’m fully aware of the fact that venturing into CS threads about ongoing TV shows is a risk and that viewing a spoiler box is always a gamble. Still, I hope bringing it up might help to make those threads slightly less precarious by bringing it to folks attention.
Thanks. Sorry if I’ve stepped on any toes, not trying to call anyone out.
I was attempting to make an example of proper spoiler use by indicating that it was a major spoiler, letting you know who it’s about, and that it’s about the characters fate. I can’t see how you need to read the spoiler to understand the point. The only real abiguity is how similar my definition of a big spoiler is to the readers.
Look. Done here, because this is a silly hijack. But one would assume that you’ve included an example because it’s relevant to your post, and therefore meant to be read, and further one would assume that in a post asking people to be careful with spoilers, your spoiler will be hypothetical and not EXACTLY the kind of spoiler you’re complaining about.
Except he’s not complaining about spoilers, he’s complaining about spoilers with no preamble, no clue as to what it’s about. He gave his spoiler a preamble, so it serves as an example of how he’d like it to be done.
Really, this is the most pathetic thing I’ve seen on this board in a long time.
You know what a spoiler is, someone went to the trouble of putting it in a spoiler box, which negates the need to even say “spoiler” before the box, and now you want a bigass dissertation on the nature of the information contained in the device that hides it from you unless you voluntarily look into it?
:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:
But by making the character’s name readable, and making the point that it’s about that character’s fate, it’s pretty obvious that person is going to be killed off.
We seem to go round and round with this. I know there are rules in the sticky, but has everyone read them? I’m thinking no.
When the finales of Survivor and The Amazing Race air, there are always the West Coast viewers who don’t want any posts made without spoiler boxes until they’ve had a chance to watch in their time zone, which is three or four hours past when it airs on the East Coast. IIRC, once it airs in its entirety on the East Coast, it’s fair game and we can post without using the boxes.
Depending on the show (Lost, 24, Survivor, TAR), there are different ‘house rules’ about what can be discussed in the threads. I think the 24-ers prefer not to talk about the previews or anything seen in the ads for the show, but I know for the other three shows, previews are open for speculation. Actual spoilers from spoilers sites are to be boxed. It’s nice if you an give a little hint as to what your spoiler is about so readers can decide of they want to read it. It’s not like you have to give away the whole thing, just maybe who it’s about, or the basic plot point. Sometimes people post nothing but a spoiler box and no clue as to what they’re posting and I sit there wondering if I want to read it.
But - in your case, where you said it was about a specific character’s fate and listed that character’s name - that was too easy to figure out. It would have been better to say, “Major spoiler about a central figure” and then add the spoiler box.
Do you have a plan for implementing your suggestion? Defined magnitudes or something? Like:
Gone with the Wind Magnitude 1
The story takes place during the War of Northern Aggression.
Gone with the Wind Magnitude 10
Rhett walks out on Scarlet in the end, saying “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.”
But suppose I want to read a spoiler about the ending but not about the time and place. How do I know to check the magnitude 10 but not the magnitude 1?
Personally I have no problem with spoilers that have no preamble as long as they are in a thread dedicated to a particular show. It does piss me off a bit though, when someone posts a spoiler in a more general thread (say, “Movies with a twist”) without giving any hint as to what the spoiler is about. You have to risk that it may be a spoiler about something you haven’t seen yet, or it may not be, you don’t know.
Another thing that bugs me, is people on the west coast posting in the middle of a discussuion about a show that has aired on the east coast complaining about spoilers etc. because they haven’t seen the show yet!
Listen I’m on the west coast, so I know damned well not to look at a Lost/Amazing Race/Survivor thread until I have finished watching said episode.
I think Omniscient makes a valid and polite observation/request.
However, there’s a point when an individual has to make some tough choices when one wishes to be kept in the dark about certain information.
When a poster has already taken care to put information behind a door that says “don’t look here if you’re concerned about finding things out about X that you don’t already know,” the burden is on you to make the choice to view that information or not. A poster shouldn’t be expected to drop hints about the possible content of the spoiler so that others can somehow inform their decisions about whether or not to read the spoiler.
Besides that being more work on the part of the poster, it also assumes that the poster would know exactly how to notate the spoiler so as to inform people accurately yet not spoil the spoiler.
Basically, I think once you know what piece of art the spoiler is about, and it’s behind a spoiler tag, it’s up to you to restrain your curiosity if you’re that concerned about finding some things out about a show/movie/book.
I also think this is pretty damn pathetic, but for totally different reasons that you. Its a simple request yet people are jumping on the OP like he demanded 12 TPS forms in triplicate before posting a spoiler. I know exactly what he’s talking about. I haven’t had it happen on this board, but on another people post labelless spoilers all the time and its’ really irratating.
My suggestion: Most of those spoilers come in response to someone’s hypothetical question. Just quote the darn question before answering. For example:
Poster A: Man, Luke and Leia sure are close.
Wrong:
Poster B: They’re brother and sister.
Right:
Poster B:
They’re brother and sister.
Is that so hard?
No, you didn’t. The OP wasn’t about that at all. It was about spoilers for future shows within a thread for a current school. Besides, there’s a reason to start and read threads before the show airs, to talk and speculate. Virtual water cooler talk, ya know?