# Sending private messages **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [January 11, 2007, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628 "2007-01-11T23:40:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2007, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/1 "2007-01-11T23:40:18Z")
I wanted to send a private message to someone here at the dope and I get a message saying my account doesn’t allow it.What is wrong? ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2007, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/2 "2007-01-12T00:05:01Z")
Private messages are disabled on this board for ALL members. They take to much resources. ---
**Author:** ![According\_to\_Pliny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@According\_to\_Pliny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/According_to_Pliny)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2007, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/3 "2007-01-12T00:58:16Z")
If they want to receive private messages, they will probably allow email from members. Try clicking on their name to see if that option appears. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2007, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/4 "2007-01-12T00:59:56Z")
[QUOTE=Peter Morris] Private messages are disabled on this board for ALL members. They take to much resources. [/QUOTE] If it makes you feel any better (though I doubt it does), PMs are also disabled for all the staff. We briefly enabled PMs for the staff only, as a test, and it slowed the board down to a crawl. So, **MadTheSwine** , nothing is wrong with your account. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2007, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/5 "2007-01-12T15:18:05Z")
[QUOTE=Lynn Bodoni] If it makes you feel any better (though I doubt it does), PMs are also disabled for all the staff. We briefly enabled PMs for the staff only, as a test, and it slowed the board down to a crawl. So, **MadTheSwine** , nothing is wrong with your account. [/QUOTE] Well, it WOULDN’T have slowed to a crawl if it hadn’t been for all those wild messages about upcoming staff parties and the pool about who would be wearing the lampshades!!! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2007, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/6 "2007-01-12T21:00:44Z")
Okay, here’s an odd one – I just got an email that **koeeoaddi** (who’s someone I communicate with sporadically off the boards) had sent me a private message – “click here to retrieve” – and of course clicking got the “not authorized” page. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2007, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/7 "2007-01-12T21:14:10Z")
Just a thought, would it be possible to replace the “not authorized” message with one that says “Private messages are disabled on this board for performance reasons” or similar? Better yet, would it be possible to remove the “send private message” link altogether? ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2007, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/8 "2007-01-12T21:25:16Z")
[QUOTE=Lynn Bodoni] If it makes you feel any better (though I doubt it does), PMs are also disabled for all the staff. We briefly enabled PMs for the staff only, as a test, and it slowed the board down to a crawl. So, **MadTheSwine** , nothing is wrong with your account. [/QUOTE] Perhaps upgrading the hardware would help? ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2007, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/9 "2007-01-12T21:31:03Z")
[QUOTE=twickster] Okay, here’s an odd one – I just got an email that **koeeoaddi** (who’s someone I communicate with sporadically off the boards) had sent me a private message – “click here to retrieve” – and of course clicking got the “not authorized” page. [/QUOTE] She sent you that from the “parallel universe board” which you must not have found yet. You can probably retrieve it on that board. ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2007, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/10 "2007-01-12T21:37:45Z")
[QUOTE=samclem] She sent you that from the “parallel universe board” which you must not have found yet. You can probably retrieve it on that board. [/QUOTE] That’s right, **twicks**. I was just testing out the nifty new PM feature. Guess it _did_ work. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2007, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/11 "2007-01-12T21:53:32Z")
[QUOTE=koeeoaddi] That’s right, **twicks**. I was just testing out the nifty new PM feature. Guess it _did_ work. 🙂 [/QUOTE] Whoa – and my response that I found it _only exists in the parallel universe board_. **cue “Twlight Zone” music** ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2007, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/12 "2007-01-16T05:29:50Z")
> [@](#): > > Why yes, I do have a goatee. and mod style jackboots. AND AN ARMY OF CYBORG LEMURS! BWAHAHAHAHAH!!! Why do you ask? Yes, that would make perfect sense to you if you were mucking around on the Other Board. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2007, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sending-private-messages/387628/13 "2007-01-16T05:40:56Z")
[QUOTE=jjimm] Perhaps upgrading the hardware would help? [/QUOTE] While I’ve advocated enabling the edit function, PMs are something else. I’ve got it enabled on my site, but on the SDMB, there’s a few risks: the messages consume hard drive space, they don’t magically go away if a user disappears, and there’s now the threat of vBulletin private message spam to worry about. I think PMs are great, but in a hardware-challenged environment like the SDMB, well … not to.