Comments on The Official Netflix Blog: Message Board?

Anonymous, it sounds like 'Enlightenment Guarantee...

2008-01-27T22:34:00.000-08:00

Anonymous, it sounds like 'Enlightenment Guaranteed'. I dont know if it's on the DVD yet.

I'm looking for a German comedy movie whose anme I...

2008-01-27T19:34:00.000-08:00

I'm looking for a German comedy movie whose anme I cannot remember. It was made in the last 10 years> It is about 2 brothers who go to Japan in search of a monestary for personal enlightnemnt. One brother is a feng shui specialist who organizes peoples' houses. The other brother gets dumped by his wife and kids for not being there. Together, the brothers go to Japan where everything that can possibly go wrong happens. Its truly a masterpeice! Please help if you know the name of this movie. Thanx...

Okay. I have a question and no where else to post ...

2008-01-24T20:35:00.000-08:00

Okay. I have a question and no where else to post it. I want the *Japanese* version of Naruto, but I can't find it. What's up?

how can i watch my movies instantly? I can not loa...

2008-01-19T16:10:00.000-08:00

how can i watch my movies instantly? I can not load my movies. can someone please help me do this. There are several movies i want to wacth now while i wait for my next movies to arrive.

Limiting it to an icon/avatar like we have here is...

2008-01-16T07:34:00.000-08:00

Limiting it to an icon/avatar like we have here is plenty I think. I hate forums where they allow banners and huge signatures.

Exactly my point, I've always felt if you want to promote "yourself", start your own blog.

Logging an IP address tied to a user is sufficient (in case you might need to block them from access) however I would not display the IP addresses. Its not productive, and can cause other problems. Such as "bad guys" getting a hold of your IP addresses and then spoofing their identity to gain access.

Plus even a dynamic IP (ones that change) can be used by the "bad guys" to watch for your machines activity. If you have a Broadband connection you may have the same dynamic IP until your cable modem refreshes it, which can be up to 30 days depending on the service provider, especially true if you are always on.

Yep, thats me to a T.

2008-01-13T22:59:00.000-08:00

Yep, thats me to a T.

@Baff.You are a man of delightfully measured and ...

2008-01-13T12:12:00.000-08:00

@Baff.

You are a man of delightfully measured and almost unparalleled understatement.

"The new message board seems to be displaying peop...

2008-01-13T11:18:00.000-08:00

"The new message board seems to be displaying people's IP addresses."

Yep. Not sure how good that board is even for temporary use, unless that feature can be turned off.

"Plus it would be a good idea to place a "reasonab...

2008-01-13T11:12:00.000-08:00

"Plus it would be a good idea to place a "reasonable" limit to the size and number of images a user can post."

Limiting it to an icon/avatar like we have here is plenty I think. I hate forums where they allow banners and huge signatures. Threads turn into 90% signatures, 10% content. I would opt for 200 (or less) characters, no carriage returns. Thats more than enough to have a link to a Netflix profile or a random quote of the day. If people want to say more, they can put it in their forum profile.

A clear forum code of conduct is a must for both the readers and moderators.

Here is the World of Warcraft Code of Conduct. They deal with about 1 million posts a day from their own customers (only people with paid accounts can post), so they have refined their code to make it clear what is punishable and what the punishment is.

@Michael -Yikes! The new message board seems to be...

2008-01-13T10:20:00.000-08:00

@Michael -

Yikes! The new message board seems to be displaying people's IP addresses. Or are those internal NF codes in red?

I'm having the same (missing stuff) issue; and i'v...

2008-01-13T09:09:00.000-08:00

I'm having the same (missing stuff) issue; and i've got people looking into this. Weird. I'm sure no data is lost, but i don't know why it isn't being presented properly. more soon.

@ MichaelDo you know what's going on with the comm...

2008-01-13T08:49:00.000-08:00

@ Michael

Do you know what's going on with the community homepage? Member reviews do no seem to be showing up and neither are recent friend's reviews.

I have also noticed that all my reviews for the week (starting from Monday) have not yet been posted.

I would like to write some more but not sure if they are actually getting saved. Guess I'll wait a bit longer, and just keep watching movies :)

"phpBB is better, but it is also a spam-magnet."Th...

2008-01-13T08:45:00.000-08:00

"phpBB is better, but it is also a spam-magnet."

This really has to do with people not updating the service.

Here is a great article on fighting these types of issues directly from the phpBB community:

http://tinyurl.com/34bpdk

I may prefer VBulletin (for administrative purposes) but phpBB is also a very nice piece of freeware. It also works very well with the most current version of mySQL.

I definitely love the idea of an actual forum. The...

2008-01-13T06:54:00.000-08:00

I definitely love the idea of an actual forum. There are many good ones out there, though I disagree with those who say steer clear of PhPBB.

The fact that they release security updates means they are staying on top of all the new tricks that hacks and spammers come up with to promote their crud.

With that said, a proper forum will help keep threads "ON TOPIC" and with proper moderation will allow "Off topic" posts to be move to the appropriate area.

There should be NO anonymous posting allowed whatsoever, this by itself is a strong deterrent to spammers.

There should also be an email verification requirement. Again a strong deterrent to spammers, AND will deter those prone to trolling and flaming, the emails do not need to be public, so the privacy folks need not worry.

Bad language and personal attacks should be prohibited, but other then that post deletions should be kept at an absolute minimum.

With a requirement that the "Admin" or "Mod" first warn in that thread that a topic/post may be locked or removed, second lock and as a last result remove.

Plus it would be a good idea to place a "reasonable" limit to the size and number of images a user can post. I've seen folks who have 1/2 dozen images in their signature. One banner or image is surely enough to identify oneself and doesn't slow page loads with image overloads.

Also forum styled BB are much easier to navigate, as compared to a blog style. Folks tend to have areas of interest they are most passionate about and finding their threads are simply easier.

I think we should discuss all these board issues (...

2008-01-13T03:52:00.000-08:00

I think we should discuss all these board issues (moderation, platform, etcetera)on the existing version of the board, so there can be an exchange among those who will actually use it...

php is the way to go, there are a number of php te...

2008-01-13T03:29:00.000-08:00

php is the way to go, there are a number of php templates with most bells and whistles already installed. I've set boards up, and I am just barely a geek...it's really easy, VERY customizable, and handles threads way better.

Even more important than the "thick skin" is learn...

2008-01-13T01:38:00.000-08:00

Even more important than the "thick skin" is learning to not carry your old baggage into every new thread.

Great suggestion. If one had an argument with somebody over something in one thread, it needs not be carried over to the next thread.

The comment is on the board!http://members.boardho...

2008-01-13T01:05:00.000-08:00

The comment is on the board!
http://members.boardhost.com/netflix/msg/1200213419.html

I guess what I'm trying to say is that people need...

2008-01-13T01:01:00.000-08:00

I guess what I'm trying to say is that people need to grow a thicker skin if they are to participate in an online forum. Take deep breaths, think, re-think, read then re-read before firing off that comment.

Even more important than the "thick skin" is learning to not carry your old baggage into every new thread. It's best to have a very short term memory.

phpBB is better, but it is also a spam-magnet. Lot...

2008-01-13T00:06:00.000-08:00

phpBB is better, but it is also a spam-magnet. Lots of boards become overrun by spam-bots. But I like the idea of a message board, just take care of who you make moderators...

--Heather
Bring the "Releasing this Week" section back:
http://www.petitiononline.com/netflix/

I really don't think we're so far apart on this, s...

2008-01-12T23:37:00.000-08:00

I really don't think we're so far apart on this, so onwards and upwards, eh?

I agree with what you've said and we're definitely on the same boat. I just like playing the Devil's Advocate and in this case, presenting the possible extreme opposite view. It can and does happen that someone finds something objectionable and that one person ends up ruining the whole experience for everyone else. I was just basically throwing things up in the air. Things to ponder so to speak. :-)

I really hope that we go forward with getting a bbs. It would open up a better line of communication. This blog is good but highly restrictive as far as functionality and ease of use.

If/when a forum is opened up, I still stick to my original advice for everyone which is - to grow a thicker skin. There will always be someone out there who will rub you the wrong way. It is your reaction to it that can affect the effectiveness of the forum for yourself.

@alaninsb -Really don't want to re-visit the past,...

2008-01-12T22:19:00.000-08:00

@alaninsb -

Really don't want to re-visit the past, but this also affects the future, re the whole moderator issue.

Your points are good, and the slope is indeed slippery. But for me it comes down to civility and constructiveness. Calling someone an 'a**hole' is undoubtedly on the far side of borderline, and I'd certainly accept a 'lst warning' for that. But there's also a great difference between saying that someone is one as against saying that someone briefly behaved like one, no doubt under the influence of eggnog, and in stark contrast to previous behavior; and if NFJ wasn't offended, because I think he understood the spirit of respect in which I said it, no-one else should be. And it wasn't so much what was said back there, which was often perfectly rational, but more the tone in which it was said that got so many people's goat, and turned an exchange of ideas into an exchange of insults. So, as long as it's grown-up, relatively civil and to the point, I have no problem with a little intellectual rough and tumble. But when it gets ugly and overly personal, then I, and many others, want someone to throw a little cold water on those spoiling it for everyone else. I'm not talking immediate ejection - a sharp knuckle rapping from the Blogger gods can be surprisingly sobering.

I really don't think we're so far apart on this, so onwards and upwards, eh?

Just throwing in my few cents here.First, I comple...

2008-01-12T21:35:00.000-08:00

Just throwing in my few cents here.

First, I completely agree with the suggestion of rhymetorrents or vbulletin for that matter. It is very customizable and has a lot to offer to the members and moderators alike.

I believe that it should be accessible to anonymous posters but only as a read only forum. If one wishes to post, it should be mandatory to sign up and log in to do so.

"Can any one of us just pose a hypothetical, like Baff's 'HD is dead, long live blu-ray', and see if anyone responds?"

Depends on how the message board is setup.

There should be different forums within the forum. Perhaps something like Community, Netflix related problems, Movie Reccomendations, and All Others.

As for moderation, I think everyone should really think hard about the posts that were written in the RTW threads. Do you really believe any of those comments deserved to be deleted/censored? Any of the posters should've been banned? I don't think so. Moderating a forum is a very slippery slope. Where do you draw the line? Is flaming grounds for censure? If yes, do you realize the backlash that may arise from someone being censored by a company like Netflix? YES it will be censored by Netflix and not just the moderator or at least that's what the guy who got censored is going to claim.

If as you guys claim that some were slighted and put off by the trolling from the other threads, and if you felt it was NEtflix's fault that it went on like that, then what do you think would happen if somebody got censored. Do you think they will take it lying down? What about the second person it happens to? The third?

Yes, including you, Netflixjunkie, who usually posts sensibly and responsibly, but didn't just disagree back there -- which is fine, and usually much more interesting -- but behaved like a complete a**hole.

Perfect example here. What if I were the type who were offended by being called an A-hole? Should your comments be deleted? Should you get a warning then perhaps banned if you continue to use the word? I guess what I'm trying to say is that people need to grow a thicker skin if they are to participate in an online forum. Take deep breaths, think, re-think, read then re-read before firing off that comment.

What a lot of people are calling trolls from the Happy New Year posting were just people who had a differing opinion. If you think they were trolls then you shouldn't be a moderator.

You've eloquently stated in one statement what I was trying to accomplish in my diatribe up on my soapbox. :-)

Or, at least, users who do not remove and ban othe...

2008-01-12T17:07:00.000-08:00

Or, at least, users who do not remove and ban other users simply because they disagree with the poster.
What a lot of people are calling trolls from the Happy New Year posting were just people who had a differing opinion. If you think they were trolls then you shouldn't be a moderator.

And anyone that tried to get it back on track just got machine-gunned down by the trolls and goof-offers
machine-gunned down?, or do you mean that their side of the argument was just challenged?

From Michael"But i'm still exploring this entire n...

2008-01-12T17:06:00.000-08:00

From Michael

"But i'm still exploring this entire notion; how it would work. how it would help. who it would help. my ability to manage it. how it fits with other work i'm doing. but in the spirit of openess, i figured i'd do this thinking here, in this public space."

IMHO...Not yours to figure out. Put it out there, moderate it and let the community extract value out of it.