Why we do what we do

[luvmysuper]

Some questions recently in Site Feedback made me think of throwing this open to the members where they could ask questions on why we run the site the way we do.
I can't guarantee that every question will be answered to your complete satisfaction, but I will do my best to explain any questions you have.
Let's try our best to keep it civil if you please.
PayPal in the BST? Some forum areas that posts don't add up?
Something else you've been wondering about?
Bear in mind that this is a part-time voluntary gig, and I will answer as I can, and flag the person asking the question so they know they have been answered.

 

[NorthernSoul]

Let's say somebody sees a suspicious post that might be a scam. What happens behind the scenes if they report it to the mods?

 

[luvmysuper]

Let's say somebody sees a suspicious post that might be a scam. What happens behind the scenes if they report it to the mods?

@NorthernSoul

We gather information, look at join date, posting history, what has been said in past posts, do a search for known criteria that may show up on some other websites such as guitar, or stereo or car forums, etc. Then contact with the individual saying that an anonymous tip was received flagging something as suspicious.
If nothing is conclusive at that point, and the person has no history of infractions, then we work with the individual to reframe or eliminate the post that seems suspicious so that people are not attracted to respond.
After that it is just keep a watchful eye.
If red flags show up during the searches, the Mod Team will discuss the issue and if warranted, close the persons account.
We recently had a case like that where a guy showed up on a car parts trading forum for almost identical activity, and his account was closed here immediately.
Unfortunately some folks were sucked into the scam as he had approached people via PM, with no BST sale thread.
If that happens, then we also make a post reminding folks that the reason we have all the seemingly unending rules of the BST is to try to reduce the number of scams that get run here.
We are not always successful, and in those cases, PayPal Goods and Services is the victims best defense.
I have heard that X is working on a payment system that may rival PayPal, and if that comes to fruition, it might give everyone another option for payments.

 

[silverlifter]

Thanks Phil, good intiative.

I'm curious about playing whackamole with spammers. They tend to show up early evening my time, which I guess is when lots of members are offline. Do you and the team just block them, or do you have tooling to ban their IP addresses or other more systemic remediations?

Thanks to all of the team for the work you all put in.

 

[luvmysuper]

Thanks Phil, good intiative.

I'm curious about playing whackamole with spammers. They tend to show up early evening my time, which I guess is when lots of members are offline. Do you and the team just block them, or do you have tooling to ban their IP addresses or other more systemic remediations?

Thanks to all of the team for the work you all put in.

@silverlifter

In some cases they are flagged and held in limbo by either a spam matching software group or by some of the tricks used in the registration process. That usually covers the bots pretty well. Those guys are unceremoniously dumped before they can do any harm.
We instituted the post count for PM's to try to reduce the PM spammers, as most don't want to hang around long enough to build up a post count, and we notice the "Welcome to B&B" repeated 20 times pretty quickly.
Some are more sneaky and will make posts that don't seem spam like, and then after that post has been up a bit, they will quote their own post and slip a spam link in, or quote someone else and use a spam link.
We are always on the watch for someone posting in a thread that is 2 years old, or putting what may initially seem like a helpful link in their posts when they haven't been here long or don't have many posts.
A genuine new guy seldom actually signs up and has requisite knowledge required to post links that would be helpful to most folks here.
The obvious ones where someone is advertising a dating site or fake passports are almost always reported by members within minutes and before we see them.
Any Mod can lock an account, and when done for spam purposes, once they are dumped, it is reported automatically to the anti spam software group I mentioned earlier.
It's an ongoing battle, and it's almost impossible to explain the "spider sense tingling" experience one gets after dealing with these folks for a while.

 

[luvmysuper]

@NorthernSoul

I'll add that The PayPal Goods and Services is protection in 2 ways. It provides relief to someone who has been scammed, but it also lets scammers know that B&B is going to be a tougher nut to crack.
That's why we are so over the top and get mad when we find that folks have been using other payment methods.
By using other payment methods that have no buyer protection, it signals to scammers that we have let our guard down, and it might be time to try to run a game on the members here.

 

[mcee_sharp]

How often do mods have to issue warnings based on content/behaviour?

 

[luvmysuper]

How often do mods have to issue warnings based on content/behaviour?

@mcee_sharp

It varies. We seem to be a little less busy at peak of summer vs dead of winter.
Unscientifically it probably averages out to half a dozen a day.
Incidentally, we are trying out a newer initiative that allows for boilerplate type pm's to be sent for the most common problems:
Language, BST problems, trolling/snarky replies, etc.
That helps in trying to simply convey the issue and preventing less misinterpretation of the message.
On average, 1 or 2 a day require follow up because of replies that go to the "you guys are being ridiculous" or "how dare you remove my post/thread" or worse stuff.
A Mod has to develop thick skin or the whole B&B experience could be ruined for him in short order.
Most new Mods are frankly shocked when they first see the nasty underbelly of daily stuff here and how someone who appears to be a knight in shining armor to members in public can be such a really nasty, spiteful person in a PM.
Most members though are understanding and happily work with us to keep B&B the great place that it is!

 

[JustJames]

Thank you for all you (and the other MODs) do to keep this a civil, safe, and informative site!

 

[ctr]

Many thanks for the time spent on our behalf. B&B is a refuge of gentleman and civil gentlemanly behavior as a testament to the members and staff. So refreshing to avoid the incivility, infighting, and foul language encountered in less desirable areas of the internet.

 

[dotKomo]

Many thanks for the time spent on our behalf. B&B is a refuge of gentleman and civil gentlemanly behavior as a testament to the members and staff. So refreshing to avoid the incivility, infighting, and foul language encountered in less desirable areas of the internet.

Amen! I am so blessed to be in a group of members and moderators that keep this a welcome oasis in a sea of online chaos.

Thanks, Phil and all the moderators!

 

[Eric_75]

Thanks, Phil and all the moderators!

Yes, thank you all.

 

[Brutus]

Bear in mind that this is a part-time voluntary gig…

Not a question really, but let me say that I hope it stays that way.

Years ago, I had been moderating a watch forum that was a voluntary gig as well and it used to be a vibrant, interesting place. It was strictly volunteer based, but when the owner of the site decided to cash in and sell overnight, it lost a lot of attractiveness (and moderators, who had not been informed before, left in droves).

In fact, it dropped close to the level of another monetized watch forum that once had dominated the net, but where commercial interests and heavy-handed moderation (along the lines “We don’t want to offend sponsors, do we?”) wreaked havoc to its popularity.

Keeping commercial interests at bay seems to be the way to go.


B.

 

[mcee_sharp]

@mcee_sharp

It varies. We seem to be a little less busy at peak of summer vs dead of winter.
Unscientifically it probably averages out to half a dozen a day.
Incidentally, we are trying out a newer initiative that allows for boilerplate type pm's to be sent for the most common problems:
Language, BST problems, trolling/snarky replies, etc.
That helps in trying to simply convey the issue and preventing less misinterpretation of the message.
On average, 1 or 2 a day require follow up because of replies that go to the "you guys are being ridiculous" or "how dare you remove my post/thread" or worse stuff.
A Mod has to develop thick skin or the whole B&B experience could be ruined for him in short order.
Most new Mods are frankly shocked when they first see the nasty underbelly of daily stuff here and how someone who appears to be a knight in shining armor to members in public can be such a really nasty, spiteful person in a PM.
Most members though are understanding and happily work with us to keep B&B the great place that it is!

I can see that it would be a thankless job, so THANKS!

 

[musicman1951]

Thank you for all the hard work that makes this such a great site.

 

[luvmysuper]

To all the guys saying thanks, it is very much appreciated by all the Mods.
We love this place as much as you guys.
It truly is a labor of love.
I'm honestly not doing this to garner thanks or well wishes for the team, as nice as it is to hear it!
I know that before I accepted going onto the team, I had questions that no one ever seemed to ask, and I wondered why.
Here's your chance to scratch that itch!

 

[Manye]

Thank you, Mod Team

 

[pellidon]

I don't recall seeing any spam posts or questionable posts. So whatever you're doing is working. Thanks for doing it. I know it's a big job to do.

 

[JCinPA]

Well, I’ll chime in here. Phil, I don’t think I’ve ever been a problem child, but whenever I’ve messaged a mod about a technical issue or with a question about how things work or even some questions about some board history (you’ve been helpful in that regard), I’ve always gotten a prompt and gentlemanly reply. You guys do it because you love the place, and want to keep it being a place you love, and you all do a great job. After being away a year or two I am delighted to see a couple of new mods stepping up to help out.

Great place, B&B, and you, sir, are the greatest of the mods, IMNSHO. Thank you.

 

[luvmysuper]

Well, I’ll chime in here. Phil, I don’t think I’ve ever been a problem child, but whenever I’ve messaged a mod about a technical issue or with a question about how things work or even some questions about some board history (you’ve been helpful in that regard), I’ve always gotten a prompt and gentlemanly reply. You guys do it because you love the place, and want to keep it being a place you love, and you all do a great job. After being away a year or two I am delighted to see a couple of new mods stepping up to help out.

Great place, B&B, and you, sir, are the greatest of the mods, IMNSHO. Thank you.

None of the Mods could function without the support of each other, and we all contribute equally, believe me.
We couldn't do it without the support of the vast majority of members who love the site and want to see it continue who contribute in time, energy, posts, reports of bad behavior, funds and the idea of what B&B is.