=][= SITE FILTER EXPERIMENTATION ONGOING =][=

[Brother Tyler]

We are looking at expanding our word filter entries.

 

Currently, the various filters we have convert some string of text into some other string of text. Most of the time this means turning profanity into , but there are also times where we redirect IP-violating websites to the Games Workshop site or correct common misspellings (e.g., there are a few variations of "emperor" that are covered).

 

The software update a few years ago gave us two additional options that we haven't implemented, but we are looking at ways they might be beneficial to the community (and some of our existing word filters might be converted to one of these new methods).

 

The first new method blocks certain text strings from being submitted - if you try to submit a post with one of these text strings, the software will tell you that you can't and give you the opportunity to change it to something acceptable.

 

The second new method is to require staff review and approval before content with the filtered string is published - if you submit content with one of these text strings, the content will remain hidden. You will be notified of the requirement for staff review and approval, and will be notified when the content is approved. We haven't tested out content that isn't approved yet, but I expect that you'll receive some form of notification if that happens, too.

 

We are currently only experimenting with the second new method, and have selected a half dozen or so text strings to be filtered. These are words/phrases/acronyms that are generally off-topic here, but which occasionally crop up and usually signal that a discussion is getting out of hand. Sometimes, however, these words/phrases/acronyms have legitimate and on-topic uses, hence the option for us to approve them.

 

No, I'm not going to tell you what the experimental phrases are. I selected a few from across the spectrum of viewpoints, but those might not be in our final list (assuming we decide to implement either/both of these methods).

 

I'm just letting you know so that you'll understand what's going on if you get a notification about your content requiring staff review and approval.

 

Our intent is to not go overboard, but to have a reasonable selection of filters that we can adjudicate fairly, hoping to better filter potentially objectionable content and keep everyone's passions from getting out of control (i.e., keeping the community a welcoming place for everyone).

 

Now if you have any suggestions for words/phrases/acronyms that you think should be filtered, please provide those suggestions to me via PM (we don't need to get into a public donnybrook over these ideas). The staff will discuss suggestions and determine which, if any, should be included in our filtering.