audioguru

There is more and more SPAM nowadays. Too much.
I notice that the SPAM robots have weird names. So don't register anybody with a weird name.
A bonus is that all those lazy students from "over there" who beg for us to do their homework and can hardly speak English also won't be able to register.

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Uncle $crooge

Sceadwian

No matter what you do spam will always get through. Makeing the registration process more difficult will turn off possible good new users as well as decrease spam, and even then it wouldn't prevent all spam.

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HarveyH42

Just noticed yesterday that this board censors posts. Wonder if the list can be added to? Like maybe 'Final year project', 'Cell Phone', 'Stun Gun', 'Jammer', and 'Microwave'...

I don't know how so many people could be stupid enough to make spamming profitable. Computers are great, these rip-off companies can send out thier ads, thousands per second. Only takes one fool to make it successful for the few minutes invested. Maybe I'm a little extreme, but I view all spam as a rip-off or some sort of scam. The only good thing about getting spam, is it lets you know which businesses and products to avoid.

It really is a tool of terrorists, and should be banned and violators should be treated as criminals. Fortunately, I've learned to guard my E-mail address closely, and have recieved any in years. Haven't seen much in the forums lately, but they catch it and remove it quickly.

dknguyen

"Final year project" definitely. Maybe even "desperate" and "desperately" since those two words never show up at any time except in a homework question.

"Microwave" is not a good idea to censor though...

HarveyH42

Just figured if you have to ask questions about microwave ovens in a forum, then its probably not a good idea to be messing around inside one. Most of the microwave posts have been about doing strange things with broken ones, like weapons.

As for Spammers... they will always find a crack to slip through, they are slime after all. Wonder what it would take to track down the origionator, or atleast which ISP is hosting these S.O.B.s, maybe people should flood the administrators with complaints about the spam. Would the hosting fee be worth the chaos?
I haven't forgotten how much time I use to waste trying to sort through my email, trying to figure which ones are spam. Remember for a while just opening some messages could cause you trouble. Don't recall any of it from businesses I had ever heard of, or actually had any interest in.
Maybe someday there will be a spam-tracker program, and the consumers will have a tool to fight with. Basically, we could stop using the ISPs that allow spammers to practice their craft. Don't purchase products (wouldn't from the ads anyway) these companies sell else where. Make it public, these companies are shadow creatures. Nobody can really tell who is behind the spam, but somebody has to produce the merchandise (if it isn't an out-right rip-off scam).

Nigel Goodwin

The forum software doesn't 'censor' posts, and you appear to be deliberately using that word to try and make it sound bad!. The forum software, like all forum software, has an option to enable a list of banned words - usually swear words, it makes sense to have this feature enabled, and unless you're trying to use words which you probably shouldn't?, then you would never even know the feature was there.

I'm not familiar with the forum software here, but certainly other software can have words added to the banned list, and I see no reason why this would be any different!.

As for spam, there's no way to stop people registering and then posting spam, however it is VERY quickly deleted and the posted permanently banned.

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PIC programmer software, and PIC Tutorials at:
http://www.winpicprog.co.uk

HarveyH42

For censorship being a bad thing... a cultural thing, it's been debated here in America for a long time, even before we kick the Brits out in the 1700s... Personally, I greatly appreciate the fact that this is a very clean forum, and we are allow to get a little naughty, if we phrase things in a not so vulgar way. When I get emotional, my language skills degrade slightly, but my wording isn't too bad and usually appropriate.

I've been on this forum about a year now, and never noticed the auto-censorship until just the other day. The offending word, wasn't something that would normally be considered as such. It's used on news broadcast, in churches, school officials and so forth. No real big deal, just thought it odd and interesting.

I understand that American Rights and Freedom doesn't extend beyond our borders, and not looking to push our culture (even if its better ), off on the rest of the world. I probably push my luck with the UK and Canada sometimes, but its only meant as humor. I really don't have any grudges against anybody.

The software does a great job keeping out the really nasty stuff, and the moderators do a excellent job keepin the posts on track, without killing some of the fun. There isn't anyway to automatically stop the spam, or 'do my school work' posts. The moderators volunteer a great deal of time, and the rest of us are fortunate enough to enjoy this board. I've be in forums where there are [WORD CENSORED]ography pictures posted, most of the posts are advertisements, and very little of anything actually related to electronics as it was suppose to. This one is the best availiable, and I hope it stays up.

Hero999

Fixed.

One way prevent spam is to use pictures with numbers and letters in, all the new person has to do is enter the charicters displayed in the picture in a text box. This makes it eas for a human and hard for a computer, and will stop the automated spambots.

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What's so bad about Microsoft?

Get Opera it's simply a superb browser.

Marks256

You know, they always say "You have to fight fire with fire... So, with that being said, i am sure you could find a bulk email sender.... Huh, here is one:

http://www.soft32.com/download_25940.html

Just get the email addresses from all the spam posters, dump them into this freeware baby, and SPAM THE CRAP OUT OF THEM!!!!! Mohahahahahahaha

All you would need is a fake email address. But that is what yahoo is for, something like: Spammer156782349@yahoo.com? Yeah, that would work...

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There is no "I" in "team", unless Apple makes it... Then it would be iTeam.

Hero999

Smoehow I don't think an automated spambot cares if it recieves a shed load of spam.

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What's so bad about Microsoft?

Get Opera it's simply a superb browser.

HarveyH42

True, but the ISP usually limits the size of the mailbox. When the box is full, where do the E-Mails go? Doesn't the host have to deal with it somehow, or atleast the account would be flagged a problem? If the host computer is tied up with the outgoing spam, then tied up with dealing with rejecting e-mail, would that kind of piss off the owners?

Marks256

Yep, that is what i was going for. I don't think the ISP would really enjoy over 4gb of crap per day....

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There is no "I" in "team", unless Apple makes it... Then it would be iTeam.

Hero999

Just always make sure you report spam.

I always do and give the perpretrator negitive reputation for good measure.

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What's so bad about Microsoft?

Get Opera it's simply a superb browser.

Marks256

Yeah, how does that reputation thing here work? It looks interesting, but i haven't played with it yet.

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There is no "I" in "team", unless Apple makes it... Then it would be iTeam.

Nigel Goodwin

Presumably you don't mean on here?, it's completely pointless, and just fills the moderators inboxs!.

I delete spam as soon as I see it, which is BEFORE I ever see the email in my inbox, and the poster is immediately and permanently banned - so his reputation is an even bigger waste of time!.

__________________
PIC programmer software, and PIC Tutorials at:
http://www.winpicprog.co.uk