QCDN shows only the first sig per page, so if a user posts multiple times on the same page, only the very first post shows a sig. Completely getting rid of sigs in the contest forum is possible but would require template modifications. The less I need to modify templates, the better, as modifications are usually lost during upgrades and will have to reapplied. Modifications sometimes interact with other modifications in bizarre ways to create a big mess, which is something I would rather like to avoid.
Shaunessy said:
I will admit that I used all 150000 characters allowed in a post on a thread but I wasn't the first to do so. Sculli since you have it locked down... I was thinking, and your rules are kinda vauge as to what is allowed and what isn't.
What exactly is "I wasn't the first to do so" supposed to imply? That it's ok? That it's less of an issue than when someone is the first? I honestly do not understand the reasoning behind it being acceptable to do something because obviously others have done it already. I hope I am not the only one who's asking himself "Is what I am about to do right?" before actually doing something. I will concede that what's right by one may be wrong by another, and that's cool, but it seems to me that often the question of whether something is the right thing to do isn't even considered.
The following is more of a reply to everyone, and not just Shaunessy.
What's the big deal, it's just an online message board, no one cares!
That's true, if one wants that to be true. A great number of people have already stated elsewhere that they are one type of person on the boards, a different type of person in game, and a different type yet in real life. I am not like that, so I have a hard time to relate.
In the end it comes down to this; I simply shouldn't have to make rules for every little detail that people could potentially screw up. I expect that those who participate in an online community, those who play a massivly multiplayer online game, have at least some rudimentary regard for the other users/players. Time and time again I am being disappointed as my already low expectations are not met.
What could possibly be the rationale for posting 150,000 identical characters? Was that supposed to be funny? Seriously, I am curious, and I am not just asking you Shaunessy, but everyone else as well. Was it a joke of sorts? Showing off the skill it takes to copy something 150,000 times and hit "Submit Reply"? Was it to piss others off? To make the thread a little less readable, to get a rise out of others?
Massive posts in the same thread lag the board, sure I could cut down on the amount of characters per post, and I may just have to do that to account for abuse. The reason why 150,000 is the limit is that some users have the potential of producing valuable content that is 150,000 characters long (i.e. Traveller's Tavern posts, some of the better FB posts, quest descriptions, etc.). Those tend to be isolated posts that push the limit without to bog things down. Of course people can argue that if I allow for 150,000 characters, then they have every right to post 150,000 characters. While that may be true, it still doesn't make it a good idea.
I try hard to make QCDN a place that is useful and entertaining to its users. When I log on and see people attempting to essentially sabotage my work, then I take that as a sign of disrespect. Disrespect toward me, and disrespect toward every other QCDN user.