Spamalot!!

For the past few months, I’ve experimented with keeping the comment system of the site wide open. The result has been a mixed blessing. I got a lot more people commenting, and a mountain of spam to deal with every day. This morning, there were 36 comments to mark as spam. That was 36 emails in my gmail account I had to wade through and delete, and then 36 blocks of garbage to click away on the website.

It’s frustrating that the internet is full of griefers and assholes like this. I wish it could be wide open and pleasant. But what the internet needs is zoning restrictions and HOAs. So I’m moving the comments back to where you have to be logged in to leave a message.

This stinks because people have problems on various devices (like iPads) that prevents them from commenting. I’m sorry about this. If anyone knows WordPress enough to install some better and more reliable commenting program, I’m open to ideas. I just can’t keep wading through the piles of spam every day. :(

10 responses to “Spamalot!!”

  1. kitten Avatar
    kitten

    You have to do what you have to do… I will just have to figure out another way to post when I am away from my computer and have to use my iPad… But I will be getting a Galaxy Tab 2 when they come out… so it might not be a problem anyway…

    (No, I still love my iPad, I just need an android to develop for… and screw getting an android phone… I will stick with my i!)

    Reply
  2. Janyaa Avatar
    Janyaa

    Aww, I LOVE my Android phone!

    But, I digress. It makes sense to keep the comment filter on. We would rather have you using valuable time to write than wading through spam garbage!

    Although, that sounds like something that could be delegated…

    Reply
  3. mattbolick Avatar
    mattbolick

    Yep I agree. As long as those word counters on the left keep ticking up, I’m more than happy to spend 5 seconds logging in. (I love my Android phone too.)

    How about a chapter of what an Internet Troll is like as a zombie? Actually strike that idea…you probably couldn’t tell the difference.

    Reply
  4. Ruby Avatar
    Ruby

    Nobody worth a damn minds logging in, Hugh. I just have trouble remembering my wordpress identity and password, but I’ll get past the senior moments and figure it out. ;-)

    Reply
  5. ege Avatar
    ege

    I suppose Akismet was not working sufficiently well? On my WordPress websites it does what it’s supposed to do… but my traffic is probably much lower than yours :)

    Reply
  6. owlness Avatar
    owlness

    If it is mostly bot spam then a plugin like this may help cut the noise:
    http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/nospamnx/

    I’d suggest looking into something like Disqus as well, though that would not you get away from logins. Its iDevice support may be better, however.

    Reply
  7. Deb Robbins Avatar
    Deb Robbins

    Logging in is not a problem. You don’t need to spend your time taking out the internet trash. We’ll log in, you write.

    Reply
  8. coloradograndfather Avatar
    coloradograndfather

    What a gift bestowed on me by younger hormones. Grandson, I am filled with pride! And like your father, you are an excellent judge of women; Dr.Amber is a jewel in my box of family treasures.
    wjw

    Reply
  9. batsonjay Avatar
    batsonjay

    I’d recommend two spam management alternatives:
    – Mollom – see http://mollom.com (and download the WP plugin from http://mollom.com/download )
    – Akismet – see http://akismet.com/

    Both help a lot, and both have free or paid tiers that offer different levels of value. They’re not perfect, but the best around IMO.

    Congrats on all your success! Well deserved. Looking forward to the movie! :-)

    Reply
  10. pahosler Avatar
    pahosler

    I don’t understand, what problems are people having with posting from an iPad? As far as I know I am not having trouble posting this comment from mine.

    Reply

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