Problems with attitudes on neoboards

[Vixen]

I've been around neopets for a while, but I rarely use the neoboards. They're usually of no use to me. However, last night I was curious about the Tomos avie, so I hopped on and checked the topics for a while. I found myself not helping the discussion on how to unlock it so much as defending newbies who had made an honest mistake (they believed a fake page for the avie, and shared it because they wanted to be helpful).

There were people with 30 month accounts screaming "You posted a fake avie site, you should be reported!" and others calling them "losers," etc. As far as I can tell from the rules, there is nothing wrong with giving incorrect information concerning the unlocking of a plot, or an avie, etc. un;ess it is done to promote an external website, or getting people to pay for information, and whatnot.

So I suppose I'm here to rant, and to ask anyone who may know, why do people advocate abusing the report system? I'm shocked by what I read last night, and disappointed.

[bgryph]

As far as I've been able to tell, you'll be able to increase both your happiness and the longevity of your account by avoiding the Neoboards altogether.

I'm just saying.

[Xerophyte]

I suppose it makes them feel powerful and like an important part of upholding the "law".

I don't see any other possible reason for it.

[Vixen]

Indeed! After what I saw last night I know you're right. I can't imagine how many people must be frozen every day by incorrectly typing something. I'll steer clear of them now. I like my Korbat.

And I suspect they're not trying to uphold the law so much as they're trying to use it. Report someone and that's one less person to find the avie before you.

I need a very large bat that travels over the internet and pops out through people's screens and shakes itself at them.

[stampsyne]

That's why I love PPT. The nice people!

[_B4U_]

I've been around neopets for a while, but I rarely use the neoboards. They're usually of no use to me. However, last night I was curious about the Tomos avie, so I hopped on and checked the topics for a while. I found myself not helping the discussion on how to unlock it so much as defending newbies who had made an honest mistake (they believed a fake page for the avie, and shared it because they wanted to be helpful).

There were people with 30 month accounts screaming "You posted a fake avie site, you should be reported!" and others calling them "losers," etc. As far as I can tell from the rules, there is nothing wrong with giving incorrect information concerning the unlocking of a plot, or an avie, etc. un;ess it is done to promote an external website, or getting people to pay for information, and whatnot.

So I suppose I'm here to rant, and to ask anyone who may know, why do people advocate abusing the report system? I'm shocked by what I read last night, and disappointed.

Well, you have to understand, the people who frequent the Neoboards have to put up with a lot of crap from both older members mocking newer members by pretending to be like them and newer members alike. Anyone doing something stupid or wrong is usually hunted down and blasted quite fast. It seems harsh, but it helps the person making the mistake to realize that they should do their research before posting. I seriously doubt any of the people who get reported for such things actually get frozen, and as I read in the editorial a few days ago, sending poor reports gives you a bad name with TNT, so it doesn't go totally unchecked.

I assume you were on Avatar Chat looking for the topic. Whenever a new avatar comes out, people post about 100 topics asking about it. It gets insanely annoying after the second one. The chatters are all rushing to be first, and if someone finds something they think is right, they usually don't bother checking, they simply post it, happy to be first. When everyone rushes to the topic just to find out that it's fake, they get insanely ticked off. Hence, the anger you saw. On an evil note, I personally enjoy seeing fools get blasted.

Random disclaimer thing: I try to stay away from the Neoboards as much as possible any more due to various issues, but I do have a decent bit of experience with them.

[WockyChocky]

lol! Going to the neoboards: like walking into an insane aslyum.

Mostly it's people yelling one of several flavors of annoyance. Hold your breath if you have to go in.

[Trick]

The neoboards are horrible, I used to hang around them a lot though mostly in lurk mode and urgh... horribleness. They're just so full of people who think they own the place and who seem to forget that many of the newbies are just little kids. Or they don't but they are just rude to everyone. I remember someone here (Armi I think?) who got an avatar before other people once and got blasted on the Avatar chat as she was actually trying to tell them how to get it, pfft. Similar happened to a NCer. And then there are the people who are deliberately attention seeking, and hey! They certainly get what they want.

I really think the addition of the report button on each message was a BIG mistake. They should make it so you have to report through the usual channels with a specific neoboard category - that way if someone was doing something really bad then they could still be reported but it might make some people less trigger happy.

I admit though I'd be delighted if they just got rid of them entirely. Guilds I believe have their own message boards for those who like to chat a lot, and the current neoboards are responsible for a lot of lost accounts and people getting scammed. Either that or you should only be allowed to create threads if your account is over a certain age, with newbies only allowed to post in the Help chat or similar (maybe with "approved" helper people?). And one really wrong move and you could get chucked out of the neoboards forever.

O_O Oops, I ranted x) *shrug* Meh I just avoid them anyway ^^;

[Anoohilator]

That's why I love PPT. The nice people!

w0rd

[Vixen]

I really think the addition of the report button on each message was a BIG mistake....
I admit though I'd be delighted if they just got rid of them entirely.

Hmmm... I agree with you entirely. They're not what they should be. Too many people = too many human errors= unfriendly area

But who am I to criticize?
Thanks to everyone for pointing out different points of view. I'm glad I'm here.

[Zombie]

I admit though I'd be delighted if they just got rid of them entirely. Guilds I believe have their own message boards for those who like to chat a lot, and the current neoboards are responsible for a lot of lost accounts and people getting scammed.

But then it'd be very difficult to find a good guild. I used the neoboards to find my guild, which I adore.

Neoboards are also very useful for getting news fast. Rumors and theories spread quickly there; that's where I learned about duped items. Also, the shop/trade advertisement boards are quite useful for restocking: yes, a lot of the people who post lie about their prices, but still, there are enough real bargains there to warrant a look.

But for chatting? Uh...NO. I don't think it's quite right to call these people idiots, since most of them are just bored kids. The "literates" (who are, quite frankly, more or less a pack of self-preening bullies who make me ill with their middle-school-era popularity struggles - "teh", "meh", etc) annoy me more than anything else...ugh. x_x They make me remember being a preteen...eeeeeugh banish the thought!

Then again, I spend a good deal of time leeching in animal channels on IRC, and if you think this is bad, you should see the conversations there. Lurking is best for your mental health.

[the_mongoose2020]

That's why I love PPT. The nice people!

Exactly what I was going to say. The Neoboards are a waste unless you are looking to see how to get the newest avie's. But don't post on them... Surgeon Generals Warning!

[nakiebunny]

There are too many people who are happy when people get frozen...

But there are some nice people around there in the neoboards too :3

[Yumei]

Ugh. Some trigger happy little jerk on the neoboards got me frozen for a typo. =/ Lost 3.5 mil worth of pets (not even counting training, weapons, petpets; and the fact that my Draik was nearly three years old) to some little schmuck who was begging for paint brushes. (Saw her in a different board, later that night. =/) And I'm never going to get any of those pets back, either. I just... don't have the energy to restock or play games, anymore.

Bottom line? Stay far away from the neoboards. They cause nothing but grief.

[Daze]

I have quite happily sat on the LDP board, offering information and directing people to my help guide.

It is how you use the chatboards as to how you are treated. I have only had 1 bad experience since the plot started.

In regards to people blasting people for offering bad information. I have found that 9 times out of 10 that these people deliberately give out false information. As b4u said:

you have to understand, the people who frequent the Neoboards have to put up with a lot of crap from both older members mocking newer members by pretending to be like them and newer members alike.

If you spend a fair amount of time on the boards, you can usually tell who is fake and who is a new person.

Saying you will be reported is like "I am telling Mum". It works well for the newbies, so they don't do it again. Anyone who is giving out false information deliberatly doesn't really care about their account anyway.

I am not sticking up for people who report for no reason, but when you spend a lot of time on the boards like I have done, the crap does get hard to take.