It seems we are starting to see stupid advertising postings and I am concerned they might start to get too adult focused that would put some people off the web site.
Having the ability to post anonymously is good, but none of us should be afraid to register a user name that still gives you privacy when posting but ensures that in the event of violating website rules they can be kicked off.
I saw a posting about another housing area having a better website than this one, and while the quality of web sites is in the eye of the beholder, I think the work put into this is often overlooked and under-appreciated, just ask yourself if you would give up so many hours to do something for the HOA as the webmaster must have done to put this site together.
It is easy to rant and be abusive while hiding behind an anonymous posting, but if you have an opinion you should not be afraid to put your name behind it, the internet was never meant to allow people to be mean and abusive with no consequences.
A good rule I try to live with is that if I wouldn't be prepared to say it to your face then I have no right thinking it is okay to post it on a web site, especially anonimously, maybe others should look to adopt a similar rule.
I agree with the idea of removing the ability to anonymously post to the forums. This may help reduce the amount of nuisance ads and possibly help tone down some of the rants, but I don't think it is the 'end all' solution either. Even for a registered user, all that is required is an E-mail address which anyone can pick up off of Google, Yahoo, or many other public sites which still allows you to remain pretty much anonymous. In the end, it is up to each of us as members of the neighborhood to keep our comments good natured and well intended.
The idea of removing the ability to post anonymously has come up before, but so far I have been recommending against it. I'm not completely against the idea. It's just that I'm not sure that the tradeoff is worth the gain. While I would also prefer to cut down on the spam, the fact is, we only get one or two bits of spam a month, so it's not a huge problem. I try to check the website every few days, but if someone sends me a note about a spam posting, I can get on right away and clean it up. Also, I currently have the ability to block those spammers. Requiring people to register doesn't give me any additional abilities in that department. Not only do I block their IP address, but I also deny the entire block of IP addresses that they're posting from, if the IP block doesn't originate from the US. Also, like Zoso mentioned, even if we did require logins they could still register and post their spam. So, it doesn't completely block them from spamming us.
As for rude people... in my experience, most rudeness can be easily curtailed by the online community itself. All it takes is one post from a member saying they don't like the tone of a particular post, and the rude people either disappear or they rein it in. If posts get too out of hand, they can always be edited to remove unnecessary language. So far, (other than the spammers) I haven't seen anything that warranted that kind of response. In fact, I feel like there's only ever been one post that I felt strongly objectionable to, and I posted a response to it. We haven't heard from that person again. But I do agree that anonymity has the unfortunate effect of people behaving worse than they normally would.
My biggest argument against requiring registration for posting, though, is the fact that our website currently doesn't get very much traffic or participation at all. And like it or not, people are less inclined to participate if they have to jump through hoops (like registration) in order to share their thoughts. So, I fear that requiring registration would end up reducing what little participation that we currently have. If the site had a lot more traffic, then I would feel differently.
All that being said, I'm not against the idea of requiring registration for posting. I just think the pros and cons of doing so should be considered. Thank you for your post, Elginloon. I appreciate you bringing this topic up. I look forward to hearing what others have to say.
Jonathan Wiest
Pioneer Crossing West HOA Webmaster
I think people have the right to be anonymous. People are more likely to say something if they feel they wont be singled out or treated different by neighbors. If an angry neighbor found out who turned them in for a violation they could take thier frustration out on said person.
Mr Loon. I can't tell at all who you are, assuming your real name isn't elginloon.
And I disagree completely. Keep anonymous posting. Participation is important and if it can be increased by allowing for anonymous posting whether for reasons around fear of retaliation or just wanting complete privacy on the internet (which is reasonable) - then allow anonymity.