Swearing

[StuartDH]

Reading some recent threads, there seems to be a gradual increase in swearing on the site. Some of the words are being deleted by the censor software, but there are now many examples of members beating the system by using symbols instead of letters...even where only the first character is in the alphabet and the rest is a mess.

Please help us to keep a high standard and a family-friendly site by not posting swear words or character equivalents and reporting any that you come across when reading the threads.

Thanks

Stu

[Jez]

I'm new Stuartdh to this gem of forum. I respect your request and i'm sure speaking for all of us here whether active members or new comers that we will end such negative gestures and learn to respect each and everybodys opinions at the end of the day compromises & forming bonds is what we are for.

[eeyore]

i was about to say the very same thing stu - til i noticed you already had - i reported one tonight where somebody had spelt out a rude word with * s between each letter to stop the censor software taking it out - that is just plain wrong as it indicates that they new it was frowned on and went out of their way to circumvent the controls.

[ron1863]

Totally agree that written swear words are taboo, it's easy enough to let a swear word slip out when having a conversation with someone, but you have to actually think when writing them down.

[Gill Catton]

Originally Posted by eeyore

i was about to say the very same thing stu - til i noticed you already had - i reported one tonight where somebody had spelt out a rude word with * s between each letter to stop the censor software taking it out - that is just plain wrong as it indicates that they new it was frowned on and went out of their way to circumvent the controls.

Thats not necessarily the case they may just have assumed in doing that, it was enough of a self imposed censor on the word.

However, a black and white no swearing rule is a good idea, perhaps include a list of suitable alternatives!

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by Gill Catton

Thats not necessarily the case they may just have assumed in doing that, it was enough of a self imposed censor on the word.

However, a black and white no swearing rule is a good idea, perhaps include a list of suitable alternatives!

if i was talking about people writing M***E then you'd have a point but what I was refering to was one individual (now banned) who spelt out swear words liker this M*O*O*S*E to confound the censor software ( btw I have used the hopefully non offensive name of a large canadian ungulate to avoid swearing myself - if anyone is offended by such then I apologise )

joking aside I dont think we need a list of alternatives as expletives are generally redundant in conversation consider (still using da moose)

with "expletives" "I had moosing awful day today , everything that could go wrong turned to utter moose"

Without " I had an awful day today everything that could go wrong did"

the sense of these is exactly the same so there is no need to include even substitute expletives especially as we have the smileys to make it clear if we are displeased , shocked or upset

[kshotton45]

I'll support that.
If you can't post without swearing, then don't post !
More and more people are being influenced in bad language by the likes of Channel 4, and taking this as a standard means of communicating. Let's have none of it on the WAB site.

Keith.

[newfie2007]

im on a few more sites and if we sees anything like that the person gets a pm and telling them about it or thay gets banned from the room.

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by newfie2007

im on a few more sites and if we sees anything like that the person gets a pm and telling them about it or thay gets banned from the room.

thats pretty much what our mods do too - i think stu was just pointing out that some people were causing the mods rather too much work.

The bottom line is that if you have to resort to profanity or name calling to support your position then its pretty untennable anyway

What do you mean it isnt ?

of course it moosing well is !

[svenrufus]

It's a bit tricky to have a policy against swear words, without somewhere having a list of words that are considered off limits.

Of course there are certain words that are clearly likely to cause offence, and it would be absurd for anyone using them to claim that they didn't realise that this was the case.

Other words however are a bit more of a grey area, and it would be easy to fall foul of the rule without any intention to do so. I once had a word deleted by the software which to be perfectly honest, I can see no issue with at all, even after a bit of reflecting on it. It is something I hear from all backgrounds, and I would happily use it in front of my granny or my daughter (although she is only 5 months, so actually I still have a tendency to be quite profane in front of her - I dread her first words!)

My point is that there is a need for personal responsibility in this, which will inevitably need some policing, but perhaps the censoring is a little overzealous, and people could be given the opportunity to show their own self restraint before being pulled up.

Of course, I say this without any knowledge of how much work is already being done on policing it, so I guess the idea of doing something that increases that workload is anathema to the mods. Just my opinion though.

As ever when I write on a WABsite topic, my thanks to all involved in creating and maintaining this excellent site.

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by svenrufus

It's a bit tricky to have a policy against swear words, without somewhere having a list of words that are considered off limits.

Of course there are certain words that are clearly likely to cause offence, and it would be absurd for anyone using them to claim that they didn't realise that this was the case.

Other words however are a bit more of a grey area, and it would be easy to fall foul of the rule without any intention to do so. I once had a word deleted by the software which to be perfectly honest, I can see no issue with at all, even after a bit of reflecting on it. It is something I hear from all backgrounds, and I would happily use it in front of my granny or my daughter (although she is only 5 months, so actually I still have a tendency to be quite profane in front of her - I dread her first words!)

My point is that there is a need for personal responsibility in this, which will inevitably need some policing, but perhaps the censoring is a little overzealous, and people could be given the opportunity to show their own self restraint before being pulled up.

Of course, I say this without any knowledge of how much work is already being done on policing it, so I guess the idea of doing something that increases that workload is anathema to the mods. Just my opinion though.

As ever when I write on a WABsite topic, my thanks to all involved in creating and maintaining this excellent site.

i think that the mods are generally quite lenient if it is clear that the word was used in error , as a typo, ( I recall a time when I inadvertantly typed an I rather than an O in the phrase "i took nearly 150 shots today" and im not talking about in the words took or today )

and i agree that the censor software can be a pain especially when trying to tell a joke about a large whale called moby oooo - however I know other forums that have totally degenerated into flaming (thats flaming as in the verb to flame not in the expletive sense )slanging matches with four letter words tossed arround like confetti and i would rather moderation and censor soft was a bit too strict than see that happen here.

[eeyore]

another point is that it is perfectly possible to be extremly offensive or rude without actually swearing - and we really ought to knock that on the head as well. for instance the ex member (now banned) who wrote to me by email that i was " clueless, a charlatan , and a fraud who knows nothing about photography and who will soon be exposed for the fake you are " didnt use any expletives or profanity but still managed to be incredibly offensive.

I know no one is perfect and I am as guilty as the next person of losing my temper and writing trash but perhaps we should return to the basics as expressed in the site rules.

if you havent got anything nice to say , dont say anything.

this of course doesnt mean we can't or shouldn't disagree from time to time - life would be very boring if we all thought exactly the same , but surely as mature and responsible people we can manage to disagree without calling each other names of any description.

[Boddie]

Was it
"i took nearly 151 shots today" ?

[mh68]

Most people who use bad language in their posts dont have much constructive to say anyway. It`s not exactly difficult to word things in a polite manner, even if you disagree with someone.Having moderated on another forum for quite a while a few years ago I know that swearing and abusive posts are a constant pain to mods.Best way is to stamp it out completely, people soon realise they either need to post properly or they`ll be banned.

Mark H

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by Boddie

Was it
"i took nearly 151 shots today" ?

something like that

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by mh68

I know that swearing and abusive posts are a constant pain to mods.Best way is to stamp it out completely, people soon realise they either need to post properly or they`ll be banned.

Mark H

i completely agree, and the best way to do this is for anyone who sees an abusive , rude, obscene, etc post to use the report post button (its that little red triangle at top right) to let the mods know as they cant be everywhere at once.

[naturelover]

Originally Posted by eeyore

i was about to say the very same thing stu - til i noticed you already had - i reported one tonight where somebody had spelt out a rude word with * s between each letter to stop the censor software taking it out - that is just plain wrong as it indicates that they new it was frowned on and went out of their way to circumvent the controls.

i do not understand why anyone has to use a swear word to exspress them selvse,there is no need,as you say they know its wrong thats why they try to camoflarge it with * not nesassary.

[svenrufus]

Originally Posted by eeyore

another point is that it is perfectly possible to be extremly offensive or rude without actually swearing - and we really ought to knock that on the head as well. for instance the ex member (now banned) who wrote to me by email that i was " clueless, a charlatan , and a fraud who knows nothing about photography and who will soon be exposed for the fake you are " didnt use any expletives or profanity but still managed to be incredibly offensive.

I know no one is perfect and I am as guilty as the next person of losing my temper and writing trash but perhaps we should return to the basics as expressed in the site rules.

if you havent got anything nice to say , dont say anything.

this of course doesnt mean we can't or shouldn't disagree from time to time - life would be very boring if we all thought exactly the same , but surely as mature and responsible people we can manage to disagree without calling each other names of any description.

I think this is an extremely valid point. Never mind any swearing - it is often the tone that causes most upset - even to those not being targetted. There is a bit of a debate going on elsewhere on WAB, which eeyore is involved in where the tone from one respondent has raised my hackles many times, and I think that is far more damaging than the odd mild word here and there.

While I agree also that it is easy to find ways of saying things without the coarsest of swear words, some of the words that might get picked out are actually routine, everyday and quite wonderfully expressive parts of the English language. It is a shame to have to be hamstrung in this way if it can be avoided.

Perhaps rather than software being too overzealous, it is for all of us to make use of the red triangle (which I wasn't aware of until now) to make sure that things stay within reason, particularly the tone as much as individual words.

[wildone]

One of the things we need to be aware of is that children as young as 7 or 8 use this site, both at school and on their own at home. Bad language is not a good example to set to them, and before anyone says it, I am aware that many children do use swear words. However as a mature adult I personally do not like bad language in my home, which is where my computer is.

wildone

[m1.carson]

Hi people,

It's easy to make a mistake without realising it, but it's easier not to swear, you have to make a deliberate effort to type it, not needed on any site, let alone one that children access.

Easy, we have a laboratory called analytical one, who abbreviated it to the first four **** in writing, too late couldn't retract it.

Max.

[wildone]

Yes we can and do make mistakes. Easy to hit a wrong key although a quick read through what you have written should save it being broadcast. However if you do hit the send button as you realise your mistake, click on the Report Post (little red triangle) and ask the Mod, to amend it for you.

The same goes for if you see swearing, however disguised, in someone else's post, use the Report Post to point it out to the Mods who will deal with it.

wildone

[glsammy]

Originally Posted by wildone

One of the things we need to be aware of is that children as young as 7 or 8 use this site, both at school and on their own at home. Bad language is not a good example to set to them, and before anyone says it, I am aware that many children do use swear words. However as a mature adult I personally do not like bad language in my home, which is where my computer is.

wildone

Spot on Winnie. I can't abide seeing bad language used, it's simply not necessary and it will be deleted. The fact youngsters use it is no excuse to have it plastered everywhere else. Lead by example is how I try to operate with our grand-kids.

[Tormentil]

Originally Posted by naturelover

i do not understand why anyone has to use a swear word to exspress them selvse

Have you never gone on a "quick informal walkabout" after hitting your thumb with a hammer.

[glsammy]