JimRob's Vanity Post on Vanity Posts, Duplicate Posts, Trash Posts, Commie Propaganda, etc., Vol V,

January 26, 2002 | Jim Robinson

[Admin Moderator]

Way too many vanity threads lately. And way too much trash being posted. Please try to stay on topic (politics). Also, please do a search on a significant word from the title of your article before posting. This will reduce the number of duplicates. And, along these same lines, please use the original titles on your article posts. Do NOT edit the titles. Do NOT use "My Title" titles. This will also help to reduce the number of duplicates.

And, whatever else you do, please DO NOT post from DEMOCRATS UNDERGROUND (or any other such trashy un-American socialist hangout). Free Republic was intended to be a socialist free zone. We've gone to a heck of a lot of trouble to make it that way. Why in the world would you think we would be interested in having their trash posted here?

And QUIT trashing each other. You know who you are. Knock it off! Way too many flamewars and feuds going on. And, while I'm thinking about it, QUIT trashing our conservative candidates. If you want to criticize someone's position on some policy, have at it. But do not trash or smear the man. That would include Browne, Buchanan, Bush, Keyes, et al, or whomever else may be your favorite trashee (examples listed in alphabetical sequence). The idea is to get more conservatives elected, not to trash the ones you don't like. If you want to trash someone, make it a Democrat. Thank you.

And QUIT dredging up old communist propaganda to smear our conservatives. Sheesh! Whatever else you may think about our guys, they did not hijack airliners full of people and crash them into buildings. No, my friends, not even the dreaded CIA. Anyone who would believe (or even suspect) that crap is no FReeper. I've been pulling this crap whenever I see it and several people have been banned for continuing to post it. I do not want it on Free Republic. Any current FR poster who believes this leftist propaganda, please logoff immediately, send me your resignation via email, and I will delete your account.

Thanks,

Jim

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[riley1992]

Oh really? Her views are fair game or her looks are fair game?

[HairOfTheDog]

I very much agree... I said so as the apparent last response in the last thread HERE

[mfulstone]

Awww.. Let the commies post. I can always use a good laugh.

[archy]

However, I have sometimes gotten tripped up because the same article may appear on a different website under a different title. For example, an article from the AP wire may have a certain headline but the same article may appear on the Washington Times website under a different headline.

A comparison of authors names might catch that, though there appears to be no way to do it at present using the FReep search engine as it's now arranged. And of course, non-bylined stories wouldn't return a hit.

by -archy-/-

[SamAdams76]

I'm confused. The thread singled out by Admin Moderator doesn't include any stuff from DU. I also agree that DU stuff doesn't belong here but there was none on that thread that I could see.

[The Real Deal]

I'm glad you posted this one more time. Some people must not have seen it. Good work, we at Free Republic are lucky to have an Admin Moderator like you.

[HairOfTheDog]

Fair game to make cigar jokes and Monica comparisons, as well as just mean-spirited remarks about how ugly she is? This is furthering the conservative cause?

[newsperson999]

I have a feeling that there is more to this story. I think FR may be in trouble in the sense that Jim can't afford to upgrade the server to handle all increasing traffic as FR grows. Perhaps the cost of the lawsuit is to blame. Of course I am guesing but lots of post are being deleted and this message keeps poping up. Also a couple of months ago Jim started a thread debating more less if FR should contunie. Remember? I hope I am wrong

[Jim Robinson]

I'd like to see a whole lot less of those. I know that we've got to have some humor release, but you know how it is when we get too much of a good thing. Thanks, Jim

[nicollo]

I agree with STTP: duplicate posts are useful in that there tends to be more cumulative discussion of a particular issue through greater exposure thereof.

Outside of bandwidth concerns, I believe that the greater "transformation" via replies the more important the article. That is effectively the purpose of FR: to comment upon the news.

I would suggest to label duplicate posts "parallel posts" and freely link them to each other, which would effectively create a single, more largely "transformed" original post.

I don't mean to encourage parallel posts, but neither do I condemn the practice. I tend to see original, informative, and imperative replies to each of the twins (or more).

[Admin Moderator]

I read the Chelsea thread, it is deleted.

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

Good stuff. I do agree that there are too many DU and National Enquirer-type posts. It's not necessarily bad to see what the enemy is doing, but it should be limited to articles that can be construed as somewhat intelligent if misguided. Posting the shrill screamings that you find at DU, National Enquirer posts that headline Hillary Clinton being abducted by aliens, and other Jerry Springer-type stuff needs to go.

[The Real Deal]

Hey Jim, good to see you hanging around. Hope to see you one of these days soon.

[John Jorsett]

I'd like to say one thing regarding the editing of headlines. I think it's a good idea to add words in some cases to convey the meaning better than the original headline. Adding some additional words doesn't harm the searchability when trying to find duplicates.

[Bowana]

However, I have sometimes gotten tripped up because the same article may appear on a different website under a different title. For example, an article from the AP wire may have a certain headline but the same article may appear on the Washington Times website under a different headline.

That would be an honest mistake! At least you tried to search for the title.

Sometimes there are three, four, and five posts still on the board with the same title.

[mikeIII]

When a thread is deleted, can we have a brief explanation? My curiosity kills me!

[F16Fighter]

Her [Chelsea's] looks or her views are fair game?

No one is saying she is Rosemary's Baby, but she can't exactly change who her parents are, now can she?

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

I've done more than my fair share of making fun of Chelsea's looks. Enough is enough already.

Does this mean that there will be some fundamental changes on FR? I hope so. It looks to me like the 400-comment threads that pop up occasionally about the Apollo moon landings being a hoax and similar fare have worn out their welcome.

[riley1992]

No one is saying she is Rosemary's Baby

People are saying one hell of a lot worse than that.

but she can't exactly change who her parents are, now can she?

No, no more than you or I can and that is my point. Nail her butt to the wall for what she says and does, not for the looks she was born with. That goes so far beyond asinine it is ludicrous.

[lewislynn]

It does not take much time to key-word search based on a word or two from the headline (provided someone hasn't screwed with the headline...) and see if an item was previously posted or not. TV is for re-runs; we ought to be smart enough to search before we post.

s/he's referring to seeing an article for the first time, not posting an article, even though it might be a "duplicate post"...Sometimes the "duplicate post" surfaces days after the original posting.

From the lurker point of view, one can't do a word search for an article you've never seen. Nor can you take the time to peruse the articles from days past.

Maybe not for the bandwidth/server etc. but there is a good (informative) side to duplicate posts.

It seems to me that a good "duplicate" article is a lot better than the endless "what was your [sic]"worse"________? or who was the greatest bench warmer since 1972?, or what is your favorite "conservative" rap song? and idiocy like that.