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Adult Boardom?

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Should we be concerned about having younger (17 and under) people vieweing this board?
Yes
  
33% [ 6 ]
No
  
67% [ 12 ]
Total votes: 18
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Guruthostirn
Post subject: Adult Boardom?
Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 6:40 pm
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This came up in a thread over in Turf...

How are we going to approach having younger people on this board? Do we try to enforce a minimum age, or do we rely on children and their parents to approach the subject matter on this board in their own way?

I don't think anyone is going to deny that there is a lot of "adult level" material on this board. But I think, more importantly than that, a lot of people have spoken about stuff on this board which I think they may feel a bit uncomfortable having younger people, particularly immature boys (we only start getting decent around 20...if we're lucky), reading.

1) Is this a problem. I've gotten a "yes" answer already. Anyone else? I'll poll it...

2) How do we deal with it?

Last edited by Guruthostirn on Sat 05 Feb , 2005 7:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Leoba
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 6:48 pm
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I know this is a serious issue and I will give it some thought.

However, it's worth pointing out perhaps that we already have at least one under 17 here, and another few who are 17 (or were when they joined). ;)

I'd be worried if a pre-secondary school age child (i.e. under 11) dropped by, and I would hope parents of any under 16 would be aware of where their offspring were surfing.

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Lidless
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 6:49 pm
Als u het leven te ernstig neemt, mist u de betekenis.
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My personal view?

They're only immature because it's all forbidden fruit and the socially-backward (yes, I said it) countries, esp USA / UK, haven't given them a chance to develop naturally in that area.

If someone behaves immaturely, they'll get slapped / banned, just like any adult who behaves immaturely (er...hopefully not every adult :oops:).

Alas teenagers do not have a monopoly in that field. Witness The Grey Havens...

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Rodia
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 6:50 pm
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I think once on TORC I heard it mentioned that it could actually be a legal issue...I don't remember exactly, but there was something about being able to get in trouble if you allowed in people under 13 without their parents' consent. I see the 'I am 13 or over' a lot online, on other boards too, so it might be something to look into.

But that's beside what you asked....I think we're fine as we are, really. Can you be more precise about the kind of stuff that you think young people might find uncomfortable? I ask because I'm not sure I see it....we talk about the body, there are sometimes sex jokes... I think if someone manages to feel at home among us, they will know what to ignore, or possibly tell the other posters that they don't feel comfortable with it. Remember you only read the threads you choose to read...

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Jnyusa
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 7:13 pm
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Well, I think it is an important issue and one we should give attention to, but I'm not sure what the right solution is.

It seems to me that most important thing is to have a warning printed clearly on the front page that adult language and pictures are allowed on this site. Parents who do not want their children to visit the site should use a filter.

It's really up to parents to pay attention to what their children are doing. We're not psychic and can't guess the age of people who register here, and if they state their age on the registration we have no way of knowing whether they tell the truth. So I think the most important thing is ... transparency ... ha! that issue again ... so that parents have the info they need to judge.

Jn

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Guruthostirn
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 7:13 pm
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Personally, I think it should be up to the individuals and their parents. We should put a note in the blurb about this place along the lines of:

Note: This is an unrestricted board. Some material may be objectionable. Please use discretion.

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Jnyusa
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 7:15 pm
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Btw, Guru, should the title be Adult Boardom? :LMAO:

Jn

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Lidless
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 7:21 pm
Als u het leven te ernstig neemt, mist u de betekenis.
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Bedroom *is* an anagram of boredom.

But not in Florida. Thought I'd point that out.

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Guruthostirn
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 7:31 pm
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I couldn't resist...

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Holbytla
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 9:26 pm
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There are many sites out their, where you have to sign a user agreement before you join. Some have you state that you are over 13 or whatever the case may be. That would be a simple thing to do.
Now to the real question.
I don't particularly think that I want a "children's playground" here.
I am not so much afraid of offending them as I am of them offending me.
Certainly I don't want to have to censor myself, but I also do not need to read things like "Orli izzz sooo hot nad kewl."
Seventeen or older sounds like a good benchmark.
Anyone who is here now should be "grandfathered".
Except satch. Toss her. :mrgreen:

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Lidless
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 9:46 pm
Als u het leven te ernstig neemt, mist u de betekenis.
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As per TORC, and a smart move on their part, they can be in a special netspeak-type forum.

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Mighty_Squid
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 10:46 pm
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Just the legalities.

It's a US legal thing called the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA).

Link

I kinda ignore it on my board. Mostly because it is annoying to deal with.

There is a section on the Admin CP here that you are suppose to put in a fax number and mailing address so that folks under 13 can mail/fax in the form that says they have thier parents permission to be on the site.

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truehobbit
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 11:14 pm
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Thanks for the link, Squiddy - I didn't know there was legal stuff about it. Didn't read it all, too much legal phrasing (we have some law-people here who could read it like the morning-paper, I'm sure? ;) )

Seems to me though that it's more about collecting data from children, rather than confronting them with bad language, no?

As to immature behaviour: what lidless said!

As to the content of this MB (adult language etc) - haven't we been through that? I think we agreed that if someone understands what the "bad" language they might find here means, they don't need to be protected anymore!

If someone finds our language offensive, they don't have to hang around here. I don't think there could be a corrupting influence.

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Mighty_Squid
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 11:28 pm
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COPPA is just about covering your own ass legally in the USA.

Since phpBB does collect data in the form of e-mail addresses and IPs it may be a good idea just to turn it on.

It doesn't effect the content.

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Farawen
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 11:37 pm
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IMO we should take care of the legalities, and not allow kids under 13 on here. And yes, add a disclaimer of some sort. "WARNING: SEX-OBSESSED EUROPEAN(S) ROAM ON THIS BOARD. ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK" or something equally elegant. And the rest will take care of itself, I guess. People who are offended by some adult content on here will probably just leave, or avoid the threads Lidless posts in. :Q
Holby wrote:
I also do not need to read things like "Orli izzz sooo hot nad kewl."
Lemme help you out there. It's "OMG OLRI IZ SO H0TT NAD KEWL OMG!!1"

There. That's more like it.


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Holbytla
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 11:40 pm
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Eat me.

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Farawen
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 11:44 pm
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Interestingly enough, according to The AOLer Translator, that would be "EAT ME!!111 WTF LOL".


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satch
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 11:49 pm
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Well shit, should I pack my bags now and get out before I'm herded out with flaming torches and pitchforks, or shall I wait and see if I am infact allowed to stick around??


If people are gonna be kept in the dark from subjects like sex, or from swearing or anything like that in real life, I'm pretty damn sure these same people aren't going to be allowed to surf whatever website comes along.

And even if these hypothetical people do manage to get here, I don't see what harm it could be hearing about... oh I don't know... life?? Unless of course they're 8 years old or something. In which case they're hardly going to understand most of the shit spurted on here, and if they do then I guess they'll just have a lot of things to talk about to their friends when they get into school the next day.

If there's something that you don't like to read, you don't read it. If you're too young to make your own decisions or know what's best for you, then the person who does make your decisions you decide whether this is good stuff to read.


...Aaaaannnnyyyyyway...

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Holbytla
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 11:50 pm
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Oh you wanna do translators now huh?
Well according to your favorite BABELFISH.....

Ich weiß gerade, wieviel Sie diesen Übersetzer lieben und ich gerade Ihrer Freude hinzufügen wollte. Essen Sie mich, essen Sie mich, essen Sie mich. Dort. Glücklich jetzt? =:)

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Farawen
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Posted: Sat 05 Feb , 2005 11:51 pm
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Ow. Headache.

That's not fair, Holby!!1111

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