Stop closing posts too soon...

[kinnika]

I have been a member here for years. And I have tried to get along with many of the people here who are members and who run this site. I try to be respectful of all, but I have to say... I am pretty miffed.

I had just asked for help in the General Discussion for help about finding sites where I can find Supernatural and Smallville for free and it was closed by a moderator:

Any site that had uploaded espisodes to watch for free, unless it's the official sites, will have done so illegally, and we can't help with that. Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with the site rules.

I'm not asking for illegal sites. I was never asking for illegal sites. And it was closed. Who knows if someone could have shown me a way to watch them on a legal site, now I can't find out because I feel my post was prematurely closed.

This is irritating, because a lot of posts, I feel, are misunderstood and closed way too soon. Is there a way to stop this or at least clarify the real issue before just closing the post way too soon?

By the way, I'm hoping that bringing this up doesn't encourage ill-will toward me in the future. But I've been dealing with this for awhile and feel that this issue needs attention.

[caffeinated.joy]

I wasn't saying you were looking for illegal sites. I think you're the one misunderstanding me. I said sites that uploaded episodes to watch for free, unless it was the official site for the show, will have done so illegally. If someone wants to pm you with a site they know of, that's fine but the thread is going to stay closed, sorry.

[kinnika]

With all due respect, caffinatedjoy, there are sites such as "hulu" that are very legal and they have shows to watch for free. That's what I was talking about.

And I'm not trying to be argumentative, but I was also talking about closing posts too soon in general. Not just about my issue.

[caffeinated.joy]

Like what other posts? I'm not trying to be argumentative either. Yes, there are sites out there that go through the proper channels, but the majority of them don't.

Are you talking about threads that ask for support on the insim and inteen mods? We don't support those and have stickies warning they will be closed. If you're talking about WCIF threads in which the items re found, it's been site policy for quite some time to close the thread as soon as the item(s) being looked for are confirmed found. We just let that fall by the wayside for a (long) while and are catching up with it again. Any other time it's usually because a fight has started that is getting way out of hand.

[DaSpecial1]

I got rid of cable to save money and was interested in finding shows online myself.   It's like a net search crapshoot trying to get decent tv online; and there are so many crooks trying to get you to open your comp to them.

What you get presented with in many search engines (google included) are illegal pay-to-subscribe or download sites many times; often they just want to put their tracking junk on your computer or even harmful invasive stuff or gain access to your email and other private info--so I think that's what anyone who closed the thread may have wanted to avoid about the question. That's a nasty can of worms.

Having experienced this first hand a few years ago I understand the caution.   I offer to you that the cable & regular channels have started to respond by putting many of their own shows up so simply chosing NBC or HBO will get you permission often without signup (more options with membership of course).  But of course you, like me, probably learned that on your own already.


If it doesn't violate any rules to offer this info, then I suggest Fancast.com.  You don't have to signup or sign in ( unless you want to) and they only ask you to provide an email and create a password for their site.

 I joined after about 6 months and (lol) was actually disappointed that there was no difference between my prejoining time and after--except the extra minute it took to sign in, lol.  I guess I figured I deserved a few extra episodes since I signed in an all.  I haven't gotten any stray spam as a result of adding them to my email list and they don't flood my inbox with mindless announcements.

They offer more episodes than the (whatever your fav) show home sites. Although the official sites offer (sometimes) more recent episodes.  I say sometimes because sometimes they're equal or better offerings.  From what I've read they work in cooperation with the official sites of the shows they air and they are streamed--not downloadable.  It is semi-commercial free (between single episodes) I think. Most ads are earth-conscious or charity.

Oh there is one benefit to signup but it may occur without it (I don't remember now).  If you stop a show for some reason it will start where you left off or ask if you want to watch it from the beginning.  Fancast does add and remove shows as it recieves airing permission so while it does maintain a library there are occasional changes.

Yes Smallville and Supernatural are there...as I said how many full episodes or how recent will fluctuate.  I still go there for my "Angel" fix still even though I have satellite now .  Hope this helps.

[kinnika]

caffeinated - It has been a long and tiring day. I haven't had time to respond until now. I will say that there have been posts in the past (yes, I tried looking them up but can't find them anymore) in which I had to answer their questions through PM's because they weren't getting the response they needed and were confused as to why the post was being closed. I'm just saying that it could help to clarify the situation before just closing the post right away, that's all.

DaSpecial1 - And yes, actually this does help. I appreciate the feedback about the shows. I think I tried Fancast, but I'll try to check it out again.

[skavenhorde]

I live in Taiwan, so the only Enlgish programs I get on cable are HBO and a few other movie channels. I don't mind that so much since I don't watch a lot of TV, but there are two programs I can't live without The Daily Show and Colbert Report. Thankfully Comedy Central hosts every show for free on their site, so I can watch them even from over here.

In regards to shutting down threads dealing with this, I don't think it is irresponsible to show a little caution with this subject. I mean this is a Sims 2 site and I wouldn't expect the moderators here to be an expert on TV show websites and which are legal and which are not. If you want that why not go to a forum that does deal with this subject?

[Ali]

skavenhorde - we have a general discussion area where most anything goes, so it's quite within Kinnika's rights to ask in there about stuff that isn't sims related ... we could have experts in all sorts of non-sims related stuff here, you just never know till you ask

If there are certain threads that you feel are being closed too quickly - and there were a few mods in the past that were guilty of being too quick in that respect - then please pm one of us. We really don't bite and are all approachable and quite open to suggestions. Nobody here is perfect, including the staff, and it may well be that occassionally we do something that, on reflection, is not in the best interests of the members.

[kinnika]

Thanks, Ali. I appreciate the input. I will do that next time. Thank you for the heads up.

[Paden]

We really don't bite and are all approachable and quite open to suggestions.

Speak for yourself, woman! I happen to bite if someone gets in the way of my chocolate or pizza or coffee. And don't you even think of coming between me and my sesame chicken, I'd have to rip off at least a thumb...

[skavenhorde]

skavenhorde - we have a general discussion area where most anything goes, so it's quite within Kinnika's rights to ask in there about stuff that isn't sims related ... we could have experts in all sorts of non-sims related stuff here, you just never know till you ask

If there are certain threads that you feel are being closed too quickly - and there were a few mods in the past that were guilty of being too quick in that respect - then please pm one of us. We really don't bite and are all approachable and quite open to suggestions. Nobody here is perfect, including the staff, and it may well be that occassionally we do something that, on reflection, is not in the best interests of the members.

Thanks for the info Ali. I am still catching up on just how this site works. I was just thinking that if I was a mod and saw someone linking sites to programmed television, my gut reaction would be to shut it down. IMO, it's better to er on the side of caution than get spanked later on by an unforseen circumstance.

The biggest problems facing our hobby (pc games) are pirates (I'm not talking about that other one that deals with sims content, that is a whole other can of worms that I support wholeheartily) but real pirates who steal stuff and make it available through torrents or other means and now TV shows. When exactly does this free sharing of paid products stop?

Anyways, sorry about the misunderstanding and I do realize that of course many different subjects are discussed here, just like any good site should do. I was just thinking about how people who post these sites should explain in detail about their link and why it is a legit sites. To make the poor mods job a little easier and to defuse any kind of situations that may arise or if there is some kind of rule against posting that kind of info (I don't know if there is or isn't) then that rule has to be enforced no matter if it is a legit site or not.

My 2 cents worth.

Just an outsiders opinion on a very hot topic even on my home RPG site.

[Feisty32]

i do not support pirates weather it be television or sims content and i never will piracy is wrong.

[Ali]

We really don't bite and are all approachable and quite open to suggestions.

Speak for yourself, woman! I happen to bite if someone gets in the way of my chocolate or pizza or coffee. And don't you even think of coming between me and my sesame chicken, I'd have to rip off at least a thumb...

absolutely! If anyone even starts to consider coming between me and chocolate ... DON'T!

skavenhorde - you are absolutely correct on the torrent side of things which is why we do not allow any discussion regarding cd cracks or warez here and asking for them will get a member a warning then a ban.

the other pirate issue is something else entirely and this is not the thread to have that discussion so whether you agree with it or not we don't need to know that in site issues

[DaSpecial1]

skavenhorde - we have a general discussion area where most anything goes, so it's quite within Kinnika's rights to ask in there about stuff that isn't sims related ... we could have experts in all sorts of non-sims related stuff here, you just never know till you ask

If there are certain threads that you feel are being closed too quickly - and there were a few mods in the past that were guilty of being too quick in that respect - then please pm one of us. We really don't bite and are all approachable and quite open to suggestions. Nobody here is perfect, including the staff, and it may well be that occassionally we do something that, on reflection, is not in the best interests of the members.

Skavenhorde gave two great examples of what I meant by cable stepping up to offer shows for free online.  Comedy Central’s Daily Show/Colbert report sites offer months of shows online, right up to the very latest ones.

I agree with Joy on this point:  There was a need to step in and prevent the thread from turning into a barrage of offerings of the type of illegal/con scheme tv sites like those discussed above. They clearly weren’t what Kinnika was asking for.  It is also plain to see that Joy had no intention of implying that Kinnika was doing such.  As a good site moderator she was just looking out for the best interests of the community.   

I like that Kinnika spoke up, makes me confident that inSim is becoming more of a family again.  Too many people feel slighted and stop posting or leave altogether over sometimes minor misunderstandings (often, but not always) blown out of proportion or some thought process not conveyed well enough in print.  Sometimes way too much emotion is read into the way a post is written.  That being said, still I have never understood people who take the time to enter a Gen Disc thread just to rudely say “What are you asking me for, who cares?  Or go find it somewhere else!”—when the easier thing to do with a thread you have no interest in discussing is to ignore it.  After all, threads in the general discussion area that people have no interest in answering fade into the distance.

I see this more as a “hey could ya give me a chance to be heard or at least explain why?”—request and NOT an “I feel like rehashing old history by listing all the times you dissed my posts!” rant.  (No, I am NOT implying that Joy was saying that btw )     

Ali made a point (that I tried to type in last night but didn’t go through) that Kinnika’s request was appropriately made in the “General Discussion Area” & not the “General Sims 2 Discussion area.”  Here in our community we have rl joys and concerns as well as Sims 2 interests so it’s perfectly appropriate for Kinnika to come to her inSim family to find out who might have a helpful & legitimate suggestion. Asking in an unfamiliar site on a random tv forum might lead you right to those sites you want to avoid.   



Hmm, it seems we have an accord.  We all agree that caution is needed on this topic & that asking for ideas was appropriate as well.


Might I suggest deleting the original locked post and moving this one to that area?  Surely it is clear that legal and free suggestions might be offered & that more (of us) might be interested in hearing about them.  As with any other posts, one should always consider honest, non-spamoid, crime-free/scam-free sites, before suggesting any.  A warning to never post illegal/unverified sites or face punishment should suffice. Off-topic flames or violation responses could be deleted, no?

Surely with all this prefacing this request one could hardly read all the info here and respond to Kinnka with an “I had no idea not to suggest/post this” illegal tv site .

[kinnika]

skavenhorde:

The biggest problems facing our hobby (pc games) are pirates (I'm not talking about that other one that deals with sims content, that is a whole other can of worms that I support wholeheartily) but real pirates who steal stuff and make it available through torrents or other means and now TV shows. When exactly does this free sharing of paid products stop?

Just for the record, I, too, am against piracy. They ruin entertainment for the rest of us.

DaSpecial1:

Might I suggest deleting the original locked post and moving this one to that area?  Surely it is clear that legal and free suggestions might be offered & that more (of us) might be interested in hearing about them.  As with any other posts, one should always consider honest, non-spamoid, crime-free/scam-free sites, before suggesting any.

I was thinking this after people seemed really interested in this topic. Especially after skavenhorde opened up that can of worms, lol. This does seem to be a hot topic. And besides, even though we got a little sidetracked, I enjoy reading what others' input.

Also, I did check out Fancast, and like you said, they do seem to fluctuate. I guess I'll wait to watch the rest of the seasons I'm on now until the new seasons come out. But thanks for the tip.

Ali:

you are absolutely correct on the torrent side of things which is why we do not allow any discussion regarding cd cracks or warez here and asking for them will get a member a warning then a ban.

I will say that there was one post where this girls' brother ripped up the booklet for her Sims game and was asking for a serial number. While it was well within the moderators rights to let them know it was illegal to do so, the post was automatically locked as opposed to really thinking about the question. I thought about it for awhile and wanted to reply to her, telling her to check out the back of the actual CD case and look at the bottom of the back panel and she will find the serial number there, NOT in her booklet. I couldn't, however, and I couldn't PM her. This was slightly annoying and I wasn't able to help her.

Even though she was asking for something illegal, I, or someone else, could have turned this around to being something legal. She probably didn't think about looking in another place. That's all I'm saying.

I'm not placing the blame on any certain moderators, by any means. This is just an example of posts being closed, possibly too soon, in general. I apologize for coming in so late with an example, but I haven't been on this site for a couple of days.

NOTE TO JOY: Sorry, Joy. I just remembered this certain note from Ali's quote.

And Joy, again, I completely understand when it comes to things having to do with the Inteenimator.

In General: It would be an ideal world if people read the stickies. However, I do think that just being courteous to others and at least letting them know where to find Inteen, as opposed to just stating "Inteen isn't supported here" and locking it right away (as I've seen you do, Joy, but not others) is best. Because lets face it: Not all people think that being gracious or courteous toward others is the best way to go. And while I see how annoying it can be with the constant questions and inquiries about Inteen, we should all be a little patient with the newbies and not have them reap what the many others have sewn before them. And that was one of my main concern when I initially brought this subject up.

Although, I will say Jase said it best when asked by another member how to get teens pregnant:

Stick a turkey baster in your CD-ROM drive.

Classic! 



BTW: How do you insert the "Quote from: "