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Deletions by moderator

Posted , 4 users are following.

georgeGG
georgeGG

Sometimes the moderator deletes a message/reply. I accept that this may be necessary and in keeping with the rules of the forum. However, I would find it helpful to know in what way I had transgressed so as to improve my understanding of the application of site rules and to enable me to reword or restucture my message appropriately.

What do you think?

1 like, 12 replies

12 Replies

  • derek76
    derek76 georgeGG

    Posted

    I had one deleted the other day that was a link to a BBC health site. Others often get away with including names of commercial products.

    I usually think that those with unproven rants about their treatment at named hospitals should be deleted.

     

    • EileenH
      EileenH derek76

      Posted

      The computer screening automatically takes out any post that appears to have an internet link until it has been examined by a moderator and approved - or otherwise. There are also certain words that are in the screener, possibly a bit sensitive but they can be adjusted if necessary. For example, a few days ago I used the name of an English town that contains a dodgy 4-lettered word in the middle - it was blocked but returned as soon as it had been checked and the reason explained because I asked. Sometimes a typo will trigger it - if you forget a space after a full stop. And some are reported - I have reported posts that appear to be advertising or pushing an agenda.

      We are not supposed to name specific people or give contact details without permission. Links within patient dot co are allowed without any problem. 

      It's up to us as well - if you see something that is obviously advertising then report it. I often include the names of products that are of benefit in (for example) caring for skin that has been badly affected by taking prednisolone. They are available on prescription - but are commercial products.

      What I would like to see introduced is a warning that "this post will be blocked for moderating, do you wish to continue?" before it disappears for a while, maybe for ever. But it is quite possible Derek that your post has reappeared in the meantime - have you checked?

    • georgeGG
      georgeGG EileenH

      Posted

      An automatic email might help the flow of events a lot.
    • EileenH
      EileenH georgeGG

      Posted

      They do post a sign saying it is being moderated - and I noticed this morning that a post that had been deleted together with a reply had "Why?" next to it as a link. I didn't bother looking at the link because I knew what the post had been and it wasn't appropriate where it was so maybe they are on the case.

      The entire site was re-vamped a couple of years ago and it was next to impossible to use for months. There have been things added/taken away since to try to sort out the mess from then but it is a slow process and the people doing it aren't quite on the same wavelength as many of the users so don't get that elderly/poorly people may have difficulty with high tech and apparently don't believe those who protest "that isn't going to work!"

      Ah well...

    • georgeGG
      georgeGG EileenH

      Posted

      Thank you. Yes I saw such at Why? I did not realise it was a link. (This hormone treatment gives me spells when I am not too clever -most of the time I function normally. Not too clever just at the moment, perhaps it is the aftermath of the hot flush that ended about half an hour ago.)
  • elsa1000
    elsa1000 georgeGG

    Posted

    GG... with a site as this and all of this type, there are going to be Moderators... many people go online  to find answers that may help with there search.... what you or anyone on this site  write is here for all to read....Its the Moderator dutie to assure that whats written in a transgressive way....did you mean well in what you wrote that was deleted. try again....:-)
    • georgeGG
      georgeGG elsa1000

      Posted

      Thank you elsa. I hope I did not step far out of line. I think the moderator would have been in touch if I had. But I can't remember what I wrote so I must leave it at that. 

      My motive for this thread was twofold 1) to learn 2) submit an acceptable version. I am only too aware that all of us on this forum are under stress, with ups and downs yes, but long term stress none the less. We are here for information and comfort through interaction with fellow sufferors.

      With best wishes

  • Emis_Moderator
    Emis_Moderator georgeGG

    Posted

    Hi George/all,

    Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. There is a Help/FAQ section here http://patient.uservoice.com/knowledgebase/topics/59133-discussion-forums that includes information on adding links etc and also about contacting me.

    George - your post was deleted because it was basically just quoting the two links that were posted earlier here https://patient.info/forums/discuss/dietary-points-274063?page=0#588146

    If I have time I do try and let users know why a post was deleted if it was a genuine post as opposed to all of the spam and rubbish we get. I cannot do this for every post but what is going to happen in future is an email will be sent when a post is deleted and it will link to the same place as the "Why" link on deleted posts. This way users at least know sooner and can resubmit their post if required. I'm not sure if the email will contain the actual post that was deleted, I'll check about this.

    Also coming soon will be links in notification emails to the Help section and where necessary links letting users know about any developments or changes to the site. There is still ongoing work happening in the background (and planned) - if anyone has any suggestions I am always happt to hear them.

    Eileen - the issue with your suggestion is if a spammer sees a pop up like this they will choose no and resubmit the post to try and get round the rules. If I have misunderstood what you are suggesting please let me know.

    I will add an FAQ to the help section along the lines of "Why has my post gone for moderation" and list reasons but generally it is because of links, contact details such as email addresses and blacklisted words (swearing etc). Some posts are unfortunately mistakenly caught up by the rules - Eileen's example of no space after a full stop is one case although it doesn't happen every time. We are aware of these and will be improving the system but this is taking a while due to the large number of internet link types now. In the past we could just use www as a rule but this is no longer the case.

    Mentioning product names is fine if relevant to the discussion and links are not included. Users can use Google to find more info if required. What we don't allow is users "pushing" particular products with multiple posts and we rely on users to use the "Report" link to let us know about this.

    I hope this helps and let me know if you have any other queries. You can contact me directly or if you think any query would benefit from being seen by other users just reply in here and I will answer.

    Regards,

    Alan

    • georgeGG
      georgeGG Emis_Moderator

      Posted

      Many thanks Alan. Although I have no idea what I did wrong as I cannot remember anything about my deleted message, I think I have a better understanding of the rules. I hope I will not transgress again. So thank you very much for the trouble you have taken with our comments and suggestions.
    • georgeGG
      georgeGG

      Posted

      PS my motive for raising the discussion was because I could remember nothing at all about the deleted message. Thus I could learn nothing from the incident. There is still a small seven year old lurking arround inside me fearful of getting into trouble at school. Cheers
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