Posts by bohm

263

Poster country flags and privacy

by Simon in

the new forum originally had a little country flag next to each post showing the country that the post was made from based on the geoip encoding (the country the ip address is from).

before i switched over to the new site someone made an issue about it violating their privacy and i didn't want to complicate and confuse the switchover with policy debate at the same time as technical issues so removed the flags even though i disagreed.. someone has already requested it as a feature and i think it should be added back so i thought it's now time to open the discussion and get everyone's opinions.

first, the reason i think it should be shown:.

bohm

Simon: I'm still not convinced that the motives for the original objection were really genuine and not simply someone looking for *something* to try and distract attention from the 'activists' privacy debacle.

I have had no share in the "privacy" debacle of AAWA and don't really care much about it. I really do believe my concern is genuine: Five years ago when I joined I told my girlfriend I would keep my country private, which I at the time and now feel is the right thing to do. Now this information is being revealed. You might feel this is irrational of her and I, but irrational or not, this feature will show information about me which I did not agree to have revealed. This is my sole motive for participating in this thread as I felt it was valid input on this feature.

What input on the feature would you feel was valid?

263

Poster country flags and privacy

by Simon in

the new forum originally had a little country flag next to each post showing the country that the post was made from based on the geoip encoding (the country the ip address is from).

before i switched over to the new site someone made an issue about it violating their privacy and i didn't want to complicate and confuse the switchover with policy debate at the same time as technical issues so removed the flags even though i disagreed.. someone has already requested it as a feature and i think it should be added back so i thought it's now time to open the discussion and get everyone's opinions.

first, the reason i think it should be shown:.

bohm

It seems to me that it has polarized a small number of posters to the point of intransigence.

yah.. loaded language.. I love loaded language, it makes the argument so much better.

Simon started this topic to get input on the flag-feature. Now we are giving him our input and as best as i can tell the majority of posters on here support the idea that there should be an option to hide ones true flag -- exactly what the "small" group of so-called "intransigent" posters have argued all along. Do you feel this is somehow bad?

263

Poster country flags and privacy

by Simon in

the new forum originally had a little country flag next to each post showing the country that the post was made from based on the geoip encoding (the country the ip address is from).

before i switched over to the new site someone made an issue about it violating their privacy and i didn't want to complicate and confuse the switchover with policy debate at the same time as technical issues so removed the flags even though i disagreed.. someone has already requested it as a feature and i think it should be added back so i thought it's now time to open the discussion and get everyone's opinions.

first, the reason i think it should be shown:.

bohm

Kate, seing tou have read my 5800 posts and determined i have provided no revealing details, perhaps you could just read everyones posts and determine for us all if this was a problem?

263

Poster country flags and privacy

by Simon in

the new forum originally had a little country flag next to each post showing the country that the post was made from based on the geoip encoding (the country the ip address is from).

before i switched over to the new site someone made an issue about it violating their privacy and i didn't want to complicate and confuse the switchover with policy debate at the same time as technical issues so removed the flags even though i disagreed.. someone has already requested it as a feature and i think it should be added back so i thought it's now time to open the discussion and get everyone's opinions.

first, the reason i think it should be shown:.

bohm

Krejames: a checkbox is a twenty minute fix*. Why should the newbies have to worry about proxies? How about those who are not comfortable about proxies?

* in the webapps i have been involved in.

263

Poster country flags and privacy

by Simon in

the new forum originally had a little country flag next to each post showing the country that the post was made from based on the geoip encoding (the country the ip address is from).

before i switched over to the new site someone made an issue about it violating their privacy and i didn't want to complicate and confuse the switchover with policy debate at the same time as technical issues so removed the flags even though i disagreed.. someone has already requested it as a feature and i think it should be added back so i thought it's now time to open the discussion and get everyone's opinions.

first, the reason i think it should be shown:.

bohm

How about this: make the display of the flag optional, but replace the green box on the front page with a globe with the position of all posters marked, and include a page with a breakdown of posters per country (total and signed in this month). This way there is privacy and the global community aspect. If people want contact with others from a particular country they can start a thread and take it over the pms

263

Poster country flags and privacy

by Simon in

the new forum originally had a little country flag next to each post showing the country that the post was made from based on the geoip encoding (the country the ip address is from).

before i switched over to the new site someone made an issue about it violating their privacy and i didn't want to complicate and confuse the switchover with policy debate at the same time as technical issues so removed the flags even though i disagreed.. someone has already requested it as a feature and i think it should be added back so i thought it's now time to open the discussion and get everyone's opinions.

first, the reason i think it should be shown:.

bohm

Kate: since this topic has been up for 20 hours, and i have about 6000 posts, this mean you have been reading 300 posts per hour or 5 per minute to conclude none of my posts contain revealing information. That is very impressive.

263

Poster country flags and privacy

by Simon in

the new forum originally had a little country flag next to each post showing the country that the post was made from based on the geoip encoding (the country the ip address is from).

before i switched over to the new site someone made an issue about it violating their privacy and i didn't want to complicate and confuse the switchover with policy debate at the same time as technical issues so removed the flags even though i disagreed.. someone has already requested it as a feature and i think it should be added back so i thought it's now time to open the discussion and get everyone's opinions.

first, the reason i think it should be shown:.

bohm

As for this "only a few people are affected by this", this is by the very nature true -- however this was also true with respect to the whole AAWA/facebook thing.

263

Poster country flags and privacy

by Simon in

the new forum originally had a little country flag next to each post showing the country that the post was made from based on the geoip encoding (the country the ip address is from).

before i switched over to the new site someone made an issue about it violating their privacy and i didn't want to complicate and confuse the switchover with policy debate at the same time as technical issues so removed the flags even though i disagreed.. someone has already requested it as a feature and i think it should be added back so i thought it's now time to open the discussion and get everyone's opinions.

first, the reason i think it should be shown:.

bohm

Ann: Sorry, the thousands of people I referred to was the number of posters on this site, i.e. brother snoop would know which posters posting history would be worth going over. But the numbers are quite interesting, with seven congregations, what sort of information can brother Bjork really write which would *not* identify him? it would have to be very limited and very vague.

263

Poster country flags and privacy

by Simon in

the new forum originally had a little country flag next to each post showing the country that the post was made from based on the geoip encoding (the country the ip address is from).

before i switched over to the new site someone made an issue about it violating their privacy and i didn't want to complicate and confuse the switchover with policy debate at the same time as technical issues so removed the flags even though i disagreed.. someone has already requested it as a feature and i think it should be added back so i thought it's now time to open the discussion and get everyone's opinions.

first, the reason i think it should be shown:.

bohm

Rebel8: Ofcourse I do not know how the feature would be implemented.

I do not understand how the flag will "give the WTS minions less places to hide", can you explain this?. Supposedly someone who were looking for e.g. icelandic apostates would register a throwaway account, not use it to post (it is apostate after all) and then snoop out icelandic posters and go over their posting history to find if they wrote anything revealing. I imagine he would be mostly interested in the members-only section.

What is the best argument against giving users a choice to show the flag or not? 11 pages in and I cannot really tell what it is thought to be.

263

Poster country flags and privacy

by Simon in

the new forum originally had a little country flag next to each post showing the country that the post was made from based on the geoip encoding (the country the ip address is from).

before i switched over to the new site someone made an issue about it violating their privacy and i didn't want to complicate and confuse the switchover with policy debate at the same time as technical issues so removed the flags even though i disagreed.. someone has already requested it as a feature and i think it should be added back so i thought it's now time to open the discussion and get everyone's opinions.

first, the reason i think it should be shown:.

bohm

Besty: what is being debated is not your freedom to show your countrys flag, but if I and others should have the option to keep it private. As for your list, you know i cannot get into trouble by revealing details, but my girlfriend can. Which is why we agreed to not reveal the country five years ago. Now that choice is being revoked.