The 5-post limit

otter

I was just wondering...

What are the "rules" about the 5-post limit for new BCO members?  Fortunately, that wasn't in effect when I joined.  I really needed to immerse myself in discussions here, to get the support I needed.  What if a 5-comment limit was imposed on new members of a real-life support group, without regard to their need for support or the value of their contributions?

We have a couple of women on the BCO boards who are in the middle of surgery or are just about to start chemo.  They're fairly new members, though, and their participation here is still restricted by the "5 posts per day" rule.

How long is that rule in effect for new members?  Is there anything they can do (or we can do) to get them through this probationary period more quickly?

otter 

webwriter

Hey Otter!

I was wondering about this too. But I did some thinking about it and a ton of "back reading" while I waited.

Ah ha! It's gooooood to do some back reading before you just jump right in. You figure out where stuff should be posted. You use the search function to see if the question you're about to ask has already been asked eleventy million times already...you PM new friends and learn that way too. AND, you make every public post count once you know you're limited.

On top of that, it does appear that you've recently been invaded by the spam bot monster. Post limits are a pretty good tool for flood control. So is the per second time out you have between posts as a regular member.  Your sponsors probably have a lot better shot at getting stuff cleaned up and "managed" before it's gone viral and really messed up the boards with these things in plce.

I don't remember if they were in place when I signed up or not, but there are two other effective spam bot deterrents in wide use these days. One is that annoying block of scrambled up letters and numbers you have to enter before registering. The other is an innane question that you must type an answer to. (Please type, in number form, the answer to 2+2=______ )

So, I guess what I'm trying to say is, that annoying as it is, it serves a good purpose. It would have been good to know about it, but then again, you don't want to advertise to a spam bot how to get around your security measures either!

My only suggestion would be to lower the numerical requirement just a tad. If we're real and stayin' we know it sooner than this. If we're not, the members here will have it reported, tagged, flagged, sliced, diced and served for lunch before an hour has gone by.

So keep doin' what you're doin' Otter. I'm betting it's a security issue, but the time for learning, not talking is also good. You're a fountain of knowlege. Besides, you held my hand, along with several others, long enough to get us passed that part with ease--and that's really what it's all about anyway, right?

**where's my big cheesy grin chemoticon?**

All My Best,

Webbie