Titan Network
Community => General Discussion => Topic started by: Sekoia on May 29, 2016, 05:09:26 AM
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EDIT: The word censor has now been disabled. Please proceed with caution. 8)
Greetings, pancake makers!
For those of you in the tl;dr crowd: We're clearing the word censorship list on Sunday, June 5, 2016. Stop using censored profanity immediately.
A long time ago, we added a few items to the forums' "word censorship" list. That feature basically replaces text we want to censor with something else. The replacements we made were humorous. We replaced common profanity (such as f***) with the word "pancake". Over time we included variants of the profanity (such as f***er => pancaker).
However, we recently realized this is counterproductive. Our terms of service bar the use of profanity. By censoring it with something funny, we're inadvertently encouraging profanity. That's not what we want! It's especially problematic when someone curses someone out and then tells us "but I didn't use any bad language, all I did was say pancake".
So, we're clearing the censorship list. Starting immediately, if you use any of the words that were previously censored, they'll get replaced by the following: NOTE TO SELF: The word censorship list will be cleared after 2016-06-05. I should stop swearing immediately so that I don't get modsmacked next time! We understand that not everyone will read this message immediately and figured it'd be a little unfair to start modsmacking people immediately.
However, after we remove the warning replacements on June 5, our mods will start modsmacking you for using the words that were formerly censored. And if you use any other profanity that isn't censored before then, you can also expect to get modsmacked.
Text that was censored is permanently altered when you make your post, so you don't need to worry about old posts suddenly turning into cesspools of profanity. Also, you're welcome to continue using the word "pancake", as long as you're not using it in a harrassing or abusive way of course!
I'd also like to take the opportunity to clarify what language is and isn't allowed. Two bullet points that are relevant from our terms of service (https://cohtitan.com/terms):
- Vulgarity, obscenity, and profanity are not allowed. What's "vulgar," "obscene," or "profane?" Ultimately, that's up to the Titan Network's moderators, but as a guideline (and only as a guideline), stuff that would be rated above "PG-13" is a pretty good start. This includes harsh language, sexual language or images, and images or language encouraging or of actual drug use.
- Language or images used for the purpose of attacking, insulting, harassing, slandering, or otherwise griefing other users is prohibited.
In line with that, some words are contextually permissible. If someone says their dog got run over, you can say "that's a shitty situation". But you're not allowed to call someone a shit-head because they pissed you off. You can tell us how you got your ass kicked last night while playing Champions, but you can't tell someone you're mad at that they're an asshole. To clarify, it's not the words that are the issue here: it's the personal attack.
We do ask that you avoid f*ck and c*nt. Those really aren't PG-13.
Questions or concerns? Please discuss below!
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So, if it was in one of the MCU movies it's okay? Those are all PG-13. (Deadpool AFAIK is not currently considered part of the MCU. Also definitely not PG-13.)
Not that i've ever been a heavy user of invective; to the best of my knowledge none of my posts has ever triggered the censor, even with all the unicorning that has happened in the past. Heck, i've got all sorts of nominally PG-13 words on hand without even using descriptive medical terms: slattern, jackhole, gibbering, squamous, pendulous, mountebank, joshex, niggardly, farcical, inane, insipid, incontinent, logorrhea, juggalo, blue waffle, incoherent, iniquitous, the list goes on and on...
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Thanks for the question. One of our primary concerns is how you're using the language. Calling someone gibbering incoherent slattern as an attack would run afoul of our terms of service.
As the terms of service state, PG-13 is only a guideline. Ultimately it's up to our moderators' discretion. I'll defer to our moderators on whether they want to comment on the MCU movies specifically.
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Thanks for the question. One of our primary concerns is how you're using the language. Calling someone gibbering incoherent slattern as an attack would run afoul of our terms of service.
As the terms of service state, PG-13 is only a guideline. Ultimately it's up to our moderators' discretion. I'll defer to our moderators on whether they want to comment on the MCU movies specifically.
Reasonable. Especially considering what Loki called Black Widow.
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The unicorns!!!! :gonk:
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You disallow profanity, yet you automatically censor it for everyone. Never has made sense.
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You disallow profanity, yet you automatically censor it for everyone. Never has made sense.
It was impossible to automatically catch everything with a substitution, so we had a catch-all rule to handle the ones that got by. Now we're shifting to the rule being the primary focus.
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It was impossible to automatically catch everything with a substitution, so we had a catch-all rule to handle the ones that got by. Now we're shifting to the rule being the primary focus.
Not to mention that some boards with extremely zealous auto-censoring become absurd. Like the SWTOR forums censoring parts of words that would be profane alone (the results could be embar***ing) and censoring words that have a somewhat obscure obscene usage but are used fairly frequently in non-obscene contexts. And yet somehow completely lacked filters for a lot of very profane and not at all obscure British slang.
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Yeah but on most forums individuals can disable censorship where as here its enabled regardless. The point Im making was why ban or even have a rule when it isnt even possible to see the offensive words type during a keyboard reflex.
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The forum's word censor was in use prior to formalizing the terms of service. Also, the terms of service applies to all of Titan's sites and so we had all sites in mind when crafting it, not just the forums. Faces, Paragon Wiki, Ourportal, and Paragon Chat never had a censor enabled.
I believe the forum censoring started as something of a joke. Our initial censorship was to censor "troll" so that it became "unicorn", I think as a playful/humorous way of trying to get people to stop calling one another trolls. Later someone suggested censoring profanity with pancakes (https://www.cohtitan.com/forum/index.php?topic=6967.msg85175#msg85175), and so we did.
I don't think any of us gave it much thought until recently. Yes, it's somewhat contradictory to censor profanity when profanity is banned. We agree. That's why we're removing the censorship.
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We do ask that you avoid f*ck and c*nt.
He said Jehovah!!1
(https://images.weserv.nl/?url=skepticsannotatedbible.com%2Fdiu%2Flev24.jpg) :P
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End of an era...
No more pancaking unicorns
(https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/c9/4d/06/c94d064da9177dca8cf01dd410b1b1c9.jpg)
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I believe the forum censoring started as something of a joke. Our initial censorship was to censor "troll" so that it became "unicorn", I think as a playful/humorous way of trying to get people to stop calling one another trolls.
I'll be glad to see that one go, personally. On a board built to discuss a game with a pretty commonly-encountered faction called The Trolls it just always seemed goofy.
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This is a good thing. As a fan of the breakfast pancake, the word replacing system really made me hungry when I would be cast with derisive breakfast terminology.
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Long ago, in a super City far, far away, I trained myself to use "spit" instead of the word it rhymes with because of the risk of being in a team with an unknown underage player. Now I'm even stuck doing it in RL, which has gotten me chewed out for being "PC". ;-) Note to self...f--- is out.
However, should I stick to the "spit" habit? :-O
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Self-Bowdlerization is entirely your call to make. That's essentially what the pancake word substitution accomplished.
However, as Sekoia mentioned up top, it is possible for a user to be banned for a personal attack that does not involve profanity in the first place.
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Here are some things I created a while back just for here...LOL
(https://i.imgur.com/sUmPrj8.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/SnB02x2.png)
(https://i.imgur.com/6GInibj.jpg?1)
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I don't swear (here)...
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Unicorn Pancakes for everybody!!!!