Archive for July 2008

links for 2008-07-31: Comment Conundrum

In Links on 31 July 2008 with Comments Off

Why we delete comments. (And how you can make us stop.)
Brilliantly written. “If we attempted to pass a law preventing you from saying something terrible, that would be censorship. If you showed up in our living room attempting to say the same thing, we’d have the right to throw you out.”
(tags: community)

Jamie’s Comment on Random [...]

Just One Question for Jason Schultz

In Community, Internet, Just One Question, Law on 30 July 2008 with 3 comments

One of the things that always comes up when I talk to people at companies about community systems is the fear that getting involved with the comments on their site makes them more liable. I’ve denied it until I was blue in the face, but they don’t always believe me. So I decided to ask [...]

The Monarch

In Photos on 29 July 2008 with Comments Off

A new orchid blooms one of the freakiest flowers ever. It looks like a sea creature up close.

Concluding the Comment Culture Clash Cacophony

In Community, Internet on 29 July 2008 tagged Media with Comments Off

Jeff Jarvis sums up the debate nicely with an open letter to Bob Garfield.
But note well, my friend, that all of these people are speaking to you with intelligence, experience, generosity, and civility. You know what’s missing? Two things: First, the sort of nasty comments your own piece decries. And second: You.
His closing thoughts [...]

links for 2008-07-29

In Links on 29 July 2008 with 1 comment

BuzzMachine: Comments on comments on comments
Jeff Jarvis on the comments controversy sparked by OTM, with an appearance from Bob Garfield himself in the comments, still not getting why he’s wrong.
(tags: otm bobgarfield media comments)

StupidFilter
Programmatic detection of stupid comments. Has anyone tried this?
(tags: comments stupidity)

POD Opens Door to Magazine Experiments and Customization
An interview I did with [...]

10 Ways Newspapers Can Improve Comments

In Community, How to, Internet on 28 July 2008 tagged Media with 28 comments

The other day Bob Garfield had a good kvetch about dumb comments on newspaper websites on his show, On The Media, and I posted my two cents, but I still don’t feel better. I think that’s because Bob’s partly right: comments do suck sometimes.
So, instead of just poking him for sounding like Grandpa Simpson, I’d [...]

This is Not a Comment

In Internet on 26 July 2008 tagged Media with 9 comments

(With apologies to René Magritte.)
One of my favorite radio shows is On The Media. I’ve been listening to it for years. Their critiques of traditional media are astute and often funny. But when they talk about the internet, they reveal themselves to be the old codgers they are.
This week, host Bob Garfield did a piece [...]

links for 2008-07-25: The not-dead-yet edition

In Links on 25 July 2008 with 4 comments

Ask the Reform Rabbi - Will I be denied burial in a Jewish cemetery if I get a tattoo?
Answer: No. “I do not know of any rabbi or Jewish cemetery that would refuse to bury a Jew because their body had a tattoo. That would be a terrible violation of the Jewish principle of Kavod [...]

Self-Portrait with Squid

In Life, Photos on 24 July 2008 with 11 comments

About a month after I started the process, and a couple weeks since Jason at Cyclops did the shading (less painful getting, more painful healing), my first tattoo is done. I’m still startled when I see him in the mirror first thing in the morning, but I think we’re gonna be friends.
Additions to my ever-growing [...]

Bloom

In Photos on 23 July 2008 with 4 comments