h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Entry: Helpful Hints for Getting Porn Off the Internet - A783777
Author: lilithcookie - U192100

Ok... this is like a legit, highly serious, guide entry submission that I'm like soooo respectfully submitting for your totally respectable review because it's even got the headers and other guide code stuff already and I think it might even be written in the 3rd person or by a 3rd person called Lyle because I don't want nobody to know I'm a chic ok? So it's Lyle not Lil right?

Otherwise, somebody might think this was done by a barbie tourguide and quietly consign it to the lowest rings of h2g2 hell. So shred on shredders but try to be gentle ok?

A few comments, in no particular order.

the title, gave the impression that it is about how to remove porn from the internet (which is impossible).

A lot of the article is about how usefull newsgroups are, and how to download stuff from them. this would probably make a good article anyway.

Most of the rest is basically a warning about piracy, and filesize, and filetypes.

You fail to mention that a lot of porn links are either viruses, spam, scams with varying levels of danger, etc. most of the rest is poor quality porn.

If you split the newsgroup article out and do that seperately, then that would make a good entry, and you could just mention in this one that you could download your porn from a newsgroup.

There is a lot of overlap between porn and general file sharing. in both cases there are people who want to stop you doing it, and in both cases they are working using out of date models of reality, and have no chance of stopping it.

Well I don't guess it matters now anyways because it's been 'moderated' aka removed so that's that right?

Just so you know though, the title was intentionally ambiguous for exactly the reason you mentioned about people having this outdated version of reality. But as you can probably see, their version still prevails here at least.

I kinda did it as an experiment anyways just to see what would happen and I guess I got my answer.

So like thanks again for your 'helpful hints' and maybe you should do the entry about the newsgroups. I bet they'd just love it.

There could be a number of reasons for the moderation. If you've provided links to dubious websites, that's not something the BBC can allow. You should have been sent an email detailing the reasons behind the decisions.

Before writing an entry, it's good to check to see if there is already an entry. In this case, there is already an entry covering the same area at A523504. There's nothing to stop you writing on this subject, but it's very unlikely to be picked as an edited entry.

Please don't be put off by this experience. By the looks of it, you were expecting this anyway. Perhaps try something a bit more innocent for the next attempt?

actually, other than the fact it is about porn, I can't recall anything specifically moderatable about this entry.

Also it complements the existing entry, so that should not bar it either (with a title change).

Also, you will still have it available for further editing.

I can't copy the stuff about news groups, as it is currently hidden along with the rest of your entry.

We have had a number of contraversial subjects have persistant trouble with moderation. the entry on molotov cocktails springs to mind.

If the moderation letter is not informative, then query it. that way it will force them to improve the letters.

I can't get to the entry so I can't do anything with it anyways. The only thing they said in the email was it condones illegal activity which I guess it does if you live in Saudi Arabia so I can't argue with that can I?

I just didn't think that was an issue here. I mean terms of service or whatever always cover people's butts no matter what. That's what they're written for and if you don't play along they just tell ya to stop using the service. Like they don't really have to be clear about what they allow or don't specifically. Because you can't appeal nothing so the point's moot anyways.

But like I said before... it was just an experiment and I got my answer... sorta... and that'll tell me what maybe you can stuff through the blackbox around here. Sorta like smashing atoms... you can't see what's inside but you can maybe make an educated guess based on what bounces out when you shoot them ya know?

"I can't get to the entry so I can't do anything with it anyways" -- not quite!

If you, as the author, go to the entry then there is the 'edit' button which enables you to do any changes/amendments/whatever with the entry. I haven't seen it anyway, so I don't know what it was that annoyed the mods

same think that annoyed them about the molotov cocktail entry.

They veiw enything that can e misinterpreted as condoning illegal activity to actually be doing it.

However this is a british site, and soft porn is LEGAL in this country, so as long as you mention it to be downloading soft porn, you should then be able to appeal and win.

it might take a few passes through the editors for the moderators to get the message, but if you keep appealing, they might.

Well... as we probably all know... it ain't all soft porn at least not by the usual definition which is you don't show penetration. So I'm not sure it'll fly even in Britain. I wasn't aware there was a ban on hardcore in the UK which is probably just the tip of the iceberg of my ignorance so this has been a worthwhile experiment no matter what.

Thanks for the tip about the edit button Boss. Maybe I'll get around to 3rd personing the Dancing on Tables thang one of these days after all although I might float it as a guy author just to see if that makes any difference. Don't tell nobody though or you'll skew the data ok?

Sequel to the thick plottens or something... it took them all of 46 minutes to bounce it this time... even with disclaimers that said it doesn't condone illegal activity because you shouldn't do it if it's illegal wherever you happen to be because you're underage or not Dutch or whatever.

So I think maybe I'll just bag it for now because obviously the issue ain't illegal activity condoning really and I don't have time to keep battering the target with electrons or positrons to see what comes out in the old bubble chamber ok?

Sequel to the sequel... I was just thinking 46 minutes is about the time it would take a neanderthal to read the thang... if he had help. Hmmm... makes ya wonder doesn't it?

Oh well... I just kinda think a community of strangers that doesn't appear to like strange stuff is kinda strange.

perhaps it took them 46 minutes to get their trousers/pants back on?

Gosh... silly me... I never even woulda imagined that...

Of course 46 minutes is quite a long time to be putting your pants on I think... unless you're trying to do it both legs at once.

Well, depends on how much of that time is spent playing with tissue, and how much is spent with, er, tissues

everything that you wrote applies equally well to downloading tit and arse shots (not too explicit) and to really explicit material.

as long as you keep it so that it can be interpreted in the softest possible way, then it is legal.

So are you the one bouncing this thang?

If so... fine... I'll deal with it then. But if you aren't then I got better things to do than probing the blackbox with legal challenges ok?

Not that I don't appreciate the help and interest. It's sorta different than what I get most of the time which is ignored... because as everyone knows... you ignore it and it'll go away.

But I'm not sure this is the issue I wanna push or the battleground I wanna chose.

I'm a researcher after all and I've been doing other research here specifically about the site itself and how it works and why? And this thang might be just the tip of iceberg and whether or not it'd be worthwhile to run an oceanliner into it is still kinda up in the air... especially when you consider what happens to oceanliners that do that.

So then I gotta decide what this place is good for from my perspective and I haven't decided that yet. But I'm sure I will one of these days if my research budget holds out.

no, I am not bouncing it.

This site has a policy imposed by the bbc of proactive moderation.

every time you add something to a review thread, or edit an entry, it goes and gets moderated. if it fails you get an email which should tell you what is causing it to get bounced.

If you are posting something wich is controversial, then there is a good chance that some foolish moderator will take it in the worst possible light.

you just have to keep plugging away and moaning to the editors every time they get it wrong.

It's a good idea to amend entries about controversial subjects only during business hours in the UK (ie: check your local time zone). This way, you can hope for a prompt reply from the Italics, rather than dealing only with the night shift of the Mods

Jeez... I'll need a spreadsheet to keep track of the factors of publication... it'll be worse than an economic forecast.

You don't really want me to do this do ya Boss? Say it isn't true ok? I mean would you do it?