PDF Classifieds and Moderation: Doing both at once?

darkmaker94 said:It’s just that I don't moderate the Classifieds section. 😉

So what exactly are you trying to accomplish here?

Are we actually going to get a straight answer regarding the piracy situation?

darkmaker94 said:Except I don't moderate Classifieds. 😉

I know that too, and since he's the one running the show, we're basically 🙂just spinning our wheels again.

(Well, at least there's one less thread to deal with...😁 🙏)

Here is the situation. Two days ago, on the clothing sales subreddit, I made my first proper entry. I created a post (post number 1332) containing a direct link to my item album, using a photo of some jeans as the thumbnail. Since I added several more items to that album the following day, I opened a new thread (post number 1377), included a link back to my initial post, and used photos of the new items as thumbnails.

And today, I am hit with an infraction from the moderator Palma Sutra, stating: "This infraction is worth 30 points and may result in restricted access until it expires. Serious infractions will never expire."
Naturally, the link to my album in my original post is now gone.

What does this infraction actually imply? How long does this penalty last, and when will my album be visible again?
Furthermore, on what grounds was this infraction even issued?

My response from Palma Sutra was simply: "Shouldn't you have just updated the first post? And please respect the interval between advertisements."

Which first post? I provided a direct link to the album in my initial post. I must admit, I find this entirely incomprehensible...

Everything I did aligns perfectly with the subreddit rules:

After the initial posting of an album or a post featuring items for sale, reposting is permitted after one week has passed.

Reposting shall be conducted in the following manner:
Copy the link to the post containing your offer.
Paste-ati it into a new post, emphasizing which items are sold and which remain available.*

If you wish to lower prices or add new items during that week, this is permitted only once. You must write the post using the aforementioned method (by copying the link to the post containing your original offer). Should such instances occur, the date you are eligible to repost the album will be one week after you have lowered prices or added new items.

Every subsequent post in this thread (with the exception of the first, obviously) must contain a link to the previous or most recent post. Posts that fail to include this link will be deleted and sanctioned for violating the rules.

So, can someone please explain to me why I received this infraction?

Something just occurred to me...

I’m scrolling through MO, and wouldn't you know it, our moderator from the previous thread is bumping their listing again (every other day, maybe every third at most), and almost every single time they tack on some tiny little detail...

Man... why didn't I think of this sooner? Say I'm selling a fireplace. I could just bump the ad every couple of days and mention I'm throwing in one NEW (never used) log of firewood—and make sure to specify it's beechwood... perfectly seasoned from last year...

And for those indicator kits... uh... I could probably write that I'm tossing in a free hook with every purchase...

Now that's an idea...🥳

🙏
I honestly can't believe this... you're 35 years old and wasting your time on this nonsense?! 🙏 Don't you have a kid or a husband to actually spend time with instead of hanging out on Reddit counting everyone else's posts? And if you're going to obsess over my one specific damn topic, you might as well actually buy something for once. ☕

I really don't get why you're so hung up on me. The MO rules clearly state:
4) Do not repost the same ads within a 7-day period.
Nowhere does it say I can't add an item for sale or update my own ad to say something is sold. The fact that those rules apply to the group thread isn't my problem since I'm not advertising in there. 😉
Also, the rules also say:
2) Meaningless posts are not allowed.
Go ahead, try and find a single meaningless post of mine in that thread.

Hopefully, you'll finally leave me alone now.

Btw, must be nice having such a carefree life... ☕

darkmaker94 said:🙏
I honestly can't believe this... you're 35 years old and spending your time on this kind of nonsense?! 🙏 Don't you have a kid or a husband to actually focus on instead of lurking on Reddit counting everyone else's posts? And if you're going to obsess over my one damn... topic, the least you could do is actually buy something. ☕

I really don't get why you've become so fixated on me. It's clearly laid out in the MO rules:
4) Do not repeat the same ads within a period of less than 7 days.
I don't see anything stating it's forbidden to add an item for sale or mention in an ad that something has been sold. The fact that those rules apply to the group thread isn't my problem, because I'm not advertising in there. 😉
Also, the rules say this:
2) Meaningless posts are not allowed.
Go ahead, find me one meaningless post in that thread.

I just hope you'll finally leave me alone now.

By the way, must be nice for some people, having such a carefree life... ☕

🤣 🤣
God, I love getting under people's skin....😁

Look, it’s not about me counting your stuff, it’s just that you were the one who said you follow certain rules. Adding new items every other day for two months straight is just weird. Just list them every 7 days and you won't have any issues, right?

The thing is, other people here have done the exact same thing and ended up getting banned, and that's the difference... (and we're all wondering—and I'm definitely not the only one—why some people get a pass while others don't)... what's the catch?

And what you're saying is true, but it doesn't apply to you since you aren't in that main collective thread where the rules are incredibly strict....

But you're giving everyone else (who are currently advertising in that main thread) an excuse to start their own separate threads and bump them constantly while tossing in a little extra item every time.

Do you see what I'm getting at? It's not like I'm holding a grudge or attacking you, and I haven't become obsessed with you, but honestly, if it were anyone else, they'd be getting called out too.

Buy something? Hmm.... truthfully, we're already deep in the red because of the central hub.
I'm selling everything I can just to make sure we can put bread on the table...

And I'm not bored, I just value things being fair for everyone. I hate seeing someone act like they're above the rest when they're just another person like the rest of us. 😉

rapidrider3 said:Just add 7 plus 7 days and you're good, right?

How am I supposed to list stuff for sale before I even have it? Or write that something is sold when it isn't?!
The whole idea is that once I find or buy something I don't want anymore, I put it up for sale. 🙂

The issue is that other people here have done similar things and got banned, that's the difference... (so we're all wondering—and I'm not the only one—how some can and others can't)... what's the catch?

Not sure what to tell you; I'm not the moderator here. 🤷

But you're giving everyone else (the ones currently advertising in that group thread) an excuse to start their own separate threads and constantly bump them while adding random items.

Long before I became a mod, I sold gear the exact same way I do now. If there weren't any issues or complaints back then, I really don't get why it's a problem now. 🤷

I just don't like it when someone tries to stand out without actually being different from the rest of us. 😉

I don't see how I'm standing out. If I were a moderator and had my own dedicated clothing thread, that would be standing out; this isn't that.

^^So many rules have shifted lately, and honestly? They’ve gotten pretty intense.

But then again, some of them aren't even clearly defined, and the whole section just feels... messy. It isn't laid out properly at all.

You’ve got people opening four or five different threads just to talk about one single item....

There’s zero order to how things work. You see people getting banned when they haven't even done anything wrong, while others pull the exact same stunts and get away scot-free...

😉

Now, lest this be perceived as nothing more than baseless bashing against MO, I would like to point out a few things—perhaps even offer some assistance. 🙂

I cannot help but think that moderation would be significantly less of a headache if certain users stopped cluttering the entire PDF by opening a brand-new topic for every single minor item. Honestly, implementing a rule regarding this would be far more effective than any other existing regulation. Just look at how much space is wasted when someone opens multiple threads that could easily have been consolidated into one single post, updated every five days with a new addition:

The user ViagraBoy currently has four separate threads open involving watches and necklaces, all of which could have been contained within one single topic. To make matters worse, he opened all four on the very same day, followed by a price adjustment two days later, and then yet another bump just two days after that. 😕
A Jacques Lemans sport watch, a Bulova pocket watch, a brown pearl necklace, and a white pearl necklace (noting that those last three are both sales and appraisals). Seriously, what on earth? Was it truly necessary to spawn an individual thread for every single item, rather than simply grouping them into one cohesive post? 😕

Then we have BundyBoy, who has three threads: two concerning graphing calculators—😕 Graphing calculator 1, Graphing calculator 2—plus a Rolex watch. And of course, he bumps these threads every two days.

But the biggest issue with MO remains these solitary threads—"selling a t-shirt," "selling shoes," "selling a bracelet," and so on. We already have two massive dedicated threads for this purpose: Clothing Sales/Trades #4 and Fashion Accessories & Related Items Sales/Trades. These tiny threads, which usually consist of just a single post, should simply be merged into one of those two main threads depending on the category. If they were, MO would look infinitely cleaner, and browsing through it would actually be manageable.

Since this is ultimately the PŽK PDF, let this post serve as an "all-in-one." I sincerely hope that some of these observations might actually be taken into consideration. 🙂

Is there any moderator out there who actually has some insight regarding this PDF, or perhaps an admin who can weigh in? 🙂

You can clearly see that nobody gives a damn about even 5%.

nimblesurfer77 said:It’s pretty obvious nobody gives a damn.

Well, clearly, the users' ability to fix their PDF MO files takes precedence over anything the moderators or admins actually care about. 😳

Angela Flores76 said:Yeah, clearly helping users fix their PDF MO is way more important than actually supporting the mods or admins. 😳

Exactly....
But hey... why make things easy when you can just make them a total mess?

It’s been running wild over there for days now without any oversight at all.....

rapidrider3 said:And it’s been totally out of control over there for days now.....

Look, back when we actually had some order—or what people called "dictatorship" in a milder sense—and we established a rulebook that everyone followed strictly from point 1 to point 101, you wouldn't have had 50 people whining about why the hell we even bother. 😁Granted, you didn't complain, since I see you're a relatively "new" member here.😬

MO is a specific kind of place. It’s a Reddit, not some social club where people hang out, share news, or just chat. It exists for one thing: buying and selling. And as such, it can only stay organized if the moderation is absolute. Period. You follow the rules to the letter, and anything that breaks them gets deleted or flagged immediately.
Take this for example... honestly, what does user XYZ even need to post in my thread? To lowball the price? Ask stupid questions? Or just troll because they're bored? If they want the item, they should send me a PM. If they don't, they should just scroll past. That's how buy/sell boards work.🙂

Back in the day, I set up an "IT hardware marketplace," and it ran like a well-oiled machine for about nine months under my reign (honestly, I have no clue what it's like today, I haven't been around those parts in ages...). The newbies were crying and complaining, while the veteran users were actually thanking me—and I'm not just saying that, I could practically list their names if they wanted to vouch for me. The marketplace was so clean, organized, and well-maintained you could practically eat off the floor.🙂 But what happened after that? Eh, whatever... let someone else tell that story. My time has passed, and frankly, whoever's running things now can deal with the mess.🙂 Though, you shouldn't even have to sweat it that much; with a few clicks in the admin control panel, the admins can set a marketplace up so well that a moderator only needs to peek in once in a while to make sure everything is still on track.😉

^So, what you're saying is we should just let it stay this way? That anyone selling stuff can just bump their thread ten times a day, or open ten different posts every single morning just to hawk a few sneakers, some tees, or whatever little junk they've got...

Instead of actually implementing some kind of order, we're just supposed to act like it isn't necessary...

I guess the people who actually care about things being organized are always going to be the ones complaining!!!
They’re perfectly happy living in total chaos, I suppose... while the rest of us "newbies" who actually give a damn about how this place runs are stuck waiting until we "grow up" or wait for a new generation of users to show up... maybe then something will finally change...

@boldhound8/">@@boldhound8 - Look, I’m not suggesting we turn this place into some kind of digital dictatorship, but does it really need to be this way? Is it truly necessary for a single user to clutter our feed with five different threads when they could just consolidate everything into one coherent post? Why on earth are we opening an entirely new thread just to talk about one single item of clothing when we already have a dedicated mega-thread for apparel and similar stuff? It’s inefficient, isn't it? 😳

rapidrider3 said:^^So according to you, we should just let things stay exactly how they are? Anyone selling stuff can just bump their thread ten times a day, or open ten different threads every single day for a couple of sneakers, a t-shirt, or whatever tiny crap...

Instead of actually implementing some order, we shouldn't bother at all...

The people who hate having rules will always complain about it!!!
They’re perfectly happy living in total chaos and a complete mess... meanwhile, us "newbies" who actually give a damn about this kind of nonsense unfortunately have to wait until we "grow up" here and wait for some new kids to show up... maybe then something will finally change....

Whoa, why are you getting all defensive with me?😁 I was just stating my opinion since I stumbled onto the topic🙂 And I didn't say it's great that everything is a mess, but yeah, you've got a point regarding what matters personally to me—honestly, I couldn't care less about the state of things. I realized I can't change the world, so I stopped trying, and honestly, if I don't even care about the Tech sub anymore—I haven't even followed it for ages (except for checking PDFs on the web)—even though my very first post was in Tech, and even though I've dropped like 15k mostly constructive posts in that sub over the years, and even though it's literally my job and profession... If I don't care about the Sports sub—which is arguably the most important secondary thing in the world, and a sub I moderated for years and wrote way more in—then I really, truly, deeply don't give a 😁
Because I've been trading on other forums for a long time, and I was actually kicked off MO a while back along with a few buddies, treated like an enemy instead of someone who actually wanted to make that forum better, stronger, the best. And I don't doubt I could have succeeded, but whatever... what's done is done. I wouldn't go back to it because people would think I haven't gotten over being kicked and that I'm just using this opportunity for old grudges or whatever... don't worry, I'm totally over it. It's better for me without you guys, and it's better for you without me, so it's a win-win situation :-)

Basically, what am I even supposed to tell you? You've only been here a minute... man, once you put in 5 or 6 years of seniority, things start making more sense. I'm not saying this condescendingly, God forbid🙂 But look, five years ago, people were saying the exact same thing to me that I'm saying to you now, and I didn't want to listen then, and now I'm telling you what they told me😁 Don't stress it so much, it's just a forum, after all🙂 A giant forum run by an owner who has no clue what's actually happening, managing too few staff, and moderating over 200 different people, all listed for $0.00, all on a volunteer basis. As such, it can't be perfect. To be honest with you, it's actually way better than perfect considering everything. Just look at his closest competitors and you'll see what I mean.... Can it be better? Sure. It seems like it could, but when you start digging deeper...

Look, here's a concrete suggestion while we're talking about digging: if they ever give you and Brian Mitchell44 (who's been around longer😍) a spot as moderators for MO, then get in there with the current mod team and start a real reform. Try to actually implement all those ideas you wrote down... you'll realize real quick what I mean by "grumbling from above"😉I figured this out ages ago, so now I’m just sitting here grumbling and honestly, I don't give a damn about any of it. And you know what? I love it.😍

Angela Flores76 said:@boldhound8 - look, it doesn't have to be a total dictatorship over there, but seriously, there's no reason for one single user to have five different threads going. They could easily just cram all that into one post. It's ridiculous to start a whole new thread for one single item of clothing when there's already a massive dedicated clothing thread for stuff like that. You know, just common sense.

I've been through this exact same crap on three different Reddit communities, including this one (which you should probably remember), and believe me, it's necessary. If you don't have some level of authority, you can't maintain any kind of order on a niche community like this.

^^You put that really well.
A mod acting like a mod!!!

To be a moderator, you first need the time, then the will, and finally the actual nerves required to moderate.
I’ve been a mod somewhere else—I’ve had nearly half the site under my thumb, and I’m still a global mod on one of them because there aren't enough writers—so I get where you're coming from...

This place is a dumpster fire—pure chaos. And you know why? There are too many of them. Everyone wants to assert themselves, to be seen, so ten people jump into an argument over a few bucks, and before you know it, the whole thing turns into a complete circus... It can't be easy for a mod to track all that or even judge who's actually in the wrong, .....

I'm talking about the section of the site that's just comments..

As for the classifieds, that's a different story to me... there aren't many comments there, nor should there be. We have one chat thread (which I fought for) where we can talk about anything related to MO. So we don't clutter up the main threads too much.

And the rest of it, like Brian Mitchell44 said... man, oh man... these aren't private ads where one person can just open a bunch of threads for a few scraps of clothing!!!

Go ahead, try that on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace... they'll yank your ad immediately... You won't find any leeway there; they'll just send you an email saying, "Sorry, we had to delete your ad because you listed a stove under fireplaces."

And?? They were right. I posted it because I didn't realize I couldn't list the same thing twice, but it was a dual function (the title) (both a stove and a fireplace in one)....

And can I open a new ad there? No, because they'll just delete it again. I know that, so I'm not even trying.

But here, while things are this uncontrolled, certain individuals take full advantage of it.
Some people have character and respect the rules, but then there are those who look you dead in the eye and say: "I don't give a damn about any of this..."

And they don't care if they move on to someone else.

I'm losing the will to hang out here, just like many others... because if a person doesn't feel welcome—and honestly, it's getting to that point—if they feel belittled or humiliated, they just leave for somewhere else.

There are wonderful people on this site, though we tend to run into them elsewhere more often than here (sadly), people who are ready to help without a second thought. But then there are the others... let's just say they're real pieces of work... (but you can't tell them that)...😁

..

MO is fine by me,
except for what Brian Mitchell44 said about that one user having an XYZ thread on MO in this post
If MO actually fixes things in that regard, props to them.

The sales threads have cleaned up big time—just a few users getting a DM or a warning in the thread, maybe Palmic hands out some strikes, and boom.
Way better than before.

boldhound8 is right when he says this Reddit is miles ahead of the competition and basically "perfect." I know because I spent a decent amount of time hanging out on those other sites too.

So, idk if you guys told little Palmic to check out this thread... and think about Brian Mitchell44's post/suggestion.
He used to handle those separate threads back when girls would open individual ones just to spam their sales... so I don't think it'd be much trouble for him to flag the users Brian Mitchell44 pointed out and merge the threads into one.

With help from the rest of us always reporting stuff, Palmic knows exactly what's breaking the rules here. He might not react as fast as a Swiss watch, but when he takes the time, he gets the job done—handing out strikes, warnings, deleting, closing, whatever.
And honestly, considering how it used to be, it's good he's still handling it himself.😳

boldhound8 said:Look, here's a real suggestion regarding all this digging, just in case they actually... make you an admin for the board...

God forbid. 🙂