Smack blogs-appalled :(

[germgirl]

Same experience here Anthea, I was told, as a newbie of around a week's standing 'the info is here (link) this has been asked so many times before, why don't you search for it rather than asking the same question over again'
I'd never used a forum before, didnt know how to search, didnt know anything!
Like you say though, I haven't seen that kind of response for a while, thankfully.

[CloClo]

I must be lucky but have never got a response like that to a question which I agree, is totally unnecessary. As far as I'm concerned people should ask away - if someone is bored by people asking the same questions then why do they bother answering them!

[CloClo]

I meant the response was unnecessary, not the question btw!

[suzysuzy1]

I've no idea what this is all about, and frankly, I am not going to go and look.

I don't buy any scrapping mags, I'm not interested in being 'published' but I work hard on my pages - for me.

Good on anyone (famous or not!) who shares their work and ideas with others.

DITTO

[Binky]

Well I never heard of these blogs before I read this thread. I just had a look at them and didn't stay long. Its all just too negative for me. Everyone has an opinion but there are ways of saying it. I didn't see the thread about "Kirsty" I don't actually know who she is but any attack on a person is horrible. In my book thats bullying.

The main reason I like coming to UKS is because it is positive and supportive. And encourages my scrap addiction! I don't like arguments and rants. I'll admit that lately i get a bit bored with the UK mags as would like them to do more different types of styles. But they are still good magazines and the ladies who contribute are still talented and do nice work and I still buy the mags! Personally I won't go and visit those blogs again as its just not a nice "head space" to be in.

As for leaving nice comments on LOs. I think thats about supporting eachother as everyone is at different levels of their scrapping. I think someone wanting to post nasty posts on someone's hard work is just, well nasty!!

Personally, i think the best thing to do is not visit these blogs at all then they won't get such high "hits" as it just encourages them.

[KimmyS]

I have just seen the nastiest most vitriolic posts about scrappers on this nasty, nasty blog and I am appalled.
I hope to goodness that none of the 'anonymous' posters who spew such bile are members of the UKS 'Community' you should be ashamed of yourselves.

I love scrapping I have made some wonderful friends and sure you can't get on with everyone but to publically berate someone that you barely know because they are successful, talented is just vile.

PLEASE do not support this sort of thing. It is supposed to be about paper and photos not this.
I'm so sad I cannot tell you

Katie I do agree with you that these blogs are totally unnecessary but do you realise that with your thread you have given them now even more exposure??

If we'd all ignore the things that bother us, the world would indeed be a better place

[Katie]

Thanks Kimmy- I appreciate that so very much!

[Eileen C]

It's all to do with style, I think, when it comes to repeat questions. If I see a question and know there's been a similar thread, I may post a reply with something like "there was a similar thread recently, you may find this useful" which I hope no one would find offensive.

There can be a bit of a knack to using the search facility. Just yesterday I wanted to check Shop Till You Drop before posting a thread looking for some particular SEI papers, but when I tried it kept telling me that 'sei' was too short for a key word. As "sei be bop" has no word with more than three letters this was a bit of a problem ... Now I've been using the forum long enough to find a way round this and confident enough to post even if I got a "you daft so & so!" response, but it's different for newbies.

Overall the tone on here is supportive and friendly, but in any group this big you are going to get every sort of person, including the grumpy and the bumptious, but hopefully they are outweighed (and I think they are, by a long shot) by the cheerful and modest.

[Helen M]

just my two pence worth but where's the harm in someone earning dosh from their talent? people buy instructional books or manuals right? so what's the difference? if kirsty or whoever can make some cash from what they know then good for them, if someone doesnt like it then they should move on

and maybe the magazines keep using the same people because they have got to know them and know that they wont go around spreading poison on these kinds of forums.

[germgirl]

I'll probably get flamed for this, but the Scrap Smack blog isn't all bad, obviously there are a few users who just want to bitch but mainly the stuff on there is quite helpful, product reviews, magazine reviews, opinions about retreats etc.
Obviously in an unmoderated forum/blog, people can say whatever they like, and some people may go a bit far, personal attacks are not nice, or useful, and to say that if someone puts their work 'out there', they should have a thick skin is not really the point. No one minds constructive criticism of their work, but there is no need for personal abuse.
However, I stick by my first point, the SS blogs are not all bad, it's just a shame that a few people use them as an outlet for their own personal nastiness.

[Helen M]

oh well

[CloClo]

The fact is that there ARE people out there that are miserable and judgemental and we just have to accept that they will always be there and always find somewhere to air their views. People that are the top of any field will face criticism, whether constructive or otherwise (look at the stick that Beckham regularly gets for example) and fortunately these people are able to ignore or just accept it. If they couldn't, they wouldn't have got where they are!

[MaryAnne]

There can be a bit of a knack to using the search facility. Just yesterday I wanted to check Shop Till You Drop before posting a thread looking for some particular SEI papers, but when I tried it kept telling me that 'sei' was too short for a key word. As "sei be bop" has no word with more than three letters this was a bit of a problem ... Now I've been using the forum long enough to find a way round this and confident enough to post even if I got a "you daft so & so!" response, but it's different for newbies.

Just on the search thing - you should be able to use a * to make searching possible (although having said that I did try "sei* and bop*" and came up empty so it could actually be there is no posts about it)

Also I *think* that the search function you can access via the Home Page is a bit more robust (you can search on short words like SEI but not BE and you can search for all the words, as well as any of the words and the "exact phrase" by selecting that option) and that DOES search the forums so I'd suggest that as an option.

I do think that the vast majority of people who post to newbies with a link to a previous discussion on a topic are NOT rolling their eyes at the same time and sneering It's a combo of old timers wanting to be helpful and maybe wanting to post quickly before a whole new thread gets rolling, esp. if there was a good one on the topic just recently, and newbies not knowing the board, or boards in general. The number of times I get registration problem emails where people tell me "I've never been on a forum before..." is high. It's so easy to mistake a quick reply of "Just the facts. ma'am" with rudeness - in most cases the poster will be stunned to find out they were perceived as rude when they thought they were being helpful!

As to the subject of the Smack blogs, they have been around for a looooonnng time (maybe not these particular iterations, but ones like them) and I don't see them going away.

It's a fact - UKS does have to consider sponsors when moderating posts, and does have to be careful about libel (or at least MAY have to - the info on various cases of posting on online forums of libelous comments seems to come down on both sides, that of the poster being held responsible and to at least one case, the Gina Ford/Mumsnet one, coming down holding the Forum at fault) and the majority of the members (at least the ones who email or PM me about it) like the fact that we pull the plug on difficult topics or personal attacks before they get out of hand. That in itself is interesting....people feel more comfortable praising the Mods and the moderation process, and the closing of harsh threads PRIVATELY, than jumping online under their user name and saying it publicly. Not sure what to make of that but it is interesting. And that is what we do here - and we try to learn from the past, from the fallout of the decisions and actions taken, and let those lessons guide us the next time we have to decide on how to handle something. An anonymous blog does not have to. Some will find that appealing. I say great! Take it over there. That makes life on UKS a lot easier for everyone and you can choose to read the Smack or not without having to give up the rest of what people come to UKS for.

I have had requests to remove this thread, but I really don't think that is helpful or reasonable. So long as there isn't a link and the discussion stays calm it's not breaking any rules - and so long as people keep in mind UKS is NOT the place to Smack

[Dibby]

I seemed to remember that the search facility wouldn't search for three letter words, which may be why SEI and Bam wouldn't show up.

I think the Smack blog does serve a purpose. There are things that irritate me which have been addressed on there, and whilst I personally wouldn't air my irritations on here, 1. because I don't do confrontations, and 2. I wouldn't want to be responsible for upsetting people, it is refreshing to know that other people are ticked off with the same things that I am.

[welshscrapqueen]

If you don't like the mags - don't buy them !
If you don't like the classes - don't go to them !
If you don't like the sites - don't go on them !

We all have a choice in these things - that's what is great about living in this age in this country !

But what really hacks me off about most of the posts on there is all the anonymity - if you have something to say - then stand up and be counted - or just keep quiet.

I am also really hacked off that i wasted my time reading it all and have no desire to go back.