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[Ed Note 2: Damn devs have made a liar out of me... moved it back to the original schedule noted below. - cmn32480]
[TMB Note: Site update complete. Bumped so folks will notice.]
It has been a few months since we last updated SoylentNews, and we've not been content to rest on our laurels. Our next site update is tentatively scheduled for Sunday, 2017-05-21, depending on staff availability. We'll update this story when we know for sure when it will take place.
Since this post was started, other things have come to light, so there's a bit of everything in here. Read on for the full scoop:
Web Site Changes
In this latest update (scheduled around 00:00 UTC on 5.21.2017, but we are flexible), we have made the following improvements:
- Supported subscription payments made with Bitcoin [again].
- Fixed a bug which blocked non-whole-dollar bitcoin subscriptions.
- Provided immediate feedback of theme changes.
- Added button that, when clicked, marks all comments in a story as "unread".
- Added support for "<s>" and "<strike>" tags.
- Fixed bug where a plus sign "+" in a user's nickname made their user page inaccessible from site links.
- Removed unused Javascript code.
- Made minor, non-user-facing changes (code cleanup, etc.)
Backend Changes
As always, we appreciate constructive feedback. Reply with a comment to this story, join us in #dev on IRC (Internet Relay Chat), or submit a bug on GitHub.
Separately, the team has made great strides in moving to running on Gentoo. We are taking this step very methodically, making sure we have a solid foundation in place on one server before we even think of rolling it out to the rest of our systems. Yes, that means we will be free from systemd. Kudos to NCommander, Mechanicjay, Audioguy, TheMightyBuzzard, Paulej72, and Deucalion.
SoylentNews' Folding@Home Team Update
It's amazing how spare compute cycles add up! SoylentNews has a Folding@Home team which is helping researchers find a cure for diseases such as Huntington's, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's — among many others. Our team was launched on Feb. 12, 2016. In just over 15 months, we have amassed well over 300 million points which places us at Team 304 out of 226564! Barring any surprises, and continuing at our current rate, we are on track to break past 300 and into the 2xx's on or about May 28th, 2017.
We are always open to receiving new team members. Contact Sir Finkus for more information, either via email at this site, or via the #Soylent or #folding channels on our IRC -- Internet Relay Chat server.
Accounts Milestone
New account creation has been relatively consistent and steady over the past year averaging out to a new account pretty much every day. It is a pleasure to inform the community that, on May 18th, account number 6600 was registered on the site.
Funding Shortfall
Lastly, it is my sad duty to inform the community that our cash intake has been seriously deficient so far this year. Our budget for the six-month period of Jan 1, 2017 through June 30, 2017 is $3,000 and we are currently at approximately half that, with less than 6 weeks to go.
We have in excess of 100 users who have been active on the site within the last 30 days whose subscription has lapsed. It is easy enough to do — I have failed to notice my own subscription's end on more than one occasion!
Plain and simple, the site needs to pay its bills. Please look at your subscription page and consider making a contribution. The dollar amounts shown in the text-entry fields are the minimum amount required for that subscription duration. We've had a few users anonymously contribute significantly more than that in the past.
Some have chosen to give a gift subscription to NCommander (UID: 2) as a sign of support. However you choose to make a contribution, please do so now.
Thank-you
-- martyb
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Saturday May 20 2017, @05:46PM (52 children)
Slashdot did suck. They seem to have gotten sharper. Problem is that they can't be trusted.
And that is why people started to give a fuck for news for people that didn't want to be treated like idiots. Making it a living can however take persistence and smart ideas.
Maybe a android/iphone app could help with finances (because the store enables monetization). Where the app gives easy of use. But still allow visitors to use the web site.
(maybe that will stops working when we tell Google or Apple that their shit sucks .. :) )
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 20 2017, @06:14PM
Maybe a android/iphone app
Here are your apps, shithead:
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/android/ [mozilla.org]
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/ios/ [mozilla.org]
(Score: 5, Informative) by edIII on Saturday May 20 2017, @07:04PM (49 children)
Yep. TMB can be an ass on occasion, but I trust him and the other staff here a hell of lot more than some executive scum that was running the green site. This site has principles, it's reflected in the site and the staff's work, and that's what I'm here. It's why I came here in the beginning.
I'm going to try to donate some money here with an updated subscription today.
Thanks again to the staff.
Technically, lunchtime is at any moment. It's just a wave function.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday May 20 2017, @07:35PM (18 children)
TMB and the unwritten rules are why I don't don't donate and won't donate. If they want to treat the site like a private club, they can fund it themselves.
But it's beyond me how they can expect people to follow rules that don't exist.
(Score: 4, Informative) by The Mighty Buzzard on Saturday May 20 2017, @07:54PM (10 children)
Which unwritten rules would those be? Eh, I'll just write out the rules that I know of for you.
See, the thing is, every one of them have been written down for a long time. Now our site documentation isn't always up to date but every single rule was in a story before it was ever written into the wiki or faq.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @02:37AM (9 children)
You might want to reread those rules as they aren't actually written down in the moderator guideline.
Personally, I'm not about to waste my time creating a log in or donating when you're too damn lazy to put any of that in the guidelines that you reference when people allegedly break the rules.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Sunday May 21 2017, @02:56AM (6 children)
*BZZZZT* Wrong. Thanks for playing though.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 1, Flamebait) by https on Sunday May 21 2017, @03:42AM (5 children)
Two of those rules are in the Moderation Guidelines, two are not.
This is fucking hilarious, because you are in a position to actually edit said guidelines before posting.
I've told you before that you should stick to coding and just not comment on the site, but this might convince some of your fellow coders you can't be trusted with either.
Offended and laughing about it.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @04:21AM
I'm surprised people need explicit written rules before they realize it's wrong to dox private citizens or post illegal content. (Or more accurately, that they're surprised that there will consequences for doing such things simply because they were not told in advance not to be an ass.)
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @09:33AM
Two of those rules are in the Moderation Guidelines, two are not.
They're in the Code of Conduct.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Sunday May 21 2017, @09:59AM (2 children)
That would be because the second two have nothing to do with moderation.
Yes, we edited those particular guidelines a week before posting in preparation of making you look foolish. Or possibly as soon as it was brought to our attention that mod-bombing was not documented. Take your pick.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @04:41PM (1 child)
Either way that kind of dickery is why you won't receive any money from me. Why bother to give money to people that don't really care about their image when there are other needy causes out there?
Also, the fact that you had to have that pointed out to you is a huge problem for your credibility. There shouldn't be any rules ever that aren't on the list of rules that get enforced. If it's a rule that you're not enforcing, fair enough, but you shouldn't be enforcing rules before they're written down. If those had to be pointed out as missing, then what happens if you decide to add a new rule?
What's more, you couldn't bother linking to the page which just makes it that much worse.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Sunday May 21 2017, @05:54PM
Oh it was announced, discussed, debated, argued about, and thoroughly well known; just not officially documented. But yes, we're terrible people for occasionally forgetting to update the site documentation that nobody ever reads. I should feel obliged to take my custom somewhere nicer and more reliable were I you.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2) by cmn32480 on Sunday May 21 2017, @03:09AM
Just for reference, here is a link to the moderator guidelines [soylentnews.org].
They are also available from the main page, in the little box that tells you how many mod points you have.
"It's a dog eat dog world, and I'm wearing Milkbone underwear" - Norm Peterson
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @09:39AM
Wouldn't your trolling be more effective with a larger audience? Seems 4chan is more your speed. Go waste your time there.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by edIII on Saturday May 20 2017, @07:55PM (6 children)
I'm not sure what the hell you are talking about. Are you complaining as a user here, or as somebody trying to contribute to site as a coder?
As a user, I don't find an awful lot of rules. We don't support a lot of bullshit with the lameness filter, and not allowing people to embed gifs and cute emoticons everywhere. Although, it supports unicode so we can leave shit icons laying about. I'm not feeling restricted in the least in what I can do and say around here. While I've been complimentary to TMB on most occasions regarding the site and staff, I'm not above getting angry with him either. Yet, we are still both here, and there are no repercussions. Meaning, the staff isn't oppressive, there isn't censorship around here, etc. The staff is quite respectable around here.
As a coder, suck it up. There is going to be a core group of people, and a general direction for the site. I've no idea what drama is involved in that, but unwritten rules just seems as a way to complain about personal issues, not site issues.
As for TMB, grow the fuck up. You should see how mad I got yesterday at him, but I'm here today, I've donated, and nothing has changed my respect for him as a coder, as a staff member, and a contributor to SN. You only hurt yourself, and this community by childishly refusing to donate just because of him. Remember, there is his politics and the shit he says, and there is his coding and sysadmin work. I can call him an asshole for some of the things he says, and still greatly respect his contributions here. Take a guess who was here on Saturday on IRC handling a support request for a user?
I only came back here to say that there might be some issues with Stripe today. Had to use PayPal to get a successful donation here, in case anyone else is trying to donate. Which please consider donating, the site needs it.
Technically, lunchtime is at any moment. It's just a wave function.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @02:45AM (5 children)
That's like your opinion man. If he wants to be an asshole, fine, but being an asshole at the same time that he's acting in an official capacity here isn't what I would personally consider to be the kind of behavior that deserves being rewarded.
The site needing money isn't really any of my concern. If TMB didn't piss me off, I'd consider donating, but I work too hard for my money to give it to people running their own personal fiefdoms. There's a ton of causes out there that need my money as well, why would I give it to a site that seems to be more about ego than anything else?
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Sunday May 21 2017, @04:30AM
I don't believe you.
The simple amount of posting coming from you is astounding, AC; someone may think you developed an obsession for SN, at least 30% of the SN posts are signed by you.
No sleep, no food, no life 'cause you have no time for them, you compulsively need to keep posting on SN.
That's more than a full time job and I bet SN doesn't pay you... so, what money?
(grin)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday May 21 2017, @04:36AM (3 children)
Could you please describe this asshole behavior in conjunction with his official duties? We've sort of been taking it on faith to this point, but while I grant there is some behavior which some would consider asshole, I don't recall any done in an official capacity.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @04:43PM (2 children)
Well, if you look up a ways, you'll see it in action. I don't think it's asking too much for the moderation action done by the site operators to be based upon written down rules is asking too much. TMB has already admitted that there are rules they use that aren't actually written down where people are likely to see them. Some of the rules are only known after you've committed an infraction or if you happen to stumble on some place in the comment section where they list them.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Sunday May 21 2017, @05:59PM
False. I in fact said they most certainly were written down where they belong.
Oh this is true, if you never read the stories where they're discussed. And then don't read the ones where they're either implemented or tossed aside. And then don't read the official policies.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Monday May 22 2017, @02:09AM
Up a ways where? Link please. Vague accusations by an AC don't cut it with me. Keep in mind that I've been slammed before by anonymous accusations as well. It's not fair to the target to be accused of infractions or whatever, without any opportunity to defend themselves.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by The Mighty Buzzard on Saturday May 20 2017, @07:44PM (29 children)
Hey, we do occasionally agree on things as well as disagree. Wouldn't dream of disputing me being an ass though. What I don't get is why some people seem to expect me to shut up and play nice just because I volunteer my time to make the site better. I mean, if I don't get to use the site, where's the incentive to code it?
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by kaszz on Saturday May 20 2017, @08:55PM (27 children)
Maybe because people have an unconscious expectation that all people that provide a service are hounded by a Human Resources (HR) team into docile passive-aggressive employees that take all shit and still smiles?
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Marand on Saturday May 20 2017, @11:43PM (2 children)
I can't tell if you were going for funny or insightful, but you hit insightful either way. Anyone that's ever worked in retail or anything similar (hotel staff, customer service, etc.) has probably seen this shit from people; there's a significant subset of the population that thinks employees are servants and treats them as such, taking shit out on them when they have a bad day, making outrageous demands, and expecting the employee to take it all with a smile and a "yes sir|ma'am" because they can complain to corporate and get the lowly peon fired.
Corporate offices don't want bad press, so that (already misunderstood) "the customer is always right" meme mutated into "the customer can treat other human beings like absolute shit without repercussion", and I guess now some people think that's how it works everywhere, even with volunteers providing shit for free.
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Sunday May 21 2017, @12:51AM
When volunteers provides something for free and people using it treat the providers like shit. The might just get a free review of their behavior ;)
No Flesh Resource department around to protect userflakes from such honesty :p
(Score: 2) by TheRaven on Sunday May 21 2017, @09:57AM
You mean, politely and with respect, buying them presents for boxing day?
sudo mod me up
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @02:51AM (23 children)
No, it's because people don't typically want to give money to people and companies they don't like. The first thing you have to do if you want somebody to buy your service is to actually like you. Sure, you might get away with it if there aren't other sites, but let's be honest, there are plenty of other places that people can post on.
In this case, the donors are pretty much the customers. The non-donating contributors are also a part of the ecosystem that makes it worth donating to those that have the means to do so. Having TMB being an asshole to the people bothering to sign in while also setting the rules sends a powerful signal that the people operating the site can't be trusted and probably aren't very likable.
Which, if they were funding the sight out of their own pockets would be fair enough, but they're trying to convince people to part with their hard-earned dollars to do it and that doesn't work. It doesn't matter how much they need the money, people aren't donating on that basis. They're donating on the basis that the site does something they want and that they trust the site operators to not blow it on hookers and blow.
The fact that TMB was even arguing with me earlier just makes my point that much clearer. Unless that's changed since I last bothered to log in, none of those things are actually in the moderator guidelines. They may be rules, but they aren't in the list of rules that they give people that allegedly break the rules. What's more, arguing just reinforces my view that the site is run by immature jackasses that don't actually care about their image.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Sunday May 21 2017, @02:59AM
You think I make the rules? I have three, count them, three bosses not counting the Board.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Sunday May 21 2017, @03:00AM
Oh and you're full of shit about the rules not being documented. The only one that was ever even late in being documented was mod-bombing.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 3, Touché) by Ethanol-fueled on Sunday May 21 2017, @03:42AM (2 children)
Well, if SoylentNews is too shocking for you, perhaps you'd feel more at home in the comments section of ArsTechnica, a place where people say nice simple things and nobody is offended by anything, ever.
(Score: 3, Informative) by khallow on Sunday May 21 2017, @04:42AM
Yes, Ars Technica has been the only place to ever ban me for something I wrote. You should be safe there.
(Score: 4, Informative) by Magic Oddball on Sunday May 21 2017, @01:13PM
That's how Ars used to be, but around the same time that they changed the site design to look more trendy, they stopped moderating the comment sections on articles with extremely rare exceptions and restricted the 'report comment' button to paid subscribers only.
(Score: 2) by edIII on Sunday May 21 2017, @03:50AM (3 children)
TMB is not the entire site. Period.
I'm not involved in the developer end of it, so I don't know about fiefdoms. Even still, I sincerely doubt it. Clearly on IRC, he is the most talkative guy there, but not dramatically higher than 2nd place. That being said, he is also clearly very involved in keeping the site running, updating, and evolving. I know there are others like NCommander, Martyb, etc. that contribute greatly to sight. TMB is just loud and very expressive of his opinions.
TMB does good work, even when he is sick and has a cold.
SN is NOT a safe space. TMB is not obligated to kiss your asses every time you sign in. Yes, TMB is free to be himself on the site at the same time he contributes to the site. He deserves that much at the very least.
And this is coming from somebody that has called him a bloated carcass on a couch less than 24 hours ago! So if his detractors are also supporters, I think you are in a very small group of people dedicated to hating TMB.
Maybe we should have a t-shirt in the store for you? "FUCK TMB" on it? Cuz at this point it seems like we can fund raise on it. Or if we have a gathering next time, we need one of those dunk tanks, a bunch of apples, and TMB in a thong getting ready to get wet :)
Technically, lunchtime is at any moment. It's just a wave function.
(Score: 1) by anubi on Sunday May 21 2017, @08:09AM
I appreciate all the work you guys have done to keep this site running.
I have learned a helluva lotta stuff here, and made some nice friends.
Sometimes talking is nice, but something more is needed. I put some money where my mouth.. erm.. keyboard is.
If we like this site, I urge those who can to put a few bux in the hat... This is one of the few places I can go, ask questions and get answers from the best in the business ( no, not the CEO crowd... no I mean the guys who actually DO it! ).
And even rant and rave when someone brings up one of my nemeses, and not get kicked out of the joint for fuming about it.
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
(Score: 1) by anubi on Sunday May 21 2017, @09:02AM
I appreciate all the work TMB has done here, and I fail to see why all this animosity.
This site is one of the few places one can speak his mind. If anything, TMB will spout off exactly what he thinks of it.
What's wrong with that?
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
(Score: 3, Funny) by The Mighty Buzzard on Sunday May 21 2017, @10:03AM
I'd buy one. Sounds like a fine suggestion to me.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Sunday May 21 2017, @04:35AM (11 children)
I don't like you and I don't trust you, AC. Make yourself scarce, shithead.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday May 21 2017, @04:52AM (10 children)
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @08:08AM (4 children)
I can't help but to observe that, obvious concern trolling aside, there must be a reason for the budget shortfall.
My subscription expires next month iirc. Over the past few months, the world has become a much more unfriendly place for me.
I admit, I was impressed with the regulars here the last time a topic relevant to my interests came up.
I'm still on the fence about whether to renew. I probably will, I mean, sheesh, I use the site, I like the site, I might as well contribute to covering its expenses.
But yet.... What kind of people am I enabling by contributing? Certainly, my subscription or lack thereof to some site on the internet is a molecule-sized drop in a 500 gallon tank. Enough molecules in a tank, though, and that's how we get Jeff Sessions as AG.
The vast majority of my submissions have been accepted, I assume because I apply a lot more effort to make sure those are polished than I do my comments. Maybe I need to be making more political submissions instead of focusing on science, but maybe I do so well with submissions because I mostly stick to uncontroversial science that I know everybody here except the flat earth guy will appreciate. I still believe that the answer to speech I don't like is more speech. At least... I think I still believe that....
Is this one of those times when I have to decide that I simply will have to deprive myself of, say, Chick-Fil-A's wonderful food (at least I assume it's wonderful) or Firefox's... er... Firefox's... value-added stress testing of my system RAM???... ok Chick-Fil-A was a better example but anyway, because of the people it will enable?
I suppose this post also falls under concern trolling. Really I don't give a shit if this site tanks or not. It's nice while it's here... some days. Other days, I find I have to put it in my hosts file for my own sanity. This site won't change the world one way or another. There are other organizations competing for my donations. Would the money for my renewal be better spent for NORML or the Libertarian Party, two other organizations I regularly donate to, for example?
Just thinking out loud. I'm pretty sure I will renew... pretty sure.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Sunday May 21 2017, @10:14AM
Subscription Running Low notifications are hands down the bit of the site that breaks most often. Sometimes they go several months without us noticing they're not working. They are the bane of paulej72's existence.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday May 21 2017, @12:56PM (2 children)
I think you need to find the exit here. The Chick-Fil-A boycott [wikipedia.org] was just a loony witch hunt and massively backfired because of that. No one was "enabled" by eating or not eating at Chick-Fil-A.
And what will be the gain for suppressing TMB's speech in SN? Who are we "enabling"?
Of course, it does. Start with a nasty "die SN" post to get defenders riled up and then pretend to get serious when someone calls you out. It's a standard concern troll tactic.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @07:51PM (1 child)
Hahahaha! My dear, khallow, I did not expect you to believe me!
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday May 21 2017, @11:59PM
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @04:47PM (4 children)
It's not an either or situation moron. We can leave the site, sign into the site, donate a little, donate a lot or donate nothing at all. Those are all valid options.
TMB making an ass of himself and abusing his position is going to bias people in favor of not donating, not creating a log in or leaving completely. And, despite what dickweeds like you think, it's not necessarily the trolls that are going to be the ones leaving.
They're whining about people not donating enough to hit their goals and this is one of the reasons that people aren't donating or are donating less than they could. People may not be consciously aware of it, but people don't like giving away money and they especially don't like giving it to people and companies they don't like.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Sunday May 21 2017, @06:02PM
[Citation Needed]
Name one time I've abused my position. Once will do.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2) by martyb on Monday May 22 2017, @01:59AM (2 children)
I've seen numerous comments here claiming an abuse of privilege by TMB wrt to comments on this site. Is that a fair assessment?
If so, I would appreciate a link to the comment(s) where this happened and I will personally investigate the claim.
Wit is intellect, dancing.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Monday May 22 2017, @02:25AM (1 child)
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Monday May 22 2017, @02:32AM
Which was martyb's activity, I believe. I didn't handle that for certain though.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @09:47AM (1 child)
Whatever. Don't let the door hit you in this ass.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 22 2017, @03:31AM
Don't let this door hit you to those ass.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 21 2017, @12:55AM
On matters of technology, I challenge anyone to point to an instance where you were far off the mark.
Now, on social/political matters, well...
Hey, there's an example of Ralph Nader and Grover Norquist together on a dais, [soylentnews.org] agreeing on stuff. [google.com]
Ralph wrote a book[1] [google.com] where he notes that there's a broad center where, despite claimed leanings, there is huge consensus on what's wrong and even considerable agreement on the solutions and how, if we put our energy there, we could get a lot fixed.
[1] I'm frowning at Ralph's use of "Left" in describing a significant portion of USAians; "Liberal" or "Progressive" would be the accurate term.
Extrapolate for his use of "Right" as well.
-- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Saturday May 20 2017, @09:03PM
On apps, if you do develop such thing. Enable people to keep separate identities for them such that Google/Apple can't connect them or join the dots. They don't need to add to their data mining empire.