Cholula

Punki, I think you mentioned this in another thread. And something tells me we're going to see this mentioned soon in the private TB forum , so let's start the debate here where others can weigh in.

One problem I see is how do we know it's a real picture of the poster? Especially if that person never has or never will attend a DO.

What if I load this photo which, although it bears a very strong resemblance to me , is really not me? Does someone then challenge the poster to prove that it's his picture? And then how do they prove that?

People are going to load pictures of whoever they want to be and next thing you know, this is out of control big time. Especially when someone loads an XXX photo that stays up for X hours until someone can delete it.

It's a sad statement but knowing the issues we have had with far less problematic features like thread ratings and reputation points, this would be a train wreck IMO.

alanw

How do we know you posted a link to the real poster's picture? There's no difference. Or what if someone posts a dirty word? No difference. We have moderators who deal with issues like this every day, and obscenities don't lay around for days waiting for someone to delete them. You're looking for a problem where none exists.

I'm OK with pictures supported in more places than just Trip Reports; for a while they were (accidentally) enabled in the KLM forum and we had no issues except for the improved user experience of having seating photos, terminal maps, etc. available right in the post. I do not think, based on my experience moderating three forums here plus on other boards, that adding photos would be an undue moderation burden. They're just content, and they get treated like any other content.

At the same time, I would hate to see FT turn into a kiddy forum with obnoxious blinking signature photos, etc. The TB would, in its wisdom, need to be specific about what is and isn't allowed: topical images of a reasonable size, no animations, nothing in signatures, for example.

I also like the idea of both avatars and country flags, if the same rules apply.

With respect to smileys, I'd like to see FT update them. What we have now looks like AOL circa 1994. And a few more wouldn't hurt, as long as they are smileys and not obnoxious animated graphics inline with the text: macs smashing PCs over the head with a hammer, the puking smiley, "this thread is worthless without pics" are all examples of the kinds of things that don't add anything positive to the FT experience. Smacking the forehead, crying, not saying a word, now those would be OK. And please, please get rid of the ":O" one that looks like it's about to blow chunks. There are scads of better interpretations than we have now. How about we replace them all with something like this: http://www.mouserunner.com/ShinySmil...iginalFull.png.

Punki

.................

Punki

OK, Cholula, maybe we could require recent photos.

If a board like Cruise Critics, which has twice as many members as FT, can handle avatars with no particular rules controlling them, I think we can handle them.

All we need to do is restrict the size, disallow animation, and require that the pictures loaded be actual head-shot pictures of the poster, and clearly state that any violation of those restrictions will result in an automatic suspension.

IIRC there was just a very small handful of posters who abused the reputation feature and I seriously doubt that even they would have done so had they realized that the names were eventually going to be turned on after the fact.

Yes, it is possible that someone might post a picture of someone else, but it had better be a picture that no other poster recognizes and they will need to accept in advance that in so doing, they will have in effect banned themself from ever attending a FlyerTalk DO.

It would also help achieve Randy's request that we try to find ways to make FlyerTalk mor exciting.

empedocles

TalkBoard might need the head banging against the wall smiley.

jfe

Beating dead horses, resurrecting old threads, pulling heads out of their a.....

Etc, etc, etc

nsx

As we all know, text is a cold medium. Smilies can warm it up, and the more nuances are available for emotional cues the warmer the medium becomes, IMHO. My favorite is the jaw-drop animated smiley even though it uses a lot of screen space.

NickB

I really don't see the point of avatars. For the problem Punki mentions, it would be enough to allow a photo in the profile, rather than as an avatar.
Ditto with country flags.
The absence of these make FT so much easier to read than many BBs where you are constantly distracted by graphical junk. A moderate number of emoticons is fine and useful, but excess of colours and graphics would make FT look cheap.
As to images, they use a lot of space and severely distract the reading of a thread. If somebody feel that they must absolutely share a photo with other FTers, it is not that difficult to post an external link to somewhere where the image is stored.
Ultimately, it is a question of the kind of style you prefer: a sober, understated SQ/BA-like look, or a garish SW/FR-like look?

Punki

Is it possible to add a photo to our profiles?

Is it possible to have avatars that can individually be turned off by users?

The flag idea appeals to me and would be helpful in understanding why a poster might be coming at a subject from a different angle. Actually have photo avatars would also aid in greater understanding. A seventy year-old woman just sees things differently than a sixteen year-old boy--their positions are not better or worse, just different.

jfe

Now you want something cool, it would be to put the flag of the country and state based on the origin of the IP address, and then in the main page of FT map where all the people are posting from, and in different colors indicating the level of activity.

Just a thought

Punki

So then would the flag change every time we logged on from a different State and/or Country?

jfe

Yup

alanw

I don't think I'd care to have my whereabouts displayed to everyone on FT without my doing.

Punki

That's a good point alanw, every indiviual's privacy must be respected.

But, it is still a very cool idea.

jfe, is this something that would be fairly easy to do? Would it be possible for posters to turn the feature off for themself, so that their location would not show?

AJLondon

Well said.

Spot on! ^




P.S.: I do often enjoy surfing FT while eating my morning muesli. And seeing pictures of some FTers so early in the morning might just make me nauseous! And yes, I'm sure the feeling's mutual. So I do hope that if the powers that be, do insist on putting in pictures, movie clips, flashing lights, dancing stars etc etc, then I hope that individual users are given the option of turning them off. Like with signatures.