Classifieds Listings: FOR SHAME!

I took a look at the new Classifieds listing, which are currently order by the title. Attached is a screenshot of the huge level of spamming moronity going on.

First off, for those of you putting spaces, asterices, and other characters at the beginning of your listings: YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED! You're resorting to the same tactics used by spammers and search engine hogs. You should be AUTOMATICALLY de-listed. Sure, this problem goes across the web as well, but it doesn't mean we have to be jackasses just because THEY are.

Secondly, a solution. To avoid this kind of jackasserie at SLBoutique, the defalt sort method is by the time it was added, descending. That way, everyone gets the same amount of time featured at the top of the listing, before falling.

Another solution: pick what you pay. Make the cost of a classified up to the user. Sort by the amount paid in descending order - whoever paid the most is at the top, on down to the bottom.

If you are one of the people listed at the TOP of this list, I'd seriously consider what a jackass you're being. I would not consider doing business with anyone using techniques of spammers to get to the top of the list.

Thoughts? Other possible solutions?

Regards,

-Flip

Why do we need 2 threads on this?

I wonder if LL could improve things a bit by removing any repeating non-alpha characters at the begining of the listing. Perhaps they should also trim off repeating alpha characters beyond two so that "Aaron's Store" would be allowed, but "AAAAAAAAA Store would not."

It's not a perfect solution, but it could clean this up a little bit.

Not a bad idea, Persophone, but I think you'll then see every listing like this:

AACome see my land!
AAThe force is strong with this one!
AAFREE SEXX0RZ OMGWTFLOL!

Zsu, I didn't see Beau's thread, and have apologized in it already. Its Friday and my brain is half off for the weekend already!

-flip

I prefer sort by highest price first, but somehow I dont' think I'm going to get my way..

So, sort by date!

There are 2? Where is the other thread?

And for the record ... I agree entirely. And will take this sort of activity into account when I make purchasing and spending decisions.

Wow. What a bunch of classless asses.

There's plenty of automated stuff that can be done to combat this, as has already been detailed in this thread. It's just a matter of Linden Lab getting some time to implement it.

Hopefully it's something that can be handled server-side. I'd hate for another client patch to be the only solution.

Sure am glad they kept the classified forums. Wait, those are spamming too. There was this one person awhile back who filled the entire top page of the new clothing forum with her own posts. It was so pathetic.

Because it's doubly annoying?

hehe, like the Yellow Pages!

Ummm, anything with non-alpha leading characters goes at the end, and the first word of the add is spellchecked, if they don't pass the spellcheck, they go at the end too.

This part would just put about 75% of them at the end.

There has to be a better solution - in fact, doubtless several better solutions - than any solutions that restrict the name or spelling or characters included in business names. That is draconian.

On another note, I'm intrigued by this idea of having my brain half turned off. I have a cold, I don't feel good, and yet - I'm unable to turn my brain half off! It keeps struggling on, thinking it should get all the free play and respect it usually does, and that I should pay attention! And get with the program and rally physically enough to let it run on and on as is its wont!

It's tyranny of the brain, I tell ya! Why can't it just stop being the egomaniac it always is, and let me have some rest?

coco

CLASSLESS ASSES sounds like an opera I'd rather not see.

Aaron Levy, blaze, and I—and not just us, no doubt—are in favor of sorting by date. Time travel is hard to finangle with, it shows the newest schtuff uptop, and especionally for time-sensitive events, you don't have to hunt counterintuitively by name (one to blame).

On a funny note, the screenshot makes for some POSTPOSTMODERN ART...

Heh, reminds me of the IRC days of channel listings. I really doubt this sort of thing is enforceable.

Why not instead just list them in descending order in which they were submitted? That should curb any squatters.

I don't know about "AUTOMATIC" de-listing. My store actually IS called:

*PREEN*

The asterisks were included before I even opened the store because I used the expression as an emotive (*PREEN* means I'm preening.) Not that I have a classified ad. Just sayin is all.

Well I can tell you as one of the 'shameless', that this is a result of an ongoing one-upmanship joke between a couple of people. I just can't beleive that people are getting their knickers in a twist over it!

Which ever posting regs you come up with, they will be gamed. I can't see any way round it.

Well, listing by date is hard to game, unless you really want to pay the L$

It doesn't look much different than the events schedule. Where's the surprise?

Then people with plenty of L$ will be those sitting at the top.

edit to add: to be honest that may not even be the case. As someone who had classifieds listed before 1.70, I can tell you they make practically no difference to business. I would be interested to know what other businesses have experienced.

I have already made back my investment in a classified ad. My sales since posting in classifieds have been up immensely over the immediate period beforehand.

(On the otherhand, I did zero advertising beforehand!)

Why hasn't George Lucas shut down the star wars mega store yet?

Looks like there may be another trimming later today, as the SPACEWARS have started again.

I had my add in classifieds before 1.70 when you had to email LL and my sales doubled then tripled and has stayed about the same ever since. I personally had no other advertising at the time, so i knew where most were coming from. The classifieds (how they were before) were good for me cause my store's dwell hardly made it to the first page in a search for animations in find.

And actually Hiro, to tell you the truth the classifieds were how I found you. So you have at least one semi decent size piece of land rental come from it

You shouldnt go around shouting at the people who have done this to the classifieds. Most of the people around here have wanted them to fail and are looking at every possible excuse. Business is competitive especially in SL. It's difficult for people who don't have the time, or been doing it as long to get some edge. So people will try all kinds of things. Just because there is a reason for it doesn't mean it's right. But things people do for money isn't always right.

Be that as it may, there is many different reasons why the classifieds should be by date. The intentions were to replace the classifieds here, which are sorted by date, or shameless bumping. If it is to advertise new products, wouldnt it be sensable to sort them by date?