Quote:
Originally Posted by anamardoll
The OP posted a link from SlickDeals, not realizing it was an aff link from someone else. I feel that the response is harsh enough to discourage people from posting for fear of making mistakes and being called names. Others may disagree, but being told that I am "lying" is a big deal to me, personally.  |
I know, I saw the thread. So, since I'm bored, let me play Devil's Advocate here.
You're trying to tell me you've been frequenting this forum for how long, and you don't know an affiliate link when you see it? Or were you just naive enough to assume that a site named "Slick Deals", that does nothing but collect slick deals from all over the internet, would do it without adding affiliate tags? Which by the way would make them the only such site on the internet who doesn't survive on the revenue they get from their affiliate links... but you thought you'd just assume that without double checking, because you honestly don't know better? Never mind that we've just spent a day explaining why this is no longer allowed.
I know I phrased that a bit harshly, but bear with me here. When you reach a certain level of internet savvy, you're supposed to be able to tell the difference between an affiliate link and a non-affiliate, just like you are supposed to know the difference between the email attachment "cutekitten.jpg" and "cutekitten.jpg.exe"
Yeah, the moderator note was a bit harsh. But it probably really didn't help anyone's patience that an affiliate link was posted in blatant defiance of the new rules literally within hours of the new rules being posted and discussed. Speaking as a moderator myself (I volunteer my time as one in another forum I frequent), I can see not only how it would make someone snap, but also how that post presented a perfect opportunity to make an example and show that the new rules are serious and will be enforced.
In the end, I don't see that note as a big deal. I really don't believe that MobileRead is about to turn into a petty police state kind of forum with harsh and mean moderators harassing anyone who makes a mistake. Why would it?
EDIT:
You added a bunch of stuff to your post while I was typing it. I'll go back and re-read and reply to anything I missed that needs replying.