What is all this "banning" I keep hearing about?

So, new to the world of forums (wildly helpful, I must add), I'm still learning all the craaazy lingo - and codes of ethics. Now, on another *unnamed* (ahem) forum, I found a whole honk load of amazingly informed people willing to help me. Came here on a hunt for information on what happened to one of my favourite contributers, and am reading all kinds of wild stuff about "banning". What on earth could result in someone getting banned from a forum - unless you're posting child porn or MO's on how to rule the world or recipes for bombs or something. The idea eludes me. I'm lost. Someone illuminate me, please.

pisces, pisces, queen of the sea.

PS - great forum, BTW. I've already learned alot.

I wasn't actually banned from the other place. Some got banned for talking off topic to much. Others got banned for posting links that were to other sites, that this othe place did not approve of. They were competitor websites and he didn't appreciate that. Most of us though weren't posting those links so that people would go there and spend money or whatever their paranoid brain thought. Usually it was a picture or something of that nature. Others I am sure can fill you in on the details better than I. But I did not want to be part of a website that banned its users for going off topic and deleting posts that had nothing to do with houseplants. When in a sense if you look at it from our point of view our plants our and extension of who we are. If you cannot have fun at a particular website, there is no sense in hanging around, whether the people their are full of info or not. There is always the threat of being banned over your head, so you have to be careful what you post.
Welp hope this helps you to understand a bit.
Holly

Hey Pisces!

I was one of the ones "banned" by the very little man who runs that site. Suffice to say Dave's Garden is a very different place, supportive, great environment. It is *possible* that at other forums webmasters are quite insecure and dictatorial--"banning" people they perceive as "threatening" or that they do not like. Banning means that they no longer allow you to post in their "kingdom." People were banned for posting "off topic" posts (although the definition of "off topic" is ambiguous and ever changing, very subjective, with some clearly offtopic posts remaining and others vanishing), offering a plant to someone else (claimed this person was a "big business" trying to "advertise"), asking questions about the way the forum works (you don't question!!!)...

Enough negative. You are at a better place. Welcome!

Wow! Thanks for the warm welcome, guys! I'm still a little confused by the nature of "banning" - sounds rather tyranical, and I ain't talkin' dinosowrs. You can't cage this free bird. Again, if it's not child porn or a sinister plot to eradicate all plant life, why bother?

JewelOrchid, your posting on that *other* forum was the one that drew me here: everywhere I went, there it was. About my plants, I was initially mainly an outdoor gardener, never for long in one spot, as I'm a student and live in apartment after apartment. But two years ago, my roomate and I moved into an apartment building - ugg, no lawn - and I needed to redirect my gardening efforts. Unused to the low-light conditions in this place spawned by the devil, I managed to kill off most of the houseplants I'd moved with me, but after almost two years, thanks mainly to cuttings from friends and propagation of my own surviving babies, I've managed to build my plant count up to 34 healthy darlings. They're mostly cacti and succulents, with a few philodendron, coleus, and one spider plant I bought on a whim. I love them ALL (even the spider plant...), but I'd hug the cacti if I could. I dream every second of every day of moving to Arizona / New Mexico / Southern California so I can have an OUTDOOR cactus garden ... oops, I mean to finish my schooling - only noble ambitions here, no ulterior motive at all :)

pisces

I was just kept from making any further postings (AS far as I know), for posting a link to Will Creed's site, who was also banned, for HAVING a site. It was the second time I've been "banned" for mentioning other plant sites. It seems the dissemination of valuable information is not allowed, at SOME websites!
If you ever post a message, and find yourself at a Disney website, you'll know you were a very bad little girl!

Yeah, don't take it wrong. It was a joke. :)

Dave

Hey Pisces! Good to hear from you and all these others. I too find DG kind of a haven.
Personally, I left The Other Place and only went back in the lurk mode after the Sansman was evicted. (I likely won't even lurk there again.) If someone so knowledgeable and helpful was unwelcome there, I felt unwelcome too.
OffTopic? Plants are a big part of my life, and nearly everything else is tied to my indoor and outdoor gardens. Nothing much is off topic to me.

I love perLite!

Sorry for the mush...

Sansman

Aw, shucks, Sansman...
Or were you talking about the expanded mineral you probably use all the time for all those Sansiveiras?
:)
That's pretty loveable too, especially considering all these gesneriads here...

i was disneyed once,but never banned.
i lost some friends there,ans plus there were some people there who didnt like me.ME!can you imagine?
so when i got an invite here,i took the money and ran...so to speak.
its nice to meet you pisces.

[ Removed by member request. - Admin ]

I hardly ever get to get on the PC do to my 3 kids- is all I was looking for was something about a Verbascum syn. Celsia Mullein and Daves Garden was the second one down- lucky for me by the sounds of your "banning days" :)
This sight is great and all the people seem great too!!!
Well happy gardening (indoors or outdoors)

I was banned for talking about roses at Walmart that started a war. The ones calling names I see are still there. Go figure.

i just recently found dg. it seems like a great community of gardeners. met some nice people here. a gardening friend from the other site gave me this address.
i do find it disheartening that people get banned from the other site. i knew it happened but got a better idea for what from these posts. it just takes the fun and enjoyment out of it. you have to be careful what you say or link to. it's like big brother over your shoulder. and pisces, you are right...it's not like these people are linking to porn or whatever. it's sad i think. im just glad i found this place. i have found it to be a fun and pleasant place for gardeners to share. thanks dave!

I was banned from Garden Web because I told what I did thought about not to trade with countries outside Europe.-. Spike is really annoygin person! You should not say anything to him, because he is always rihgt,.... I told about this to finnish gardenweb (http://www.puutarha.net/) and my friend there Victoria (lives in USA, and is Finnish) told that she had started a new place where was people who was banned from GardenWeb, or who hated Spike. :-)

Two months later, and I'm surprised to see this thread back up at the top.

I've spent some more time now on both forums, and I have to say that in many ways I see the benefits of the many many rules that Spike has. It's true that you're never quite sure what is going to send you to the land of Mickey, but there are alot less arguments, and people tend to get less carried away before posting an agressively obnoxious post (probably because they're always very aware of the consequences).

Pros and cons to both sides. But let's remember not to get carried away and demonize where no demonization is necessary. Spike is not the devil. He's just trying to maintain a friendly climate, where his advertisers aren't alienated by competition from contributers, and no one feels insulted by another's post. He may go overboard, but then that's his call. Just as it's Dave's call here to decide what is and is not a reasonable topic of discussion. We are guests, folks, and when guests in another's home, we live by their rules.

I have been on 8 or 10 different plant discussion boards. Spike's was the only one that attracted people that were frequently argumentative, touchy, and off-topic. I don't know why, but the other sites don't seem to have this problem and none of them ever ban pearticipants.

I don't think that anyone argues with a webmaster's right to establish rules for use. The problem comes with rules that are not clearly delineated and are arbitrarily enforced in a heavy-handed manner. That is why so many people are upset with Spike and Gardenweb. Fortunately, he is not the only game in town.

For those of you who prefer to ask questions in a less public forum, try
http://www.allexperts.com/getExpert.asp?Category=721

Hey Evert,
sorry to hear about your troubles :(! I also got a nice e-mail from Spike,but I don't bother myself with his hang-ups anymore.I haven't been banned yet,but life is too short to worry about such a trivial matter,or person,so enjoy yourself here and feel free!!!
Thanks to Dave,you can.....
Gwist

Hi Will,
Loved our chat,by the way!!! Thanks for the coffee and memories.
Gwist

Pisces,
He can make as many rules as he likes but needs to make sure that all are treated equal which is not the case. Why some are kicked off and others not is a mystery to me.

Why are JewelOrchid's posts suddenly wiped out?

Pisces,

Are all of Jewel Orchid's posts gone?, or just the multiply posted series from early June? If all are gone she may have been banned (which did appear to be her goal at the time). I haven't seen any from her lately at all over there, besides she seemed might clear that she didn't want to be there anymore!!

I guess we don't have the 1st amendment right on E-mail

Crasulady