Spam is driving me away

[Jon Szanto]

And I am not fighting with Jon in saying this.

Just to note, I've never suggested going outside of the forum, and I have neither the tools nor the background knowledge to make an iron-clad case, of the technology based nature, against anyone for activities on this or any other forum. What I do see is that some appear to care less about the people who come here and post of goodwill and with general interests at heart than they do about protecting malignant behavior.

All of this, all of this easily could have been dealt with by an owner with any sense of responsibility and common decency. To moderate a forum would be to alter the substantive behavior and posting of individuals; to administer a forum would be to take care of tasks that impede the well-being and smooth operation of the forum. Removing spam and troll posts, and posters, certainly falls in the latter, and should have been addressed... continuously.

Instead, we fight amongst ourselves. Maddening in its stupidity.

[Jon Szanto]

BTW, the domain (fpgeeks.com) was just reregistered two days ago, and expires in a year from now. Unlike past years, everything is completely redacted, and while I've never seen this previously, is now registered through an .eu registrar.

Raw Whois Data

Domain Name: fpgeeks.com
Registry Domain ID: 1547037107_DOMAIN_COM-VRSN
Registrar WHOIS Server: whois.registrar.eu
Registrar URL: http://www.registrar.eu
Updated Date: 2023-03-19T05:29:42Z
Creation Date: 2009-03-13T23:52:32Z
Registrar Registration Expiration Date: 2024-03-13T23:52:32Z
Registrar: Hosting Concepts B.V. d/b/a Registrar.eu
Registrar IANA ID: 1647
Registrar Abuse Contact Email: email@registrar.eu
Registrar Abuse Contact Phone: +31.104482297
Reseller: 
Domain Status: ok https://icann.org/epp#ok
Domain Status: clientTransferProhibited https://icann.org/epp#clientTransferProhibited
Registry Registrant ID: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Name: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Organization: Whois Privacy Protection Foundation
Registrant Street: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant City: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant State/Province: Zuid-Holland
Registrant Postal Code: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Country: NL
Registrant Phone: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Phone Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Fax: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Fax Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Email: https://contact-form.registrar.eu/?domainName=fpgeeks.com&purpose=owner
Registry Admin ID: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Name: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Organization: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Street: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin City: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin State/Province: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Postal Code: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Country: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Phone: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Phone Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Fax: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Fax Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Email: https://contact-form.registrar.eu/?domainName=fpgeeks.com&purpose=admin
Registry Tech ID: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Name: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Organization: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Street: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech City: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech State/Province: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Postal Code: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Country: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Phone: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Phone Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Fax: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Fax Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Email: https://contact-form.registrar.eu/?domainName=fpgeeks.com&purpose=tech
Name Server: ns7.esosoft.net
Name Server: ns5.esosoft.net
Name Server: ns6.esosoft.net
DNSSEC: signedDelegation

[RobJohnson]

BTW, the domain (fpgeeks.com) was just reregistered two days ago, and expires in a year from now. Unlike past years, everything is completely redacted, and while I've never seen this previously, is now registered through an .eu registrar.

Raw Whois Data

Domain Name: fpgeeks.com
Registry Domain ID: 1547037107_DOMAIN_COM-VRSN
Registrar WHOIS Server: whois.registrar.eu
Registrar URL: http://www.registrar.eu
Updated Date: 2023-03-19T05:29:42Z
Creation Date: 2009-03-13T23:52:32Z
Registrar Registration Expiration Date: 2024-03-13T23:52:32Z
Registrar: Hosting Concepts B.V. d/b/a Registrar.eu
Registrar IANA ID: 1647
Registrar Abuse Contact Email: email@registrar.eu
Registrar Abuse Contact Phone: +31.104482297
Reseller: 
Domain Status: ok https://icann.org/epp#ok
Domain Status: clientTransferProhibited https://icann.org/epp#clientTransferProhibited
Registry Registrant ID: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Name: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Organization: Whois Privacy Protection Foundation
Registrant Street: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant City: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant State/Province: Zuid-Holland
Registrant Postal Code: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Country: NL
Registrant Phone: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Phone Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Fax: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Fax Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Registrant Email: https://contact-form.registrar.eu/?domainName=fpgeeks.com&purpose=owner
Registry Admin ID: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Name: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Organization: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Street: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin City: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin State/Province: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Postal Code: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Country: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Phone: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Phone Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Fax: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Fax Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Admin Email: https://contact-form.registrar.eu/?domainName=fpgeeks.com&purpose=admin
Registry Tech ID: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Name: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Organization: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Street: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech City: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech State/Province: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Postal Code: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Country: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Phone: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Phone Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Fax: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Fax Ext: REDACTED FOR PRIVACY
Tech Email: https://contact-form.registrar.eu/?domainName=fpgeeks.com&purpose=tech
Name Server: ns7.esosoft.net
Name Server: ns5.esosoft.net
Name Server: ns6.esosoft.net
DNSSEC: signedDelegation

The phone number is from the Netherlands and there is reference to it under Scamwatcher.

[TSherbs]

I don't know what that means, but it doesn't sound good. What's this mean?

[TSherbs]

Does this likely mean a different owner now?

[junglejim]

Zuid Holland is the South Holland (Netherlands). Don't know if it is Wim @FPN, as he is located in Maastricht, which is in the Southeast. And I think he has his hands full just trying to keep FPN updated and trying to get the Classifieds back online.

[Chrissy]

The dates are in US format and the server is still Esosoft.net as it was when I looked some time before March. It has now clearly been renewed from March 2023. All the references were to EU and redacted then too. Might it be that Esosoft.net registers users in the EU and the US?

Is anyone on here any good at working out what this sort of stuff means?

[TSherbs]

The curious part is the Dutch phone # and Dutch address (region) for the owner of the registration. Maybe one can put anything down on an internet address field, as long as the payment clears.

[kazoolaw]

A suggestion: totally ignore the spammers.
Don't post "Reported." Feel free to report back channel, but not publicly.
Don't make jokes about the spam.
Don't complain on the board about spam.
Treat spam and spammers as invisible. Both are attempts to provoke reactions.
Feed a cold, starve a spammer.

[Jon Szanto]

A suggestion: totally ignore the spammers.
Don't post "Reported." Feel free to report back channel, but not publicly.
Don't make jokes about the spam.
Don't complain on the board about spam.
Treat spam and spammers as invisible. Both are attempts to provoke reactions.
Feed a cold, starve a spammer.

This is SO fucking annoying.

(Please understand: I don't mean that towards kazoolaw personally, because this line of advice has been offered up repeatedly. It is the strategy, not the person, that I address.)

I log onto the site, and immediately upon looking at the What's New segment of posts, *I* have to sit and look through threads that have been pulled from the dead not by a legitimate request or question but simply spam/troll. And new threads, same. And responses in otherwise current and very valid discussions, same. It is a waste of time, it completely trashes the board and makes the place look like a dump to newcomers, and is offensive in it's intent.

If the board were well-run and maintained, the amount of malicious posting would be small, and I am well aware that it is a constant hassle for an admin. Yet that is all it would be: occasional. I could, and would, overlook this. The current situation? We are being played for suckers, it takes so much of the positive, pen-centric energy out of the board - and my demeanor when coming here - that to ask me to just simply overlook it is an insult at this point. As of late, many people who used to both report and then post to that effect (if only to let others know it had been flagged) have completely stopped; I certainly have, after the last few months showed me that Eric (or whoever has paid the bills) does not give a rat's ass. So, as to the last line of advice, no, the starvation diet didn't work: the spam and troll posts are increasing. Witness the number of necroposted threads in recent days.

I've been a member for a long time, and have contributed a lot of content, and fostered a lot of topic-oriented discussions that, along with the great contributions of many others, gave a lot of value to this site. I am NOT the problem, and I don't intend to alter my behavior to overlook and coddle bad actors. That is a problem that should be taken care of at the highest level so that the well-intentioned members of this forum can continue to post and converse about our shared interests.

[Jon Szanto]

The dates are in US format and the server is still Esosoft.net as it was when I looked some time before March. It has now clearly been renewed from March 2023. All the references were to EU and redacted then too. Might it be that Esosoft.net registers users in the EU and the US?

Is anyone on here any good at working out what this sort of stuff means?

Please note that the portion I quoted was from a domestic US "whois" database, so some of the information, such as date format, may have been machine-translated into region-specific formats.

The big takeaway is that something has changed in ownership, and just like everything else, we weren't even given the courtesy of an announcement.

[Jon Szanto]

I don't know what that means, but it doesn't sound good. Does this likely mean a different owner now?

My conjecture is one of two possibilities: either a new owner, or the original owner trying to be even more invisible and unavailable. No matter what it means, it is clear that you and I, and everyone else, are of zero concern or interest to them.

There is always the outside possibility of a new hand on the wheel. One guess? Someone bought the joint with the intent to monetize the sales forum. 110% conjecture, of course.

[TSherbs]

If the board were well-run and maintained, the amount of malicious posting would be small, and I am well aware that it is a constant hassle for an admin. Yet that is all it would be: occasional. I could, and would, overlook this.

And I think that you would do a great job, if you had the time and desire.

[TSherbs]

I don't know what that means, but it doesn't sound good. Does this likely mean a different owner now?

My conjecture is one of two possibilities: either a new owner, or the original owner trying to be even more invisible and unavailable. No matter what it means, it is clear that you and I, and everyone else, are of zero concern or interest to them.

There is always the outside possibility of a new hand on the wheel. One guess? Someone bought the joint with the intent to monetize the sales forum. 110% conjecture, of course.

Another fun conjecture (200%): Wim has bought this up to absorb it (close it) and this is part of the retooling going on right now at FPN (including the classifieds). We will all be backstopped so that we can't remember our time here and we will simply wake up in the FPN matrix.

[Jon Szanto]

And I think that you would do a great job, if you had the time and desire.

Ha! I love you, man, but why you so mean?

In the last year, I have gone so far as to investigate some of the free / low-cost forum options available, because this entire situation has bothered me in a significant way. I do not rule it out at a future time, but I am both negotiating the transition to retirement, as well as looking at having to oversee a very large, multi-year project that is pretty important in another realm. Within the next 12 months I will know how those elements will play out, and I might just make a new sandbox for wonderful people to play in.

Your breath: don't hold it.

[TSherbs]

What if EoC has aquired it?? And this is all a giant lab experiment?? dneal once also wrote that he considers FPGeeks a psyche experi that he looks over. Freaky possibilities. And now, who knows who our alerts and emails go to....

You're da bomb, Jon. Get some sleep, brother.

edited to add: oh yeah, I am three hours ahead....I am the tired one....

[Jon Szanto]

Another fun conjecture (200%): Wim has bought this up to absorb it (close it) and this is part of the retooling going on right now at FPN (including the classifieds). We will all be backstopped so that we can't remember our time here and we will simply wake up in the FPN matrix.

Haha, that was the first thing I thought when I saw the reg info pop up!! But if that happened, where would all the FPN people go to angst and worry (and complain about the escape pod) when FPN borks again?

[TSherbs]

Another fun conjecture (200%): Wim has bought this up to absorb it (close it) and this is part of the retooling going on right now at FPN (including the classifieds). We will all be backstopped so that we can't remember our time here and we will simply wake up in the FPN matrix.

Haha, that was the first thing I thought when I saw the reg info pop up!! But if that happened, where would all the FPN people go to angst and worry (and complain about the escape pod) when FPN borks again?

Your house!!!

[junglejim]

I don't know what that means, but it doesn't sound good. Does this likely mean a different owner now?

My conjecture is one of two possibilities: either a new owner, or the original owner trying to be even more invisible and unavailable. No matter what it means, it is clear that you and I, and everyone else, are of zero concern or interest to them.

There is always the outside possibility of a new hand on the wheel. One guess? Someone bought the joint with the intent to monetize the sales forum. 110% conjecture, of course.

Another fun conjecture (200%): Wim has bought this up to absorb it (close it) and this is part of the retooling going on right now at FPN (including the classifieds). We will all be backstopped so that we can't remember our time here and we will simply wake up in the FPN matrix.

BULLSEYE!!

Think outside the Box.

FPN has had major problems trying to integrate the Classified section into the new current software. Wim has tried multiple times over the past 18 months but there was always something or other within the software that prevented it from working. One way around it is to buy an existing smaller fountain pen website, lock all of the threads that exist, and just make use of the Classifieds section. So when you click on the Classifieds section at FPN, it would send you over to the new, renamed "FPN Classifieds" section at ol' fpgeeks. I expect any day to see here at fpgeeks:

Dearest Members and Visitors of the Fountain Pen Nuthouse,

Database upgrade will occur on....

Of course, this is all conjecture, LOL!

All the Best.

[Jon Szanto]

But if that happened, where would all the FPN people go to angst and worry (and complain about the escape pod) when FPN borks again?

Your house!!!