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RE: Petition to End steemit harassment FAO @dan & @ned
I did a post a while back about people like this.
https://steemit.com/halo/@halo/steemit-girl-halo-we-need-a-block-button
I still think we need a block button , the mute button does not do enough , I want to be able to block these type people from even viewing my stuff and block them from making comments. He is not the only person doing these things.
💋 @halo 💋😇
I understand where you are coming from but you can't possibly prevent them from viewing your stuff, as it is on a public blockchain. Even if the site doesn't show it, they can view your stuff if they really want to using other methods.
Steemit will never be for everything. It has to be for those things you are comfortable putting out in public for EVERYONE to see them, including bad people. For some people there may be little or nothing they want to expose to the world in that manner, and that's okay.
The idea of limiting access to being able to comment is a little more complicated but also not something that is particularly well-suited to a blockchain. Again, this platform is for public interaction. That's not for everyone at all times. Use it for what it is good for, and only that.
Initially, the quickest solution is to just add the reply feed to the places where comments from minus reputation accounts and people you choose to MUTE are hidden. This alone will make it so much easier to ignore trolls. And it's not a great leap from the system we already have. When steemit leaves beta mode I would particularly like if there were 2 methods for disconnecting ourselves from other accounts.
This would ideally block them from seeing anything you post and you will also be blocked from seeing their posts. Through the blockchain users can still see these posts, but if entering through steemd, they will be blocked or at least unable to comment.
Some people prefer not to block others who have opposing ideologies to their own. Some people prefer to live in the real world, not just a safe space where no ideas contradict their own. Personally I would prefer to be able to remember users who I have been in a conflict with before and have a way to remind myself not to walk into another debate with them. The MUTE button should simply grey out the comments and posts without hiding them, so that I can choose not to interact with people I have been in a conflict with before, but I don’t have to block them completely.
Hey beanz,
At the moment the blockchain is open and transparent (part of it's appeal). There is no simple way of stopping someone from viewing your posts.
I've had this conversation before, regarding 'groups' or whitelists where you could use encryption to allow only certain accounts to unlock the content (which is possible). But this has MANY downsides, such as; no new users would be able to see your content, it wouldn't be indexed on search engines, it adds more complexity for the user, and there's nothing stopping one user from simply 'leaking' any content you have encrypted to the normal web (If you have enough followers, you're not going to know who did it.)
So putting encryption and invite only style platforms aside - Even if you stopped a user (blocked) just through steemit.com there are myriad other ways they can access the Steem blockchain data and see your post if it's not encrypted, as per above. One of which is just to open the posts without signing in (or in an incognito window) or through the CLI.
The point of my rant here is that you can't have an open/public forum AND successfully block access to certain individuals in an effective way. Your best hope is to put the power in the users hands to mute anyone whose activity/posts/comments etc they don't wish to see.
I think the rep system has helped. But i'm also glad Dan is looking into the issue of comments not being hidden in the replies section.
Hope this helps.
Thanks Schro. This was included in my comment.
I know what you mean though there is no way of completely blocking users and I think that's fair, but I think if it worked only on the front end it would at least discourage a certain amount of trolling.
Users could still go into steemd and see the post, but I think it would be good if they could only comment on the thread by replying to other commenters who haven't blocked them. I'm not under the illusion that we'll ever completely block users as they can always make new accounts, but it just makes it that little more awkward for them which discourages the behaviour.
Thanks I'm very hopeful and confident in dans response :)
The issue is that the built in comment system is only one way to comment about something. If that is blocked then people will want to circumvent the blocks, and often for good reasons (for example, to circumvent an "evil corporation" who wants to use the system for promotion and still impede legitimate criticism). Once such a system for circumventing poster blocks becomes popular, as it very likely could, trolls and stalkers could also use it to harass.
Overall, hiding/muting under the control of the user who does not want to see the content is the approach that makes more sense on a blockchain.
I'm glad to see Dan's reply indicating this will be fixed ASAP.
I suspect nearly all users will never access the blockchain directly. As long as they are protected on the front end, then it should be fine.