Ghostbusters! (Updated 5/14/06, 2:23 PM EST)

I concur with Krang. Ghost status when you have a staff position is valid. I went through a vaguely similar annoyance when I had a glossary mod job on another forum. People would submit glossary submissions and on occasion I would recieve a private message no more than ten minutes later from someone exclaiming "You're online, but why haven't you added my entry yet?" Let's leave it at that but suffice to say I was quite perturbed.

Also, I chose to remain off Ghost Mode after investigating it. It was disappointing failing to see my name on the active users list and I still stand behind my detestment towards it.

EDIT: Whoohoo! 666th post!

Thanks for the clarification...didnt realize admin's and staff get "IM's" when personal messages are sent to them. That would be annoying if that occurred.

quote:

Originally posted by Avenir Also, I decided to stay off the Ghost Mode after checking it out. It felt different in a strange way not seeing my name on the active users list and I still stand behind my detestment towards it. EDIT: Whoohoo! 666th post!

when i couldn't see my name in ghost mode i feel that way too, but i don't detest it. Sometimes it is neccessary and there is nothin wrong with it.

I do ghost most of the time now. I do it for one reason only: To avoid being followed. The "Where is Who" is very useful but also very annoying.

I don't have a problem not seeing my name on the list. I know I'm on. If my friends see my name on their IM list, they know I'm on. What else do you need to know?

That's all I feel like saying about this subject at this point.

Madrona

Some of the statements mentioned here have some good points. Personally, I used to ghost for a while, just to see what it was like. Although ghosting in the forums have its advantages, it also have its own disadvantages as well. I liked the advantages that a ghost has, but then people started to wonder why I ghosted and tried to convince me to stop. Well, I didn't see a lot of use to this function, so I stopped ghosting.

By the way, Fallen Phoenix, do you plan on updating the list of ghosts? Just curious...

In lieu of a few serious events on the board as of lately and because I now have a few instant messenger addresses, I have placed my account under ghost status. I neither know when I'll return to normal status nor do I plan to anytime soon. A certain someone also implied that it makes being nosy more fun and being snooped on less likely. I'm defecting my statement against ghosting, but it is moot now due to the gravity of the situation.

By the way, are there any plans to update the main ghost list? If such is the case, I'd be glad to lend a hand.

I suppose if FP doesn't feel like updating the list, I could probably help make the new list as well, seeing as I helped him with the current list. I have come back to becoming a ghost again. I may stop in the future, but right now, I feel this is best for me.

I also see that there are more ghosts these days. I probably can figure out why, though.

quote:

Originally posted by Trisa I suppose if FP doesn't feel like updating the list, I could probably help make the new list as well, seeing as I helped him with the current list. I have come back to becoming a ghost again. I may stop in the future, but right now, I feel this is best for me right now. I also see that there are more ghosts these days. I probably can figure out why, though. Later, Trisa PS. I have already started looking again. Hopefully I'll finish today. PS2. Status Report: I have currently found 57 ghosts. Some of them are new ghosts.

Since FP hasn't responded, I'll gladly edit the list once you've made it Trisa!

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Originally posted by R.Smith Since FP hasn't responded, I'll gladly edit the list once you've made it Trisa!

Thanks, R.Smith.

Here it is. As of Feb. 8, 2005, there are currently 126 ghosts that browse the forums. Please note that some of these usernames will be unfamiliar to you, because they either have one or no posts at all. This list will be updated when I find more. If anyone sees an error on my part, be sure to tell me, and I'll fix the error.

Also, people who are banned from the forums will still be on this list. This is a reference for the members here.

[NOTE -Check the first post for the most recent list.]

Thank you Trisa!

I've finished updating and organizing the list, I tried to make it just like the order FP had.

If you spot any errors, please let me know.

Thanks a lot for your help, R.Smith. The list looks very nice. There is one thing, though.

R. Dorothy is colored yellow, yet she isn't warned at all.

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Simple answer, the link has it so that her username is highlighted.

Heh. Silly me. Should have known that from the beginning.

I will keep an eye out for any ghosts, and I will do another major check in a few months to see if any changes have occured.

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Originally posted by Trisa Thanks a lot for your help, R.Smith. The list looks very nice. There is one thing, though. R. Dorothy is colored yellow. For some reason, though, in this thread, the username is red, yet she isn't banned at all. Any ideas as to why this might be? I will keep an eye out for any ghosts, and I will do another major check in a few months to see if any changes have occured. Later, Trisa

Simple answer, the link has it so that her username is highlighted.

quote:

http://www.paradigm-city.com/forums/thread.php?threadid=6461&hilightuser=1570

Also, its a mistake on my part, I was thinking of R_Dorothied, who has a warning.

The entry has been corrected.

Yep, I was on the list. And, yep, I've been ghosting. New thing. I have several reasons... some valid and some stupid.

Anyway, it's very interesting to see who else ghosts. It's seems like the numbers of ghosts get pretty high some days.

BabyGhia

I used to ghost for my first 12 months or so of being a member on PCF...but then I thought to myself, "Why hide in the shadows when I have nothing to hide?" So, now I'm visible for the entire world to see!

In my opinion, unless you're an administrator or moderator, there really isn't any reason to ghost.

"For privacy", you say? What is there to be private about on a Forum like PCF? ...Unless of course the "privacy" you're talking about actually equates to "being able to view other people's profiles without them knowing I'm doing it!"...or, as Avenir put it, "it makes being nosy more fun and being noticed less likely."

So basically, people who ghost just want to be creepy and subversive without anyone knowing about it? Right...

I, personally, don't care if other people notice me viewing their profiles. Afterall, isn't that why we all take time to make profiles in the first place? To be viewed by other forum members? (I'm just using profiles as an example, but my point can basically be applied to any Forum activity).

I suppose that I, personally, just believe that a Forum is supposed to be a community of people who get to know each other by talking about common interests (Big O, Full Metal Alchemist, General Discussion, etc.)...and it just seems to me that people ghosting are basically just trying to distance themselves from others. Well, I guess there isn't anything wrong with that, but then why join an online community in the first place? Of course everyone enjoys their own share of privacy, myself included (like I said, I used to ghost for the first 12 months of my time here)...

I guess all it really comes down to, for me, at least, with regards to the whole ghosting thing is: What do you have to hide?

Note: I'd just like to point out that I used the word "you" a lot throughout this whole post, and that I am not referring to any specific individual, but rather a collective group instead.

I guess when you look at it, ghosting can become something that is of value to them, regardless if the person have anything to hide or not. I've been noticing a lot more ghosts browsing the forums per day (usually about 4-9 now; I remember there weren't a lot before), even though the list of ghosts have decreased since it was last updated. It also might be because of recent events that have happened during that time, and also because they don't like to be followed by people (at least, for some people).

If you look back on some of the earlier posts, you'll see that people became ghosts because they didn't want people to bother that person, or because they don't want them to know when they will be inactive for some time (although that is found out eventually). I guess the point that I'm getting at is that there are more reasons to ghost other than privacy.

I'm not saying that being a ghost is a good nor a bad thing, but it can be useful in some cases. I guess in the end, it all depends on the person on how ghosting is used.

That's just my thoughts on the matter.

I'm resurrecting this thread as I have noticed a slight decline in the number of ghosts occupying the board as of late. Perhaps there has also been a slight increase in activity that I failed to notice.

I'm still under ghost status. I temporarily ceased recently but was forced to fall back again due to critical personal circumstances outside the forum. Specifically, my father has been stalking me here and tends bedevil me for the amount of time I spend online. Fortunately his presence and persistence have begun to abate as he is quite fond of the site, but I'm not taking any risks.

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Originally posted by Avenir I'm resurrecting this thread as I have noticed a slight decline in the number of ghosts occupying the board as of late. Perhaps there has also been a slight increase in activity that I failed to notice.

The people who log in as ghosts usually browse the forums in the evening, which is the time that the most activity is occuring. There's only about 1-3 ghosts in the morning (or sometimes none at all), and it increases up to the evening. Of course, this sometimes isn't true, and it could be the other way around as well.

The list is now updated today. Thanks to R.Smith for updating it for me. Next update will occur in January.

I decided to update the ghost list earlier than what I previously said. This post will have the updated list until The Fallen Phoenix or R.Smith update the old list in the first post. The list is sorted by the number of posts (highest to lowest).

There are 204 ghosts out of 1,909 members.

The list has now been updated. I give my thanks to either The Fallen Phoenix or R.Smith (not sure...) for updating it for me. Next update will occur in May.

The ghost list has been updated. This post will have the updated list until The Fallen Phoenix or R.Smith update the old list in the first post. The list is sorted by the number of posts (highest to lowest).

There are 229 ghosts out of 2,133 members.

The first post has now been updated. I give my thanks to The Fallen Phoenix for updating it for me. Next update will occur in October.