*WARNING* IMPORTANT MESSAGE for all people using "free email" accounts.

[davegravy]

Add me to the list of those who will be gone in a month if this is enforced. I wish you luck in your continued alienation of valuable contributors via your hubristic approach.

[Zaerc]

My complaint about this is as follows:

My only non-free email account is a work email account and it can only be used for official business, (it is a ".army.mil" account).  My only internet access at home is through my cell phone since my only other option is dial-up.  My phone is an android by Google and requires a Google email address.  It is through Verizon but I don't have a Verizon email account.  I have no other email accounts that I can register.  Is there someway to ask for an exception to this policy?  I haven't been on in a while because I had no hardware to build.  I have saved money for a while and I am about a month away from starting to build.  Once I start building, I can only imagine that I will have questions for the forum.

Please don't close the door on me.

Thank you for listening.

Get a real email address from Verizon, it should come with the account.

[coley]

While it is easy to see where Zaerc is coming from with close to 17,000 members registered on this forum and so many with 0 or just 1 post, I think this blanket ban is sledge-hammer vs nut in the extreme.
The SMF software can be set up to have new members approved only by Mods as opposed to the current activation email, this might stem the tide of unwanted spammers.

-Coley.

[brake16]

Zaerc

Sorry to hear about the spammer problem.  (Although the one that signed off as a chick was entertaining).  Any chance recaptcha could be implemented for new accounts (ideally), or for postings?

http://recaptcha.net/

Bryce

[MDH1966]

Get a real email account from Verizon, it should come with the account.

It's not a real internet connection as Verizon is not my ISP as they would be with a DSL or FIOS account.  It is a data connection that is tied to my phone number.  My internet comes from tethering my phone to my computer.  I have checked and I don't have a Verizon email account.  Just the Google account that came with the phone.  In fact, it was a requirement to activate the phone.  It is truly the only email account that I have.  I can't get a non-free email without setting up an ISP to my house.  Like I said before, my only option in that realm is dial-up.  I would love to have dsl or cable if it was available.  Satellite is out of my price range.

Any help in this matter is appreciated.

Thanks...

M.

[Zaerc]

While it is easy to see where Zaerc is coming from with close to 17,000 members registered on this forum and so many with 0 or just 1 post, I think this blanket ban is sledge-hammer vs nut in the extreme.
The SMF software can be set up to have new members approved only by Mods as opposed to the current activation email, this might stem the tide of unwanted spammers.

-Coley.

So then we have to approve them first, only to kick them out again once they actually start spamming.  More work with no benefit whatsoever...

Zaerc

Sorry to hear about the spammer problem.  (Although the one that signed off as a chick was entertaining).  Any chance recaptcha could be implemented for new accounts (ideally), or for postings?

http://recaptcha.net/

Bryce

The registration form when you sign up already has something like that.

[Zaerc]

Get a real email account from Verizon, it should come with the account.

It's not a real internet connection as Verizon is not my ISP as they would be with a DSL or FIOS account.  It is a data connection that is tied to my phone number.  My internet comes from tethering my phone to my computer.  I have checked and I don't have a Verizon email account.  Just the Google account that came with the phone.  In fact, it was a requirement to activate the phone.  It is truly the only email account that I have.  I can't get a non-free email without setting up an ISP to my house.  Like I said before, my only option in that realm is dial-up.  I would love to have dsl or cable if it was available.  Satellite is out of my price range.

Any help in this matter is appreciated.

Thanks...

M.

Instead of grasping at straws, please take it up with Verizon.  They provide you with the connection which should come with an email address. 

[brake16]

Zaerc

Sorry to hear about the spammer problem.  (Although the one that signed off as a chick was entertaining).  Any chance recaptcha could be implemented for new accounts (ideally), or for postings?

http://recaptcha.net/

Bryce

The registration form when you sign up already has something like that.

Okay.  How about using it with postings then?

[purps]

Is there no way you can block all of the gmail, hotmail, yahoo accounts as planned, EXCEPT specific ones belonging to purps, brake16, davegravy etc?

Am I right in saying that all spammers are automated bots, or are there "human" spammers as well? Is there any (free) way of signing up new users with the classic "enter the text you see in the box" question?

[MDH1966]

Instead of grasping at straws, please take it up with Verizon.  They provide you with the connection which should come with an email address.  

I did...and it does....it's a Google account.  That's it.  I don't have a verizon.net account and they won't give me one unless they are my isp with dial-up, DSL, or FIOS.  End of story from them.

I suppose my days here are numbered.

[MDH1966]

If you figure out a way to do individual exceptions to policy, I would be willing to do whatever I need to do to validate that I am not a spammer.

Thank you,

 M.

[uplink]

Dude. Stop for a second. I don't have a "mainstream" ISP. I use whatever others throw at me. What you are saying is that I should step away from this Internet thing because I don't have an alternative e-mail address than @gmail.com

I also checked my calendar to see if it's April Fools already, and it isn't.

If anything, we should change the signup procedure to make it harder for bots. I have some ideas if you want to hear them.

[davegravy]

Is there no way you can block all of the gmail, hotmail, yahoo accounts as planned, EXCEPT specific ones belonging to purps, brake16, davegravy etc?

My fear is as much for future participants as current participants. Highly skilled developer X hears about LinuxMCE and decides on a whim to come by the forum to ask some general questions about it. Developer X finds he needs to do extra work to get/activate a non-free email account and quickly loses interest in the project specifically because it's a stupid rule that most other projects work without. Banning free email accounts has an arguably greater cost to the project than the spam itself.

Seriously, lots of other projects manage while allowing free email accounts, what's LinuxMCE's problem?

[Zaerc]

Zaerc

Sorry to hear about the spammer problem.  (Although the one that signed off as a chick was entertaining).  Any chance recaptcha could be implemented for new accounts (ideally), or for postings?

http://recaptcha.net/

Bryce

The registration form when you sign up already has something like that.

Okay.  How about using it with postings then?

I'm sorry, but are you really expecting every member to go through recaptcha for every single post they make?

[Zaerc]

If you figure out a way to do individual exceptions to policy, I would be willing to do whatever I need to do to validate that I am not a spammer.

Thank you,

 M.

Signing up for a real email address somewhere, is that included in "willing to do whatever I need to do" by any chance?