MetaTalk

I'd respectfully ask that people consider refraining from referring to people who attacked the US Capital, and right-wing nationalists who engage in acts of insurrection generally, as LARPers, LARPing, or other insulting references to my hobbyist community. [more inside]
posted by gryftir at 7:18 PM - 119 comments

We're rolling out a new formal Privacy Policy document for MetaFilter! You can read it here right now; in the next few days we'll get a link added in the site footer and update the FAQ, etc. If you want to discuss it or have questions, come on inside. [more inside]
posted by cortex at 3:33 PM - 15 comments

I want to update everybody about how moderator schedules have changed recently to account for budget constraints. The short version is: we’re actively monitoring the site most of the time instead of 24/7 to reduce costs, and while this shouldn’t directly affect member experiences overall it does mean occasionally waiting a little longer than previously for moderator responses on flags and emails. Come on in for some more detail if you’re interested. [more inside]
posted by cortex at 3:16 PM - 57 comments

As someone who is autistic, I think that we need to have a conversation about ABA questions, or people seeking recommendations about ABA. I don't know if we should allow it, like we don't allow other ablest practices.
posted by PinkMoose at 8:31 AM - 21 comments

FPPs whose links are only to videos aren't very accessible to many neurodivergent people. Many people aren't aware of this. Wondering how to make things better here on Metafilter. [more inside]
posted by Sheydem-tants at 2:55 PM - 26 comments

Can we talk about avoiding use of "moron" casually? Similar to the related 'r' word, it has had clinical connotations and has been used to marginalize and other those with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Posting as I was mildly shocked at its abundant use on the recent vaccine thread. Perhaps we can also avoid using the related "imbecile" and "idiot".
posted by lemur at 3:09 PM - 138 comments

I think this kind of complaint needs to be retired. This thread has a bunch of the same complaints made anytime someone posts a link to a long-form video essay. "I'm not watching this! Write me an essay instead!" But it turns out long-form video essays are a genre now, and some of them are good! I think it's time we stopped derailing discussions of them with complaints about how we don't like the genre. "It's too long! I like reading better! And did you know some video essays are bad?"
posted by straight at 7:02 PM - 138 comments

I always assumed that favoriting a post or a comment on this site is similar to "liking" on other platforms. To signal approval or sympathy. But it also has a sort of bookmarking functionality, doesn't it? Which seems to imply a more neutral function. How is the favorite button intended to be used, and how do people here actually use it? And do you notice things like favorite counts on people's profiles? Does that influence your opinion of them?
posted by Zumbador at 9:28 PM - 48 comments

I love Metafilter, especially the threads where we can come together as a community and share information, learn together, and come up with new ideas. But there’s been a really frustrating trend in some recent threads. [more inside]
posted by leslietron at 11:13 AM - 42 comments

Two silly asks of anyone making a post that turn a few recent MeTas on their heads:
1. When linking to paywalled content, please link first to the original content, and make your secondary link to the archived content. While paywalls are frustrating or impossible obstacles for some folks, they do in fact make sure that authors and publishers get paid. Further, official sites are often more navigable and readable than archived HTML scrapes. I’m not saying you shouldn’t provide a free copy, just asking that you prioritize the one that gets the author some compensation.
2. archive.org is a not-for-profit with known ownership. archive.is / archive.today is entirely opaque. Who runs archive.is? How? Why? (It first got famous -in the US- as far as I know, as a way for conservatives to deny advertisers clicks, and then Gamergate and anti-Gamergate made it really blow up.) The Internet Archive has a one-click archiver available at web.archive.org/save. Please consider using it instead.
posted by Going To Maine at 2:28 PM - 20 comments