I Am The Best: in your 3 games since 2006 - has the vacation system really been a big obstacle for you?

paully: the only use i have seen for the access code is for the BK app on facebook - if you enter the access code there, your current game list and other info is available from facebook....

Bernice: blocking would be the only option... at this time...

Artful Dodger: whoa...

Snoopy: very true....

Snoopy: its really not that they dont work properly - they just dont work the way we would like them to..... they do what they are designed to do - nothing more....

blocking - prevents somone from contacting you.... no more - no less

public friends - lets the world see who you are willing to admit you are aquainted with - and people can still keep their stalker tendencies hidden on the....

friends list - helps you keep tabs on whomever you feel like.... and you cant do anything about someone elses....

cloak mode - lets everyone know that you dont care what they are doing - and makes it that much more fun for those stalking you to figure out or guess what you are up to.... now thats really just a compliment...

take the blue pill and see the world as it is.... lol

Snoopy: i agree with why you are saying what your saying - but the point of view you need to help make sense of what is.... is that your friends list is under your direct control - as is someone elses. Your actions will have no impact on someone elses friends list...

if i want the background color of a game board to be purple - then i select that setting - but the background color for my opponents isnt impacted by my settings.... so it is the same with the friends and blocked list.... what i do to my account impacts my lists - if i block someone they cant interact directly with me - but they can still manipulate their own settings.... even if blocking them could take you off their friends list - they could still log in as a guest (like coan said) or even just go to the online user list. The friend list is a matter of ones own personal list.

thats the best way to look at what is..... whether or not its right.....

cloak doesnt really even work - cause you can still tell the person is online - you can watch their games list to see which are moving from their turn or waiting - you can watch the boards link to see where they are posting... its really impossible to be hidden from a user - its just possible to eliminate thier ability to interact with you....

I agree that its very frustrating any time someone is discovered as cheating - lets make sure we dont flame or bait any particular users - but by all means - please PM a GM or fencer to let them know your concerns - there are so many games being played - there is no way for one person to monitor all of them - but - BUT - those of you that are being impacted by cheating - you are the ones that can see - can notice - and can let the powers that be know about it - I have already sent a message regarding the original post on this topic.... please refrain from continuing this topic here - feel free to PM me directly and ill continue to get these issues addressed.... thanks!

Bernice: it will come back when fencer posts a new blog (or maybe just tomorrow - regardless of a new blog) - but for now you can scroll all the way down to the bottom of any bk.com page and the link is listed down there....

nodnarbo: i totally agree - i was talking in reference to families that play together - im going to guess that there arent many 9-11 year old kids that have found this site on their own and play independently of mom and dad - maybe im wrong - but anyway - i was talking about the scenario where a parent that plays here and gets their child involved....

other than that scenario - id have no use for the new chat option...

regardless of all other uses - i think the new chat option would be a great safety feature for parents with kids who play here....

Fencer: it sounded like you were saying the VAT was imposed on you - as if to say - something regarding the costs of running the site required you to pay this VAT and memberships are increasing to reflect compensating your additional expense....

this would be different than a VAT imposed on the user....

am i correct or mistaken....

Jim Dandy: if one were to check out my profile - there is proof that its different per user.... it seems pretty common to hear that some users are experiencing vastly different connection speeds than other - maybe im used to a slow connection - im not sure - but it seemed pretty fast to me this afternoon....

Has anyone tried it yet? My connection is running good without it - but i wonder about those that could benefit....

Bernice: looks to me like the post is still there... i heard about the problem then - the curse of the white page - but that cleared up after a while right? im guessing this will too....

Jim Dandy: action points is my guess there.... everybody was scrambling for those action points in 2006 right?

Gammonator: you have been very well spoken with your concerns - i dont think you should be chastised at all... i hope that more people can voice their concerns in appropriate ways - those that cant - run the risk of ruining any chance of response for all of us....

baddessi: i totally agree....just my opinion...i also agree on the comments regarding rose and antje's posts...

baddessi: well put - thanks for posting...

Andersp: all im asking is that the posts we make are polite - we can only control ourselves and our own behavior - others poor behavior is not an excuse for the same - by all means express your frustrations and concerns... politely - not for my sake - but maybe for the sake of other users or even children who are always learning and listening to the adults in their life - its just a good habit wouldnt you say? politeness? can we agree on that? Im sure you can see from the pattern of my posts - that thats really my only concern.... how we say what we need to say....

jryden: i think sarcasm is the last thing we need for now - there is a time and place for humor that breaks the tension - but sarcasm is just another way to be rude about your opinion - i think just saying to move your post to gen chat was being polite....

Bk Users: i would rather encourage all people to find polite ways to make their view known - as several people have mentioned, fencer has lost his composure a few times in response to the rude and sarcastic posts on this board. Unfortunately - this has caused a view that he is uncaring and rude as a person. I would never assume anyone is a rude and uncaring person as a result of a handful of posts.

I have some pretty extensive exposure to behavior modification techniques and id like to recommend that rude statements, sarcastic jabs, and outright abusive language are more likely to cause more problems than to solve any of our concerns.

While i personally feel the topic has been exhausted, this is the place to post concerns about the site and its functionality. Id like to see those posts, as most have been for the past few days at least, continue to be presented thoughtfully, with some suggesting solutions, others voicing concerns for the first time, but all doing so in a polite manner. There is an abusive tone to a great deal of the posts here - and i would be hard pressed long term to ignore the badgering and continue to respond with customer service being a priority - eventually you have to decide which customers are causing more problems than they are worth - its an unfortunate reality in business. I dont want to be on the receiving end of customer disservice, and i would never act in a way deserving of such treatment anyway.

However, the online environment tends to relax the normal control we have over our mouths and our desire to maintain decent relations. We feel free to be as rude as we like because of the safety of anonymity of a user name and a lack of face to face interaction.

If you were to go to my front door - or fencers front door and voice complaints in a rude or abusive manner - would you be surprised to have the door slammed in your face? You really shouldnt be.....

However, i can say from experience that the occasional frustrated customer, or rude interaction is not enough to make me start slamming doors, its the persistent, just for the fun of stirring the pot attitude that is what prompts the door slam -

why provoke such a response? the only answer could be - because i can - and because i dont care about trying to be polite -

those type of posts are unwelcome - it shouldnt be a surprise when you are ignored.

ok - im done - continue on as you will - i hope some of you might be encouraged to take a constructive point of view in future posts - but im sure there will be some that just dont care to be decent - or feel that well - now that fencer has been rude a handful of times - theres no going back - im sorry for you - for i predict a lack of customer service for you in the future - and i fear that your actions are ruining any chance of action on fencers part for the rest of us....

NOT a floosie: i would have to guess for sure - but i would guess that either something will change to alter the mindset of the people you are referring to - or they will leave the site and find someplace better.... i dont plan on leaving - as i dont have any issues with my connection speed or the site owner....

AbigailII: it seems a fair request to me - and thankfully - hrqls posted while i was writing that he would work on doing just that.... so hopefully soon the description itself will be more detailed....

AbigailII: I have a far different opinion on the description....

The description is very clear on that fact that anyone is welcome to post regarding a couple of very clear topic guidelines...

Brainking itself: This is a reference to the site in general - thoughts regarding it as a game site...

Brainkings Structure: This is in reference to the website in a technical light - posts about the actual code behind what we as the user see, posts about how the site is organized...

Brainkings Features: This is in reference to all the menu links on the left and right of the screen, the in game options, the settings page and how things in general work...

Brainkings Future: This is in reference to questions or comments about the future of brainking and what it might look like in the future.

These clearly defined topics create a cohesive sense for the purpose of this discussion board, and it is appropriately represented in the title of the board - Brainking.com

several posts have been made encouraging others to stop "off topic" conversations. These would include any general chatting, posting of tournaments, and other such posts that have specific boards for such postings...

I think its clear that discussions about the speed of accessing the site have been exhausted.... not that such posts are off topic - merely that there is nothing left to say - and the majority of the posts regarding connectivity are non-productive and repetitive complaints ....

the majority of off topic posts that are edited or removed are due to the rude content, the abusive language, and or the way what could be considered an appropriate post is posted in an inappropriate way...

i really hope this helps with any confusion - and any further questions anyone has about the nature of the board should send a PM to Hrqls, the board main moderator....

Thanks!

ive gone and deleted anything that could be considered an off topic post from myself - i challenge others to follow my example....

Jim Dandy: sounds like a good idea - hrqls would be the one to ask - and maybe in a PM?? Thanks!

A recurring topic, an off topic, an untrue topic - all rolled into one...baddessi has her reasons, which are distorted in posts here - please get the posts here back on topic.... thanks!

anything else along this line will just be removed for the sake of those wishing to use the board as its intended...
thanks!

MadMonkey: thanks for connecting me with him - im waiting for a response and hopefully i will be able to pay for him soon....

Dolittle: mine too - when i paid for the red code - the payment was sent and i got the notification from BK to my message box - before i even came back to the site from PayPal...

Andersp: I use Qwest (local phone company) DSL through the wireless on my laptop - i have heard others using wireless connections dont seem to have the issues that are so common here... im no where near the technical genius required to determine how that could impact anything - but maybe it does...

coan.net: I havent been having any problems either - so again it seems odd that we automatically assume is a BK issue when not everyone is experiencing trouble - but i do have to agree that a simplified version of the site would be a nice addition to the growing list of cool features on this site... and btw - im happy to see people using this board to voice concerns without rudeness - and for the most part without sarcasm!! How refreshing....

Fencer - Thanks for the explanation - and i can only imagine the frustration of such an event from your point of view - thanks for being so quick with improving the site's ability to detect such a horrific event should it happen again in the future - i suppose its only through time and experience that problems such as these are discovered - but its good to see that you are on top of fixing these things as they present themselves. Thanks again!

Czuch: if i remember - its not designed to work within the "box" reply.... ill see if i can find where i read that....

I think anyone who wants to make one of these random teams can do it now - so thats not really unfair - are we all so upset because we think the rules of the classic school yard pick are being messed with? Are we afraid we will only be left with losers to play on our teams? Im pretty sure the people joining up on these random teams did so out of choice - not because they were picked out of a lineup and had no choice but to comply - isnt that they way all teams are formed? Everyone can make this team if they want to - and everyone can pick what team they want to be on - geeeezzz - why all the drama?

Hrqls: you seem to be right on the money - i had only that one day of problems as well....

Bernice: i think the ending statement on his profile says - "As for the interviews, well, I bet there are many other volunteers out there."

So - as they are a part of this board - at least advertised here - who knows how King R was selected to begin with - maybe interested people could send me a message and ill give it to fencer? or maybe just ask him yourself? why let the interviews die? anyone interested?

joshi tm: im pretty sure it ended a while back.... anybody remember the details?

MadMonkey: you can still remove a member from a team that is signed up for the team tournament? or a fellowship challenge....

MadMonkey: Here is a thought - the team tournaments may be impacting your situation - i dont know if the team in question is signed up for the team tournament or not - but i know that i looked at a couple teams i am member of to see if i could discover anything.

The teams that i am on that are not signed up for any of the coming team tournaments - those ones i can leave if i wanted to

the teams that are signed up and i have been selected to play... those team i cannot leave. Im guessing i cant leave until the tournament starts - that way - i cant sign up and get registered to play on one team and then do the same for another team.

the reason you might not be able to remove the member is that the team may be signed up - if thats the case - you will probably have to remove the team from the tournament first - then remove the member - select a new set of 8 - then sign up again....

i would ask any captain of a team that is signed up look at their teams and see if thats the case - im guessing they cant remove someone if the team is registered....

bouncer: PM me and we will talk about it - end of discussion here - thanks

bouncer: Lets be clear - The board is for - "Board for everybody who is interested in BrainKing itself, its structure, features and future."

Please express your opinions - please voice your concerns - please be heard - and please - do it in a polite way or it will be modified/deleted/or eventually get you banned.

I'm happy you are from Europe - I'm happy this is in international site too - Regardless of where you are from, politeness is required on this site on the public boards.

Moving on.....

Marfitalu: no clue - i just know that i dont have any problems with Bk at all - so - maybe i just have a problem free pass?

What i just dont understand is how it could be a BK issue when it doesnt impact everyone - I'm sure there is an issue - but unless it impacts everyone - its got to be coming from somewhere else - its got to be caused by some other unknown factor - something that is more specific to specific users. Doesn't that make sense?

Fencer: Im on the site off and on all day - and then most of the evening. Ive never had connection problems of any kind. Once in a great while I'll lose the connection between moves and my first action is to reset my wireless connection to my DSL modem. I always reconnect right away. Im not sure you should believe that "everyone" is having this problem and that its something to do with something within your control. I for one haven't had ANY issues....maybe its a connection problem on the user end - maybe its the type of connection - maybe its the hardware capabilities of their systems.... but unless every single BK user can say they are having the same issues - how can it be said its a BK issue? I'm happy - I'm satisfied - and look - im apparently connected just fine as i write this - lets see if it posts too!!!

Does this mean that we might be able to buy a bk membership on amazon??

srnity: oh here is an interesting topic... ill move over to general chat for it tho...

srnity: its not that BK attracts these types - its the online environment that makes people feel like they are untouchable, powerful, and releases the inner jerk. The discussion on "moderating by the moderators" is the prime example. In real life we dont have moderators going around and editing conversations or banning people from conversing in public. Instead we have morals and the ability to choose who we interact with. Here - we have those that take advantage of the public boards to ignore what others find decent and we need these moderators to balance the lack of our ability to walk away. Thats why I volunteered to be a co-mod on this board - Id love to help Fencer and the global mods keep this site a friendly place to play and have fun.

Pbarb2: On the main settings page - under "other parameters"

Other parameters
Refresh period of main page and game pages:
Number of my best BKR shown on the main page:
Number of games shown on the main page:

you can select it there.....

TexasToest: what kind of membership levels are you trying to set - certain privleges? abilities - what did you dream - and we will tell you how to make them come true....

TexasToest: you might be wondering about making them captains or not - they have to be made managers before they can be made a captain.