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Hello. My name is Slash Firestorm. I'm the current commander of the Elite Guard Barracks, a longtime Newgrounder with a specialty in B/P'ing and abuse flagging, and I'm here today to deliver a public service announcement.

This is a beginner's guide to the sensitive issues of spam and how it should be handled. Some of this will be obvious to seasoned Newgrounders, but this is crucial information for newer and less experienced users. Feel free to recommend anything that should be added to this, and if you have questions, don't hesitate to ask. I'm happy to help.

I also recommend reading my public service announcement on why spammers can win weekly awards and why it's your fault, and what you can do to reverse that trend.

******

Spam.

It's aggravating, isn't it? Such utter garbage passes judgment, and you don't know why anyone could be stupid enough to vote to protect it. One frame flashes? Tiny loops of dicks and crude sketches? And it's passing, and will remain on Newgrounds forever, and it infuriates you.

You've got to do something about it; this site is going to hell in a handbasket. But what? Perhaps you should get a group together, and all vote to blam such garbage with your combined voting power. Then the Portal would be clean and wonderful, right?

Wrong.

What you are proposing is a blam club, a group dedicated to mass voting, and such things aren't just against the rules of Newgrounds; they also make things worse off.

It's not that there aren't enough non-spammers to blam shitty flash; hell, normal Portal browsers outnumber the spammers by at least a hundred to one. The problem is just how many of those Portal browsers are stat whores who vote solely for protect points. Ironically, most spammers DON'T mass vote; they rely on the Newgrounds public to vote five on the flash, since they mistakenly see it as a "guaranteed protect point", creating a cycle of self-delusion---you vote five because it's sure to pass, but it's only sure to pass because you vote five. You could have fifty people mass voting and still be ineffective against the other hundred and fifty who would rather have internet stats. It's nearly impossible to overcome that foolish majority, and thus so-called counter mass-voting is ineffective.

But that's just why mass voting doesn't work. Now let's move on to why it's wrong.

Mass voting is against the rules because it goes against the very foundation of the B/P system---that individuals decide on flashes and form a sort of community consensus on what is worthy of being on the site. If the whole of Newgrounds voted based on what they considered quality---never going to happen, but let's pretend that it could---the Portal would be in its ideal state. There would be flash that some people hated, but enough people would like them to warrant their passing judgment. Those who didn't like those flashes could simply not watch them, and the Portal would be a sort of pure, fair democracy.

Mass voting is abusive because one group seeks to impose their definition of quality on the entire site. Sure, some spam is almost universally considered shit---those one-frame flashes, for instance---and it's okay to be mad that they're passing and voting zero on them when you see them. But it's NOT okay to try and tell a group of people to vote zero on them, because deciding that YOU know what the community consensus should be is the equivalent of a dictatorship. If there was only one correct definition of quality, Tom would have trashed the B/P system years ago and picked everything by hand.

In an ideal points-are-irrelevant Portal, the utter shit would be taken care of by group consensus. Thus, the goal is not to tell people how to vote; the goal is to get people to realize the function of the B/P system...for the collective judgment of Newgrounds to be rendered, sparing that which most deem worthy and denying that which most deem garbage.

The reason why the Portal is a shithole is not because of the spam itself, but rather it is the lack of that democratic consensus that is the B/P system's ideal state. Instead of the popular opinion of Newgrounds being expressed in the saves and blams of under judgment flashes, we are flooded with the spammish submissions that enough people have deluded themselves into believing will always pass. And indeed, they always pass until the NG public realizes that they're the only reason it's being protected and strive to change that fact. Until then, as I've said before, Newgrounds has the Portal it asked for, and the Portal it deserves. For the time being, that IS the group consensus.

All that those dedicated to helping Newgrounds can do is to teach the NG public that the group consensus does not have to remain fixed. We cannot change it ourselves, and even if we could, we have no right to choose for them. We must vote how we, personally, feel that we must, and let everyone make their own decisions, regardless of what those decisions are. It may be frustrating, but that's how it must be.

If I have one piece of advice, it's this: learn to relax. Spam flash passing judgment is not the end of the world. It will drift off the Portal soon enough, joining the hundreds of thousands of submissions in limbo, never to be seen again. Newgrounds isn't running out of space, and it's not going to crash because a fake preloader got by with a 1.80.

Never neglect to whistle that which breaks the rules, but don't let non-rulebreaking spam get you aggravated. Some people, believe it or not, like some stereotypically spammy flashes. I, myself, joined a spam group (the Barney Bunch) and was able to enjoy myself AND fight over-the-line abuse. It's not impossible to embrace both aspects of Newgrounds. I suspect that in that extremely unlikely ideal Portal, there would be much less 'spam', but not none of it. A little controversy is healthy; it toughens you up.

Vote fairly, vote individually, and for fuck's sake, vote. Every person who B/P's for quality instead of points brings the Portal a little closer to that ideal state.

Those interested in promoting fair voting and fighting abuse should check out the Elite Guard Barracks, a group of high-ranking Newgrounders who are dedicated to those principles. Even if you don't have the qualifications to join, we'll still be happy to answer any questions that you might have.

*****

[Back to Slash's Index Page]

Updated: 07/16/09 6:56 AM Log in to comment! | Share this!

The People Have Spoken

2,844 Comments

Mar. 11, 2009 | 5:50 AM RohantheBarbarian says:

Very well written, in fact it's a pity that all active B/P'ers may not read this. This is one of the sad truths of the Portal; a lot of people put stats first and Newgrounds' best interests second. Hopefully these PSAs might actually get some people to take a hard look at their voting habits and consider a change.

Mar. 11, 2009 | 12:21 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

I remember, during my Barney Bunch days, we'd look at all the reviews accusing us of mass voting (silly, since most BB flash WAS blammed) and we'd laugh, because we didn't bother with such a thing. The extent of mass voting on the part of most spam groups is fellow members voting five if they happen to see a buddy's flash under judgment.

Hopefully the NG public will realize that they're the reason spam passes and take control once again. The BB era proves that spam can be blammed.

Mar. 11, 2009 | 12:54 PM Sonofkirk says:

Good blog again, it is very well explained. As I did with your PSA about awards stealing, I added a link of this one on my current news post, hopefully it will help you to get a bit more of exposure.

Mar. 11, 2009 | 1:42 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

Thanks for the pimping, and glad that you found it helpful. Whenever there's a critical issue that needs addressing, I'll make a PSA about it.

Mar. 11, 2009 | 5:21 PM FC-Thun-Fan says:

Very true I've also added this to my news post.

Mar. 11, 2009 | 6:42 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

Thanks.

Mar. 11, 2009 | 11:25 PM Fro says:

I added your last one to my sig, but I don't think I have the room for it now. Perhaps I'll add them to my blog instead for more room.

Mar. 12, 2009 | 12:08 AM SlashFirestorm responds:

If I write enough of them, I'll make an index page that has links to all of them.

Mar. 13, 2009 | 12:25 AM igott says:

A) TL;DR It should be ignored and left to die.
B) Holy fuck, I have more BBS post than you.

Mar. 13, 2009 | 12:33 AM SlashFirestorm responds:

3,403 < 4282

wut

Mar. 13, 2009 | 8:22 AM Dark-Kitten says:

> Those interested in promoting fair voting and fighting abuse should check out the Elite Guard Barracks, a group of high-ranking Newgrounders who are dedicated to those principles.

http://spamtheweb.com/ul/upload/13030 9/26179_massvoting.png

Mar. 13, 2009 | 2:07 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

You know what's amusing? I went to the dates in question, and those posts don't exist. However, SoulMaster71 gives this quote on page 899, when someone asks him about mass-voting:

"Not even so much that. It's more for the users on General to decide what's spam, and if they think it deserves to leave the Portal and go to the Obituaries... BLAM!"

And on page 904, the only post at 9:52 PM is PinoyGuy75 mentioning that April 30 is the anniversary of his sign-up.

And, since the post counts are the same as they are now, along with level and sigs, you can't even claim "oh, took them a long time ago and now the posts are deleted".

fail

I don't doubt that you can find people saying "BLAM THIS" if you look enough in the 1000+ pages of the Barracks. But anyone who does make the mistake of assuming the EGB is a "blam club" is reprimanded, and if they continue to behave in that manner, are removed from the organization. Even I, when I was a newbie in the club instead of its commander, received stern warnings for doing it.

Mar. 13, 2009 | 6:33 PM Daigon99 says:

I don't believe it's right either, but I cannot stand all this spam. There has to be something I can't do about it?!

Mar. 13, 2009 | 6:39 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

1. Vote fairly and encourage others to do the same.
2. Leave constructive and civil reviews, even for spam flash. This lowers their review average (potentially keeping them away from a weekly award) and sets a good example for others.
3. Whistle any stolen, malicious, or unsuitable flash in the Portal, and report any rulebreaking flash that passes judgment to WadeFulp (with as many details as possible).
4. Keep track of UJ flashes so you'll be aware of any fileswaps. Report fileswaps to Wade.
5. Don't get upset when spam passes. As soon as it's off the Portal, it will hardly ever be seen again.

Updated: Mar. 13, 2009, 6:39 PM

Mar. 13, 2009 | 9:15 PM DEATHisIMMINENT says:

It's a freaking website, where not determining the future of the world here.

Mar. 13, 2009 | 10:24 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

Who said we're trying to?

We're just trying to clean up the website we all cared about enough to sign up for.

Mar. 15, 2009 | 12:44 AM richler says:

there are groups flashcrusaders,patriotprogram,etc, they say they protect the portal and weeks later they disolve. thank god you are not like them

Mar. 15, 2009 | 2:02 AM SlashFirestorm responds:

I've seen dozens of "portal protection" attempts over the years, and almost all of them wanted to attempt mass voting. And all of them failed. Anyone interested in fighting abuse has the NGPD and the EGB to help them.

Mar. 15, 2009 | 1:46 PM igott says:

OH WAIT. I mis-read it. Thanks.

Mar. 15, 2009 | 3:07 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

asdsdaf

Mar. 15, 2009 | 3:14 PM TheSongSalad says:

You make a lot of good points, and i had no idea that so many people just voted to pass spam flash's because they think it will pass. i always wondered why it made sense for spammers to mass vote when they would all be using new accounts with a vote worth 1.5, and when a lot of people were trying to blam it with accounts with a vote of 7 or 8. could you maybe add something about that in the part where you explain how the mass voting doesn't work? i think if many people knew that, then there could be a lot less people with issues voting on spam. thanks for posting this, i always appreciate your posts.

Mar. 15, 2009 | 3:51 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

Here's how a normal spammer works.

1. Goes about his business like a normal person.
2. "I'm bored."
3. Quickly makes a flash.
4. Submits it and votes five. Sometimes asks any online buddies to vote five on it.
5. Watches protect-whores do the rest.

Most spammers don't attempt to mass-vote, and most spammers couldn't even if they wanted to. They rely on the NG public to do the rest.

Mass-voting against spam doesn't work because you're not addressing the issues of why it's passing in the first place---people caring more about points than quality. Until that mindset changes, things will remain the same.

Mar. 15, 2009 | 6:06 PM richler says:

hehe , check this one http://tonaltcrew.forumotion.net/inde x.htm a new b/p crew

Mar. 15, 2009 | 6:08 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

I can't view anything without signing up, and I'm too lazy to bother with it. In any case, new B/P clubs pop up all the time, and they all invariably fail, either due to being fucking stupid (90% of attempts) or because the NGPD and EGB already covers their functions.

Mar. 16, 2009 | 1:10 AM SmoG878 says:

i get the gist of it. i oppose spam, not hate the very core of it's creator.
Some anti-spammer hate you. i don't. i get your point. Nowadays, people on the internet get too much freedom. Ignorance is bliss. If they become lazy/not knowing, they wont be as hateful as that one user who calls himself 'flashcrusaders' and even anti-spammers hate him :P
People should respect their elders, so in this case 'experienced NG users'.
I feel you. I'm not as ignorant as you might think. Respect.

Mar. 16, 2009 | 3:23 AM SlashFirestorm responds:

Most spammers don't fuck around because they want to screw up the system (although some do), they do it because it's fun and they enjoy it. While some people like to spend six months animating something amazing and epic, others like to take half an hour and throw together something for kicks. People should remember that, the next time they exclaim that a submitter should die for making fun of Egoraptor or drawing dicks.

Perhaps paraphrasing Palpatine is best---in order to become a complete and wise Newgrounder, one must embrace a larger view of the Portal. Spam is part of it, and it's going to stay there because the people want it there...even if they don't realize that...and it's not all bad.

Updated: Mar. 16, 2009, 3:24 AM

Mar. 16, 2009 | 2:43 PM topdog2007 says:

spammers are idiot that waste time and space on newgrounds

Mar. 16, 2009 | 4:53 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

While the more prickish spammers do fuck things up, most are relatively harmless. If you don't like their flashes, you don't have to spend time watching them, and Newgrounds ain't running out of space anytime soon.

Mar. 16, 2009 | 10:00 PM SoulMaster71 says:

Now why didn't someone explain this to me in January 2008? All I got from anyone back then was a "you can't stop them so you might as well give up" from 36holla, who eventually ended up stealing Flashes off of 4chan and posting them here. And I'd add this bit: spammers aren't what they make themselves out to be. They look malicious, but most of them (except the angsty teenage skiddies who hang out on /i/) are pretty cool guys once you look past the spam movies. You know that from the BB, I know that from my all-too-short period on the KK forums, and I'm sure it would be best for NG to hear it.

Also, I'm sad to say, those posts that Dark-Kitten posted were real.
http://www.newgrounds.com/bbs/topic/8 93812/21
My post, it's near the bottom.
http://www.newgrounds.com/bbs/topic/8 93812/25
Idiot-Finder's post is on this page. So yeah, they were real posts from almost a year ago, in the very thread that you mentioned that I referenced at that time (Wade's Under Judgment Voting thread).

Mar. 17, 2009 | 4:55 AM SlashFirestorm responds:

I know, he clarified where they came from (as his post insinuated they were from the EGB). Since the point of that thread was to identify spam and think of new ways to stop it (including posting flashes there), they're actually totally clear.

I just wish that Wade had kept up the anti-spam thing, instead of letting it die out.

Ah, well. PORTAL MODS BY 2010 PLZ

Mar. 17, 2009 | 6:28 AM sirtom93 says:

If a spam crew get allot of votes in early there isn't allot we can do.

Mar. 17, 2009 | 6:45 AM SlashFirestorm responds:

Read my PSA's again carefully. It isn't the spammers getting their flashes passed, it's the Newgrounders who give it passing scores because they only care about B/P points. If the majority of Newgrounders voted zero on something, it'd get blammed just fine, regardless of what the authors do.

If you see a flash you don't like, vote zero. If it breaks the rules, whistle it. If it breaks the rules and passed, inform Wade. Don't give up, because doing so just perpetuates the whole damn thing.

EDIT: Also, holy shit, the alias didn't hit me until I looked at it a few times. BAD SIRTOM93, BAD.

Updated: Mar. 17, 2009, 8:21 PM

Mar. 17, 2009 | 2:38 PM Fro says:

I wonder why people say Blams are really hard to come by. I actually get more blams than saves more often in a day and still keep around a 40 a day average.

They really aren't that hard to come by... Also, I just upgraded to Commander. It only helps our cause.

Mar. 17, 2009 | 8:20 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

Specific blams can be hard to come by (as in, it's hard to get a blam point from a group-submitted flash), but if a person is voting fairly, they'll typically get more blams than saves each day.

Mar. 17, 2009 | 5:37 PM richler says:

flash crusaders are so pathetic, they wanted me to join xD

Mar. 17, 2009 | 8:18 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

The flashcrusaders account is a troll account, and the original attempt at the real Flash Crusaders was apparently abandoned after I set them straight about how things work.

Apr. 1, 2009 | 2:36 AM Bujew says:

You're never going to change everyone. Only a few

Apr. 5, 2009 | 6:09 AM SlashFirestorm responds:

That's a start.

I've seen Cyberen flashes get blammed before, and my Naruto Secret Episode came pretty close to not making it---it doesn't take a lot of people to start slicing at the lower bounds.

Apr. 20, 2009 | 5:33 PM doberman7 says:

WE SHALL LIVE ON

SPAMMERS UNITE, WE WILL WIN.

Apr. 24, 2009 | 8:04 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

nah

spam flash needs to have a revolution in terms of lol if it hopes to survive indefinitely

Apr. 26, 2009 | 4:21 PM Sheizenhammer says:

This is going in my 'useful stuff' collection.

I agree with all of it. If anything, I agree a little too much: I tend to automatically 0 stuff unless it catches my attention as being good in some way (just to cancel out some of the mindless 5-voting).

And now for some random questions:

In your opinion, should the B/P system be removed (or replaced with something harder to abuse at least)?

What's your take on chris beer? Do you think he mass-votes, or is it another case of mindless I-will-vote-5-cos-this-will-pass-anyw ay mentality?

Also: will anyone get annoyed if I bring things like stolen flashes to the attention of the NGPD and/or EGB if I'm not a member?

I thought about joining the NGPD, but I just can't see the point. Not the point of what it satnds for; that's something I go by myself. However, what advantage does having my name on a list (and having the obligations to keep active in it) bring to my ability to fight portal abuse in the same way the clubs push for (and the same way I do anyway)?
If I can just read the thread, see what's happening, and lend an anonymous hand in the portal every now and then, what difference would joining make?

Apr. 27, 2009 | 11:06 AM SlashFirestorm responds:

The B/P system shouldn't be removed, since it's not the problem; people abusing it is the problem. Some tweaks wouldn't hurt, namely deleting the protect points that came from flash that passed judgment but were later deleted by Wade for being rulebreaking or ridiculously shitty. You can get blam points when flash you voted 0/1 on get deleted later, why not lose protects via the same process? If people really wanted points, they'd have to wise up a bit.

Chris Beer is a mindless moron spammer, the kind that gives funny spam authors a bad name. He passes through the same process as everyone else. Eventually he'll become bored and leave.

No, we won't get annoyed as long as you got proof (an original source, preferably with the URL), and in fact we encourage it. The reason why joining the NGPD (or my group, the EGB) is useful is because we have a shitload of combined power...when any one member finds something stolen and brings it to our attention, any of our online members (many of whom have Deity Whistles; Bronze is the minimum requirement for the Barracks) whistle it, including those that were only lurking around the forums instead of being on the Portal. When something rulebreaking passes anyway, we follow-up and inform Wade. Same principle applies to abuse reviews, and with a review mod in the ranks of the EGB (he's even our third in command), abuse doesn't last long.

The Portal is our MAIN cause---a bunch of high-powered people vowing to vote fairly and encouraging others to do the same---but the overall goal is fighting abuse on Newgrounds, and that's a multi-faceted job.

Apr. 28, 2009 | 12:59 PM Truemen says:

My brain hurted after reading this. And most people who go on here have a short attention span, so sadly, not a lot of people would be reading this. If you shortened this, and put it in bullet points, that may attract more people to read and you will get your thoughts out quicker. I do not have ADD, or ADHD, but I don't read. But I have a good attention spans for songs and flashes. A lot of the problems with this is because a lot of people who sign up here are under 13, or just immature.

May. 1, 2009 | 7:55 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

Chances are that anyone who can't be bothered to read a few paragraphs is simply not intelligent enough to grasp how the site works. I refuse to encourage Twitter-esque impatience.

Jun. 1, 2009 | 1:08 PM TurtleKirby101 says:

Right...

Jun. 8, 2009 | 3:36 AM SlashFirestorm responds:

Considering your B/P ratio, you should pay very close attention to this.

Jul. 11, 2009 | 9:16 AM Brazilman says:

thank you for trying to make the portal a better place with less spam it is a hard fight but not Impossible one, i will join the cause

Jul. 13, 2009 | 7:15 PM SlashFirestorm responds:

It's not so much a cause as common sense, but yes, vote fairly and encourage others to do the same.