Charcoal HQ

@hichris123 It seems to be expressly discouraged by Google for whatever reason, and they've designed things this year to make it basically impossible to build one

hichris123

huh.

Undo

Which I disagree with because you have to be in the top 10 to be a finalist/winner, but there's no way for a kid to know if they're in the top 10

hichris123

yeah.

Undo

People say that "they should just focus on quality tasks", but if I'd done that last year I wouldn't have been in the top 10. The contest is built such that one needs to do a certain volume of 'throwaway' tasks, otherwise you can't win.

And now kids have no way of knowing how many of those they need to do

@Doorknob "0 days of Winter Bash festivities remain! :D"

^ Also doesn't sound right

Normal Human

1:17 AM

That's the point I made above, about a sigmoid. Gradual transition.

Undo

Whoa, those look cool

Sigmoid function

A sigmoid function is a mathematical function having an "S" shape (sigmoid curve). Often, sigmoid function refers to the special case of the logistic function shown in the first figure and defined by the formula Other examples of similar shapes include the Gompertz curve (used in modeling systems that saturate at large values of t) and the ogee curve (used in the spillway of some dams). A wide variety of sigmoid functions have been used as the activation function of artificial neurons, including the logistic and hyperbolic tangent functions. Sigmoid curves are also common in statistics as cumulative...

Normal Human

Here it could be a simple linear function of time, rounded to integer, picking an element from faces = ['\o/', ':D', ':)', ':|', ':(', 'D:']

Undo

That'd probably work, but it doesn't have a fancy name

@hichris123 @NormalHuman Okay, something I've been meaning to float for a while: What would ya'll think of us experimenting with automated spam flagging?

Normal Human

By which account?

Undo

Smokey

hichris123

1:24 AM

@Undo Did Shog give an okay for that?

Undo

We can grind up to the assoc bonus

Don't start out with real flags, of course. Mark things that we would have flagged, check back on them later (metasmoke cron job?).

hichris123

Oh oh I see.

Normal Human

I think the benefits are questionable, and slippery slope is too slippery.

Undo

I do think this is the next logical step.

Although I agree about the slippery slope thing

hichris123

It is... though as @NormalHuman points out, 1 spam flag doesn't accomplish much. :/

Doorknob

1:26 AM

That's also borderline sockpuppeting

Undo

My real motive here is to show Shog & team a 99.x% success rate with something like that. Then they can adjust filters at the system level.

Which we can do without real flags, really.

Doorknob

So store data but don't actually flag

yeah

Undo

@Doorknob I'm pretty sure we could get approval for this if we wanted to

And we had data to show we know what we're doing

Normal Human

Do they care, though? Obvious spam gets deleted anyway. And non-obvious spam needs human review.

Undo

Being able to block metasmoke.erwaysoftware.com/reason/59 would be nice

I dunno, it's just an idea

We're far more agile than SE itself can ever be in blacklisting these kinds of things.

hichris123

1:30 AM

Hmm... how would you propose to do this? Create a list of reasons that should send an additional flag to metasmoke, and create a new page for posts with that flag?

Undo

Imagine if Smokey had the equivalent of 3 spam flags. That can make a difference.

Basically a reduced threshold for spam-nuking questionable stuff.

@hichris123 That'd work

I can just schedule a whenever job to check whether those still exist every five minutes or so. If they don't last five minutes, it was probably spam

hichris123

Or just manual review. Or a combination of both.

Undo

It'd really be nice to have that spam dump.

hichris123

yep.

Undo

I somewhat suspect that project died

hichris123

1:36 AM

@TimPost Any update on said spam dump?

Undo

Wow, I never realized his chat ID was so low

The other thing I'm planning to look into is filters based on time of day. I'm pretty sure some of these recurring spam things that are hard to blacklist on their own have a definite timeframe they fall in

hichris123

!!/pull

SmokeDetector

[ SmokeDetector ] SmokeDetector started at rev 3e197a7 (hichris1234: Smokey should go to Oxford) (running on closet server)

Normal Human

@SmokeDetector I'm afraid that would get auto-flagged... :/

Undo

sd fpu-

hichris123

1:48 AM

@NormalHuman It'd be restricted to things like 'Only URL in title' (or whatever), etc -- filters with ~100% accuracy.

Undo

@NormalHuman We'd put a bunch of limitations on it, like how long ago it was posted, rep of the author, etc.

And only some filters.

On only some sites.

And wait for a while to make sure no one fp's it

Normal Human

Maybe it's just my fear of AI...

Fear of AI is like fearing your kids will be smarter than you 1)You should hope they are 2)If they try to kill you, you likely had it coming

Tweeted by silvexis on March 16, 2015 at 3:27 PM

Brock Adams

@NormalHuman But we ALL have it coming! My kids just aren't smart enough not to get caught, and they know it.

SmokeDetector

2:24 AM

[ SmokeDetector ] Bad keyword in username: ERROR when trying to pick a first time profile name by qq410219243 on gaming.stackexchange.com

[ SmokeDetector ] Bad keyword in username: How do I get on a Minecraft PE server that says it is full but it is not? by qq410219243 on gaming.stackexchange.com

Brock Adams

sd why

SmokeDetector

@BrockAdams [:26128304] Username - Position 1-12: qq410219243

Brock Adams

@SmokeDetector ¿Hruh? @NormalHuman

Normal Human

I guess that check should be for titles only.

QQ: 123456789 buy diploma now

@SmokeDetector fpu-

!!/pull

SmokeDetector

[ SmokeDetector ] SmokeDetector started at rev afc94e8 (Normal Human: move QQ in title to a separate rule) (running on closet server)

Normal Human

2:41 AM

One of these days, I should somehow order and group the rules logically: things mostly for titles, things mostly for questions, things mostly for answers... or some other logic, I don't know.

The array is getting pretty large.

Brock Adams

Maybe even split the file?

If you want to be really evil, have it read a wiki for the rules! (or a meta post) That ought to liven things up. :)

SmokeDetector

4:59 AM

[ SmokeDetector ] Offensive body detected: open frameworks with C/C++. Implementing an xbox controller for mouse movements? by Previn on stackoverflow.com

Brock Adams

sd why

SmokeDetector

@BrockAdams [:26130089] Body - Position 6365-6372: asshole

Brock Adams

sd - f

SmokeDetector

5:45 AM

[ SmokeDetector ] Few unique characters in body, repeating characters in body: Is this picture of relativity correct? by brush on physics.stackexchange.com

[ SmokeDetector ] All-caps title: NORMALITY TEST DESCRIPTIVE VS INFERENTIAL by noob on stats.stackexchange.com

Normal Human

Out of all the SE chatrooms, barrycarter picked Normal Chatroom as an example...

Brock Adams

That's a normal reaction...

sd 2f

SmokeDetector

[ SmokeDetector ] Bad keyword in answer: How can I use credit card numbers containing spaces? by christy on stackoverflow.com

Normal Human

6:01 AM

@SmokeDetector k finally some spam, I was getting worried

Brock Adams

8:39 AM

!!/status

SmokeDetector

@BrockAdams Running since 08:37:46 UTC (1 minute)

Brock Adams

!!/errorlogs 99

SmokeDetector

    run_old(*args, **kw)

  File "/usr/lib/python2.7/threading.py", line 763, in run
    self.__target(*self.__args, **self.__kwargs)

  File "/home/smokey/SmokeDetector/ChatExchange/chatexchange/browser.py", line 696, in _runner
    self.on_activity(json.loads(a))

  File "/home/smokey/SmokeDetector/ChatExchange/chatexchange/rooms.py", line 81, in on_activity
    event_callback(event, self._client)

  File "/home/smokey/SmokeDetector/chatcommunicate.py", line 102, in watcher
    r = handle_commands(content_source.lower(), message_parts, ev_room, ev_room_name, ev_user_id, ev_user_name, wrap…

SmokeDetector

9:07 AM

[ SmokeDetector ] Email in answer: What is the difference between 3 axis and 6 axis gyros? by jezernik on electronics.stackexchange.com

SmokeDetector

11:09 AM

[ SmokeDetector ] Manually reported answer: Software update shows a stop sign and no wifi/ethernet connection. 14.04.1 by Jean Lawrence on askubuntu.com

SmokeDetector

11:47 AM

[ SmokeDetector ] Email in answer: Must a couple get divorced if they have no children after 10 years? by jack howard on judaism.stackexchange.com

S.L. Barth

@SmokeDetector k

SmokeDetector

[ SmokeDetector ] Repeating characters in body: I can't right command for authors' name and email addresses etc. Article Format in Latex-For Portugaliae Mathematica by acommand38 on tex.stackexchange.com

SmokeDetector

12:36 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] Bad keyword in answer, email in answer: Why is Arwen dying? by clayton on scifi.stackexchange.com

S.L. Barth

12:48 PM

@SmokeDetector k

SmokeDetector

1:26 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] Offensive answer detected: Which country had the first constitution adopted by referendum? by deeznuts on politics.stackexchange.com

S.L. Barth

@SmokeDetector why

SmokeDetector

@S.L.Barth Body - Position 4-13: deez nuts

S.L. Barth

@SmokeDetector tp-

Not blacklisting yet, but it's clear NAA and probably a troll.

SmokeDetector

[ SmokeDetector ] Bad keyword in title: Movie with the brain power “regulator” by Krzysztof Dziądziak on movies.stackexchange.com

S.L. Barth

sd 2fp-

SmokeDetector

1:34 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] Link at end of body, pattern-matching website in body: Energy Boost Pro by user55301 on drupal.stackexchange.com

SmokeDetector

2:07 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] Few unique characters in answer: Restore deleted default folders by asdasdasd on superuser.com

S.L. Barth

2:25 PM

@SmokeDetector k

SmokeDetector

3:00 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] Manually reported answer: Run JavaScript Code after Base64 encryption by ali xaid on stackoverflow.com

SmokeDetector

3:30 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] Pattern-matching website in body: More about Renewing Serum CE by robert sledge on drupal.stackexchange.com

S.L. Barth

@SmokeDetector k

SmokeDetector

3:48 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] All-caps title: HOW DO “DEAL WITH” YOUR FAMILIY MEMBER by Kentaro Tomono on startups.stackexchange.com

SmokeDetector

4:56 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] Pattern-matching website in answer: Samsung SSD 850 EVO. Best way to protect personal data against thiefs by XtraBuzz on security.stackexchange.com

API quota rolled over with 5506 requests remaining.

[ SmokeDetector ] Blacklisted user: App to convert existing image files to vector graphics? by Undo on softwarerecs.stackexchange.com

hichris123

5:18 PM

... @undo? :P

S.L. Barth

@hichris123 He was probably testing something.

hichris123

!!/rmblu softwarerecs.stackexchange.com/users/46/undo

SmokeDetector

@hichris123 User removed from blacklist (46 on softwarerecs.stackexchange.com).

[ SmokeDetector ] Bad keyword in title: given a sample of testosterone, C19H28O2, there are 245 grams of carbon atoms. how many molecules of testosterone is this? by mister on chemistry.stackexchange.com

Normal Human

@SmokeDetector f

SmokeDetector

5:35 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] Offensive answer detected: Proving that the derivative of an odd function is even. by Sauske on math.stackexchange.com

Normal Human

@SmokeDetector k

SmokeDetector

[ SmokeDetector ] Offensive answer detected, repeating characters in answer: How to access directories disallowed in robots.txt? by dzurny on security.stackexchange.com

Normal Human

@SmokeDetector k

Brock Adams

sd why

SmokeDetector

@BrockAdams [:26136567] Body - Position 514-520: Babaji

Brock Adams

5:50 PM

sd - f

SmokeDetector

[ SmokeDetector ] Manually reported answer: How do different discounts on hosting packages and domain for a specific users in WHMCS? by ashok chavan on stackoverflow.com

Brock Adams

sd k

SmokeDetector

6:15 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] Few unique characters in answer: System.out.println is not printing output? by user5675344 on stackoverflow.com

SmokeDetector

7:18 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] Email in answer: Are there any strong evidence that Hinduism religion is an ancient one? by Krishna Priya Kanjira on hinduism.stackexchange.com

[ SmokeDetector ] All-caps answer: Mail.app keeps asking for Google password by user161465 on apple.stackexchange.com

Brock Adams

7:37 PM

sd 3k

Seth

8:07 PM

!!/hats

SmokeDetector

@Seth HATS ARE AWESOME. Winter Bash will begin in 0 days, 3 hours, 52 minutes, and 25 seconds. :D

[ SmokeDetector ] Offensive answer detected: It needs some thinking but solvable and nice by adrien88 on puzzling.stackexchange.com

Brock Adams

sd k

SmokeDetector

[ SmokeDetector ] Manually reported answer: It needs some thinking but solvable and nice by adrien88 on puzzling.stackexchange.com

Normal Human

8:24 PM

@SmokeDetector f

Brock Adams

@NormalHuman Is it? Might be "photobomb spam".

Normal Human

If that user participated on the site for > 1 year, earning 1,644 rep, all in order to post a picture of some skin care products.... they have my respect.

Which reminds me of an idea I had: check reputation prior to reporting, in all cases.

Currently, if the report is made based on the title or body summary, reputation is unknown.

This would require an additional API call, but since it's only to be made when the post is about to be reported, the number is quite low (< number of daily reports). The API quota would handle this.

Brock Adams

I thought you were going to roll reputation into Smokey's reports?

And you can get it all with the same API call, just need to change the filter.

Normal Human

Yes, turned out to be more difficult than I expected. The reputation is gathered with every API call already. However, titles and body summaries are received from websockets, with no reputation attached.

Undo

8:44 PM

@hichris123 Half tempted to just exempt myself from the blacklist :P

@NormalHuman I don't know that we can do that

We'd have to delay reporting by minutes for some sites.

Oh, never mind, misread it

Checking only before reporting, not on every post, would be fine.

We could just add the post to the queue and immediately run the body checker for that site.

That'd help centralize reporting too

Normal Human

A good idea. Another benefit is that metasmoke would get the complete post for every report.

Right now it only gets title + body summary in those cases.

Undo

That's a plus too

We'd probably want to just completely exempt users with reputation > 500 (?) from reporting

Except maybe for the repeating-characters reason, that one catches a decent amount of self-vandalism

Normal Human

The max_rep limit is now a part of a rule, so can be customized there.

It used to be 50 rep for everything.

Now it can be different for different rules.

Undo

8:59 PM

Oh, that's nice

Seth

9:32 PM

!!/hats

SmokeDetector

@Seth HATS ARE AWESOME. Winter Bash will begin in 0 days, 2 hours, 27 minutes, and 14 seconds. :D

SmokeDetector

10:25 PM

[ SmokeDetector ] All-caps answer: What is the type of visa for the EEA Family Permit in a visa centre? by Kean Brotherton on expatriates.stackexchange.com

Normal Human

!!/pull

SmokeDetector

[ SmokeDetector ] SmokeDetector started at rev afc94e8 (Normal Human: move QQ in title to a separate rule) (running on closet server)

Normal Human

Whoops, edited in a wrong repo.

!!/pull

SmokeDetector

[ SmokeDetector ] SmokeDetector started at rev cb9648e (Normal Human: more url shorteners) (running on closet server)

Undo

11:09 PM

!!/hats

SmokeDetector

@Undo HATS ARE AWESOME. Winter Bash will begin in 0 days, 0 hours, 50 minutes, and 54 seconds. :D

jimsug

11:38 PM

!!/hats

SmokeDetector

@jimsug HATS ARE AWESOME. Winter Bash will begin in 0 days, 0 hours, 21 minutes, and 7 seconds. :D

jimsug

So much excitement :D

Normal Human

So few running people, compared to earlier. winterbash2015.stackexchange.com

hichris123

in Tavern on the Meta on Meta Stack Exchange Chat, 3 mins ago, by hichris123

1200 seconds remaining (20 minutes)

Doorknob

in The Nineteenth Byte, 4 mins ago, by NotDoorknob

20 minutes till Winter Bash

my bot is better than your bot :P

(It's really not, actually. It's a hacky JS script, so it has to run in its own separate tab (hence me using my sock account))

Seth

11:47 PM

@Doorknob Wanna send it to the AU room?

Doorknob

Uhh... the thing is, it works via a setInterval. So it'll take a while to set up, involving me hitting "enter" at precisely the right moment. And there's only 11 minutes left anyway :P

Undo

lol

Seth

@Doorknob ah. ok then :P

Doorknob

When I said "hacky," I meant hacky :P

Normal Human

One can see the number of minutes on the page,,,

Seth

11:49 PM

There isn't a variable on the page you can scrap for numbers?

@NormalHuman the whole people idea was terrible. By the time I get an idea of what number I think it is showing they're moving to the next one.