The idea is simple. Present a problem you think plagues this forum, and offer a constructive solution. Ideally it should be a solution that people can implement by changing their point of view and/or their behavior, but it can also be a technical solution, e.g. a change to site rules or the way it works (you can assume cg is reading this, assumption is free). No walls of text please, and leave the saltiness & bitterness out of this thread. Be concise & constructive.

The key for Grim Dawn was contributed by PeteOzzy. I'll use random.org to pick a winner from those who present a problem and suggest a solution. If the winner already owns Grim Dawn, I'll look for games on their wishlist that I may have keys for, and if successful I will let them pick one. If that doesn't work I'll just use random.org to pick another winner.

Update: Winner picked; key sent :-)

Thank you!

8 years ago*

Comment has been collapsed.

When you see a long post that includes a tl;dr line, what do you typically do?

View Results
Read the tl;dr first, and if it's reasonably interesting read the rest of the post.
Only read the tl;dr. Life is too short to read long posts.
Read the post from the beginning, making sure to skip the tl;dr if it's presented first. I hate spoilers.
Just skip to the Dan Quayle line and vote for it.

I'll go first...

Problem: Something other people do on the site annoys you, but it doesn't break any rule. Example: Nomination threads that end up with the same names again and again.

Solution: Instead of complaining, try to ignore the annoyance and lead by example with an alternative you believe is better. Example: Start a nomination thread that aims to find new names, e.g. by limiting nominations to users that are Level 5 or less, or that have registered in the last 3 months.

Word count: 82 :-)

8 years ago*
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

try to ignore the annoyance

That could actually work both ways.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Paradoxical!

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

One more:

Problem: A winner didn't thank you for the game you gave.

Solution: Accept that this is almost the norm for public GAs. It is a bit less common with invite-only (forum) GAs, and far less of an issue with whitelist or small-group GAs. Use one of those if it really bothers you. You can also blacklist such users, but this won't have any significant effect (blacklist is limited to 1000 users, but the site has close to 1,000,000 users).

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+1

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Maybe telling the people that they are being BL for being inconsiderate would help keep them from repeating it.
Though it could just lead to them BLing you back.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Though it could just lead to them BLing you back.

But is that a huge deal. I find that people that don't say thanks often don't really make GA's themselfes (spelling?), so being BL'ed by them isn't a big deal. And for people like me that rarely enter any GA's (like maybe 5 per month), it's no problem at all.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Themselves
Surely, I just meant that it was possible for that to be the only consequence, i.e. those people would BL you and not change.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Well I started trying it out.
All I got was them insulting me and blacklisting me back. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I sent them this, for the record:

Just a heads up,
I'm blacklisting you for not saying "thank you" after winning one of my giveaways, it takes little effort, but it shows you have good manners (as stated in the giveaway description). As such, I'd recommend you show appreciation for the gifts you get in the future.
Contributing to the community will lead to you being un-blacklisted by me.
Best of luck

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: You don't like SGTools.

Solution: Don't use it.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

<3

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+1

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: You can't create giveaways for games that were once free, yet some people want to give them away to others who really want them, and not have to drop them on a thread for the ninjas to take. (For example, Mafia II was free and then it was included on a humble bundle, so what do you do with that extra key?)

Solution: Make a separate category for these keys. These would be giveaways that don't add to CV, and the game must have been free more than 3 months ago, not sooner.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+100

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

ATTN cg ^^

In the meanwhile there are other options to give such keys while (mostly) avoiding ninjas, for example this thread (shameless plug).

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+1!

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+2

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

This would be great. I would really like to get Red Solstice, but was once free and now it's unattainable through SG's GAs. It was in a monthly bundle not so long ago, but there was no way to know that in advance.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+1000

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+1. :)

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

That needs no CV AND no sent gifts counter increment. Or separate counter.

+100 Some games hasn't been given away for free for ages and people are still looking for them.Not everyone, all 1M SG users own them.

If they don't allow free GAs, other GAs websites will take huge advantages of them.
I am sure free GAs are a lot wanted in SG.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Other GA websites only contain these games, that's basically the only reason people use. them. The sites aren't taking advantage, people just want rid of those keys as theyre basically worthless.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Mafia II was free at some point?! Damn, I'm sorry I missed that. :(

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

If you voted on the joystick awards a couple years ago you could pick free Mafia II or Civ V

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+1
Sadly, this was suggested multiple times already and has always been refused

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

i guess it worked sometimes already (galactic arms race?) :)

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Deleted

This comment was deleted 4 years ago.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I read that as "edible" at first. Either way I agree.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

wut? u eat poll?

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

The problem is that you can't, and the solution is to replace all "potato" options with real potatoes.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Good suggestion. Editing polls happens to be #2 in the most wanted poll-enhancements poll :-)

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Having multiple polls in a single thread would be nice as well. :)

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+1

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: too much drama
Solution: Kill All Humans!

View attached image.
8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Not a viable solution.

View attached image.
8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Yes, it is :)

View attached image.
8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

View attached image.
8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

View attached image.
8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: You have a problem.
Solution: Realize that in the infinity of space, time and potatoes your problem is nonexistent and attain enlightenment.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+100

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

This is more of an opinion/observation but maybe others will agree with me:

Its become the norm to include a giveaway when making a thread these days to the point when the purpose of a thread is only for sharing a giveaway. This has lead to people participating less in discussions and just visiting the forums to lurk on giveaways.

Solution: Consider making threads without giveaways and instead create discussions that make the community a more fun place.

AGAIN I'm not saying this is necessarily a problem, I just feel like people enter threads expecting a giveaway in return instead of a good ol' fashioned thread.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

The tradition of having a giveaway attached to your OP goes back years and years

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

GA gives more bumps - so thread is alive longer.
On the other hand I have seen long lived threads with no GAs. Just the topic itself was interesting enough to give it constant attention. Giveaway in thread with less popular subject gives opportunity to see opinion of somebody who is not familiar with subject - which might be fresh point of view :)

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

There's no GA linked in this thread, is there? ;-)

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problems: Games previously "free" cannot be given away, while there are people who still want them
Solution: Maintain a free game list like the bundle list, and set them to 0P contribution point. So people can give them away but not to exploit the CV system

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

  • 1
8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

That way your sent count will still go up, which would result in you having better sent/won ratio than you actually deserve.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Make it 0 CV and 0 sent gifts.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I don't think that's so easy to implement. They would probably need to redesign how giveaway system works. Too much work just so people could make giveaways for free games.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Without more information about how they implemented current system I won't speculations about if it is doable or not.
Not knowing availability of their human resources to make more development of SG system, neither.

Anyway, if free GAs would still increment sent gifts counter, people would just start to check real CV only for groups or in general.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Deleted

This comment was deleted 4 years ago.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

The only solution for now... is to limit redundant calls of your own scripts, I guess... (I am not implying you do redundant requests).

My guess for lightest memory implementation would be a related table, rather than an additional column to any table.
Anyway, I guess they already track free games in some way, since they are... tracked already...

But since you said only CG is known as dev of SG, I guess API could be quite a huge work. For no big impact on SG experience.

What are your scripts that heavily request SG pages ?

Maybe they/he already have any roadmap for future SG developments ?

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Deleted

This comment was deleted 4 years ago.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Not a short post, but so very interesting. Thank you for posting it.

BTW, it inspired me to bump this thread. Not that it's likely to make much of a difference...

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Deleted

This comment was deleted 4 years ago.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Why don't you deserve it? You sent a game and someone wanted it. Sure, it's absolutely a dick game to take a game you don't need just to give it away but that's not always the case.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Just noticed DavidFCG mentioned the same problem a few post back, proving that there is a widespread demand. Anyway, i believe the free game list is just another version of the bundle list with slightly different configuration, meaning that it can easily be implemented. Hope steamgift will really consider.

And for the ratio, it's a bit too much to worry about. It has never been a fair measure because each game are different(bundled/unbundled/expensive/cheap), yet they all gives a +1 count. Hence there is a CV which you can rely on. Just abandon the count ratio, and use a value ratio instead.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Then consider this: if someone does a 50k key drop and only one-fith ends up on this site, that is 10k giveaways in the span of a few days. Currently the monthly count is around 80k. It would be simply way too much.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem:You have blacklisted users who have since been permanently banned.

Solution:Implement this into Steamgifts proper so it works for all users:
https://www.steamgifts.com/discussion/nV9XP/userscript-find-those-bans-035-check-when-the-user-was-last-online

8 years ago*
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

You can use this script, it tells you which user in your bl is perma-banned.
https://www.steamgifts.com/discussion/nV9XP/userscript-find-those-bans-035-check-when-the-user-was-last-online

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Wow, thank you! <3

If you weren't already on my whitelist you certainly would be now. And that script-maker too!

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

No problem:)
That script is incredibly useful, saved me a lot of time!

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Deleted

This comment was deleted 4 years ago.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I never knew there was a difference , thank you for the correction, and for the awesome script :D

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Keep in mind that there is a possibility to come back from a permanent suspension. We have seen it before.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

that's why we just want to see suspensions (as well as last login time) - when we see it it's our own decision whether we decide to remove this person from BL or not.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

problem: you get offended all the time.
solution: don't get offended.

problem: you play the victim to get attention.
solution: don't play the victim.

problem: you think someone is guilty because of what you read on the forums.
solution: think twice before acting, sometimes there's a background history for someone acting in certain way.

problem: people dislike you.
solution: don't force them to like you.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Yirg asked for ideas to solve the forum's problems, not a guide on how to fix your life in four easy steps!

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

View attached image.
8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: think the community is going downhill?

Solution: actively engage in the brighter parts of the community, befriend on steam the more positive types and maybe they in turn can introduce you to some more bright lights . and the cycle continues until the area around you is lit up with no shadows

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: Steamgift have several threads where you can spread love but if you want to "spread hate" there is nowhere and people just save it inside each one.

Solution: Create a hate thread where everyone are free to say "Today I had a shitty day, in the morning I lost the bus and then I paid $30 to an annoying taxi driver" and things like that.

View attached image.
View attached image.
8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Recipe for Hate

(solution seems more like a way to vent off bad days unless you want to spread actual hate, like, against people which probably toils into the possible worst outcome)

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Well, vent off bad days is another way of call it. ¯_(ツ)_/¯

The only rule would be:
Spread hate to people who isn't registered in SG? sure.
Spread hate to other members? nope.

Not sure if I'm explaining myself, my english isn't the best.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I think the heretic group is a bit like that. Everyone there tells everyone else to go fuck themselves.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

solution - Join "Heretical Giveaways" ;)

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Spread hate to other members? nope.

We must be the only group that manages to invite people in so we can shoot them in the face, insult everyone yet maintain a high standard while having very low standards. How this has managed to work for this amount of time fuck knows.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I'm not sure I understand what it is you're suggesting here, but creating a thread should be easy enough. How about you lead by example?

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

If no one does, I will someday.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: People spreading hate and rumors to notable figures such as rachellove who left the community partially because of the hate

Solution: People should appreciate the ones who are benefitting the community. At least, give a word of thanks and defend these notable figures from haters and trolls as long those notable figures never did anything wrong.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: I have to participate in this game to win a game i really want to play.

Solution: Go with the flow and participate so i can maaaybe win.

View attached image.
8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

When you say "participate in this game" are you referring to puzzle threads?

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: you're infuriated by the number of giveaways for a given game (let's call it "clocksquad fission" for example).

Solution: use the "hide" functionality already present on the site and with a single click never see another GA for that game.

Sorted! They should get me working on world peace, I tell you...

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: People posting topics asking for opinions and others attack those opinions.
Solution: Realize not everyone has to agree with you and has an equal right to speak their mind. Level 0-10, country of origin. etc shouldn't matter. We're all equal here.

Problem: People complaining about being blacklisted.
Solution: Don't make a thread about it. You'll only get more blacklists.

Problem: People who dislike those who make region-locked giveaways.
Solution: Be a bit more understanding that not everyone has as easy a time buying ROW gifts as you.

EDIT: Ah damn, one more.
Problem: People calling others "leeches" or "leechers."
Solution: Just stop it. This is a giveaway site and it makes you look bad saying that.

I could go on, but those three four are in my top 10, at least. :3
not interested in the giveaway, thanks anyway

8 years ago*
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

for #3

View attached image.
8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Damn, wish I'd had that when I posted. ;_;

View attached image.
8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

problem with #3 is that a lot of people missuse this feature - sure it's supposed to work how it works and i fully support it for fully locked regions, which we have a lot nowadays, but people use it for ROW keys as well just to exclude anyone not from their country while thety feel free to enter all ROW keys. I don't mind a single locked gift GA on SG, but for example for my region 99% of GAs are not for locked keys but for ROW keys (easy to determine if you see someone making GAs for all games from current bundle yet makes them all Region Locked) just to share with much smaller part of the community.

There is no easy soluttion to this problem, at least none that I can think of, but at the same time you gotta understand that someone making a ROW GA seeing that winner makes only locked GAs, even for bundle keys, may feel disspointed/angry and because of that mey decide to exclude Regional Gifters from their gAs to fight it.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Again, and I emphasize this point - I asked for a bit more understanding, and not complete tolerance. There are always exceptions.

Speaking from a personal perspective, I see little or no difference between people who make only group/whitelist giveaways (ROW or not) and those who make only region-locked giveaways.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

same here, maybe with a difference that you have a bigger power over who's on your WL or which groups you join and who is into them than over who lives in your region ;) But same as someone making ONLY GAs for group is unfair in my eyes (I don't mean majority of GAs being for groups, WLs etc, but give something to whole community as well if you're taking from whole community as well) same is making fake region GAs just for the sake of making all your GAs be for your region no matter if they are locked or not.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Agreed. There are always exceptions, but I believe there could be a bit more understanding all around to help solve someone of the issues with the "hate" (and I use that term extremely loosely because I don't believe in hate) toward region-locked users.

I used to be absolutely ham-fisted about that, but in all honesty, these days I just want someone to be happy they won a game and it doesn't matter to me where they live. Besides, many times, exploiters are easily spotted. :P

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: People calling others "leeches" or "leechers."
Solution: Just stop it. This is a giveaway site and it makes you look bad saying that.

This can't be said enough. I've always harboured a strong dislike for that term. Or to be more precise, I find it extremely off putting how it gets thrown around so easily and nonchalantly by seemingly everyone, and absolutely detest how pervasive and indelible the L-word has become around here. All my time in Steamgifts could not desensitise me to it, and I still cringe a little bit every time I see it (even when used in a self-deprecating manner). To be even more precise, it's less the word itself that bothers me so much, but rather the accusatory and sanctimonious connotations implied and inherent in its usage.

I probably sound like a proper holier-than-thou c*nt now, I realise that, but dammit, I just wish people would stop saying it. Just stahp. Plz. KTHXBAI.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

So eloquently put. ;_; Thank you for saying it so much better than I could.

One of my favorite sayings lately is "We're all leeching something on SG."
So yeah, while it might not be games for everyone, we're all getting something good out of being here, or we wouldn't be. ;)

I also detest that word now, and try to politely discourage people from using it. :X

8 years ago*
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: Too much points, always at 300.
Solution: Logout

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I don't have a "problem", this is more like a suggestion.

Problem: I once wanted to create an event that would require me to WL some people to participate in a giveaway later, but I neither wanted to mix random people with my WL nor empty my WL just for that. So I had to scrap that idea.

Solution: Allow multiple WLs or the creation of any kind of timed list.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Or just create a group on Steam and invite those people.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Solution: Use this script to export your current whitelist, then delete it and make the new one for the event. Once the event is over delete the event whitelist and import back your old whitelist.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

thanks for the help! I'll do it next time!

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

This would reset the date and time for when you added people (most probably don't care, but I do).

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: Too many rule breakers (rules of all sorts) as a result of not reading the FAQ or having common sense.

Solution: Make the FAQ a mandatory read while signing up. The user must then answer a basic quiz with questions revolving around the FAQ. Also, before they create their first giveaway, a warning/reminder should appear linking them to the specific part of the FAQ regarding giveaways. Something like that can apply to the first time they decide to post on the forums, too. As a result, punishments can also be made more severe which would also serve as a deterrent.

The warning could be something like requiring a checkbox to be ticked (after providing recommended readings) and if they break a rule, then there is no excuse for them.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+1

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: You don't like puzzles.

Solution: Don't solve them.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Also voted for "read the post from the beginning".

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: SG Elitists.

Solution: There won't be any.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

"leave the saltiness & bitterness out of this thread. Be concise & constructive."

If you are suggesting removing the people who make giveaways, maybe instead we should remove the ones which haven't made giveaways for years but still win games regularly and complain in the forums. In a community of giving things away, I doubt the second offers more value.


Better way to state it:
Problem: People complaining about others not giving gifts away as often or of as much value as they'd like.

Solution: Understanding that other people's socioeconomic situation may get in the way and their money is their's to do as they please.

(note: I don't think it's much of an excuse for not giving anything away since you can buy a game for 20 cents to give away to the community as a "thank-you" after multiple-wins).

8 years ago*
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I'm not suggesting anything, I merely said the problem, the simplest way.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem: People complaining about others not giving gifts away as often or of as much value as they'd like.

I'd add that and the solution to my own list if it weren't already too long. ;_;

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem : People complaning about being BL
Solution : Move on with life , since you cant have everyone to like you

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

P: 50% useless reroll tickets due to (already caught) rule-breakers not fixing their breakings.

S: Mandatory rectification of non-activated/multi-wins.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

interesting

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

for goodness sake mate change that picture - me eyes hurt ... how come it doesn't annoy you?

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

:( I just try not to look at my face :(

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

yeah me too ... me too :-D

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

This is a way better solution. One particular rule (multiple wins) have a sometimes difficult solution because most of these multiple wins come from developer giveaways and those devs don't give a fu** about rerolls.

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Problem : Replying to a certain people triggers you & made your mood bad
Solution : Ignore them or blacklist them and move on

Problem : "I'm new here, how to level up? How to make giveaway? I don't know the rules, I don't know that I can't give my won GA to other people"
Solution : SG need to make FAQ section as main page, or well at least make them accept term&service.. At least tried to make they read it :(

8 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Sign in through Steam to add a comment.