Reinforcing Rule 6

[Danny]

6. English/Common posting habits - Use proper English when posting. Posts should be clear and follow basic grammar rules, have correct spelling, and should not contain excessive punctuation. It is recommended to use a browser with spell check and Grammarly. Also, avoid chain posting multiple times in a row. Use the edit button instead of making a chain post. This applies unless you are posting to update a thread, or bumping a thread with new information.

While I have nothing personally against anyone who is a non-native English speaker, I've been noticing a lot of newcomers making posts and threads with really hard to read grammar and spelling, which makes it hard to understand the user, especially when they're having trouble with something, or when they've made a seemingly useless and vague thread. With posts/threads like these on the rise, they're starting to become pretty noticeable, and it feels really petty and almost rude to use the report feature even if one of the reasons is completely valid, and it's clear that no one is really reporting in the first place.

I think Rule 6 should be reinforced a little more, that way posts and threads are easier to understand and there aren't any misrepresentations.

[Walder]

I agree, it feels rude to report it and the rule seems to a tad bit loose when it comes to execution.

[FireyPaperMario]

I actually agreed with Danny, many newcomers often breaks Rule 6 in their Very First post... And i think that needs to stop imo

[PixelPest]

I actually agreed with Danny, many newcomers often breaks Rule 6 in their Very First post... And i think that needs to stop imo

It really isn't as severe as this.

Anyway I definitely agree that needs some work and will look into it

[ShadowStarX]

I've personally got, though a rather far-fetched, idea that might be a partial solution.
What if we allowed some languages used with certain circumstances having to be met:
You can ask for help in an other language, as long as:

• You put the non-Englisht content in a spoiler tag
• You also try to express yourself in English
• Said text is one of the following languages: German, French, Spanish, Portugese, Italian, Russian, Chinese (or well I just listed some commonly spoken languages that might be considerable, but it's obviously up to the stafF) ~ though if this is considered unnecessary, it could just be removed as a restriction, I'm not the one to decide
• The non-English text meets the other forum rules

The reason why I had this idea is that there are many newcomers to SMBX between the age of 10 and 13, who know a bit of English but not enough to express themselves properly, and a few languages are also widely spoken. Also lots of non-native English community members are from areas that speak the languages I have listed above. (for example, Russian is spoken in Russia, Belarus mainly but also quite a bit in Ukraine)
This is just an idea and even I think it's potentially not as good as it might look on paper, but if it can be taken into consideration, it probably should.

[Cedur]

The problem is not that we wouldn't advice users with bad english enough to fix it through grammarly or a dictionary or actually learning. The problem is that some people are too young or immature at the same time or they have really high language barriers and can't express themselves. This doesn't get resolved if we try to take them by the hand or whatever.

This is an English-speaking forum and rule 6 clearly says that you must be able to express yourself and failing to do so will both confuse and annoy everyone else. This is a forum without any meta means to compensate for speech impediment or lack of common sense; whether this is good or bad may be anyone's guess, but these are the facts as they stand.

[Eri7]

Is there a possibility for the forums to have a "translate option" like in facebook , like for example , someone writes something in his own language and we can press the "translate tab" and have it be translated in english or a translate tab while someone is making a post and etc.

[Cedur]

Is there a possibility for the forums to have a "translate option" like in facebook , like for example , someone writes something in his own language and we can press the "translate tab" and have it be translated in english or a translate tab while someone is making a post and etc.

the outcome of this would be as bad as Google Translate.

[Taycamgame]

Aside from languages, i have noticed how some users, when annoyed, like to use full caps in their posts. Some use English but is not clear enough.
Take the following examples:

Full Caps: show

HELLO I AM TALKING TO YOU IN FULL CAPS PLEASE REPLY....

Unclear: show

hello i am stuck with editor pls help!!!

These are very basic examples, but i have noticed how some users do use these types of text in their posts. Especially regarding full caps, something needs to be done about this.

[aero]

I've personally got, though a rather far-fetched, idea that might be a partial solution.
What if we allowed some languages used with certain circumstances having to be met:
You can ask for help in an other language, as long as:

• You put the non-Englisht content in a spoiler tag
• You also try to express yourself in English
• Said text is one of the following languages: German, French, Spanish, Portugese, Italian, Russian, Chinese (or well I just listed some commonly spoken languages that might be considerable, but it's obviously up to the stafF) ~ though if this is considered unnecessary, it could just be removed as a restriction, I'm not the one to decide
• The non-English text meets the other forum rules

The reason why I had this idea is that there are many newcomers to SMBX between the age of 10 and 13, who know a bit of English but not enough to express themselves properly, and a few languages are also widely spoken. Also lots of non-native English community members are from areas that speak the languages I have listed above. (for example, Russian is spoken in Russia, Belarus mainly but also quite a bit in Ukraine)
This is just an idea and even I think it's potentially not as good as it might look on paper, but if it can be taken into consideration, it probably should.

Putting extra steps on people that speak a foreign language just wouldn't work out.

Is there a possibility for the forums to have a "translate option" like in facebook , like for example , someone writes something in his own language and we can press the "translate tab" and have it be translated in english or a translate tab while someone is making a post and etc.

There's an extension, but translation quality will be hit or miss because it's Google Translate: https://www.phpbb.com/customise/db/exte ... ranslator/ I think maybe a combination of this and asking people to use grammarly may work out much better.

[Thehelmetguy1]

idk if it would work out, since these tend to be inactive, but some sites have their own subforums for specific languages

[ElectriKong]

Unclear: show

hello i am stuck with editor pls help!!!

This is a bad example of unclear text since it isn't unclear at all. It would not be any more explicit adding the one word needed to correct the sentence. Maybe something like SMBX version I waiting next may be better (though still can be interpreted correctly).

[chuckster]

6. English/Common posting habits - Use proper English when posting. Posts should be clear and follow basic grammar rules, have correct spelling, and should not contain excessive punctuation. It is recommended to use a browser with spell check and Grammarly. Also, avoid chain posting multiple times in a row. Use the edit button instead of making a chain post. This applies unless you are posting to update a thread, or bumping a thread with new information.

While I have nothing personally against anyone who is a non-native English speaker, I've been noticing a lot of newcomers making posts and threads with really hard to read grammar and spelling, which makes it hard to understand the user, especially when they're having trouble with something, or when they've made a seemingly useless and vague thread. With posts/threads like these on the rise, they're starting to become pretty noticeable, and it feels really petty and almost rude to use the report feature even if one of the reasons is completely valid, and it's clear that no one is really reporting in the first place.

I think Rule 6 should be reinforced a little more, that way posts and threads are easier to understand and there aren't any misrepresentations.

Absolutely. If you don't report these things, they'll never learn which means they'll never stop virtually until an admin takes extra measure.

I know it may be hard to hit the report button but still, so many misinterpretations happen which often leads to unnecessary fights ect ect you know the drill.

The sad truth is a very large percentage of newcomers do not read the rules, which often leads to this.

Edit: Talking about Google translate, if you want to know how horrific it is and want proof, I have provided you all with some top notch evidence:

Very High Quality Evidence: show

[Cedur]

also another trend about posting habits that has come up in 2018 is some people capitalizing every single word.

This is a bad example of unclear text since it isn't unclear at all. It would not be any more explicit adding the one word needed to correct the sentence.

it's clear in terms of language but not clear in terms of context so anyone posting like that in Help & Support will be asked to specify their issue

[Taycamgame]

Didn't think it was unclear, i guess having good grammar all the time stops you from saying unclear things.

[arcade999]

6. English/Common posting habits - Use proper English when posting. Posts should be clear and follow basic grammar rules, have correct spelling, and should not contain excessive punctuation. It is recommended to use a browser with spell check and Grammarly. Also, avoid chain posting multiple times in a row. Use the edit button instead of making a chain post. This applies unless you are posting to update a thread, or bumping a thread with new information.

While I have nothing personally against anyone who is a non-native English speaker, I've been noticing a lot of newcomers making posts and threads with really hard to read grammar and spelling, which makes it hard to understand the user, especially when they're having trouble with something, or when they've made a seemingly useless and vague thread. With posts/threads like these on the rise, they're starting to become pretty noticeable, and it feels really petty and almost rude to use the report feature even if one of the reasons is completely valid, and it's clear that no one is really reporting in the first place.

I think Rule 6 should be reinforced a little more, that way posts and threads are easier to understand and there aren't any misrepresentations.

Absolutely. If you don't report these things, they'll never learn which means they'll never stop virtually until an admin takes extra measure.

I know it may be hard to hit the report button but still, so many misinterpretations happen which often leads to unnecessary fights ect ect you know the drill.

The sad truth is a very large percentage of newcomers do not read the rules, which often leads to this.
what was the original sentence supposed to mean?
Edit: Talking about Google translate, if you want to know how horrific it is and want proof, I have provided you all with some top notch evidence:

Very High Quality Evidence: show

[Mr tamales]

Hello my friends I am from Peru and I would like to speak with people who speak Spanish

[Cedur]

Instead of having language subforums, if someone wants to communicate in their own language, they can be invited by a fellow countryman to form a group DM on Discord or whatever.

[ShadowStarX]

Not completely, but still quite related to this topic: I've had the idea that we should perhaps have a field in one's profile where they can tell what languages they can speak?
This might be able to help newcomers in finding somebody who could communicate with them in their native language or a non-english foreign language they speak or understand.

The field could be named "Languages Spoken" or something among those lines.

[Eri7]

Not completely, but still quite related to this topic: I've had the idea that we should perhaps have a field in one's profile where they can tell what languages they can speak?
This might be able to help newcomers in finding somebody who could communicate with them in their native language or a non-english foreign language they speak or understand.

The field could be named "Languages Spoken" or something among those lines.

Also it should include the language level because some people speak a language on a certain level and others might expect them to speak it perfect, example , I speak German on B1 level but if people don't know that , they will expect me to speak it on C2 level.