Sidosi

This announcement is just a quick one to explain the changes that have occurred as a result of updating the forum software and adding new anti-spam measures.

Forum Software Update

• The old style (with the Sidosi logo and Solresol background) was lost with the update. A new site-wide style will be made as part of the "Website Design" plan in the latest State of Sidosi. Please endure the default style for a little while.
• The music note and color Solresol BBCodes, as well as the buttons to add them to a post, are currently not displayed. This bug will be one of the next things worked on.
• Other undiscovered bugs could be present. Please report any issues in the Website Issues forum.

Anti-Spam Measures

• Google's No CAPTCHA reCAPTCHA was added to the user registration page. Instead of the usual "random letters" puzzle, there is a checkbox that users click. If the reCAPTCHA detects the user as suspicious, the user will have to solve an image-matching puzzle.
• Users with less than three posts are now restricted in the following ways: their posts have to be manually approved before they will be displayed, and they cannot message or email other users through the forum system. Once three posts have been approved, the restrictions are lifted. Note that this applies retroactively, so please make some posts to quickly get past the restrictions.
• Sidosi is now equipped with Stop Forum Spam, which identifies possible spammers based on username, email address, and IP address. The aforementioned measures will likely stop all automated spammers, but this tool will fill the gap and allow any spammers (automated or human) that get through to be reported to the Stop Forum Spam database for future reference. If you are blocked by the system, there is little I can do, so your best bet would be to submit a removal request on the Stop Forum Spam website.

That's it for now. The next few plans for Sidosi are minor, so progress will likely be posted in my Work Journal. I wanted to make the details of this update prominent, since there could be side effects from bugs or the anti-spam protections.