topic Re: First messages in BreakPoint

First messages

AeroSoul — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 06:10:02 GMT

A thread dedicated to first messages of possible future spam accounts that are often random or make no sense. I'll start with this one:

"First the audio is sampled, filling a block the size of the model."

Seen here.

Re: First messages

wiebe@CARYA — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 07:39:46 GMT

I'd post a few links, but if I spot one I notify a moderator and the message (and user) gets removed 😊.

BTW I make an effort (it's not always easy!) to give legit first time posters their first kudo. They need to earn it, but the level is low. Post a VI after it was asked for or accepting an answer and say thank? Your first kudo!

Re: First messages

GerdW — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 08:29:02 GMT

Hi AeroSoul,

@AeroSoul wrote:

I'll start with this one:

"First the audio is sampled, filling a block the size of the model."

Seen here.

Similar like that message I notified the moderators about that new member.

As the obvious link is missing I did not "mark as SPAM" immediately…

Re: First messages

altenbach — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 14:15:02 GMT

If you remember the hundreds of spams per night a few years ago, the forum has much better tools in place. (this also means that the spammers have adapted too 😞 ). Typically reporting to a moderator is sufficient and I am sure they have more tools to research a user.

Not all seemingly nonsense posts are by spammers. Sometimes there is a language barrier, etc. The bar for removal needs to be high.

Still, we might see such a user come back after days or weeks and add a spam signature to their profile and suddenly these spam links are added to all their old posts, confirming the original suspicion. It is worth to report all suspicion posts or profiles, even if they are not new. Once in a while I ran across something too.

I am happy how the system currently works. It is very good!

Re: First messages

jenniferbni — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 14:48:32 GMT

I have some input on this. So what happened is that I added a bunch of content filters for spam words I've seen lately. like "myb*lancenow". These filters prevent spam accounts from posting those phrases. I'm guessing that when they get the error they post the message anyway without them, hoping they'll get away with it after.

Re: First messages

altenbach — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 14:51:57 GMT

@AeroSoul wrote:

A thread dedicated to first messages of possible future spam accounts that are often random or make no sense. I'll start with this one:

"First the audio is sampled, filling a block the size of the model."

Sometimes you can do some simple detective work yourself. Spammers are not very creative, so they typically plagiarize well written text from existing sources. For example if you place the above sentence in quotes and do a google search, you'll find that it is a verbatim quote from elsewhere.

Re: First messages

jenniferbni — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 14:52:24 GMT

They are getting better at hiding their links in reaaaally tiny or white text, they also copy and paste old questions previously posted by somebody else as their own, making the posts seem "legit".

The good thing is we are getting better at catching them too.

Re: First messages

AeroSoul — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 06:19:35 GMT

The point of this thread wasn't to complain about spammers, it was to make fun of their seemingly nonsensical messages. 🙂

Re: First messages

wiebe@CARYA — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 08:30:43 GMT

@AeroSoul wrote:

The point of this thread wasn't to complain about spammers, it was to make fun of their seemingly nonsensical messages. 🙂

I got that. Just waiting to spot one...

For the record, both spam and legit 1st posts count, right? I hope a count <10 or so goes too? Your thread, your rules... (I'm sure we'll break them at some point 😂)

Re: First messages

AeroSoul — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 08:55:55 GMT

All first posts count yes and for the sake of it lets say from accounts with less than 10 messages 😄

Breaking is fine... no derailing though!

Re: First messages

altenbach — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 13:32:20 GMT

I always enjoy the Final Fantasy XIV questions in the Diadem forum. 😄 (they tend to disappear quickly)

Re: First messages

altenbach — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 13:36:30 GMT

wiebe@CARYA wrote:
For the record, both spam and legit 1st posts count, right?

They probably should be mostly legit because real spam posts tend to disappear quickly, making the links invalid.

Re: First messages

wiebe@CARYA — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 14:07:37 GMT

@altenbach wrote:

wiebe@CARYA wrote:
For the record, both spam and legit 1st posts count, right?

They probably should be mostly legit because real spam posts tend to disappear quickly, making the links invalid.

We can copy-paste the text...

Re: First messages

altenbach — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 16:55:52 GMT

From here: "I designed a program, but this has some error. "

Good. That really narrows it down! (At least now we know that the lab has not burned down yet :o).

(Note: This was his third message. He's been given detailed advice about serial communications (which seems to be the bulk of the task) for over a week now)

Re: First messages

wiebe@CARYA — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 17:49:00 GMT

@altenbach wrote:
From here: "I designed a program, but this has some error. "

"I will pay you if you wish to get credit for your work." is pretty funny too.

It wouldn't be out of place with Carnac the Magnificent.

Re: First messages

wiebe@CARYA — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 18:03:18 GMT

I wander if this is spam?

List yourself in SStreams� - NI Community

If so, it's the oldest (1999!). It's on the first (or last?) page of the forum.

SStreams isn't there anymore, but it routes to https://www.mathworks.com/.

Re: First messages

AeroSoul — Mon, 19 Jul 2021 06:09:34 GMT

@altenbach wrote:

From here: "I designed a program, but this has some error. "

I love the thread title too: "Labview"

Great work, helps narrow it down.

wiebe@CARYA wrote:

I wander if this is spam?

List yourself in SStreams� - NI Community

Wow, a 2 for one (the second message seems to be alt account from same user). Wonder why it says their account was created in 2001, if the posts are from 1999?

On the topic, i loved the guy from a couple of months ago, xipid or what was it?

Writing novels without heads or tails, often flamboyantly wrong code. He still comes around once in a while to update his thread titled something like "Perfect solution for my problem" (and updates it with new problem he's currently facing) 😄

Re: First messages

wiebe@CARYA — Mon, 19 Jul 2021 07:35:49 GMT

They are getting better. I didn't click the link, but didn't think of it as spam:

state space controller in labview

As the title suggests I've created a state space controller. I've tried to get this state space matrix into labview but i can't seem to get it to work. I've used the math script function and pasted the code and it has worked and shown the step response ive seen in matlab.

I tried using one example "SimEx statespace.vi" and reworking it with my figures but kept getting a error of "the dimensions of the parameter vectors of this function do not match".
Basically the idea is to build an inverted pendulum and have a signal from an encoder as an input and have the proportionate output to a stepper motor depending on its angle.

While using mathscipt works to show the step input im unsure if its appropriate for this purpose.

Any help or tips would be much a appreciated.

spam link removed spam link removed

Re: First messages

Henrik_Volkers — Mon, 19 Jul 2021 08:42:43 GMT

@AeroSoul wrote:

Wow, a 2 for one (the second message seems to be alt account from same user). Wonder why it says their account was created in 2001, if the posts are from 1999?

This happened due to a change in the forum software... in the last millenium the forum was linked to NNTP ..

With the 'new' forum software old post keep the timestamp, while the users registration timestamp was new 😄

here a capture of my old account.. 🙂

Re: First messages

AeroSoul — Mon, 19 Jul 2021 09:12:21 GMT

Damn, in 1999 i was starting elementary school 😅