How to close comments on older blog entries? (To avoid annoying comment spam)

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foobar

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Master Geek

Topic # 17833 14-Dec-2007 06:43

Hello!

I keep getting some annoying comment spam (CAPTCHA didn't help). Usually, it's in spurts that cover all of my blog entries (one piece of spam per entry). So, I'm wondering if I could just close/disable the comments on older blog entries, which really don't get many legitimate comments anymore anyway. I would still like to keep the comments visible, just not allow new ones on those older entries...

Is there a way to do that?

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BDFL - Memuneh
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Reply # 99874 14-Dec-2007 07:21

Are you receiving comments or trackbacks?

You can disable trackbacks in your blog configuration page and you can disable comments on old blog entries individually, without hiding comments already there - do this on each blog post.

I don't see comment spam though - trackback spam is much more common and this is easier to control, simply disabling it.

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foobar

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Master Geek

Reply # 99879 14-Dec-2007 08:02

freitasm: Are you receiving comments or trackbacks?

Good point. It's trackbacks, actually. I guess I'll have to disable it then. Bummer, but what can you do...?

Thank you for pointing it out.

hellonearthisman

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Reply # 99949 14-Dec-2007 14:33

I am getting spam comments also, from the same user and in the same style, like a bots doing it.

message is

all about yahoremonila and top news

or

all about %username and top news

The user this time was yahoremonila

freitasm

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Reply # 99950 14-Dec-2007 14:36

Trackbacks are very different from comments. Trackbacks are sent from one server to another and can not be "verified" by e-mail. Hence the best option is to turn that off.

Comments are "human" and that's why we send out an e-mail - if an spammer uses a bot then there's off course no e-mail "verification" possible then the comment won't show up.

Since Trackbacks are an automated process you must approve each individually, unlike comments where you can choose to be notified after the comment is "verified" only which reduces the attack surface - and annoyance.

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foobar

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Master Geek

Reply # 99952 14-Dec-2007 14:40

hellonearthisman:
message is

all about yahoremonila and top news

or

all about %username and top news

The user this time was yahoremonila

Yes, same here. Really dumb. No idea what that's about, and I don't care either. But they do come as a trackback, as Mauricio pointed out.

hellonearthisman

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Reply # 99972 14-Dec-2007 17:00

My mistake, it was a trackback. They are aways the same forumla, can't they be filtered?

I have changed my http://www.geekzone.co.nz/blogconfig.asp to not trackback.

Is the trackback off in the blog configeration by default?

I had a look at turning off trackback in my existing blog posts, but cant find out how/where to do that.

thanks

freitasm

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Reply # 99981 14-Dec-2007 18:27

Trackbacks are on/off for all posts in your blog, so once you turn it off you don't have to go back to your posts.

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hellonearthisman

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Reply # 99989 14-Dec-2007 18:58

Thanks, I only got a little confused.

Nice.

dmw

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Master Geek

Reply # 100000 14-Dec-2007 19:33

It sounds like TrackBacks were originally a good idea, but now cease to be, due to spammers?

freitasm

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Reply # 100002 14-Dec-2007 19:38

It is an essential things on blogs... To let people know who linked to whom. But spammers realised there's less validation on this since there's no "human" involvement in the process and most blogs simply show whatever trackback is sent.

So yes, very good idea, shame for the spammers...

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dmw

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Reply # 100004 14-Dec-2007 19:53

But if it is "essential", why is there the option to turn it off?

Like the other people posting in this thread, I would rather turn it off than have to manually delete spammed trackbacks. Does turning off comments on a blog posting also turn off trackbacks?

It would appear to me that trackbacks, like comments, are only useful for a month or so after the last comment to a post. Why not write a feature that automatically turns off trackbacks after a set "expiry period", on a per post basis?

Or am I missing some other essential information?

freitasm

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Reply # 100006 14-Dec-2007 19:58

It is not "essential". It's "good to have".

As I replied before, you turn Trackback off in the Blog Configuration page - hellonearthisman has posted the link already.

Comments and Trackbacks are completely different features and you can turn Comments on and off independently of turning Trackbacks on and off. The only difference in management is that you can turn Comments on and off on a more granular level, on a post by post basis if you want.

And congratulations on posting the 100,000th reply on Geekzone.

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Reply # 100014 14-Dec-2007 20:26

freitasm: And congratulations on posting the 100,000th reply on Geekzone.

Does dmw get a prize pack?

dmw

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Master Geek

Reply # 100023 14-Dec-2007 20:47

100,000! Goodness -- I didn't write much.

Anyway, I understand that comments and trackbacks are different. And I have turned off trackbacks.

But if they are "good to have", then presumably it is better if I don't have to turn them off, wholesale.

So, as someone who has a tendency to ask "why", I'd like to know Why it is possible to turn off comments at a posting level, but trackbacks can only be configured at a blog level?

freitasm

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Reply # 100032 14-Dec-2007 21:43

I coded the functionality this way because I believe sometimes individual blog entries might not need comments or attract the wrong type of comments, while I didn't (and don't) think Trackbacks required this granularity - seeing that they were much more targeted as automated attacks, therefore individual blog post entry management would be a pain.

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