The first version of the digital-only music swap 2020 is up for comments / testing.
posted to MetaTalk by signal at 4:00 PM on June 28, 2020 (66 comments)

Following on from the massive work done by the POC community within MetaFilter, it was suggested in that MeTa that we set up a thread as a sort of “White Caucus”. Welcome to that thread!
posted to MetaTalk by greenish at 12:24 PM on January 23, 2020 (107 comments)

What are the general feelings on doing a digital-only MeFiMusicSwap?
posted to MetaTalk by signal at 10:57 AM on May 29, 2020 (45 comments)

I'm finding art is a really useful thing for putting my brain somewhere other than *waves hands around floridly* for a while. And I know a lot of folks on MetaFilter make art, or have made art, or would like to make art. So, hey: let's make some art! Good art, bad art, first-timer art. Let's make stuff, and talk about stuff you'd like to make, and share what you're making, and share resources and guides and inspiration and so on.
posted to MetaTalk by cortex at 5:36 PM on March 27, 2020 (95 comments)

Lots of us are terrified without a sense that we can control anything about the COVID-19 pandemic besides staying in our homes. But there are plenty of things we can be doing as citizens to organize and help each other out. Let's create a space to talk about what we are personally doing and why to keep one another safe.
posted to MetaTalk by sciatrix at 9:02 AM on March 19, 2020 (35 comments)

After an unbelievable sequence of events that went “beyond tragedy to farce,” and after personal hardships only worth mentioning if she so chooses, and even more than four years of med school study, and after more extra science study because she had already had an established career in a completely different field... ...and after a metric crapton of MeFite support for a beloved member... I am thrilled to introduce M.D. ocherdraco, M.D., who graduated today.
posted to MetaTalk by St. Hubbins at 6:09 PM on December 20, 2019 (133 comments)

What's Jessamyn's phrasing for always giving people the benefit of the doubt and reading their words.... generously....? Argh, I can't think of the phrase she used to always use.
posted to MetaTalk by Brandon Blatcher at 11:38 AM on November 1, 2019 (23 comments)

I apologize for the late notice on this, but we need someone to take over running secret quonsar if it is to happen this year. secret quonsar - which is our holiday-adjacent gift exchange - is a lot of work, but it makes the community happy.
posted to MetaTalk by julen at 2:55 PM on October 19, 2019 (43 comments)

My dearest mefites: back in August, I asked for the favor of encouragement from the community to get through a difficult exam. I’m so pleased to report that I PASSED STEP 2 CS! I get to graduate from medical school this December!
posted to MetaTalk by ocherdraco at 4:54 PM on October 16, 2019 (113 comments)

I'd always thought MeFi site searches were pretty much comprehensive, but last night I came across several search terms that were clearly missing content. Has anyone else noticed this behavior in the past, or could this be a new bug?
posted to MetaTalk by Rhaomi at 11:56 AM on September 19, 2019 (10 comments)

I have used
the poem
that we have all
abused so badly

and many
of the versions
that MeFites created

Forgive me
it was for a class
on text and audience
and the students seemed to like it

posted to MetaTalk by Ghidorah at 8:16 PM on September 10, 2019 (33 comments)

Looking for a FPP that I think was from NPR. It was a series of articles where the writer paired a brunch recipe with an album. I've tried searching on here to no avail. Halp?
posted to MetaTalk by too bad you're not me at 11:12 AM on August 13, 2019 (7 comments)

In this recent MeTa, the community discussed the ways in which Metafilter does not serve people of color well. So this post is a space for discussion, dedicated for people of color. If you identify as a person of color, and you have suggestions, complaints, or just thoughts about the site, please share them here!
posted to MetaTalk by restless_nomad at 11:39 AM on June 6, 2019 (351 comments)

We're gonna try allowing friend-linking on the front page of MetaFilter—that is, linking to stuff on the web made by someone you are friends with or have a personal connection to. Come on inside and I'll talk about why, and lay out some expectations and guidelines.
posted to MetaTalk by cortex at 10:03 AM on May 10, 2019 (115 comments)

crouton petting, n.

1. the state of feeling or expressing an anthropomorphized fondness, affection, or compassion for inanimate objects
2. the state of just literally petting some actual croutons

MetaFilter has only been able to accommodate that first definition (cf. this discussion among others)...until now. Thanks to recent improvements in both baking and recombinant genetics, we're happy to announce the opening of the world's first interactive Crouton Petting Zoo.
posted to MetaTalk by cortex at 2:31 AM on April 1, 2019 (302 comments)

I was looking at the wiki and I noticed that the last mixtape swap was in 2014. I think it could be fun to have another one, maybe through making playlists on a streaming music service like Spotify. I have never run a swap before though.
posted to MetaTalk by CMcG at 6:01 PM on March 13, 2019 (50 comments)

The US political cycle is creeping into the beginning of the 2020 primary season, and that means we need to talk about avoiding the stuff that has gone badly on MetaFilter in previous election cycles. That means folks making a collective effort to avoid the worse discussion dynamics we've seen in the past, and it means the mod team pushing hard when folks aren't succeeding at that effort.
posted to MetaTalk by cortex at 11:50 AM on January 13, 2019 (468 comments)

I've had kind of a hard week, and, this weekend, I'd like to hear some stories of positive MetaFilter interactions. So please, speak to me of kindnesses and humor from other MeFites, onsite and off. Comments that buoyed your spirits, interactions that made the murky clear, friendships made and expanded. I could use a little schmoopy right now.
posted to MetaTalk by GenjiandProust at 1:33 PM on January 4, 2019 (84 comments)

Can I just mention and thank MovableBookLady for a regular series of consistently thoughtful, interesting and informative posts to the blue? The breadth of subject she posts about is truly educational. I consider myself reasonably well read and educated but I've learned so much General Knowledge (used to be a VI form subject when I was a gel - is it still?) stuff I would never have come across without her posts.
posted to MetaTalk by glasseyes at 5:15 AM on October 17, 2018 (49 comments)

I've gotten enough recipes to make this doc worth sharing. It can be found directly on Google Docs as well as through the wiki. Please let me know if any changes, additions, or corrections need to be made!
posted to MetaTalk by brilliantine at 11:01 AM on August 23, 2018 (30 comments)

In the wake of gman's death, I have been thinking about how unexpected kindnesses and generosity have improved my life and the lives of many others. I find such stories inspirational and comforting. Have you had such an experience? Please share your story.
posted to MetaTalk by Bella Donna at 7:15 AM on July 23, 2018 (60 comments)

Recently, I announced that MetaFilter was in serious financial trouble, and asked you to help with additional community funding of the site.

Y'all have really, really come through. Recurring contributions supporting the site are up by almost $10,000 a month and growing, erasing our current shortfall and helping move MetaFilter toward a more sustainable, independent revenue model. Community funding alone now covers very nearly half our operating budget. That's amazing.

Come on in and I'll give you the details on what's happened and what we're up to next.
posted to MetaTalk by cortex at 12:00 PM on June 28, 2018 (157 comments)

Important site updates, folks:

1. The site is running at a significant deficit and we urgently need to make that up. Part of that is through additional direct community funding; you can help here.
2. We're looking at—and inviting community input on—several big-picture questions.

Today I want to lay out our budget and income streams, to explain where we're at and what we need to accomplish. I'll also talk a bit about how the community is doing, and what's coming up in the future.
posted to MetaTalk by cortex at 3:54 PM on June 13, 2018 (1003 comments)

Tired of increasingly bloated, over-designed web interfaces? Looking for a way to enjoy your content without all the dozens of JavaScript trackers and endless needless geegaws? Give the new MetaFilter Reader interface a shot! Clean, classic design; mobile friendly; it even comes with its own games!
posted to MetaTalk by cortex at 10:15 PM on March 31, 2018 (136 comments)

Hey folks, big discussion time. We're going to be making some changes on how U.S. political discussion plays out on MetaFilter, to try and make sure it remains available as a useful resource in a way that isn't as unsustainable as the current approach has been. I’ll lay out some concrete steps we’re taking, and some general thoughts, below. This is detailed but important and I appreciate you taking the time to read through it.
posted to MetaTalk by cortex at 7:45 AM on November 28, 2017 (466 comments)

It's that time of the year again: the MeFi Mall is open for 2017. If you'd like to be listed there, add your shop now.
posted to MetaTalk by frimble at 10:13 AM on November 6, 2017 (14 comments)

When I click "Random" to generate a random AskMe question, I'm constantly taken to this question about DVD commentary tracks. Why would this be the case? I probably hit it once every few days? It seems statistically unlikely with a random generator?
posted to MetaTalk by Dressed to Kill at 8:34 AM on June 21, 2017 (145 comments)

Well, not much has happened over the past year, and things have been pretty easy for the mods, so I hesitate to even make a post to celebrate Moderators' Day this year. It seems a bit off to thank the mods for all their hard work, thoughtfulness, excellent communication skills, and infinite patience when they have basically been lounging by the pool at MetaFilter World Headquarters eating bonbons and /hamburgers all year.
posted to MetaTalk by Rock Steady at 5:25 AM on June 13, 2017 (100 comments)

I was just told I got tenure, and it is in no small part thanks to all of you at MetaFilter. I joined the site in grad school, where MeFi both kept me sane and educated me on a lot of topics and perspectives that I otherwise would never have learned about. But the debt I owe you all is more direct than that: my best-cited paper actually came directly from reading a post by griphus in 2012; RAs I hired from MeFi Jobs helped me research two other critical papers; and Ask has come through for me about research and teaching many times. So thank you all, I have been a member of this great community for 13(!!) years, and, despite the ups and downs of the site over that time, I realize how lucky I am to be part of it.
posted to MetaTalk by blahblahblah at 5:28 PM on May 1, 2017 (82 comments)

If you noticed a subtle font change on MetaFilter in the Modern theme in the last day or so, you're not hallucinating: one of the web fonts we use, Montserrat, got tweaked by its designer in a way that's affected us and a ton of other websites. Come inside for some details!
posted to MetaTalk by cortex at 9:15 AM on February 10, 2017 (95 comments)

We've received a large volume of user complaints in the last few months about performance issues with our current version of reality, and so today we're rolling out some fantasy instead to see if that can help take the strain off. Please help us beta test this new initiative with the Faves & Flags Character Sheet Generator. Want more detail? Check out what little remains of the original game manual (or a more legible and screen-reader friendly OCR version here).
posted to MetaTalk by cortex at 1:30 PM on April 1, 2017 (593 comments)

Research breakthrough from Mefi's own Buckt - ant butt rides [project) - 2013.
posted to MetaTalk by unliteral at 9:06 AM on February 15, 2017 (7 comments)

Etiquette question. I was sure - but am now thinking I was mistaken - that one was required to exercise a degree of caution or decorum for how masturbation was mentioned and/or described in posts on the blue. Why, I don't know or can't remember. Ergo, I skipped daintily around the word in a recent post, but a subsequent blunt comment didn't elicit any adverse reactions. Searches across both MetaTalk and the blue don't turn up contentious vexations, so was I mistaken and it's okay to mention masturbation in any broad manner and context, or not?
posted to MetaTalk by Wordshore at 3:28 PM on February 2, 2017 (75 comments)

Since this is the time of year that a lot of people think of trying to become more physically active, I wanted to remind everyone that there is a MetaFilter Strava group which is open to everyone. We are a friendly group and welcome everyone that wants to come and share their cycling or running, so join up if you haven't already.
posted to MetaTalk by Literaryhero at 9:30 PM on January 3, 2017 (14 comments)

Somewhere either on the blue or green someone linked to a YouTube video of a 6 year old playing with their star trek action figures. Spock is wearing an apron. Kirk goes on a mission to trade a hash brown for some eggs. Everyone is in a band. I quote it daily.
posted to MetaTalk by FirstMateKate at 9:06 PM on October 21, 2016 (26 comments)

With so many Mefites volunteering for the coming US elections (some in a coordinated fashion), I think a MeTa is in order. Come on in to share tips, stories, encouragement, and more!
posted to MetaTalk by ThePinkSuperhero at 5:18 AM on October 19, 2016 (138 comments)

What are the unoffical spinoff sites? There's MetaChat - "an informal place for MeFites to touch base and post, discuss and chatter about topics that may not belong on MetaFilter." MonkeyFilter, GameFilter - "A good post to Gamefilter is a link or set of links to something that is related to gaming, gamers, or gaming culture." and MeFightClub - " started way back in ye olde 2007 as an offshoot community of Metafilter (a site where members are collectively known as 'Mefites', and that's how we get to 'Mefight' Club), dedicated to having a safe, groovy place to hang out together and play and talk about the games we love." Are there others?
posted to MetaTalk by the man of twists and turns at 4:16 PM on October 2, 2016 (40 comments)

On June 26th 2015, as the U.S. celebrated marriage equality, my then girlfriend said with joyful certainty and a beaming smile "This means you're gonna be my wife someday." On Friday June 3rd 2016, Tina and I were married in our lovely backyard garden surrounded by close friends and loved ones. And *THAT* dear mefites, was the sweetest kiss I've ever had.
posted to MetaTalk by Annika Cicada at 6:37 AM on June 5, 2016 (127 comments)

The cultural appropriation thread here went very, very poorly, and I think it highlights a pattern in ways we interact with people of color and talk about issues of race here on Metafilter that create a hostile environment for PoC. I want to bring up some of the tropes we saw in the FPP, and highlight them as specific suggestions as to what I need our community to do and be mindful of going forward, so we don't continue to alienate PoC on this website.
posted to MetaTalk by Conspire at 6:33 PM on October 22, 2015 (584 comments)

Today is the first day of the United State's National Poetry Month. In celebration, I was hoping my fellow metafites would share their favorite poems/lines of poetry.
posted to MetaTalk by CMcG at 7:16 AM on April 1, 2016 (126 comments)

In the What's New thread a while back, I mentioned I was having heart surgery and being terrified. I received a lot of well wishes from mefites, to which I would like to respond, collectively, Thank You. I've just gotten home this evening to an enormous pile of mail, but I wanted to drop a quick line to say thanks and that I'll reply later in this thread (maybe on the weekend) with any gory details etc. I'm too tired now, but just wanted to show my face.
posted to MetaTalk by pjern at 7:00 PM on March 30, 2016 (56 comments)

So MeFi user Brian B. has chosen to use the recent Scientology thread to spread a bit of good old-fashioned antisemitism, selective quotes from the Talmud styley, explaining why, apparently, Jews believe is it ok to murder non-Jews, something my own rabbi omitted to mention at any point, starting here and continuing through the thread. As I am relatively new to posting here, I would like to ask what is the MeFi etiquette for dealing with a fellow MeFite who wants to use the site to spread racist propaganda of this sort. Because right now I am breathing very slowly and deeply and still seeing everything through an extremely red mist and I would appreciate some suggestions.
posted to MetaTalk by motty at 3:18 PM on May 13, 2007 (1719 comments)

I saw this on The Mary Sue, referring to this document which has the thread, annotated. The original being here.
posted to MetaTalk by mephron at 7:46 PM on January 6, 2016 (678 comments)

Last April, I posted a FPP on Down the Rabbit Hole, a site collecting observations about estranged parent support forums. The FPP went really well and generated some really good discussion. Today, I glanced at Down the Rabbit Hole and noted that the author had added FAQs, including some of the questions that MeFites had had about the original post. One of them prominently cites MeFi's own robot-hugs' comment as a partial answer to the question "where are the estranged fathers?"
posted to MetaTalk by sciatrix at 3:45 PM on December 16, 2015 (17 comments)

Please take an informal, light-hearted survey that is designed to let us all discover some fun, fascinating and potentially insightful things about MetaFilter and each other. Here is the link to The Big MetaFilter Survey 2015.
posted to MetaTalk by Rock Steady at 10:18 AM on September 14, 2015 (237 comments)

Inspired by this post about the XKCD Survey and this comment by The Underwear Monster, I thought it might be fun to do a Big MeFi Survey along the same lines - mostly goofy questions that we can sic our local datawranglers on and see what fun, weird, fascinating things drop out.
posted to MetaTalk by Rock Steady at 11:13 AM on September 3, 2015 (318 comments)

Posting to the front page of Metafilter can seem daunting, mysterious, and/or fraught with with uncertain outcomes. (Spoiler: It is easier than it might look.) If you have never or rarely posted a FPP but would like to, we’re here to help. Stretch your wings in September!
posted to MetaTalk by julen at 5:22 AM on September 1, 2015 (92 comments)

In one sense, of course, it obviously is. It says "Community weblog" right under the title! But there are other meanings of community. I was really struck by feckless fecal fear mongering's comment in the emotional labor MeTa thread: "You've got family here. Yeah, online never substitutes for someone who can touch your shoulder. And... there's thousands and thousands of people right here in this community who have demonstrated they'll give and give and give... Not that whole "I heard a thing and I care for five minutes." Real, true, love and caring for another human being; "shared pain is lessened; shared joy is increased. Thus do we refute entropy." Mefi? Mefi actually does that shit. Mefi actually cares--look at the whole NYC sex worker thing a few years ago, or really anything on AskMe. People here give a fuck." To what extent is this how we see MetaFilter?
posted to MetaTalk by escabeche at 4:26 PM on August 24, 2015 (250 comments)

In an interview discussing how the Internet is largely garbage (which is what her new book is about), Sarah Jeong mentions MetaFilter in passing as a curious exception.

Metafilter is an unusually good online community, for many, many reasons, including robust moderation and a $5 sign-up fee. For obvious reasons, most platforms can’t just become Metafilter. Social media platforms are really struggling with these problems right now, and are resorting to some tactics that I criticize in the book as either unethical or doomed to fail.

posted to MetaTalk by ignignokt at 8:43 AM on July 23, 2015 (70 comments)

There was a longish comment by a person who does design/UX work for Wikipedia about what a huge pain in the ass it was, getting everything AOK across hundreds of different language sites and all the rest. This was offered as a plausible explanation for why the site does not change its looks very often. I liked this comment and I think we mentioned it on a podcast. My Googling, it does nothing. Do you remember?
posted to MetaTalk by jessamyn at 7:05 AM on June 16, 2015 (22 comments)