fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #2363 ]

⌈ Secret Post #2363 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 05 pages, 118 secrets from Secret Submission Post #337.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 1 - not!secrets ], [ 1 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Eh, a couple reasons.

1) Hatred of Tumblr and all things associated with Tumblr

2) The desire to actually have searchable tags without clogging up the tag list

I don't understand the vehement hatred, but that second point makes the frivolous tags kind of annoying to me. You can see the list of tags used, so if you want to read fic and don't quite know what to look for, you can browse...and so many of the tags are meaningless, which gets frustrating after a while. Also, there are currently 315,847 tags under "freeform" -- do you really not think that's causing problems for the wranglers?

(I might be more annoyed about this than I originally thought.)

Yes, I agree that it may be difficult for the wranglers. On the other hand, the existing tag system seems quite handy to me (different experiences, perhaps) - and many of the not-so-very-meaningful filterable tags are merged with more general ones; say, "perfect red hair" goes under the "hair" category.

I'm starting to think that I've just had a more positive experience with the tagging system than the majority of people around. IDK why. I even lurk in the Sherlock fandom, and this one must be the embodiment of everything that is wrong with tumblr habits. Maybe the clue is that I don't look for very specific things.

Possibly different experiences, yeah, but I've run across fics tagged only with the non-searchable tags or tags that the wranglers haven't grouped yet, and finding those fics again is impossible. They also clog up any search, because you can't just subtract all the ridiculous tags you can think of, which makes finding relevant tags a little hard.

Do you post much fic? Because a lot of my complaints are posting related, so that might be it too.

Aw, I see. There definitely is a problem with subtraction.

I do post some, but I don't have any difficulties with this, since all my works belong to very obscure fandoms that do not really have any tags. Sometimes I create new ones - I try to be reasonable when doing it. Admittedly, I do use surplus unfilterable tags in some works; but they normally refer to things so insignificant that they could hardly need to be subtractable.

Well, the freeform tags do serve a purpose as a badfic warning, so I know not to even bother clicking on the link.

All the freeform tags? o_o Or do you mean the tumblr-style ones only?

DA

I suspect they mean the tumblr-style ones, since that's what most people seem to dislike about them.

DA (Well, not really anon, but you get the idea...)

Yes, all the freeform tags. I never read anything labeled "freeform." What the hell does that even mean? It mostly just sounds pretentious. Like the author thinks their work is so "out there" and "different" that the whole fandom needs to know.

I guess you mean the ones that are non-searchable and hence look like this: "Thingie - Freeform". Because, strictly speaking, "all the freeform tags" mean, well, all the freeform tags - everything but the relationship&characters sections. And not reading anything tagged with freeform means not reading anything at all.

Oops. No, I mean like the "Freeform -- FrostIron = True love!" Like those ones.

Oh, those show up for a specific reason.

From the FAQ:

Why do some tags appear with '- Freeform' or '- Character' after them?

Each tag belongs to a category - Relationship, Character, Fandom, etc. Tag names must be unique, so if a tag already exists in one category, then when it is used in another category, the Archive automatically adds the name of the category as a suffix.

For example:

* Buffyfan1 puts in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" as a fandom tag. A new tag is created.

* Buffyfan2 puts in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" in as a character tag. Oh noes - this tag name is taken and can't be reused! So the Archive changes it to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Character".

Result:

XanderGirl5 can click on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Character" and find all works which feature Buffy as a character.

* The Archive has unique tag names and so the database does not melt.

* Everyone is happy.

I wish I could say I never read anything with "freeform" but alas it seems every single fic in my fandom lately is labeled as "freeform". I don't even know what the fuck it means, to tell the truth.

I was just checking AO3 for updates in my fandom and someone labeled as "attack of the second person" - I don't understand why they wouldn't just say "second person" as a tag. Why the need for more? This isn't your journal this is an archive and tags serve a specific purpose. Can you imagine if all archives had tag freedom like AO3? What a mess.

[ SECRET POST #2363 ]

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)

Re: AO3 Tags (Why the Hate?)