Helloooo gender fail
Dec. 14th, 2009 10:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rhythmiaFollowing links around, but the main points are from ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ilyena_sylph here and synecdochic on dreamwidth here.
Basically, for targeted advertising reasons, LJ intends to implement a requirement that you pick one, male or female. No more unspecified option (which I originally chose because I don't want to get ads) and no option to be other.
Yeah, a world of NO.
1) Reinforcing a gender binary, which is hurtful to anyone in the trans, genderqueer, that whole spectrum of people who just don't identify with one or the other.
2) Makes it easier to target crappy ads. Partly why I started out with basic all those years ago and never upgraded. Who wants to identify female and get bombarded with dieting ads?
The blogs above have links to where you can leave (politely worded please) feedback and show how you can change your current settings to unspecified before they implement.
I'm open for discussion or ranting or whatever in the comments.
Edit: The backpedaling has begun!
Thank you for taking the time to contact us with your concerns. We understand that gender is not binary, and intend to respect that understanding for our users.
At this time, the code you reference is not live on the site, and will not become so in the future. We know that you, and many other users, have serious concerns about any requirement to specify gender, so we'd like to take a moment to explain events and our position further.
The intention of this code was to change the sign-up process to include a field for the selection of gender; that the code would completely disable the "Unspecified" option at the same time was deemed unacceptable. While the code in question had gone to our beta (testing) server, it had not gone to our production server, and will not do so due to this problem. Furthermore, we'd like to clarify that code posted to the changelog community is not always final, as such code must then go through the beta testing process and can often be changed before actual implementation.
Additionally, some erroneous information has been spread regarding the potential public display of the gender field. We would like to clarify that gender is not currently publicly displayed on the profile, nor anywhere else on the site, and there are no plans to change this behavior.
Regards,
LiveJournal Community Care Team
ilyena_sylph here and synecdochic on dreamwidth here.Basically, for targeted advertising reasons, LJ intends to implement a requirement that you pick one, male or female. No more unspecified option (which I originally chose because I don't want to get ads) and no option to be other.
Yeah, a world of NO.
1) Reinforcing a gender binary, which is hurtful to anyone in the trans, genderqueer, that whole spectrum of people who just don't identify with one or the other.
2) Makes it easier to target crappy ads. Partly why I started out with basic all those years ago and never upgraded. Who wants to identify female and get bombarded with dieting ads?
The blogs above have links to where you can leave (politely worded please) feedback and show how you can change your current settings to unspecified before they implement.
I'm open for discussion or ranting or whatever in the comments.
Edit: The backpedaling has begun!
Thank you for taking the time to contact us with your concerns. We understand that gender is not binary, and intend to respect that understanding for our users.
At this time, the code you reference is not live on the site, and will not become so in the future. We know that you, and many other users, have serious concerns about any requirement to specify gender, so we'd like to take a moment to explain events and our position further.
The intention of this code was to change the sign-up process to include a field for the selection of gender; that the code would completely disable the "Unspecified" option at the same time was deemed unacceptable. While the code in question had gone to our beta (testing) server, it had not gone to our production server, and will not do so due to this problem. Furthermore, we'd like to clarify that code posted to the changelog community is not always final, as such code must then go through the beta testing process and can often be changed before actual implementation.
Additionally, some erroneous information has been spread regarding the potential public display of the gender field. We would like to clarify that gender is not currently publicly displayed on the profile, nor anywhere else on the site, and there are no plans to change this behavior.
Regards,
LiveJournal Community Care Team
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2009-12-15 02:00 pm (UTC)It looks like they're claiming it was a beta problem? meh. Like I believe that.
I'm confused though. I think I'm a premium member, but I've never seen ads. I thought the regular accounts got them.
. . . I'm fervently hoping that this doesn't mean that I'm getting them and don't even notice *__* Because that would be embarrassing and a little scary.
*___*
today. I will send the holiday cards. o/
Why do I suck so much at timely mail? ORZ
no subject
Date: 2009-12-16 04:33 am (UTC)Well, the basic basic ones from years ago will never have ads. But nowadays if you create a new account, you have to pay to get the no-ad option from what I understand. And they're always linking 'hey, would you like to upgrade from your basic to a plus account' which is free, has more icons I think, and some other extras but you get ads.
Nah, it's real obvious if you get ads. In the space after the end line of a post and before comment space starts, that's where ads tend to be that I notice, though only the really egregiously vertical ones catch my eye.
Yay for mail! I will...probably send my snail mail after I finish with my grad school stuff. Speaking of which: would you be willing and have time early next month (I know you have a conference right after xmas) to look over my letter of intent please?
to end: yay mail! We got the key to our mailbox finally, and I was really excited to open the little box tonight and see stuff in it. Even if it's all junk. XD
Hope the grading's going smoothly~
♥
no subject
Date: 2009-12-16 05:13 am (UTC)And I would be totally fine reading your letter of intent any time you have it done--I would so rather read that then grading, and I've drafted the stupid paper and just need to edit it, I think . . . so hit me with it whenever you have it done! That way, if there are revisions and you'd like another read through, we have plenty of time ^_^ I'm always good for edits and re-edits, so if you'd like them, don't feel bad about asking for them ^_^ I'll be upfront if I can't do it for time constraints, so ask away (^_^)v And I tend to be a careful reader after the job search, since we have to edit those job letters like you wouldn't believe. It may be over-analyzed for that reason, but I'll do my best ^^
And I kind of love mail, too&hearts You should be getting some, incidentally, relatively soon. *glees*
And the grading hasn't actually started--everything lands tomorrow at noon and my goal is to grade all of it by Thursday at noon--some of it must be for graduating seniors, but if I can get it all . . . it will make the rest of the week much more bearable. The Boy thinks I'm crazy ^^;; But getting it done makes total sense to me ^_^
no subject
Date: 2009-12-16 01:24 am (UTC)I was oddly enough just in a training about transgender sensitivity... I guess LJ needs one of those too! With any luck it'll be fixed after the beta though, right?
no subject
Date: 2009-12-16 04:37 am (UTC)Hope you're doing all right, m'dear. And I hope you get a better supervisor next round, though I'm happy for you that you've got people on your side at your internship. \o/ *hugs*
Hey, do you want a holiday related snail-mail thingie? I won't be doing cards, but I have the stamps and I want to maybe write letters and sketches and things and send them out. Email me your new addy if you're interested.