0

As of late, I've been in quite a bind. I have this website which is a simple Q/A. Just for fun -- being built with all that good stuff (PHP/MySQL/jQuery/etc)

Anyways, I found out I cannot do MANY THINGS without getting a positive ID. Without registration (them becoming anonymous), I can't keep track of who's who. Sure I can use IPs or cookies but those are not fool-proof. I can't do things like "favorite questions", "upvote questions", "email notices", spamming cut-down, etc ... among other things.

If you DO register, you WOULD be able to do experience those feature thus making the website more fun to visit. However, at the expensive of not registering and giving up those features, I am at a bind.

Should I give up those features and have no-registration anonymous posting Q/A or make them sign up with three forms... email, password, password check, SUBMIT! Then login-logoff...

What do you think? (Sorry if I put this in the wrong place...)

Improve this question
2
  • What did you end up doing? (integrated login or leave it as is?)
    – whamsicore
    May 20, 2011 at 7:20
  • @whamsicore: I made registration optional. Check it out @ centeka.com
    – test
    May 20, 2011 at 20:15

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
4

Why not offer an OpenID login to allow your visitors to authenticate using their Google or Yahoo! (or StackExchange) accounts? Or perhaps integrate Facebook login, if your site is more socially based.

If it's just a personal site, I'd allow anonymous posting, otherwise people are unlikely to bother with the hassle of setting up an account. Use Recaptcha (or similar) to cut out the spam.

Improve this answer
0

I had the same thought when I created a blog from scratch and I wanted users to post comments and upvote.

The thing with anonymous posting is quite clear to you. You cannot keep track of a user properly. 4chan, which allows users to post anonymously constantly blocks IP addresses that cause spam on the website. The first time I visited the site and posted a comment, it told me my IP was blocked. So this is a big problem for a dynamic IP user.

The thing is registration can help you prevent all this, but a user may not want to provide you with the details you want for a sign up. Hence allowing them to login with facebook and google etc would be a great option. But you would not be able to get as many interactions on your Q&A on your site if you allowed Anonymous interaction.

Improve this answer

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.