User talk:Lancer1289

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Mass vandalism by Istilldontcares on 3/28/11
Hopefully I'm going through the correct channels on this. Sending this to both you and SpartHawg948.

Was browsing the Mass Effect wikis and stumbled across one of the vandalized pages (was reading on Urdnot Wrex). Noticed that user "Istilldontcares" made the last edit. Checked their profile and subsequently their "contributions" and looks like they're going at it in quite the number. I reverted one but I'd imagine you and/or Lancer1289 have a better way to revert all those?

Thanks and goodluck!

AnimeKid 09:58, March 28, 2011 (UTC)
 * Yeah the problem has been dealt with, but sadly not before he went on a massive spree. The staff worked on it, then once I got on, I've been dealing with it ever since. I certainly hope that he's done by now as he needs to get a life, and quickly. Lancer1289 20:17, March 28, 2011 (UTC)

Legion: Trivia
Hello There, Im a bit new at this so please bear with me. I recently added a piece of Trivia to Legion. I can't see it anywhere on the page. Has it been removed? The piece of trivia I added was about Legion having a Gamer Profile. Could you please give me a hand here. Thank you Carbine 707 20:10, March 28, 2011 (UTC)
 * Yes it was removed by me. The thing is that information from the Shadow Broker Dossiers isn't repeated in the main articles because we already have that information in the Dossiers themselves and we don't need to repeat it. That said, I really can't see how that is trivia because it again puts information from the dossiers into the main articles, which is just needless repeat of information, and the reference part can't stand alone without it. Lancer1289 20:15, March 28, 2011 (UTC)

Infinite bans for IP addresses
Probably aren't going to help (and might stop someone in the future getting through).  Random Time  21:14, March 28, 2011 (UTC)
 * Well there is more than enough evidence to suggest a sock puppet in this case given actions and content of edits. The standard practice here is to ban suspected sock puppets for the same length as the rest. Also we generally don't protect pages against vandalism. Lancer1289 21:23, March 28, 2011 (UTC)
 * Ah, sorry (it might be worth protecting pages, temporarily, however), it's totally your choice on the block length, so do what you think is best - the way I see it, he's using open proxies to hop through different IP addresses fast, so he probably won't be back on the same IP for a while 21:26, March 28, 2011 (UTC)
 * The problem is that both active admins, myself and the resident B'crat SpartHawg948 are really against protecting pages, even for vandalism, which hasn't happened in the past. This just forces them to other pages, which will lead to more pages being protected. This is the worst I've ever seen it, and by one guy who in all honesty just can't get a life and grow up. Eventually he will have to run out of IPs, or go to sleep, or even just give up. Lancer1289 21:32, March 28, 2011 (UTC)
 * Fair enough  Random Time  21:34, March 28, 2011 (UTC)
 * Considering they are getting fewer and farther in-between, I'm really thinking he's running out of places to proxy from. He's probably exhausted all of the easy options, and now he actually has to do some work to continue doing whatever he's doing. That tends to stop most people, when they actually have to do some work. Frankly, I think it's how he gets his kicks, undoing the hard work of others. Well I'll drop a message with SpartHawg948 about the IP blocks, and see what he says about it. Lancer1289 21:36, March 28, 2011 (UTC)

SP Request
Hey, can you semi-protect my user page? I'm really the only one who's supposed to be editing it anyway; might as well lock out current and future vandals since they won't follow the rules. -- Commdor (Talk) 22:58, March 28, 2011 (UTC)
 * I've been tossing this around for about 10 minutes now, and right now, I'm going to be honest; I really don't know what to do. I'm not planning on protecting any user page, including my own, but I'll ask Spart what his opinion on this is. I honestly don't know what to say or what to do with this. We haven't protected pages, and I'm unsure what his opinion about user pages and protection, but I can't see him having a problem with it. I'll enact protection for 24 horus, on your user page only, pending Spart's response about this issue as I know this hasn't come up. Articles yes, this no. Lancer1289 23:16, March 28, 2011 (UTC)
 * It is done but I'm not sure what is going to happen as a result. Like I said, I'll leave Spart a message about this, and see what happens. If he says no, then I won’t extend it, but I could come up with a few arguments for user pages, while still keeping the article rule. I honestly don’t know what he will say. I do hope you understand my hesitation in this matter. Lancer1289 23:20, March 28, 2011 (UTC)


 * I think it should be fine since it's a self-request, but we'll see. I had a similar setup on Wikipedia, and I didn't think it could hurt to also have it here. But if I can't, then I can't. -- Commdor (Talk) 23:47, March 28, 2011 (UTC)
 * Well I left Spart a message about it, included in now a six part message, and we'll just have to wait and see what he says. Again I'm not sure what he will say, but then we'll just have to wait and see. Lancer1289 23:56, March 28, 2011 (UTC)

RE: Ongoing vandalism
Hi Lancer. I wasn't aware of the wave of vandalism that just happened. That sucks! (Spam Task Force FTW) Other than blocking users with the "account creation disabled" option selected (which prevents anyone using that IP to edit or create an account), I'm not sure if there is anything more that can be done. That said, I'm not the authoritative person on that topic. To get a more official answer, I would recommend either sending in a message via Special:Contact or sending an email to community@wikia.com. JoePlay http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb33036/wikia/images/e/e9/WikiaStaff.png (talk)  23:47, March 28, 2011 (UTC)

RE: Email Contact
Hi Lancer. It looks like it was a glitch on our end. We force set your email address to re-mark it as confirmed, so it should be back to normal again. JoePlay http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb33036/wikia/images/e/e9/WikiaStaff.png (talk)  16:23, March 30, 2011 (UTC)

News Blogs You Say?
Hey, I was going over some recent edits, when I noticed you made a comment about (among other things) news blogs. As I recall, I proposed a news blog system a while back. Does this mean I should perhaps try and work on it again? Or are we talking about a different type of news blog thing, like just casual blogs about the wiki, and not a full blown news system on the mainpage and all? Either way, Spart seemed rather neutral/against-ish towards the idea. Arbington 06:35, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * Something different unless I’m misunderstanding something. What I was thinking about was maybe a monthly or bi-monthly news of what's going on with the wiki. Not reporting news like releases, information, and things of that nature like the initial proposal was several months ago. This would be more like "here's what is going on around here, what can be done, and what needs to get done". Again unless I'm missing something. I really don’t have anything developed and right now don’t have the time, but as I said I’ll get around to it if I do. Lancer1289 06:43, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * I see. Good idea, but indeed quite different from my old proposal. Good luck, should you choose to go through with it. I'm thus far in favor of the concept. Arbington 06:48, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * (edit conflict) Just a quick note - I'm against the use of these blogs as an "official" thing (i.e. the "official" ME wiki news blog or whatever), as this has never been done. The prior blogs, which Lancer cited as examples, were done by Tullis with her personal blogs. As such, anyone is free to maintain their own personal news blog. I'm just opposed (at present) to the implementation of any official or quasi-official site news blog by any one individual using their own user blogs. SpartHawg948 06:50, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * Indeed, you are opposed to a system of news blogs more akin to the system I proposed. I had thought, at the time, that Lancer's proposal was similar to mine, and so thought you were somewhat opposed to the idea. I now know a bit more about what Lancer is going for here. Sorry about any misunderstanding and such. Arbington 06:56, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * (edit conflict) You did make your position quite clear Spart, which is why I let the issue go for the time being. Currently this is something on the "back burner" for me as I still want a chance to really work on it before proposing it and seeing where it goes. Maybe I'll start with something unofficial as examples like Tullis did, but like I said above, I really don't have much on this at the present time. I hope to develop it when I have more time, most likely in about a month and a half after finals conclude for me, and see then. However, I don't plan on making this Official in any sense of the work if I start something now. That will be much further down the line, if it even goes that far. Again though even if I start something, it won’t be the “Official Mass Effect Wiki News”, just something I do in my blog for the time being.
 * Arbington no need to apologize, you saw a few comments about something that you put a lot of time into, and just wanted some more information on it. Nothing wrong with that. Lancer1289 06:59, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

Infobox basic info
your last edit summary asked me to put in basic info for enemies when adding infoboxes. I'm not playing ME at the moment and don't have that info that I've been leaving blank. Is there some basic reference I can look at? Arbiter099 06:37, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

Also, should all ME enemies get an infobox? I know its standard for ME2. If so I get the feeling that there are a lot more pages missing these than I thought, found another one on Geth Hopper Arbiter099 06:43, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * Ok first, if you are going to keep adding them, then please put in everything that can be found in the article. I found several things in the articles that you missed, including the enemy's armament, and all of it was quite easy to find.
 * Second, and I really have to ask this, why are you putting in info boxes if you aren't playing ME and you don't have the information in front of you? The best thing to do with info boxes is to get all of your information before adding it as it only creates unnecessary repeat editing to put in information, especially if information that is already on the page is missed in the initial edit. There is no basic reference and again because these pages aren't edited regularly, Commdor, Dammej, or myself are probably the last ones, and probably several months ago. This isn't like the enemies from Arrival or some other recent DLC pack as those enemies will get edited regularly as they are brought up to date. These enemies are not edited regularly and getting all of the information first before editing would be a good idea with them. Updating articles is a good thing don't get me wrong, but since info boxes are a big part of the enemy articles, and these articles aren't edited regularly, then putting in the box with all of the information is the best strategy here as it prevents unnecessary repeating of edits to articles that aren't generally edited.
 * As to the Geth Hopper page, see Talk:Geth Hopper and eventually all ME enemies should all have a box, but getting the information for them first before putting in the box is highly recommended for reasons I've stated above. Get your ducks in a line before moving on so to speak. Lancer1289 06:52, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

In between my last comment and your response I've noticed that a great deal of, if not the majority of, those pages lack infoboxes. I started this when I landed on a page through the random article button and thought it needed the box, that led to another, etc. On my next ME run through I'm going to make an effort to fill in all these.Arbiter099 06:58, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * I again don't have a problem with them being filled in and the boxes added, as they all should have them eventually. However, getting all of the information for articles that are rarely edited anymore is a good idea as it prevents two things. One: It prevents a second quick edit, like I did, of filling in information that is already present which can be missed with just a quick just putting the box in. Two: It makes double checking the information a lot easier when all the information is there to double check. There will always be a need to double check the information, but when it is all there to begin with, it just makes it easier to do it. Lancer1289 07:04, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

I threw together a blog on this to see if I can muster a community effort to speed this process along. Arbiter099 07:23, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * Yeah I just noticed that, however I will stress that you add something to ask people to put all the information in before adding the box so we don't have to do this thirty times. Lancer1289 07:25, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

Impersonator
Hey Lancer. Someone this morning created an imposter version of your profile and managed to make 40 vandalizing edits. He would go around deleting whole pages and replace them with phrases like "unheard of", or "why's this here" or something like that. Fortunately most, if not all the edits have been reverted, and Randomtime blocked the user for three months. I thought usernames can't be re-used, even if the passwords are different. H-Man Havoc 11:48, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * He was actually using a different username each time, using a special character that looks like an a, for example, but can't be told apart using the wiki's normal typeface. Hopefully, he's gone, but I'll keep my eye on Recent Changes for a bit to see if he comes back. If he comes back and I don't spot it - and there are no admins around to block him, you can report it using our IRC channel or Wiki page.  Random Time  11:55, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * I know that an "a" in the Cyrillic (Russian) alphabet closely resembles our "a", so he could've used that. H-Man Havoc 12:47, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * Well that's good that the phony lancer is blocked but still this site need to be more careful on those types of things in the future. Shadowhawk27 13:20, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * He's still here... worse, he copied the true Lancer's page and incorporated it into his own. Randomtime blocked one such user, but he remains, with a slightly different character. H-Man Havoc 13:23, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

Ok, he's banned for now (again). H-Man Havoc 13:28, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

Can we do a IP cross check with the vandal we had recently? I'm suspecting it might be the same person. — Teugene (Talk) 13:44, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

I'm not sure if it is... the IP is banned when the user is banned. H-Man Havoc 13:45, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * I'm having a look when I block him, there's no pattern so it looks like he's using proxies (H-Man is right, the IPs are blocked when I block the account, unless a box is ticked to not do that)  Random Time  13:48, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

Response from me: I still can't believe this guy came back, and again thanks to everyone for putting up with someone who can't seem to grow up. If I keep going, then...well I'd rather not find out. Lancer1289 16:52, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

Account blocked
Hey, what is happening here? It is my understanding someone is using my username to vandalize the site again. And now I cannot access my own account! It says it's been blocked by Randomtime. Anybody please contact him or other Wiki staffer so that they unblock my account, please! I'm the real Lancer! 64.20.45.178 14:35, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * Having a look, I'll solve this as soon as possible  Random Time  14:40, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * I can't see a block on your account anywhere, only on the sockpuppets that look like you. I've reverted all the blocks on the sockpuppet accounts. Can you login and edit now?  Random Time  14:44, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * No, still, no luck :( 64.20.45.178 14:52, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * Can you copy the exact block message here, please?  Random Time  14:54, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * I am in a diner with my laptop now. Got to go anyway. I'll try again later... All this is so disgusting!64.20.45.178 14:59, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * Ok, sorry for the inconvenience - let me know if there are any problems when you come back. Hopefully he won't vandalize again, but I'll have to block those accounts again if he does.  Random Time  15:02, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

Sorry to butt in but I highly doubt user 64.20.45.178 is the real Lancer. By checking the IP, it shows it originates from New Jersey where Lancer is from Chicago. Secondly, it doesn't sound like his speech pattern. I may be wrong but it's my gut feeling that he may be the same impersonator. — Teugene (Talk) 15:50, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * I second Teugene's statement; I've never seen Lancer use a smiley face or write like that. I think it's safe to say that 64.20.45.278 is not the real Lancer. I think your best bet, Randomtime, is to leave the culprit's accounts blocked.--Tecni 15:59, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * Thanks for the intel, I had my doubts, but I thought I'd better be safe than sorry - I'll reblock the accounts and we'll go from there.  Random Time  16:13, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

OK first I really don't care about the site policy right now, second this really is me, and third: WTF HAPPENED HERE. Everything was fine last night when I went to bed and now this happened. I can't believe this could have even happened. I haven't been on since about 3am CST, so now that wasn't me to begin with. I'll be contacting Wikia to see how this could have happened in the first place. Right now, I really don't have any words to say what I'm feeling, but my hands are shaking as I'm typing. Looks like I have even more reading to do. Seriously some people need to get a life. Lancer1289 16:49, April 3, 2011 (UTC)


 * Chill there Lancer. No lasting damage had been done. To cut short the story for you, basically someone registered an account with a name closely resembling your username by using special Cyrillic characters which is hard to detect. For example: "а" and "a", "с" and "c". They look the same but the first characters of "а" and "с" are Cyrillic. That's how he impersonate your account. So don't worry, your account wasn't hacked in or anything. — Teugene (Talk) 17:05, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * Well that's a relief, however I'm sure you can see my frusttration, anger, and well just about everything else with this situation. As to the letters, well that makes sense, I think. Lancer1289 17:24, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * It is frustrating. I was bewildered when I saw an anonymous user reverting all "your" edits but turned out he/she was reverting your impersonator. Even had the cheek to pretend that he was the real one and unable to login into "your" account, as you can see above. So yeah, truly cunning vandal, but fortunately speech patterns are a little harder to impersonate. — Teugene (Talk) 17:38, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * I'm sure it was a little surprising. It has happened before, I'm not always right, but it happens very rarely. But yes speech patterns are harder to impersonate and he made more than a few slipups and if this situation had happened, there would have been other things I would have done, but do you really think I'm going to give those away in light of this? I don't think so. :) Lancer1289 17:52, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * It should be noted that I was the first to mention to Randomtime that the vandal could've been using Cryllic characters... I'm partly Russian, so I have some knowledge of the alphabet. I don't normally brag about these things, but I was one of the first, if not the first to discover the true alphabetical lettering being used. H-Man Havoc 00:55, April 4, 2011 (UTC)
 * I did notice that, and while I also have some Russian ancestery, I know only English. I mainly have to deal with Cryllic spambots and the like. I've wanted to learn Russian, but just haven't had the time. Lancer1289 01:28, April 4, 2011 (UTC)
 * Yeap H-Man found it first (though I only noticed after I discovered and posted it). No worries H-Man, I didn't take any credits for it but just giving Lancer the gist of what happened :) — Teugene (Talk) 03:00, April 4, 2011 (UTC)

GENERAL NOTICE TO ALL USERS
Just a few things I'd like to say first about what happened over the course of the last few hours: Again that wasn't me and while Randomtime was here, this is still something I'll be contacting Wikia about. I think there are a few other things I have to say, but I can’t think of them right now. Lancer1289 17:05, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * 1) That wasn't me last night, I'm still trying to access the damage.
 * 2) Thanks you all for undoing the edits. You will all have a nice thank you in a few minutes
 * 3) I firmly believe this is the same guy as last time and now is just trying to be a pest.
 * 4) I have some blocks to extend
 * 5) This guy needs to grow up
 * 6) There are more things I'd like to say, but I think I've gotten away with what I can about breaking the Language policy for now.

The same guy.
Im thinking that the sockpupet is the same guy who put up all those "I am tim and my name is jack harper" pics.He used that smae picture when he vandalised N7 user page after all.--Legionwrex 18:03, April 3, 2011 (UTC)
 * Yeah that's kind of a given. One person who can't act mature, can't grow up, can't get a life, among other things. Lancer1289 18:33, April 3, 2011 (UTC)

Karora
Re: Your edits to the Karora page. I don't know why you set up a wiki if you want to discourage user edits.

The "trivia" sections are used on many pages to point out interesting/humorous/popular culture references, and are not deleted for "relevance" or speculation. It's trivia. There's already an existing example on the Karora page, speculating that the name of planet refers to an aboriginal god. The page for "Uranus" speculates on the humorous statement made by the game when you probe it. How is this any different from noting the game designer's use of an unusual, verbatim quote from a popular space movie, in the description of Karora ("essentially a great rock in space")? Your edits make no sense; it's as if you don't like the movie, so you won't let that trivia on the site.
 * See your own talk page and we have standards for trivia anyway. Lancer1289 00:00, April 4, 2011 (UTC)


 * You said that the phrase "essentially a great rock in space" used to describe a planet in Wrath of Khan, is actually a common phrase that's used all the time? Seriously, dude?  Do a search for the phrase on Google - almost every entry on the first several pages is an express, direct quote of the film.  It brings up links to the movie's script.  Can you point out one other example of a film that uses it?  It's not a common phrase, it's no less speculative than the other entry on the page.  Your edits are ridiculous, and it's obviously being done for reasons unrelated to your "standards."

Vandal's back
FYI: your 'doppelganger' has returned. I'm reverting his edits as they appear, but you might want to block at your earliest convenience. -- Dammej ( talk ) 02:21, April 4, 2011 (UTC)
 * Already done. Lancer1289 02:22, April 4, 2011 (UTC)
 * Indeed. I saw the block in the activity log immediately after I posted. Cheers! -- Dammej ( talk ) 02:26, April 4, 2011 (UTC)
 * Yeah I just stepped out for a second and look what happens. I can guarantee it is the same guy from earlier and who has been a pain in our sides for weeks now. I’m taking additional steps. Lancer1289 02:29, April 4, 2011 (UTC)

You should have left that message in Lancer. Let everyone know how insecure he is, probably lacking some development in his the cranium. He must have been ditched so bad in real life thus probably too cowardly to take vengeance in person. So he must do in anonymously behind a monitor screen. I'm sorry that he is feeling rejected. Not. — Teugene (Talk) 03:22, April 4, 2011 (UTC)
 * I have my reasons for removing it which I won't state. Lancer1289 03:27, April 4, 2011 (UTC)

Another one!
Check out this guy!!! So far, he's been harmless, but we'll see. Look on the bright side though. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, or so they say! :D SpartHawg948 05:15, April 4, 2011 (UTC)
 * Indeed Spart. Indeed. In times like this, one does tend to forget that. Thanks I really needed that. Lancer1289 05:17, April 4, 2011 (UTC)