privacy settings: just window dressing? (1 Viewer)

pkrchp

High Hand
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[…] if you’re going to be promoting transparency having your account set as private is not a strong endorsement :p
I set privacy options to (near) max on any site I register by default. I have no clue what this entails in regards to sales on this site (and it sure isn’t mentioned there). Is there a help page/thread I could consult?
But either setting sure has no implication on the visibility of my posts in this forum or in classifieds – or not?
Nobody can view your profile, or see your list of previous posts, started threads, media, or gallery items, among other non-invasive actions.
That would neither be my intention nor would I’ve expected that, when setting "View your details on your profile page" to "people you follow". So I’ve checked in a private browser window (without being logged in, of course):
The list of my previous posts is there for anybody to see. You don’t even need an account. Just hover over my username and click on the number below "Messages" => posts. The list of threads isn’t private either. Both can be found with (advanced) search, too. Same goes for other content (pkrchp has not added any albums yet.) and feedback (no official deals so far).
So just for kicks I searched for "private feedback" to find someone else with a private profile. Thanks to How to leave feedback for members who have their account on private I checked the aforementioned pages (with different userID) for @ReallyGoodUsername , too. It worked flawlessly. So I actually don’t get what the fuss is all about.

To me it seems privacy set to anything else than "All visitors" or "members only" just hides the profile page for these groups and therefore direct links (from there) to content that’s available nonetheless. So it might be a bit more complicated to get there, but it’s possible anyway.
If I’m right and if that’s really the case it should definitely be altered – both ways: All that should be private for real shouldn’t be accessible and all that’s in plain sight should be available from a user’s profile page no matter the user’s privacy settings. Anything else is just window dressing. And if it’s not possible due to XenForo limitations I’d expect an information on the privacy settings page saying that it actually doesn’t do a lot.

Maybe @Tommy can chime in.

PS: I’ll change my settings in 2 days. Just in case somebody needs a test case till then.
 
FYI - When I click on your account, this is what I get:
1563740452850.png


I do see your messages and threads like you state in your post.
 
That would neither be my intention nor would I’ve expected that, when setting "View your details on your profile page" to "people you follow". So I’ve checked in a private browser window (without being logged in, of course):
The list of my previous posts is there for anybody to see. You don’t even need an account. Just hover over my username and click on the number below "Messages" => posts. The list of threads isn’t private either. Both can be found with (advanced) search, too. Same goes for other content (pkrchp has not added any albums yet.) and feedback (no official deals so far).
So just for kicks I searched for "private feedback" to find someone else with a private profile. Thanks to How to leave feedback for members who have their account on private I checked the aforementioned pages (with different userID) for @ReallyGoodUsername , too. It worked flawlessly. So I actually don’t get what the fuss is all about.

To me it seems privacy set to anything else than "All visitors" or "members only" just hides the profile page for these groups and therefore direct links (from there) to content that’s available nonetheless. So it might be a bit more complicated to get there, but it’s possible anyway.
If I’m right and if that’s really the case it should definitely be altered – both ways: All that should be private for real shouldn’t be accessible and all that’s in plain sight should be available from a user’s profile page no matter the user’s privacy settings. Anything else is just window dressing. And if it’s not possible due to XenForo limitations I’d expect an information on the privacy settings page saying that it actually doesn’t do a lot.

Maybe @Tommy can chime in.

PS: I’ll change my settings in 2 days. Just in case somebody needs a test case till then.
Yeah basically @BGinGA doesn't like it cause he’s LAZY!!! :LOL: :laugh: Jk but yeah the privacy setting just makes people click a few more keys if they want to see the same info.
 
The whole privacy thing is pointless -- just makes looking up things more -- and needlessly -- difficult.

@Tommy should just disable the option, or else change the parameters to something meaningful (and then restrict posting privileges for those that invoke it).
 
@BGinGA
You could’ve saved me a few mins if you’d just have expressed it this plain and simple earlier instead of misleading me with "Nobody can view your …". :whistle: :whistling:
 
You can't hide your forum posts and threads via any user account setting. If that was possible, the forum would be just full of incoherent discussions.

2019-07-21_20-36-41.png


View your details on your profile page = Blocks your profile page only which would show your *Profile posts, Your followers list, Who you follow list, About Me, and other info only shown on your profile page.

*Profile posting has never been enabled. Its a feature that was added a very long time ago to try and be more like FB. It promotes duplicate posting and spam. It also creates unnecessary overhead when you can tag members and send private messages. There used to be a 4th option on that privacy settings page that would allow you to choose who could make posts on your profile page even when profile posting was disabled globally. I think they fixed that with the last update because I don't see it anymore.

Start conversations with you = Self explanatory

View your identities = The identities are accounts elsewhere (ie, Facebook, Twitter, etc.). You can find those here; Settings -> Account Details -> Identities

FYI
  • Ability to view member profiles is disabled globally for guests / not logged in.
  • Setting your profile page view to nobody takes away just 1 of the 3 ways a member can leave you feedback. You can still use the "Add Feedback" link in the user's postbit from the classified thread or from the PM where you exchanged payment and/or shipping info.
  • These settings have no effect for Mods and Admins. :p
Hope this clears things up a bit.
 

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