New System for Verifying that Contestants Read the Rules

I got a little fed up last week with a good number of individuals posting pictures of cliffs and such things in my previous engineering challenge "On The Edge." I have fairly open-ended very lax rules. But people clearly submit to challenges just barely reading the titles alone.

As a result from now on I've put together a clunky system to verify that people actually are reading all the rules before submitting to challenges.

"Sleeping Giant, Awoken"
http://www.dpreview.com/challenges/Challenge.aspx?ID=3211

"Tall Ship"
http://www.dpreview.com/challenges/Challenge.aspx?ID=3210

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Clunky, maybe, but I think it's actually a good idea

Well done . . .

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Good idea, wish I'd thought of it lol !

Would you mind it being pinched - I would like to use similar on my future challenges if its ok with you ?

Absolutely you can! I'm sharing because I know a lot of other hosts are running into the same issue!

Love it.

However (there's always a "however," isn't there?), you may want to use "I read the rules" (or something similar) instead of "ireadtherules" so the non-English can better grasp what you're trying to do.

So what good does it do if they enter a photo, with the code, that breaks the rules ;-)
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Ed at Ridersite said:

So what good does it do if they enter a photo, with the code, that breaks the rules ;-)

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Then you can be even ruder to them whilst DQ'ing the entry?

Well so far so good. I've only received one threatening message from people who can't read the rules.

Hope that you verify all the entries and apply all the rules fairly.
Because voters can also be guilty of not reading the rules but usually
the fault lies with the challenge host who did not do his/her job.

FNG303 said:

Hope that you verify all the entries and apply all the rules fairly.
Because voters can also be guilty of not reading the rules but usually
the fault lies with the challenge host who did not do his/her job.

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Having just now DQ'd 55 entries [ so far ] from my current challenge for not adhering to this particular rule I think it makes the OPs point all too well how big a problem it is [ entrants not reading the rules before submitting photos ], so as an exercise in that regard I now believe all the more that its something which should be included in every challenge - and yep for hosts to stick to it rigidly - until the message gets across to read the rules - and if necessary to query them in advance if there is anything a potential entrant is not sure of - DemiLion has shown recently that he took on board a query and even made an alteration a responder had suggested to his rules, all done before his challenge opened so there was no confusion to anyone, if Demilion is open to that then other hosts should/would be [ I hope ].

If all hosts included such a rule as the OP suggests, and if all hosts ensure their rules are easy to understand, then there would be no need to DQ anyone, in those regards at least.

I hated having to DQ those 55 and will hate DQing any more before the challenge closes, but, as much as its an entrants duty to read the rules, you are absolutely correct that hosts have a duty to action their rules too, anything less is unfair to entrants who do make the effort to get it right.

I just hope those I had to DQ will resubmit correctly, any of them could take the top placings so I would hate for them to miss that chance through not taking a few moments to read the rules like those who are still in the running.

just entered stuff without posting the 'rules understood' comments per your directions. At least you didn't wait until the end to do it.
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Cetonid said:

just entered stuff without posting the 'rules understood' comments per your directions. At least you didn't wait until the end to do it.
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Now I'm confused, lol, yours is entered correctly as per the rules

I've been checking my challenges regularly [ a few times each day ], so that I can give DQ'd entrants as much chance as possible to re-submit

Patchandcrew said:

Cetonid said:

just entered stuff without posting the 'rules understood' comments per your directions. At least you didn't wait until the end to do it.
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Now I'm confused, lol, yours is entered correctly as per the rules

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Of course, I can read... did you think I was complaining? I looked at the entries and saw more than half didn't pass muster.

Patchandcrew said:

I've been checking my challenges regularly [ a few times each day ], so that I can give DQ'd entrants as much chance as possible to re-submit

Click to expand...

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Cetonid said:

Patchandcrew said:

Cetonid said:

just entered stuff without posting the 'rules understood' comments per your directions. At least you didn't wait until the end to do it.
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Click to expand...

Now I'm confused, lol, yours is entered correctly as per the rules

Click to expand...

Of course, I can read... did you think I was complaining? I looked at the entries and saw more than half didn't pass muster.

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Doh, sorry, I misread your comment, I thought you meant you had entered without putting the code but that at least I had'nt waited til the end to DQ you, I get what you actually meant now, my bad, sorry about the confusion lol