| As a concerned adult who has been involved in online | | | | understand from what I saw, why there is now a |
| chat for almost six years, I was pleased to see the | | | | problem regarding chat rooms for children/teenagers. I |
| article regarding the closure of privately owned rooms | | | | don't see how closing those rooms down will achieve |
| on Yahoo. My concerns for children and teenagers | | | | much unless Yahoo are going to instigate hosts into |
| online have grown over the past years as I have | | | | each and every room on Yahoo and run the server |
| come into contact with people online that I, as a parent, | | | | with strict rules and guidelines. A room without hosts is |
| would never have wanted my children to be around, | | | | a room that can be taken over by unsavoury people |
| even just on the Internet.The anonymity of the medium | | | | and who will police it?Whilst I am not an advocate of |
| is the biggest cause for concern. This is a whole new | | | | heavy handed, control freak hosts, I believe if the |
| world, growing everyday, whereby people can meet | | | | owners of chat servers paid people who had |
| and chat without ever having eye contact, or the | | | | qualifications to host rooms, on the proviso they follow |
| advantage of reading body language. I heard recently | | | | the guidelines set down by the server, then things |
| a figure of 350 million people entering one particular | | | | would improve. No one wants to go online and enter a |
| chat server each month. This is astounding to | | | | chat room run by a control freak host, but there is a |
| someone who lives in a country like Australia where | | | | feeling of safety if there is a host in a room. I |
| there is such a small population compared to the big | | | | personally believe all owners of chat servers should be |
| wide world out there. The fact that you can chat | | | | forced to ensure that every chat room in their server |
| without anyone seeing who you are, also opens a | | | | is monitored 24x7, or is only allowed to be open during |
| huge window of opportunity for those that get a 'high' | | | | the hours there is a host to monitor the room.I now |
| out of manipulating the minds and emotions of the | | | | chat on a new server in Australia and this server has |
| naive and vulnerable of our society. And the naive and | | | | no rules really, just guidelines for safe and decent chat. |
| vulnerable probably make up a large proportion of | | | | There are no swear filters like there are in the other |
| those online, because of the anonymity factor, | | | | Australian server, which is perhaps a mistake as it |
| because of the lack of eye contact, and the lack of | | | | now opens the door for unsavoury and unnecessary |
| body language. These people find it hard to interact in | | | | foul language and abuse in those chat rooms. Anyone |
| their real lives, and yet online, they come out of | | | | can open a room and own it, and my friend and I now |
| themselves because no one is there to make fun of | | | | have four rooms. I have my own room secretslieschat |
| them or deride them. All they need do is hit the X up in | | | | where I advertise my website and my book, two |
| the corner and they can move on from perhaps | | | | things I couldn't do on the other server as it was |
| someone who is verbally abusing them in a room, to a | | | | considered I was indulging in free advertising, and we |
| safer room.The problem I have with chat rooms is that | | | | have the Peers50, Peers60 and Peers60+. We took |
| in spite of a room being labelled 'teenage' or a Peers | | | | those rooms over from the owners of the server in |
| age room, anyone can go into those rooms and do | | | | an effort to get back some decent chat rooms where |
| whatever they like in private. I advocate everyone | | | | people will like to chat. It's early days yet with few |
| naming the nick in public that comes into a room and | | | | visitors, but we have opped ourselves in the rooms |
| starts to click on other nicks for private conversations. | | | | and plan to monitor them to try our best to ensure that |
| And yet, if you do that where I used to chat, you are | | | | there is fairness and decency in the rooms.I applaud |
| warned and often kicked out of the room, or you are | | | | the efforts of Yahoo. It is good to read that people |
| told to take your problems private. I am strongly in | | | | who can make a difference are now working to do |
| favour of networking to weed out the sleazes from | | | | just that. You only have to surf around the Net using a |
| chat, and yet again, this is frowned on. It doesn't take | | | | few keywords and you will find many websites |
| much nouce to work out that someone who comes | | | | dedicated to safety online, to weed out the unsavoury |
| into a room only to priv people, comes in with a motive | | | | users, to handle issues of abuse, harassment and |
| other than pleasant chat with those already in the | | | | stalking by using legal options. No matter how many |
| room. These people should be outlawed.The Australian | | | | people like to bury their heads in the sand, those that |
| server I spent my time with quite recently changed | | | | care and are aware know the truth. We have to |
| their rules regarding room ownership. They opened the | | | | protect the young because those of us, who have |
| chat scene up so that anyone can now own a room, | | | | been around the Internet for a while, know that there |
| whereas for the first five years or so I chatted in | | | | are things happening online that even adults need to be |
| there, you had to apply to open a room and it had to | | | | protected from. If we don't teach the young the right |
| be run on Telstra rules. Chat is dying on that server | | | | way to act online, the rules for safety for themselves |
| since they changed the rules; people have moved out | | | | and their families, then chat will end up destroying itself |
| of the main rooms into small isolated rooms and the | | | | as a place for enjoyment and companionship for the |
| whole concept of chat has changed. This is a shame | | | | lonely. All of us who chat learn everyday from those |
| as chat can be wonderful for many people who don't | | | | we come in contact with, and the people online can |
| look below the surface and see what is beneath that | | | | have important rules of life and wisdom they can |
| isn't so good. It can be, and is, a lifeline for many and | | | | share.In my own small way I am trying to make a |
| the demise of the quality of chat is sad. People are | | | | difference too, and will continue to do so. Long live |
| wary of entering a room where only one of two | | | | chat.I am an Australian writer, living in Sydney. My first |
| others can be seen as often the impression is there is | | | | book has been released in the USA titled 'Secrets, Lies |
| something wrong with the room or the two people are | | | | & Chat' and is the story of my personal experiences |
| having a private meeting. As in most things, humans | | | | from an addiction over a three-year period, to chat |
| like to be around groups where they feel a degree of | | | | online and online dating. I wrote the book with the hope |
| safety and belonging.Whilst Yahoo is doing the right | | | | that others would read it and learn from my mistakes. |
| thing in only having rooms open that they monitor, I | | | | My passion is children online, and the very real dangers |
| must say here that I have only ever visited Yahoo a | | | | I know exist on the Internet that they will undoubtedly, |
| couple of times, and the language and abuse I saw in | | | | at some time, be exposed to. |
| the rooms I visited, scared me out very quickly. I can | | | | |