It seems to me that this debate will not and cannot get anywhere as long as one fundamental principle is insisted on by the pro-TE lobby, namely that the "surprise" of a UTE is paramount and must never be spoiled by a warning. Since that very surprise is the real thing that I object to, I can hardly be expected to be sympathetic to that argument!
With that in mind, comments such as this one do not seem to me to advance the debate any, because they continue to insist on the stumbling block of the whole discussion -- that it doesn't matter what happens so long as the "surprise" of a UTE is protected. I'm afraid that I find Rat's mention of "other povs" rather ironic, because, as far as I can tell, only one pov is being given any weight -- namely that the "surprise" is everything, and those who object to it are of lesser importance than those who love it!
I think that categorising this as a pro-TE lobby is overstating it a little, Phil and that the charges you make here and repeat elsewhere in your post are somewhat unfair.
The problem is that there are two diverging interests to be catered to here. There really isn't much that can be done - at least that we're currently aware of and if anyone knows differently please do speak up! - by those whose enjoyment of TEs will be spoiled by headers on posts to solve the problem. There
is something - minimal but better than nothing - that those whose fun is spoiled reading unlabelled TEs can do to help themselves.
Yes, that means - as I've already clearly stated - that one side is being asked to go a mile further than the other. But really there's no way around that. Unless you want to work from a position that only the wishes of those who don't want to be surprised count here and should be paramount and that the requirements of the opposing pov should simply be ignored. You've already stated that this isn't your position, so we have to work to achieve some solution for both sides of the divide.
There is no agenda here to help one side of the divide over another nor is it a case that one side's pov is paramount over another's or being more sympathetically responded to. It is simply that practicalities and an acceptance of the reality of limited options dictate how the problem can be eased. Again, if you have a solution that evens the balance, please do let us hear it! We're looking for a compromise here, but we can only go so far towards that on our own. Without co-operation from both sides of the divide we'll get nowhere pretty fast.
From the comments in your last post, you seem to be missing that last point - it's the practicalities of the situation that shape the solution - not any agenda, or bias or attempts to help one side over the other. If you have a way to circumvent those practical boundaries we'll all be delighted to hear your ideas. If you don't have, then surely you have to accept - just as the rest of us do and have - that there's no other way around the problem?
Perhaps. My feeling that TE fans would object to my proposal is based on that same unwavering principle -- that the "surprise" should not be spoiled -- that is causing the debate. The very existence of a TE Warning thread and whatever method of indicating a new entry in it is employed can be taken as a spoiler: while I might say, "Oh, good, a TE warning -- let's see whose post I don't have to bother reading," a TE fan's reaction might be, "Oh, there's a new TE post -- must be X's new chapter. Oh, blast, now it's not a surprise!" See the problem?
Yes, I see your point. Perhaps that's simply the extra mile that the other pov will have to accept. On most days of the week, more than one story segment is posted to the fanfic folder, so being able to identify the story from the warning thread would be a fairly rare occurance. Perhaps the odd TE would be spoiled. Again, compromise doesn't mean everyone gets exactly what they want.
LabRat
