A PSA

A PSA

Hey! If you’re new here! You might’ve noticed that we have a BIT of a bot problem! And staff isn’t really doing much about it! A lot of users have taken to cleaning up the trash on their own, and some innocent people who are new to the site might get caught up in a wave of blocks and reports just for following a blog! Here’s how to avoid that!

1) Give your blog a title.

Just put a title on your blog. Your URL is one thing, but  just name your blog something. Even something as simple as “Not a bot” or “Just lurking” or even something more creative can help save you from a block!

2) Choose a profile picture

Find a picture of something you like! Make your blog unique! Google’s right there, so go get a profile picture and differentiate yourself from these random triangles and balls, or worse, the people with nearly/nude women as their picture! Most people won’t block if they sense a pulse, and having interests is a very not-bot thing to do! So express that!

3) Write a description!

You don’t have to get personal! Just put something unique! Unique here meaning “Different and doesn’t sound like something a bot would do”. Even a simple “Just lurking” or “Not a bot” will usually do. Don’t layer that on too hard though, or people might get suspicious! Just differentiate yourself so we don’t end up sweeping you up in the waves of blocking the spam!

4) Reblog things!

This isn’t twitter! There is no algorithm! Likes don’t do anything! Help the blogs you like seeing by spreading their posts via reblog! It shows you’re a real person, and engages with the community with MINIMAL effort! Know what bots won’t do? Reblog a really funny post that tumblr user beans-4-hire with a clever joke about a thing they’re into. Bots tend to reblog porn. Just porn. Share literally anything else and you’re fine

5) Change your URL!

The default urls read like a collection of unrelated words and act as a placeholder. Just choose one that isn’t “fantasticallyovertgiraffes” or something. Your goal here is just to look like you’re not a bot, and this is a really powerful step to doing so. Don’t use your real name, follow basic internet etiquette, and maybe include something that interests you. Think of it like an old AOL screen name or something. You can even use those if they’re not too embarrassing!

6) Act like a human

Humans are unpredictable. Do what you like. Share what you like. Be what you like. Interact as little or as much as you want. Variety is the spice of life, and if you’re alive, that means you’re not a bot and unlikely to get falsely flagged as one, and thus blocked and reported.

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Furthermore, I’d like to apologize to tumblr users beans-4-hire and fantasticallyovertgiraffes, if they exist, for using their URLs without checking to see if they’re real.