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What's going on here? Bot?

yirara
yirara Posts: 10,115 Member
edited April 2022 in Health and Weight Loss
Anyone else noticed a whole group of posts showing up today from similar sounding names (random+ numbers), no images, with similar English, asking very basic questions without providing any information. Has a school class been asked to research nutrition? Is it a bot attempt in creating accounts and posting stuff? Most of them are in Food, btw.
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Replies

  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    Well, the site posted an automated message asking for questions for the RD...and the post/thread wasn't written very well so it didn't make it clear that the questions should go in that thread:

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10859282/have-a-health-nutrition-question-ask-the-rd
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    edited March 2022
    Look right above your OP...it's prominent on the home page and the community pages. I think that's what's happening. Although it's also nearly April 1 and I have seen lots of invasions from other forums. That was my first thought. :lol:

    I was on this site before smart phones and when the smart phones came out the questions really became repetitive for quite a while. I don't think it's that easy to navigate forums on phones.
  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,989 Member
    Yupppp....everyone posting questions for the RD is just making their own thread. MFP was not clear enough that you should post your questions in the thread they created for that purpose. They just said "Start posting your questions on 3/28!" So, now it's mayhem.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 10,115 Member
    edited March 2022
    Oooh, that's it! I'm so finetuned to avoiding adverts that I totally didn't see the banner at the top :D
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    I guess those of us who are here daily need to start a private group. Those are fun.

    Three days off from the forums doesn't sound that bad. :wink:

    Unfortunately, no one will get questions answered - too many!
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 10,115 Member
    I'm in! The regular chat group or something like that :D
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    edited March 2022
    Private groups are in "groups." Members have to be vetted by the group owner and/or a moderator in the group only. Posts are viewable only by members.

    Is this where I say I don't want to be in any group that would have me as a member? :lol:
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,796 Member
    cmriverside wrote: »
    I guess those of us who are here daily need to start a private group. Those are fun.

    Three days off from the forums doesn't sound that bad. :wink:

    Unfortunately, no one will get questions answered - too many!

    I just answered someone! :)

    But, yeah, totally noticed it. For a sec I thought some other calorie counting website or weight watchers or something shut down! ;)
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    glassyo wrote: »
    cmriverside wrote: »
    I guess those of us who are here daily need to start a private group. Those are fun.

    Three days off from the forums doesn't sound that bad. :wink:

    Unfortunately, no one will get questions answered - too many!

    I just answered someone! :)

    But, yeah, totally noticed it. For a sec I thought some other calorie counting website or weight watchers or something shut down! ;)

    I answered a couple this morning before I figured out that something was up.


    MFP has been the target of some forum Wars in the past, I haven't completely ruled that out until after April 1.
  • ReenieHJ
    ReenieHJ Posts: 9,723 Member
    I noticed that as well and was very irate when I realized how far back my favorite thread about 'what food would you eat if it didn't have any calories' had become. :)
  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,989 Member
    Poor Ann is over there trying to answer everyone.
    She's too nice... :)
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,519 Member
    Do you mean that the weight or measurement thread is one that was heading toward the dietitian?

    What are we supposed to do? Ignore any questions by people with less than 10 posts???🙀🤷🏻‍♂️
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,796 Member
    ReenieHJ wrote: »
    I noticed that as well and was very irate when I realized how far back my favorite thread about 'what food would you eat if it didn't have any calories' had become. :)

    AKA "How In The Heck Did I Gain 20 lbs Just By Looking at Pictures" thread?
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    edited March 2022
    glassyo wrote: »
    ReenieHJ wrote: »
    I noticed that as well and was very irate when I realized how far back my favorite thread about 'what food would you eat if it didn't have any calories' had become. :)

    AKA "How In The Heck Did I Gain 20 lbs Just By Looking at Pictures" thread?

    lolol.
    SuzySunshine99 wrote: »
    PAV8888 wrote: »
    Do you mean that the weight or measurement thread is one that was heading toward the dietitian?

    What are we supposed to do? Ignore any questions by people with less than 10 posts???🙀🤷🏻‍♂️

    I answered in that one, too, before I realized what was going on. Almost ALL the threads in the Food page, and I think some on this page as well, are meant for the RD, it seems.

    BTW on the thread where people are SUPPOSED to post, there are already almost 200 questions. They have ONE dietician who is going to answer the questions on Thursday? By then, there could be thousands.

    I don't know if they thought this through....

    ...or they have a genius marketing team...Like maybe they decided there wasn't enough traffic on the forums and this is a way to really ramp it up for the advertisers' algorithm.
    I mean, anyone who's been on the site for a month knows that a professional who offers to answer questions is going to get a whole lot more questions than they can ever answer. It's an odd tactic. Wish I was a fly on the wall in that office in S.F. :) There is some game plan here, I think!
  • ReenieHJ
    ReenieHJ Posts: 9,723 Member
    SuzySunshine99 wrote: »
    Poor Ann is over there trying to answer everyone.
    She's too nice... :)

    Agreed. :)
    Heck, if I have any questions I'll just hope she answers, along with a couple other knowledgeable MFP'ers. :)
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    :)@glassyo
  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,989 Member
    ReenieHJ wrote: »
    glassyo wrote: »
    cmriverside wrote: »
    Gooooooood morning.

    How do I log a homemade cookie that someone gave me?








    How about six of those...? :neutral:

    You don't have to. Gift (free) food is also calorie free!

    (Same as broken off pieces.)

    Same as the harder edges around the outside of the brownies that you'd be embarrassed for anyone else to eat. Hey, somebody's gotta do it.

    Oh, yeah...like when I have guests, I always put out cheese and crackers (cause I'm lazy).

    But, I'm embarrassed to put out broken crackers, so I just eat those as I'm arranging the perfect ones onto the plate.

    No calories in those, I'm assuming.
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,519 Member
    edited March 2022
    Is that like trimming and straightening out the piece either before serving or before storing or both? Or making sure that the rim is clean?

    And I don't think any of you can top my two best free food examples: eating something belonging to someone else because it's about to expire! 👍 Or their bag of fast food because it's getting cold and can only be eaten warm, right?
  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,989 Member
    Sinisterbarbie1 wrote: »
    I am pretty new here, but I read carefully and I have already figured out that if you eat it really really fast you can take some of the calories off for exercise (that’s what everyone means when they say “eat back calories”)

    You're a quick learner!
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,519 Member
    edited March 2022
    Sinisterbarbie1 wrote: »
    I am pretty new here, but I read carefully and I have already figured out that if you eat it really really fast you can take some of the calories off for exercise (that’s what everyone means when they say “eat back calories”)

    You are SOOOOO RIGHT!!!!!!!! And the *BEST* Calories to eat back are the ones MFP has already assigned for daily activity during the same time frame! That's like your double eat back bonus! Rhymes with the reverse of Apple Watch's ability to integrate with MFP but almost the same when it comes to absolute values! :wink:
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 10,115 Member
    PAV8888 wrote: »
    Sinisterbarbie1 wrote: »
    I am pretty new here, but I read carefully and I have already figured out that if you eat it really really fast you can take some of the calories off for exercise (that’s what everyone means when they say “eat back calories”)

    You are SOOOOO RIGHT!!!!!!!! And the *BEST* Calories to eat back are the ones MFP has already assigned for daily activity during the same time frame! That's like your double eat back bonus! Rhymes with the reverse of Apple Watch's ability to integrate with MFP but almost the same when it comes to absolute values! :wink:

    Wow, I learn something new every day! Thanks guys. I will follow this <3
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,458 Member
    Okay, I read Pav's post eleventy times and still don't get it. Moar coffee...maybe I need an Apple watch so I can eat more? That's all I'm getting.

    Still an awful lot of questions in the forums.

    :lol:@Sinisterbarbie1

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