Friends and Messaging

[BirdLady]

Read some of the help guides, but still having difficulty. Any & all help much appreciated.

1. How do u know if someone has “viewed” ur friend request &/or message? (2 separate questions)
2. Will u get a rejection “notice” within the Nest if a person has rejected ur friendship request, & will the notice appear next 2 ur username or therebouts? (2 separate questions)
3. Can u send anybody a message from within ur profile messages page?
4. Why would u get the error that message could not be sent if u checked the member’s username for typos & such?
5. Can u block a specific member from sending u messages, or can u block all members? (2 separate questions)
6. Is there a special section in ur profile settings 4 “privacy”?
7. If I understand correctly from past ABN Guide, private messages cannot be sent unless the person is or has become ur friend. So, is that correct, & then if u need 2 send “private” messages, do you need 2 invite those people 2 be ur friend?
8. I found that a “public” message simply updated my main profile with a public comment. So, is that what a public message is then?

Think that’s it 4 now. Tried general search in forums too without much success 4 answers & may have missed solutions somewhere, so I hope some other Nesters can help me. Thanx a lot.

Topic

[AMslimfordy]

1) For the recipient’s privacy, these features do not exist.
2) No notice of rejection. The only way to see would be to check their profile again. The Friend status should change from “Request Sent” to “Request Friendship” (or whatever the wording is, I don’t recall exactly).
3) No, you can only message people you are “friends” with, or admins.
4) When typing in a username, an auto-fill should appear below the entry field. Clicking the correct name will minimize errors.
5) Yes, since only “friends” can message you, canceling a friendship is essentially a “block”. But admins will still be able to message you… You can’t block us ;)
6) I’m not sure what you mean. Can you elaborate on “privacy”?
7) To send a message to multiple recipients, you must be friends with all recipients. Not all recipients must be mutual friends, but replies may result in errors if this is not the case.
8) Yes, anyone can “publicly message” anyone else. This is simply an “@ mention”.

[BirdLady]

Suggestion for this topic to Admin.: I know members don’t want 2 be inundated with messages, but it would be nice if u could message others without having 2 b friends 1st.
Then, if it becomes an issue, have a method of blocking that member from sending u future messages, so u don’t receive a bunch of unsolicited junk. Hopefully, that wouldn’t be someone’s intent anyway.

The reasoning is: Nesters reside all over the world. I am often intrigued by their comments or walkthrough explanations, some of which I would like to expand upon.
Part of this is great in a public forum, some not so much (e.g. I like an avatar and want 2 know more about it or where it’s from-same would apply for a username and its related member).
In other words, maybe that member and me may have other things and strategies in commom. How will I/we/they ever know if u can’t message them 2 say why u sent the friend request?

More than likely, the other member rejects request off-hand and could be missing out on getting 2 know a fellow AB enthusiast. I realize the Nest is not meant 2 b Facebook-like. It just seemed like a good idea and another way 2 connect with a member who already has at least 1 similar interest. Perhaps it may be a possibility in the future at/in/on the Nest?? :-o

[AMslimfordy]

The friend-only messaging was instituted after several spam-bots messaged all site members a few days after launch. We will not risk that again.

[MVNLA2]

What about allowing a message along with a friend-request?

[BirdLady]

@amslimfordy Exactly what @MVNLA2 said, who is either psychic or far more eloquent than me. In other words, if amember knew why you were interested in becoming friends due to a short message with the invitation, I think the member would be more likely to accept. At least that’s my rationalization and prediction.