Some things I like

That went out the window with President George G.W Bushes Patriot Act.
It allows anyone even the government to snoop on anyone any time and censor anything.

Well, if you want to get hyperbolic about it, ANYthing is open to snooping. The reading and implementing of password access is scripted to function automatically too. Private messages traded through here aren't really anything worth sniffing.

What bothers me is that they censor language at all in those private messages...something the courts have upheld they have no responsibility for. Hell, websites are only very rarely liable for anything written on an open forum. So they're WAY overstepping their bounds by censoring private messages between individuals.

I realize it's automatic and they're just covering their assets. But it means it's being automatically read, ergo the potential for automatic snooping is there, with whatever filters they see fit, therefore open to snooping.

The asterisk censoring is an automatic, scripted thing. Nobody is reading Private Messages.
That doesn't make it any less insanely ridiculous.
I've found them useful on other forums...not a lot, but occasionally.

The most helpful contributors to the Photoshop Macintosh forum do not make their email addresses available, and that works out very well.

I do show a disassembled version of mine in my profile, and that has brought me only two instances of undesirable email from two idiots. On the other hand I have received dozens of private thank you notes for help I have provided in the forum, open to all.

If there is a button to send PMs to a poster, then it will be abused.

There is NEVER a reason to continue a forum discussion in private because it gets too technical, too complicated or too "convoluted". That thought is just absurd, irrational and plain wrong.

This is my boilerplate text for anyone who requests private assistance:

Please come back to the forum to look for replies.

Email responses would defeat the purpose of the forum, which is for everybody to benefit from all questions and answers, not just the original poster.

I could live without Private messages.

However; there should be some mechanism to two parties to have email exchanges with each other.

For example a party needs a long convoluted answer to their problem but would take up to much room on the group, and bore most people to tears.

I don't know what that would be, though.

Those asterisks are Adobe's idea. I wrote it out in full, of course. Then I deleted a subsequent message from StDAI a.k.a. SDA before opening it.

Now we know Private messages are censored and, therefore, susceptible to snooping by Big Brother.

Of course, the s.o.b. neglects to stress that the second to last sentence in that Private Message was a direct result of my having received unsolicited, unprovoked and unwanted harassing mail from him.

No PM, please, Adobe and everyone else.

You mean ones like this ?

" To: SD_A
From: Ramón G Castañeda
Sent: Mar 27, 2009
Subject: Private Message: Comment on your message

What ever gave you the notion that I'm interested in "debating" or in any way interacting with you, dumb ****?

Just leave me the **** alone, whippersnapper punk! You're nothing as far as I'm concerned.
"

100% in agreement with dave.

Private messages should be banned.

>I often use PMs in other forums, its really practical way of communication and tracking back information if same problem occures any time again.

but doesn't help the next person coming along with the problem at all. so then those providing the solution have to waste time typing it all in again.

the only use i can see for PMs is like was said above, where an adobe tech needs a serial number or other confidential info about a poster. and that's nothing that couldn't be done via email. i predict that 99% of the usage of PMs will be to slag other users. the feature should be turned off before bringing the system live.