mature-language-filter
Latest
What makes a bad word bad?
Warning: This post may contain language that is offensive to some. Our own Fox Van Allen tackled the subject of the odd quirks of the mature language filter last week -- the fact that some objectionable words have been mysteriously left out of the filter, while others of a much less objectionable nature have oddly been left in it. None of this was noticed of course until the mature language filter was bugged so that it reset itself, resulting in a lot of people spewing a lot of random keyboard symbols until they remembered to turn it off again. Personally? I'm not sure if the mature language filter is at all an effective tool. Since the first days of WoW, Horde and Alliance players have not been allowed to speak to each other. Part of this was because of faction separation, but part of it was to discouraging griefing, which happened all the time in PvP situations. Players of the opposing faction could kill you repeatedly, but they couldn't swear at you -- until, that is, players realized they could communicate with keyboard symbols arranged into letters. This ability was soon squashed. And that's the problem, isn't it? It doesn't matter how much you block a word. If someone is determined to have their say, they will find a way to say it. If you can't talk to the opposing faction, you roll an alt and cuss them out that way, or over voice chat, or via email, or on Twitter, or wherever they can conveniently contact you. So why try blocking it at all? More importantly, what makes a bad word "bad," anyway?
Addon Spotlight: Hermes, Extra Button, and the mature language filter addon
Each week, WoW Insider's Mathew McCurley brings you a fresh look at reader-submitted UIs as well as Addon Spotlight, which focuses on the backbone of the WoW gameplay experience: the user interface. Everything from bags to bars, buttons to DPS meters and beyond -- your addons folder will never be the same. One of the most often asked-about topics around these parts concerns the issue of raid cooldowns. A raid leader armed with sufficient knowledge and a knack for planning can orchestrate a cooldown rotation like no other. His excellence could only be improved by a cooldown monitor, allowing that intrepid leader to see what was at his disposal. Many players ask me where to find such a display. This week's Addon Spotlight pick is just the ticket. Allow me to introduce you to Hermes, a wonderful little addon that knows who has what raid cooldowns available. But first, we need to talk about a pressing issue, a dire matter that has threatened the very virtual world we inhabit. I am of course talking about the worst bug in the history of bugs: an eternal mature language filter. Let's fix that too, shall we?
How to fix that %$!@# mature language filter bug
With the release of patch 4.3, players have been plagued by one of the worst bugs in WoW history*. There you are, sitting in guild chat, when that guy shows up. You load up you chat input box with your customary "hello" to this person and, lo and behold, it looks like dialogue out of a comic book from the 1980s. I am, of course, refering to the mature language filter bug, which resets your mature language filter to "on" after every log in. Pain in the %!$, right? The addon community has graciously given us many fixes for the mature language filter bug, but the one I've been using is called Mature Language Filter Fix. You can grab it on Curse, slap it into your Interface directory in your WoW folder, and ta-da, no more mature language filter. Tell them how you really feel, every time, with this fix. There's also Force Mature Language Filter, which does the exact same thing. Two choices! Download Mature Language Filter Fix at [Curse]. Download ForceMatureLanguageFilter at [WowAce]. Don't forget to tune in to Addon Spotlight every Thursday on WoW Insider. *The Ice Stone has melted! Addons are what we do on Addon Spotlight. If you're new to mods, Addons 101 will walk you through the basics; see what other players are doing at Reader UI of the Week. If there's a mod you think Addon Spotlight should take a look at, email mat@wowinsider.com.
