I strongly suggest you click and follow different tabs and see where they take you.
There is the red new posts button/tab at the top of the main page (actually every page I think) that will reveal all of the latest threads.
Community, Search, quick links have arrows down to provide more options.
Clicking on anyone's name to the left (avatar name) gives you options.
As for blocking. If I were to block you I would not see the content of your posts. However I would see hidden message and have the ability to click and see. Thus your ignoring depends largely upon your own will power.
BTW, you would still see my posts and have absolutely no idear you were blocked, unless I started a call out thread.
Which most likely would lead to people using infractions against me for breaking some moral code.
We don't have moderators other than Self. Thus far it hasn't been needed. We have infracted people off the board - thus far only trolls.
However, not too long ago there was a battle of willing and we lost a few long term members. Some where banned, others left because they felt the episode was that of a Dictator.
Our Beautiful Supreme Leader rarely flexes his muscles, but when he does you know it. That would be the site Owner and operator.
Thus far we have had no reason to adopt moderators to police the threads. Most members have been real good about policing their own activities. I strongly suggest you do so as well.
You as in all of you new people, not you personally.
Moderation has been discussed... However aside from a few in family feuds and minor issues we tend to get along readily enough. Thus there has been no need. I hope that there is not a critical mass of participating members that lead to having to have moderators.
We have our rules:
http://gayspeak.com/misc.php?do=cfrules they are simple and few people actually break them.
There is no real way to block threads. Like the no moderator thing it is assumed you can choose what you click on and what you don't. Yeah its annoying as all heck at times. However in the suggestions thread people have brought up the issue of wanting to be able to block certain species of threads, such as blocking the humor thread.
Used to be Word Games threads showed up on the front page New Posts area - however with a lot of people playing the games it became untenable. They do show up in the New Posts page (
http://gayspeak.com/search.php?searchid=755573)
You may have noticed that there are a lot of dead threads. There is a limited time that a thread can lapse and it automatically locks. Most threads have died this way and are beyond the powers of mere mortals to necromancy.
Some threads such as
Word Games threads have stayed alive for a long time only because people post on them regularly.
Under Quicklinks you can mark forums read, this resets all the threads as having been read (no yellow envelope/boxy thing) and resets your clock as to the last time you visited.
And we do have a support/ Suggestions of the Site forum which deals with questions like this:
http://gayspeak.com/forumdisplay.php?f=21
A quick perusal may answer a lot of questions for ya'll. Mind that goes all the way back to 2007 so there are 8 pages of data.
There have been a few changes since 2007, thus some of the data there may no longer apply.
I hope this answers a lot of of questions asked and unasked.
Cheers