Welcome to our new commenting environment!
Hide this FAQ and policy statement
The State has switched story commenting systems. We have tried to anticipate questions you might have below. Please also familiarize yourself with our commenting guidelines.
We encourage an open exchange of affirming and dissenting opinions on our stories. We invite you to comment on our content as part of our interactive community
We ask that you remain civil, and that you follow these guidelines:
Do not resort to personal abuse. You may disagree with the content of an article, with the reporter or with other readers’ comments, but do not attack anyone personally. Do not libel or defame anyone or violate their privacy.
Keep your comments succinct and stay on topic. Comments that bear no relation to the story will be deleted.
Do not use foul language. Don’t try to camouflage profanity with asterisks or other symbols or foreign phrases.
Avoid hate speech. Abusive comments, racist rants or defamatory statements about any group will be deleted.
Do not use threatening language. Repeated bullying or taunting will be cause for banning your account.
Use standard English grammar and observe accepted rules for capitalization, punctuation and spelling. Do not post a comment using all capital letters.
Do not post spam or advertising of any kind.
Do not add images to your comments.
Do not link to Web sites outside of thestate.com.
Do not use an avatar that is offensive or portrays someone in a negative light. Do not missspell or emphasize letters in a person’s name to ridicule them or portray them in a negative manner.
Do not report comments as abusive simply because you disagree with them. Report them only if they violate these guidelines.
We reserve the right to delete posts that do not follow these guidelines. Posts that violate these guidelines or are otherwise offensive should be reported immediately. Click the “flag” link under the offending comment.
If a post is determined to have violated the guidelines listed above, it may be (1) blocked or (2) deleted from our system.
Users who continue posting comments that violate these guidelines may, at our discretion, be blocked from submitting future comments as well.
Read the terms of service for our Web site here.
Will I need to register again?
No. If you are already registered with thestate.com your existing login information will continue to work. If you have forgotten your username and password, you can have the information resent to you by clicking here.
Can I keep my old avatar?
Avatars will not be migrated to the new commenting system. We have created a default avatar for readers that log in using their thestate.com username and password. If you want to display a unique avatar, you can upload one to Disqus, Facebook or Twitter, and then comment on thestate.com stories using that account instead.
Will I be able to keep the screen name under which I post my article comments?
Yes. Your thestate.com screen name will remain unchanged. If you decide to log in and post comments using your Disqus, Facebook or Twitter account, your screen name will match the one you have registered with those services instead.
Will I need to log into the site again?
If you were logged into thestate.com during your last visit, you will remain logged into the site following the launch of Disqus commenting.
Will I be able to log in using my Facebook or Twitter login?
Yes. You will now be able to log in and comment using your existing thestate.com username and password, or use your login and password for Disqus, Facebook or Twitter.
Will I still be able to indicate my approval of comments using the “recommend” button?
Yes, but this button has been renamed “Like.”
Will I be still able to “reply” to comments?
Yes. The ability to reply to specific comment posts will remain a core of thestate.com commenting.
Will I be able report abuse on comments I deem inappropriate?
Yes. This method of community moderation for comments will remain consistent as we transition to Disqus.
So what are some of the new features we will get with Disqus?
You will be able to select how comment threads are organized. Some people prefer to read the newest comments first, while others prefer to read the oldest comments first. Others prefer to sort on comments that have the best rating (highest number of “likes”) or are the most popular now (highest number of “likes” and replies). The choice will be yours. You can lock in your personal preference by selecting from among the options presented in the “Sort by” drop down menu that appears above the comments you are reading. This setting follows you across the site as your read articles and can be changed at your convenience.
You will have the option of subscribing via email to a comment thread by clicking the “Subscribe by email” button at the bottom of the comment box. New comments will be sent directly to your email inbox, where you may read and respond by email.
You will be able to subscribe via RSS to a comment thread by clicking the “Subscribe by RSS” button at the bottom of the comment box. This link will include step-by-step instructions on how to set up the RSS subscription.
If you are logged in using your Facebook account, you will be able to share your comments on specific articles to your Facebook profile page, just by clicking the “Share on Facebook” link directly beneath the comment box. This is a per-post selection, so each time you comment on an article or reply to another comment, you will need to indicate your interest in sharing the post to Facebook.
What will happen to my old comment posts?
We are taking this opportunity to start fresh. Past comments will remain visible on old articles for a week or two as we migrate fully to the new commenting service.
What about my profile and personal blog page?
After much consideration, thestate.com has decided to discontinue these services. Several factors played into this decision. Fewer than one percent of users have set up a profile or personal blog and there wasn’t an easy way to find friends’ profiles. Most users rely on Facebook as their primary profile site. Our hope is that the additional Facebook login option will provide our readers with the best of both worlds: the ability to comment on thestate.com with their Facebook account information and the ability to share selected posts to their Facebook profile page.
If I run into problems or want to share feedback, who should I contact?
For problems with article commenting, or feedback on the changes, please email online[at]thestate.com.
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