Great idea, Robert!

It works great in Chrome.

I'm haivng problems in Firefox, however. The UV shows up, and the +/- and X buttons, but nothing happens when I click "X," and when I use the UV drop down box, nothing happens when I click, "save changes."

@Pastor Cork, you've discovered an issue that I've been trying to work around. It worked in my testing so I thought I had nailed it, but I guess not. I've added it to my bug list. After I submit my dissertation in a few weeks I'll work on version 2.0.

@Charles Reid: I certainly hope not! I really think we could have better conversations about our differences if we had more tools to keep the conversation constructive.

This may be perfectly clear to most, but for those of us who are content with simply being able to access the internet and read and comment on Spectrum, what should we do differently than present?

Agree, Elaine. (glad you are back) This may be perfectly clear to most, the article above was Greek to me.

The clarifications on how to use it are on the download page.
For those that cant find it I am posting it here.

There is a "+/-" above each comment. Clicking it will toggle whether the comment is shown or hidden. The effect of the "+/-" button isn't permanent.
The "direct link" allows you to link directly to a comment. This is useful if you want to, say, email someone a link that points directly to someone's comment instead of to the top of the article.
Above each comment on the right is an "X". Clicking it reveals a "Hide username" option (where "username" is the author of the comment). If you click on "Hide username", the user is added to your "Hidden List" and all of the comments written by that user are automatically hidden by default. You can always unhide an individual comment by that user using the "+/-" button. Your Hidden List is saved. Don't worry, you can edit it under the Settings menu (see below).
You will also notice a floating "UV" in the upper righthand corner of each page on SpectrumMagazine.org that has comments on it. Clicking the "UV" will display the Settings menu. There you can edit various settings and also show/hide people on your Hidden list or all comments. Clicking on the "UV" again automatically saves any changes you made and dismisses the Settings menu.

Floating at the bottom of the page is an "Add your comment" button. Clicking it will "pin" the comment form to the current location of the button. Clicking it again will return it to a floating button. This is useful if you want to have someone's comment you are replying to in view while you type your response. You can turn this feature off if you don't like it. Also, if there are no comments on the page there will be no floating box.

@Elaine Nelson and Donna Haerich: Could you be more specific with your question? I'm not quite sure what you are asking. If you are unsure about how to install the browser extension, the answer is you click the link in the article and then click the link or follow the instructions on that page according to which web browser you use. If you are not sure which browser you use, your best bet might be to invite a techy friend over for Sabbath lunch. ;)

If your question is, how do I use it?, just read the "How to use it" section on the page linked to in the article above.

Works like a dream in Chrome. Is a +++ for readability. ;)
I'm guessing the extension picks up on IPs?
One question - in the Hidden list, items like UVHiddenListMenu122569 appear. Is there any way of seeing what they reference?

IOW, if we are content with the present setup, there is no need to ass this?

I expect I will be on many hidden lists. I will not place anyone on such a list. Even if I don't like what you say. I don't think such a thing will actually help conversation, it will just split everyone up into tribes who will only talk to themselves.

Sorry, Robert, can't reproduce the steps to make those UVHiddenListMenu items. I did notice a couple of times when I hit the X to hide there was no apparent response. I've cut all those except one from my list, will see what turns up.
I didn't really think UV was reading IPs, that would've been an interesting touch, one you could sell to Google or Facebook, or the C!A.
Though, I'm pretty sure a couple of names were added to my list without me Xing. That's why I thought some other identifier was being used.
I've added 'comment longer than one screenful' to my exclusion criteria. Next will be those who object to the tool. Like, it's not compulsory, dudes!
Perhaps, if anyone is afraid I've Xd them, they could submit a request in writing to reverse it. :))

I agree with Bille. We can easily scroll past subjects or writers we do not wish to see.
The openness is what makes Spectrum attractive.

Et All: This is really a way to censor the conservatives so that the liberals on Spectrum will only read what they want to hear, and silence any voice of dissent. For those loving freedom, you just saw one those freedoms removed by the liberals who can't stand to hear the truth.

Thanks for all the feedback, everyone. I had some free time this evening and fixed several obnoxious bugs, but I ran into some issues when I packaged up the new code. About three of you managed to download the bad packages in the 15 minutes I had them up. I have since replaced the bad packages with the original version. [You will know if you got the bad version if you can't read this comment. :) ]

The new version I wrote this evening has no new features--it is just a bug fix release. Still, you may want to upgrade anyway. I'll make a comment here when the new version goes live which will be whenever I figure out my packaging issue.

Bille, Fr. Jim, et al.: So you are complaining that someone who already doesn't want to read someone's posts... won't read their posts? I just don't even...

TruthWave: lolwut

Thanks, Zane. Another possibility is to hide everyone you've already read. I was just thinking it'd be convenient to put myself on the Hidden List.

Just an idea: you can treat your hidden list just like a plain text file. Organize your list with your own headings and blank lines and punctuation--just avoid using a question mark. The code uses that one. So you could have your hidden list be:

:CURRENT CONVERSATION
Zane Yi
rljacobson

:TROUBLE MAKERS
Bicycle Truth

:PEOPLE WHOSE COMMENTS I'VE ALREADY READ
Bill Cork

As long as the user names are on their own line it should work. Since punctuation isn't allowed in user names, you can guarantee that headings won't accidentally hide someone's comments by punctuating them (or, say, beginning the line with a colon like I did above). I don't really use it this way since my Spectrum life isn't that complicated, but it's an idea.

You should see a UV floating in the upper left hand corner of the page. Click that. A settings menu appears where you can edit your Hidden List.

Thanks Robert,

Just trying out the floating comment box. I don't know how often I'll use the hide comments option; but, I love the option to go directly to new comments and the possibility of linking directly to other comments is great! Nice work.

Fr Jim
You don't have to worry about being put on any index. In fact, I can't think of anybody that I personally would want to block out, and I think that's the case for most of us. If I just wanted to talk to myself, I wouldn't be here. Those who disagree with us do us a great favor in that they force us to sharpen and clarify our thinking.

Robert - great idea - thanks (not that I would hide individuals, even ones who blow their pumpkins, as I think redemptive dialogue can ensue, if we so intend).

Mainly I would use the direct link to posts feature.

Waiting for Android app. :)

I have trouble downloading this on my Apple. Has anyone else done this?