Replying strictly to the first post
First off - spamming
Okay, I've been taking something for granted as a well-known distinction between two concepts - spamming and off-topic. Off-topic is a collection of knowledgable, intellectual and sensible statements posted with a purpose, posted unnecessarily in the discussion going on. The discussion of the Pseudo Earth theory in Jacob's Chaco thread was off-topic, because it was Cave Story-based and if I might add, more sensible than the thread itself. Similarly, a joke or an ironical statememt meaning to induce humour, based on the discussion at hand is not spam. Such stuff is justified, pardonable, and to an extent, essential for maintaining the flow of the topic. However, spamming is, was, and will ever be, pointless and unwarrented posts like, "Hey, is my text colour good?" or that sort. These posts are clearly spotted as they stand out among the on-topic stuff, as long as you can determine which post began the spams. The crap we used to post in Jacob's infamous "something I noticed" thread is the best example handy. We used to have a good time, but the spams got out of hand and it really was time to put a lid on em. Garde has been doing a pretty good job of late and now that we have more members posting here, we might change the look of these boards. :>
Oh yeah, and another important factor of distiction of spam vs. offtopic is the number of posts chaining the offtopic discussion. Off-topic almost always starts with an vaguely on-topic post, but the replies to that post take the thread off the rails. So, let us, as dedicated members to these forums, pledge to think at least once whether your post will enhance the discussion before hitting the submit button. I've been doing it (you'd better believe it >:E) ever since Garde had shut Jacob's thread, although I've let the posts go loose every once in a while.
You don't need to check on the fun you have, just move the discussion to some other thread meant for your post. Or make a new thread in the S Lounge. It helps as every spam discussion prevented is a bonus.
Yeah, all this might sound weird coming from me, but seriously I've been noticing the growing urgency to get rid of this problem for a while and want to help out too. ._.