I have just installed Windows 6 but when I came to log into Gmail I was presented with a mixed up file and asked ti type in the letters but it was impossible to work out what they are. Obviously some sort of security system but what a moronic idea!!

Niloc

Windows 6 must be a typo?

That is the most common security check now and agree the letters sometimes can not be deciphered by the human mind (supposed to make it hard for computers) but if you answer wrong there will be a new set and eventually you may get lucky.

Windows 6 must be a typo?

That is the most common security check now and agree the letters sometimes can not be deciphered by the human mind (supposed to make it hard for computers) but if you answer wrong there will be a new set and eventually you may get lucky.

It was Win 7, not 6!!

This was Googles security system. They probably initiate it the first time a new computer logs in.. then a cookie is updated on your computer do it won't happen every time.

I use this security scheme in the comments section on my site. So far it's eliminated machine generated spam which can take hours every week to clean up. An alternative would be to moderate every comment which is quicker, but still takes time, but this holds up comments and limits discussion.. which I think is more inconvenient than having the person leaving the comment enter the squigglys.

which I think is more inconvenient than having the person leaving the comment enter the squigglys.

I would disagree with that as most of the captcha offerings are unreadable and not even real words.  As someone who encounters these dam_n things, I usually do so by avoiding sites that use them regularily.

I just type in anything, each time it is wrong you get a new lot of letter + numbers, after a few tries you will get something you can see/read and type

They are using this procedure to help digitize books. Usually there are two words, one acts as the actual check and the other word is from scanned info. They take scanned information from books and such, distort it, and then check and see if what is entered matches the optical character recognition software. So even though it is a pain it is serving a good purpose. I for one fully support the digitization of the books in our libraries so that they are available on line.

Check out the site below to find out more:

http://www.google.co...ptcha/learnmore

Edited February 23, 201115 yr by BuckarooBanzai

which I think is more inconvenient than having the person leaving the comment enter the squigglys.

I would disagree with that as most of the captcha offerings are unreadable and not even real words. As someone who encounters these dam_n things, I usually do so by avoiding sites that use them regularily.

I wonder if different people are just wired to see these things different. I probably 'get' 7/10 of them. I've heard people say they can't see any, some say all. Probably some weird brain thing like how different people see optical illusions differently.

A solution is difficult. I could moderate every comment, but then there would be periods of 3-5 days where comments would be held up. I don't think most want this. If my users weren't so respectful of each other and were prone to flaming then I'd have to do it anyway.

Another solution is using a comment service like Disqus. I really liked this, you set up an account, and then any Disqus enabled comment site you encounter allows you to enter comments with ease, no questions or filling in blanks. And let's say you regularly enjoy the comment section of 15-20 blogs.. then you can service/respond to all your comments/replies on the Disqus site without going to the individual sites.

I had Disqus set up for month and no one used it. No one wanted bother with creating an account.

I'm currently looking for a captcha type service that works through cookies and recognizes a computer.. so from that computer you only have to do it once like the OP experienced. So far no luck.

Most spam can be stopped by the simplest of captcha systems.

I have blogs with a math captcha (1+2=) and very rarely see spam.

The trouble is that although the majority of bots won't bother trying to beat the captcha, the odd few will.

Maths questions can be easily overcome, impossible to read images are hard for both humans and computers.

The bigger the website, the more likely people are spending time setting bots to beat the captcha.

The more spam they get, the harder they make it for the bots and as a side result it gets harder for genuine users too.

The most difficult to read is normally "recaptcha", though fortunately it does have a refresh icon which allows you to change image until you can read one.