RIP Bill Zeller

Re:RIP Bill Zeller by zackattack on Thursday January 06, 2011 @06:15AM (#2074887)

This might be a good time to mention that we are looking for volunteers for http://CompassionPit.com/. It was created by people who have struggled with depression for most of their life. The other day someone commented about it, "I used CompassionPit for the first time this week. I really like the idea of it. Reminds me of when I reached out to an online videogame friend when I was 12 years old when I was super depressed." I think many people here can relate to this. Anyway, if you want to contribute you can do it in two ways. You can either just join and be present for other people, or you can help with the source code. It's written in python. Your help would be very much appreciated. Thanks.

Edit: the source is available at https://github.com/zackster/CompassionPit - looking to add a few features... send me an email if you are available.

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Re:RIP Bill Zeller by kingsley_20 on Thursday January 06, 2011 @06:52AM (#2074950)

Great idea. Would you consider changing the "pit" part of the name?

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Re:RIP Bill Zeller by zackattack on Thursday January 06, 2011 @07:44PM (#2078026)

I would consider it but I am skeptical that it would be a worthwhile change. E.g. Something like "CompassionPlane" might promote more of a sense of equality but it also negates the dark truths that, if more readily confronted, would perhaps have helped certain people avoid the "pit" they are in. When you are feeling awful it does not help to pretend otherwise. You are truly feeling awful and not resisting it is the first step.

I welcome your thoughts

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Re:RIP Bill Zeller by endtime on Friday January 07, 2011 @06:41PM (#2081579)

I agree with Kingsley. "Pit" is a very depressing word, more likely to conjure up images of the doldrums than of compassion.

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Re:RIP Bill Zeller by Tichy on Friday January 07, 2011 @07:43PM (#2081731)

Is it OK to have a rational outlook on life? I have at times considered volunteering for things like CompassionPit, but I guess my view of the world might seem weird to some people. For starters, I am not religious, and for some religion might be the only consolation?

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Re:RIP Bill Zeller by krakensden on Saturday January 08, 2011 @01:18AM (#2082440)

I'm sorry, but I think that it's a terrible idea. If it ever gets popular, it will get swamped by trolls from Something Awful, 4Chan, and other cesspools. The last thing you need is for someone to go looking for help and have someone go "LOL KILL YOURSELF." Followed by rude language.

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Re:RIP Bill Zeller by kalmi10 on Sunday January 09, 2011 @02:57PM (#2086235)

I believe that that problem could be mitigated by some kind of a reputation system. I am not saying that it is a simple problem, it should be given a lot more thought.

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Re:RIP Bill Zeller by yogipatel on Thursday January 06, 2011 @07:30AM (#2075017)

Nice idea. You've got mail.

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