![\"\"](\"https:\/\/occamstypewriter.org\/vwxynot\/files\/2011\/02\/captcha-official-image.jpg\")
<\/a>Official image used on project information page (see link below)<\/p><\/div>\n
This is the reCAPTCHA version of the spam test that some blogs require commenters to pass before commenting; typing the correct word into the box proves that you’re a real person rather than a spam bot. (Well, usually. It’s not perfect, but it’s better than nothing).<\/p>\n
reCAPTCHA\u00a0harnesses the power of this system to help digitise old books and other texts<\/a>: the first image is of a known, verified word that proves the commenter is a real person, whereas the second image is an unknown word from an old text that the digitising software was unable to recognise. So, one word at a time, blog commenters are helping to archive old texts. Pretty cool, eh?<\/p>\n My friend Beth’s blog, Not To Be Trusted With Knives<\/a>, uses the reCAPTCHA system. The problem is that on her blog – and only <\/em>on her blog – the system clearly hates me and is taking the piss. Luckily, I’ve been collecting evidence over the last few weeks…<\/p>\n Exhibit A:<\/p>\n this one (seen today) was only marginally difficult to decipher. The first word is ntsTVr, although what that’s supposed to mean is anyone’s guess.<\/p>\n The second one?<\/p>\n Hmm… does that say III? ttt? Or is it the Monster energy drink logo<\/a>?<\/p>\n Well, now<\/em> it says III. So there.<\/p>\n Exhibit B:<\/p>\n This one rejected my first two efforts at typing the first word (Jawahiri and Jawalwi). Maybe I was supposed to include the accents? Or is that a 4 at the end, not an i?<\/p>\n Exhibit C: this interpretation actually worked!<\/p>\n Exhibit D: but this one didn’t.<\/p>\n Just Alg didn’t work either. I’m still not sure what this one’s going for.<\/p>\n So there you go – Beth’s blog definitely hates me.<\/p>\n I still do love the reCAPTCHA concept, though, and think we should use it here at Occam’s Typewriter. Better than those alphanumeric strings – I keep getting the same one when I comment on different posts in the same session – and also much more useful and entertaining.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" If you read a lot of blogs, you’ve probably seen something like this: This is the reCAPTCHA version of the spam test that some blogs require commenters to pass before commenting; typing the correct word into the box proves that … Continue reading <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n