GnuTux wrote:
I suggest we either enforce some rules regarding spoiler use or dump them all together from the posting screen.
While I agree that spoilers are an ineffective means of reducing bandwidth usage, it seems to me that their usage is a creative decision of a poster or tutorial author. If you find their employment for a purpose distasteful, it is certainly your prerogative to restrict it; however, I would submit that they can be exploited to good effect.
One example would be in providing the original image from which an effect has been generated. Many readers may care only about the artistic value of the end result, while some other may be interested in attempting alternative methods on the original and contrast the results. Spoiler tags can reduce what might be considered "clutter" by the former while still addressing the needs of the latter.
Another example, if a tutorial step instructs the user to "fuzzy select the blue scarf using Sample Merge" then this description is fairly complete and a screenshot is not particularly necessary, but by providing one within spoiler tags the reader who understands the instruction can continue without interruption while an uncertain user has access to a visual aid which might provide sufficient insight.
Spoiler tags can indeed be abused -- for example, it would make little sense for tutorial to instruct "set the values for Levels as shown in the following screenshot" and then hide the screenshot -- but they can also be an effective means of enhancing communication between writers and their readers.