My noncommercial post are being considered commercial

[Radio University]

Originally Posted by Alan Wheeler

But this is a team of very clever people and we enter a debate into subjects like this. It is one reason why it takes as long as an elephant giving birth, to make a decision here.

For those of you who do not know how long it takes an elephant to give birth, it is usually 2 nights...

Elephant Birth in a zoo

[Jentine]

I have been a member of this forum for some time and I was unaware that Radio U was a commercial poster. I was so shocked by his ouster from the forum that I went back and read all of his posts. I must need a reading course. I am unable to find the commercial posts that have drawn the ire of the administration. WHERE ARE THE COMMERCIALS?

I found his remarks to be in concert with the subjects responded to, informative and germane. What is the problem. There are other moderators and members whose comments border on or trespass upon the freedom from commercialism rule. It is sufficient to say that we all know who they are.

[Auspicious]

I think James' posts are helpful, balanced, and on-topic. When he started his on-line interviews and podcasts my only reaction was "Gee, that's awfully nice of him." He shared access and resources to bring the sailing community information we likely would not get any other way.

Pat McCartin's (Never Monday) posts and the advice therein are similarly a gift to those of us without his breadth of experience. Sure, I choose to buy all my spares and other parts from Pat and cheerfully pay the shipping.

Craig Smith from Rocna and Alain Hylas formerly of Spade both provide interesting and relevant perspectives. If each can sometimes be a little parochial they also tend to keep each other in check. In both cases I think they're intensity is more a matter of strongly held opinions (and it isn't as if we don't see lots of opinion presented as fact by about everyone else here) than greed or other commercial interest.

I suggest that trying to craft hard and fast rules is just going to make our real contributers who happen to make their livelihood from boating related endeavors drift away while pure commercial posters hunt for loopholes. I suggest we defer to the judgement of the admins and mods, perhaps with a "two-person rule" that requires consultation among the admins/mods before taking action.

sail fast,

dave

[never monday]

This is a hard line to define.
I've held the belief that if I post honest info on topic I'm ok. If someone then chooses to use me for their parts/whatever, I'm greatful.
I will remove my signature if it's a problem.

[Starbuck]

For those of you who do not know how long it takes an elephant to give birth, it is usually 2 nights...
—RU

I'm sure Alan was referring to the gestation period of elephants in his metaphor, some twenty-two months.

Sorry for stealing your thunder, Gord. <giggle>

[Andy R]

Here is the deal...

Out moderation and admin team are here to keep this place clean so everyone can get to the info you want ASAP. The problem is that we often get a new member who registers for the sole reason of harvesting our traffic to sell their products. Most of the time they do not contribute any quality posts and the only posts they make are very promotional.

As a team (mods & admin) we have not had time to adjust to the way our community is growing. We have put in place certain rules to prevent things from getting out of hand but with time we will adjust our management style. I think our policy should be to allow commercial posts (or self promotional) but in a new forum for those kinds of posts. I also think that we need to look at the posts a member makes and then determine if they are here to contribute or just for self promotion reasons. If a member is a long standing member with many quality posts, then I think some self promotion is entitled.

I also think it would be wise for our members to understand that we have a volunteer team helping manage the forums and that they should treat them with some respect. If you go into a bar and call the bar tender an ******* you might be escorted to the sidewalk outside the door or if he is nice enough to serve you a drink, he probably not going to hook you up. So if you have a question, please ask someone on our team nicely and I am sure they will be happy to find out the best way for you to reach your goals.

With all the above being said, please be patient while we (the mod/admin team) discuss how to move forward.

Also, if you are a long standing quality member and want to promote your products, contact me. I might be able to surprise you by hooking you up with some great ad space for dirt cheap or even free. We want participation in the forums to be a win win but we need respect from all parties to keep this place civil...

Thanks for understanding!

(I am closing this thread so we can go back to talking about cruising)