Ok, I'm completely confused as to the rules of this forum...

Status
Not open for further replies.

Fisherdude

Regular Dude
Subscriber
I thought Tim's original statement was crystal clear:

" Purpose of this new forum.......
This forum's purpose will be for eBay postings, questions on value and worth, craigslist deals, etc. If you want to know what you have and what it's worth, this forum is a one stop shop..."

Yet I'm seeing posts in other forums that are not about any of the above, but merely refer to an ebay link as a reference to the topic being discussed, and then it gets moved to this forum. Here's a few examples:

http://206.225.95.32/forums/showthread.php?t=70434

TheNoid's post was about Technics SB-X700 speakers. If this had been left in Speakers, an AK'er who had a pair, or who had heard a pair, could have responded. It was not about value or worth, or buying or selling, yet it got moved. Now nobody will see it. Well, maybe not nobody...

http://206.225.95.32/forums/showthread.php?t=70426

This one is a little closer to the line, but it's still much more about Infinity lovers getting a chance to talk about one of their rarest and most desirable models.

http://206.225.95.32/forums/showthread.php?t=70446

This is about the auction itself, and it's still in its original forum.


http://206.225.95.32/forums/showthread.php?t=70419

Leadoff post is about an ebay auction, exactly the same as TheNoid's post, and it's still in its original forum.

I don't intend to dump on the last two posters in any way! Really! I'm just looking for some clarity and logic. There are many, many posts on AK that refer to an auction. If every single thread that has a link to eBay or Audiogon or Craigslist gets moved to Dollars and Sense, well, we're going to have a mess.

I think Tim's original post is pretty clear. If the thread is about eBay or Audiogon or Craiglist, or if it's about the auction itself, or about the value, then it belongs in Dollars and Sense. If the discussion is about the component being discussed and the link to an auction is clearly for reference to the thread, then it belongs in the appropriate forum.

For example:

If a post contains a link to an auction, and the thread says "This looks like it could set a new record for a 9090", then it's about the value, and it belongs in Dollars and Sense, not Sansui.

"Holy cow!!!! Has anybody ever heard a (eBay link)??? I've always wanted to own one of these!! What does it sound like? It's my dream fulfilled!!"

Is EXACTLY the same as saying:

"Holy cow!!!! Has anybody ever heard a Yorx XP-9966GT??? I've always wanted to own one of these!! What does it sound like? It's my dream fulfilled!!"

According to what I'm seeing now, the first would get bumped immediately to Dollars and Sense, while the second would be allowed to remain in the Yorx forum.

Yikes. Another long rambling post from you-know-who. I need to switch to decaf.

Does this make sense? I guess I'm really asking for some consistency, 'cause I don't have time to read every post in Dollars and Sense looking for something that could be in one of the other nine forums I check every day.
 
Speaking for myself, a member of the Mod Squad, we try, as much as possible to ensure all posts abide by the rules. It is not an easy task, considering the # of members and # of posts. You try reading every post and see if you can keep up.

We are human, and may, at times, make mistakes. We ususally err on the side of caution when we make a decision.
 
well, fisherdude, someone also thought the grail thread should be moved to D&S, it's there now
 
When there are gray areas, it's easier to just move everything with an ebay link here rather than read the entire post to determine if it really should be moved.
 
Manitoulin said:
Speaking for myself, a member of the Mod Squad, we try, as much as possible to ensure all posts abide by the rules. It is not an easy task, considering the # of members and # of posts. You try reading every post and see if you can keep up.

We are human, and may, at times, make mistakes. We ususally err on the side of caution when we make a decision.

Well put. As another member of the Mod Squad, I do my best to enforce the rules as described to us by the admins, but it is hard to catch everything and to be consistent. All we can do is try, and I do think it makes sense to keep the other forums from being full of ebay/CL/etc. and "what's it worth?" posts.
 
maybe the modsquad needs help fisherdude, with the ever increasing number of members and posts... you should volunteer! I volunteered once, never heard back, sniff, sniff :(
 
Believe me, I know how hard the mods work at their "hobby", and I know how much time it takes to go through all the threads looking for issues. I just wanted to get a little dialog going here so that the following wouldn't happen too often:

dnewma04 said:
When there are gray areas, it's easier to just move everything with an ebay link here rather than read the entire post to determine if it really should be moved.

RichPA's comment about not wanting the forums full of "what's it worth" threads is right on. I guess I just don't want the pendulum to swing too far the other way, with the Dollars and Sense forum turning into a catchall of interesting and informative threads that got lost and never read.
 
If you click on "New Posts" or "Today's Post" you will see a list of all current threads in all forums. Anyone who prefers to surf the "speaker" and "dollars and sense" forums can easily see them that way. The intention of the speaker forum's rules about this are quite clear, posted in a sticky and are: "E-Bay, Craigslist and retail links are allowed only if it's to help a member in locating a particular part or piece. Example: “The replacement driver you are looking for can be found here:” New threads about E-Bay, Craigslist and such should be posted in the Dollars and Sense forum. That’s what its for. If you have a part to sell, use the AK Classifieds section."
 
bolly said:
maybe the modsquad needs help fisherdude, with the ever increasing number of members and posts... you should volunteer! I volunteered once, never heard back, sniff, sniff :(


I've actually thought about it more than once, but I honestly don't know if I have enough knowledge to really contribute anything, other than being pretty good with grammar, spelling, and general typing skills! I shoulda been a secretary!
 
Fisherdude said:
I've actually thought about it more than once, but I honestly don't know if I have enough knowledge to really contribute anything, other than being pretty good with grammar, spelling, and general typing skills! I shoulda been a secretary!

A good moderator doesn't need to be able to offer anything other than to understand and enforce the rules fairly and to avoid public confrontations with members of the site.
 
Celt said:
If you click on "New Posts" or "Today's Post" you will see a list of all current threads in all forums. Anyone who prefers to surf the "speaker" and "dollars and sense" forums can easily see them that way. The intention of the speaker forum's rules about this are quite clear, posted in a sticky and are: "E-Bay, Craigslist and retail links are allowed only if it's to help a member in locating a particular part or piece. Example: “The replacement driver you are looking for can be found here:” New threads about E-Bay, Craigslist and such should be posted in the Dollars and Sense forum. That’s what its for. If you have a part to sell, use the AK Classifieds section."


I use "New Posts" every day. I'd be buried without that very helpful tool!

I think this: "E-Bay, Craigslist and retail links are allowed only if it's to help a member in locating a particular part or piece..." is a prime example of a criterium that is overly restrictive and ends up putting unnecessary threads in Dollars and Sense.

Here's a few examples that I hope will help to clarify my thoughts on threads that contain eBay links, but should be allowed to remain in their respective forums:

"Is this (eBay link) the original and correct knob on that tuning control?"

"Can anybody tell me what the original grill cloth on a large advent looks like?"
"Sure, take a look at this (eBay link), it's got a great closeup."

There are many ways that we all use these sites for reference and learning every day. eBay is a great resource for information that is totally apart from the value question.

Any thread that contains any of the following belongs in Dollars and Sense:

Questions of value.
Questions about specific auctions or listings.
General discussion of auction sites, including general bitching/pissing & moaning about ebay/Audiogon/Craigslist buyers/sellers/other morons, and their fees/packing/shipping, etc.

I think that is closer to Tim's original intent on why Dollars and Sense was created.
 
dnewma04 said:
When there are gray areas, it's easier to just move everything with an ebay link here rather than read the entire post to determine if it really should be moved.

That about nails it. People that move these threads need to start reading the posts rather than looking at links and clicking thread tools. A valid point and thread, Clay.

BUT......

If the first post of a thread is as those links are, they belong in D&S. They do develop into a discussion that becomes valid for another forum, but we have to base the move decision of the first post. These are nothing more than a case of thread drift from price discussion to topical.

Now take a look at the thread titles too. How descriptive are they as far as the subject matter of the post? How would somebody even know there's something that might interest them by the way the thread is introduced?

The problem is that since the threads become something other than a price discussion, they need to be moved back to an appropriate forum, and as you'll notice this forum has no present moderator. We're going to have to work on that.
 
To make the task of moderating these threads easier would it not be easier to ask anything that has to do with Ebay, Craigslist or any other selling site along with valuations and such go in dollars and cents ?

There would be no gray are then.
 
Well... I'm not happy that the Grail thread was moved to $&S, but what's done is done; I can't move it back. I've edited the first post to remove the "exception" phrase.

Edit: I think Grumpy's right, much though I hate the results. I fired up another thread in Infinity Speakers so the discussion could continue, without any reference to the Audiogon sale.
 
Last edited:
Fisherdude said:
Yet I'm seeing posts in other forums that are not about any of the above, but merely refer to an ebay link as a reference to the topic being discussed, and then it gets moved to this forum. Here's a few examples:

http://206.225.95.32/forums/showthread.php?t=70434

TheNoid's post was about Technics SB-X700 speakers. If this had been left in Speakers, an AK'er who had a pair, or who had heard a pair, could have responded. It was not about value or worth, or buying or selling, yet it got moved. Now nobody will see it. Well, maybe not nobody...

I'll comment on this one, since I moved it, and would do so again unless I got different guidance from the admins. There's not one word in that post, unless you follow the link, that identifies the topic. It is just, "here's something cool on ebay." Seems to me that's precisely what Dollars and Sense is for - see the first sentence of the rules sticky - but if I'm wrong, maybe Kamikiri or Grumpy could explain it to me.
 
Just my $.02 as I am still new here........................

If a mod has the time to move a post, it seems fair that they should take the time to read it (or a good portion of it anyway) before they move it. If, after reading it, in their judgement it should be moved then they should at least send a PM to the original poster with a brief explanation for why the thread was moved. Over time, those people that have threads moved will start to have a better understanding of what is acceptable and what is not.

If a particular poster repeatedly has threads moved and is pm'd with the reasons why, then an Admin should consider a temporary vacation.

If this were consistently done, then I don't see how anyone could bitch. :D
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom