Prices

[Tarolisol]

I dont have anything to say about the price posting post, but i really want a supporting member deally, I always wanted one on reefcentral but never liked reefcentral as much as canreef. I just want the little picture Plus some extra features would be nice.

[michika]

I really do have to agree with Andy regarding his request for a clearly stated rule. I know there is a basic user agreement when you sign up for the board, but honestly, how many of us really do remember it from way back when?

Maybe stickies could be included at the top of every section of the board denoting the rules of posting. Or maybe include it in the blue bar that lists User CP, FAQ, etc.

Many of us who are posting prices etc, may not know any better. I personally didn't know anything about a no price posting rule until I read this thread.

As for donating for special privledges/services, I'd be worried of the boards eventual growth causing some of the issues that we're noticing on other boards, e.g. search engine availablilty on Canreef. If you were to "privitize" certain services, I would suggest that they be features that go above and beyond what everyone can access as a non-paying member. For example, extra gallery space, larger mailboxes, or more ability to customize the displays and board color schemes.

My guess is that the best way to find out what people want for additional features would be to put it to a free vote. Everyone could have their say in what works for them. In the mean time, an offical post from the moderators of what goes and what doesn't might be helpful to prevent any further "oppsies" on our part.

[kellehar]

I also have to agree with andy on this. As I have had posts deleted for being advertizing in nature. I dont work for any fish store. Im the same as geopod in the military. Just a little bit frustrating. Anyways not trying to be a jerk just confused on what should and shouldnt be sensored.

[Delphinus]

Sorry for the belated reply on this one. We (the moderators) talked about this and came up with a new policy that I hope will be satisfactory to those who expressed concerns in this thread. I was supposed to make a post but I've had to delay getting the message out due to being incredibly busy all of a sudden while at work and not having the 5 minutes to actually type this in.

What we've come up with is this: You can post prices in a thread as a matter of discussion, but you cannot post a shopping list of prices.

So for example:

"I was at <insert store here> and I saw CO2 regulators for sale for $20! Score!" This would be OK. (* As long as it's not in the buy/sell forums. More details about this one to follow.)

"I was at <insert store here> today and here is a shopping list of prices of the things that I saw." Or "Here are all the items and their prices from <insert store here> that came to me in a flyer in the mail this week." This would be not OK.

So, the obvious question is, what is a shopping list? Basically, once something gets to be a large list of multiple items and their prices quoted, then then this would be construed as a shopping list. Arbitrarily, if more than 5 items are listed, it's a shopping list. And be careful, because as soon as 2 or 3 people start replying with the 2 or 3 items they're listing, the whole thread can become, inadvertently, a shopping list. The reason this is an issue is because a shopping list is either potentially advertising, or worse, potentially becomes a "which store is best to shop at" thread, which never end nicely.

Also, when posting in the buy/sell forums, try to limit yourself to posting items that you are selling (or buying) yourself. BOCTOE ("but of course there are obvious exceptions"). The occasional "I'm posting this for a friend who doesn't have email" is, for example, one such exception.

...

Now, as for the sticky posts suggestion detailing guidelines for each forum. I personally would rather we did not go this route at this time. It is my preference that we just stick to common sense and good nettitiquette when posting (and I think that 99% of the time this is "good enough"). If we start posting rules all over the place, the board becomes a less fun place to be. My $0.02 on that one.

Thanks!

[Willow]

does this stuff all apply if the store we are talking about is a sponsor?

[Delphinus]

No, it doesn't matter if it's a sponsor or not.