Poll: Commercial policies on C&F

[boomerang]

Ok Why not try the impossible and keep everyone happy,
why not introduce a forum especially for commercial posts,
that way if ppl are interested they can look without it being thrust down their throat on the main instrument forums,
It would probably provide a good service and be quite beneficial, possibly enhancing discussion in the other various discussion forums
What do you think?
Regards
David

[PhilO]

Fine as is...

PhilO

[Lorenzo]

It seems fine to me too, the way it is. I'm guessing that if some people are not responding to the poll, they also must be satisfied with the way things are.

[CHIFF FIPPLE]

Looks like the leave it alone's have it.Dale Leave it alone

[CHIFF FIPPLE]

O'h an Dale,are you tryin to keep up we me an cran fer changin yer avatar

[MarkB]

I wish that voting in today's national election in Canada was a simple as voting in this poll and I don't mean just marking a ballot.

I voted to "Let it be .... Let it beee"

MarkB

[Paul]

I think it's fine the way it is. Right now it's an honorable system. Commercial posts get on occaisionally but only with permission. When there is a commercial post it is usually something interesting about something totally new or a big deal like a new whistlemaker announcing his/her wares. It's gentlemanly. I like that. I voted to leave it alone too.

[mvhplank]

I voted to leave them as they are, following my initial gut reaction to the question.

I post announcements of music workshops from time to time and, frankly, most of you are too far away to take advantage of these excellent learning opportunities anyway.

But there are plenty of more appropriate venues to try to support a business, and people in business should go ahead and pay whatever tariff there is and accept that as the cost of doing business.

Maybe Dale should charge a fee for items sold through the forum to help support the enterprise. Why should sellers take advantage of his good will just to avoid paying eBay fees?

(Yeah, right, like he's going to study all the posts and send out invoices. But whenever he's made a general plea for money, I've sent some. I haven't always been in the position to be generous so it's just my way of saying "thanks" to a higher authority. That is, higher than Dale, if you can imagine such an entity.)

M

[Cathy Wilde]

As one who has now succumbed to not one, but two initially-innocent-seeming "Flute FS" posts on the Flute Main Message Board, I'm not averse to a separate "For Sale" forum. That way (if I have the strength), I can avoid that forum entirely, remain blissfully ignorant of those dreaded "Blackwood Pratten 6-Key Olwell FS" posts that happen to appear, and go peacefully about my life .... & thus escape being sucked into the miserable torment that is The IFF (Itchy Flute Fingers) Vortex.

IF I have the strength, that is.

[anniemcu]

Would it be possible to simply set up a Commercial Listing section, where people can go to check out what ever is available, with reviews able to be posted, etc.... while the regular boards remain virtually commercial free. Discussions of them could still be allowed on the reg boards, even links to the commercial posts for those who *choose* to use them. With limits on number of posts - perhaps one that can be edited regularly with a length limit? Don't know if policing that would be necessary or an option.

Perhaps a small fee for the privelege of the commercial listing isn't outrageous either, though it needn't be much, I'd imagine - enough to cover the additional bandwidth?

If this has already been considered, I'lll just slink away and pretend to practice my whistle...

[kkrell]

I think the difference in postings since the current rules have gone into effect shows that the current policy is working. So leave as is, and administer the occasional hand-slap.

Kevin Krell

[talasiga]

Has the possiblity of a dedicated commercial forum been discussed?

Took the words right out of my mouth Grendel.

I would like things a bit stricter
There should be a dedicated forum for commercial posts
I also think that one should have
* at least XXX posts to his or her credit
AND
* been a member for XXX period
before qualifying for commercial posts.

[Bloomfield]

I think amount and kind of tolerated commercial posts are right, I don't need each commercial post to state that it has been cleared with Dale or that it falls in the alloted quota or whatever.

Generally I think the point of having commercial-post rules is to curb excesses and if Mack Hoover posts twice per month, fine, bless him. And the annoying cases we've had would run afoul of pretty much any policy anyway.

So, keep the policy and enforce it selectively.

[brewerpaul]

As a professional whistlesmith, a considerable part of whose living depends on the whistle business, I'm very comfortable with the guidelines as they are now.

I'll second Jerry-- as much as I love reading what other whistlemakers have going on, I would hate to see this board become little more than a catalog of whistles. Once a month is plenty of opportunity for us to let people know about new developments .

[Antaine]

i think a whistle or pipemaker should be allowed to post a message in a new thread and field questions should they arise...no repetition of the same post just to stay on the front page, no commercials in the middle of discussions etc...i think innovations in construction or new items/places to deal with would certainly be on topic for such a board as this

we just want to make sure that mideast isn't making a weekly catalog post or divert discussions with trolls or anything like that


can you make a special icon that would denote commercial threads vs regular ones? but even then, so long as it's not spam or in mid-conversation i don't see that it should be a problem.