Perhaps the new owners of this forum can explain just exactly why they are so intrested in Forums/Online communities?
Yes i read the crowdgather link but truth be told it doesnt make sense to me. Most people on these kinds of forums enjoy them BECAUSE they are usually free of ads/adverts ( Most community owners rely on their communites for donations etc IF need be to keep all going ) and ofcourse are owned/ran by everyday people like themselves. Why the AOL, MSN, Yahoo chatrooms etc are dying a slow miserable death. IMO
Truthfully?
Can have all the features/best software etc but at the end of the day it is not gonna amount to a hill of beans because people will go where they feel true community Spirit which starts with the owners on down to the Moderators and then most of all the members. ALL have a say in one form or another and all know that neither is there just looking to make a buck or whatever off eachother. Looking for a way to make a quick buck off your membership is the quickest way to kill it. Sorry but i see no other reason for Crowdgather to be around. Can say this or that but at the end of the day you all are looking to make a buck be it thru adverts or whatever covering your online communities. In either case Business and pleasure do not mix online. Something i tried to tell another very popular weather forum ( well was ) a few yrs back who wanted it ran etc like a corporation. People were leaving and or didnt want anything to do with them because of it. No it wasnt owned like this is by a Corporation but it was ran like one. They have sence begun to change and get away from that and it is slowly recovering. Meanwhile the biggest weather forum on the net continues to explode because they are privately owned by everyday people who ACTUALLY DO have a love for the Weather. And trust me it is not ran like a corporation either. Donations keep the site alive. Not well placed adverts etc all over the forum/homepage for the members and or guests of their site to see. Trust me i myself avoid sites with adverts placed everywhere. I dont care for those extra cookies to get into my system. More work for me to get rid of them. Besides they are ugly and in some case ruin the flow of discussion at some places that have them.
At the end of the day if i go to a car site forum i will greatly appreciate knowing the owners of said site ACTUALLY does have a intrest in Cars. If i decide to go to another weather forum again i enjoy knowing the person/people who own it are into the weather like i am. I am at these places to interact and talk about my hobby with others who enjoy the same as well. I am not there to be the target of adverts or other money making schemes by the owners of said sites. I am nearly 99.9% sure most others feel the same way. Nothing against you guys personally but i for one dont care to help some big corp guys destroy the little guys who actually do share a common intrest in my hobby which i have had a love for all my life. Appointing people from the weather community as forum mods and admins isnt gonna help either because at the end of the day all will still know big corp is running things.
If it were me i would be looking for other ways to make money for the corporation who owns this site. Trust me trying to buy up all the Online Communities is not the way to go. Most people will try to get away from them and go elsewhere as they have begun to from AOL, MSN, Yahoo chatrooms etc. Just some friendly advice.
Sorry if that bugs anyone not meant to.
So with that said i again ask why would you guys get involved with Online communities?
i cant speak for the owner or even the old owner harry...i was here b4 TWV was sold and im still here.....yes membership has declined....and that may be what it takes to get us going strong again...BUT i dont know im not a businessman and i also do not know how to run a ste like this either..lol im sure there are a few more ppl that may agree with you too here....
time will tell.....but its a good write up harry....thanks!
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very int'restin'... an' good that ppl speak up when they have somethin' on their minds.
all ay know is... ay've been at a few oth'r sites b'fore... but ay kept an eye on how many views ay got on me daily posts. when ay came here, ay was on this an' one oth'r. ay kept track - an' compar'd. now, not that ay'm int' "popularity" - but ay was int'rest'd in postin' fer ppl who were/are INT'REST'D in seein' what ay have t' post.
ay note th' membership count, daily, when ay come on t' post... an' ay do see it slowly increasin'. an' ay take a look at how many views me Marine Weather thread is gettin'.
ay'm just glad t' r'port on somethin' people are apparently int'rest'd in lookin' at. thanks very much, everyone.
perhaps if 'Marine Weath'r' is int'restin' enough t' enough ppl, someone could start anoth'r thread und'r that topic, an' report on anoth'r area of th' coast somewhere?
anyway. thanks very much, everyone who is int'rest'd enough in my Reports t' keep me 'round.
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if this is indeed whats going on....and this place declines badly...i know aboot biz enough that if it fails it closes or i pray in this case its sold....
i like the setup here....in the sense that we have knocked out alot of spammers....and the layout is good on my eyes at least...
time will tell...and as always speak your mind...as long as it stays PG-13 youre cool with the police ....(i still cant think of myself as a forum cop..LOL)
and the powers that be.....
ppl if youre really unhappy with the setup let us and or the admins know about it...communicate ....dont just leave...
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if this is indeed whats going on....and this place declines badly...i know aboot biz enough that if it fails it closes or i pray in this case its sold....
i like the setup here....in the sense that we have knocked out alot of spammers....and the layout is good on my eyes at least...
time will tell...and as always speak your mind...as long as it stays PG-13 youre cool with the police ....(i still cant think of myself as a forum cop..LOL)
and the powers that be.....
ppl if youre really unhappy with the setup let us and or the admins know about it...communicate ....dont just leave...
Why vB and IPB dont deal with the issue of the spam bots AMAZES ME. Makes no sense either as it CAN be done. MYBB forum solutions is proof of that. I run a forum using it and i can say that i have not had a single spam bot account in the 2+ yrs i have had/used that system. Only spamming was done by a couple of people for other wx sites who i zapped.
As far as layout goes i actually prefer IPB/MYBB over this. Nice skin though.
one of the problems with bots, is they target the more popular forum types (i think). and the busier a forum gets, the more publicised it gets, the easier it is for the bots to find it.
vbulletin are making constant changes and upgrades to their software in order to correct this. unfortunately, alot of these bots are actually people sitting at a pc getting paid per post they make. so they arer able to bypass alot of tyhe security measures in place, because theyre thinking actual people. the bots are different, in that theyre computerised scripts, and are blocked when a decission has to be made (such as the question precaution, or the more complex image verification.)
its a shame, but the odd spammer will make it through, and post. we're doing all we can though to stop this
regarding the forum network. i personally think its a great thing. it enables forum users to find the types of information easily, that they might not normally. a bit like an information mall. in that respect, i think long term, it will be great for TWV, and bring more people here to contribute to the forum.
Perhaps the new owners of this forum can explain just exactly why they are so intrested in Forums/Online communities?
Yes i read the crowdgather link but truth be told it doesnt make sense to me. Most people on these kinds of forums enjoy them BECAUSE they are usually free of ads/adverts ( Most community owners rely on their communites for donations etc IF need be to keep all going ) and ofcourse are owned/ran by everyday people like themselves. Why the AOL, MSN, Yahoo chatrooms etc are dying a slow miserable death. IMO
Truthfully?
Can have all the features/best software etc but at the end of the day it is not gonna amount to a hill of beans because people will go where they feel true community Spirit which starts with the owners on down to the Moderators and then most of all the members. ALL have a say in one form or another and all know that neither is there just looking to make a buck or whatever off eachother. Looking for a way to make a quick buck off your membership is the quickest way to kill it. Sorry but i see no other reason for Crowdgather to be around. Can say this or that but at the end of the day you all are looking to make a buck be it thru adverts or whatever covering your online communities. In either case Business and pleasure do not mix online. Something i tried to tell another very popular weather forum ( well was ) a few yrs back who wanted it ran etc like a corporation. People were leaving and or didnt want anything to do with them because of it. No it wasnt owned like this is by a Corporation but it was ran like one. They have sence begun to change and get away from that and it is slowly recovering. Meanwhile the biggest weather forum on the net continues to explode because they are privately owned by everyday people who ACTUALLY DO have a love for the Weather. And trust me it is not ran like a corporation either. Donations keep the site alive. Not well placed adverts etc all over the forum/homepage for the members and or guests of their site to see. Trust me i myself avoid sites with adverts placed everywhere. I dont care for those extra cookies to get into my system. More work for me to get rid of them. Besides they are ugly and in some case ruin the flow of discussion at some places that have them.
At the end of the day if i go to a car site forum i will greatly appreciate knowing the owners of said site ACTUALLY does have a intrest in Cars. If i decide to go to another weather forum again i enjoy knowing the person/people who own it are into the weather like i am. I am at these places to interact and talk about my hobby with others who enjoy the same as well. I am not there to be the target of adverts or other money making schemes by the owners of said sites. I am nearly 99.9% sure most others feel the same way. Nothing against you guys personally but i for one dont care to help some big corp guys destroy the little guys who actually do share a common intrest in my hobby which i have had a love for all my life. Appointing people from the weather community as forum mods and admins isnt gonna help either because at the end of the day all will still know big corp is running things.
If it were me i would be looking for other ways to make money for the corporation who owns this site. Trust me trying to buy up all the Online Communities is not the way to go. Most people will try to get away from them and go elsewhere as they have begun to from AOL, MSN, Yahoo chatrooms etc. Just some friendly advice.
Sorry if that bugs anyone not meant to.
So with that said i again ask why would you guys get involved with Online communities?
Thanks.
Dear Harry,
I read your entire post and felt that it was much more an expression of how you feel, rather than a legitimate question for us.
I appreciate that you have a lot of passion and emotion for what you feel. You are free to have your opinions, but that doesn't make it any easier for me to address since it is after all just your opinions.
Also, your facts regarding IM, MSN, etc seem silly to me. People are not in chat rooms as much because there is more to do on the internet- not because something is wrong with chat software. Your logic escapes me.
CrowdGather is a corporation, but I am a long term forum owner and member who decided to build a business around forums. I don't understand your reference to 'big corporate guys destroying the little guys who share a common interest in your hobby"? Where does that come from? This is a small forum that is pretty much left alone except for us providing help with infrastructure and forum fixes. Soon we will begin an aggressive marketing campaign to bring more hobbyists here, but that should only help things out. The owner listed it for sale which is how we came to own it.
I started a company around forums because too often good communities die because of a lack of resources. CrowdGather wants to make it better for forum owners and forum goers. You may have your opinion as a casual observer of forums and maybe even the owner of a small forum, but please understand I owned and operated 8 forums (including 3 big board listed ones) before I launched this company so I am in a legitimate position to tell you that you don't seem to understand how hard it is to survive on donations and the goodwill of your members once a forum gets really big and expensive to run.
I am glad to keep addressing your questions as you pose them in this thread.
one of the problems with bots, is they target the more popular forum types (i think). and the busier a forum gets, the more publicised it gets, the easier it is for the bots to find it.
vbulletin are making constant changes and upgrades to their software in order to correct this. unfortunately, alot of these bots are actually people sitting at a pc getting paid per post they make. so they arer able to bypass alot of tyhe security measures in place, because theyre thinking actual people. the bots are different, in that theyre computerised scripts, and are blocked when a decission has to be made (such as the question precaution, or the more complex image verification.)
its a shame, but the odd spammer will make it through, and post. we're doing all we can though to stop this
regarding the forum network. i personally think its a great thing. it enables forum users to find the types of information easily, that they might not normally. a bit like an information mall. in that respect, i think long term, it will be great for TWV, and bring more people here to contribute to the forum.
Hard to say if popularity of the forum software has anything to do with it or not? Unsure about the inner workings of vB but i imagine it cant be much different then say IPB ( Have one of those as well ) which has the same issue with spam bots granted they dont get passed as easy on my site atleast as i have registeration set to admin approval. That way ALL accounts are checked AFTER people have replied to their email BEFORE they can post. On average there is usually around 10 spam bot accounts a day that gets zapped. Pain in the rear but worth it as i cant stand the spam bots. I know of a couple of forums with millions of posts and 1,000s ( One case has 30,000 members ) of members using that MYBB and they still DONT get the spam bots.
In either case systems like this vB are WAY WAY WAY TOO Overated. A bit of which has to do about the misconception about paid software being better. Couldnt be further from the truth especially as far as forum software goes. I can do as much ( if not more ) with my MYBB forum as i can this or more IPB forum. Security is as good if not better and support is always there. I post a support topic on their forum and it's usually answered within minutes. And ofcourse it is free. IPB and vB have gotten way way too costly and have forgotten their roots and more people by the day are switching to other as good alternatives such as mybb. No i am not suggesting you all switch either. Just saying not to judge a book by its cover. Paid does not equall better as far as forum software goes.
As far as the network goes. How good is that gonna be if there is NO USERS exchanging info which is what forums is about? Again people will not like the idea of squeezing the little man out which is basically what this sort of thing is trying to do? As said above forums are about COMMUNITY. Unsure about where your from but here in the USA people have had it with big corps which in a number of cases have been destroying their communities. Why would people wanna give to a big corp over someone like themselves? Again that IS what forums/communities are about. I'll admit it turns my stomach to see Corps trying to get a foothold in with the online communities. I am trying to be as civil about this as possible too. I suggest you have your corp bosses look into why those like TWC, MSN, YAHOO, etc are a fading breed. Again people DONT LIKE big corps looking down their shoulder which is basically what it would amount too. Nor do they want to be the targets of them for profit. And BELIEVE ME when i say if others get wind of this they wont be as civil as i am about what your bosses are trying to pull especially in the wx community.
Ot a sec but a bit you should know that is sorta related and why this site may never go far.
I am about certain too that the guy who sold your bosses this forum/site wont be welcome back at most weather sites either. I for one wont welcome him back to my own for all the trouble he caused related to his endless spamming to get people here. Basically why the rest wont allow him back either. Top it off he brought people over only to sell out to a big corp who is trying to overtake online communities which wont go over well at all. His only game seems to be to make money off of his creating websites and then spamming others so he can boost his number to sell that site off. Yeah i am well aware of him doing the same with a political site. Others have become well aware of what he is up to as well. I can careless about the political stuff or him wanting to make a quick buck but dont do it at the expense of my members and my sites. Unlike a few i do care about the people who use and visit my site and others i post/member at and they DESERVE better. Why i guess a number of people have left here as well and who can blame them.
Aaah now I understand. You want to make trouble and false accusations because you own a competing forum and are trying to recruit members from here. If I catch you spamming our members about your forums I will have to take action, especially since you are not being upfront about it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry
Hard to say if popularity of the forum software has anything to do with it or not? Unsure about the inner workings of vB but i imagine it cant be much different then say IPB ( Have one of those as well ) which has the same issue with spam bots granted they dont get passed as easy on my site atleast as i have registeration set to admin approval. That way ALL accounts are checked AFTER people have replied to their email BEFORE they can post. On average there is usually around 10 spam bot accounts a day that gets zapped. Pain in the rear but worth it as i cant stand the spam bots. I know of a couple of forums with millions of posts and 1,000s ( One case has 30,000 members ) of members using that MYBB and they still DONT get the spam bots.
Thank you for your suggestions on addressing spam and your promotion of MYBB software.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry
In either case systems like this vB are WAY WAY WAY TOO Overated. A bit of which has to do about the misconception about paid software being better. Couldnt be further from the truth especially as far as forum software goes. I can do as much ( if not more ) with my MYBB forum as i can this or more IPB forum. Security is as good if not better and support is always there. I post a support topic on their forum and it's usually answered within minutes. And ofcourse it is free. IPB and vB have gotten way way too costly and have forgotten their roots and more people by the day are switching to other as good alternatives such as mybb. No i am not suggesting you all switch either. Just saying not to judge a book by its cover. Paid does not equall better as far as forum software goes.
IPB and VB are used by the largest and best forums for a reason. I am sure that smartbb is good for amateur hobbyists and I personally would never waste my time insulting another persons choice of software.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry
As far as the network goes. How good is that gonna be if there is NO USERS exchanging info which is what forums is about? Again people will not like the idea of squeezing the little man out which is basically what this sort of thing is trying to do? As said above forums are about COMMUNITY.
Does this mean anything to you? To me it is gibberish and it is written in very poor English as is the rest of your post.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry
Unsure about where your from but here in the USA people have had it with big corps which in a number of cases have been destroying their communities.
LOL are you being racist against me because I am not ashamed to use my real name on the forums? Not sure where 'you're from' but even in American English we would use the apostrophe to denote 'you're' as distinct from 'your'.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry
Why would people wanna give to a big corp over someone like themselves? Again that IS what forums/communities are about. I'll admit it turns my stomach to see Corps trying to get a foothold in with the online communities. I am trying to be as civil about this as possible too.
You are not being civil- you are stirring up trouble to help your own self interest out.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry
I suggest you have your corp bosses look into why those like TWC, MSN, YAHOO, etc are a fading breed. Again people DONT LIKE big corps looking down their shoulder which is basically what it would amount too. Nor do they want to be the targets of them for profit. And BELIEVE ME when i say if others get wind of this they wont be as civil as i am about what your bosses are trying to pull especially in the wx community.
I am the corporate boss at my company and I don't appreciate your ridiculousness and threats. What are you accusing me of pulling in the WX community?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry
Ot a sec but a bit you should know that is sorta related and why this site may never go far.
Thank you for another unsubstantiated insult at our membership.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Harry
I am about certain too that the guy who sold your bosses this forum/site wont be welcome back at most weather sites either. I for one wont welcome him back to my own for all the trouble he caused related to his endless spamming to get people here. Basically why the rest wont allow him back either. Top it off he brought people over only to sell out to a big corp who is trying to overtake online communities which wont go over well at all. His only game seems to be to make money off of his creating websites and then spamming others so he can boost his number to sell that site off. Yeah i am well aware of him doing the same with a political site. Others have become well aware of what he is up to as well. I can careless about the political stuff or him wanting to make a quick buck but dont do it at the expense of my members and my sites. Unlike a few i do care about the people who use and visit my site and others i post/member at and they DESERVE better. Why i guess a number of people have left here as well and who can blame them.
I do not know where your jealousy of the former owner comes from, but it is not really my concern or problem. Seems like you have issues with him as well. Not sure why you ever joined if you hate everything so much?
What does concern me is to have a guest of one of our communities spew blatant nonsense in bad English. I think we have all heard your position and you are welcome to keep posting here if you chose, but you need to be respectful to the rest of the community.
Any positive suggestions are welcome. We will look at adding more spam controls to the user registration process based upon some of your suggestions.
Corporations getting involved with Online Communities? 
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