golgo13

iTrader: (134)

If your posts were being deleted, someone on the Staff will let you know about it.

What I think is happening here, is that you probably didn't read the rules.

Since you didn't read the rules, you missed this tidbit:

Not all sub-forums increase your post count.

golgo13

iTrader: (134)

He's not being a jerk, just very matter-of-fact.

Think Spock from Star Trek and you'll "get it".

Noize

iTrader: (24)

Mr. Pearce, if you reply one more time, you will have the required 25 posts, and have the ablility to post your car up for sale on these forums.

Your request is one we hear often. While yours is legitimate, we have had lots of scammers on the site over the years, and the 15 post requirement alleviates that. 98% of people that want access to the marketplace want to sell parts, not entire cars. While I agree that it would be nearly impossible to feign ownership of a car, we have that 15 post rule to catch the other 95%, and make it tougher for a scammer to gain access to the site.

In all my years here, I've never seen an account legitimately "hacked", so unless you have access to the user's personal email, you'd have a hard time getting control of their account. While the access rules might seem unnecessary to you, it has really slowed down scammers. I am sorry for the inconvenience it has caused you.

So why not reply one more time and go ahead and post your car for sale? If you have problems accessing the FS forums after your 15th post, message me personally, and I'll look into it for you.


Thanks

Iowa999

iTrader: (1)

Yeah, when you call someone of Eastern-European Jewish ancestry a "****" things do have a tendency to go downhill. Fast.

WestSideBilly

iTrader: (1)

Our experience over the last decade is that most of the problems come from people who aren't particularly invested in the forum/community. Making people spend some time here doesn't solve everything, but it helps. When people were allowed to sign up and instantly post items for sale, many would sell a few things and disappear - sometimes without holding up their end of the transaction. They've added 0 to the site and taken much. Forums don't work if everyone takes and nobody gives. It would be a site full of 0-feedback Ebayers, and nobody wants that.

I've been a part of several other forums/communities with more liberal FS policies, and a lot more scams. I've been a part of other forums/communities with more strict FS policies, and no/few scams - but also very little available in the marketplace. It's a tough balance. Based on the % of forum activity that the FS forum represents, and the relatively low number of bad buyers/sellers we've had since adopting the post/time requirements, I think our balance is OK. Not perfect, but OK.

If you have any creative ideas, we're all ears (err, eyes). The picture policy came about after users requested it. With cell phones and cameras being ubiquitous, it's been a great addition. But I don't think it is a 100% solution by itself.

cordell_pearce

Thanks for the input. I have already posted my vehicle for sale. Perhaps you could have a workaround for people such as myself that do more reading then posting...links to other accounts such as ebay, perhaps?

I have an absolutely disgusting car habit. Sometimes I keep a car for 10 years, sometimes for only 6 months. I am an enthusiast, but I have little time to create a multitude of posts on a multitude of boards (I believe I'm on over 50 automotive message board currently) I own 7 cars currently, and am in the process of buying another for my wife and another for myself. This makes it very difficult to meet requirements of 15, 25 or 50 posts on all of the boards I peruse.

The end goal is genuine...just to offer my car to someone who will appreciate it. I understand that this site is not just another craigslist, but you are hindering good members (both in posting for sale, and other members being able to see a potentially perfect car for sale), as well as preventing scammers. It is what it is, and I respect everyone's viewpoint. I know that my ramblings will do little to change things, but if it adds to the fuel that one day changes the methodologies then its worthwhile.

cordell_pearce

Would it go downhill faster if it were in neutral, or in gear?

For someone that dishes out as many negative, jeering comments as yourself, you have extremely thin skin.

Iowa999

iTrader: (1)

I.e., "please read the rules before telling us that they need fixing." (Seems reasonable enough.)

I.e., "No thanks. But..."

"...maybe you can still listen to my complaints and suggestions, anyway."

Iowa999

iTrader: (1)

That was actually funny.

cordell_pearce

Do any of your posts actually add to the content? Or are they just written so you can pat yourself on the back? Maybe before posting you should ask yourself "Is this helping the user, or the forum?" And then rethink what you're doing.

wolfwood5

In a way i understand what hes saying. ive been a skeeter on the wall here for a year or so. and even when i got my car in march i did not join till june i believe or july. i did read the rules. but i cant contribute as much as others, simply because im not as experienced in some of the tech facts around here. in fact if i NEED to read or see anything i just search for it an 95% of the time i find the information and use it. thats it. what else could i do? contribute? contribute what? a question considered redundant or something that has been brought up before? only to be told to do a search as there is plenty of information at my fingertips already. so the next best thing to contribute is a compliment or some form of praise. but then those get deleted as well. i know some of my posts have been deleted (i think) but not all as i dont post much here. im just a fly on the wall sucking up all the information. but if i were to contribute it would only be an experience (i.e. "having this issue", "or this worked out for me") but those are FEW and far between. because if i were to have Said issue, i would search and follow other posters suggestions and contributions and usually get those issues resolved.

so posting here, especially having to be tech posts and the like, is a bit complicated here. i understand the system, just that people like myself that just lurk and read and read... AND READ are the ones left behind. why. because they Dont contribute. but not everyone who contributes gives good advice. and not everyone is as tech savvy as the other. im not saying im not savvy, this forum has Helped a great deal in the things ive worked on personally. but then when id like to use it to sell some parts i have i still couldnt until i contributed something deemed useful in sections in which i already used the information, and really couldnt contribute other than a praise. And if I could contribute it would be in topics at hand in the Latest topics of a members issues, but again if im not in the least experienced to help (i say this because in some of these threads there are SOO many different viewpoints and opinions its hard to really know who is talking about what and why ((i.e. could the air going into turbo be bad or good )) some people say bad, knock, blah blah, others say no because the turbo heats up to a degree and ALL air is heated to that degree)) then i will choose to not say anything becuz it could possibly confuse Another member.

its a vicious cycle

wolfwood5

i guess with that said. in the year and a half ive been reading on this forum, this is the end result...

i would NOT like to give advice or contribute if i Dont have the necessary experience, and a "i have the same problem" is not necessarily a contribution or post. so id rather wait for someone who Knows to chime in so i can read their advice...

If i have a question. More than likely that question has already been asked tenfold and plenty of suggestions and advice has been given. no need to contribute there other than a praise, which Could possibly get deleted.

this totals to few posts for those new people that UNDERSTAND the rules and KNOW how to search (as there are ALOT of new people that ask the same thing over and over) because there is PLENTY of information that has been posted throughout all these years.

so the day someone like myself decides to sell something that they may have read someone is looking for, they need to post, and if they havent they might have the urge to just praise others in their work just to reach the post count so they can possibly HELP that person find what they are looking for.

there is so much information on this site that one asks what more can one contribute? usually the people with the experience (i.e. mods, tuners, sellers, developers, researchers) chime in and give excellent advice that one does not need to contribute, it could cause confusion to other new members. even non-members (such as myself at one point) dont need to join to get all this info. and i understand that the marketplace is a privilege, and that PMing would be the way to go if i did not have the minimum posts and would want to sell something. but even so those are monitored and could be deleted if considered spam or a scam by someone with 2 posts, like myself :/

WestSideBilly

iTrader: (1)

Trust me, we absolutely understand what you're both saying. To some degree I agree with you. Our concern is we have no good means to vet people, so we've added some moderately annoying rules to persuade scammers to go elsewhere. I wish vB tracked frequency of logging in/quantity of threads read or something to that effect. A guy who logs in twice a week and reads a few dozen threads each time over two years? Probably not a problem. A guy who registers, comes back 2 years later and posts something in FS? Not quite as safe a bet.

Unfortunately for us, there's no reliable/easy way to discern the two.

Two things to add:

One, if you see a thread where someone is asking a n00b question, and you've come across a good thread with the answers, a simple post with a link to that thread is great. It keeps technical content in one place and minimizes rehashing.

Two, it's not always bad to rehash old topics. Some things change as people try new things, new combos, different approaches. That doesn't always come out if nobody asks the question in the first place.

Iowa999

iTrader: (1)

Good questions are also a way to contribute, because they often lead to the more interesting discussions. If there's a topic that you want to know more about, raise it. You'd be doing the site a favor and it will count as a "real" post.

With that said, asking a previously-answered or silly question is not helpful. You avoid the former by searching. I'm not quite sure how one avoids the latter....

WestSideBilly

iTrader: (1)

15 minutes in the newb question forum?