My experience is heavy moderation and trying to ban a user causes them to be 10 times as bad. That also requires that you work 10 times harder trying to stop them. Best policy is just to ignore and now you can ban them if you really want individually.
This is kinda funny, although frustrating the past few days. We have great Ferrari people, but most Ferrari people aren't good computer people. It's my headache and mission to educate. The import communities don't have that problem. Internet 101
After voted, I looked at the result, and I was one of the major group. It's all in the interest of what type of you want F-chat to be. Just like automobile and anything else, you decide your target market. Serious member will join this site again w/ pay, because it is more benefitable & valuable for them. If the cost exceed their expectation, they won't or they can always discontinue. Remember water used to be free, now it becomes one of the major beverage business. It is hard to swallow as a fact that what used to be free is not free. Consider it like subscribing to a car magazine w/ 2-way communication.
Rob, Use moderators to just edit threads, delete double posts and move threads- not to edit the content. It makes the site cleaner/easier.
My brother reported abaout a similar discussion in Europe with the Alfa Romeo board. He wrote: Hi guys, I have read a couple of replies from those who don't want to pay for the use of ferrarichat.com. I can understand that because it will be hard to get newbies to the board if they have to pay an annual fee. I am amazed though that frequent users don't want to pay: you drive Ferrari's with a fuel consumption of 12 mpg and yet you have problem to pay $ 10 per year?? Isn't this board giving you more reading pleasure then the best car magazine? And even if you have to pay $ 10, it is still so much cheaper!! I am an Alfista and a member of alfaowner.com and we have the same problem. We have over 4,500 members worldwide and like ferrarichat.com the board is getting more populair each month. Alfaowner.com is ranked 54,256th in the list of most popular sites in the world and Ferrarichat.com is on 77,484th spot (source: alexa.com). The problem is that our boards are so popular that they use so much bandwidth at the hosting provider. And the used bandwidth is what makes it very expensive to keep the sites up and running. Not paying for the use of the site will kill the sites probably as well which is the downside of the succes our boards have. Here is an idea: why not an annual fee of $ 10 and the first 6 months of membership is for free? In that way newbies can learn to appreciate the board and get addicted to it and they can leave without paying a dime in the first 6 months. I know the system is not waterproof, but that is not so important. If someone changes his nick every 6 months you know enough don't you? Whatever it takes to keep ferrarichat.com up and running, go for it! It is too important for real enthusiasts. Hans www.selespeed.info
Here is THE answer. There are a lot of people on Fchat who are not only willing to pay, but WANT to pay because of the bounty of information available and recognition of the work required to create and maintain the site. There are others who don't use it enough to pay or are, for example, students that literally can't afford to pay -- but these members still contribute considerably to the forum and the discussion would be far less valuable without their participation. The answer is to create a "user sponsor" subscription program. Users who want to pay (and I think there are many) would sign up. Other non-sponsor users would still get full access. The sponsorship could be $50 per year for gold, $25 for silver, etc. This creates a revenue stream without diluting or cheapening the site. There are so many users that literally want to pay voluntarily, but there isn't any convenient or organized way for them to contribute -- but those same users would be less inclined to pay "forced" access fees because they recognize that those fees would reduce the number of participants and degrade the quality of the forum. The user sponsor approach solves all of the problems and doesn't create any new ones.
That's site is really cool. I don't know why some months the traffic isn't reported though. Doesn't seem like real consistent and accurate data. However, still very cool. It shows a decrease in traffic the past 3 months and my traffic software which is 99.9% accurate shows 25-40% increase.
You can only vote once. At this point I think I've already made my decision. Anyone want to take bets what it is?
$10 per year is nothing. However, it looks like everyone is a bit put off by the new site. Could be that the site is different, could be too different. I'd hope this site would work for everyone, but if it doesn't perhaps the graphics could be change to make it look, and work like the old site in many respects. Rob did this, and it takes a lot of is time. He needs to get compensated for his effort, and if paying a fee is how, then that is what needs to be done. However, the site may need some tweking. Art
Art, be careful with the comments you are making. 80% of users like the new site or know they will compared to the old one. I don't think that is anywhere close to "everyone". I'm getting really pissed off with the blanket attitudes that everyone hates the site, that everyone will leave FC if we do subscriptions, that everything is wrong in the world. For some smart grown adults they're making some pretty uninformed, hair trigger, ignorant statements that do nothing towards taking what we have and improving it.
GODDAMNIT ROB! Why must you be so blind to the fact that everyone will leave FC if you have a subscription, that everyone hates the new site, and then the whole world is falling apart and everything is wrong! GAAAH. --Dan PS: Where do I sent a cheque?
LOL - The past few days haven't been good for my heart, although each day it gets a little better. The way some talk you think they want no FC, me to pay them, and to still work on nothing 20-30 hours a week.
TigerAce >After voted, I looked at the result, and I was one of the major group. Congratulations, everyone in the crowded group receives a complimentary ice cream. The USER I could not partake in the vote, as his CHOICE of appropriate compensation was not available. Other USERS may have felt similarly. >It's all in the interest of what type of you want F-chat to be. Just like automobile and anything else, you decide your target market. There is a simpler + much more efficacious target, simply ask yourself what you love and proceed. This is entitled life*. >Serious member will join this site again w/ pay, $10/year? Clown. Consider this while someone pays for the ice cream and watches it melt. The majority of people here care more about the people here, than they do about Ferrari's. This is normal. Many drive FerrariChat more than their Ferrari's, Lamborghini's etc. (notwithstanding the upcoming FChat 30k service) This is normal. FerrariChat is not about Ferrari's. Rather, it is about people interacting with people. This is normal. >Consider it like subscribing to a car magazine w/ 2-way communication. Logic is powerful. FChat is not a magazine. All which is, is paid for by some one, the question is pay whom what. Should technical missives beget more than comical ones or witty social ones or cordial ones or ... or perhaps you trade him trades her trades them or perhaps people simply love chatting on their beloved FChat. This is normal. People enjoy sharing personal knowledge, memories and beliefs. >Remember water used to be free, now it becomes one of the major beverage business. Your exegesis of the problem is brilliant and would beget tintinnabulating applause from any jury. >Remember water used to be free, now it becomes one of the major beverage business. Twice upon a time even humans were free*. >It is hard to swallow as a fact that what used to be free is not free. They remember http://www.ferrarichat.com/discus/messages/132929/337601.html?1067309524 http://www.ferrarichat.com/discus/messages/256121/255283.html What do you suppose their target was? robiferretti >Not to sound like an ass, but i ran a website with my friend for over a year, >WHat rob is doing is just maintinence, he didn't create the software and he's not reinventing the wheel. Nevertheless, he has created a communication hub and people enjoy interacting with other people here. _Creating_ the environment where a community may flourish is not a trivial task. DGS >the notion to make FChat a pay site was proposed to reduce the number of trolls Personal impression is that someone enjoys caring for FChat very much and wishes to do it full time. After all FChat converges upon Ferrari's and computer programming. That someone likely intends to evolve FChat into a more 'diverse', 'useful' and 'pleasant' service. The overall objective appears to be to metamorphose Fchat into a multi-faceted hub for Ferrari owners/enthusiasts/businesses. TigerAce >major group. Hierarchies on the other hand, have been known to detour personal interactions into very stressful scenery. Before one can ask for "Poll for a paid FerrariChat" - one may care to ask what FerrariChat was and what FerrariChat will be. The presentiment exists, the two aren't congruent. The classic FerrariChat felt as work _and_ play simultaneously. Perhaps the new and improved FerrariChat GT will resist the dichotomy: work _or_ play.
I don't come by as often now that the format has changed. It's not *that* different, but just enough to not be quite so easy to get around in.
Rob, I don't think it's right if you are losing money to keep FerrariChat thriving. The costs it requires along with all the hours you put into it, make FerrariChat a very good site. Your site provides a good communications service for the community. If you need to charge a nominal fee to break even then you should. Gil
