• Posted 12/19/2024.
    =====================

    I am still waiting on my developer to finish up on the Classifieds Control Panel so I can use it to encourage members into becoming paying members. Google Adsense has become a real burden on the viewing of this site, but honestly it is the ONLY source of income now that keeps it afloat. I tried offering disabling the ads being viewed by paying members, but apparently that is not enough incentive. Quite frankly, Google Adsense has dropped down to where it barely brings in enough daily to match even a single paid member per day. But it still gets the bills paid. But at what cost?

    So even without the classifieds control panel being complete, I believe I am going to have to disable those Google ads completely and likely disable some options here that have been free since going to the new platform. Like classified ad bumping, member name changes, and anything else I can use to encourage this site to be supported by the members instead of the Google Adsense ads.

    But there is risk involved. I will not pay out of pocket for very long during this last ditch experimental effort. If I find that the membership does not want to support this site with memberships, then I cannot support your being able to post your classified ads here for free. No, I am not intending to start charging for your posting ads here. I will just shut the site down and that will be it. I will be done with FaunaClassifieds. I certainly don't need this, and can live the rest of my life just fine without it. If I see that no one else really wants it to survive neither, then so be it. It goes away and you all can just go elsewhere to advertise your animals and merchandise.

    Not sure when this will take place, and I don't intend to give any further warning concerning the disabling of the Google Adsense. Just as there probably won't be any warning if I decide to close down this site. You will just come here and there will be some sort of message that the site is gone, and you have a nice day.

    I have been trying to make a go of this site for a very long time. And quite frankly, I am just tired of trying. I had hoped that enough people would be willing to help me help you all have a free outlet to offer your stuff for sale. But every year I see less and less people coming to this site, much less supporting it financially. That is fine. I tried. I retired the SerpenCo business about 14 years ago, so retiring out of this business completely is not that big if a step for me, nor will it be especially painful to do. When I was in Thailand, I did not check in here for three weeks. I didn't miss it even a little bit. So if you all want it to remain, it will be in your hands. I really don't care either way.

    =====================
    Some people have indicated that finding the method to contribute is rather difficult. And I have to admit, that it is not all that obvious. So to help, here is a thread to help as a quide. How to become a contributing member of FaunaClassifieds.

    And for the record, I will be shutting down the Google Adsense ads on January 1, 2025.
  • Responding to email notices you receive.
    **************************************************
    In short, DON'T! Email notices are to ONLY alert you of a reply to your private message or your ad on this site. Replying to the email just wastes your time as it goes NOWHERE, and probably pisses off the person you thought you replied to when they think you just ignored them. So instead of complaining to me about your messages not being replied to from this site via email, please READ that email notice that plainly states what you need to do in order to reply to who you are trying to converse with.

A new BOI Prefix Tag?

MedusaCoils

MedusaCoils

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I get a kick out of reading some of the threads on the BOI. You get some people/businesses that are definitely deserving of either a "Good Guy" or "Bad Guy" prefix.

While I was reading, I realized that not every thread easily fit into either of the "Good Guy" or "Bad Buy" categories. But, when you are creating a new thread, you have to choose either "Good Guy" or "Bad Guy" or you could use, "Inquiry" prefix, but that's if you are seeking more information and can't find any doing a search. Then there is the "Info" prefix, which I see people using to either give or get information on a particular person/business. So what if you are the OP and don't want to list a person as either Good or Bad, but want the readers to decide for themselves?

How about making a "You Decide" prefix? That way forum members can read over any provided information, discuss the issue(s) and make their own decisions on whether the person/business is a "Good Guy" or "Bad Guy"?

Just a thought!

Wayne S
 
Hey Wayne! Good to see another cs.commer posting here...
I'm up for the [ You Decide] prefix, but hey why stop there?
Here's a few I think would get some use:

[Chump]
[Chumps Best Friend, Girlfriend, Boyfriend]
[Cameroon/ Nigerian Investment Opportunity ( sponsored by Madoff LTD.)]
[Another Crackhead Costello UID]
[Chump's Back (after a few years off)]
[Someone Please Kill This Scumbag Scammer Immediately]

What do you think?
Anyone else have some ideas?
 
There are some who come here to read over a thorny business issue and offer their input. But there are many others who want to quickly stop by and review the history of a particular vendor prior to making a purchase.

They do not have the time or inclination to discuss, they seek info only prior to making or not making a purchase. They may quickly read over a Good Guy or Bad Guy thread to make their own purchasing decisions but the read is for business purposes. Too many different categories may dilute the effectiveness of the BOI as a buying/selling tool.

The way buyers/sellers respond to a thread about them here can be a litmus test of their intentions, and people already decide whether to purchase or not based on reading the Good Guy/Bad Guy threads.

Historically a read is necessary as sometimes a bad guy thread will simply be a buyer's remorse whine, and a good guy thread might be some puppet toady, but proliferating categories may not be in the best interests of those who come here for info.
 
Lucille,
I have to agree with you. A lot of times when I use it I'm scanning fast because I've spotted a good deal & want to pounce without landing in a trap. I don't want to read a war novel, I want to see a sampling of the extremes of the person's business practices and how they deal with the inevitable problems that crop up.

I've had issues with some really good guys (that came w/killer references) Those issues never became BOI fodder because I came here seen how they dealt with problems and was able to trust that they would fairly work with me to resolve them & they did. Some I will buy from again some I won't, but once I accepted the terms we worked out it became nobody's business but ours.

Another prefix would be superfluous. The Info prefix works fine for anything extra. People also go to the forums and seek others opinions before posting in the BOI to see if it's worthy. Besides, we decide on everyone we read - whether or not the decision is posted. It's human nature.

ForkedTung said:
[Someone Please Kill This Scumbag Scammer Immediately]
Click to expand...

Though I really do like this one. :dgrin:
 
I think a "Neutral" tag would actually be useful, and would illustrate the good, and the bad.... Id definitely use it.

on a SOMEWHAT related note....
Im still, personally.... of the opinion that thread tags should be switched to BAD or GOOD depending on how the transaction did or did not turn out. Just to make things easier to browse.

But then, with that same line of thought, i was also thinking that if there were a Hefty sized Fee for RESOLVED Older bad guy threads to be paid for, to be put into a "Safe" of sorts out of the public eye/google searches ***to then be brought back to life, if that person messes up again....for GOOD***
I say this... because I heard a story, and im sure there are numerous others out there.... That there are some people ive heard that are NO LONGER in reptiles, and the threads were made good, but the bad guy title in searches actually prevents them from getting jobs. I thought about this and thought.... "Hey, that could really bring money to the site!"

With this day and age, and employers looking online for information about possible employees.... i dont think that an old resolved thread should be allowed to prevent them from obtaining a job and moving on in life. Second chances are a good thing, in my eye....

But yeah... Just my opinion. Im sure there are multiple reasons why this would never be implemented.... but, well, there it is.
 
lucille said:
Historically a read is necessary as sometimes a bad guy thread will simply be a buyer's remorse whine, and a good guy thread might be some puppet
Click to expand...

This is a part of the reason why I thought about the "You Decide" prefix. I amnot saying that some people aren't deserving of either a Good Guy or Bad Guy title, but, what if you have an experience that wasn't necessarily good, but not bad and want some sort of opinion on it. I think that is time to you would use the "You Decide" prefix.

On another note, how many times have you seen a thread on the BOI, where the person that was immortalized as a "Bad Guy", but when you got to the meat of the situation, it wasn't actually deserved? Sure, in the thread, you can weed it out, but that doesn't change the title.

The other problem I have is, what if you had a "Bad Guy" post made about you, that was baseless, buyers remorse or something else that wasn't YOUR fault. Then a potential customer, comes to this site, does a search in the BOI, your name comes up with the negative tag, they, for whatever reason, decide not to read the thread, but come to a conclusion based on the fact that there is a "Bad Guy" thread with your name on it and go elsewhere. Is that thread doing you justice? Is it doing the community justice or a disservice?

Now, wait a minute! I just had a thought, based on the paragraph I just wrote. Instead of having the OP decide on the prefix, why not attach a poll so that the readers can vote on and decide if the person is deserving of either the Good Guy or Bad Guy prefix? That way you can cut down on inflammatory claims? I wonder if there is a way to make that work?

If the readers of the thread, feel that the person the thread is about, is deserving of either the "Good Guy" or "Bad Guy" Prefix, by voting in a poll, attached to the thread, the outcome of that poll could dictate the prefix attached to the title. I bet that would cut down on inflammatory or baseless threads?

Just another thought,

Wayne
 
From the simplest perspective (mine :) )...
If one doesn't want to cast judgement, he/she can use the [info] prefix & add the You Decide into the title. The ability to add a poll is already there - but that option becomes problem on the BOI because there is no way to regulate voting. Its the kind of thing that could easily be abused, and is therefore relatively worthless. At least when people have to actually make a post, the full name rule can be reasonably enforced

**Are the prefixes mandatory at this time?? If not, skip that part entirely if they don't suit the tone you desire.
 
I hope I'm not stepping on any toes here, but I think 4 options is right. You still have title to expand on the prefix. I've always thought it about it like this:
Good Guy- you have dealt w/this party, had a good experience, and see thread for details
Bad Guy- ditto, had a genuinely bad experience, see thread for details
Inquiry: you are seeking info from others on the party
Info: you are giving info that does not fall into either of the 1st two categories

I wouldn't mind a "update" option, to mark resurrected/older threads as such. Or just make the date posted display bigger :shrug01:
People absolutely should be reading or at least scanning the whole thread on someone they are considering dealing with. A warning or disclaimer stating that prefixes can't be changed, and people are strongly encouraged to read the whole thread might not hurt. And discouraging people as a previous poster said, from posting a good/bad guy op before giving the other party a chance to correct any problems outside the public eye.
just my op
 
Sorry, but no, none of the mods here or myself SHOULD be altering those prefixes once the original poster puts it in place. To do so would then expose us to any legal liability that any post made in that thread would create. In so doing, we legally then become co-authors of that thread.

This is not so much an issue in a GOOD GUY thread, but changing the prefix to "BAD GUY" for any reason then legally makes us the person making the judgement call that the person actually IS a BAD GUY.

Even in the case of changing "BAD GUY" to "GOOD GUY" still puts us in the position of being a judge in such matters, making the appearance that we have weighed all the evidence and then made the determination that the "BAD GUY" label was not accurate nor truthful, and therefore changing it to what we BELIEVE is more accurate or truthful. Quite honestly, I do not want myself nor the mods here to be placed in that sort of position. That is entirely for the original creator of a thread to determine, and also for the reads of such thread to determine whether or not they agree with such an assessment from the author.

As for adding new labels, generally I have found that simpler is better. Although I have seen cases whereby "YOU DECIDE" may be appropriate for the situation, honestly, I think it best that perhaps someone refrain from posting such a thread until they are certain one way or the other about the situation at hand. But I will give this some thought as I have time (which honestly is in VERY short supply right now).
 
Your attempt at humor fell somewhat flat...repeatedly posting it in a desperate attempt for feedback is pretty sad. Let it go, already.
 
hhmoore said:
Your attempt at humor fell somewhat flat...repeatedly posting it in a desperate attempt for feedback is pretty sad. Let it go, already.
Click to expand...
I guess you missed this:
Though I really do like this one.
Click to expand...

But I guess you're the Humor Police Mod ?

If you really think about it, it's not nearly as "desperate" and " sad" as publicly calling me on such a small post and making such a pathetic and dramatic overreaction to it. Just "Let it go, already."
 
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