Forum Etiquette......

[fire3500]

The atmosphere on here is lively but friendly, and people seem genuinely more inclined towards wanting to help each other and share knowledge... some of it is a bit "scene" but that's reflective of the passion that some members feel and how much of their life they enjoy spending doing scene-related things.

On the whole I'd say that the VW community is very different to the one I discovered in 1991... in every aspect. My experience though that it's not as gentle and benevolent a community as it once was... but part of that is because whether it's SSVC, VZi or wherever there is a core of people who have been around since Total VW / Edubs kind of era, into all kinds of VW and as diverse a bunch as you could imagine, from buffers to hippies to watercooled crowd, and there's a younger crowd around too (at 38 I consider everyone under 35 as being "young 'uns... and I wish they'd keep the noise down, and I don't like their music)... so it's not like "we're" one community in one age bracket, we're at different stages of life and the style of posts, and preference for reading them probably is as wildly diverse as the age range.

This is why I like EarlyBay... by being specifically about the 1968 - 1972 vans everyone has a common interest and it's a smaller community... on the whole it feels easier to get to "know" people here and feels friendlier and more focused as a result.

Quite honestly the only threads on EB that have ever got on my nerves have been the kitchen ones (I just hate the blatant disregard for the community) and the scooter off the cab roof one... (I know... it's his van to do with what he likes... but it was just a bellend thing to do). On the whole I like the place, and the biggest compliment I can pay to the mods is that I don't notice them (unlike VZi where they act like hired goons...).

The wider VW scene though is really getting on my nerves lately... shows have become formulaic, too few quality suppliers these days, things are just stupidly expensive... I know, rose tinted glasses and all that, but I used to love rummaging around at VW jumbles and the sense of victory of finding some little thing I'd been looking for and paying a couple of quid for it was always a gas (and yeah, Petri steering wheels and Kienzle clocks have always been premium items... there was a huge craze for bud-vases once upon a time and people paid CRAZY amounts for those).

One of the nice things about EB is that when I've expressed such "anti-scene" opinions in PM conversations with other members, the typical response has been... "yeah, me too..." and then the conversation has normally turned to possible wild camping or "off-scene" arranged trips. It shows that the people on EB are into their VWs and camping and good engineering, creativity and all that good stuff, and not on the whole just onboard a bandwagon.

So I appreciate the comments on this thread, it's good for a forum member to encourage the community to look at itself and check it likes what it sees. Props to the mods for doing a good job and to the site admin for making it possible, but also hi-fives to the members for making it an enjoyable daily read (although please delete the for sale sections as I'm getting real poor real quick these days).

Thanks...

 

[mike202]

Agree with much of the above, I have found the forum very useful and friendly. As a first time VW owner and amateur mechanic I have learned loads. I don't think people use the search feature enough but then you can't always find the answer you are looking for. If not I look on the Samba :msn4: :lol:

Now I must put my laptop down and pack the van as its going to a nice weekend!

 

[mattyd72]

The atmosphere on here is lively but friendly, and people seem genuinely more inclined towards wanting to help each other and share knowledge... some of it is a bit "scene" but that's reflective of the passion that some members feel and how much of their life they enjoy spending doing scene-related things.

On the whole I'd say that the VW community is very different to the one I discovered in 1991... in every aspect. My experience though that it's not as gentle and benevolent a community as it once was... but part of that is because whether it's SSVC, VZi or wherever there is a core of people who have been around since Total VW / Edubs kind of era, into all kinds of VW and as diverse a bunch as you could imagine, from buffers to hippies to watercooled crowd, and there's a younger crowd around too (at 38 I consider everyone under 35 as being "young 'uns... and I wish they'd keep the noise down, and I don't like their music)... so it's not like "we're" one community in one age bracket, we're at different stages of life and the style of posts, and preference for reading them probably is as wildly diverse as the age range.

This is why I like EarlyBay... by being specifically about the 1968 - 1972 vans everyone has a common interest and it's a smaller community... on the whole it feels easier to get to "know" people here and feels friendlier and more focused as a result.

Quite honestly the only threads on EB that have ever got on my nerves have been the kitchen ones.....

Great post




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[Supertramp]

I agree with much of what Fire says. I was actually thinking a couple of days ago of an 'anti-show, show' as I'm not really into the whole show thing, I like some of them, but most are a bit too 'scene' for me.
But this is certainly my favourite forum, a bit quiet at times, but very chilled and everyone is very knowledgeable. Posts on other forums with questions usually end in arguments or the OP being put down, can't be doing with all that.

 

[ozziedog]

Been out of town for a bit. But when I gets home. First I check in with Mrs Ozziedog, then I have`s my tea then I look on here before I goes up the pub. This is a little bit of ` sanctuary `for me 8) I don`t like any bitchin of any description and will do my best to avoid it, BUT by the same token,,,,,,,,,,, am absolutely useless when I do that searching thing :roll: :shock: :roll: I tries my best to help,,,,,,,,, but mostly I`m wrong :? But I take great pleasure when I guesses a problem right,,,,, first time :mrgreen: This is mostly the only forum I`m interested in and have met some real characters from here Apart from that bleedin Graham who is giving me a personality complex with the lengths he goes to, to avoid meeting me :evil:

Ozziedog,,,,,,,,,,,,, The premium Stella of forums :mrgreen:

 

[scott wilson]

been a longterm user....as such i`m addicted....i have many many friends from here but i must say as the popularity increased so did the arseholes.I will always love what i love and thats doublecabs early bay...anyone who knows me knows i had a ebay fetish before it was popular....so graham you`re a legend, as is faux, clem, matt p,chris and and many more.I love this forum and used to anticipate banter between friends...that has been lacking lately.....love you all///now give me some ****

 

[Graham L]

Bloody hell Scott are you feeling ok?, I thought you frequented the other site for bays with wrongly positioned indicators and fat chick back ends!!

Well you did day the banter was missing


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[Gadget Boy]

now give me some ****

Do you still look like this......



I.E SHORT ,FAT AND SPECKY..... HA HA

 

[cotswoldiver]

Blimey Scott and Dean posting again .... the forum remains intact ..... and thriving :lol:

 

[Guest]

I agree with Graham especially that you don't see what goes on in the back ground, mediating disputes, pouring water over the flames.

I would like to add that its the sites sponsors that keep this forum running (and of course its members that keep it alive, thanks to all), no adds - no site! its that simple. Server hardware and maintenance is very very expensive especially when you use as much bandwidth as we do. We may have near 7000 members but there are 40,000 individual visitors each month. It all adds up and this is the only way we can deliver it free, please don't take that for granted.

You might think we are being harsh when we pull a thread saying one of our sponsors are s**t etc. For the reason Clem has already mentioned it always seems to be a one sided story with others getting their wooden spoons out to join in. It all boils down to the ad revenue we receive from them. The best thing you could do it click and ad or two or take out insurance with cherished . Its not selling our soul for a buck, its survival. We recently had Kieft and Klok pull out and this has put us under more pressure.

We have very few rules, but when we do have to exercise some moderation its always for a reason, the reason being the greater good of the site and its members. I love this site, that's why i wanted to take it on from Mike in the first place.

Someone mentioned about non relevant topics in general being frowned upon. I love a bit of banter, (quite alot of us know each other outside this forum) but i dont know anyone on here who would want me to post about what i had for tea, or that i let a really smelly fart after a session on the beer that made the dog get up and leave the room. That's what Facebook it for isn't it? We rely on the members to exercise some common sense when posting thats all. I believe thats what makes this site so addictive. In the end we all share the same passion for buses and come here to swap stories and information, i want to keep it like that. Just to add that this is not a dictatorship and that ideas and decisions are always put by all the mods for agreement so we all share responsibility.

 

[StuF]

Johnny - would it be possible to introduce some form of optional member payment like the member sponsor thing they have on Vzi?

It could come with added benefits like being able to advertise more or access paying members only section
May enable the folk who have an avid interest in the site to give something back - I would happily contribute

Just an idea to keep this excellent (free) site afloat?

Stu

 

[Supertramp]

Johnny - would it be possible to introduce some form of optional member payment like the member sponsor thing they have on Vzi?

It could come with added benefits like being able to advertise more or access paying members only section
May enable the folk who have an avid interest in the site to give something back - I would happily contribute

Just an idea to keep this excellent (free) site afloat?

Stu

Agreed.

 

[mattyd72]

This is a great idea.

It works well on both thesamba and vzi.

Although vzi is sometimes a bit ******ish....

:smile:

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[Foz]

UKPassats has just introduced exactly the same thing, with great success. Think its a tenner for the year. I would happily contribute that to keep this great forum alive and kicking....its a priceless fountain of knowledge with some great characters!


--------------------------------
Own a Bay?......Feel the love!

 

[Guest]

Hi Stu

we did think about that but the primary idea is to keep the site free.

 

[alex4057]

Early bay Forum t shirts

I'd buy an over priced tee shirt knowing i was paying to keep the forum alive. :lol:

 

[StuF]

I agree the site should be kept free,

However if people did wish to contribute to the running of the site through a small payment via paypal gift or the like, a reward could give the individual -perhaps a different rating i.e Not BayTripper or EarlyBay is My Life could just say MEMBER or similar - maybe we could add our own comedy text :msn4:

This site is wonderful resource, I have learnt alot and made some great friends using it - would want to do as much as I could to help keep it going and a couple of quid to do this would be worth it for me atleast.

I recognised this when the site was down for those couple of days - I needed my FIX!! :lol:

T-shirts are a good idea but have overheads - designs/postage/production costs etc that would erode the actual value of the contribution to the site itself.
A direct payment with a status change would be :msn4: (almost) :msn4: free for the mods to impliment.

 

[Guest]

Early bay Forum t shirts

I'd buy an over priced tee shirt knowing i was paying to keep the forum alive. :lol:

about 99% of the cash goes to spreadshirt, its a bit of a scam. We get about 50p or nothing at all on Spreadshirt items.

 

[KevH]

I agree with Graham especially that you don't see what goes on in the back ground, mediating disputes, pouring water over the flames.

I would like to add that its the sites sponsors that keep this forum running (and of course its members that keep it alive, thanks to all), no adds - no site! its that simple. Server hardware and maintenance is very very expensive especially when you use as much bandwidth as we do. We may have near 7000 members but there are 40,000 individual visitors each month. It all adds up and this is the only way we can deliver it free, please don't take that for granted.

You might think we are being harsh when we pull a thread saying one of our sponsors are s**t etc. For the reason Clem has already mentioned it always seems to be a one sided story with others getting their wooden spoons out to join in. It all boils down to the ad revenue we receive from them. The best thing you could do it click and ad or two or take out insurance with cherished . Its not selling our soul for a buck, its survival. We recently had Kieft and Klok pull out and this has put us under more pressure.

We have very few rules, but when we do have to exercise some moderation its always for a reason, the reason being the greater good of the site and its members. I love this site, that's why i wanted to take it on from Mike in the first place.

Someone mentioned about non relevant topics in general being frowned upon. I love a bit of banter, (quite alot of us know each other outside this forum) but i dont know anyone on here who would want me to post about what i had for tea, or that i let a really smelly fart after a session on the beer that made the dog get up and leave the room. That's what Facebook it for isn't it? We rely on the members to exercise some common sense when posting thats all. I believe thats what makes this site so addictive. In the end we all share the same passion for buses and come here to swap stories and information, i want to keep it like that. Just to add that this is not a dictatorship and that ideas and decisions are always put by all the mods for agreement so we all share responsibility.

A well balanced and objective viewpoint, I appreciate that. Thanks Johnny.

I am sitting on the fence when it comes to membership fees. One the one hand, it would lock out the kitchen sellers, on the other it might turn the forum into some sort of clicky club, and one of the forum's strengths is, I think, that we are not such a club.

I used to be indecisive, but now I am not so sure.

 

[faux]

Can I say that I live by a general rule "do as you would be done by", this helps when posting.

Don't say anything on the site that you wouldn't say in person, think about the wider effects of any comment and enjoy all that can be had from the best forum on the Internet (IMO).

Also on the point of fees:

The more we do to let sponsors know where we heard about them and the more we let those who don't sponsor the site know that there is a lot of traffic here, the longer we will be able to keep the site free.

I don't want this site to be bombarded with random sponsors or pushy emails asking for sponsor money because you sold 2 items this month. This is about keeping your Earlbay on the road and getting the most out of owning one, whether that is the fun of finding that rare part or camping with family or friends, we can all get something from this site.