Forum Changes

[TomMoorehouse]

A while back I changed somethings on the forum. I started requiring new members to use their full real name. I also locked the forum to not be viewable by guests. These changes were made because I was trying to keep some trouble makers out and keep new members honest. I think it has been working. I believe some of the crazyness has setteled and new members have been great. Even with the forum locked to guests our new member requests has not slowed down. We average 40-50 per week. With new members using a real name it it easy for me to tell fake registrations.

My concern however is that blocking guests from viewing the forum might not be promoting our hobby as well as it could if it were open.

What do you guys think?

 

[MarkDanielsSr]

Tom

As a new member my thoughts are with registration being free and fast, why lose the control you have now? A very little effort to help make sure someone wants to be here.

JMHO

Mark

 

[jefffro007]

A while back I changed somethings on the forum. I started requiring new members to use their full real name. I also locked the forum to not be viewable by guests. These changes were made because I was trying to keep some trouble makers out and keep new members honest. I think it has been working. I believe some of the crazyness has setteled and new members have been great. Even with the forum locked to guests our new member requests has not slowed down. We average 40-50 per week. With new members using a real name it it easy for me to tell fake registrations.
My concern however is that blocking guests from viewing the forum might not be promoting our hobby as well as it could if it were open.

What do you guys think?

I think it's great we have to use our first and last names . As far as being locked i feel like it's good . Its not tough to register and BAM your in !!! IMHO If ya got nothing to hide come on in !!!

 

[misshydro]

Tom its up to you.. This is your site and your the boss.. My site is open to guest..each persons runs there site differently..

 

[Don Ferrette]

It's fine like it is now. B)

 

[Mark Bullard]

I think that it is ok to allow guest to view but not post. And for members to have their name shown and to be a member.

 

[Ron Olson]

Tom probably knows my feelings. Since he closed the site to only members, according to RCU site's rules, members there can no longer link to any threads on this site. That was too bad as there is a lot of useful info here or things for sale. On RCU you can only according to their rules link directly to the article in question but that alone can bring in new members that didn't know about this site.

Since Jim closed his doors on viewing threads on their site without joining up first, all links to his site also had ot be removed. People unable to view a forum site first before joining is like buying a car sight unseen.

 

[steve wood]

real name is good. guests being locked out is bad. i'm using my wifes computer right now, as mine crapped out. every time i go to get on ,she has wiped out all the cookies and i have to retype my name and password, multple times a day. the only reason i need to log on is to reply to something, which i don't do very often, mainly cause i hate to type. same reason i never go to jims, also i don't remember my log in over there, so i can't even view anything someone post for jims. too much typing for me.....

 

[Marty Davis]

Tom:

Here is my opinion about this....

I like to know who I am talking with on the forum, so I like real names. Nicknames and aliases tend to make people bold in their posting if they have some sense that people don't know who they are.

I also liked to be able to approve every new member so as to keep the spamers out. Was my easiest way to do that.

I also like for guests to be able to view everything and if they want to post, they need to sign up.

 

[Andy Greene]

Tom:
Here is my opinion about this....

I like to know who I am talking with on the forum, so I like real names. Nicknames and aliases tend to make people bold in their posting if they have some sense that people don't know who they are.

I also liked to be able to approve every new member so as to keep the spamers out. Was my easiest way to do that.

I also like for guests to be able to view everything and if they want to post, they need to sign up.

I agree, but we are gonna need a 3rd option on the poll....

Andy

 

[Jerry T]

Tom:
Here is my opinion about this....

I like to know who I am talking with on the forum, so I like real names. Nicknames and aliases tend to make people bold in their posting if they have some sense that people don't know who they are.

I also liked to be able to approve every new member so as to keep the spamers out. Was my easiest way to do that.

I also like for guests to be able to view everything and if they want to post, they need to sign up.

I agree with Marty 100%

I want to know who I am talking to.

 

[Jan Kinley]

I would say let the quests view and view only.

Personally in the past I have read forums for as long as 6 months before I had a need to ask a question and become a member. During that time I refered people to that same forum even though I was only a quest and made purchases because of the forum.

 

[Darin Jordan]

Allow Guests to view only, leave the rest the same... I think you SHOULD be required to use your name for your UID... I too like to know who I'm conversing with.

 

[Grimracer]

yea.. lets all use Realty picture like Darin for your ID! (do you really work for remax?)

KIDDING!

Letem read in.. but have to sign up to post and.. your real name is a good idea..

Grim

 

[misshydro]

yea.. lets all use Realty picture like Darin for your ID! (do you really work for remax?)
KIDDING!

Letem read in.. but have to sign up to post and.. your real name is a good idea..

Grim

Good idea for using real names?? Not for me because I had death threats stockers and perverts after me..Tom&Ron Olson knows this...That proubley the main reason why you dont see much girls joining these sites.

 

[kcvnd]

I would like to see more folks comply with the name issue. I don't like emailing or dealing with folks without knowing their name.

 

[Ed.R]

I don't see why you wouldn't let guests or NEW boaters look at the site .

Real name thing sounds like a great idea . Lets face it RC boating is a small community , so you may comes across alot of people that are on the site .

Ed

 

[Ron Olson]

yea.. lets all use Realty picture like Darin for your ID! (do you really work for remax?)
KIDDING!

Letem read in.. but have to sign up to post and.. your real name is a good idea..

Grim

Good idea for using real names?? Not for me because I had death threats stockers and perverts after me..Tom&Ron Olson knows this...That proubley the main reason why you dont see much girls joining these sites.

Current members should be grandfathered in but all new members should use their real names but I've seen people use fake names before. There was one person on Marty's site that used Jason Newsted (from Metallica) as his name and seeing how I live not too far from where Jason grew up, I was onto him. I think that Marty did ban the guy.

 

[Bill Brandt]

Tom probably knows my feelings. Since he closed the site to only members, according to RCU site's rules, members there can no longer link to any threads on this site. That was too bad as there is a lot of useful info here or things for sale. On RCU you can only according to their rules link directly to the article in question but that alone can bring in new members that didn't know about this site.Since Jim closed his doors on viewing threads on their site without joining up first, all links to his site also had ot be removed. People unable to view a forum site first before joining is like buying a car sight unseen.

Ron,

Can you elaborate on this? If you are speaking of the RCUnlimiteds site, I am the current chair of the club and I'm not familiar with any action we took regarding this.

Thanks,

Bill Brandt

 

[Ron Olson]

Sure, this happens a lot. The "other" RCU is RC Universe, not RC Unlimiteds.