----- Original Message ----- From: "Forum Administrator" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Open Topic Forum" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Thursday, September 12, 2002 7:08 PM Subject: Re: [OT] SUBCRIPTION Moderated Forums
> John, it seems my original email was not clear enough regarding the fee > based subscription. > > We (TechServ) do not intend to use any of the forums as a profit center. > The idea of a fee based forum was simply to provide a token salary to a > full time moderator in the event that not enough subscribers were willing > to volunteer a few days a year. Ooops Seems I took it a little the wrong way. But, why does the list need a full time moderator? Compared to some lists I have left a long time ago, the users on your list are responsible, helpfull and very timid. Sometimes heated, but no profanity or other, what I would consider, a pattern of abuse. Unless you have deleted them I see no posts that would cause me any offence. Not really an issue as you can add a lot to the 'bad words list' & rules in Dolist. But I am a pretty hard guy to get angry anyway. A small thing that does get me irritated is that I beleive Altium (although they are now making good progress to direct support) & their so called VARS are getting quite lazy, as these lists are doing most of their support job for them! I am still waiting to see where the 'value added part' comes in. > TechServ is a small company and we do not have the resources to provide > permanent full time moderation of such an active list. If subscribers of a > moderated forum are not willing to volunteer some time and they are not > willing to pay for someone else time to do the moderation, then there will > not be a moderated forum. I do not mind spending some time doing it. I even replied to your form on your web site over a year ago as it asks for some people to volunteer time to develop it, I never got a reply! My company is not what you would describe as big either, but I am willing to help to develop user based support for the product (as are others) for no other reason than to get myself (company) better and more productive tools. The time I invest in it, although not paid, I do see as a commercial investment, just the same as the placement machine or format translators we write for the factory every week. I have tried to create an enviroment for a user group elsewhere by myself, to provide topic grouping & moderation, private lists and file attachments, but people prefer the mail list method, despite its limitations. > The purpose of the questions was to measure the interest and to see if > there is enough critical mass to support either a volunteer moderated forum > or a paid moderated forum. We would much rather use volunteer moderators if > possible. Honestly, I beleive your forums do not need moderated, it is the pure content & volume of the threads that make it seem 'noisy' but there is no real way to format this in any other way than leave it to the user. If you look at the reasons for the decline in active users you will probably find that these users may have just given up with Protel (especially with the DXP fiasco) or had no choice but to change tools. Also the fact that DXP is being supported by Altium directly, and this is really the 'hot' product for now, some attantion has been diverted to it by users with a real interest in product development. But, with no commercial agenda (gain) the issue over the number of acive users is really mut. When it comes to paying for stuff regarding Altium, I think you will get a very negative response. I already told my VAR that I won't pay ATS for my other seats, I got my 'free' DXP copy (I bought 99se lic in May) and wont use it, it is relageted to part time work only. My feeelings for now is that unless I see a really good product out od DXP by the time my DXP maintainance runs out, I will just change tools as the company already uses Pads & Cadence tools anyway. Protel is easier to learn and control, but only if it works properly! Short answer, if you want help I am here, no fee needed, especially as I have seen very few posts in the forum ever, that I would actually delete or edit, and very few users that I woudl even think of warning, never mind ban. With best intentions John > > Regards, > > Forum Administrator > Association of Protel EDA Users > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > http://www.techservinc.com/protelusers > > > At 02:05 AM 9/12/2002, you wrote: > >Forum Administrator Wrote =>> > > > >Please answer the following questions in the "Answer" section which follows > >below. If you wish to make detailed comments, please do so following the > >last answer. > > > >Questions: > >1. Would you join a moderated forum? > >2. If you joined and liked the moderated forum, would you remain a member > >of the [PEDA] forum? > >3. Would you be interested in volunteering as a moderator for the new forum? > >4. If membership required a paid subscription, how much would the service > >be worth to you? > > > >Thanks for you opinion and suggestions, > > > >Forum Administrator > >Association of Protel EDA Users > >[EMAIL PROTECTED] > >http://www.techservinc.com/protelusers > > > >================================== > > > >John A. Ross Wrote=>> > > > >Answers: > > > >1. Would you join a moderated forum? > > > >==> Yes > > > >2. If you joined and liked the moderated forum, would you remain a member of > >the [PEDA] forum? > > > >==> If it had something to offer yes, if it does not, then unsubscribe is > >easy. > > > >3. Would you be interested in volunteering as a moderator for the new forum? > > > >==> Possibly, depending on what 'rules of moderation' you wish to impose on > >the users and if it prevents completely open or free discussion. > > > >4. If membership required a paid subscription, how much would the service be > >worth to you? > > > >==> From a previous post I already said I get more from Protels users, than > >I get directly from Protel support. > > > >==> Would I pay for USER support then NO, or not a lot anyway. > > > >++> I do not believe an open user support group should be a commercial > >venture, or profit making, too many other options to host this service for > >free, mail list, news group or otherwise. > > > >==> As a matter of principle, I PAY PROTEL & VARS for support, so does every > >other user in one way or another, if a free & open support forum is not > >available, then I will need to push the VAR for more support. Which may or > >may not include, as JaMi mentioned before, threat of using consumer > >protection laws to get the point across (fit for purpose, perform as > >advertised, all features as advertised at point of sale etc) > > > >The Techserv list has been an absolutely fantastic service, and very well > >done. > > > >If server load is the problem, I can help to move the list to one of mine. > >The forum Admin can contact me directly. I would not change the list format > >or moderate it. > > > >If time is the bigger problem, then I wish Altium would look at options to > >do it themselves, or pay Techservs' costs directly & deduct it from their > >VARS support or marketing budget. > > > >If there is another agenda that we are not aware of, such as the rumblings I > >made about moving the forum anyway, then please let us know. > > > >Best Regards > > > >John A. Ross > > > >RSD Communications Ltd > >8 BorrowMeadow Road, Springkerse Industrial Estate > >Stirling, Scotland FK7 7UW > > > >Tel (Office) +44 [0]1786 450572 Ext 225 > >Tel ( Lab ) +44 [0]1786 450572 Ext 248 > >Fax +44 [0]1786 474653 > >GSM +44 [0]7831 373727 > > > >Email [EMAIL PROTECTED] > >WWW http://www.rsd.tv > >========================================== > > > ************************************************************************ > * Tracking #: 291071EB9B9286429361B7677C5003DF63EFF736 > * > ************************************************************************ * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * To post a message: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] * * To leave this list visit: * http://www.techservinc.com/protelusers/leave.html * * Contact the list manager: * mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] * * Forum Guidelines Rules: * http://www.techservinc.com/protelusers/forumrules.html * * Browse or Search previous postings: * http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
