seanf Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 @rob_s-- I don't think the big dealers like Josh, Andrew, etc. have much to worry about. They've got their websites up and I would imagine that's where they get most of their purchases. I do, however, wonder what this is going to do to smaller dealers like Ruby, Neil, River, Trevor, etc. Physher007-- the suggestion has been made to take rwg private and restrict ongoing memberships to invite only. The mods and admins have asked us to refrain from discussing these types of suggestions on this thread. But I would expect some kind of announcement from the mods shortly. But I would seriously encourage any members who may currently be on the fence about donating to think about it very seriously now. I would imagine that the continued survival of this and the other forums may depend on how financially sound they are. And again, to reiteriate, I can certainly see TeeJay's point about not wanting to donate because of personal reasons. On this point, Physher007, I've read and enjoyed many of TeeJay's (and other non-VIP member's) posts. Do you believe that the forum would be served best by banning people like TeeJay who contribute in the form of many valuable postings? Don't you think there is a place for non-VIP members? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephane Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 I believe that being a member of this forum is a privilege, VIP or no VIP. How many of us would be buying pretty bad rpelicas or paying more for repiclas that we can get here for chepaer if it had not been for this forum. I'l tell you how many, all of us. I think that membership should include an introductory period of a month. After that if you want to stay, you pay, if you don't like, it you can leave. It costs money to keep this place going, and alot of effort form our mods, admin etc... and for the sake of $30 per annum, it's pretty poor practice not to pay it (This isn't a direct dig at you Teejay just so you know. You're posts are well thought out and you are indeed a valued member!! This is just my opinion in general) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumum Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 I made a donation and continued my VIP membership (that I won in prior month). That tells you where I stand. Regardless of if contributing should be used to determine who should be part of the forum, I think its important to donate to help in run the forum and possibly help to give the admin the flexibility to do whats necessary to preserve this thing we have. Personally I want to protect our source for goods, the small dealers like Sash, Ruby, Kenburg ect. No more to say, as "we are being watched". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warbody Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 Hosting the server in a new country without laws against replicas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
COOP Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 60 Members: COOP, Physher007, kin tama, b16a2, mumum, rogerwine, ravishingrick, tmg, seanf, K4TJP, crystalcranium, robertk, Dutchy, shultzie, 2manywatches, Pix, jfreeman420, jamesg, DuDro, trombone, drhydro, azmindreader, sssurfer, RiverwindMDS, insane, andreww, 16234, dluddy, tutima, Ylfig, wetfish, Mark Eleven, yllwtrb, sapphire ghost, phaedo, coltair, crumpdaddy, serefsizzz, hemfed, Daytona4me, piratedzeus, J Burton, spdshift22, bigmouth, sattop, kender, Troy47, Uhrenfreund25, crick0234, olivia, alt.watch.obsessive, JCM1662, Woody, pivaro, diver_dylan, Tom, Luc, 14060 or 16610?, watchman987a, TeeJay Big topic, 60 members, I believe I saw 77 earlier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Physher007 Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 @Seanf. I am certain that TeeJay as well as many other non-VIP have loads of posting potential, but better to give us than the forum itself? Without money there is no forum. Period. If everyone opted not to donate, where would we be? 62 members watching - 27 paid for VIP *edited to cool my tongue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daytona4me Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 I dont think the issue is posting or viewing the forum, the issue at hand is more how to not let moles shake hands with dealers. Sure,, post all you want, get all the knowledge you want, converse, post jokes,, flame,, whatever..... Do you want the key to the bacement (if that is even what the staff of this site is thinking) well... you got to do a little more than show up and have a couple posts. Things have changed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
that_watch_guy Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 The solution to this problem is incredibility simple: You need to host this site in a country where these types of laws are not enforced as much and it will be hard for anyone to contact and complain. China, Indonesia, Central America, Malaysia, the Caymans, wherever, just someplace else. Then, you should probably transfer this domain name into an anonymous trust, which you pay for using a money order or cash, something not traceable to you. edit edit edit: Realized my post contained too many good ideas about keeping this forum alive, will convey them to the mods directly to protect security. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreww Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 This shouldn't be a discussion about donations guys. I understand that some people think that $30 is nothing, but for some of us it is. Personally, I will make a donation, but make no mistake, money is tight. Do not judge people by the size of their wallets. I wish that I could give money to the site without worry, but I can't, and I'm sure that I am not the only one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephane Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 If everyone opted not to donate, where would we be? http://www.bestswiss.com/frameset.htm?p=1 Best Sub @ 875$ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serefsizzz Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 This shouldn't be a discussion about donations guys. I understand that some people think that $30 is nothing, but for some of us it is. Personally, I will make a donation, but make no mistake, money is tight. Do not judge people by the size of their wallets. I wish that I could give money to the site without worry, but I can't, and I'm sure that I am not the only one. totaly agree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Physher007 Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 Money is tight for me too. I am a law student, I am not allowed to have a job. Since being here, I have only purchased one watch from a dealer, and it was a gift. I wish I could have been involved in the HBB or the MBW, and I finally saved up enough to get in on the Ferrari GB. I realized early that my 30 bucks is going to be better spent investing in the future of the forum, than in putting a new bezel insert in my $50 sub. This is not about wallet size. Andrew, how many watches do you have? *edit for grammar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfreeman420 Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 I agree with TeeJay that VIP membership should NOT be mandatory. I belong to several non watch related forums in addition to these and I find that just about every forum on the internet has an option for supporters. Non of the other forums have anything to do with illeagal trade either. It takes time and money to run a forum like this and I feel as though with RWG and TRC that it is mandatory for ME to buy a VIP membership. I visit several times per day, and enjoy this hobby tremedously. I think it should be only VIP members who can view a trading area. This will cut down on a lot of BS. We can also make it like the old board and say I paid this much for this watch I am just posting pictures of. Get my drift? Maybe only text ads and email members for pics. I have also sold several reps on ebay by coloring over the trademarked logos in photoshop. Auctions never get pulled like this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyndonville Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 Go Private dump the lurkers. What good would that do? Tell you what, if the spies are reading this [bet on it] then the Admin ought to look for a sudden increase in VIP membership status. Also, how are you going to determine who is forthright and who isn't? For all you know I'm a spy, and for all I know you're a spy. There's no controlling that because the membership is worldwide, not local. Police it? Ridiculous. Tim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreww Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 totaly agree Some of us choose to pay our dues with hard work. I personally wrote a few parts of By-Tors Breitling & Omega guides, I try to contributes as much as I can via photography & discussion, and I try to be active in issues that affect us all. I put my name on the line for Pugs over at RWI, and have been taking [censored] for it ever since. I lobbied for the removal of pornographic avatars at both sites, and even though the membership agreed, and the motion was passed, I am still ridiculed for it to this day. I'm neither bragging, nor complaining, but just pointing out that a community runs on more than just money. It takes many types of contributors and each is as important as the next. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seanf Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 jfreeman-- I think it's an excellent suggestion to keep the discussion areas of the forum open but restrict the dealer's forums to only VIPs. Of course, we would actually need to have dealer forums to make this work. @K4TJP-- We are NEVER going to be able to keep people that determined out. All we can do is try to reduce the risks to our admins and dealers. We can't eliminate it. Plus, upgrading to VIP gives the admins the financial freedom to take whatever steps they feel are necessary in order to protect the forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Physher007 Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 Some of us choose to pay our dues with hard work. I personally wrote a few parts of By-Tors Breitling & Omega guides, I try to contributes as much as I can via photography & discussion, and I try to be active in issues that affect us all. I put my name on the line for Pugs over at RWI, and have been taking [censored] for it ever since. I lobbied for the removal of pornographic avatars at both sites, and even though the membership agreed, and the motion was passed, I am still ridiculed for it to this day. I'm neither bragging, nor complaining, but just pointing out that a community runs on more than just money. It takes many types of contributors and each is as important as the next. You couldn't be more right. I wish I could donate more to the forum, I am just not as knowledged as you are - or as many are. And I believe yours to be a special case, you definitely contribute to the forum with your posts. But you are the exception and not the rule. And your hard work, for all it is worth, isn't going to buy the forum more RAM when it is needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamesb Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 OMG! That's the worst thing I have heard today. What can we do to keep this up and running? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Physher007 Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 @Seanf - Your absolutely right. I personally dont know what it would cost to move the server to CHINA.... hell, I don't know where the server is know - but I know it isn't free, and therefore the suggestion shouldn't be made by someone unwilling to support. ...Which is what I was getting at before I flew off the spear (sorry) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seanf Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 Andrew-- what do you think about jfreeman's suggestion about restricting access to dealer forums to VIPs? I don't believe that this or the other-forum-that-dare-not-bare-its-name should be mandatory VIP, but I do believe that admins of both groups are going to need our financial support now, more than ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreww Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 Andrew, how many watches do you have? *edit for grammar I have actually purchased 2 watches from dealers here (a third was a replacement for a defective watch). I have received several watches from members here in appreciation for artwork, or literary contributions. Beyond that, anything else I have was put together from bits and pieces. I've been a student, and I know thats tough. But, if you overspend, you go hungry. If I overspend, my children go hungry. Big difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreww Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 Andrew-- what do you think about jfreeman's suggestion about restricting access to dealer forums to VIPs? I don't believe that this or the other-forum-that-dare-not-bare-its-name should be mandatory VIP, but I do believe that admins of both groups are going to need our financial support now, more than ever. I will donate here if needed. After the way I've been treated at RWI lately, I will not be donating unless Tim does something about the situation. Again, its not always about cash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b16a2 Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 @ Andreww - I totally agree. In reference to my post, it was an idea as a filter for new memberships, not really as a filter for existing members. A ban or brandishing people who don't contribute to this forum as not worthy is ridiculous and rude. However, it might encourage more commitement from newer members who come here. I think this could be getting a little off topic, sorry I hope we get this problem sorted out soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 I totally agree. People should donate if they can. Labeling people as "second class members" because they haven't donated... or trying to "force" people to donate isn't acceptable (imho). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreww Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 I would prefer a system where dealers shot 2 or 3% of every sale back to the board. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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