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Post by ptc on May 10, 2020 13:46:24 GMT
We have a large number of guest that visit with us each day. Although they are not OGF members, they are indeed special to us. We hope that they are having a little fun with us each day and they learn more about our wonderful O-Gauge hobby. Perhaps one day they will sign-up as members.
So to all of our guest, the welcome mat is always out for you.
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Post by Deleted on May 10, 2020 14:16:40 GMT
I believe it could possibly be informative and productive for the OGF if there was a way guests would be able to comment on the forum from time to time. I am sure there are a lot of people in this hobby who for whatever reason have left train forums or who may just not want to be a "joiner". Some may have interesting ideas and/or constructive criticism. I realize that this can create issues of it's own. Surely the Admins would be able to vet the senders to ensure they are real people and weed out the imposters and internet trolls as well as leaving the posts and posters to remain anonymous. In the same manner the screening of Obituary Tributes are done by Funeral Homes. Therefore insuring the posts meet the criteria laid out in our Mission Statement.
Gary.
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Post by thebigcrabcake on May 10, 2020 14:27:10 GMT
I believe it could possibly be informative and productive for the OGF if there was a way guests would be able to comment on the forum from time to time. I am sure there are a lot of people in this hobby who for whatever reason have left train forums or who may just not want to be a "joiner". Some may have interesting ideas and/or constructive criticism. I realize that this can create issues of it's own. Surely the Admins would be able to vet the senders to ensure they are real people and weed out the imposters and internet trolls as well as leaving the posts and posters to remain anonymous. In the same manner the screening of Obituary Tributes are done by Funeral Homes. Therefore insuring the posts meet the criteria laid out in our Mission Statement. Gary. Membership is FREE. There is no commitment of any kind. Anonymous screen names are permitted. Literally everything suggested is handled by the Membership process. The process only exists to accomplish the controls that keep the OGF free from Trolls and other aggressive/angry posters. That is the only reason we have a Membership process. We do not sell any of the Membership information to advertisers. There is no monetary benefit of any kind derived from Membership information. The word “Member” could just as well mean “Vetted”. That’s all it is. Emile
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Post by ptc on May 10, 2020 14:31:46 GMT
Of the many things that separate the OGF from other O-Gauge forums is in the nearly 30,000 posts, our moderators have been like the proverbial Maytag Man. Opening the forum up to non-members could change all of that and I for one am not willing to take such a risk or the resulting unnecessary exposure. In a perfect world, it would be different, but as we all know, that is not the case.
Or to follow an old adage, if it aint broke, don't fix it.
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Post by Deleted on May 10, 2020 14:56:19 GMT
Emile, Brian. You missed my point. I am sure there are a lot of people in this hobby who for whatever reason have left train forums or who may just not want to be a "joiner". Maybe they join or maybe the don't! If they become members...great. It would be interesting to read there comments and suggestions is all. The garbage can be removed easily.
Gary.
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Post by josef on May 10, 2020 15:20:23 GMT
Emile, Brian. You missed my point. I am sure there are a lot of people in this hobby who for whatever reason have left train forums or who may just not want to be a "joiner". Maybe they join or maybe the don't! If they become members...great. It would be interesting to read there comments and suggestions is all. The garbage can be removed easily.
Gary.I belong to a shooting forum for over 18 years now, and that was tried. Allowing visitors to make post and comments. Problem was before negative posts could be pulled, or a Moderator contacted to remove an offensive post, it was to late. Enough had read it and many of these types caused damage which are hard to heal. Signing up is easy. We are different from many and most Forums that we treat each other and each post respectfully. It will be hard to manage visitors comments especially if they are disrespectful or negative to our members or our hobby.
I hope we have many visitors, and they enjoy how our Forum is run, its open, and always looking for new members to which we can learn from, or we can be helpful with thoughts or problems with engines, rolling stock, scenery, etc.
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Post by thebigcrabcake on May 10, 2020 15:24:19 GMT
Emile, Brian. You missed my point. I am sure there are a lot of people in this hobby who for whatever reason have left train forums or who may just not want to be a "joiner". Maybe they join or maybe the don't! If they become members...great. It would be interesting to read there comments and suggestions is all. The garbage can be removed easily.
Gary.Gary, We understand what you are saying. It’s a good point. It’s a valid point. This topic was part of the discussion at the formation of the OGF. There are other reasons why the Forum is set up as it us. One reason, for example, is copyright liability. We have to know exactly who is posting images so we can maintain reasonable protections against copyright infringement. Another train forum got hammered recently for not doing this. There are other reasons as well but We’re confident that the OGF is the most welcoming and easy to participate forum that is also a responsible member of the internet. Our Membership application process is extremely simple and quick. Our acceptance rate is over 99%. Best of all, It’s FREE. Emile
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Post by Deleted on May 10, 2020 15:38:44 GMT
Emile, Brian. You missed my point. I am sure there are a lot of people in this hobby who for whatever reason have left train forums or who may just not want to be a "joiner". Maybe they join or maybe the don't! If they become members...great. It would be interesting to read there comments and suggestions is all. The garbage can be removed easily.
Gary.Gary, We understand what you are saying. It’s a good point. It’s a valid point. This topic was part of the discussion at the formation of the OGF. There are other reasons why the Forum is set up as it us. One reason, for example, is copyright liability. We have to know exactly who is posting images so we can maintain reasonable protections against copyright infringement. Another train forum got hammered recently for not doing this. There are other reasons as well but We’re confident that the OGF is the most welcoming and easy to participate forum that is also a responsible member of the internet. Our Membership application process is extremely simple and quick. Our acceptance rate is over 99%. Best of all, It’s FREE. Emile I agree 100% Emile!! I was just curious what some of the good natured people out there had to say. Logistically, it would have meant a lot of work and yes the negatives associated are and could be overwhelming!! We do have in my opinion the GREATEST TRAIN FORUM in existence! We are doing everything right! Thanks, Gary.
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Post by ptc on May 10, 2020 15:47:57 GMT
Let's get this back on "track". We are delighted to have guests visit with us as often as they like. We hope they enjoy this experience.
Posting, that is and will be an exclusive function of a member.
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Post by Deleted on May 11, 2020 10:56:16 GMT
Emile, Brian. You missed my point. I am sure there are a lot of people in this hobby who for whatever reason have left train forums or who may just not want to be a "joiner". Maybe they join or maybe the don't! If they become members...great. It would be interesting to read there comments and suggestions is all. The garbage can be removed easily.
Gary.I belong to a shooting forum for over 18 years now, and that was tried. Allowing visitors to make post and comments. Problem was before negative posts could be pulled, or a Moderator contacted to remove an offensive post, it was to late. Enough had read it and many of these types caused damage which are hard to heal. Signing up is easy. We are different from many and most Forums that we treat each other and each post respectfully. It will be hard to manage visitors comments especially if they are disrespectful or negative to our members or our hobby.
I hope we have many visitors, and they enjoy how our Forum is run, its open, and always looking for new members to which we can learn from, or we can be helpful with thoughts or problems with engines, rolling stock, scenery, etc.
I understand Walter. I guess I was just being melancholy and hoping for the good in people. Gary.
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Post by highvoltage on May 11, 2020 15:00:56 GMT
Not all guests are real people. Some, actually quite a few, are Bots gathering information.
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Post by Sir James on May 11, 2020 16:33:10 GMT
If they wont take the time to join then they don't deserve time to make comments.
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Post by JDaddy on May 11, 2020 23:12:43 GMT
Not all guests are real people. Some, actually quite a few, are Bots gathering information. This is true. Some hits are not real
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