Recent eBay Ads in the Marketplace - An Explanation

[Jonathan]

It also helps the noobs get to the stuff that is relevent.

That's true, so long as the searches are done carefully to eliminate the rubbish - for instance add -TB6* to the search and most of the 'unsuitables' are gone! Although I'd prefer them not to clutter the recent threads display, since like Jazz said, if I want something on eBay I'll search for it myself and if someone asks where to get something I'll always include eBay in my reply. Random adverts might cause impulse buying...

[JAZZCNC]

Random adverts might cause impulse buying...

Yep they most certainly do.!! . . . And I've been guilty of this on other sites and I'm sure a few of the seasoned on here have done the noob trick of impulse buying at some point on the road to working machine.?? . . And thats just with reacting to posts so if it's in your face then it's even more tempting.?

[Lee Roberts]

Hi lads thanks for the feedback, few things I can touch on.

He he . . . I'm getting used to you know Lee because when I saw the thread locked it did put my heckles up (you know how much I hate sensorship) so nearly started a protest thread but held fire hoping it wasjust being moved or something similiar to what you've done. . . Good Man.

No problem I’m the same person I’ve always been, starting a protest just delays me even more. I actually sent mark and bob? A PM letting them know “I’m on it give me an hour” just like I always ask when something crops up. Hats off to them they gave me the courtesy I asked for, sending me a quick email asking what’s going on takes just the same amount of time as posting a protest thread but is a much better way of going about things...being in front of an audience dose funny things to people!

"help., my hamster's wrapped around my spindle", (as a newcomer the activity box meant nowt... i was busy reading up on build logs) im surprised how many people join and don't post !! to busy reading and hatching the master plan i guess :)

Hummm, but if you look at this eBay thread: 5-Axis-Breakout-Board the outcome has been that jonnydeen asks:

are these breakout boards & drivers any good? the price is certainly enticing but are they going to fall apart within minutes?

He's made the same type of request for the support there that you may find in the threads you don’t mind seeing, so if you didn’t see that thread in the activity box then jonnydeen may go unanswered.

im surprised how many people join and don't post !! to busy reading and hatching the master plan i guess :)

I know, a handful of users have said they don’t feel they can ask for help because of the response they may get, I KNOW that brings us back to the whole "individual personalities" thing (and I really don’t want to open that can of worms right now in this thread) but it is still something that should be given consideration.

If what we really care about is helping people then we should also show willing to be flexible, to help aid accommodating everyone, I have to.

Unfortunatly often they are contacting me because there brains are mushed from all the conflicting advise.

I know this to be true as well, (let the cat out the bag time) I’m hoping to put together a series called "The Basics" this will be articles new comers can use as a jump off point before they going doing anything else.

The way this will work is other users like you can write up an article, screen cast or do a video (whatever floats your boat) and get paid for doing so. To fund this I’m going to reinvest the revenue generated by the site from advertising and so on, so this could mean you spend 1-2 hours writing up an article on let’s say "limit & home switches" where you cover the pros and cons of the two and the best way to implement them on a machine. I’m plucking numbers from thin air here but you could then sell that article back to the site and get £50 for it.

Where the magic happens is that article will not only be a GREAT asset to the site and its users but it will also pull in more interest, interest attracts visitors, every time a visitor reads an article they will help to generate revenue for the site in one way or another. This then pays for your next article if you so wish.

I've talked about money here obviously and I am more than aware it’s not about the money for allot of you but I think this is an acceptable to do, we all know this cnc game isn’t a cheap hobby and I think it all goes hand in hand, why shouldn’t you be able to fund your hobby by helping others who will in turn hopefully help others that come after them.

Making a part for someone because you've got a cnc machine up and running and them giving you a drink for doing it isn’t that much different to you writing up an article for them on how to implement their limit or home switches in the best way.

Dinner time!

.Me

[JAZZCNC]

sending me a quick email asking what’s going on takes just the same amount of time as posting a protest thread but is a much better way of going about things...being in front of an audience dose funny things to people!

Ermm . . . Ye but I tried that other week and your PM's where OFF.!!

[blackburn mark]

I know this to be true as well, (let the cat out the bag time) I’m hoping to put together a series called "The Basics" this will be articles new comers can use as a jump off point before they going doing anything else.

i like the idea... as long as they really will be kept "basic" and save the rocket science/finer points for open debate.

i spent a couple of months working out if i had the skills resorces time and gumption before i started building, a couple of simple articles on how much blood snot and cash a typical build would take would have been a winner (kind of hard to quantfy now i think about it)

[Musht]

Its the way ebay FS ads just bump the interestiing stuff off the ticker not a big help.

Mebbe a seperate marketplace ticker entirely?

[Web Goblin]

I think a seperate section for ebay stuff would be better. The way it looks just now is that if a few more cnc products get posted on ebay then out recent posts section will be full of ebay stuff. Is ebay limited to how much they can "advertise" ?

[JAZZCNC]

Erm.!!! . . . . 4 Ebay Ads out of 12 recent acitivity entries is a bit much and it seems to be getting more each time.? . . .If we can't stop or people want the Ebay in recent activity can we have More entries and a limit on the Ebay ads.?

Edit: Or get rid of the Blog section and make an Ebay section.? I never read the Blogs and it doesn't look like anybody else does much because it never changes.!!

[Lee Roberts]

Hey guys,

Thanks for all the feedback and comments, this must be one of (if not) the most successful discussions the forum has ever had when it comes to me asking you for your input. Normally I only know about when I do something you don’t like, so thank you it helps me greatly.

I’ve observed something that I think has been seriously over looked, the vBulletin forum software we use to power this forum comes with the “What’s News” navigation button/link/page as standard, while I control what gets populated into that “search” (technically what that button dose) I think we are overlooking the fact that it dose exactly what it says on the tin and that is gives you a summary of “What’s News” across the whole forum!

Now if you look, next to each forum the software allows you to “subscribe” to each and every individual forum, so if you are mostly interested in the Metal & Wood Working forums you would be accepted naturally to subscribe to the ones of most interest to you.

When doing this you are presented with a new page, this new page gives you three new options to manage your subscription:

Select how to be notified of updates. You can choose to only display the subscription in your control panel, or have updates emailed to you. Selection choices: Through my control panel only, Daily updates by email, Weekly updates by email

This would in turn customize your user experience and make use of the product the way it was intended to be used, if at all.

How many of you watch telly?

When my Mrs watch’s TV she typically go’s to the TV guide and scrolls through the “All Channels” tab, finds something she would like to watch and starts watching it. I however only really have an interest in 2-3 channels, if I’m feeling fruity ill go straight to the “Gay UK” channel (oi oi savaloy) but if I plan to do some pre bed time reading on a mobile device I will go to the “Radio Channels” tab and select the “Classic FM” choice and then in most cases jump onto the forum here.

How many of you have contacted you TV service provider to express your discomfort in seeing a particular channel listed in the “All Channels” section or is it that, like me your well rehearsed at using the TV guide how it was intended?

So I do have to ask the question, what is it we should really be discussing here? because as we know allot of times a solution to a problem is often the correction of a number of attributes that contribute to something we define as “User Error” where User Error translates to "not a problem with the product in question". I have taken everything on board you guys have been saying and made my notes don’t get me wrong, but we really should be using a product how it was intended and then hashing out our discomforts as appose to using it incorrectly and being unnecessarily uncomfortable, if indeed we are using it incorrectly.

Your thoughts,

.Me

[blackburn mark]

So I do have to ask the question, what is it we should really be discussing here?

ill assume that is a rhetorical question which brings the "disscusion" to a close for me
twas nice while it lasted
xx