Group ebay policy?

[Ian]

Has a group ebay policy been discussed yet?

I have been contemplating bidding on the Super Jolly since it came up a few days ago. I spotted a post last night that a group member had bid on it so I am quite happy to stand back and let them go for it.

I don't know what the solution could be regarding a group member informing other group members that they intend to bid on item without informing the rest of the world (as this is a publicly readable forum).

It's getting late, does this make sense?

Ian

[Steve]

Sounds like a good idea Ian, is there anywya we can make a section on the site not visable to the public (members only section)? Over to you phil

[DrZeus]

Personally, I'd opt for the entire forum being made member-only.

[mnemonix]

Yes. And a group policy would be good from the point of view of mutual support and to avoid misunderstandings.

I don't want to say too much as I'm actively involved at the moment, other than to thank Ian for his offer to stay out of the Mazzer auction and that I'd understand whichever course of action he followed in this case.

chris

[Steve]

I Agree with the Dr on this one. My personal opinion would be to have a closed forum. what does every one else think ?

[phil]

OK there are a number of things here.

1. The mention of the eBay auctions is new - I was guilty of the first mention, vis a vis the Gaggia TD I saw. I considered the competitive bidding issue, but in a small group like this didn't think it an issue - especially as I didn't think it likely anyone would bid for that machine anyway. Again I was guilty of "outing" the Super Jolly. Not used to there being so many of us. Sorry. I've been on the lookout for a Mazzer for a while, but I think I'll eventually buy a new Mini Electron from Another Coffee.
   
2. On the SM list for example it's considered bad form to advertise the existence of an auction that members might be interested in. I think that should be our policy too, and I'll consider my wrist slapped.
   
3. On the subject of closed forums, it's a piece of cake to set forum permissions to keep out non-members on a per-forum basis. If we want to have a members only forum, I can arrange that in moments and I'm very happy to do it. I'll run a poll later.
   
4. On the subject of closing all of the the forums off altogether, I'm strongly against that. When we originally converted the old blogging environment into a forum and then a full blown Postnuke site, the original members went through a process of considering whether to hide everything. We decided we didn't want to.

Why?

If we want to be a usable coffee resource (albeit with our own unique flavour and emphasis) rather than just a private club, I think that means the site must be readable to non-members for two reasons :

1. There's a wealth of information and opinion in the conversations of groups like ours, not just idle chit chat. I think that anyone should be able to read that and benefit from it. The fact that it might improve our search engine rankings is not lost on me either.
   
2. How do we expect to attract new members if they don't know what they're getting in to, especially with our membership-by-invitation model?

I know we've had a conversation amongst some of us in the last few days about whether some of the things that had been said in a review and a review comment were actually defamatory and actionable. Notwithstanding that I've decided this is not worth worrying about in this case,I should point out that these items are not inside the forum anyway and are covered by different permissions. I could hide them too, but if I did what would be the point? We'd just be a cliquey little group of no benefit to anyone except the elite membership. Sorry that's not my style.

TMC is a community and a democracy, but I must say I haven't invested so much of my own time and money with the intention of making something that's a closed clique.

Oh and finally, there's always the group mailing list if you want to talk to everyone is the group. Anyone can use that. I won't mention the name for security reasons, but I'll send you all a quick note as a reminder of the name.

Geez that was a bit of a rant wasn't it? Sorry people, but I hope this informs the discussion anyway.

[mnemonix]

Given the interest in the Mazzer I really feel I ought to say here that if anyone wants to bid on it they should, it is a public auction afterall and if we followed phils suggestion as per the SW list, we'd be bidding without knowing who else was anyway wouldn't we ? As I said, I do appreciate the fact that the issue was sensitively raised in the first place though. May the best man win !

Chris.

[michel]

I know we've had a conversation amongst some of us in the last few days about whether some of the things that had been said in a review and a review comment were actually defamatory and actionable.

Phil,
Do you mean the Elektra review..? Should we cut the MP stuff out..? I know I would sleep better...

[michel]

I have to agree with Phil that a completely closed forum is not such a good idea... On the other hand I find a woman with little clothes on more attractive than a totally naked woman... Same with the site: If some parts are members-only, it will be more appealing to become a member and to know the secrets which come with it...

Michello

[Ian]

Hey Phil, the original post was intended to be a discussion starter not a wrist slap, I probably didn't put it very well, sorry 'bout that. On the contrary, I think members should be free to discuss publicly available information (including eBay auctions) - I was just wondering if there was a way of doing it without tipping off lurkers.

Agreed, I also don't see much value in a completely closed forum, there has to be some lurking opportunity for prospective members. Michel's suggestion is a good one, maybe some (small) part should be members only?


Cheers

Ian

[gruff]

I agree with Michel and Phil on this. If the site was totally closed to non-members I think it would quite possibly put off people from trying to join, as they would have no idea what it was they were joining. However, a private area for psoting "sensitive issues" would be a good compromise, and does add a little mystery.

Gruff

[phil]

Ian

Re the second bit that's what I'm thinking too. I'll send out a more concrete proposal when I get home from the office.

Re the first bit, I know you didn't but mea culpa all the same.

[Steve]

Sorry Phil I poured petrol on this one . I love the idea of a members lounge now that does sound good [/code]

[DrZeus]

Michel's suggestion is a good one, maybe some (small) part should be members only?

I vote for the top half! Er...

[Ian]

Bad luck Chris:

http://www.coffeegeek.com/forums/worldregional/uk/31036