Re: user IDs with ID in order to buy parts....

It was a suggestion to verify IDs . I can create 20 fake email IDs in about as many minutes on some of the free sites... but I can't get credit cards in anything other than my real name. At least legally, and that's how I roll.

I gave up on the forum years ago because of the crap that was directed my way. I still will not offer parts to this forum, having been jerked around too many times. It has the potential to be a good resource, but if newbies (and experienced people) get flamed for innocent questions it's not a resource, just a source of amusement for... um... jerks.

Prove me wrong.

There are many other online groups this day. The MM site has great technical information, I don't bother looking here for helpful information from the forum.

Cheers, Jim aka britbits

ps.. My Avatar is the infamous Pumpkin. I gave it to someone who wasn't a jerk.. my brother. It's the last thing I will ever offer on this board.

Requiring contributors to set up an account complete with payment information would not be practicle seeing as there have been in the past and will continue to be in the future, a host of folks who do not yet own a Mini, therefore have never had the need to purchase goods from MM. These folks come here in search of help and information prior to jumping into the fray.

Dan told me last week that there were some recent changes here, but I only saw his E-mail this evening.  I figured I'd drop by...

Well, like Mike, I used to really like this place.  In fact, being on here 'back then' bolstered my budding enthusiasm for the hobby through not only the quality of advice given, but also the (mostly) light-hearted and social aspect of the community.  I felt like it was a sort of family, disfunctional at times, but helpful, warm and welcoming.  Alex captured this in his post.

Moderators weren't necessary back then, but when MiniMania and MiniSpares first split their once-common message board, Suzi, Steve and I became moderators on the MiniSpares forum.  I still have my old signature images...  I don't think we ever needed to 'act' as moderators, as members were 'nice' to each other.  

In fact, the deterioration of this forum left me quite disenchanted with the hobby and the 'community'.  As conditions here deteriorated, I migrated to another forum - but it's not the same.  Sure, it's friendly and helpful - has games also - but it's still not the same and I rarely post.  If this message board reflects current society's hostility, well, I'm glad I've become quite the selfish recluse. 

I would support light and monitored moderation, where the moderators' activities are subject to review, yet it bothers me somewhat that it's necessary to 'moderate' what used to be a by-and-large civilized community.

It's up to you, Don - it could be great again, but it's not the only rodeo in town.  (Make MiniMania Message Board Great Again?)

Requiring board members to be purchasers (active or inactive) would be counter-productive - we receive valuable and very experienced support, advice and knowledge from several people who reside not in North America but in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, continental Europe etc., so would never order from Minimania.

Hmmm, moderators. I used to be active (on and off) on the forum. At the beginning it was trying to figure things out on my Mk1s that aren't apparent from any of the many published resources. At first I got some good info then it seemed to devolve into a "post more than 3 messages and the trolls find you". I was guilty of letting them get to me if they made fun of my questions and sometimes I'd try to engage the trolls. It was pointed out by a friend offline that I wasn't going to win, so I just recognized that my OCD would force me to keep doing stupid things so I gave up and stayed away from the forum. As I suspect have many others who otherwise would be good resources.

So yeah, maybe someone who would PM me if I(or anyone else) start going off topic (or off civility) might be good.

I am a Mini Mania customer with address and billing information linked to my user id, maybe that's the way to limit "create a new account, play troll for a weekend until the account is cancelled" behavior. Whether I am active or not on the forum I still need parts on occasion and don't feel like creating a new account every time I need something. So make new users set up a full account with payment info before they can post on the forum, that should scare off some of the trolls.

Just an idea.

Cheers, Jim

ps. I am NOT volunteering to be a moderator, I don't really have the patience for it. Again, my OCD.

Shut it down completely @ restart it as a moderated forum. Let us all re-sign up and have to be approved thru the moderator- then you can get rid of the noise & nobody can hide behind a fake account. Last chance Don. 

Is this all to strange? I can't help but wonder if the person causing all the trouble is concerned he will be outed. I notice BC has taken a powder as well. BC is as far as I know the only person to be banded for life. I allowed QS to get under my skin to the point I left the board for 5.5 years. I had heard I had been banded for bad behavior which would have made two. Each person who logs on here ( a free and for all board ) has to moderate them selves. How many times was "do not feed the troll" stated? If you have to have the last word you will never get rid of them. They need the attention and as long as they are getting it why leave. Speaking of leaving, threats of I'm going to leave, I'm not going to spend money with MM and I won't tell anyone else to as well. How important do these people think they are? Over the years I have heard "I'm leaving for ever" only to see them coming back. 

While I'm at it I'm not in favor of people coming here and using the board as a hammer to pound on someone else. A recent poster did just that only to ask his post be removed. No big deal as he has at one count 12 posts on the front page. I decided first day to try and make a few suggestions after which I have decided to moderate myself. Yes, it limits the post I can reply to but it will keep me out of trouble. Having 5 completely rebuilt rod change units on the work bench, having worked with quick shift units and repaired a few of the KAD knock offs I might have some info helpful but it can wait. Look around I have noticed several more names not showing up here. As my dad says, advice is worth what you pay for it and I give you this for free. Steve (CTR)

I too feel that banning someone is extreme and a moderator might ask a poster to dial it back.  In the real world no one agrees with everyone else all the time.  I guess what got me, but I didn't feel like beating on the guy, was the constant misinformation some of which could have cost an owner lots of money  or bodily injury.  Seems the current storm has passed. I've been into British cars since the 70's and on this board for decades. It's a great resource for any and all.  I hope it survives this last bit of friction and I think a group of moderators is a good idea. Gentle moderation.  And although I did volunteer, I'm not keen to do it. I just didn't see anyone else step up.

Might want to tweak your original post. Until Dan M pointed it out to me, I thought that survey was ONLY for people who wanted to be moderators so I didn't go to it - wasn't clear you were looking for moderation yes/no votes too.

100% agree with Alex. Moderation should be *really* light. This board has always has some tension - that's part of the community and that doesn't need to be moderated. If someone posts something wrong - plenty of people willing to correct and call "Bollocks on it". 

Just moderate the sustained trolls,  racist comments and flame wars that get TOO far out of control. 
A simple edit of the post "Removed by moderator because of x" should be sufficient. Banning people is an extreme measure, not to be done often. Just for the sustained trolls (only 2 or 3 over the lat 15 years) and the spammers.

P.S. If Alex didn't volunteer, I officially volunteer him

I've been an active participant here for over twenty years, and in that time there have been very, very few instances where moderation is genuinely required. 

This place is unique in that it doesn't have a multitude of subforums and millions of rules about where and when you can and can't post - something that is part of the appeal and success of the message board.  The only rule really needs to be "Play Nicely", and generally that is the case. 

Okay, over the years Bill has misbehaved and exiled to the wilderness, QS was just QS and probably should have been exiled, and then we had the Robster/Velocity/Specialist fiasco... which I am convinced was the product of a damaged mind and should have been nipped in the bud.

That is not down to having Moderators, that is just down to plain common sense - when the howls of objection reached the levels they did several years ago, the Powers That Be should have stepped in and stopped it as was done with Bill and his countless new identities.  Actually that was predictable and mildly amusing - a new login would be created late on a Friday or Saturday after MM working hours had finished, would wreak havoc over the weekend, and be blitzed first thing Monday morning. 

This was different, it was a sustained assault on a treasured resource that was tacitly given permission and overtly allowed to continue.  Whether Jemal was behind it, or complicit in it, to try and generate false traffic stats we'll never know - all we do know is that there is a trail of casualties left by the wayside as genuinely knowledgable people have left in droves, unable to put up with the constant spewing of drivel.

IF - and I hope that it is decided against - we do end up with Moderators, I feel that they should be chosen by Don and his team based on the general knowledge, sensibility, standing, and impartiality of the person asked.

Anyone who puts themselves forward is unsuitable as they are seeking power, something that should be bestowed not obtained.

I'll chime in. Admittedly I'm a bit of a lurker, just visiting this site occasionally, but don't consider myself indifferent. Honestly think that the vast majority of people visiting MiniMania forum have been dismayed at the way things have gone here and suspect that many (including myself) have been reluctant to "get involved". But it's time. It's a great site, great people (mostly) and a lot of great information at our disposal. 
Time for a little oversight to bring this site back to a higher standard again. Thanks and "get er done"

I vote YES !!!!

Werewolf beware

Perhaps a "Report Post" button would be helpful and we could all help moderate?

I started this without a real plan on what factors would help me make a decision going forward and I want to thank all of you that have taken the time to share your opinion.  For those of you not keeping up with the results I would share the total is 26 opinions and 7 potential candidates.  I wonder if the lack of opinions is really a vote of 'indifference"?  There were not any 'no' votes! Perhaps the question should have been "Yes", "No", "Don't care"? 

My vote is "YES" to having several moderators ... but I'm not putting my hat in the ring.

I must say I agree with Ve9aa. I used to browse the forum almost daily. Now it's very rare. There are a few people on the forum who use it for either vindication or just to spout off. I love the people I have met here but never in person. The majority of you I'd buy a drink or just love to chat with some day. I try to be as respectful and thankful to anyone I interact with. (my name is HelpMyMini for gods sake).

Moderating the board is a good idea. Try it. See how it works. I assume the reason the board is here is to keep the name MiniMania on your mind for your mini needs. It's not like a company just spends thousands hosting a place for people to rant.

I buy a fair share of parts from Mini Mania. I've helped them with some products and have had a number of conversations with Don. The first conversation was so he could help me purchase every piece I needed to get a 23 year old barn find on the road.

Thank you to Don and Mini Mania. I hope the clean up goes well and makes this site a more enjoyable one.

hey Mike, what does buying parts have to do with the message board?  Pretty harsh words. Can you pass that test?  I really think everyone needs to chill out. 

Been here a long time.  Used to be my #1 fav. site on the entire Internet.  Now it's not even in my top 10 or top 20.
Met some fantastic people here *(too numerous to mention) and then also met a lot of them in real life at Mini meets, etc.

While it's true, I don't buy too much from MiniMania (or anyone for that matter), the message board
has turned into a cesspool for trolls, n'ere do wells, sh!t disturbers and people with multiple personalities.

At this point, I would be real hesitant to recommend MM (for parts) to anyone getting into Minis simply because of what the message board
has become.

I recommend several moderators.

Choose from the guys that have been here 15+ years if you can. (real people with real Minis)

Thank you for this service and thank you for finally caring about how the world sees MiniMania.  Bottom line is it's not good for business.

Sounds like a much needed thing to do and will help to control some of the folks who have different motives than helping others or providing sound advice.  You have my vote!

John