Attention lurkers!

Phoenix32 · 07-23-2012, 04:23 AM

Okay, I am not known for my finess... But I do call it like I see it...

While I am very happy to see lots of "reads" on most of the message threads, I have always found it to be very disturbing that so damn few peope reply or post.

I have heard it all. I never have time, I don't know anything much on the subject, and so on and so forth into infinity. My favorite is, "there just aren't enough people to see much posting" (for various reasons). Well ya know what, if a message thread has enough people to have over 100 reads, then it has enough people to have more than say 2 or 3 peple posting.

A community like this is great, and even fun sometimes, when the people there are involved and everyone helping the everyone else, or just providing ideas, theories, or new things. But, it sucks crap when it is only a couple three people doing it all.

I have always tried to help when and where I could, even if I was busy, it got technical, or even when it got conflictive. I have always done so for free, even though this is how I make what little money I can these days, unless actual hardware or software was involved (covering my own costs). Hell I have even helped when it cost me plenty of money and time. But no more! Phoenix has a new policy....

I am sick and tired of helping people, or at least trying, when they can't even be bothered to return the favor to me or others. Often wthout so much as a thank you and/or how it all turned out... They speak up, only when they themselves need help, and then disappear just as quickly once they get what they want. Say what you want, but that is how it has been around here. FACT! It feels an awful lot like "being used" and no fun at all. To much like work.

Thus, my new personal policy is simple;

I will continue to help as best I can those who are ACTIVE members of the forum, just like I always have. But, if you are not an active member, I will read, AND NOT REPLY to your messages, just like you have done to my messages and others. PERIOD. If you refuse to reply to others when they need help, or be of some use to the forum, then you will only get my services for the price of those services.

So if you want my help ever, then either get active, or bring your wallet.

David... I will listen to your council (or agreement) on this...

blue68f100 · 07-23-2012, 12:20 PM

What's too add, you said it like it is. ......

SaFeHeX · 07-23-2012, 10:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phoenix32

I am sick and tired of helping people, or at least trying, when they can't even be bothered to return the favor to me or others. Often wthout so much as a thank you and/or how it all turned out... They speak up, only when they themselves need help, and then disappear just as quickly once they get what they want.

I certainly understand your feelings there.

Sadly i often have very little to actually contribute other than on the odd occasion, but if i see something i can/may help with then i will try.

As you say... with very few people posting anything in the first place, there's very little to reply to.

I could post something myself, but at the moment i don't know what. I'm not in need of any help right now and have limited experience to help others. Some subjects i am knowledgeable on and others not so much if at all, so i can only pitch in where i can add something of possible value.

There isn't much i can say about my own snap servers. I have about a dozen in various models, ranging from really old to somewhat newer. They are mostly switched off, and in various states of dissarray. Not faulty, but more, works in progress. I have a couple that i use as for general backups periodicly but at the moment given my often busy life and work schedule i haven't got around to setting everything up properly or exactly how i want it.

For instance i have several 4500's and a nice rack for them to go in, but at the moment i still need to make some mods to the rack and buy some other bits to go in there too. I don't have wads of cash to spare so i just pick up odd 2nd hand bargains when and where i can, as they become available. I'm sure at some point i'll get things set up close to how i'd like them but meh, who invented only 24 hours in a day. I only sleep about 4 hours a day as it is and still never seem to have enough time for anything.

Well, i do check in here most days to see if there is anything new happening but other than my little tale above i'm all out of things to say.

I do feel your frustration though, i was thinking only the same a few days back and probably for the same reasons that you have spoken of, here. I suppose when someone is new to the place then they may have only just found the site because they are in need of help. I would expect though that someone who has been here a while, would certainly not fall into that category and could atleast pop back with an update. Atleast that way one (and others who read and lurk) will know if the help was of any use or not.

If i give help on something and never find out if "my" solution worked or not, then i could just be giving bad advice and that's of no use to anyone. A simple thanks that worked, gives feedback so that others know the solution was ok as well as one's self. It's a bit like reward for the time you spent thinking about the solution and the time you put in to try and explain it in a way others possibly less knowledgeable may understand. It doesn't cost a lot of time or effort for someone to type a line or so, to say the solution was a success and certainly not half as much effort or time as the helper has put in.

Anyway, i feel like i'm on a rant now, and that is not my intention. Let's just say i understand and also hope that this post atleast serves the purpose of me posting about "something" rather than posting nothing.

blue68f100 · 07-24-2012, 01:37 PM

With all the info in this forum the "Search Function" will find the answer 99% of the time.

Phoenix32 · 07-24-2012, 08:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SaFeHeX

Sadly i often have very little to actually contribute other than on the odd occasion, but if i see something i can/may help with then i will try.

Well, IMHO you are one of the very few who does try to help. No worries there from me at least.

Quote:

Originally Posted by SaFeHeX

As you say... with very few people posting anything in the first place, there's very little to reply to.

I could post something myself, but at the moment i don't know what. I'm not in need of any help right now and have limited experience to help others. Some subjects i am knowledgeable on and others not so much if at all, so i can only pitch in where i can add something of possible value.

It is not about people posting, just to post, or posting new message threads all the time. It is about at least participating in those message threads that are there, like you just did in this one. Its about just taking the few moments to add an idea, opinion, agreement, respectful disagreement, or whatever to the conversation. "Participation"

Quote:

Originally Posted by SaFeHeX

I do feel your frustration though, i was thinking only the same a few days back and probably for the same reasons that you have spoken of, here. I suppose when someone is new to the place then they may have only just found the site because they are in need of help. I would expect though that someone who has been here a while, would certainly not fall into that category and could atleast pop back with an update. Atleast that way one (and others who read and lurk) will know if the help was of any use or not.

While it is a little off the track I was on when I posted this message thread, it is not very far off at all and I will address that here. A couple of the very most frustrating things David and I have both talked about to each other many many many, many, times you just mentioned one of. Even when the forum was at its most active, with many posts daily, these two things were sadly the rule, not the exceptions

1. Someone would ask for help, people would reply, they would ask a few more questions, they would get answers, and poof, never hear from them again. Leaving us always wondering if what we told them worked for them or not, or which thing we told them worked for them. Very frustration, and IMO disrespectful.

2. And then there is David's favorite. People asking the same questions over and over that are very very common and posted all over the forum. The most frustrating thing about it is by far most of the time, it was something that had just been answered a couple days ago, or even worse, in the very message thread they were asking it in! While I myself would never expect anyone to search the entire forum for some answer (that would be huge), I would expect them to do at least a quick look/search, and at least read the message thread they are posting in. It is frustrating when people just want to be spoon fed.

Phoenix32 · 07-24-2012, 08:26 PM

And oh yeah, for the record...

At the time of this reply, there had been 47 views of this message thread. Funny how only the Moderator, the original poster, and one other person has said anything at all.

Further proving my point...

Ron · 07-28-2012, 02:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phoenix32

And oh yeah, for the record...

At the time of this reply, there had been 47 views of this message thread. Funny how only the Moderator, the original poster, and one other person has said anything at all.

Further proving my point...

I'm hearing you bark big dog...

Phoenix32 · 07-29-2012, 12:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ron

I'm hearing you bark big dog...

Caress gently, this big dog bites hard too.

Right David?

SaFeHeX · 07-31-2012, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blue68f100

With all the info in this forum the "Search Function" will find the answer 99% of the time.

Which could be one of the reasons that not many people are posting, because they have already found most of the answers they are looking for.

I dunno, at the moment i don't have much else to add here so i'm just checking in every couple of days or so.

Back to lurking for a bit i guess.....

dgoodrich · 08-08-2012, 07:43 PM

What an attitude!

The point about people looking for answers not using the search function first is valid (and is a problem on every forum I frequent on the interwebs). And it should go without saying (really, it should) that if you have received some help, you should say thanks. On both counts, guilty parties are deserving of a snarky response. However, imo the rest of the OPs post is pure BS.

Yes, this forum is pretty quiet. This is a forum about a relatively obscure brand of products in a relatively obscure market segment. Surprise, surprise... there are more people with questions than people with answers. Do you really want people "participating" when they don't have anything helpful or interesting to say?

Forums with a "sense of community" develop where the subject of the forum is something people are passionate about. Most people asking questions in this forum are not passionate about Snap Servers, they are just trying to get answers to utilitarian technical questions, and they wind up here because the google sends them here.

If you are blessed with the ability to help someone, and choose not to, that is your perogative. But there is no need for the attitude.

HEY YOU KIDS, GET OFF OF MY LAWN!!!

Phoenix32 · 08-11-2012, 04:38 AM

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