Search Function???

Well, I've been planning on getting a gold membership anyway, so that's not really a big deal. And he's right, it isn't expensive.

Not sure it's a great idea, though...Maybe I was unusual, but long before I ever posted here I searched all the time for answers I needed, finally chiming in when I couldn't find something. I think a lot of people are going to get tired of answering the same questions over and over, and the less easy/useable a casual visitor finds the site, the less likely they are to hang around and take part. But, I guess time'll tell.
 
Originally posted by t1mpani
Well, I've been planning on getting a gold membership anyway, so that's not really a big deal. And he's right, it isn't expensive.

Not sure it's a great idea, though...Maybe I was unusual, but long before I ever posted here I searched all the time for answers I needed, finally chiming in when I couldn't find something. I think a lot of people are going to get tired of answering the same questions over and over, and the less easy/useable a casual visitor finds the site, the less likely they are to hang around and take part. But, I guess time'll tell.
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If you want a good example of that, take a look at the Harmony Central (musical instrument) forums, which have no message archive, so newbies come in and ask questions that have been asked over and over and over again before they found the place. So once you've hung around for a few months you've seen the same question asked at least a dozen times. It does get old quickly. I've stopped going there, btw.

Having said that, I do understand the reason for the change. I've considered a Gold membership, though I'd prefer to do it because I want to, not because access to another feature has been cut off. I hope I don't tick anyone off, 'cause that's not my intention. It's just how I feel about it.
There may be a lot of deja vu happening here soon, though, when the repetitive posts start happening. Harmony Central's forums are *not* pretty. :barf:
 
Originally posted by Moondrop
...so newbies come in and ask questions that have been asked over and over and over again...
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Eventually newbies may not be getting a lot of help. In almost all commonly asked question threads--even ones that haven't come up for awhile--one (or many) of the responses is, "Use the search function." I used this place as a knowledgebase long before I ever posted anything, and I came with a particular question in mind, not to read the exchanges of a bunch of people I didn't know on whatever they happened to be talking about at the time.

I mean, I'm addicted now, so naturally I'm going to put up the cash, but I wonder how many new guys are going to find the place useful enough initially to bother hanging around. Oh well, time to pull out the CC.
 
Posted by Moondrop:

There may be a lot of deja vu happening here soon, though, when the repetitive posts start happening.
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It just means that people will have to hang out here "all of the time" and read every thread posted. :p ;) :D
 
Originally posted by t1mpani
Well, I've been planning on getting a gold membership anyway, so that's not really a big deal. And he's right, it isn't expensive.

Not sure it's a great idea, though...Maybe I was unusual, but long before I ever posted here I searched all the time for answers I needed, finally chiming in when I couldn't find something. I think a lot of people are going to get tired of answering the same questions over and over, and the less easy/useable a casual visitor finds the site, the less likely they are to hang around and take part. But, I guess time'll tell.
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I'll second that.:)
 
One more small (or maybe not so small) note: searching the GB&U forum is considered a good way to keep from getting screwed on a deal when you're not sure about another member or a dealer/merchant. Newbies may find themselves getting ripped off by places like Botach Tactical, etc., because they're unable to look up the reviews of such "dealers" to find that their service is inconsistent, at best. Doing exactly that saved me the hassle and possible loss of money involved with dealing with that outfit. Just a thought.
 
Hi Donut. :D

Talking with a friend of mine, he had an interesting idea. Basic members get a finite number of searches per day/week/month/whatever, like twenty or fifty or something, and if you really want to hang around and lose yourself here without limits (like I often do), then you need that Gold Membership.
 
Moved to service and support.
 
Less than a dime a day folks. $2.5 a month. It's not expensive at all and the money you save could be significant.
 
BladeForums has been getting slow as heck and the dreaded "Server to busy" down time has been getting more frequent as of late. Something has to be done to stop this from happening. Now, if everyone goes for an upgraded membership the problem will raise its head again. In this case however, Spark will have more funds to be able to deal with problem.
 
Why did Kevin take away the ability for this little guy :rolleyes: to roll his eyes, though!!! Now he just looks stoned... :(

;)

Edit: That's Netscape's fault, nevermind...I'm glad--that'd just be cruel!
 
Originally posted by El Lobo
It has been disabled for basic members. See Spark's Shotshow post.

Bill
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Could you give us a tip as to where that post might be found? I can't "search" for it. :)

Oh, there it is, at the top of this forum.
 
Originally posted by Moondrop
One more small (or maybe not so small) note: searching the GB&U forum is considered a good way to keep from getting screwed on a deal when you're not sure about another member or a dealer/merchant. Newbies may find themselves getting ripped off by places like Botach Tactical, etc., because they're unable to look up the reviews of such "dealers" to find that their service is inconsistent, at best. Doing exactly that saved me the hassle and possible loss of money involved with dealing with that outfit. Just a thought.
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Sorr, only paid members count here!!!!:p :D
 
Originally posted by wolfmann601
Sorr, only paid members count here!!!!:p :D
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And an inability to search reputations that MAY lead to fewer purchases from the Forum would hurt whom?

I bought three blades in the last month from Forum members -- AFTER doing a search for their names. Absent that, only those who appear on GB&U frequently (and positively) will be considered.

At least on eBay [:barf: ] I can consider doing business with 100% types with 100's of transactions. No such indication is available on BF if one cannot "search." (Maybe there should be a rating of some kind.)
 
I look at BF as online information resource, online store, magazine and social group all rolled in to one package. 30 bucks a year is cheap for the time I spend here.

Besides, where else can ya find Whine&Cheese to compare with this bunch?
:D :D
 
I agree $30 a year is not a lot. However, to someone who's *just* found bladeforums and is trying to decide whether the place has anything to offer them, not being able to *look* for information to begin with is possibly going to discourage them from sticking around long enough to decide that it's worth $30.

Ugh. I just gave myself a headache trying to word that so it'd make some kind of sense.
 
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