Member location field in header.

[griffin]

I saw quite a few of those Cybertron Deluxe repaints in Big Daddy, Jolt, Grindcore & Divebomb at a local Target too. They weren't even in the system yet :rolleyes:. PM for location (Remember - "Parts Unknown" is located somewhere in Sydney :))

The whole point of me putting the location in the header is to make it easier for people to know what city or state you are in. If you change it to something useless, you're going to have to keep reminding people where you are, or having people contacting you who don't need to.
I don't want people to know exactly what suburb or street you live in, but I might as well remove it from the post header if you aren't going to use it.

[Pulse]

The whole point of me putting the location in the header is to make it easier for people to know what city or state you are in. If you change it to something useless, you're going to have to keep reminding people where you are, or having people contacting you who don't need to.
I don't want people to know exactly what suburb or street you live in, but I might as well remove it from the post header if you aren't going to use it.

You might as well remove it. There are 3 people who I keep in mind when I stumble across something new (& those 3 people know exactly what shopping centres I check out anyway). :)

[iceburn]

griff, can you remove for specific person or that feature will be for all?
won't everyone suffer just because of Pulse then since he doesn't wanna put up his location (which is his freedom to)

[MV75]

Seriously don't worry about if Griffin, there's always at least one smartarse :p on every forum across the whole internet that likes to put silly things in their location fields. :D

Only becomes a real PITA when they decide they want to sell something.
________
Mercedes-Benz R230 (http://www.mercedes-wiki.com/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_R230)

[Pulse]

there's always at least one smartarse :p on every forum across the whole internet that likes to put silly things in their location fields. :D


& I would be the token "smartarse"? :D



Only becomes a real PITA when they decide they want to sell something.

When I have enough of certain TFs - This is what I do with them: http://www.otca.com.au/boards/showthread.php?t=253

[griffin]

griff, can you remove for specific person or that feature will be for all?
won't everyone suffer just because of Pulse then since he doesn't wanna put up his location (which is his freedom to)

It'd affect everyone if I changed the setting, but will have a look to see if it can just target individuals. It's not really something I wanted to make a fuss over though, but it just bugs me when I see a feature being wasted, like it is on other fan forums. And I wanted people here to feel like they are part of a community, by knowing who else is in their part of the country. If everyone put in some lame comment instead of a location, there'd be no point in having it, and we'd go back to the confusion of our previous board in which it wasn't as obvious where people were located (for sightings, fanmeet or sales postings).
And like Iceburn mentioned, if a member doesn't want to put in their location (like due to privacy), they can just put in a dash.

[griffin]

Relocated posts out of toy sightings topic, into its own discussion topic, in case anyone wants to comment on why we should or shouldn't have the location field included here.

[Robzy]

It's not just Pulse... I'm guilty of it as well! ;)

I used to have 'Adelaide' as my location, but now it's "A little to the left... a little bit more..." - I couldn't resist quoting Kup from TF:TM. :rolleyes::p

Usually, when I post a sighting, I try to name the store (location). But really (up until the last few months) for the past year or so there haven't been too many other SA members - so I didn't bother taking it too seriously.

But I see your point. And at the end of the day you're the boss. It doesn't bother me personally either way, but I'm more than happy to change it to a "real" location. :)

[Tiby]

I'd prefer it left up. The vast majority of members use it in a helpful way and it is good to know how we are spread around the country, especially for meet-ups, trading etc.

Those that don't want to use the feature miss out I guess.

[STL]

Leave it up there. Like Tiby said, most fans use it to identify where they're from.Some don't b/c they just prefer the privacy, some just use it for a bit of fun. And I think one of the things about the board here is everyone knows everyone anyway. For instance, I always remembered Pulse was from Sydney and I cpuld probably off the top of my head name 90% of guys on this board's state downunder.

Here's one that really bugs me, I saw it last night in the "who is online subsection"

http://www.otca.com.au/boards/member.php?u=212

He's a seller from Japan. I'm not sure if he's in Australia but why the heck are we letting guys like this in? I remember there was a thread about letting O/S fans in and there was overall a negative sentiment in. But we're going to let a foreigner who sells/scupts in ahead of international fans?

I'm not sure if there's more to it but prima facie I was a bit disappointed.

I'd much prefer to have international fans in than scalpers frequenting our boards and such. I've bought from him before, mind you and I'm happy w. the transaction and price but I just don't think it's right having some seller here ahead of other fans who could contribute to the depth and diversity of discussion on the board.

[Paulbot]

Please don't call someone a scalper based on one other member's posting, especially if you've had good dealings with him before.

[griffin]

Here's one that really bugs me, I saw it last night in the "who is online subsection"

http://www.otca.com.au/boards/member.php?u=212

He's a seller from Japan. I'm not sure if he's in Australia but why the heck are we letting guys like this in? I remember there was a thread about letting O/S fans in and there was overall a negative sentiment in. But we're going to let a foreigner who sells/scupts in ahead of international fans?

I'm not sure if there's more to it but prima facie I was a bit disappointed.

I'd much prefer to have international fans in than scalpers frequenting our boards and such. I've bought from him before, mind you and I'm happy w. the transaction and price but I just don't think it's right having some seller here ahead of other fans who could contribute to the depth and diversity of discussion on the board.

First up, the issue of 'foreign fans' which we discussed and voted on, related to fans outside of our Australasian region, which is why we have members from New Zealand, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and now China and Japan.
Due to the language barrier, I'm not worried that we will be flooded by non-Australians wanting to join, but if we did see a large proportion of fans joining from other countries, the issue would be re-opened by *the board staff* for further discussion.
But most of those outside of Australia haven't interacted much here for us to worry about non-local focus in the discussion, and as such, they would probably be deleted after a year or so of inactivity (as per the board user guide).

Secondly, the claim that the new guy from Japan is just a dealer or scalper, or only joined here to spam us with sale postings - totally uncalled for when it is just based on their one posting, that outlines their version of an existing accusation against them.
There has been no indication yet that they joined just to sell stuff, and I would like to point out that during the registration processing procedure, this is something that is assessed, to the extent that in the last month I have denied a few people access who wanted to register on the sole intention of advertising their sale items. I don't see the need for me to post up about every time I reject a toy dealer/scalper, nor is .
Also, it doesn't seem fair to accuse this person of something they haven't yet done, and not actually have a go at the number of toy dealers we already have on here, including several who had in their first postings, a sale listing or an intention to sell stuff. Not to mention one newbie I almost removed because their sales related postings were so high, they are still hovering at about 50% of their total postings.
But since these are local toy dealers, it seems like there is a bit of a double standard against foreign fans who may be toy dealers.
Just scroll through the Sales section to see some common names posting there, and not much in other sections. I'm not saying to target them now, but at least have some consistency if you have a problem with one toy dealer. And many of those (including myself) who sell toys, either regularly or irregularly, are fans, but it takes the registration procedure to make it a little easier to spot the toy scalpers who are not fans or likely to interact here as a fan.

If it helps reassure existing members here that a newbie isn't just registering to sell stuff, we could instigate a minimum time or post requirement before they advertise to anything. I'd be happy to have something like that in force, even if several of the *local* members would have failed that requirement if it had existed when they joined.

[Bartrim]

My two cents.

If it wasn't for the location field I wouldn't of realised that The_Damned lived so close to me.

So I'm all for it.

[dirge]

My 2c on our membership policy:

1) Keep existing members.

2) New members need to either be resident in Australia (or) it's external territories (Norfolk Island, Christmas Island & Cocos Islands) OR have lived/will live here for a significant period of time.

3) State it clearly. If a fan who falls outside of the board's definition feels that somehow they should have an exemption, tough. That doesn't mean we rudely tell them go away or or anything, but we simply decline them and refer to the defined rules.

My 2c on the location field:

1) It serves a very useful purpose

2) Not everyone wants to state where they are, for whatever reason. As long as they meet the membership requirements, fine. They can choose to disclose their location (to others, not just the board admin) when and if they want.

[Kyle]

Just went and took a look at the sales section and I'm embarrassed to say I have like 4 threads there... :eek::o

Am probably the worst offender. :p:o

If any of you is ever put off by my postings, please feel free to let me know, talk to me or give me a PM. The last thing I want is for any to feel uncomfortable.

Cheers,
Kyle

[dirge]

I'm quite comfortable with your contributions, Kyle. You've sourced a _lot_ of bargains for OzFormer members - that doesn't count as dealing in my book!

[liegeprime]

Besides that Kyle, you interact with the other threads in the forum its not like your just stuck to starting thread posts in the Sale thread. I think that was one of the points Griffin pointed ( redundant I know) out.;)

[Pulse]

Kyle, We're making no reference to you at all :). There's a difference between helping others obtain hard-to-come-by items & basically scalping TFs off at over-inflated prices. It's all good Mate (Woah, now I'm starting to sound like Lisa :confused:)


to the extent that in the last month I have denied a few people access who wanted to register on the sole intention of advertising their sale items.


I can't stand scum like that :mad:. The international boards seem to be flooded with those types of "Scalpers" masquerading as "TF Collectors".

[Kyle]

Thanks guys.

[Tober]

Another $0.02 worth of opinion:

OzFormers Transformers Collectors Australia

From what I recall this board was started up with the intention of aiding fellow Australians in locating, selling, trading and discussing Transformers collectables and media.

It works very well - it doesn't need to be compromised. Location maybe shouldn't be mandatory but it does get annoying if there is a sighting in Garden City and the state isn't specified. Locations like "Behind You" and "With your Mum" get boring long before the 50th+++ time you see them. A big part of this community is establishing a reliable and trustworthy network for collecting, I don't think there's more than 1 degree of seperation between any members here so every member is personally accountable for their actions and texts - ie no annonynimity beyond the board name. Specifying location helps flush out the SabreWolfgangs as well...

I think foriegn interaction is unnecessary. If foriegners joined then I think they would have to have a really good reason - Hong Kong members who can supply cheap TFs, Japanese members who can help with exclusives, storefronts that can supply bulk deals - but there are already alternative sources for those. They would otherwise need a really good reason to join and be valuable as contributors. This forum doesn't offer much that isn't already available on the large boards that actively want more members (revenue from advertising, donations, prestiege etc).

If the boards were opened to foriegn members then maybe some sections should be exclusive to Aussies. There are a few times I've thought that there would be a benefit in making the sightings and sales sections visible to member only but that was more to prevent scalpers from abusing it.

No offense to anyone that doesn't have their location filled, I know you're worth it. ;p

I'm sure STL had the board's best intentions at heart when he posted that info. Likewise Kyle posting the hk-tf and tfclub order threads is what OzFormers is all about - helping other members find TFs at the best prices. :D

[griffin]

Another $0.02 worth of opinion:

OzFormers Transformers Collectors Australia

From what I recall this board was started up with the intention of aiding fellow Australians in locating, selling, trading and discussing Transformers collectables and media.


Actually, our collector community (or club, as it started out as, but a word I am hesitant in using now due to the existance of the Official Club) started up to provide fans in this part of the world to have a more 'local' internet environment to be a part of. Admittedly, that was over ten years ago now, in a time when there were no fan communities outside of the American 'global' ones. Times have changed though, and presently it is conceivable to assume that any country that has Transformers Fans, is likely to have a local fan community. WHich would make it no longer necessary for us to be offering up that option to non-Australian fans anymore.
If by chance we did decide to tighten the restriction to only allow Australians in, it would only affect new registrations. The existing members from other countries like New Zealand and Asia, would still be welcome here, for as long as they feel the need to interact on another country's forum in addition to their own local forums (which I'd expect they all do).
BUt this is a decision that will take a little time to work out. And any changes to procedures here will be announced accordingly.

[STL]

Kyle, man. Like others have said, you're not a guy who's here for the pure purpose of selling. You've organised fan meets, been in other threads and helped many of us afford stuff we otherwise wouldn't. We love having you around these boards, dude. You're part of us.

My quibble w/ Bodhar2000 is he's posted 1 thread and I'm not fully convinced is why he's here. He's had one post in one thread. So he joined for the primary purpose of defending himself?

So if the guy who dodged me found my recommendation against him in the bad sellers list, he'd be allowed to join just to defend what I said about him? What I'm getting at is I don't think this forum is a place for that type of dispute resolution. I think the bad sellers thread serves as a guide. I know others have for example nominated people who have been good to me but bad for them. Some of the nominated people I still look to buy from time to time. But it is useful in understanding what went wrong that time so I can be on the look out. Its risk management type system in my mind by fans for fans. It's not something that is by the letter of the law.

In my case, the only negative feedback I've received was from the seller who tried to dupe me for the 2007 botcon set and tried to lure me into waiting out past the deadline for filing a dispute. Other than the 1 negative I've left him, he's had probably 2-4 negatives IIRC. It doesn't make my bad experience any worse though and it's important others can assess the risk and maybe mitigate it so they don't get the same inconvenience.

Like I've said, my beef w/ ppl like bodhar2000 isn't that I think he's a good/bad seller. (I've actually vouched for him) It's why he's here. Based on what I've seen thus far I'm inclined to be circumspect. However, I will regard it with an open mind and I look forward to seeing if he continues participating in this community in any shape or form.

[Burn]

Makes me wonder if i'm wasting the "Location" space.

Not like many people know where "Innisfail" is anyway. :p

[roller]

i always assumed its where Innis failed, did she survive? Or was eaten by a rooster?

[The_Damned]

well i have no problem with saying about my location.

[i_amtrunks]

Makes me wonder if i'm wasting the "Location" space.

Not like many people know where "Innisfail" is anyway. :p

I thought that since it had been in the news so often 2 years ago that everyone should remember where it is.

I've left my location vague because if I mention where I live in general discussion, people tend to act weird, don't want it to happen on the boards too! :p

And incase anyone tries to tell you otherwise, Blacktown is not "the Hills District"

[STL]

Innisfall is not far from Cairns. Rather elevated IIRC. I spent a while there when I was backpacking. So someone does know. :)

[Burn]

If by elevated you mean we have a few small hills around town then yeah, otherwise we're down on the coast.

Otherwise you're probably thinking of the Atherton Tablelands, or as they need to now be known as for tourism purposes, "The Cairns Highlands".

[dirge]

I knew of Innisfail years back. Can't remember how, Burn. I recall (ages ago) we were discussing this on ICQ.

Trunks, I knew a girl from Blacktown who used to tell people she was from the Hills because it "sounded better".

[1orion2many]

Kyle, We're making no reference to you at all :). There's a difference between helping others obtain hard-to-come-by items & basically scalping TFs off at over-inflated prices. It's all good Mate (Woah, now I'm starting to sound like Lisa :confused:)



I can't stand scum like that :mad:. The international boards seem to be flooded with those types of "Scalpers" masquerading as "TF Collectors".

:confused:When did you meet these people to be able to work out they are scum. Everyone needs to make a living, if you don't agree with their prices just don't buy off them and move on. I don't like over inflated prices myself but if your patient you will find items at prices your willing to pay on ebay, e-stores or people you meet through boards like this.:) Back on subject, I like the location field, if you don't like it don't use it:p.

[Pulse]

:confused:When did you meet these people to be able to work out they are scum. Everyone needs to make a living, if you don't agree with their prices just don't buy off them and move on. I don't like over inflated prices myself but if your patient you will find items at prices your willing to pay on ebay, e-stores or people you meet through boards like this.:)

I don't mind when people add a few dollars more on top of the purchase price of a TF to cover their fuel, time etc. - that's perfectly fine. I can live with that. :)

But when people charge double or triple the actual cost of a TF (& a rarer one at that) - now that is unacceptable. Just in recent times, have you checked what some Scalpers have been asking for Classics Skyfire & Movie Deluxe '08 BB? How do these Scalpers live with themselves - knowing that all they are is "Rip-Off Artists" (if that's even a word :D)? Don't they have a conscience?

I've even read a first-hand account of someone who encountered an Animated Scalper at Botcon. This person witnessed a little kid & his Dad trying to negotiate a deal with this Scalper who had a tonne of Animated Stuff but even though a little kid wanted to buy an Animated figure off him, The Scalper outright refused to take a even few dollars off his massively over-inflated prices (His prices were triple what the Animated Figures were worth retail). Now, that is a Scalper of the worst kind...

[i_amtrunks]

Trunks, I knew a girl from Blacktown who used to tell people she was from the Hills because it "sounded better".

Thats why they all do it. Blacktown has a bad stigma that don't go away no matter how much the city changes. It obviously cannot be that bad of a place, since it is the third highest populated LGa in the country, and the 2 fastest growing LGA in the country.

[roller]

[QUOTE=i_amtrunks;21389]Thats why they all do it. Blacktown has a bad stigma that don't go away no matter how much the city changes. It obviously cannot be that bad of a placeQUOTE]


you'd think that wouldn't you :)

[dirge]

I have more respect for Blacktown than I do for for the Hillsong types. There's something about for profit religions that's just plain scary.

[roller]

I have more respect for Blacktown than I do for for the Hillsong types. There's something about for profit religions that's just plain scary.

well said

[i_amtrunks]

I have more respect for Blacktown than I do for for the Hillsong types. There's something about for profit religions that's just plain scary.

Having worked at the Coles near the main Hillsong centre out at Norwest while at Uni, let me tell you it is scary. They Bus people in from all around, all to hand over their money... very strange.