Akash
04-13-2002, 01:02 AM
Hehe.....I wish....I got all 6 numbers, just not on the same ticket :( Ahh well, looks like I'll actually have to work for my money
Anyways, this is actually my 600th post. I'd figure this time I'd make my "centennial" post actually worth something, so I'll post my thoughts....
Let me begin by saying that I feel that WHT should be a community of hosts, customers, and enthusiasts alike without having the sense of "commercialization" that seems to be seeping in.
I strongly believe that paid ads should be removed from the forums. A small "sponsored by: xxx" is sufficient at the bottom of the pages. If WHT(before RS bought it) was running into financial problems, I would have been more than happy to donate some $$$, and I'm sure that many of the active participants would want to make a financial contribution of some sort.
Also, I support Headsurfer's move to prohibit replies in the Requests forum, this lessen the "commercial blow" and create a stronger sense of a community. In order to prevent hosts from replying to month old requests, there should be a sticky asking the requestor to edit the thread to indicate they've found a host when they have. As hosts, we should all also voluntarily agree not to reply to requests older than 2 weeks. This would help the customer save time by not having to delete the all the e-mails or PMs they've received from their "old" requests. Likewise, requestors should be allowed to repost their request ever 2, 3, or 4 weeks(moderators/HS can choose the term) if they still have not found a host.
However, I would still like to see one of two things happen in the Special Offers forum:
1) Prohibit Posts
2) Make the threads sticky so that each advertiser gets the same chance of having their ad seen.
I also strongly support the 1 ad per X days rule. 1 ad per 3 days is too frequent for some and 1 ad per 10 days is too long for others. A perfect solution (I think) would be 1 ad per week (7 days)
Recently there has been lots of discussion about what hosts (specifically RackShack) can and can not do at WHT. I think that hosts should not be allowed to provide customer service/support on WHT. A strict, zero-tolerence policy would come off too strong, but a 3 strike policy should be put in place. On the 3rd strike (meaning the host has actually provided tech support 3 times) the host should be banned for at least 2 weeks. I think that support for this idea may be elevated now that a host actually owns WHT and has easy access to fresh customers. I'm not saying that RS would do this, but I think that now that they do own WHT, they should keep it 2 separate entities, and join all hosts in refraining from providing customer service/support on WHT.
Providing tech support goes hand in hand with asking for and receiving tech support . Customers should not ask their host to answer billing questions or reply to customer support inquiries. Hosts have forums and e-mail addresses themselves to do this. The question as been brought up, however, as to what types of questions should be allowed and what types of questions shouldn't be. I think that a specific question, again referring to my TOS example, should be asked directly to the host. Questions like "What do you think..." or "Does anyone....." or "I can't find...." or similar questions are perfectly ok. Specific questions can still be asked and answered (by someone other than the host in question, unless in an ad forum), but it should be pointed out to the thread starter that they should have asked the host directly.
The question has also been raised about whether or not a host is allowed to defend themselves when a customer (whether former or current) makes a comment/complaint, whether it be true or false. If it is true, a simple explanation (meaning in 1 post) of why it happened is sufficient. I don't believe there's any sense in defending your actions if what the customer had posted is true. If it is false, then politely post why you think it is false, and ask the customer to contact you off-forums if they would like to see it resolved.
Another thing I've seen is members posting the same comments about a host in numerous threads. A specific example would be the member who replied to numerous Aletia-related threads to point out that he was dissatisfied. I'm not siding with either Aletia or the customer, but one thread to tell your own story is more than enough. There is no reason to reply to every xxxxxx-host related thread in the past 30 days because you are dissatisfied.
I've also seen, in the past few weeks, questions posted in the general forums that could have been answered by doing a simple search. Specifically, the question about dedicated IPs has been asked hundreds of times and lengthy discussions revealling all one would need to know about them can be found by a search. If you searched and still can not find anything, then just add the line "I searched using [search terms here] but still couldn't find information about xxxxx". Doing this will help those who want to reply by telling you what other keywords you can use to search (and you won't get any nasty you should've searched replies).
Finally (I hope), I think that related offers should be split into 2 forums:
1) web design & logos
2) Domain Names
While the second may not be as busy, it would help sort through all the mess (or at least I think so).
That's about all I can think of saying right now (hey for a person awake at 12 AM and running a 34 hour day, it ain't half bad)
Can't wait to read all your comments ;)
By the way, including this sentence my post is only 5789 characters long. I know that's not a WHT record, but I think I just set my own personal record ;)
Anyways, this is actually my 600th post. I'd figure this time I'd make my "centennial" post actually worth something, so I'll post my thoughts....
Let me begin by saying that I feel that WHT should be a community of hosts, customers, and enthusiasts alike without having the sense of "commercialization" that seems to be seeping in.
I strongly believe that paid ads should be removed from the forums. A small "sponsored by: xxx" is sufficient at the bottom of the pages. If WHT(before RS bought it) was running into financial problems, I would have been more than happy to donate some $$$, and I'm sure that many of the active participants would want to make a financial contribution of some sort.
Also, I support Headsurfer's move to prohibit replies in the Requests forum, this lessen the "commercial blow" and create a stronger sense of a community. In order to prevent hosts from replying to month old requests, there should be a sticky asking the requestor to edit the thread to indicate they've found a host when they have. As hosts, we should all also voluntarily agree not to reply to requests older than 2 weeks. This would help the customer save time by not having to delete the all the e-mails or PMs they've received from their "old" requests. Likewise, requestors should be allowed to repost their request ever 2, 3, or 4 weeks(moderators/HS can choose the term) if they still have not found a host.
However, I would still like to see one of two things happen in the Special Offers forum:
1) Prohibit Posts
2) Make the threads sticky so that each advertiser gets the same chance of having their ad seen.
I also strongly support the 1 ad per X days rule. 1 ad per 3 days is too frequent for some and 1 ad per 10 days is too long for others. A perfect solution (I think) would be 1 ad per week (7 days)
Recently there has been lots of discussion about what hosts (specifically RackShack) can and can not do at WHT. I think that hosts should not be allowed to provide customer service/support on WHT. A strict, zero-tolerence policy would come off too strong, but a 3 strike policy should be put in place. On the 3rd strike (meaning the host has actually provided tech support 3 times) the host should be banned for at least 2 weeks. I think that support for this idea may be elevated now that a host actually owns WHT and has easy access to fresh customers. I'm not saying that RS would do this, but I think that now that they do own WHT, they should keep it 2 separate entities, and join all hosts in refraining from providing customer service/support on WHT.
Providing tech support goes hand in hand with asking for and receiving tech support . Customers should not ask their host to answer billing questions or reply to customer support inquiries. Hosts have forums and e-mail addresses themselves to do this. The question as been brought up, however, as to what types of questions should be allowed and what types of questions shouldn't be. I think that a specific question, again referring to my TOS example, should be asked directly to the host. Questions like "What do you think..." or "Does anyone....." or "I can't find...." or similar questions are perfectly ok. Specific questions can still be asked and answered (by someone other than the host in question, unless in an ad forum), but it should be pointed out to the thread starter that they should have asked the host directly.
The question has also been raised about whether or not a host is allowed to defend themselves when a customer (whether former or current) makes a comment/complaint, whether it be true or false. If it is true, a simple explanation (meaning in 1 post) of why it happened is sufficient. I don't believe there's any sense in defending your actions if what the customer had posted is true. If it is false, then politely post why you think it is false, and ask the customer to contact you off-forums if they would like to see it resolved.
Another thing I've seen is members posting the same comments about a host in numerous threads. A specific example would be the member who replied to numerous Aletia-related threads to point out that he was dissatisfied. I'm not siding with either Aletia or the customer, but one thread to tell your own story is more than enough. There is no reason to reply to every xxxxxx-host related thread in the past 30 days because you are dissatisfied.
I've also seen, in the past few weeks, questions posted in the general forums that could have been answered by doing a simple search. Specifically, the question about dedicated IPs has been asked hundreds of times and lengthy discussions revealling all one would need to know about them can be found by a search. If you searched and still can not find anything, then just add the line "I searched using [search terms here] but still couldn't find information about xxxxx". Doing this will help those who want to reply by telling you what other keywords you can use to search (and you won't get any nasty you should've searched replies).
Finally (I hope), I think that related offers should be split into 2 forums:
1) web design & logos
2) Domain Names
While the second may not be as busy, it would help sort through all the mess (or at least I think so).
That's about all I can think of saying right now (hey for a person awake at 12 AM and running a 34 hour day, it ain't half bad)
Can't wait to read all your comments ;)
By the way, including this sentence my post is only 5789 characters long. I know that's not a WHT record, but I think I just set my own personal record ;)