Another board I belong to requires a minimum length of membership and number of posts before granting rights to post items for sale. I realize this would necessitate added mod responsibility... and of course, people should always be wary of buying from short-term boarders whom they don't "know"... but has something like that ever been considered for implementation here?
How about using some common sense. I mean, think about it. You're potentially sending hundreds of dollars to a total stranger in exchange for a promise to send you a toy in a photograph. Whether or not the admins filter seller posts, this board relies a lot on trust. Just don't send money to people that don't seem trustworthy. I realize that for new members, that's a hard judgment to make. But that's even more incentive to hang around first before you start buying and selling.
How though? There are been those random occasions where some people have been on for a long time and it didn't stop them from flipping or selling stuff that ended up being "lost" in the mail. I, personally, don't think there would be an effective method other than trust your gut and back up your paypal account with your cc for added security. I also think that out of all the transactions that occur daily that this is a small blip. It's stings everyone when it happens but its otherwise been pretty good.
i've bought and sold here many times... and only had 2 minor hiccups which were quickly resolved. i don't think things have gotten so bad that we have to put all that effort into trying to fix it do we?
Nothing needs to be changed. I got stupid for a sec. Lesson learned. We have enough upstanding board members that patrol the boards to call stuff out. Definitely buyer's beware.
Hear, hear. "Caveat emptor" should suffice. I'd hate to see this place become overly rule-bound. We all know that the vast majority of deals going down here are legit. The self-policing thing seems to work fairly well, as we recently saw when a certain panda tried to shut everyone up after repeated sketchy deals. It didn't work and that person would find it very hard to sell anything here now, if not impossible. Joe you weren't stupid, you were trying to be a helpful kaiju bro and that's cool. "Lesson learned" sounds good, don't knock yourself too hard. The a-hole is the scammer.
I figure the only way this would help is if a random scammer were trying to get rid of something "quick" but did not feel like dealing with a 25 50 100 whatever post minimum to get there... luckily I have never had a problem so knock on wood...!!! gut instinct and private messages usually always help with confirming if it's a legit sale and if they are good person to deal with...
I hear you all- and I gotta say, I have personally never had a problem (thankfully) with any transaction here, either. Just thought I'd float this idea for discussion, given that there seems to be an uptick in bad deal(er)s and complaints here lately (admittedly, a small number compared to all that go down smoothly).
It was good of you to make the suggestion ungawa222. The Rebel Ink incident was extra nasty because of the taunting aspect. If that sort of thing keeps happening it wouldn't surprise me if the site admins make changes.
i've tried selling stuff on one of these said boards that requires a minimum amount of posts. i didn't plan or have interest on sticking around. just wanted to sell my shit and be gone. so what i did was just post a bunch of bullshit posts on random threads to get my minimum amount. and if your good at it, you can make the bullshit float pretty sincerely...
although im still a Fresh Meat =( i totally agree in that they should set a restriction Sadly i find its hard to build reputation bc people in here are very critical in the opinions of noobs and i keep getting ragged on =( oh well
That's true, but a lot do, and I think it scares off a lot of people. Not sure if it's the best way to get more people interested in kaiju. Lots of folks have exited the hobby stage left in recent months. My sense is we need to be more welcoming to new members and collectors. Actually, I'm not sure that we need it, but the hobby might.
Not sure about that. This board has never been the "super-friendly-all-welcoming-nicey-nice-happy-time-fun-for-all" message board. It was created to be unlike KR's messageboard, and a number of people who get jumped on either don't take the time to read the FAQs, search through previous threads, or come here trying to sell off crap. There are a number of people who start off well and they're usually the ones that take the time to "read the room" and don't start off with "ZOMG, I <3 KAIJUS! SELL ME A USUGROW FOR CHEAP" for their first posts. I would think that increasing costs have becoming the most prohibitive factor recently, and not the attitude of the board. The attitude of the board has been relatively constant throughout its history.
I actually agree with andy. There are quite a few comments of the sort "I can't believe how cheap XXXXX toy is going for these days!" yet noone seems willing to connect it with the fact that the board is openly hostile to 'new blood' and is seemingly quite proud of it. I don't know if it started out that way, but this message board is now one of, if not *the* major nexus points for fans of this hobby. Attitudes that may have prevailed in the past may not be the best attitudes moving forward, assuming you'd like your collection to retain its monetary value. It is something to think about, at any rate.
And as I've said, people aren't hostile to people just because they are new. People get bopped on the head because they are either lazy, inappropriate, or both in their initial postings. Most problems are going to be due to asking obvious questions that a simple search would yield multiple answers, questions about non-relevant toys, or people obviously out to make a quick buck. And not to be crass, but I don't think most die hards on the board could really care too much about the monetary value of their collections. If people want to participate on the board, it really isn't asking much to have them check out the FAQs or use the search function to see if questions haven't already been asked hundreds of times before.
Anyone who gets scared off by a few cross posts from veteran members is probably better off gone anyway. We all like this place the way it is right? That's why we're here so much. Why change it to suit the weak?
That may be your perception, but it's not mine. lots of newbs get 'bopped' for things other members do all the time. It says much more to me about the person doing the 'bopping' than it does about the 'lazy' newb. No doubt there are some here with money falling out of their asses who think nothing of picking up a half-dozen toys at 70 or 80 dollars a pop every other week with no other expectations beyond looking at them and enjoying them. At the same time, the 'for sale' thread is often heartbreaking for th rest of us as people fall on hard times and are forced to sell off their stuff to get by. I think it's awesome that they are able o recoup most of the money they put into the toys because they've retained their value. Anyway, as I said...it is just something to think about. I'm not suggesting that anything needs to be changed, just agreeing with another person's opinion. This is what grown up people do. They discuss things and exchange opinions.
