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WernerJB
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, March 28, 2006 - 02:19 am: | 
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On a number of occasions people have been sending private emails in order to put their questions about vintage cameras instead of posting to the forum, or using it properly, for example search its archives. They do so on the pretext they carry pompous names like Manager of "Enterprise Technology Solutions" and probably because they think people are easily impressed. I am not, not a bit! From my view this is not only annoying, but will have two very serious consequences. On the one hand the majority of users will be excluded from participating in the flow of information, on the other hand more people will use fake email addresses when using/applying to the forum turning this place into an absurdity.
Can anything be done to stop this development or am I the only one worrying about all this happening? |
Glenn Middleton
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, March 28, 2006 - 07:04 am: |
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You have two distinct problems here; the use of a participant's registered email address by a third party to send unsolicited mails and an email from a genuine collector/enthusiast about 'equipment' sent off forum.
I will answer the second point first by saying that I do not see a problem in this. It has happened three or four times to me, one email was completely off the subject range of the forum and was answered by private emails. The others were answerable via the forum archive and the senders were given suitable key words.
On the first point, I understand that some people get very upset about spam/unsolicited mails. However I would hope that no contributor to this Forum would use a false address or not give one at all. Certainly if you post repair information, I feel it only right that it should be done under ones own name and 'address'. I have read some postings, which to me appear a little dubious - has this person actually done that etc. Invariably these postings are done by anonymous persons. This I do not like or care for.
So are you worrying unnecessarily? Personally unsolicited mails do not phase me, so I am not worried. However it is clear that some of you out there do not like this, so perhaps it is important.
I will end by saying that I do think private emails can be of use on the Forum. Sometimes a beginner will need that little bit of extra explanation, but it is silly to repeat great chunks out of the archive for the sake of a couple of extra sentences that can be sent in a private email. |
Henry
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, March 28, 2006 - 08:41 am: |
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I get at least one private email like this per day... ain't I popular! They don't bother me. In fact I enjoy them. Mostly they are from extreme newbies who, I suppose, are a little bashful about that in public.
If the question is an interesting one I urge them to post on the forum. But usually the question is one that has been asked a thousand times. I answer then inform them of the vast warehouse of info in our forum archives. Granted searching can be a bit tedious... someday I really do need to clean it out. |
Dan Mitchell
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, March 28, 2006 - 10:37 am: |
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I get private emails, often because of my website. I don't mind, but often tell people to post the question here so others can benefit.
One thing, however. To those sending private emails, you need to make sure the return address will work and that spam/email filters are not in place. There's nothing more frustrating than spending time to look up the information, reply, and then have the whole thing be a waste of time because the email gets returned as undeliverable.
If people post questions here, that isn't a problem. |
Stuart Willis
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, March 29, 2006 - 07:15 am: |
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A couple of points to supplement the wisdom of Glen, Henry and Dan.
The key factor of course is that questions per the Forum benefit many - whilst direct email benefit only one.
For what it is worth I can assure all that the "spambots" (automated harvesters of email addresses) absolutely "do" harvest email addresses from this Forum. Before you know it you are on a database which is sold to spammers - and we all know the result of that !
It is almost impossible for Henry to stay ahead of the spambots as their technical facility gets more and more sophisticated by the day. But we as subscribers can do much to help ourselves.
My solution is never to post my direct email address on any Forum or Newsgroup. Thus it cannot be harvested. When an email address is needed by an Internet Forum I use my alternate email address on a fairly sophisticated webmail which I check regularly. Google auto-filters out all of the spam stuff. Google has not failed to capture a single spam mail during my year of use. And not a solitary spam mail has hit my new ADSL direct email address since I adopted these counter-measures.
That "counter-measures" are necessary is an indictment of a half-wit nerd mentality as with the goal of abusing, invalidating or otherwise destroying whatever good things and worthy innovations of the more intelligent homo sapiens on our planet. But that's life - I guess.
Hope this helps somebody. |
rick
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, March 29, 2006 - 06:22 pm: |
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I will confess to being guilty of a related offense: Sometimes when I feel my response is likely to become protracted and windy, I email the individual with it rather than post it on the forum. While this may deprive thousands of the benefit of my great insight and wisdom, overall I suspect that if you were to actually read a few of these responses you would thank me for having shielded you from them.....
rick : ) = |
RJ
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, March 30, 2006 - 03:08 am: |
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I tend to view things from Stuart's angle and I have noticed a correlation between the amount of times I post and the average weekly spam rates that zap me.
Although my server filters out 98% of spam, I'm stil getting around 100 spam mails per day. Anyone who maintains their own website will probably resort to defensive posting rather than open posting.
Had Werner raised (legitimate) questions about how to deal with spambots, I don't think the issue he raised would be addressed: Werner asks why people use pompous names, yet everyone on this posting has given either their first or full name. |
WernerJB
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, March 30, 2006 - 07:43 am: |
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Right, I asked why people use pompous names thus indicating their extravagance AND, or BUT, respectively, at the very same time, ask others in a roundabout way questions of how to use/operate and/or repair a certain type of camera or if one was willing to fix their camera for a shabby worn-out incomplete Y electro 35 in return, et cetera, just because I was naive enough NOT to hide behind a fake address. |
rick
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, March 30, 2006 - 09:55 pm: |
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i'm not sure, but i think i'm confused. what is this about again? |
WernerJB
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, March 31, 2006 - 05:30 am: |
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Ok then, this is today's sample email by a certain dave Z hopefully fostering perception.
"Messages" like the one underneath trigger off questions like who's "dave Z"? Z for Zorro or Zombie? Why does he ask me, of all people? Am I a source of wisdom, am I one of the chosen few?
"hi Werner,
i now have a minolta hi-matic 9 that is not working. the shutter cocks, makes a click sound, but doesn't open; the lens barrel is loose; and there is mold in the lens. with the back open, i can also see a plastic plate like thing, as in the attached photo, with its elongate oval slot at about 45 degrees to the horizontal. do know whether this is normal or nor.
i'm wondering whether you could give me a step by step instruction on taking the lens apart, in order to clean the shutter blades, fix the wobbly lens barrel, and possibly clean the mold from the lens glass.
instructions illustrated with photos would be great.
thank you very much for your time and kind help!
-dave"
Unwanted presents? Well, it depends..., yes, perhaps.
Unwanted mails? NO, definitely NOT (although I like this one's spelling).
Don't ask me, folks.
Post your questions to this FORUM. |
daveZombie
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, March 31, 2006 - 04:18 pm: |
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haha... amusing... i'm speachless...
i emailed many of the experienced posters who posted very good articles, and i got many useful, friendly, and helpful replies. what a great group of people, thank you all!
i appologize to WernerJB that i ever emailed him. but if you make fun of peoples' family names, you lose the rights of being respected in a public forum, Mr. not-pompous WernerJB, email address [email protected], erhhh... or is it Mr. Werner Junk Boy?
oh well, that's enough, i really don't have any interest in anyone's psychological mess. you fingure out the world yourself. Werner, pls don't
bother to reply here, i won't be reading, and, pls be mature enough not to email me privately just to get even with me, because i'm rather defenseless there, thank you.
from now on, i'll keep away from this forum. hope that will make everyone here happy, so,
happy tinkering everyone!
- daveZ, one of the Zombies |
Michael Linn
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, March 31, 2006 - 08:26 pm: |
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" i'm not sure, but i think i'm confused. what is this about again?"
It is only about a troll, who now claims he has left the forum.
For greener pastures, he hopes. And perhaps a spell checker.
Will probably be back with a new nick, attitude, and e-mail soon. |
WernerJB
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, April 01, 2006 - 03:42 am: |
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Hi dave,
I'm afraid I cannot accept your apology.
For the sake of righteousness, and for those who would like a more personal encounter, you can get in touch with this person via [email protected]
You do not introduce yourself, you infringe other people's privacy and you have the nerve to ask for a repair recipe. You must be dreaming to expect me sending someone like you photographs and illustrations how to fix a camera.
And, Dave, one more thing, JB stands for James Bond, John Blake or Jeremy Bentham, and it's up to you to make a choice.
Don't blame me, on the other hand, if you decide to stay away from the forum. This, again, is your own affair, adults decide for themselves and what may follow from that. |
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