As a new member (That was a while ago) before posting my first message, I spent a lot of time cruising the main pages, searching the archives, and reading a lot of posts and threads.
I was astonished at all the wonderful information to be gleaned from the main pages and from the members here.
As such, I have led other folks to this site since then and was doing so even before I made my first post.

Recently, I led some sellers from E-Bay here to help them learn more about what it is they were selling.
Mostly because they were describing something wrong, or not in enough detail, or they may have had the wrong items in the wrong listings, mixing portions of box sets with other things, meaning that some other listing might be missing a key item.

For some reason (it seems) that sort of activity is not appreciated by some members here.

WHY?

Gnat the Beggar wrote:For some reason (it seems) that sort of activity is not appreciated by some members here.

WHY?

Because it minimizes our ability to snap up cheap deals! You wouldn't want EVERY seller to discern whether they're holding a DMG 2nd print Alpha in their midst, would ya?!?!?!
 

Just kidding of course...I think it's a good idea to bring others into the fold. I stumbled upon the site only a couple years ago and I was hooked. I think it's a great community.

Trust me, this site is FAR more inclusive than it was even 2-3 years ago.  I was often embarrassed by the razzing and hammering (I called it "initiation") that new members got while asking innocuous questions.  As a result I very rarely suggested this spot to anyone I knew or dealt with, even if I thought they could be a valuable part of the community.

I'd say that's changed quite a bit in the last couple of years. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the spot, with the caveat, just hang for awhile and know your stuff before posting too much.  A lot of stuff has been discussed before and in some detail, if you can't find it, a simple question or two will either lead to an answer or a link to where it was discussed before.  And don't post stuff for sale in the General threads...

Also let them know this isn't Enworld, RPGnet or even Dragonsfoot. Idiocy, trollishness or ass-hattery is not tolerated.

Mike B.

Gnat the Beggar wrote:Recently, I led some sellers from E-Bay here to help them learn more about what it is they were selling.
Mostly because they were describing something wrong, or not in enough detail, or they may have had the wrong items in the wrong listings, mixing portions of box sets with other things, meaning that some other listing might be missing a key item.

For some reason (it seems) that sort of activity is not appreciated by some members here.

WHY?

In the past there have been a few times where I have sent an email to an Ebay seller that was selling a large lot of mostly junk but may have had a rare item or two thrown in with the garbage.  But all the email was for was to make them aware of the rarity of the item....I never gave them any advice or invited them to learn more about what they had.  A lot of these sellers don't know, or care, about the history of our hobby.  All they are looking to do is make a few bucks which is fine by me, as long as they dont try to screw anyone over.

Which leads me to this:  We have a couple of threads that basically make fun of stupid descriptions and ridiculous prices.  It's all in fun and not really meant to hurt people's feelings.  But there have been several times where a member (or ex-member) makes a point to lure an Ebay seller here that has had a listing posted in one of those threads and it usually causes nothing but problems.  Creep1962 anyone?  Most sellers don't want to hear that they are "doing it wrong", especially if they have been selling on Ebay for years (i.e. Cougarrinard).  "Who the hell does this jerk think he is telling me how to sell?  $15 is not too high for shipping one small book!  How dare he try to make me more money!"  Pretty sure we have heard them all.  From what I have seen over the years, the seller that gets invited here and actually appreciates the comments and information this site offers is a rarity.

Another thing I have noticed about comments towards sellers is that they are often of the negative variety.  Not always, but sometimes a member will send an email to a seller just to tell them that they have no clue what they are doing instead of being positive and actually trying to help.  And this is where we get the jerks that sign up here for no other reason that to make life a living hell for the rest of us.

So in my opinion, if members want to alert a seller of something like a rare item or ask if they meant to put item A with item B instead of C....that is cool.  But if you feel the need to email them and try to tell them how to sell or give them grief about their mistakes, why not just post it here in the proper threads and leave well enough alone?

Funny, I was taking a piss at Dulles Airport in D.C. the other day (in the bathroom, for a change), and noticed that the deodorizer in the urinal was produced by a company called "DAYCON".

well i have been on this site a while now and dont perceive myself to have much knowledge of that much and i tend to drivel on about most things at random. but i collect in my own little degree and things large and small pass my hands...some i keep for my collection, some i sell at a later stage and some i even give away or just trade off for something i want a little more.

to me: this site is a collection of folk from all walks of life. i like to think that when you come to a site like this, people treat you as you treat them. if you come on here all belligerent, you will be treated like that. if you just come on posting at random, ppl will treat you with a great deal of hostility. if you come on here, use your common sense and follow the right channels (hardly that difficult to fathom if you spend 5-10 mins looking around), then people will appreciate that and treat you with a good deal of hospitality. if you come on with a hidden agenda, folk here are not stupid and you will generally get found out pretty damn fast - something i have seen here time and time again.

i think this is a great site and i like to think that eventually, i will get to meet everyone i know on here to a greater degree.

my final thought to ANYONE new coming to the site is this - it costs absolutely nothing to be nice to folk and will always reap the greatest rewards. a lot of people forget this very easily.

and hey look on the bright side, i get to rack up another post  

I've never felt that the alleged "newbie hazing period" here was anything more than a minor speed bump. If it even existed at all.

But there's always been three sure ways to get your ass handed to you here:

1. Be a rip-off artist;

2. Be here just to troll;

3. General asshat-ishness.

In all of the times that I remember seeing one or more people fire up on someone for real, the individual in question was guilty of one of those three offenses. There's been some more minor instances where established members here could maybe have lightened up a bit, I'll grant that much, but I'd say that's true of every messageboard I've ever heard of.

Anyone who joins here and avoids the three things listed above will likely get out of the experience pretty much what they put in.

I'd have to agree that I've always found people welcoming and helpful on any questions I've raised or points we've discussed... despite sometimes being a bit of a numpty myself  

However, like above, I've only seen a real roasting of two fingers recently, one for being an arse and just causing a rucus for the sake of it and the other being a newbie clearly joining for one reason only and posting a load of random shite all over the threads!  

But I wouldn't say its an exclusive site, nor that newcomers are unwelcome, the 'Introduce yourself' thread supports that...

However, if you can call being involved in such a knowledgeable community and enjoying good company and healthy debate and chat on an excellent site, then perhaps it is..  

I don't think the site is elitist, but I do think it caters to a smaller sect of people than, say DF.
This site is based in reality - a bit strange coming from the fact that it is devoted to an rpg! We argue, errrr discuss, about printings, fraudulent sellers, counterfiet copies of 30 year-old modules, and how ebay sucks. For whatever reason it appeals to this group, myself included.
So when MR. LARPGer comes along, he usually does not stay too long. No big deal. That does not make us elitist - not intentionally, anway.
I pimp the Acaeum on all my ebay auctions. I do it so people can do homework for themselves. And I thank the site openly.
Now I need to find a couple hundred auctions to list on the interesting thread to get my post count up. Crap, I've been here longer than practically everyone who has already posted and my count is pathetic in comparison!