Re: Forum to become members only.

[Tanya]

Sorry missed your posts I am on the tablet and it is slow typing. I still suggest it is the best method of resolving the matter, it can be held via Skype or other suitable web chat medium available to all

It's my understanding that this would need to be held at a venue, not via Skype etc. There is a potential for a larger number of members to come than would be reasonable to manage via Skype, therefore a venue is needed.

However, as I've said, to avoid the petitioners the potential cost of an EGM, it would be better to look for a solution here. There is the compromise of having an open 'chit chat' section that is currently being discussed.

[Sussex Pete]

When I checked this thread earlier today, but unfortunately not in a position to add to it, I am more than surprised at the level of feeling that the announcement has created - and also correctly in my view. I am also concerned that only Tanya appears to have taken it on her shoulders, especially as she was elected three weeks ago, to respond to the forum members comments.

My first concern is that it appears (although please correct me if I am mistaken) that there was no mention of this change made at the AGM and it was only raised at a subsequent committee meeting. Surely, those committee members who were re-elected at the AGM could have ensured that a motion was put to the members present with their proposals and based on the feedback at that time made a decision that would be accepted by all. Instead it seems that their cosy "chit-chat" has stirred up a real hornets nest and one from which they will need to look again at their proposal, if the club is going to survive.

Like many forum members, I joined once I purchased my Turbo, because I knew that there would be many out there on the interweb who would have far more detailed knowledge than me, regarding my car. With every car I have owned during the last 20 years, I have also joined the appropriate forum to gain and pass on skills, tips and experiences. So I will add my voice to those who say that to close the forum completely to non-members is a wrong decision, and the announcement needs to be revoked until such time as the membership as a whole is in agreement about the way forward.

Whilst I understand some of the thinking behind the changes envisaged, and like others I have held roles in other clubs and societies, so I can speak with some authority, I would say to the committee as a whole that you need to review your revenue stream - with some worthy ideas having already been put forward, not lose those skills and tips from those who happen to chose to be non-members. It really is a case of "not slicing your nose off to spite your face".

[Beaker]

time for my 2p i guess...
keep the forums open to all
what about some kind of halfway house?
pay £5 a year via paypal to mmoc and be a web member..
we wont miss a fiver and if it goes into keeping mmoc running it has to be a good thing .
you get nothing extra (apart from your status changing) but you know you done your bit to keep everything running as we have come to know it.

This is similar to the way I set up the 200/400 club. The main cost of membership is normally the printing of a magazine. However the forum is still open to all.

[F395 PPG]

a real shame to hear this... im in many clubs for different cars and cant join them all so Il probably disappear.... but out of all the forums I can honestly say this is probably the friendliest and active out of them all its good to have an open forum because you get the best of both if a car is on the verge of being scrapped or spares up for grabs they posted up on here if you have to join people are more likey not to bother and then everyone misses out!! I have seen this sort thing before where ego's take over an tensions are raised in clubs over the slightest of things but I do hope the club carries on and goes from strength to strength as theres as the number of these cars are in decine!!! cheers matt

[bodgit0_0]

I was a member years ago, and only took out the current membership as I was flush for a change. Once this lapses then I'll not be bothering again which is a shame as Im always buying or selling cars and parts which will only be available to the Facebook users after this time.

I think maybe a courtesy notification to all forum users about a proposal of this scale would of been more prudent.

I know Tanya had a thread about the proposed increased activities and events prior to the committee meeting so she could be better informed to make plans and decisions.

Why wasn't such a major shack up like this treated the same way?

Good luck if it goes ahead, I will still be found on the Facebook forum.

Lee

[The Express Valeter]

I am on the Fiesta ST Owners Club. When I initially joined I did join the club (£10 for the year). I havn't renewed this time but still have forum access though certain areas are restricted. The 75&ZT Owners Club is the same. If I wish to access further areas I will pay & join. If either of those say either pay up or leave I would leave as I am not that bothered though I am more passionate about Maestro's & Montego's so I will join here, however there are others on here that probably feel the same as I do on the other 2 clubs I mentioned!!

[Andy]

Instead, cant we say give it 7 days from today, and when the inevitable results of the poll are looked at knock this silly idea on the head and forgot all about it. I can see both sides of the story, I am sure the club might have a few money problems but like has been mentioned all though today with the hind-site of history available to us, they wont be a club left at all if this go's ahead. Few things to look at, the forum is the lifeblood of this club, it will die if this plan go's ahead, I wont be paying to renew my membership next year for a dead forum. I think a fair few members will follow this suit.

And something else I am surprised no one has mentioned today. How many people have joined the forum and left one or two posts advertising cars that have been left to them by deceased relatives etc that have been snapped up and saved by forum uses usually for a pittance. I also believe if this decision go's ahead it will resign many of these cars to be found in the future to the scrap heap as people will just get shot if theirs no easy place to turn to.

[Tanya]

I was a member years ago, and only took out the current membership as I was flush for a change. Once this lapses then I'll not be bothering again which is a shame as Im always buying or selling cars and parts which will only be available to the Facebook users after this time.

I think maybe a courtesy notification to all forum users about a proposal of this scale would of been more prudent.

I know Tanya had a thread about the proposed increased activities and events prior to the committee meeting so she could be better informed to make plans and decisions.

Why wasn't such a major shack up like this treated the same way?

Good luck if it goes ahead, I will still be found on the Facebook forum.

Lee

Yes I do agree Lee. With hindsight it would have been better for the club to have consulted as I did with the events thread. However, we are were are are now, and the committee are hearing everyone loud and clear!

I have asked them to consider a compromise solution, so let's see what comes of that.

[Tanya]

Instead, cant we say give it 7 days from today, and when the inevitable results of the poll are looked at knock this silly idea on the head and forgot all about it. I can see both sides of the story, I am sure the club might have a few money problems but like has been mentioned all though today with the hind-site of history available to us, they wont be a club left at all if this go's ahead. Few things to look at, the forum is the lifeblood of this club, it will die if this plan go's ahead, I wont be paying to renew my membership next year for a dead forum. I think a fair few members will follow this suit.

And something else I am surprised no one has mentioned today. How many people have joined the forum and left one or two posts advertising cars that have been left to them by deceased relatives etc that have been snapped up and saved by forum uses usually for a pittance. I also believe if this decision go's ahead it will resign many of these cars to be found in the future to the scrap heap as people will just get shot if theirs no easy place to turn to.

I've have raised my concerns with the committee about the poll, not for the poll itself, but because if we are going to consult, we need to do it with the full membership, not just those online. I guess Montsro would be the obvious place to consult those not online, if the committee now decide that they wish to consult.

As for cars from deceased owners, my understanding is that many of those come directly to the club, though the website, not the forum. Our contact details are on the website, so cars can be offered that way. The committee would then decide what to do with these, and I guess the first place would be the forum and after that, then Facebook, Twitter etc.

[H48HPE]

I am also concerned that only Tanya appears to have taken it on her shoulders, especially as she was elected three weeks ago, to respond to the forum members comments.

I'm sorry, but I need to correct you there, both myself and Richard Gelder have been actively involved in this thread - both trying to justify the reasoning behind it, and in my case trying to help find a compromise.

Whilst I'm on the subject.

The committeee meeting that this was discussed at was called by a committee member as an additional committee meeting before the planned one in January. If members think that these meetings are cosy chats then they are unfortunately mistaken. this particular meeting was quite heated for various different reasons, and this was one subject that caused much debate.

I'd have rather been sat at home with my missus and 2 kids - but no I travel to the meeting to try and contribute.

we want to try and make the club better - we need more members to raise funds - the website is a joke, it was out of date as soon as it was put online. we need to sort this out, but we want to do a proper job by a professional web designer - that costs more money than we have to spare.

Quite frankly I don't disagree with the forum remaining in its current format, however with a need to raise this money the option of encouraging members to join by restricting forum access was fetched up. this received strong backing from some members of the committee with mixed feelings from others (me included) having already disagreed and had heated exchanges on another subject prior to this one, I didn't feel a blow out argument on something I wasn't going to win would be in the interest of me or anyone else at that meeting. one cant just spit the dummy out all the time.

I thought we'd see how this went, the results are (predictably) here for all to see. Now I feel the best way forward is negotiation & discussion.

it was my intention at the meeting to suggest raising the funds by an increase in membership cost to somewhere in the region of £25.00 PA. with the option of making the forum private to raise those funds instead I decided not to fetch this idea to the table.

Now my writing above is in no way a record of the minutes of that meeting, I want to dispel this myth that we all sit around having cosy chats - when I can tell you that's definitely not the case.

Now we want to make the club better, we want more money, the club cant make that money by offer a free forum - thats proven as thats where we are now. how do we get the money - these are the difficult questions we are trying to answer.



Andy

[Russ]

I've have raised my concerns with the committee about the poll, not for the poll itself, but because if we are going to consult, we need to do it with the full membership, not just those online. I guess Montsro would be the obvious place to consult those not online, if the committee now decide that they wish to consult.

Hi Tanya, I don't really understand why you would need to consult members who are not online. Surely if they are not online they won't understand what goes on on here and you will get a false result. That sounds like the logic of Dr beeching when closing railways
I really can't for the life of me understand what the club has got to gain by banning non members. I for one am not on Facebook and have absolutely no intention of joining it.
What I will say that if we loose the expertise of the non members on this forum who have helped me countless times I will have to seriously consider not renewing my membership and I'm not alone with this opinion
Russ

[seacow]

Wow - what a response!

Firstly I want to say that I am pleased about all the activity in the club and the plans. The plans are pretty exciting and its good to see some ideas for improvement - and that is in no way a criticism of what has gone before.

I have mixed feelings on the forum - I completely understand why this decision is being made but also appreciate that we will lose some contributors but maybe gain others. As an owner I signed up as soon as I purchased but I was pretty active but would probably not have joined if I hadn't purchased.

I wonder if there is a way to have a general forum that is free but keep the juicy stuff to members only - so there is a taster for potential members?

I think the price is a bargain though personally and am minded that if you are that passionate about these cars then it should not be an issue - albeit that there is a matter of principle there.

I also note that the forum hasn't been that active of late - especially in areas where I would expect it to be. I do see improvements ahead though so maybe this is the best way.

I think it has already been said though but if we don't agree we should join the committee and do something about it - we elect these members or have the chance to and let them get on with it.

[Tanya]

Hi Tanya, I don't really understand why you would need to consult members who are not online. Surely if they are not online they won't understand what goes on on here and you will get a false result. That sounds like the logic of Dr beeching when closing railways
I really can't for the life of me understand what the club has got to gain by banning non members. I for one am not on Facebook and have absolutely no intention of joining it.
What I will say that if we loose the expertise of the non members on this forum who have helped me countless times I will have to seriously consider not renewing my membership and I'm not alone with this opinion
Russ

Hi Russ, Because this decision affects the whole club, as lots of people have pointed out. There is a view that they club will die if the forum closes, so that's why a consultation with the full membership is necessary. They are as much a part of the club as those online.

It would be reasonable and sensible to put a selection of views in Monstro (so that it's not just the committee's views) so that they can make an informed choice.

What I will say, and say again is that owners clubs are key to preserving and promoting classic cars, but we can't do that without a membership, and also the income that brings - both are important. I would therefore urge enthusiasts to join the club, so there is a strong club to do this.

[E_T_V]

Now we want to make the club better, we want more money, the club cant make that money by offer a free forum - thats proven as thats where we are now. how do we get the money - these are the difficult questions we are trying to answer.

It is perfectly possible to operate a free forum and still receive enough income to keep the club going.

Look at:
Mg-rover.org
Rovertech.net
Rover200.org.uk
There are many, many others but they are on my favourites list at the moment.

All operate a free forum and all are financially afloat (indeed the mgr.org one makes a packet for its owner). All also have the option of joining to give extra perks/access

Lets not hide behind the costs. The club decision is that it doesn't want to run a free forum, not that it isn't able to.

[seacow]

It is perfectly possible to operate a free forum and still receive enough income to keep the club going.

Look at:
Mg-rover.org
Rovertech.net
Rover200.org.uk
There are many, many others but they are on my favourites list at the moment.

All operate a free forum and all are financially afloat (indeed the mgr.org one makes a packet for its owner). All also have the option of joining to give extra perks/access

Lets not hide behind the costs. The club decision is that it doesn't want to run a free forum, not that it isn't able to.

There is a difference between a forum and a club and what is planned for this club IMO