• Responding to email notices you receive.
    **************************************************
    In short, DON'T! Email notices are to ONLY alert you of a reply to your private message or your ad on this site. Replying to the email just wastes your time as it goes NOWHERE, and probably pisses off the person you thought you replied to when they think you just ignored them. So instead of complaining to me about your messages not being replied to from this site via email, please READ that email notice that plainly states what you need to do in order to reply to who you are trying to converse with.

  • IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ!! About the Google Adsense ads being displayed

    =====================
    Posted 08/15/2025
    =====================


    Yeah, I know. They are a pain in the butt. But they pay the bills to keep my server running. Just a fact of life, I am afraid.

    Want to get rid of them? Simple. Just become a Contributor level member or above and they will be gone. -> Please click HERE."

    Is that too much for me to ask of you to keep this site running? Well, sorry about that. I too wish I could get everything for free. But alas.....

    =====================
    Addendum: 01/10/2026
    =====================


    Google Adsense ad revenue for December, 2025 was just $30 over the cost of the lease for the server running this site. So, in effect, the money providing the incentive for me to continue running this site is coming SOLELY from the paid memberships and sponsorships here. Which honestly ain't much....

Bring back the paid requirement for the BOI

Rebel Dragons

Rebel Dragons

Enjoys his quiet time.
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Rich, after seeing some of the garbage posted on the BOI over the last few weeks, I think it is perfectly clear why you did what you did. Since you removed the restriction the BOI has been flooded with numerous threads resulting in nothing more but garbage. Many of them all about ReptileAuction.Com. We all know that that site is synonymous with scam. Do we need to read about each and every one??? Many people seem to just sign up here to start crap now that they know they can access the BOI for free. It makes me feel as if I personally paid money for nothing. And I am at the bottom of the contributors scale. I can only imagine what people at higher levels may think. I paid to access the BOI and not have to deal with all the garbage. At this point what am I getting for my money???

You mentioned in another thread you want to give others a chance to see why you did what you did.

If enough members come to this thread saying that they see it, will you re implement the payment program???
 
Rich,

You know how I feel about this topic.

And while you are at it, give Bruce his money back and let those two fools pay their own fines if they want to post and let Scolaro buy his own membership.
 
The reason I removed the paid membership restriction was because certain events here left me doubting my ability to make a sound judgement call on what I felt was accurate, reasonable, logical, and the best of all options available.

I can remember something one of my high school science teachers said once that I thought was pretty funny.

He said:
"I was wrong one time in my life. And that time I thought I was wrong." ;)
 
I remember you saying that you were doubting yourself and I understand why you chose to remove it. However a teacher once told me,

"The popular decision is not always best, but then again the best decision is not always popular."

Do what you feel is best Rich. Don't let the popular decision dictate what you feel would be in the best interest of this site.
 
FWIW, I think all members that paid the minimum membership fee should be refunded if the BOI is left open to non-paying members. I never did, but access to the BOI was basically the only reason for buying the minimum access, and I would feel screwed if I had paid it to access a (and it WAS) much better, less crapped-up version of the BOI that was now open to anyone.

That being said, I hope your decision is to re-instate the pay-to-post, keep everyone's money, and once again make the BOI the useful, credible tool it became once the membership requirement was in place. The BOI will always be invaluable... I lurk just so I know who to watch out for. I have an awfully high tolerance of the crap I'm willing to wade through to find the good info, though, and I doubt many share my high tolerance...
 
WebSlave said:
The reason I removed the paid membership restriction was because certain events here left me doubting my ability to make a sound judgement call on what I felt was accurate, reasonable, logical, and the best of all options available.

I can remember something one of my high school science teachers said once that I thought was pretty funny.

He said:
"I was wrong one time in my life. And that time I thought I was wrong." ;)
Click to expand...
Rich,

I remember the events. But you have already reversed one of the rollbacks (at least). The BOI will once again become the playground for idiots with multiple ID's, trolls, and children who will not or cannot pay the $10 to post if the requirement is reinstated. Yes, you have a system to get rid of them, but it is not proactive. And the $10 requirement won't get rid of all of the garbage either, that's why you have moderators and suspensions/fines.

There are some people who are very oppposed to the pay to post rule for whom I have great respect. I just happen to disagree with them.

Your anecdote reminds me of an experience with a schizophrenic patient that I had. He was speaking of his psychiatrist and he said:
The problem with Dr. G is that he thinks that I think that I'm Jesus Christ. I don't think that I'm Jesus Christ. I AM Jesus Christ.
Click to expand...
 
I think the majority of people paid to support the site, not just to have posting access to the BOI. My money is right where I want it to be, helping keep this site going and improving.

As far as the BOI being open to all.... it really does not matter to me either way. I understand both sides of the debate and believe both have their pros and cons.
 
shrap said:
I think the majority of people paid to support the site, not just to have posting access to the BOI. My money is right where I want it to be, helping keep this site going and improving.
Click to expand...

Your probably right..............

I however paid to access the BOI and decided to donate to the fauna fund to show my support to the site. If it were still around I would donate more.
 
Yeah, I hear you all. But although I know it comes with the turf, sometimes I just REALLY get tired of the BS I have to put up with here. Sometimes I think this site is just absolutely the worst idea I ever had. But unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your perspective), I am just not a quitter. I may pause every now and again, but I don't just quit.
 
shrap said:
I think the majority of people paid to support the site, not just to have posting access to the BOI. My money is right where I want it to be, helping keep this site going and improving.
Click to expand...

Agreed

Whatever is decided I will still contribute but I do agree with Mike and Jim to reinstate the verification.
 
Dennis Hultman said:
Agreed

Whatever is decided I will still contribute but I do agree with Mike and Jim to reinstate the verification.
Click to expand...

Agreed. I saw the moderators working harder then ever in the BOI trying to clean up the messes people were making with their postings. Requests for IP checks were fairly commonplace as people were doubting the identities of the new people posting within the BOI.

Not saying that my decision to reinstate the paid membership restriction is the RIGHT one to make, but it certainly does appear to be the less WRONG one. If that makes any sense at all......

Let the hate mail and whining begin!
 
I was very glad to see the restriction back in place. You just can't TRUST all these people who are one-posters in dubious threads in support of dubious characters.

I, myself, am not one to talk, it took me until around Christmas time last year (If memory serves) before I was willing to fork over even a single penny to this site. I've never regretted a dime of the money I spent on Fauna, nor the four cute beanie babies I donated through the fauna fund.
 
WebSlave said:
Let the hate mail and whining begin!
Click to expand...

Aww come on Rich. You were going to get some no matter what decision you made. :raspberry
 
Good post, Sasheena.

Rich I support and agree with your decision to reinstate the paid membership level required to post on the BOI. Also, I agree completely with why you are doing so.

What I don't agree with is the "hatemail and whining" that you are anticipating, and I am sure there are people out there who are going to start that any time now if they haven't already.

Here's why I think Rich is fully justified in requiring that BOI-posters are paid members: First of all, Fauna is a private site, administered and funded by a private party, and therefore I fail to see anyone's entitlement to posting here for free. Furthermore, it doesn't cost a dime to READ most of Fauna, and that alone is a blessing. Think of it as an issue of Consumer Reports. One either has to subscribe or pick up a copy at a newstand, both requiring a financial investment on the reader's behalf. Secondly I agree with Mike's 1st post regarding us paid members not wanting to sift through alleged "garbage" when we are researching on the BOI. There will always be exceptions and ways to get around the rules, but at least the paid membership requirement will help prevent such 'garbage' posts.

Fauna has a lot of very useful information to offer to hobbyists and businesses alike. The minuscule amount of funds that I have contributed to this site pale in comparison to the amount of money and frustration it has saved me by being able to investigate a seller before making a purchase. I can't say for sure that I would have been burned or ripped-off by someone if I hadn't read the BOI, but I take comfort in knowing that Fauna is a resource that aids in my ability to buy with confidence.

SO, if you happen to read this and are still contemplating sending hatemail or whining to Rich, please ask yourself this question: What does Rich OWE you???

...Just my view on the issue, for what it's worth.
Paul
 
Rich, it is your site and you work very very hard on it. I respect that. I think you are right to instate the membership fee. I want to thank you for keeping it up and running :)
 
Rich, I do feel quite responsible for the momentary "doubting my ability to make a sound judgement call" in regards to the aspects of this site and do apologize. I may have thought ill of this specific situation when we were entangled in our feud but I do have to agree since the restriction was lifted all I have seen on the BOI is random crap. Crap, Crap, and more Crap.

I missed the way things used to be, without the sharks and constant attacks.... Half of what fueled my disagreement with the 'paid policy', but I have learned in recent weeks viewing said activity that with an increase in popularity these things will become common place and such restrictions and measures must be taken to maintain order and legitimacy. I may not agree with every action but I'm sure no one ever unanimously agrees to anything. There is always going to be someone who disagrees, hate mails, and whatnot. The main concern should be the community and its members, not individuals and their actions or decisions.

I'm glad to see its back the way it was, Perhaps now more attention can be given to other aspects of the site and its members.
 
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It was quite a downward spiral in my opinion once the restriction was lifted. The overall thread content and relevance dropped significantly due to all the CRAP.

I look forward to reading the BOI again without so much crap from people who seem to have nothing better to do than "piss in someone else's pool".
 
I've said this at least once before but . . . I believe that since it's Rich's site, he can do whatever he wants to with it.

No matter what you do, Rich, someone is going to complain.
 
WebSlave said:
Agreed. I saw the moderators working harder then ever in the BOI trying to clean up the messes people were making with their postings. Requests for IP checks were fairly commonplace as people were doubting the identities of the new people posting within the BOI.

Not saying that my decision to reinstate the paid membership restriction is the RIGHT one to make, but it certainly does appear to be the less WRONG one. If that makes any sense at all......

Let the hate mail and whining begin!
Click to expand...

I don't know if it's whining, but I respectfully disagree with making people who get ripped off on a deal, pay to inform others.


And yes, I also thought there was some really stupid threads lately(like the maggots in my worms one) but the ability to pay $10 is not an IQ test either!!
 
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