One year anniversary of the closing of the Board Of Inquiry
 

It was a year ago today that I closed down the BOI and I guess I am interested in feedback concerning how this impacted YOUR use, value of, and/or perception of this site.

This thread has been prompted from the number of BOI-style posts that have had to be deleted from this site, infractions that posters of said posts have incurred as a result of making such posts, and the number of emails, PMs, and comments elsewhere I have gotten concerning people asking about how they can alert other members about the predations of spammers using this site in an attempt to snare victims. MY concern is that this site could be moving in the direction of becoming an attractive haven for scammers because of the rules now in place concerning BOI style postings no longer being allowed anywhere on this site. Basically they can advertise free and clear of anyone calling them out in any manner. Honestly, I'm not sure if I am looking at a tip of an iceberg, or perhaps a molehill that I am too close to that because of my close proximity, looks like it is a mountain.

So I am soliciting feedback for opinions and observations. No, the BOI is not coming back. Nothing has changed concerning the reasons it was closed down. But is there some alternative way to keep the scammers from having their way with the unwary membership via another method? Would allowing warning-based replies to classified ads be worthwhile in this pursuit, or would it just be more headaches than it is worth? Not that I expect anything to be headache-free here, of course. But I am uncomfortable at the thought that this site could very well may have turned 180 degrees from being what was once considered a relatively safe place to do business for the membership.

So please provide some constructive input, if you can. If there is no, or very darn little, input of any kind, I will just have to assume that everything is just honky-dory here for most people and put this thought behind me, leaving well enough alone. Wouldn't be the first time that what I was thinking I was observing was not actually reality. :o

And please note that even though I am soliciting suggestions, not everything suggested will be practical or even possible. This is not suggesting it would be a bad idea, just that there are limits to what CAN be done here programmatically, as well as what I WANT here to be sitting on my shoulders as an implied responsibility. I am trying to help as best I can, but not looking for more work to do.

Thanks.

I do miss the boi when I see something I'd like to work with but the seller is someone im unfamiliar with. It would be nice if the people who have had transactions with other users would use the trader rating system. If there would be a way to increase its usage, it could be a safety net for users.

I suggested this a while back, and I still support it. It is still clunky and infrequently used over there, but it likely has pointed a few novices in the right direction. I think that is a good thing if we want these hobbies to grow productively and benefit the hobbyists. The more people are afraid of ordering herps online because they feel powerless, the more we all lose.

Because of the run ins with scammers and issues with buyers, I don’t feel comfortable making purchases from buyers on this site. If there were reviews or BOI posts it may make myself and other buyers more likely to use this for searching and purchasing


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I not only support this but have received an infraction for attempting to provide such warning even when I could prove everything 100% I can only imagine if he was able to con more people this has happened twice on this forum I feel all this does is promote scandalous behavior as there is no way of warning others thus being penalty free to scam as much as they want this would definitely help newcomers and old timers as well as when people get scammed they tend to leave/avoid the entire sight altogether but that's my 2 cents

As long as members follow the other site rules, e.g. no disruptive posting or personal attacks, I don't see a problem with allowing members to post feedback responses on a seller's ads.

The intolerance for discussion in the classifieds is off-putting in a big way. I was definitely shocked to get a warning for just relaying my experience with one prolific seller.

I don't think I've left a comment on the site since.

The amount of scammers on this site is the reason why I don't go on here anymore. I've never had 1 issue on MM.

I was also very shocked and put off to get an infraction when I did and haven't been able to wrap my head around why. Why wouldn't there be a good policy for posting feedback on buyers and sellers? I fully behind the effort to create one. It is just part of what should automatically be on a site such as this. And scammers are an issue. If a policy for posting feedback on buyers and sellers could deter them in any way then it's a plus. Sure there will be headaches with those who take it too far or abuse the privilege but it's just part of a necessary aspect. It can be tweaked. There can be moderators to moderate. Please do it. For the majority who are just trying to use this site as it's meant to be used.