From bruce@ashbysolutions.com Sun Aug 11 10:20:11 2002
Subject:Re: [OT] Yamaha QX1 MIDI Sequencer MINT

Joe et al,

>I think this post crosses the line about selling stuff on the list.

No, it doesn't cross the line, but it probably straddles it. We've never had a well-defined policy about advertising on the list, so faulting anyone at this point is unfair. Maybe it's time for one, so here goes. I will add some of this verbiage to the charter:

- List members may make a one-time announcement of gear that they are selling, or services they provide, as stated in the charter.

- The information contained in the announcement can include both descriptive data (model number, features, condition) and a small amount of "hype" information -- ex: "This would be great for anyone who needs a better Leslie simulator than the built-in one on their clone."

- The announcement should not, however, take on the form of advertising collateral. If I own a business and want to advertise a sale, I should send a low-key message of this type: "I'm having a sale on my website at ABC.com. If you want more information, please go to www.abc.com/special_sale.htm and check out the details." It should not be a verbatim repeat of the information in the ad, nor should it start with something like, "SALE!!! SALE!!! SALE!!!"

- The owner of private-sale merchandise can choose to offer the gear to the list prior to posting it on an auction service such as eBay, or he/she may list on the auction and then alert the group to the listing; this is strictly up to the owner. If the gear is already in an auction, however, she/he should not repeat the item description verbatim in the list posting, since the link to the auction provides an adequate means of getting this information to interested list members. Instead, the posting should simply mention the item for sale, and provide a link to the auction site.

- Since this is not a commercial forum, reasonable efforts should be made by the members to minimize the commercial traffic; i.e., if a member is selling several items, sending one email about all of the items for sale is the best approach. If the member has several items on auction, one email with links to each auction is proper.

Regards,

-BW

--
Bruce Wahler
Design Consultant
Ashby Solutions™ http://consult.ashbysolutions.com
CloneWheel Support Group and HiNote moderator
978.386.7389 voice/fax
bruce@ashbysolutions.com