With much regret, I am leaving FAOL. I didn’t want it to come to this, but it has.
Recently, FAOL instituted a policy that prevents me from putting a link to my website or even an innocent link to my non-commercial blog as part of my signature. I disagree with the new policy, but it’s their forum and they have to do what they feel is best.
I have been a contributor here at FAOL. I get paid up to $1000 for magazine articles and FAOL had no problem publishing my stories and photos for free. I gladly donated the stories and photos because I like FAOL and especially all of the great people here. I also have helped many people who messaged me via the private message here on the forum.
Some people have even called my at home and I’ve gladly given them advice or the information they needed.
I have a small kayak fishing business and don’t make a whole lot of money. But since it’s a business, the only way I can promote it is by paying FAOL.
The people who run this forum have never done me wrong and they really haven’t this time since they instituted the new policy. I understand, but don’t have to agree with it. I just find it amazing, funny, unbelievable, hilarious, stupid and BS that they can take my work and the work of others for free, but won’t let me post a simple little link to my website or non-commercial blog. It’s not a two-way street.
Good bye to all. It has been nice. It has been fun. I’ll miss this place, but there are other forums.
I am sorry to see that you have to do this. I enjoy your posts and I will miss them. I trust something can be worked out that will allow you to come back to FAOL and continue being a contributing member of this great group.
I’m one of those you helped behind the scenes with a kind response to PM I sent about a fishing kayak. I for one will miss your knowledge and your contributions to the board but I understand your issues.
Their site, their rules. There is nothing in their usage policy about forum contributors getting a chance to promote their own business. Every now and then, people mistake FAOL for a public forum, but it is clearly not. Sponsors get to advertise, others do not. This has always been the case and you are not the first to encounter this rule. If you don’t like it, start your own forum. I am not saying I agree with the underlying nature of FAOL, nor this policy, but as long as it remains interesting and the cost minimal, then I have no trouble abidding by the rules.
This is not a new thing.
Sponsors pay the bills.
Any attempt to obtain free advertising (except a link is given when writing an article for FAOL) one time.
Adding an URL to your sig block or posting a blog that has one linking your personal site for your profit is considered an attempt to gain free advertising. It clearly states, several places on the BB Please no Commercial advertising.
How can any business owner, no matter how large or small an income it provides per year even think this is unfair.
Hate to see you go Steve.
Like you, I am a published author in several print media magazines and have been paid well for my efforts. When writing for FAOL I don’t expect to get paid and in fact expect to get nothing what-so-ever in return except friendship. My only hope is for my ramblings to entertain or inform the readership here.
For what it is worth, I see both sides of this issue.
I understand and agree with the fact that the owner of the forum has every right to set the policies as they see fit. It is their nickle paying for the resources necessary to host the forum. They can make business decisions in their own best interest.
From the user perspective, the entire value of the forum is the content it contains. A user might argue that the owner is using the time and knowledge of the contributors to generate value and potential personal gain. If the contributor feels their time and knowledge has value, and can be used to better serve their purpose elsewhere, they should indeed skate.
The great thing about living in the good old U. S. of A., everyone has the freedom to decide to invest in hosting a forum, or participating in someone else’s forum. If the relationship is mutually beneficial, great. If not, folks go their separate ways.
Who is right? As with any business entity, time will tell.
Then why are you leaving over such a minor thing ??
Also, if you want to interact with all the great people here and to access what others contribute to this Bulletin Board, being a member makes it so much easier.
I’ve enjoyed many of your posts, Steve, and, like others, would like to see you stay. The absence of all those neat fishies and your adventures down in your part of the fly fishing universe is a real loss. Hope you will reconsider.
I’m in the same boat you are. I had a link removed from my signature as well. Do I understand the reasoning? Yes. Do I like it? No. However, in the recent article I wrote, I had put my biz name, address, phone and website link at the bottom of the article and all remained except the link. That was changed to my email address which includes the domain name for the site. I appreciate them including that. I did not ask for the information to be included. Given the way I was informed about having the link in my signature, I was not expecting it to be included, but it was there in case they chose to do so. I see that being done with most of the folks that write articles. Did you have the information there for them to include? Neil and Deanna cannot be expected to just know you were expecting that. If you are upset that they did not include your link or information at the end of the article, either make sure it is there for them to include or don’t write anymore articles. It’s just that simple.
I will continue to write articles and hope the readers enjoy them. I would like to know what decision was reached on the “Pay for a link” discussion. I would drop a check in the mail today for that, pay with PayPal, whatever.
I have not been a member of FAOL for any significant time. I don’t know you personally or any of the administrators of FAOL.
I may be wrong but what I am getting from your explanation for leaving is that the only or main reason you contribute to FAOL is to promote your business. If you cannot promote your business or get more hits to you web site, you have no interest in writing for FAOL. Therefore you will only contribute only to forums that permit a link to your business or blog. I hope my interpretation is totally wrong.
You apparently have a lot of friends here, who value your contributions, your help, and your friendship. I urge you to reconsider your decision. I suspect that your presence here is not only about business, but also about RELATIONSHIPS that have no commercial basis. I hope your message is born out of disappointment and even some anger, and is a decision that you will reconsider. I hope to continue to see posts from you in the future.
I think you are close to the mark, but not quite hitting it. The way I see it, and it can be me who’s way off the mark, he felt that some quid pro quo should be allowed, i.e. he wrote some articles for FAOL or let articles from his submissions to other periodicals to be reprinted without payment and he feels he should be allowed to keep a link in his sig.
@ Steve,
If that’s the case, then you really needed to get that in writing, as in you can keep a link in your sig for X number of posts/days/weeks/months in exchange for1 article. Without that you really had no room to complain. I don’t know if you tried to appeal the decision to Travis and Deanna, but that should have been yourfirst step before resorting to leaving completely (which I don’t understand).
I do agree, though, that you can still be a productive member of this community by continuing to contribute your expertise on the forums, yet protest the policy by not giving away future articles. The idea behind the forums at FAOL is to help out fellow FF’s, which should be more important than being able to keep a link to your business in your sig. I could be wrong, because I don’t really know you, however, I doubt your intention was strictly based on trying to promote your business. I have run into people who join these kinds of forums to promote their business rather than benefit the majority of folks looking for knowledge, and they usually do not engender the kind of gratitude that others have expressed to you.
Just my $0.02. Regardless, I wish you no ill will and good luck with everything.
Paul
Steve,
Seriously hate to see you go. I’ve enjoyed your posts.
However, even though they sometimes are a bit of a pain, rules are rules. If I were sitting in the position of the owners of FAOL and had bills to pay, I’d probably be singing the same tune they are. My guess is they take no joy in enforcing the rules. I’m sure it’s a pain in the backside for them too, but once one starts making exceptions, then it just gets out of hand.
They let me post link to my blog, but it is about as non-commercial as one can get (read costs me a lot of time, returns nothing of monetary value).
Anyway, hope you take some time to reflect on the situation and try to wade a stream for a bit in their shoes and then come back.