LFS finder

[flowerseller]

Dave, I totally disagree with you. We should provide a user-friendly resource for people to be able to find local stores, whether they are sponsors or not. Pinned threads are a PITA and do not fill the bill, whereas a clickable icon linking to a map of stores would add value for all members. We do not need to endorse anyone, and our sponsors still get big, colorful banners across the top of the site. The only valid point is who should maintain the map.

 

The goal of the club is to help us, the members, not the vendors. If we contemplate not doing something that would help members because we worry what sponsors will think, then the club has its priorities upside down.

 

And we all know what happens when it's upside down..........

 

The water falls out

[L8 2 RISE]

I just updated the map and note, if you guys want to check it out and see what you think. The website and wamas forum link has also been added to the stores that are WAMAS sponsors and they have been highlighted. I personally agree with Dave Lin with the fact that it is unfair to wamas sponsors who do a lot for the club. I also don't necessarily think it needs to be a special link anywhere. Dave (mogurnda) brings up a good point, however, that if we have to bend to the will of the vendors all the time, we aren't really accomplishing the goals of the club. I think that with the changes I have just made to the map, it grants enough support to the sponsors while still giving a guide to the stores in the area. I also think that if we're going to put it anywhere in particular, the best place for it would be on the bar at the top of the page/ on the home page because we don't have anything there about fish stores in the area anyways. It could also be added to the opening post of some of the pinned threads people have mentioned. Even better, since the LFS recommendations thread is out of date, we could simply replace it with this link and people could comment on which stores they would recommend, etc.

 

I also believe that we need to consolidate the pinned threads. For example: in the members only area, we have THREE pinned threads for the National Aquarium, we also have a DFS banner thread that is not needed any more.

 

I'm not picking sides, and really could care less what happens with this, however I think it should be added to a pinned thread or somewhere helpful. We really need not have another debate nor argument about this. Let's just let this sit for a while and hear what the officers come up with as apposed to the constant complaining.

[Jan]

Whao. A tad too strong for me Sam. It's been sitting and we're waiting. Members have the right to post their opinions and they should be encouraged to do so. This is a club with paying members it isn't supposed to be a dictatorship. Which is what it was sounding like for a little bit. I've not seen any complaints from members. You got plenty of praise for the work you did though. the work you did with such zeal. The sponosrs have been considered throughout the entire process, but the members should come first. Your actions and now what you say are totally contradictory. You should not do things you don't believe in Sam. Thanks for all your help.

 

I just updated the map and note, if you guys want to check it out and see what you think. The website and wamas forum link has also been added to the stores that are WAMAS sponsors and they have been highlighted. I personally agree with Dave Lin with the fact that it is unfair to wamas sponsors who do a lot for the club. I also don't necessarily think it needs to be a special link anywhere. Dave (mogurnda) brings up a good point, however, that if we have to bend to the will of the vendors all the time, we aren't really accomplishing the goals of the club. I think that with the changes I have just made to the map, it grants enough support to the sponsors while still giving a guide to the stores in the area. I also think that if we're going to put it anywhere in particular, the best place for it would be on the bar at the top of the page/ on the home page because we don't have anything there about fish stores in the area anyways. It could also be added to the opening post of some of the pinned threads people have mentioned. Even better, since the LFS recommendations thread is out of date, we could simply replace it with this link and people could comment on which stores they would recommend, etc.

 

I also believe that we need to consolidate the pinned threads. For example: in the members only area, we have THREE pinned threads for the National Aquarium, we also have a DFS banner thread that is not needed any more.

 

I'm not picking sides, and really could care less what happens with this, however I think it should be added to a pinned thread or somewhere helpful. We really need not have another debate nor argument about this. Let's just let this sit for a while and hear what the officers come up with as apposed to the constant complaining.

[Origami]

Nice work, Sam. I appreciate the effort and the sentiments you've expressed.

 

Jan, the topic is not sitting idle. I don't think that anybody is acting like a dictator and all I've read have been opinions and some spirited debate. While, practically speaking, the forum is not run as a dictatorship, neither is it a democracy. I think the salient point here is providing a resource that is valuable to the membership and which remains useful to the membership. It's not about control nor should it be. I think that any good idea merits review and this is one of them.

[johnnybv]

AS a vendor member and long time major sponsor of WAMAS, I think its a great idea to make this list easily accesable. As far as listing stores that dont support the club, list all the sponsoring vendors first in alphabetical order and make note that they are sponsors, then list the rest in their own alphabetical order. I encourage people to go to those other stores, it only makes mine look better when the see the other junk thats out there....

 

John

[davelin315]

AS a vendor member and long time major sponsor of WAMAS, I think its a great idea to make this list easily accesable. As far as listing stores that dont support the club, list all the sponsoring vendors first in alphabetical order and make note that they are sponsors, then list the rest in their own alphabetical order. I encourage people to go to those other stores, it only makes mine look better when the see the other junk thats out there....

 

John

Thanks for expressing that John, it's definitely something that has been on my mind.

[quazi]

AS a vendor member and long time major sponsor of WAMAS, I think its a great idea to make this list easily accesable. As far as listing stores that dont support the club, list all the sponsoring vendors first in alphabetical order and make note that they are sponsors, then list the rest in their own alphabetical order. I encourage people to go to those other stores, it only makes mine look better when the see the other junk thats out there....

 

John

 

Jonny is a competitor. I like it!

 

That is the right spirit!

[L8 2 RISE]

Hows this do for you all? http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF&...5bd437b9d5249fe

 

EDIT: Not Worth It.

Edited December 2, 2009 by L8 2 RISE

[Coral Hind]

Sam, Awesome job! I think it will be a big help for people moving to the area or vacationing here and just want to check out the local shops.

 

Now if the club can just agree on where to place the link.

[johnnybv]

Hows this do for you all? http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF&...5bd437b9d5249fe

 

EDIT: Not Worth It.

Looks good to me, nice work.

john

[Brian Ward]

I think, as John said, that we can have the list with the sponsors clearly identified at the top and the other stores below. Google and virtually all other search engines have made this the standard. I think we can also benefit our sponsors by extending this idea a bit farther: I have done some custom coding to embed google maps into a website recently and it's not all that hard. I'm wondering if we can tap into the database so the sponsor members can keep their info up to date - address, phone number, operating hours, etc., and provide a direct link from the google maps to the vendor review threads. We'll need support from our web developers to know if it's possible, but I think it will provide the best visual solution. Add some filtering controls and it becomes an extremely useful tool by creating a visual representation of the data.

 

In addition, I think we should continue to populate the list with stores we have all visited, regardless of location in the US. Maybe even include the semi-ubiquitous 5-star rating system for reviews to let people know whether to make the stop or not. I have seen many threads over the last couple years about "I'm heading to LA, what stores should I visit" or other city (New York, Va Beach, Richmond, etc.).

 

Also, it would be interesting for people (members) to be able to publish their location to the map as well. For privacy reasons, this data would need to be restricted to members and people would need to "opt in" when publishing the data. This will certainly make the map busy, but the filters I spoke of before would make it manageable. This could also be a useful tool for planning tank tours, finding club members that live near you, etc.

 

What do our developers think? Members?

[ctenophore]

Sounds nice but right now all development time is being spent on getting the membership system overhauled.

[Coral Hind]

I would not go the "5 star" route as that is just asking for a heated debate. We can't even decide where to put this thing, so placing ratings would be an even bigger mess.

[L8 2 RISE]

I think, as John said, that we can have the list with the sponsors clearly identified at the top and the other stores below. Google and virtually all other search engines have made this the standard. I think we can also benefit our sponsors by extending this idea a bit farther: I have done some custom coding to embed google maps into a website recently and it's not all that hard. I'm wondering if we can tap into the database so the sponsor members can keep their info up to date - address, phone number, operating hours, etc., and provide a direct link from the google maps to the vendor review threads. We'll need support from our web developers to know if it's possible, but I think it will provide the best visual solution. Add some filtering controls and it becomes an extremely useful tool by creating a visual representation of the data.

 

I've already done most of that. Embedding it would be nice though.

 

In addition, I think we should continue to populate the list with stores we have all visited, regardless of location in the US. Maybe even include the semi-ubiquitous 5-star rating system for reviews to let people know whether to make the stop or not. I have seen many threads over the last couple years about "I'm heading to LA, what stores should I visit" or other city (New York, Va Beach, Richmond, etc.).

 

Tried to set up a star system but couldn't figure out how or if there is a way. Also, I'm not sure how a 5 star system is a source for debate. If there was a way to comment on the stores it would lead to heated debate, but I think the star system is a good idea if we can figure out how.

 

Also, it would be interesting for people (members) to be able to publish their location to the map as well. For privacy reasons, this data would need to be restricted to members and people would need to "opt in" when publishing the data. This will certainly make the map busy, but the filters I spoke of before would make it manageable. This could also be a useful tool for planning tank tours, finding club members that live near you, etc.

 

What do our developers think? Members?

 

I agree, and if we keep this thread going, I can add the "out of area" fish stores in another color.

 

EDIT: actually, just took a few more seconds to think about it and I've COMPLETELY changed my mind- I think that's how stuff gets out of date and less useful, lets just stick to VA/MD.

Edited December 2, 2009 by L8 2 RISE

[davelin315]

Guys, I have heard from people who support this idea and people that are offended by the conduct in this thread. Let's all take a step back and think about what we say. This is becoming far too heated. We have to remember that even though this is our passion, this is still just a hobby and that hurting people's feelings over something as trivial as how to find a store is just not worth it. The idea is there, it will be discussed by the officers and we'll figure out how to maximize benefits for ALL of our members.

 

As far as the rating system, we don't do a rating system on our forum for any members so I'm not about to endorse one as we have a forum for you to give your feedback and a basis for it, the vendor experiences forum (I realize that it's in the member forums so, like American Express, membership has its privileges). David is absolutely correct, a rating system is asking for trouble and is asking for abuse.

[Brian Ward]

Nevermind.

 

It's usually best to at least get the scope of the requirements nailed down before starting development on a new feature. We can keep the discussion going, but as Justin said all the development effort is going to the membership system and that should continue since it is probably one of the heaviest used parts of the system.

Edited December 2, 2009 by Brian Ward