RV Life Network, Drilling Deeper

[Dick Noble]

My hope is that we, here, will be able to draw on more real-life experiences from other RVers. Many problems we have, have been solved by others that are not GD owners. I use to be a part of Excapees but quit after I discovered their biases. I do go to IRV2 once in a while but those folks can get nasty with each other and the site runs very slow. So, here's hoping that this change will all work out.

[Andy R]

My hope is that we, here, will be able to draw on more real-life experiences from other RVers. Many problems we have, have been solved by others that are not GD owners. I use to be a part of Excapees but quit after I discovered their biases. I do go to IRV2 once in a while but those folks can get nasty with each other and the site runs very slow. So, here's hoping that this change will all work out.

I've rarely heard anything negative about Escapees. I'm curious what their biases were?

[TwoElkhounds]

My gut suggests to me (and I hope you can appreciate my transparency and being honest and upfront) that we will end up with some type of hybrid here. If you want to pay you get no ads, you get exclusive access to parts of the forum free members can't access, and you get extra perks on other RV Life sites/apps. This is already done on a limited basis via the free trial. That would leave the issue with keeping the riff raff out which we can figure out.

Once again, the above is just an idea, but to me it preserves the value which people pay for (exclusive access, no ads, welcoming environment) while also allowing us to be of service to more Grand Design owners.

As I have posted on other threads, Outbacker's had a similar business model. Members paid for access to features, as I recall it was a tiered system with the top tier being the Lifetime Members (Koala Club). There were no ads. Then they got sold and ads were introduced, however, the new owner's continued to honor the no ads concept for the lifetime members. I signed up for a lifetime membership ten years ago and still do not get ads when I visit Outbackers to this day.

Sadly, once Outbackers was sold, it began a long and slow decline. I do not know exactly why it began to fade away or whether the new ownership had any responsibility. My gut tells me that the Outback brand lost its luster and as the brand faded, the connection the Outback owners felt also faded. So there is a parallel here in that we generally all own Grand Design RV's and it bonds us together. This is a fragile bond and can decay over time, especially if key people on the forum move on. This is what I think happened over at Outbackers. Some of its more key members (I think I was one) moved on, lost interest, or left the brand and the site died.

Just my thoughts Andy, you might want to do a little research on what happened over at Outbackers, it might give you some guidance on how to proceed here.

DAN

[Andy R]

Thanks for the info Dan.

Looks like they were bought by Vertical Scope. A giant company who owns hundreds (if not thousands of forums). The guys who run Vertical Scope are stand up people but their scale makes it hard to be personal with the sites and foster them along. I don't know specifically what happened at Outbackers but your hunch sounds reasonable. A vibrant forum is an interesting forum. If there is just a trickle of posts, it's boring and no real reason to come back to the site.

Forums are special places, true friendships are formed. With RVing, in particular, members meet up at rallies more than people from an aquarium forum might. Even if you don't meet up in person, forum friends can become near and dear. There are people I chatted with on forums that I consider very close friends yet we have never met or maybe met once. There are others who I've chatted with on forums for maybe 15 years, met a handful of times and I would trust them with my life. IMO, this is what makes forums so special.

I've stated it already that we will make sure everyone here gets the value they paid for. IF we ever end up making any changes we can grandfather all our amazing sponsors so they get the same experience they are used to.

[Dick Noble]

I should have added -- $12 a year is not much considering all we get. Now I have to go research thermostats.

[Gyro Gearloose]

I should have added -- $12 a year is not much considering all we get. Now I have to go research thermostats.

I would pay $12 anytime for the friends I have made here!!! Hmmm, that sounds funny, like I have to buy my friends

Or the technical advice I have received. A few texts vs $125/hr.

We have a great brain trust here that's hard to find!

[Dick Noble]

Rob -- the post you deleted had nothing to do with politics. I was replying to a question by the new owner, Andy. Please explain why you fell it was political? I think you over reacted and owe me an apology. Allowing some folks to mention "communist California" which has appeared in two other posts while deleting one discussing systems of government is not fair or equable.

[Cate&Rob]

Rob -- the post you deleted had nothing to do with politics. I was replying to a question by the new owner, Andy. Please explain why you fell it was political? I think you over reacted and owe me an apology. Allowing some folks to mention "communist California" which has appeared in two other posts while deleting one discussing systems of government is not fair or equable.

Hi Dick,

When someone makes a comment that reaches outside the topic being discussed and brings in a political perspective ("discussing systems of government" is political by definition), I tend to let it go . . . unless another forum member takes offence . . . then, I have to respond. I do not recall the "communist California" comments that you reference. This might be because no one complained to a moderator at the time those comments were made. In any case, I received a complaint about your post and asked if you would consider "softening" your response on this thread or modifying it to keep it more to the topic being discussed. Please note that our entire discussion was deleted by Andy . . . not by me.

Rob

[TwoElkhounds]

Rob -- the post you deleted had nothing to do with politics. I was replying to a question by the new owner, Andy. Please explain why you fell it was political? I think you over reacted and owe me an apology. Allowing some folks to mention "communist California" which has appeared in two other posts while deleting one discussing systems of government is not fair or equable.

Personally, I want zero politics here, none at all. There is so much division and politics in everything right now, I am sick of it. I come here to talk about our rigs, our trucks, the mods we have done, the mods we want to do, mods we should do, I want to talk BBQ, smoking brisket, drinking whiskey, drinking beer, where to go, where to stay. I do not care about each members politics, I think most members agree. So please no politics, but hey any good brisket or rib recipes are appreciated!!

DAN

[Andy R]

Dick, for the record I was the one who deleted the posts that mentioned politics after one of the mods mentioned it wasn't allowed. I'm still learning the ropes around here and will be settled soon. Sorry for jumping the gun.