We are a welcoming community interested in Lighthouses and in collecting Harbour Lights. We'd love to have you join us and PARTICIPATE in our forums.

Please don't join us with the intent of posting a link to something you are selling elsewhere -- even if it seems lighthouse related.

Perhaps once we get to know you we might be interested in what you have to sell, but build your participation and our confidence in your motive for joining in.

I've deleted the posts of two newbies today. One from Italy posting about a new book they are selling on Italian Lighthouses. Posts were in the wrong place. Another was from someone whose mom had bought a gift shop in Sedona and had some Cheryl Spencer Collins lighthouses to dispose of on eBay.

If you have Harbour Lights to buy, sell or trade, the ONLY place to post about that is in "The New Marketplace" forum.

If you are selling Harbour Lights on eBay, please do NOT post links to your auctions here. There are members among us who watch eBay like hawks and IF your item is unique enough or interesting enough, one of those persons -- with no interest in your sale -- will find it and post about it. But it's bad form to 'blow your own horn', so to speak.

We've gotten a number of new members in the past few months who join and post once on a subject with absolutely NOTHING to do with the purpose of this community.

If you are doing some 'guerilla marketing' by trolling various communities thinking this will somehow build up your business (or website), please be assured it will have the OPPOSITE effect. Your links will disappear in minutes or hours but the bad taste you left in our community will linger longer like someone throwing eggs at our house hoping we'll buy them.

We welcome new members who love lighthouses -- from anywhere in the world. You don't have to know what Harbour Lights are, even. Just join us to participate.

St. John of the Internet

Well said, John. It's sometimes difficult for the rest of us to spot the interlopers; we greet them in good faith, only to have our trust betrayed. Earlier, I spotted the Italy post and intended to go back later because I thought it might be a response to efforts to encourage participation of people from other countries. Too bad.

Thanks John. The 2 new members today and their posts were exactly why I did not offer a welcome.

Rich - it might be a good policy to wait 24-48 hours after a new member joins before beginning the welcoming process.

Thanks,

I saw both of those guys too. And I too did not offer the welcome I would by inclination have offered every new member at once.
Shame that we need to be so vigilant!
Thanks St. John for your open eyes !

John - Will the software allow a delay before it shows a new members name? If you could delay the posting of a new members name there would be no welcome posts from anyone until you had a chance to check out these new members before they are shown on the screen. I do receive the announcement when a new member joins so I shouldn't miss any in case several join during the 2 day waiting period.

Rich I think thats a good idea if it can be done. Thanks to y'all who keep an eye out for these people.
Bill B

I have forced new registrants to be put in a waiting queue. This requires someone with control panel access (Saints) to review the queue and approve or decline them. A couple of days wait in the line may cool some heels.

Maybe we need a 'Why I want to join the CF in 25 words or less' essay required? (Just kidding)

I've also added most of the text from my initial message above to the information individuals see when the go through the registration process. (You can see it if you log out and click on register.)

I've tested by registering under a pseudonym - did you receive an email on that yet, Rich? If not, then you probably won't until a Saint approves the queue. Let me know.

John

Great idea! Now how will the rank and file know when the right time is to welcome someone?

If this becomes retroactive, you'd better make it 25 words or more! Or, by imposing a 25-word limitation, did you just want to get your jollies by seeing me go mute!

Danny

I saw those 2 posts and thought how long will it take to remove those unwanted ########. thank you, not to long. If they are lighthouse lovers they will be back.

John - I received all three of your emails. I was able to click on the forums but was not able to click on the members tab as I was not given access. Your explanation that it takes a Saint was something I didn't know. I do now.

This is a good plan. I will now know that if the new members shows up either on the Forums or I am notified then we will have a good idea that all is good and whoever is the first to see their name will know that they are good people.

Thanks again John for solving the problem. I felt bad when I closed "MoJO's" welcome last week but these last 2 as long as they weren't offered a Welcome there was nothing for me to do.

Danny's on post 48 - you revving up for #50? Surely, you'll hit it tonight?!

Have we now given up the idea of WELCOME? Or is it OK to welocome meg90380?

Meg90380 is a spammer.

We have not given up welcoming those who have come to this site for the proper purpose. I guess we are forced to screen newcomers to make sure they are joining us for the right reason.

We are an extremely friendly group that come together in word for mutual interests. There is no reason we should allow ourselves to be taken advantage of.

Bob

I guess my concern is how do we tell who is who. Some are very obvious, no question about it, but some aren't...maybe only questionable.

We can't assume that if these folks are legit and turned away by accident that they will come back anyway...because they love lighthouses. That just isn't in some people's make-up.

I was taught many moons ago when I first entered real estate to never judge a person by how they are dressed or what their car looks like, and indeed this was true. A potencial customer came into my open house dressed in beat up looking clothes and driving a dirty pick-up truck. He became my client and ended up purchasing a home worth well over 2 million and proceeded to buy a string of investment property from me...and refer me to his friends. He was a "hands on" guy who had been working on one of his investments that morning and hauling trash away from it down a muddy road. He had dressed for the job he was doing that morning.

On another group that I moderate, we welcome everyone except those who come in with an obvious spam message. Moderators have the ability to delete those messages, but only the owner can delete a signed on member. With his IT knowledge, he is able to trace any who seem suspicious and determine from that whether to delete.

We never make judgements on a newly signed in member unless they show us something really obvious.

I worry that we are now making judgement calls, and in some cases, too fast.

Judy

Maybe we should ask new guys to introduce themselves with a posting in the Welcome thread, then we could see "what they are about" and welcome them at the same time.

Maybe there is a way in the regitration process to lead a new person straight to their first posting (??) so they can tell us who they are and where they heard about CF and so on. I have joined forums where that is part of the user profile. And it apears in a tread where others can then respond.

We are now reviewing the profile of the new member to see if anything is out of the ordinary. They will be approved if all appears ok and we can then extend them a welcome once their name is listed as a new member. Nothing else has changed and the first person seeing their name is free to extend a welcome.

We don't want to scare them off.
Some members sit quietly in the background for months or even years without saying anything.
I know I was one of those.

Me, too!