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Joined: Feb 27, 2006 Posts: 14892 Location: Keynsham
Posted: Sat Mar 21, 2009 11:50 pm Post subject:
RANT!!!
OK. I've held my tongue long enough. You know what hacks me off? It's people who are only interested in getting a free membership. I was submitting cameras back in 2005 and happily downloading the database when it was free (and considerably smaller than it is now). When it was announced that it had been decided that in order to keep up with the database, it would be necessary to introduce a charge of £19 a year, I grabbed my wallet and couldn't wait for them to tell me how to pay. Back then and even more so today, it was a bargain for the best database in this country. Not just the best database, but also the best website for this sort of thing. At £19 a year, I just couldn't wait to get subscribing.
To my great surprise, I was given a free lifetime membership because of the camera submissions I had been making all the time before the subscription was introduced. If I hadn't, by now I'd have just paid my third subscription. I can hear some of you saying "That's easy for him to say, he's got his free membership". True, but I swear to you all that I would have subscribed. The differences between this database and all the others I've seen and tested are quite definitive - pgpsw DB is not just better, but it's also a transparent system. We can all see what's going on, we can all send in additions and corrections and get an email instant response telling us what detail has been received - I don't know of any other that does this.
In my own case, the free membership made no difference whatsoever to me submitting camera information. For me, getting the best database was of paramount importance. This year has been a very slow year for me and I've only done 45,000 miles. But in previous years, I've done a steady 60,000 to 80,000. That means the camera database is very useful to me.
I've moved on, of course. First I was invited to be a Verifier, then a Moderator. But that's made no difference to my submissions either - I submitted a brand new mobile camera yesterday and verified half a dozen this past week too.
I hate to think how many threads I've suffered with this title in one guise or another. So many start with the "I know you haven't got time to answer me BUT............. " and still off we go yet again. The weekly Newsletter announces the site ID of every new membership awarded. Instead of pestering the volunteers who do the verifying, why don't you all send a PM to one or several of the new awardees and grill them about how long they waited, where their camera is and did they know in advance that they were first to submit.
Every few weeks, in the private forum where "we" discuss administrative things outside the public gaze, one or other of us starts yet another discussion about these threads. We all agree we won't respond to them. Then we do and by the time it gets to this distance - three pages of recycled discussion that has already been fully aired ages ago, as any reasonable Search would find, some of us are quietly foaming at the mouth.
A year ago,this thread was posted in a vain hope that it might stop these queries. Some hope! It included 15 links to previous discussion threads of the subject and I'll bet we've had at least that many again since then!
GRRRR!!!
Rant over and I apologise in advance for behaving like a silly schoolboy instead of a Moderator. _________________ Dennis
Spot on Dennis. As rants go, very calm and considered I thought
I think the same when I see these threads starting, and despite saying "We haven't got time to respond to every query ...", the staff regularly do, to their credit.
I can understand some of the submitters frustration though, but I don't really see how the process can be made any quicker other than appointing everyone as a verifier! _________________ Mike
TT GO6000 (Europe); iPhone and iPad Pro with iOS TT GO & MyDrive + CamerAlert
Joined: 11/07/2002 14:36:40 Posts: 23848 Location: Hampshire, UK
Posted: Sun Mar 22, 2009 10:48 am Post subject:
I recently answered an email on a similar theme. The member asked why his mobile camera report had not resulted in a Lifetime Membership.
I explained the process that reports go through and he then replied asking about the specifics of his submission.
I 'politely' replied that we do not enter into discussion on such subjects because of the time involved in investigating submissions only to receive a snotty response about our lack of customer service!
Damned if you do and damned if you don't. We handle 100+ support emails a day, all get a personal response and we pride ourselves on our levels of support. If you email anytime between 7am and 11pm 7 days a week you will normally get a reply which is pretty good in my book! _________________ Darren Griffin
Joined: Jul 07, 2006 Posts: 1649 Location: Newcastle, England, UK
Posted: Sun Mar 22, 2009 5:02 pm Post subject:
I understand the frustrations of submitters, I was once myself a subscriber wondering when 'my' submissions would be successful.
I agree that it would be beneficial if there was some way for a submitter to be able to see if :-
1 - They were the first for that location, ie if it gets sucessfully verified (for a fixed location), then lifetime membership will be awarded!
2 - If it has been added as a 'p' camera (fixed or mobile), as opposed to being rejected by MaFt.
3 - Any other info that may be useful to a submitter
I think this may be a lot of work, but if it was done as a excel spreadsheet or something similar, it may be possible if its not too much work! _________________ Tomtom GO 1005 LIVE
Joined: Jan 14, 2005 Posts: 19638 Location: Blackpool , Lancs
Posted: Sun Mar 22, 2009 6:25 pm Post subject:
The map displays the information already, as a member of the site if you are the first to submit a location whilst it is provisional it will show as a different coloured icon to the specific individual that submitted the location, if you wern't first then as a provisional camera you won't see the location on the map unless you are a verifier/ moderator etc - Mike
Joined: 11/07/2002 14:36:40 Posts: 23848 Location: Hampshire, UK
Posted: Sun Mar 22, 2009 8:32 pm Post subject:
Darren wrote:
If you email anytime between 7am and 11pm 7 days a week you will normally get a reply which is pretty good in my book!
Just to clarify as it has been suggested my post could be misinterpreted.
You can email our support/subscriptions email address anytime, not just between 7am & 11pm but we won't normally reply outside of those hours. It has been known but even we need to sleep occasionally _________________ Darren Griffin
Joined: Mar 05, 2007 Posts: 1058 Location: The green bit between the M40, M4 and M25.
Posted: Sun Mar 22, 2009 8:38 pm Post subject:
mikealder wrote:
The map displays the information already, as a member of the site if you are the first to submit a location whilst it is provisional it will show as a different coloured icon to the specific individual that submitted the location, if you wern't first then as a provisional camera you won't see the location on the map unless you are a verifier/ moderator etc - Mike
This is what I thought, which is why I can't understand some of the posts. OK, time to verify is another matter.
I submitted two fixed camera removals, one had a little orange box around it, the other didn't. Therefore, I knew I was 1st on one, and not on the other. The rest is down to further reports/verifiers. _________________ Triumph Tbird 1700. And now a Bonnie T100.
Joined: Feb 27, 2006 Posts: 14892 Location: Keynsham
Posted: Sun Mar 22, 2009 10:18 pm Post subject:
253 wrote:
mikealder wrote:
The map displays the information already, as a member of the site if you are the first to submit a location whilst it is provisional it will show as a different coloured icon to the specific individual that submitted the location, if you wern't first then as a provisional camera you won't see the location on the map unless you are a verifier/ moderator etc - Mike
This is what I thought, which is why I can't understand some of the posts. OK, time to verify is another matter.
I submitted two fixed camera removals, one had a little orange box around it, the other didn't.Therefore, I knew I was 1st on one, and not on the other. The rest is down to further reports/verifiers.
Thank heavens for somebody who has already taken the trouble both to find out how it works and to publicise how it actually did work for him personally. _________________ Dennis
Joined: Apr 04, 2006 Posts: 10118 Location: Bexhill, South Sussex, UK
Posted: Mon Mar 23, 2009 9:33 am Post subject:
DennisN wrote:
253 wrote:
mikealder wrote:
The map displays the information already, as a member of the site if you are the first to submit a location whilst it is provisional it will show as a different coloured icon to the specific individual that submitted the location, if you wern't first then as a provisional camera you won't see the location on the map unless you are a verifier/ moderator etc - Mike
This is what I thought, which is why I can't understand some of the posts. OK, time to verify is another matter.
I submitted two fixed camera removals, one had a little orange box around it, the other didn't.Therefore, I knew I was 1st on one, and not on the other. The rest is down to further reports/verifiers.
Thank heavens for somebody who has already taken the trouble both to find out how it works and to publicise how it actually did work for him personally.
As this subject seems to be a regular feature of our forums, do we not have some boilerplate text (FAQ) somewhere spelling it out succinctly how a contributer can find out if they were first similar to that posted by Mike and 253 above. I know the info is all available, but is it all in one place? (I couldn't find it if it is) We could then politely point the requestor at it instead of generating yet ANOTHER 4+ pages on the subject before Mike/253 has to spell it out yet again??? Perhaps in a locked sticky thread including a link to Denis' excellent 'Day in the life'
Joined: 11/07/2002 14:36:40 Posts: 23848 Location: Hampshire, UK
Posted: Mon Mar 23, 2009 9:43 am Post subject:
M8TJT wrote:
As this subject seems to be a regular feature of our forums, do we not have some boilerplate text (FAQ) somewhere spelling it out succinctly how a contributer can find out if they were first similar to that posted by Mike and 253 above.
Joined: Apr 04, 2006 Posts: 10118 Location: Bexhill, South Sussex, UK
Posted: Mon Mar 23, 2009 10:05 am Post subject:
Thanks Darren
I remember reading it before, but forgot!!
I'll now bookmark it for future reference.
I have also noticed that Dennis pointed the OP at it a few posts ago
Maybe I should go back to bed instead of wittering on and embarrassing myself here
Joined: Feb 27, 2006 Posts: 14892 Location: Keynsham
Posted: Mon Mar 23, 2009 10:22 am Post subject:
At the risk of sounding boring.... (and Yes, I've just done a preview and see it has already been explained by "lightning fingers", but it's "our" turn now to go on and on and on and on!!)
See my post at 8:14pm last Tuesday in which I not only described the method repeated above by Mike and 253, but also included a picture of an example!
See my rant above in which I provided a link to the thread to which Darren provides a link. It's a Sticky. It's locked. It is the fourth entry in the Forum entitled "PocketGPSWorld Speed Camera Database". I have it bookmarked.
This current thread is entitled "Lifetime Membership - sigh!". The thread linked is entitled "Lifetime Membership Criteria". Now I'm no expert at searching, but if I tried, I really do think I might find that thread, which also includes the following
Quote:
Forum members can view their submitted camera locations on the submission map here. If you were the first to submit a location, then it will be displayed with a different coloured icon as long as it has a provisional status.
If you were not first then whilst it is a provisional camera it will NOT be visible to you.
What more can be done except bite our lips and go for another 4 pages next time!! _________________ Dennis
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instead of wittering on and embarrassing myself here 
