Members please note- disallowed links.
On a couple of previous occasions folks have posted links to eBay on items they bought, bid on, were thinking of buying, or for general discussion. This is a violation of the SMC Terms of Service and future posts linking to eBay will be deleted. The Terms of Service is a little vague on this subject, and you might not have understood it. I hope you all will abide by the terms of service and forego posting links to eBay in the future. Thanks for your cooperation.
Dave Anderson NH
Moderator
OK, not to be difficult, but.....
So there is no misunderstanding, let me preface this post by saying that SMC exists solely because of the good graces and (largely) unsupported service of Hampton Roads Online Ltd. We of course must abide by the terms of service, whatever they may be. If we disagree with those terms, we are free to go elsewhere. I understand and respect that, truly I do.
But I'm aware of at least one recent post involving a link to a closed eBay auction showing an antique tool that the poster had just purchased. He was trying to get information on the manufacturer and quality of the item he had bought.
He had not yet received the item, so linking to the closed auction featuring pictures of the tool was the most practical way to illustrate his purchase.
In response to Dave's reminder, I've reread the terms of service. For the life of me I can't see how this eBay link runs afoul of them.
Certainly, this link to eBay was not done “for the sole purpose of marketing, generating traffic to a site, or any other commercial advertisement deemed to solicit commercial benefit.” The item had already been purchased by the thread topic initiator and he was merely seeking additional information from other forum members. Old tool heritage is certainly one of the most popular and germane topics of discussion in the Neanderthal Haven forum in which this thread and link appeared.
And I don’t see how references to closed eBay auctions could be interpreted as prohibited “Links to other public or private forums.” Or are we talking about a definition that is substantially different from what is commonly understood to be an internet forum?
In reading the terms of service policy, the post in question seemed to include the link in accordance with the permissible link policy: “Links should be submitted as references, for the sole purpose of generating or supporting discussions on SawMill Creek.”
Yet Ken is now advising us that links to public auctions are categorically prohibited.
Just so I don’t run afoul of the terms of service, and can fully understand how they may apply to other types of “public or private forums”, is this type of linking to closed eBay auctions for items purchased by the thread participant prohibited? If so, can you explain why? And please, what is a “public or private forum?”
Sincerely,
I agree with updating the TOS
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lee DeRaud
Mark, you have a two-year head start over Chuck dealing with this subject, so of course you have read "umpteen threads with posts from the admins and mods", but he hasn't. Cut him some slack.
But maybe you can answer this question: if it's that big a deal, why hasn't the TOS just been freakin' updated instead of going through this mickey-mouse sticky-post "clarification" nonsense? By definition, the TOS is where the new members go to find out the "rules of the road"...in fact, they're told to read it when they sign up. Why make them go on a scavenger hunt to find all the amendments that have been made since the TOS was created?
It doesn't seem like too big a job to state in unequivocal terms in the TOS that certain direct links are not permitted. Once a poster is clear on that, it should require little imagination to post a non-direct link as has been mentioned previously. For example, would posting an ebay link without the http or www portion be acceptable? No need for a tempest in a teacup, placid creek waters are more enjoyable.
Curt