adding a chat room and vip status

[madtrev5]

hi guys what about adding a chat room to the forum ??/ and getting a vip status to it but only if u donate to the forum thus keeping the funds rolling in to help with the running cost just me thinking out aloud

[Analoguesat]

That would open an economy sized can of worms.

It would get hijacked by the cable boys in no time flat. Would we allow discussion of cable keys in such a room because its paid for access? If so that would make us even more liable to get closed down by the VM security teams as I guarantee they would have an one of the first accounts for such a room to keep an eye on whats happening.

If not then it would just cause friction from those not having access and believing all the good stuff is being hidden from them.

[wasp11]

I think we already have a chat room, called The lounge. I have donated, although i didnt have to because im a really, really nice guy

[madtrev5]

lol wasp i have donated a little as well today i realy like the nice chat that goes on in here not that i have a lot to give but love the hard work that ppl are doing and makes me fell a little better knowing that i helped to keep the forum running just like a big boys toys club

[brian]

Originally Posted by madtrev5

hi guys what about adding a chat room to the forum ??/ and getting a vip status to it but only if u donate to the forum thus keeping the funds rolling in to help with the running cost just me thinking out aloud

I'm not for a chat room - as above, the Lounge is provided for. I like to keep everything in the public eye, which is precisely how people find this place when they have technical problems they need to fix.

Also, there will never be a VIP area, because that would involve the site directly supporting and abetting illegal activity, whether it's keys, cracked software, warez, etc. That's a fast invitation to getting the site closed down, and both TW and its members prosecuted. I know of a few forum admins who run such VIP sites, and for the past year they have been getting as nervous as hell and trying to sell up.

The approach we're taking here is to have the forums unmoderated, and clean up anything we're alerted to (the volume of posts makes it impossible to monitor everything anything). That means we won't know if there's any abusive, defamatory, or illegal content on the site unless someone alerts us. And believe me, we get plenty of reports and we act on them.

It's also worth pointing out that cable and satellite companies are very aware of Techwatch, and that the site is monitored by their marketing and promotion agents - heck, I've had Virgin Media's press office call me twice over the past week about news items for the front of site news section, and I'm always happy to work with them.

In the meantime, the best way everyone's interests can be served is to keep the forums clean and legal - whatever is being discussed, we can ensure there's nothing on the site or live links to anything that could be damaging. That leaves plenty of room for individual members to get the help they need, and keeps unwelcome content from the forums once we're alerted. We can't moderate private conversation, so whatever people post in their PM's is up to them - even I can't read them.

Anyway, hope that helps explain why Techwatch is the way it is, and how it aims to continue and develop.