I like banners. It shows cool stores where you can find new products.
I really don't think RCG is going anywere anytime soon.

Originally Posted by BigMitch

I like banners. It shows cool stores where you can find new products.
I really don't think RCG is going anywere anytime soon.

Right on. Besides, the banners here are very non-intrusive. I don't even notice them most of the time.

I don't really get it but if he want's to do it, so be it. I don't think there's really a need/demand for another RCgroups. And what's his beef about the banner ads? I don't find the banner adds to be disrupting at all. In fact, I find them to be informative and I use them. This is the only site in the world where I've actually 'clicked' on a banner ad and quite frankly, I'm glad they're there.

Running a newsgroup of any decent size has to cost a pretty penny. If he ever gets the number of posts that RCG does, I think he would be sunk in debt and workload.

Banners ads are a part of Internet life... he just needs to admit that and not lead people onto one thing and then do something else.

Here at RCG the ads are done very well. They are shown in the appropriate areas related to the topics and are small enough not to bother some and large enough to attract others.

You see at RCU he started it saying NO banner ads then next thing you know you were getting bombed with full page ads, pop ups, etc. Stuff that annoy people when they were told there would be no ads.

Ads are great but there is a fine line between where the are useful and where they are annoying. RCG stays in the useful area... RCU is way over past the annoying area.

I don't feel there will ever be a better place to talk about electric flight. This is partly why I see this new website as a joke. RCG is here to stay and for the thousands that enjoy it we say thanks to Jim Bourke for it.

David,

RC Groups is a wonderful site. However like RCU it is everything to everyone. RCG does glow/gas/jets/electric/cars/boats/etc and so does RCU. This new site was created to be for eflight only and to remain online with the goal of pure speed, functionality and zero clutter. RCU is fully supporting this mission of WattFlyer.com so it can grow as it needs to and the support will be there.

The reasons I started this are many including the need for an epower only site on the web which neither RCU or RCG caters to at this time. As far as banner ads are concerned they are not necessary to make a site like Wattflyer.com sustainable. There are many ways to provide lots of value to eflight enthusiasts without doing banner ads. There is nothing wrong with them except they can slow page loads for dial up users and according to members here and on RCU (this is not me saying this but members) they believe that a commercial bias exists towards advertisers whether real or not. This is 100% eliminated on a site who's mission or sustainability does not hinge on banner ads.

So it is out there for those who wish to use it for what it is. All I will give is my commitment to keeping the software cutting edge and on ultra fast dedicated servers. If it is done to peoples liking they will participate and if they don't like it there are plenty of options out there as alternatives such as RC Groups or RC Universe. Nobody can force anyone to go anywhere.

Google has proven these outside the box theories of doing things that seem to make little sense. Check out maps.google.com, earth.google.com, gmail.google.com and so on. All incredible products with zero to minimal monetization goals from what I can see. I love google and many of the tools they provide. I'm taking a small page out of the book of google and trying to think outside the box and just do something different which hopefully some will like and appreciate.

As far as your post to start with me as you always seem to have the need to do well....remember that most members wanted ads on RCU and that was by majority vote taken several years ago. Even the posters above here say they enjoy them. If you feel there are too many on RCU well compare this page on RCG which has four ads while RCU on their thread pages also has only 3 to 4 (depending how you enter the thread).

Finally...you are entitled to your opinion as always and if you think you can do it better PLEASE go right ahead. That is what free markets are all about. Build a better mousetrap and wait for people to beat a path to your door. If you do it right they will always come.

Originally Posted by askaggs

Right on. Besides, the banners here are very non-intrusive. I don't even notice them most of the time.

Me neither. That's why most of the time I don't see an ad I want until it's too late, and you can't hit the back key to see it again. Then I just start clicking all over the site to hope I can find it again. This is the one site where I'm glad there are banners. I wouldn't have found out about numerous companies if it wasn't for them.

Oh boy...this thread is getting really ugly really fast.

Moderators?

Na, I'm done... I have more respect for RCG then to allow this to continue on.

It seems to me that there will always be someone who cannot find anything to do so they just want to complain. Where is the problem with this new site? As I see it, RCG is really my primary source for getting information on electric flight, but in the forums I post in, a select few members are the ones always answering my questions. It's nice to get a totally different view from another group of people. Plus, due the dedicated electric idea, it seems that the members there will eventually grow to be a very like minded collection.

Why must it 'compete' with RCG? Why not work along side? Myself personally, when a new forum opens up that I like - I am not going to leave the older one, I will simply visit both.

Besides, nothing like competition to spurt quality.

Why do you feel that RC Groups should have a monopoly on electric airplane talk? I have registered at the new forum and engaged in discussion there, and am willling to keep an open mind. Many other users of RC Groups also participate at RCU and I have noticed many "familiar" usernames popping up on the new site. Every site has a different "feel", and I think this is a good thing.

Someone called in backup... While I would love to reply to your posts I said I would not continue this. I'll reply via PM.

You say there will be no commercial bias? Does that mean people will actually be able to makes posts critical of a product (but honest) without them being deleted, unlike RCU? As you may know, it is actually against the rules for a user on RCU to make a post criticizing a product of a company on RCU, i was told this personally by one of your moderators. Funny, the only time I saw the rule enforced was when Greatplanes, one of your big sponsors, was criticized for basically stealing.

I am sorry to say, but RCU, and anything you come up with, will never come close to RCG while policies like that are in place. There are a few members and even a mod or two I really like over there, who are always quick with great information, so its not all bad. But without them, RCU would be an utter failure.

Originally Posted by CAFplanekid

You say there will be no commercial bias? Does that mean people will actually be able to makes posts critical of a product (but honest) without them being deleted, unlike RCU? As you may know, it is actually against the rules for a user on RCU to make a post criticizing a product of a company on RCU, i was told this personally by one of your moderators. Funny, the only time I saw the rule enforced was when Greatplanes, one of your big sponsors, was criticized for basically stealing.

I am sorry to say, but RCU, and anything you come up with, will never come close to RCG while policies like that are in place. There are a few members and even a mod or two I really like over there, who are always quick with great information, so its not all bad. But without them, RCU would be an utter failure.

I Agree 100%. Well said.

Thomas