Comments on: Was I out of line?

Was I out of line?

rodii — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 14:58:00 -0800

Curious (especially in light of the previous thread in MeTa) about whether I was out of line in this exchange. Please note olav's posting record and his homepage URL.

By: bingo

bingo — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 15:04:54 -0800

from the guidelines:

(note: it's ok to link to your own things as comments in threads, if it adds to the discussion and/or saves space because you're written a reply elsewhere)

and then two paragraphs down:

Posting a press release for your company's latest product launch or website makes for a bad post. You might want to give the TextAds a try, as that is a more appropriate place for such things.

It seems to me he should have just said "check out my company" with a link and left it at that. Or at the very least, acknowledged that he was promoting his own product at the outset, and put it forward in such a way that wasn't so obviously a sales pitch.

By: tsumo

tsumo — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 15:07:36 -0800

I don't think there's anything out of line with what you said, rodii. This is a textbook example of what mathowie's trying to prevent through the previous MeTa thread.

What I find strange is the lengthy posting schedule of that thread. The conversation in question started five months ago! Perhaps olav really did feel it was okay, seeing as the thread died down months before, but if there's exceptions for this, there'll be more. Slippery slope and all that.

By: mathowie

mathowie — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 15:19:44 -0800

I know a great place that offers a way to organize and manage personal web content at wURLdBook.

See, the person hides it, by acting like they found a place on the web they call "great" without admitting it is theirs. You weren't out of line rodii, pretty spot on actually.

By: MiguelCardoso

MiguelCardoso — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 15:24:51 -0800

Yeah, saying "I know of a place"...

Rodii was absolutely right, IMO. We can all find occasions to promote our own rackets, if pressed. The fact that olav has only made 4 comments in 6 months(though obviously praiseworthy for people like me)but was moved to use two(a full 50%) to push his own product is important.

It's also the way he pushed it and the way he reacted. I mean some threads mention books and I could suggest one of mine in a nice way, but it would be yucky. And also a bit stupid. Perhaps it's the stupidity and the opportunism which are more infuriating.

As for the time lapse I don't think it matters. If MeTa is to help define policy the date shouldn't matter. The issue is being discussed today and, anyway, is an eternal question.

We have enough buying and selling elsewhere and the fact that we all more or less trust each other to give it a break here - specially now that we have textads - makes this sort of coy and cheap commercialism all that more difficult to be tolerant about.

By: Hildago

Hildago — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 15:33:39 -0800

Gosh, you folks know I'm just an honest neighborhood guy, not the kind to butt into someone else's business--I'm more the type of fella who likes to put in a full day at the job site, then relax with friends and good food at my neighbourhood restaurant--but it sounds like you need to stop worrying about this whole business and just find a place to go.. somewhere with a family atmosphere, where the waiters greet you with a smile and the fixins' are always fresh.

A place like Applebees.

By: rhyax

rhyax — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 15:46:25 -0800

ha, anyway, the long time delay in the comment makes me think he searched for something related to his site/company so he could post something about it. i'd like to think metafilter is about seeing things that make you think, and respond, not going in looking for a place you can advertise a preconceived view (or company)

By: geoff.

geoff. — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 15:52:37 -0800

Next time, I think it would be wise to point out his posting record and any other incriminating evidence in your comment, that way people who are just reading comments casually don't think you're out of line.

By: crunchland

crunchland — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 15:53:30 -0800

Ok. I need to come clean. It's been bothering me for weeks. I can't sleep, I can't eat... I just keep replaying the events over and over in my head.

Back on February 5th, I posted a couple messages defending Tivo and their use of the data collected while people were watching the Superbowl.

What I didn't mention is that I own 10 shares of their stock. Forget that I like the product. Forget that the stock is only worth 20% of the value when I bought it.

I feel so dirty.

By: feelinglistless

feelinglistless — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 16:05:13 -0800

Perhaps we should have an amnesty thread were everyone can quote their vested interests and self-post to get out of their system...

By: MiguelCardoso

MiguelCardoso — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 16:06:32 -0800

By: MiguelCardoso

MiguelCardoso — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 16:07:24 -0800

feelingnelsonmandella but notthatmuch.

By: y2karl

y2karl — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 16:08:01 -0800

Yeah, Hidalgo's right--all this fussin' and fightin'--you need to mellow out and listen to a good RealAudio © broadcast of some Vintage blues and ....so forth. That'll mellow you out. As long as you don't have to deal with downloading the Free Media Player From Hell, that is...

By: rodii

rodii — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 16:12:25 -0800

You know, it took me months to realize Hildago's nick wasn't "Hidalgo."

Thanks for the feedback. I've posted a link back to this thread from the MeFi one, rather than starting any (much) more of a flamewar there.

By: G_Ask

G_Ask — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 19:47:46 -0800

did anyone else read Miguel's comment as
"feelingsalmonella 'but notthatmuch'" ?

By: Zosia Blue

Zosia Blue — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 21:18:27 -0800

I did, G_Ask.

By: clavdivs

clavdivs — Sun, 24 Feb 2002 21:25:08 -0800

BUS-tad. i loved the smooth delivery, like "hey, i got a great watch at..."(opens trench-coat)...i thought mr. rod johnson ("thenewbie" BAHHAHAHA) was rather lenient toward olav.

By: Succa

Succa — Tue, 26 Feb 2002 10:34:06 -0800

That thread seems to be the defining moment of olav's MeFi life.

By: olav

olav — Thu, 28 Feb 2002 09:51:49 -0800

I guess you people have a lot of extra time on your hands to analyze my motivations to posting a link to my own humble service regarding a thread in which someone asked for other places that offer similar services. I posted after significant time passed and purely for posterity. I admit the post did come across a bit strong, alright, too strong and if I were to do it again: I wouldn't. But, I sure didn't expect this mob mentallity of a proverbial lynching.

I wouldn't call this a defining moment in my MeFi Life just. I just wanted to provide an opportunity for reflection. More of a reflexive look at how some of you more self-important folks take something that started innocently enough and harp on it with so much self-righteous zeal essentially creating something out of nothing. Then try and defend your position by relegating me as an pariah.

Some of you maintained a sense of humor and perspective and commented in a very humane and sensitive way without vehemence and by not assuming the worst of the person involved. That was a very mature path to take. Others were, like I mentioned above, over reacting.

Maybe there should be a way to communicate digressions without the "lynch mob" mentality.

Olav.

By: rodii

rodii — Thu, 28 Feb 2002 11:08:33 -0800

Olav, since you've flamed me (and, frankly, I think you've overreacted more than me or anyone else here) in your contributions to "the thread," I feel I have the right to respond.

...but, naaaah.

By: rodii

rodii — Sun, 03 Mar 2002 12:58:00 -0800

Can someone reboot the olavbot?