Posted by Mike Field on October 14, 2008 at 00:19:15 user mikefield.
In Reply to: Re: TARBOARD - RIP ? posted by Adam Quinan on October 13, 2008 at 13:27:33:
Adam has said almost exactly what I feel. I have been an international poster to TarBoard for years, and checking what has been posted overnight is one of the earliest enjoyable things I do each day.
I am no longer a member of TARS however. I was indeed one for some years, but when I was going through a bad financial patch I had to let my membership slide. In any case I never felt I got much value from it. Local members could go to various regional meetings, visit Ted's stall, and generally interact with other members in ways that I couldn't, and the occasional copy of Mixed Moss in the post didn't seem worth the rather expensive cover price. So I never renewed.
On the other hand, I continued supplying the TARS Stall with discounted copies of my various AR Maps, and TARS itself was in a position to turn a minor profit from this. (I note in passing that the old TARS website had links to the maps for free download, but that these have apparently been omitted on the new site. Instead, there's an obscure link to the Secret Water map (although not the others,) but then only for purchase by AR members. My intention was always that all maps would be available for free download to anyone who wanted a copy, whether they were TARS members or not; and that high-resolution prints would also be available for sale to people who wanted to buy them (as many have.)
(Incidentally, I think that TARS might perhaps be shooting itself in the foot by restricting purchases from the TARS stall to members only. I've seen a few items there I might like to buy but am not allowed to, so it seems that TARS is forgoing revenue in return for their exclusivity. Of course that might be a deliberate policy rather than an oversight.)
When I was compiling the Broads maps I received many useful comments from TarBoarders regarding additions and amendments that they felt could be made to them, almost all of which I am following. So even if only for that reason, TarBoard has been a wonderful resource to me. Unfortunately, personal circumstances have precluded my completing these maps so far but drafts are available for free download at --
http://www.woodenboatfittings.com.au/ransome/broads-n.jpg and http://www.woodenboatfittings.com.au/ransome/broads-s.jpg
I will be offering TARS the opportunity to continue with sale of prints of The Lake, Wild Cat Island, and Secret Water maps if they would like, provided they make free downloading a possibility as well. (If we can't reach agreement on this -- Adam's comment about the hostility of TARS powers towards the Ransome community implies that that might be a possibility -- then I will try to arrange for the All Things Ransome site to carry them. (In any case, I can always be contacted directly for more information.)
On forums generally, let me say that there are indeed some that require little or no moderation (although as far as I know all require registration, which, apparently unlike the TARS forum, is almost always free.) I have been one of three moderators of the Eventide Owner's Group forums since their inception some years ago, and I have never once had to delete any part of any post from any source. Forum contributors there are a comparatively small group which probably explains this to a large extent, but nevertheless this group is self-policing. So while there has been some occasional rancour between posters to TarBoard, I suspect that most of Ian's efforts have been directed at keeping the board running smoothly from a technical point of view and managing the growing pile of shoe-boxes, rather than as a policeman. (Ian of course may wish to correct me on this.)
To return to the new TARS forum -- for the reasons mentioned, I will not be rejoining TARS and so I will not be posting there. If TarBoard ceases to exist then I will miss contributing to it, as I will miss reading the contributions of all you other Ransome lovers. As Claire said, it will be like a death in the family. But life will go on, and I suppose I will have to just learn to live without it.
Whether this happens or not, I will continue thinking of Ian as a personal (although still unmet) friend, and I want to thank him most sincerely for his efforts in keeping going for so long such a valuable resource for so many Ransome lovers. And for giving me myself so much pleasure by doing so. As I told him in a personal email once many years ago, I think the world is a better place for having him in it.
Mike