Thread to discuss banning evaluations

[Tin Can]

I vote ban.

Online evaluations are nearly impossible of many things, especially lenses, anything glass and definitions vary.

[Old-N-Feeble]

Can you add a poll to this thread?

[djdister]

Yeah, I guess a poll would capture this pretty clearly. Regardless, I am in favor of banning equipment evaluations. For someone who wants to know, they can search sold listings on ebay, and they can search the Wanted/For Sale threads on this forum to see what people have been asking/selling the same thing for. But don't open that barn door of "How much is this worth?"

[Tin Can]

I don't see a way to add poll at this point.

[Old-N-Feeble]

I don't see a way to add poll at this point.

Maybe a MOD can add one?

I just looked for a "Test Forum" to see if I could created a new thread and add a Poll later but there is no Test Forum.

Have you tried clicking on "Edit Post" then "Advanced" then scroll down to the bottom to search for something like "Add Poll"?

[mdarnton]

I think we should ban all discussion on everything. As people often point out when some newbie shows up with a seemingly innocent question, ALL of it has been said before, every last question has been answered in some thread or another, Google will find it for you, and there's a line of angry people forming here to tell you how useless you are for asking, and give you the link to the discussion that happened in 2001 that you somehow foolishly missed. There are no clueless innocents--there are only people with silly questions, waiting to drain us of our sanity, one question at a time. I think we should close the site down, and let Google find the answers to every question ever asked, in it's cached archives.

I would have provided a link to the thread where this was all discussed and decided previously, but I'm too lazy. I'm sure it's already been decided in the past, though. LINK.

[Jody_S]

I vote no. There are literally thousands of obscure or completely forgotten lenses out there that many of us, including myself, will buy if the price is right. Banning us from discussing value will harm the practice of LF photography in a way that the current bans (politics, religion) do not.

As for the fact that people join and post threads requesting info on their "I found this in my attic" lenses,
1) yes, a number of 'sharks' will jump in and make low-ball offers,
2) the posters of the threads might be looking for exactly this sort of sale,
3) scammers gonna scam, and I won't shed a tear if a 'shark' gets taken, or if someone comes here and sells a $3000 lens for $500 because they can't be bothered to look at completed sales on eBay.
4) no one is forced to participate in such a thread, one way or another; if you don't like having your time wasted by giving out your precious rare lens expertise for free, then don't waste your time responding to these threads.
5) If a noob comes and gives away his lenses for 10% of market value, without due diligence, by accepting the first PM'd offer that came along, then he essentially trusted complete strangers on the Internet who have an obvious conflict of interest. Who does that?
6) The forum has no collective responsibility to provide accurate evaluations of lenses just because people ask, especially when they're obviously trying to make a quick buck off something they found in a yard sale for $20. That doesn't mean we have to ban the threads, just that we need to evaluate our own behavior when this happens, rather than do a spit-take with our morning coffee and jump on our keyboards expressing OUTRAGE.

I don't know if such a subject is covered on the main page, but I suggest we need a short essay explaining to non-LFers how to identify, evaluate and sell their lenses for a fair price, and anyone who comes and posts an 'attic' thread could simply be referred to that topic. This would allow many to enjoy their morning coffee to the last drop.

[BrianShaw]

I already expresed my opinion, and wonder how much my opinion would be worth if expressed again.

[Tin Can]

I already expresed my opinion, and wonder how much my opinion would be worth if expressed again.

I want to get off that other thread and have a sane discussion the Mods can use for input.

[Dan Fromm]

Randy, I'm sure that your heart is pure and your hands are clean but we really don't need more rules here.

It is very easy to tell a person who asks how much something is worth that it all depends on condition, to look at sold items on eBay and to use Google. This message can be delivered politely. Flames aren't needed. Its the flamers who need to be restrained.