I think we had this same issue/thread about 3 months ago and I stated my
opinion then (so I'm not going to repeat it now). However, I will pose the
question "What is truly a commercial message?". Some are obvious, like a
vender/supplier posting his sale flyer to the list (and I've never seen that
on the list). However, if I post a message stating that part "x" from
supplier "y" is substandard and a representative from supplier "y" posts a
reply refuting my assertion, is his post a commercial message? If I design
and make a small quantity replacement Triumph part (for resale) and announce
its availability on the list, is that a commercial message? If I design a
replacement part for my TR6, but the machinist says the minimum quantity is
10, and I post a message asking for 9 other folks to share the order (and
the cost), is that a commercial message? If I (become insane) and decide to
sell my TR6 and post a message detailing the car and its selling price, is
that a commercial message? If I'm selling some parts on EBay and post a
message with the URL, is that a commercial message? I have seen all of the
above examples on this list and other lists (and I didn't think that any of
them truly crossed the line). But where do you draw the line?
As for the Autojumble list, I agree that it is not used. Its not used for a
very good reason - there's no way to easily filter out what you want to see
and who a seller would want to target. If everyone from all the lists used
the autojumble, it would be a mess. Lots and lots of messages about parts
for sale for cars that you don't own and you couldn't care less about. It
would be as if Hemmings ran all of their ads in the order of submission,
with no categories or classifications. I personally would not like to get a
bunch of messages about US/German/Italian/Japanese cars when all I really
care to get are messages about Triumphs.
But then that's why I subscribe to this list.
Hugh Barber
Hollister, CA
'73 TR6
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