Greetings all!
I'm jumping up on the soapbox. Feel free to yawn.
A number of you expressed some confusion and concern regarding the opening
of the BI Forum site. Most of the questions were regarding the disposition
of this mailing list or why a forum was setup at all when the e-mail list is
available. I will try to address these questions.
Disclaimer first...
I don't speak for Bricklin International. What follows are my own personal
opinions and not necessarily shared by Bricklin International, ok?
I am a member of BI, donate time assisting with the BI website (Ron Auger is
the real workhorse and the official webmaster) and run a regional site for
owners in my area (Midwest Bricklin Owners). My folks brought two Bricklins
home in late 1975, so I'm a second generation owner and have been around for
a bit, too. At Jim Wajda's (BI's President) directive and with Ron's
assistance, I setup the Bricklin International Forum. The BI Forum, like the
BI Website, is sponsored by the club and funded by its members.
For close to 30 years, Bricklin International has supported the Bricklin
Owner community. Historically, this has included a quarterly full-color
magazine, at LEAST one yearly National Meet, support & advise for regional
chapters and probably it's most important function - a place to find
information and help to keep our cars on the road. It's always been the
'go-to club' when you needed assistance with a Bricklin. It's composed by an
elite and dedicated group of people - you won't find a better bunch
anywhere.
The introduction of the BI Forums resource simply another 'value-added'
service BI will provide to its member base and the Bricklin Owner community
in general. The long-term plan is the same as it's always been - support the
Bricklin Owner community - in any and as many ways as it can.
I'm sure the club directors and members would be proud if the forum turned
out to be success. I'm pleased to say that the comments we've receive to
date (its first day) have been positive. It would also make some sense if
the forum became the primary place folks go to when they need to obtain or
share Bricklin information. After all, BI's been doing it for over 25 years
and is its only reason for being. This non-profit organization intends to be
there for the Bricklin Owner as long as possible - which means as long as
you support it. I'm confident that as long as there are Bricklins and Owners
who love them, the club will continue. As long as the club exists, they will
continue to support you - the Bricklin Owner - as best as they can.
To the best of my knowledge, the e-mail list currently in use is run by Mark
Bradakis (Last Chance Garage) and not sponsored by or under BI's control.
I'm not really sure if Mark is a Bricklin Owner or even has any interest in
Bricklins in particular. I'm not knocking Mark - I think he's the cat's
meow! I believe he's a generous guy that started a listserver for his own
interests and graciously shared those resources with other classic car
owners (we're not the only ones on his server!). I've been a member of his
list for some time, supported him when a donation was requested and
certainly admire him for busting his bumper to make it happen. My hat's off
to him. The list has been invaluable to Bricklin International members and
Bricklin Owners alike.
I've also been a member of the Yahoo forum for some time, too. I must admit
that I rarely go there anymore though. After the first or second
advertisement I get shoved in my face I tend to leave.
There is/was no concious intention to compete with, pre-empt or shutdown the
e-mail list or any other other forum. This was not the intention! BI's Forum
was setup by BI to support the Bricklin Owner community - period. What
happens from here is up to you. It's not like you even have to make a choice
- you CAN do both!
As a side note ... there was a comment concerning the benefit of the e-mail
list over the forum that (I think) is invalid. One of the nice things about
the list is that you don't have to keep checking a website for changes ...
the changes come to you. If I've configured the Forum correctly, however,
you can 'subscribe' to topics or forums and be notified when a change
occurs. (If this isn't working correctly, drop a note in the suggestion
box!)
If you have any comments or suggestions, PLEASE feel free to let me know.
Send me ideas on the best way to structure the site to suite your needs. I /
we are still learning how to run the software and are still fumbling around
a bit, but we'll get there eventually.
It's all about the car, after all!
Michael
1155
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