Oh dear, oh dear we are getting in a pickle aren't we.

There seems to be much debate about this BB at the moment and I thought I would share my observations with you...

When I first came across this Board in 1998 I thought it was fantastic. A hard-core of people shared experiences and the board was largely focused on FF program related issues.

Mid-way through last year, I changed jobs and drifted away from the board. When my life had calmed down a little I came back to FylerTalk thinking things would be largey the same. They weren't!

Rudi, Premex etc. were still around, but (no offence guys) they didn't seem as prolific as they once had. But apart from that the board had changed in other ways...

The focus had gone. This was no longer a forum about FF programs but a general travel forum, which is fine but general travel is an immotive and diverse subject and when you start talking general travel you risk getting awash with comment which is largely irrelevant to the majority.

In other words there is so much information around you can't find what you want or what interests you.

That is what I think has changed here. Maybe that is what people want, but it isn't what I used to liek about Flyertalk.

Now I am going to attribute responsibility for this change on someone (not blame because this may have been waht people want)... and the person is... Randy.

Randy has tried to make this forum all things to all men.

I think things got out of control during the time of PiP. I think Randy jumped on this "community" band-wagon and that was it the focus was gone. If you are talking community you are allowing people to talk about things which effect the community, but I once thought this Forum was not for that, but as I have said things have changed.

Another thing which I think is happening now which is very ugly is that people are attaching themselves to this forum and using it as a way of beating the travel industry with their Customer Service Complaints. Personally I don't like the practice of publishing letters to/from airlines/hotels etc. on this forum WHAT VALUE DOES IT ADD to the reader??

In a nutshell, this forum used to ADD VALUE by providing information - that seems to be a minor part of it's role now.

That's fine. But some of the people I consider the key-speakers have drifted away (when was the last time Baobab posted?) and the reason being is this forum has become to ambitious and has forgotten its reason for being here.

If you don't believe me, take a wonder through the posts and see how many actually give you some information which enables you to earn extra miles etc... This forum has drifted so much that there are 'orphan' web-sites which actually tell us what we used to seek here.


My view is if you want to get this board back to the great forum it once was, take the community stuff off-line (go so that somewhere else). Delete the threads such as OMNI; Community; Buzz etc.

Randy: Read your description of what this board is for and make the necessary changes so it gets back there.

I don't want to tell you how to do your job, but if things carry on as they are, the travel industry will start to think of this forum as a joke/pain and that will tarnish your Freddies and everything else you have worked so hard for.

If I was in Customer Service for an airline, I think I would be wary of anyone who allowed a forum which publicised Customer Service issues.

I mean this in as constructive a way as possible.

Nick