Agree with all you say PG. Some here do not seem to realise that FlyerTalk is a living, growing, vibrant resource ONLY because Randy's considerable and multi arm FF business empire feeds new folks into it continually. WebFlyer, InsideFlyer, his media pieces in USA Today and much other media.

Success feeds success. I had a reporter from Florida on to me yesterday who wanted to phone re my piece on $2 local phone calls from the Waldorf Astoria and $50/hour web access etc. When that is printed it will mention FT, and more new visitors will arrive for a "look see" and so the snowball gathers size. Without the new posters, FT would not be what it is. Not a pale shadow of it.

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~ Glen ~

"...The only difference between the two boards is (extreme) moderation and number of members. Sure the forums have fun little (cryptic?) names...but essentially same stuff, different pile..."

Thanks, Dorian!


That was exactly my impression from my one and only brief visit!

By analogy, I'd say that the menus appear to be VERY similar. Yet at the one older established restaurant, where no reservation is required and there is a very minimal dress code, it's a large, noisey and crowded kinda' place, and an unruly drunk was just kindly asked to leave!

At the other new restaurant requiring resevations/invitations, there is an inordinately strict dress code. It's small, quiet place where friends might get together and there are possibly some other unknown requirements. Yet, if I understand correctly, they aspire to soon be much more like the older more crowded place down the way!

Different owner and chef perhaps, but seemingly VERY similar menu items!

The good thing about meals and Martinis...
...no two taste exactly the same.

Doc...we have lots of drunks here... ...which one was asked to leave? Did he take the easy way?...or the hard(forced out by bouncer) way?? Hehehe

No names!

Hey, I'm no teetotaler, and the drinking is fine! I actually prefer that the restaurant has a liquor license, as I consider wine as well as food among my most enjoyable "hobbies!" Of course, BYOB is okay too!

It's the overly boisterous behavior and the completely unruly and disrespectful behavior that turns me, and I fear also turns lots of other FT'ers off!


BTW, Geo-

"...The good thing about meals and Martinis...
...no two taste exactly the same."

Granted, naturally - that is unless of course both meals are served at the very same fine dining establishment!

Yet please recall, however, that it was your earlier post:

"...sometimes I want a steak and sometimes I want fish...

that prompted my question above asking you to kindly please elaborate on the "menu" differences!

I too very much cherish both fish and steak, (especially a fine aged Porterhouse) and variation in my diet!

Yet can we ALL agree that these two items are manifestly different meals and perhaps that FT and the new board are seemingly very similar BB's ?

In any case, as previously noted, I certainly wish you all the very best in your endeavor!

---

Edited to add and correct spelling/typo kindly pointed out by Oz, who will semingly not give me a bit of slack!

Perhaps not enough coffee yet this morning!



[This message has been edited by doc (edited 05-02-2001).]

"teetoadler", and "licquor" ????

Doc ... you really have ME worried about what went into that coffee there this morning.

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~ Glen ~

As long as we're already discussing it, allow me to dissolve that lie as well. Company reps already participate. They have asked to be involved in beta testing from their perspective.

Just think how much more valuable a travel board is to them when they know that:

1) everyone is who they say they are - no frauds, false handles, double personalities and trolls.

2) everyone will act with decorum, or be moderated, edited or banned from the site.

3) And everyone came from Flyertalk in the first place anyway.

As I said before I do not know what goes on with moremiles, so I am speculating. If the audience is going to be limited (and it is a big if, since again I am not privy to this information - but since I am not invited and cannot participate there, the site is currently limited) the incentive for a company rep to participate there would be limited. Would you reach an audience of tens of thousands or a hundred (again the numbers are pure speculation on my part)?

And wp has done a superb job in FlyerTalk with all the helpful answers related to the 10K NW promo. He has even gone out of his way to look at each and every person's individual situation and telling them whether or not they qualify. I don't think that he could have been any more valuable in a different venue than he was here in FT in the past 2-3 months.

[This message has been edited by PG (edited 05-02-2001).]

PG. Again like you I am officially in the dark. But my guess is it would take as much time for a United team, or Starwood team etc to do a chat session on any given site that had say 100 signed up persons, (even to 100 carefully moderated persons of course) as it would to do live chat on a site that had say 20,000 registered persons. And if the exact same 100 could be reached via the site that had the 20,000 users anyway ....

As these are busy, senior, highly paid staffers, standing around talking to coach check-in lines at most airports would generate more revenue and response in far less time I guess, than the former option. But as always, I could be wrong with the math.

And speaking of math, the most attendees ever at a FT chat was the United one a month back with 300-400 different at most, from a user base of say for arguments sake 20,000. So say 2 people per 100 users bothered to turn up.

So if the same ratio occured on a website with 100 users, the United guys would have been having a one on one chat. Going out for a sit-down pizza makes more sense when you get that small really? Robert Sahadevan (President of Mileage Plus) and Jim Davidovich (Manager of Airline Partnerships) might go for that idea - personal marketing might just be the way to stay No #1? As China and India are 2 of UA's current flight markets, and each have a billion+ folks in each, that is quite a few Pizzas I guess.

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~ Glen ~



[This message has been edited by ozstamps (edited 05-02-2001).]

FWIW, FT reported now has well over 20,000 registrants and the number of lurkers are estimated to be about 200-250,000!

Pretty successful thusfar! Way to go Randy & Co!

Thanks Doc. My apologies to Randy, and 200,000 does sound more like it. My poor math now says that Jim and Robert just need to bring along 48 extra staffers to sit down with the single person from the board with 100 folks there - i.e. 50 guys from United to do the chat or share that Pizza. But NJDavid tells us right here, they are keen to get involved, and they are already beta testing, and participating etc. Hell, maybe that 100 users is made up of 90 company reps already? I admire the programs for trying that hard to get business, I really do. Maybe they will all fly on each other's airlines to keep amused? Exciting days ahead. I'm so excited I can't sleep.

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~ Glen ~

That is measuring success by registrations and hit count. No argument that that is FT's standard.

The concept that raw hit count is not truly a measure of success is why a large number of people are publically seeking alternatives, and some of them were willing to expend a great deal of time effort and money to create one.

Quantity does not equal quality, and noise is often louder than music. If you use the "quantity of noise" standards, no one will ever beat FT. No one wants to.

Something different, well, that's a different conversation.

publically

Wasn't it less than public until emissary posted regarding the site?
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum97/HTML/000376.html

Perhaps someone can explain to me the "public" nature of this alternative site!

Again, FWIW, I join Randy in wishing you all much sucess!

New kitchen. Menu items YTBD.