Excuse me Mrs C but the post count is more like 198,000; don't forget our 71,000 archived posts
I'm all for constructive criticism but this is lost on me. People want to ask the collective membership if the Seril is a good hotel, but they don't want to say hello? How does that work then? It is also a curious first post. Nothing like feeling too embarrassed to say hello but not too embarrassed to wade straight in with a whole "why this place is not run correctly" speil.
We add over a hundred members per month, post counts are up month on month and have been for years - and I don't see any resort specific forum in Turkey that comes close to that. The reason some forums are specific members only is quite obvious. People who own properties in certain complexes like to talk in private about issues that are private. Why anyone would like access to read about sewage backing up or windows leaking is beyond me. The "property owners club" accusation won't wash either - there are far more non-owners than owners on CBF.
Overall I can't see how CBF could have evolved better or quicker than it did. Maybe I am too attached/involved to be the best judge but to think we would be close to 5000 members in 4 years was ludicrous when we started. I'll settle for that.
The rules are there for good reasons. We don't actually enforce them strictly (try posting what you did on other forums andyandy and see how long they stay before they are deleted) - but if you want a forum with no rules I'll show you where they used to be. The rules may not suit everyone, but within the moderator team we all believe they are necessary and the correct ones.
As I have said many times before, you can't please all of the people all of the time, and if you really want to know how difficult it is, set up your own forum, let's see where you are in 4 years.
I don't wish to sound bitter, but I wouldn't walk unannounced into your living room and slag off your curtains, so why you think you can do the same here is puzzling to me. If people are "embarrassed" to introduce themselves (and I don't believe even 1 in 4,800 was, it's a public forum!) then we'll be accommodating. There are several posts where I have said just that.
I haven't seen a better forum on any subject on the net, and if that sounds conceited, tough. The people on this forum make it what it is, so I'm not blowing my own trumpet.