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We have literally hundreds of postings from people who can't understand the Private Message System error message when they get it....... IT'S SO SIMPLE A CHILD CAN FIGURE IT OUT.

All you have to do is participate in the forums, post topics, reply to others, introduce yourself on the New Members Forum and things like that. Do you want to be a member of the forums or do you just want another e-mail????? If you just want another e-mail and don't want to participate in the forums or enjoy any of the other benefits of being a member, then please do yourself a favor, go try gmail or hotmail or something else like them, they accept anybody.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil & Canada Expert, Expat-blog Team

Thank you for your prompt reply. I am not underestimating your system or having a child to figure it out. Although it is a forum and there should be participation, as however, as a newcomer there should be certain guidelines to be posted to their mail. Please do not underestimate the services of google or hotmail as they are doing a fine job of communication.

I do say that from ½ûÂþÌìÌà that you are doing a good job of interaction of ecpats around the globe and what fine way of keeping in touch. Please bear in mind, sometimes we may be busy in our work schedule and we do like to read or send msgs and when we have blocked mails, it can be frustrating.

I do apologize if i have said more than what i should say or have gone overboardÌý but then this is a forum so it can be subject to discussions,

Thank you

No need to apologize for anything, it's just that membership has it's obligations as well as benefits. If you just don't have the time for Expat-blog then I find it difficult to understand why you'd want membership.

Like I said, if it's just another means of sending messages to other people, then there are various other vehicles for doing just that. Expat-blog is, first, foremost and always all about exactly what you'll see written under the logo at the top of the page, "Share your expat experience".

wjwoodward wrote:

We have literally hundreds of postings from people who can't understand the Private Message System error message when they get it....... IT'S SO SIMPLE A CHILD CAN FIGURE IT OUT.

All you have to do is participate in the forums, post topics, reply to others, introduce yourself on the New Members Forum and things like that. Do you want to be a member of the forums or do you just want another e-mail????? If you just want another e-mail and don't want to participate in the forums or enjoy any of the other benefits of being a member, then please do yourself a favor, go try gmail or hotmail or something else like them, they accept anybody.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil & Canada Expert, Expat-blog Team

Hello James,
I do not want to argue with an old friend like you hoping to get a new one.

IT'S SO SIMPLE A CHILD CAN FIGURE IT OUT???Ìý Ìý Really, but we are not children, although we behave like children.Ìý When we come to this web site is (at least for me) like children going to their toy box to play ...Ìý ÌýSee how complicated it is?Ìý

One more time:

1). The visitor to the web site enters his username and e-mail.
He clicks OK.

2). He is re-directed to a page which tells him to check his e-mail.

3). When he does, he reads a welcome message with the warnings I posted in the other thread (no spam, no religion, no dating, no politics, no aggressive selling)., and he HAS TO click on the link to Terms & Conditions.

4). He goes to T & C page, reads the rules or NOT, clicks OK.
Even if he refuses to read and just clicks OK, he KNOWS there are rules in place which are meant to protect him too, not only to 'control' him.
If he does something in the forum which does not work because he inadvertently did something contrary to forum rules, he will remember to go back to the T & C page at /en/terms.html
to check what it may be.

5). Remember: the customer is always right.
I hurry to add: use the moment of excitement a signer experiences when he comes to this web site to EDUCATE him, even if succinctly, just like you do with children.
Did you notice there is no harm in education, but endless, countless, useless, tastelessÌý troubles from lack of education?

How many times do you need to see disgruntled signers / members until you change things around?
How many times must moderators repeat the same advice wasting time which could be used for better uses when the machine can be set to do the job automatically?
(Please replace 'you' with 'WE' to deflect any impression of attack to your person).

I believe that there are many people who should not be here to begin with BUT among them there are some who could be saved (read: turned into forummers) with just a modified 'Welcome' system.
Record a new message for the old answering machine please for everybody's sake.Ìý

vsk8000 wrote:

...............Ìý Please do not underestimate the services of google or hotmail as they are doing a fine job of communication. .........

Thank you

Hello no, Ìý their services must not only be underestimated, but also avoided completely.
If you do not know why, ask Eduard Snowden who just happened to join the board of directors at Freedom of the Press ...

vsk8000 wrote:

Please indicate what mistakes you should not do as a new member. It gets irritating when u make a mistake and u can send mail for some time. Try to guide those newcomers instead of blocking them. Do make it more of an open system rather than controlling us. We are adults not small kids

VSK,
Disrespecting forum rules will be unpleasant FOR YOU and will start unnecessary talk like the one you have just went through.

Disrespecting your profile by not improving it will attract displeasure from forummers who will not bother replying to your questions.

I realize you are someone who can be reformed and someone who wants to leave the impression he is too busy to update his profile and be gentle on dealing with expats.
How busy can you be not to be nice?

You learnt something today, and I just have a late lunch because I chose to spend time here.
What do we give, what do we take? ...Ìý Ìý

wjwoodward wrote:

No need to apologize for anything, it's just that membership has it's obligations as well as benefits. If you just don't have the time for Expat-blog then I find it difficult to understand why you'd want membership.

Like I said, if it's just another means of sending messages to other people, then there are various other vehicles for doing just that. Expat-blog is, first, foremost and always all about exactly what you'll see written under the logo at the top of the page, "Share your expat experience".

Hi James,
You posted your answer right when I was typing mine.Ìý Now, did anybody say that James is not a fast gun anymore?Ìý

Thank you for your advice. It is 1.33 am here and i am awake to read your msgs. Thank you for your kind thoughts.

Hi again John,

I think it might have been a bit confusing my statement that "IT'S SO SIMPLE THAT A CHILD CAN FIGURE IT OUT." This was referring strictly to the error message itself. It is quite simple, straightforward and clear to understand. It instructs the member to participate in the forum to activate their messages.

Perhaps the various rules of the blog may be somewhat confusing to some, and yes I agree with you there should be a single, clear explanation that goes out to all members, of what the rules are, what is and what is not allowed here.

I would personally like to see an e-mail drafted up that explains all the basic rules in very clear understandable language that gets sent out to ALL members once it has been created, and gets sent via e-mail to all new members as part of the registration process. That would eliminate entirely the "Geez, I didn't know that!" excuse that is often heard here.

Cheers,
James

vsk8000 wrote:

Thank you for your advice. It is 1.33 am here and i am awake to read your msgs. Thank you for your kind thoughts.

Here it just was 1:33, now it's 1:49 because Earth is round (actually geoidal).Ìý Ìý

Good morning James

Yes i do agree with u

Citing an example

I prepared a long letter in the hope of participating in a forum. When i try to post the msg i received this msg followe

Msg cant be posted. Error 394 or something to that effect. Geeez where do i check this code. So it was frustrating i deleted the msg. It happen to me 2/3 times. That is why it prompted me to start of this mail in the first instance

Thank you

If you're getting that kind of error message (with a number) then I doubt that it has anything at all to do with Expat-blog, but rather that it is coming from your Internet Service Provider (ISP).

The message that comes from Expat-blog is an written explanation that you need to participate in the forums to activate your messages.