Basschat.co.uk News The latest news from Basschat.co.uk http://basschat.co.uk/index.php Wed, 08 Sep 2010 10:37:55 +0100 30 OldGit - Sad News http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=99397
Please see http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=99050]]> Wed, 18 Aug 2010 16:34:18 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=99397 OldGit http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=99050
This is the hardest post I have ever had to write. As CK mentioned at the end of the other thread, I have to tell you that our buddy Simon, known to us all as OldGit -- a name that was only ever 50% true, bless him -- has passed away in tragic circumstances. As I said at the start of the other thread, I originally posted it because I had been requested to do so, by one of his closest friends -- it was intended to be a temporary measure to cover his absence, until such times as news could be properly broken. Although I can see that some of you did find it suspicious, and that it probably caused a lot of concern, and for this I sincerely apologise. It was never my intention to cause alarm.
The outpouring of warmth towards him on that thread is at once both wonderful and heartbreaking to see, and in part this is why it is such a hard post to write; because I can see just how many of you will be upset to have lost him and sad to think that he won't be sharing any more invaluable hints or diabolical Welsh humour with us. I can barely believe it myself, I keep expecting the phone to ring or a text to arrive.
I remember the first time I met him... he and I pitched up for a band audition at the same time (he was after the bari sax gig though, so thankfully we weren't in competition, or I'd have come off worse). He strode in, wearing his usual grin and one of his succession of battered jazzers' hats, and carrying this huge sax case which bore a sticker reading "oh my god, it's SO BIG". Made I laugh. I liked him immediately, but then again that was the effect he had. He didn't have an ounce of pretentiousness or a trace of egotism about him. If you tried to shake his hand, he'd dismiss it with a snort and give you a big warm hug instead. He was that kind of bloke, as any of you who met him will know. And for those of you who never did have the pleasure of meeting him, all I can say is that believe me, you wish you had.
The great gig in the sky has become a warmer, funnier, friendlier place. God bless you, my friend.

Rich

]]> Sun, 15 Aug 2010 21:05:45 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=99050 Scammer operating on the site via PM http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=97178
He has sent the following message:

My name is Chris Corner from Madrid Spain...I am contacting you regarding your advert you place on website that you are looking for the above subject...I have it in very good condition and if still interested,Let me know and i will forward you details of the item and i will also need your shipping address and telephone number to calculate the shipping cost to your destination.My mode of payment is Via Paypal,Western union,MoneyGram..Bank wire transfer..Let me know which method you prefer and i ship the next day after payment has been receive..My phone number is +33424029617..Feel free to call me anytime for further discussion or email me back at cc25corner@gmail.com thanks and hope to hear from you soon.

We're only aware of one user account which has been shut down but if you receive a PM from anyone offering stuff and asking for payment via any non secure international payment methods eg. Western Union, Moneygram etc. please let a Mod know.

cheers
Steve]]> Sun, 01 Aug 2010 00:27:29 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=97178 I won an award... Jazz Journalist Of The Year. http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=88697
Just wanted to share some good news that I was awarded Jazz Journalist Of The Year at the Parliamentary Jazz Awards last night, I was chosen by the All Parliamentary Jazz Appreciation Group - the event (for your info) is actually sponsored by PPL the copyright company that helps musicians get paid for their performances.

I was nominated last year but lost out to a fine colleague at Jazzwise magazine - but when my name came up on the nominatiosn list again this year I thought I stood a reasonable chance of getting it - as did Jazzwise magazine as Publication of the Year - anyway I'll go away now but just thought you'd like to know this - more info here on the evening at the Houses Of Parliament last night.

Cheers

Mike]]> Thu, 20 May 2010 12:31:31 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=88697 Website developer wanted http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=87469
cheers
Steve
]]> Sun, 09 May 2010 19:49:29 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=87469 Off topic - notice of deletion. http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=82929
We'll be deleting the group at midday today so if you want to save anything please do it before then.]]> Thu, 01 Apr 2010 01:25:35 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=82929 Requests for donations/contributions http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=77517 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=77152

I was concerned over the announcement over the death of jimmypreston as teenage/young suicide is one of the few things that make me quite uncomfortable. I posted my concerns over the wording of the announcement in the moderators forum for the rest of the guys to discuss, as I didn't like the finger pointing/accusations. MythSte commented that the whole post didn't sit quite right with him.

When donations were asked for I looked a little closer at the stories of maddude16 and jimmypreston. I found inconsistencies with their stories and their posts which were confirmed by the times and use of IP addresses by each of them.

I contacted maddude16 and asked him to supply more details about his original post. I got a reply but no answers.

I then replied and pointed out that I was concerned with inconsistencies that I’d found, as I’ve mentioned above, and outlined them to him. I got a reply but no answers.

I replied again, this time itemising the inconsistencies and asking for an explanation;- the absence of which meant I was accusing maddude16 of being deliberately misleading.

I have received an apology from maddude16 but no explanation or answers. Without a very clear explanation from maddude16, I am unable to come to any conclusion save that maddude16 and jimmypreston were the same person.

The moderation team believe there is no need to pursue this issue further, unless one of the members who donated wants to formalise proceedings by making an allegation with their local police. I have locked the appropriate accounts and informed maddude16 that he is now banned from this forum.


This incident will result in an addition to the forum’s terms & conditions in regards to members seeking donations for charity or for individuals who have been identified with a particular need. The wording of this will be announced in due course, suffice to say that anyone proposing to collect money or equipment for charitable purposes or good causes will have to agree to prove that their request is genuine. Requests will have to be capable of being corroborated to the satisfaction of one of the site Administrators before the request is posted on the forum, PM’d or e-mailed to any other member.

Thanks to MythSte for his early forthrightness in sharing his doubts and Shockwave for his bloodhound talents.


Hamster]]> Mon, 15 Feb 2010 18:54:41 +0000 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=77517 New affiliate http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=77155
The Bass Merchant is the newest 'Affiliate' on Basschat - see their brand new forum here http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showforum=78

Still as pure as untrampled snow.

Keep checking in for the latest deals and news from the guys in the shop.

Cheers
ped]]> Sat, 13 Feb 2010 09:32:31 +0000 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=77155 Important changes to the marketplace http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=71363
We have decided that from here on in, sellers must clearly state a price when selling items in the marketplace. This will make transactions more upfront and stop people effectively holding private auctions.

If you have a thread without a price, please edit and add one - any new threads from now on will need a price.

See rule #5 for sellers here http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?act=SR&f=19

Cheers
ped]]> Tue, 22 Dec 2009 21:33:08 +0000 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=71363 Bass Bash, 29th November 2009! http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=57016 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=60272]]> Mon, 10 Aug 2009 13:40:09 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=57016 RIP R,5,R,5... http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=53273
He leaves behind a loving wife and an Alembic Series II.

RIP Nick. sad.gif]]> Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:14:50 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=53273 Minor changes to the management of Basschat.co.uk http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=50516
The reasons for all the changes are:
1) To allow Ped & Kiwi to focus more on development and promotion of the forum (although they will still be around if needed by any members).
2) To allow the increased moderation workload that has come with the growth of the forum to be spread over an expanded number of moderators, while retaining some degree of consistency.
3) To reduce the potential for personal reprisals in the event disruptive behaviour needs to be managed by any individual moderator.
4) To keep Basschat a pleasant place to use for the majority of members.

The biggest change is that Ped and Kiwi have decided to formally delegate the day to day management of the forum to the Global Moderators. After discussion with the Global Moderators, some of these changes are likely to include reducing the number of warnings before further action is taken from 10 to 5, start to weed out undeclared duplicate accounts and make some minor changes to the wording in the Terms and Conditions. For the sake of clarity, the moderating team will also be placing greater emphasis on the Terms and Conditions when addressing any instances of disruptive behaviour in the future.

For the 99% of Basschatters who currently use the forum in a considerate and responsible manner, these changes are being made with your browsing experience uppermost in our minds.

This message has also been sent using the bulk email facility but has been posted here to respect any admin email opt-out settings in members' preferences.

As ever, we welcome constructive comments.

cheers,

Ped and Kiwi]]> Sun, 31 May 2009 01:00:10 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=50516 <![CDATA[PM's from Spambots / malicious members]]> http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=49705
These sites are probably some kind of hacking / virus / malware etc attempt to infect your PC.

Please report any dodgy PM's like this from members on this thread, and a Mod or Admin will take action.

Cheers

Hamster]]> Thu, 21 May 2009 12:16:34 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=49705 <![CDATA[I'm off to NZ.]]> http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=47903
The reasons are 100% economic and to fall back on the support of family while I get my career in urban regeneration back on a stable footing. After being made redundant three times because of a lack of projects, it seems to me that even if I do snag another job in the UK, there's nothing preventing the same thing from happening a fourth time. I also needed to make the decision to emigrate while I could still afford it.

I really don't want to leave the UK but well placed contacts I have in the property development sector are also telling me there's going to be a load more pain to go through in the commercial property market yet before things get better. So it looks like more people in my profession are going to be made redundant as cash and credit reserves are exhausted by developers and commissions continue to dry up. (Just so I don't appear to be a purveyor of doom and gloom, I think other sectors like service industries and manufacturing are going to pick up sooner because they're less reliant on credit). But the short story is that I'm probably looking at years rather than months before things get better.

So what this means is I'll still be on Basschat but I'll be 12 hours ahead of the UK. It also means I won't be able to respond quickly to PM's or situations if they occur during the middle of the day (while NZ is asleep) and obviously I won't be able to physically attend any more Bassbashes unless I happen to be in the UK on holiday or something when one is on.

Maybe when the banks lose some of their arrogance and recognise first time buyers as a valuable market once again, then things will look a load more positive for everyone.

Anyways, just wanted to let you all know about that just in case any of you need a quick response on anything at some point in the future.]]> Fri, 01 May 2009 10:21:34 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=47903 Spam attacks http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=46437
However there is a slightly more worrying aspect in that this is happening inspite of the latest updates and most sophisticated level of kaptcha being used. Phatmonkey thinks that accounts might be registered by real people who then pass the login details to spam bots. These people are also using IP forwarding so its not possible to track them down by a trace but judging by previous IP traces, its likely that the spam is coming from Russia and may even be related to organised crime.

While the semi automated aspect means we probably won't be flooded with a torrent of spam and DoS attacks in the same way that Bassworld was, it does mean that there's not a lot we can do to prevent real people from signing up. There's quite a bit of similarity between spamming and grafitti, and the best way of dealing with graffiti is to cover it up as soon as it happens. That way the lack of exposure means spamming Basschat will hopefully end up being more effort than its worth.

If things got really bad, the only option we have to remove the potential completely is to subject each new account registration to an additional administrators approval. I don't think there's a need to do that in the forseeable future while the mods are on top of things. HOWEVER if the mods miss out on something (because its been posted at 4am for example) then please bear with them or use the report button (as some of you already have done) to let a someone know.

Unfortunately, I'm afraid that spam for breakfast might just be something we have to tolerate in the meantime but we'll be doing our best to stay on top of it.

cheers
Steve]]> Mon, 13 Apr 2009 12:37:44 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=46437 Sale of Basschat.co.uk (April Fools!! :P) http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=45442
So from May 1st, Basschat will have new owners. The advertising and direct marketing will probably increase quite a bit but, simply put, the forum has to pay its way. Essentially you'll all see Basschat transformed from a voluntary effort to a grounded business. We'll be keeping the same moderating team and staying on as advisors for a few months but after that it will be up to the new owners.

We'd like to thank you all for your support and contributions over the years and hope the forum continues to grow and improve.]]> Wed, 01 Apr 2009 00:02:53 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=45442 Downtime this afternoon http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=41461
Let me know if anything's still broken!]]> Mon, 16 Feb 2009 18:41:11 +0000 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=41461 New marketplace section - Effects http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=38870
Due to recent feedback I have created a separate forum for selling effects, instead of lumping them in with amps/cabs. Current effects listings in the amps section are fine but post in the new one from now on if you please!

Cheers
ped]]> Tue, 20 Jan 2009 23:32:30 +0000 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=38870 Poll - Basschat, good to grow? http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=31265
It's possible we could potentially look at developing bespoke forum software if there was a way to tailor the site more specifically for the way in which its used by the members. However, obviously before any of this stuff is considered feasible, we need to test our assumptions about what would be valued by members and whether its worth doing it anyway.

I know some of you will think 'whats wrong with the forum the way it is now'. Fair enough, thats why I've put a poll together.

The core areas of interest that Ped and I see the site having for everyone are (in no particular order)

1) Socialising
2) Information
3) Promotion

(Have I missed anything out?)

There are some parts of the forum, such as the Off Topic that appears to fill the social networking side of things. Its possible, for example, that we could look at enhancing the site so that it had some features similar to Facebook/Myspace. Perhaps each member could be offered a more sophisticated profile page with enhanced features eg. media streaming, status updates from friends, photo album, band pages etc.

There are some parts of the forum such as the Affiliates forum that caters for the promotional side of things, which we could potentially turn into more of a shop front. Similar to some of the online retailers such as Thomann. This would be contained under a completely separate section but it would be relatively easy to track orders etc. It would offer any members with commercial interests, but not enough expertise or time to set up their own web-based shop front, a way of getting a web presence for their products.

In terms of information, the wiki is consistently underutilised by members but still provides a potentially valuable repository of collected wisdom. It would be nice to integrate that more successfully within the forum.

OK. The reality is that, if this were to go ahead, unless we have a member within the community who would be prepared to help us develop the site for low upfront cost, then obviously someone is going to want to be paid for their time in programming new forum software.

So the $64.000 questions are would you all, as members, be prepared to pay a yearly subscription for enhanced usefulness? If you didn't want to pay for it but still wanted the features, would you be prepared to tolerate additional advertising? There is the potential for us to approach a company I know of who would offer to cover the development costs in exchange for a share of the promotional revenue (I guess its a bit like a record company deal).

NB: Just to make it clear - THERE ARE NO DEFINITE PLANS TO CHANGE THE FORUM. We just want to put out a feeler to see what people think about the potential on offer.]]> Fri, 07 Nov 2008 11:42:31 +0000 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=31265 Spamming attacks http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=28825
Finally not all of it is graphic in nature, but if you could notify a mod the instant you spot anything we'd be grateful. Until we get some additional security measures in place we're going to have to fight this using the Admin equivalent of hand to hand combat. Unfortunately its almost unavoidable that some spam from the more plausible looking accounts is bound to get through.]]> Thu, 02 Oct 2008 15:03:45 +0100 http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=28825