Re: Netiquette

[steveb@newkla.kla.com]

... here we go again ... :(

This my first post on this subject to the q-list this time around, 
I will try to make it my last.

I am disappointed by this response to a truly informative post.  I 
might agree about the posting of the WG spring availability as being
advertising, but if it is for a part that is not listed in the catalog,
I would like to know about it.  I know that I posted a request for similar 
information some time ago, but it must have been at a time when Mr. Wales 
was not subscribed, because I got no response at that time ... so far I 
got a spring from Charlie Smith (which must have been meant to be an 
improvement for the 5kTs, because I found it to be quite similar to the 
one that was originally in my QTC) ... I digress ...

The point that I wanted to make is the fact that Mr. Wales did post 
information that I could make use of without purchasing anything from
him.  He said that their experience showed that a 50% increase in boost
seemed to be a good and safe level.  Now I can go off on my own and try 
that in my car, and [as long as I believe that I can trust Mr. Wales] 
feel relatively safe that my car isn't going to blow up.  Most all of us 
are amateurs, and even when we work together it is difficult to come up 
with a test sample that numbers a handful; if we can find people who are 
vendors who are willing to talk to us and share information we have a 
source that can have a larger sample and more experience.  He did also
give us some of the detailed information about what really is done when 
someone purchases an upgrade from his company.  I think this information 
is useful to help us decide for ourselves if we are getting our money's 
worth.  BTW, I also subscribe to the DIY-EFI list, and I have seen inform-
ative posts from Mr. Wales on that list as well, with little, if any, market-
ing other than the sig (which he deleted for us).  From this I infer that 
Mr. Wales is likely to be someone who is very interested in improving the 
power output of automotive engines and has decided to make a business of 
it.  It is my opinion that flaming folks like Mr. Wales away will do the 
list more of a disservice than allowing him to post REAL & USEFUL INFORMA-
TION on the quattro list.  His posts do seem to be welcomed on the DIY-EFI 
list too.  He doesn't even attempt to copyright things that he has para-
phrased from Audi documentation ... ooops, digressing again.

I know that the last paragraph makes me sound like one of Mr. Wales 
"friends" ... I have never met him, nor have I purchased any of his products.
I did peruse the archives to see what was written by and about Superchips in 
the past, and as far as I can determine things have been pretty positive.  
It certainly appears to me that the company is trying to provide some value 
for the price that is paid, not simply to make a quick buck as others would; 
and recently I've seen direct evidence that the company supports their pro-
duct (very close if not) to the point of going beyond the call of duty.  

There are other vendors that are providing a real service to the list
with their presence.  I apologize for not remembering the name, but 
there is someone at "selectra" who provided key information to getting
Bob Myers' speedometer fixed based on their experience with 200s.  I 
wouldn't be surprised to find that we have managed to dissuade other 
vendors from subscribing and attempting to be of service to the list.

Perhaps we can make regular automated postings to the list [as is done on 
other majordomo lists to which I subscribe] where once a month a message 
is posted to the list indicating the unsubscription procedure as well as
standard policies for the list (e.g. vendors can feel free to provide 
parts/services offered & e-mail address info to Dan to be included with the 
vendors list, but all postings of such info to the quattro list are not
allowed).  I noticed that there is only one vendor in the list that even 
mentions an e-mail address.  Perhaps we can add an item in the web page 
which allows vendors to add links to their home pages too.  

Finally, it is still true that Dan did allow the post to the list.  What
more is there to say?

Steve Buchholz
s_buchho@kla.com
San Jose, CA (USA)