Many hands make light work

[solar pete]

Hi All,
The mods and I have been conversing about calling for any experienced members who might like to help out around the place by becoming a moderator. The heavy lifting of late has been done by SunEagle and Mike and the forum is very grateful. I think there are a few members who would make great Mods, I have approached a few members in the past and just recently and would now like to throw it open to the forum that we are officially calling for any interested members to step forth and speak up if they are interested.

You can post here or if you prefer click on the "contact us" button at the bottom of the page.

You dont have to do any set tasks or anything like that, you will get the ability to edit or delete posts or close threads etc when you are poking around the forum. You also get access to the mods section of the forum where we can discuss issues.

Cheers All

[solar pete]

Whats the emoji for the sound of crickets chirping

[J.P.M.]

Perhaps the roaring silence is trying to tell you something.

[solar pete]

I cant hear what the silence is saying

[J.P.M.]

I cant hear what the silence is saying

On old B.S. line from Zen: "The echo of the completely empty bears tidings heard from the soundless sound."

In other words, for your unfortunate situation, maybe there's nothing there to hear. For as much as I may rue the day it happens, the party may be coming to an end Pete.

[GRickard]

.... the party may be coming to an end Pete.

I honestly think there would be more people stick around to learn and contribute if it weren't for the attitude in a lot of the posts here (even from some Mods). If I don't agree with someone's way of thinking, I'm sure I won't change their mind by being a prick. It's not productive and just drives people away.

[Sean_Ork]

I honestly think there would be more people stick around to learn and contribute if it weren't for the attitude in a lot of the posts here (even from some Mods). If I don't agree with someone's way of thinking, I'm sure I won't change their mind by being a prick. It's not productive and just drives people away.

Exactly ......

[J.P.M.]

I honestly think there would be more people stick around to learn and contribute if it weren't for the attitude in a lot of the posts here (even from some Mods). If I don't agree with someone's way of thinking, I'm sure I won't change their mind by being a prick. It's not productive and just drives people away.

I agree that more people would stick around and more would probably show up and maybe even contribute, but I'd suggest stifling frank opinions would deteriorate the quality of the discourse, and the quality of the information exchanged would go down as the informed people, who I perhaps incorrectly assume you for the most part consider to be the pricks, would, in more than a few cases, stay away.

One of the common sense things I learned as a peddler (DUH ?!?!) was you don't convince people of the rightness of your cause by getting on their bad side. However, that some people are easily offended may say more about their self image than that what's being written may be less than polite. Besides, this is nominally a place to get safe, correct and helpful information, not buy stuff.

IMO only, making nice by stifling straight talk would leave mostly and predominantly two types of folks here. One group of well meaning but mostly clueless, solar and R.E. ignorant people looking for information, and another group comprised mostly of a bunch of con men, solar shills and crackpots using the venue to separate fools from their money or well meaning but clueless treehuggers who drank the koolaid, or those who simply bloviate nonsense to feed their ego, with all of those folks, intentionally or not, spreading what may be costly or even dangerous information.

At this time, there's also a third group who don't seem to give much of a crap about political correctness but seem to have a mostly pretty good grasp on what's safe and cost effective a good part of the time whose contributions serve to keep a bit of a brake on the misinformation and B.S.

It seems to me that's the group Pete may be addressing more than the sheeple or the con men.

My guess is that for as many people whose thin skin got bruised by having their ignorance called out, maybe in a politically incorrect way, there are at least as many and probably more people who learn something, avoid or modify a bad upcoming decision, save a few bucks or, most importantly, avoid an unsafe situation by reading what you may think to be rude.

One of the reasons the party may be coming to an end is political correctness. The other is the world has more people in it who have yet to grow up.

In the end, opinions vary. I don't consider myself a prick around here. I'm pretty sure other's think I'm one of the poster children and model for the engineering prick. Either way, or somewhere in between, it doesn't matter a whole lot.

I wish Pete well in his search.

[solarix]

I would consider helping moderate, but I would tire of dealing with the many inane (but sincere) questions and especially not like putting up with the sometimes nasty attitudes.

[max2k]

I honestly think there would be more people stick around to learn and contribute if it weren't for the attitude in a lot of the posts here (even from some Mods). If I don't agree with someone's way of thinking, I'm sure I won't change their mind by being a prick. It's not productive and just drives people away.

I'd agree if the subject would be something else, not power conversion equipment: 'learning' there is often hard way and potentially deadly. IMO the dwindling activity of the forum is due to changes in PV industry itself. Who would come here and why? Majority of PV owners are not comfortable working on their systems and teaching them necessary skills in the forum setting is simply dangerous. Electricians starting their own PV business either already did so or closed doors altogether. So all we're left with are few DIY type individuals who would lose interest after they complete their systems as they become 'maintenance' items at that point: all this equipment is fairly expensive so not many people can afford 'tinkering' with it by constantly changing its components.

[J.P.M.]

I'd agree if the subject would be something else, not power conversion equipment: 'learning' there is often hard way and potentially deadly. IMO the dwindling activity of the forum is due to changes in PV industry itself. Who would come here and why? Majority of PV owners are not comfortable working on their systems and teaching them necessary skills in the forum setting is simply dangerous. Electricians starting their own PV business either already did so or closed doors altogether. So all we're left with are few DIY type individuals who would lose interest after they complete their systems as they become 'maintenance' items at that point: all this equipment is fairly expensive so not many people can afford 'tinkering' with it by constantly changing its components.

Like I wrote, the party may be coming to an end. Also, as I and others have written, once net metering and tax credits/gov. subsidies end, PV will either stand on its own or die.

[sensij]

I don't subscribe to the negative narrative some have described here. By any measure I understand, forum traffic has been healthier in 2017 than ever before, and continues a steady trend of growth. The cost effectiveness of residential PV systems may bounce around as subsidies gradually taper off, but I think the macro forces that have driven adoption are still intact, and over the next 10 years, the idea that even storage technology may become economically viable for residential applications suggests there is plenty of market still to develop.

I think the collection of knowledge and experience that solarreviews.com has fostered here is the internet at its best, but the challenge to do even better remains. If contributing time as a moderator helps ensure that others will have the same opportunity to learn and contribute that I have had over the past few years, then please take this post as me "stepping forth and speaking up".

PS... lost in Pete's glamorous description of the perks of being a moderator, they get a higher character limit for signatures, too, right?

[SunEagle]

Like I wrote, the party may be coming to an end. Also, as I and others have written, once net metering and tax credits/gov. subsidies end, PV will either stand on its own or die.

Regardless of how the pv industry grows or shrinks in the future this Forum will be open to those that desire answers to their questions and guidance in the selection and installation of this technology.

Being open and honest while providing the best answer as possible may not be what some members want to hear but it will be something I plan on continuing to do if asked.

[SunEagle]

...
PS... lost in Pete's glamorous description of the perks of being a moderator, they get a higher character limit for signatures, too, right?

+1.

[littleharbor]

PS... lost in Pete's glamorous description of the perks of being a moderator, they get a higher character limit for signatures, too, right?

I would hope so. The sig. character limit is awfully....limited. I'm kind of surprised it is so, considering the huge volume of text and images that make up the forum as a whole.