Who Should Jon Be

[El Cid]

I hate to say it, but who cares! Why is this becoming a big issue? Jon owns this forum and because of his love for Jeeps we all are able to participate and be members on this forum. I don't know about you guys, but I'm honored to be here and honored to be a Super Moderator. If the only reason you are here is to cause problems, then my advice is maybe you should go back to the "other forum". Lets all be adults, stop our whining and just have a good time on a great forum. There are a lot of knowledgeable members here that have put forth a lot of work to make this the Ultimate Jeep Forum.

Who cares?

Forum members do, as a matter of fact. You know, the members of the forum you're supposed to be helping out as a Super Moderator? The ones who made this more than just Jon talking to himself in a vacuum? Indeed, if you look around, maybe it's even some of those "knowledgeable members" who have done so much for the place?

Frankly, I daresay that your response here, 07JeepXK, is the first time that anyone has acted like less than an adult when it comes to this matter, the first time anyone has treated anyone else with anything less than professional respect.

I'm glad you're honored to be a Super Moderator. You should be. It's a badge that carries with it a lot of responsibilities. I think it also carries some expectations, though, and one of them is to respond to matters not emotionally but rationally, thinking not short-term but long-term.

Being new here, I didn't even realize SA and Knappster were the same person, or that he is the site owner. 'Site Owner' under his UID and "Owner of Steel Armadillo" in his sig(which he already did) would help clear things up.

That way, If I was coming here for the first time, I would assume that as the site owner he an enthusiast who has the best interest of the site in mind. but if I'm asking where I should buy [whatever] he will most likely point me to his site.

Trying to keep the 'Enthusiest owner' ID separate from the 'Vende'r ID seems shady even though I understand why it was done.

Nicely (and rationally) said, SkidMarx. And welcome!

As you can see, 07JeepXK, there is plenty of evidence that there is already a problem (and that no one is causing it out of malice). This might be a minor problem now -- a few folks don't know who is who -- but it's a problem that will inevitably grow over time and increase in its complexity.

To put this in terms we can all understand:

Imagine that this forum is the Ultimate Jeep (see what I did there?). You've been driving it for a while. It's been running great. Takes you where you want to go, does it with style, and you sure as hell enjoy the ride on the way. Only one day you happen to hear this intermittent grinding in the differential. It's there for a little bit, and then it's gone. A few days later it grinds again and then goes away. It isn't constant, and you don't think the Ultimate Jeep you've been driving is going to explode or anything -- nothing so dire as that -- but you're also pretty sure that it would be better if the diff didn't grind like that. So what do you do?

If it's me, I try to fix the minor problem before it becomes a major problem.

I sure haven't had much luck with telling the problem it's stupid and should go away.

I think this has been said before, but I do support Jon participating as Steel Armadillo as long as he adheres to the guidelines put forth for other manufacturers on this forum. I would expect, given Jon's character that he has done this already. I see it no different than 4XGuard being on the forum and El Cid being a member, or Doc / Stone Soup or any of the others.

I don't think anyone is not supportive of Jon and his new venture. I for one have tried to give one-on-one advice to Jon in person and over the wires not only on how to improve some of his products but also how to leverage his position in the marketplace.

This is not about whether anyone likes or dislikes Jon or SA (or anyone/thing else, for that matter). At least not to me it's not. I see it simply as a matter of transparency that could cause problems down the road (problems, in fact, that could easily harm Jon's business).

As for the examples you give, one major difference is that there was no 4xGuard account doing any posting. There was only me, El Cid (back before the business was sold). Just one account. Same with Doc/Soup. Jon is the only one with two accounts, which is the key matter under discussion here.

The discussion in the "conflict of interest" thread is pertinent to the other major difference in the examples. I had no ability to delete comments, ban members, etc. no matter what they said about 4xGuard's products. Jon very much does have that ability (though, as stated, he says he won't use it).

...

All that said, I'd like to change my vote to Jon being just "Knappster" -- assuming he wants to keep that name, like I did my "El Cid" moniker, and then have sig and branding make clear he's SA -- except when he's talking as owner of the forum and uses the name Admin (or Forum Deity or the like), and that the sigs would cross-reference. Transparency ought to put the issue to bed (like Sal's suggestion of an explanation in a welcome message or whatever).

And I'd go for "Forum Deity," Jon. When you hold the cards, man, play 'em.