Has Aweb past it's sell by date ....

Has Aweb past it's sell by date ....

Didn't find your answer?

Apart from a few stalwarts whose technical knowledge is considerable, all that is left is an endless stream of vacuous questions from those hoping to build their business based on the advice of others 

Furthermore it seems to be bombarded with a constant re-hashing of questions that were posed & answered years ago and have just come round again, because either the OP has not bothered to use the search facility or found it doesn't quite work correctly

Frankly, unless the site starts to liven up a bit then it is probably destined to gradually decline into oblivion

Where has the Aweb spark gone - has it faded since the early days ?

Replies (104)

Please login or register to join the discussion.

By ireallyshouldknowthisbut
15th Jul 2011 09:15

not at all

I think its improved considerably in the past few weeks now the trolls seems to have been banished and we are (largely) back to talking about practice and business.

it takes time before the users who have been put off from posting for fear of being attacked come back or are gradually replaced.

Also remember that its holiday season.  Successful people take holidays.

 

Thanks (0)
avatar
By Peter Bonetti
15th Jul 2011 09:27

Agreed

I do miss the various 'trolls' knowledge but not their manner. I wouldn't entirely disagree that things have quientened down a littlew recently but that is quite possibly for the reasons already stated.

In any case much of the 'excitement' was completely un-called for name calling and other discourteous and unbecoming behaviour. Let's be honest, this is an accounting forum, how exciting is it supposed to be?

As for questions being asked again, that may be so but it may just be easier to post a question couched in your own words rather than try and track down someone else's version.

Anyway, haven't we had this discussion before? :-)

Thanks (0)
By ShirleyM
15th Jul 2011 09:32

I considered leaving too

I know of regular posters who have left, and I also hope they will come back. I considered leaving too, out of sheer frustration for being constantly insulted and harangued for having the audacity to air my own views!

I have stuck around because I am hoping the new features (the report & block buttons) will cut down on most (if not all) of the conflict. If it doesn't, then ....... I don't know what else AWeb can do!

Thanks (0)
avatar
By thisistibi
15th Jul 2011 09:37

Holiday

As already mentioned above, it's holiday season.  That's all.  Perhaps you never noticed the endless stream of vacuous questions which have always been there, because you focused on the more interesting questions.

Plus, i think your comments are a bit harsh - if the rules are that nobody can ask a question that has already been asked, and that nobody can ask a question to help advance their practice - then it would be even more dead here than it is now.  Kind of self defeating.  Sometimes the same old question can raise new angles or new insights - for example a common item raised on AWeb is about deductions for use of home as an office.  I have read probably 10-15 historic threads on this issue recently and each one had a different perspective and more than one was useful.

Thanks (0)
avatar
By 3569787
03rd May 2016 18:09

A general thing!

Thanks (0)
David Winch
By David Winch
15th Jul 2011 10:03

Pedant's corner

Shouldn't that be passed its sell by date?

(Sorry - couldn't resist this!)

 

Thanks (0)
By Steve Holloway
15th Jul 2011 10:05

Not really changed that much ....

 over the years. There are far more new practice questions now but then the market is exploding with new entrants so that is hardly surprising. I think it is important even if you are established to monitor the trends and approaches used by those entering the market.

Also there have been a few improvements over time. A few years back, if anyone dared to use the work 'client' in a question which perhaps was a bit basic they would be instantly shouted down by half a dozen hard core members. Nowadays is happens less often and the site is better for it.

The recent salary survey I did was a good example of 30 odd people co-operating for the common good and it is an excellent endorsement of the site's continued validity.

The mods do however have to continue to be vigilant. Members banned are done so for good reason and any attempt to return under a different guise should be stamped upon to keep the arguments down. It is these that will drive people away rather than repeat questions. 

 

 

 

 

Thanks (0)
avatar
By Richard Willis
15th Jul 2011 10:05

On the other hand

I have lately noticed several very concise and helpful responses to perfectly valid questions, one of interest to me, and resisted the temptation to comment 'now THAT'S what AWEB is all about'! 

Thanks (0)
Me!
By nigelburge
15th Jul 2011 10:16

Agree with Richard
As with all sites of this nature, you just have to sort the wheat from the chaff however I do agree that recently, there has been a lot of chaff and not much wheat.

When the site is upgraded shortly with the ability to block certain posters, I do hope that we will see a return of those who genuinely only wish to help and impart their knowledge to others. That is what this site is all about.

However, I do miss the very useful contributions re how to deal with HMRC from CD - however dealing with his postings was a classic case of sorting the wheat from the chaff. Some of his wheat however was pretty good.

Thanks (0)
By ShirleyM
15th Jul 2011 10:22

Steve

One of your comments has made me curious, ie. the reincarnations of banned members.

Personally, I have no objection to them coming back IF (and it is a great big IF) they modify their behaviour to keep within the rules of AWeb, but it does raise an interesting question!

When we sign up we give our real names. What do the reincarnations do? Are they giving their real name, which means AWeb are accepting their return, or are they giving false names? If giving false names, what would the repercussions be, if any?

Does anyone know!

Thanks (0)
x
By rockallj
15th Jul 2011 10:33

I don't see the problem at all

I have taken part and read more of AWeb in the last weeks than ever before. Remember it is all about people's opinions and not always fact. I find it useful to see folk's take on problems that arise. The fact that use of home, ML and EU/overseas VAT issues constantly arise show how complex and open to interpretation the legislation is.

I enjoy reading the postings of ShirleyM, Steve Holloway, johnjenkins, Euan, frustratedwithHMRC, Marion and many other contributors. I also miss C_D. I like the lively debate.

What I dislike is the niggly nit picking which sometimes occurs and the tone taken by some posters with comments such as "should you be in practice", "should you take on such work if you haven't done it before" and "shouldn't you know better". We all had to start somewhere, we were all rookies once. Stop acting as judge and jury on limited information. We all come across things which are new to some of us and bleeding obvious to others, even after years in this game.

We should be helping one another and pulling together for mutual support. For fear of sound like John Lennon in Imagine, I shall stop now.

Thanks (0)
avatar
By User deleted
15th Jul 2011 10:33

Still sparking

I think it peaks and troughs like anything in life. Sometimes there are questions that spark discussion (as opposed to the slanging matches) and sometimes its a bit quiet and just technical qs. I actually find the 'vacuous' qs quite interesting because they do tend to be the ones that more people feel able to contribute towards and you get to see how other people do things. Like people-watching! It can be a good way to pick up the odd idea and equally it can be nice to feel that the way you do things yourself isn't outdated. I don't think I'm putting this particularly well but basically I think it still works. 

I agree with Steve's final para on moderation. Allowing banned members to come back under a different name(s) (and then start the same abuse as before!) will drive people away. Its obvious when it happens. Like Shirley I don't object to them coming back ONCE THEY'VE SERVED THEIR BAN and if they behave but turning up the next day and hurling abuse...... Nope.

We don't have to give our real names - I've signed up as Flash Gordon, quarterback NY Jets! I'm assuming you just need a different email address which is easy enough. I used to have another login but stopped using it as the name was a throwback to a previous life that I wanted to move away from. I have more than one email address because of work & private ones so I just used a different email for my Flash account. I'm assuming there's some way of identifying us from IP addresses or something but as I don't understand that sort of thing.......   

Thanks (0)
By frankie
15th Jul 2011 10:36

-

[removed by mod - response to above but which is attacking in tone rather than responding to the overall question]

Thanks (0)
avatar
By cathygrimmer
15th Jul 2011 10:52

@Flash

So you're not the real Flash Gordon? I'm so disappointed! I love the idea of Flash Gordon giving up saving the world to settle down to a quiet life as an accountant.

Cathy

Thanks (0)
Torben Halvorses owner of PaperLess Document Management for Sage
By torbenhalvorsen
15th Jul 2011 10:53

Where has the Aweb spark gone - has it faded since the early day

Has the spark gone ? Personally I had missed any spark you refer too.

This article is probably better than average for many I see for interactions, at the time of writing 230 reads and 13 comments. So about 20% of viewers comment ? That seems high for many articles and it is fun when there are many comments on a post.

Aweb is a solid proposition for Accountants, its a good place to keep up wiith news and views. Editorial I find is of good quality.

If the same questions come up again and again, its because new people need the same answers. I welcome them, even if I am posting a tried and tested reply for the umpteenth time, for the reader its still a first time, and I feel as part of this community its ok to have the same questions.

In every community there appears to be people who bahve in ways that upset people, Aweb is certainly no different in that respect, and I appreciate firm moderation by site owners and managers whether that be here on Aweb or on other groups in LinkedIn , where I moderate very strongly in the 20 or so groups I manage there. Developing tools to report and Block help the community manage itself, and they are welcome too.

Keep it up Aweb, and if you reading this and net-lurking then go on....make a comment, tells us what you think too.....

Phil

-- Accounting the PaperLess way™

Thanks (0)
By Steve Holloway
15th Jul 2011 10:55

[removed by mod]

 Flash, I am now going through past posts trying to guess the 'throwback to a previous life' reference. Could you be merry_stripper1971? or possibly sex_drugs&enid?

Thanks (0)
avatar
By User deleted
15th Jul 2011 11:05

On asking the same question again ...

... this is a term in my engagement letter:

Because rules and regulations frequently change you must ask us to confirm any advice already given if a transaction is delayed or a similar transaction is to be undertaken.

The same goes for a large proportion of questions on here, things change, software develops, laws change, new ideas come along, new members join with a new take on things, etc.

I do agree there are a lot of pots and kettles on here but aweb is still good (have you not been following the timesheet/value added billing thread?) Some of the good threads are in the discussion groups, so you have to sign up to be in on them, but that is where the fat is chewed!

So as frankie says, to all the newbies - (btw, I love the top comment on this one!)

Thanks (0)
By ShirleyM
15th Jul 2011 11:08

He he

... and people say AWeb isn't lively!

We are all on a man-hunt now to identify Flash's previous existence .... there cannot be another with Flash's brilliant humour so he should be easy to spot!

.... by the way ..... I can hear this buzzing noise in the background ... does anyone else hear it?

Thanks (0)
avatar
By User deleted
15th Jul 2011 11:16

@ Steve

Flash, I am now going through past posts trying to guess the 'throwback to a previous life' reference. Could you be merry_stripper1971? or possibly sex_drugs&enid?

Nearly covered my keyboard in tea! Sadly neither are me but possibly in my dreams :)

Thanks (0)
John Stokdyk, AccountingWEB head of insight
By John Stokdyk
15th Jul 2011 10:59

Phew! You really know how to liven up a Friday morning, JC

...and please don't sugar-coat your message.

The questions posed are interesting ones and worth airing. Even if they cause a bit of discomfort here at Aweb HQ, they are points that we raise within the community team all the time and it's useful to get the direct feedback - positive and negative - from members, because that's what guides what we do on the site to a huge extent.

As some of you are probably aware, my time on the site goes back more than a decade and I can remember both high and low points during that time, some of which are influenced by both the economic conditions and the time of year. The overall traffic and engagement figures are quite encouraging at the moment - we're averaging more than 1m hits a month, even if the summer silly season looks like it's beginning to settle in.

One point I'd make from my long-term perspective is that there's a noticeable "engagement curve" people go through on a website - from initial dabblings, to more frequent appearances and in some cases obsessional involvement that eventually peters out. It pretty much happens on whatever site you're involved with, and our mission on AccountingWEB is to try and get the balance of the site right so that people keep finding things that bring them back for as long as possible.

The mood of the site also has an important impact, and this is perhaps what worries me most about JC's comments. While we natually feel the "spark" hasn't gone, we have fielded a lot of complaints about the tenor of many threads and are a bit concerned that much of the time the same handful of die-hard contributors tend to dominate proceedings, when we'd like to see a wider variety of participants - and topics covered.

Many of the threads and contributors cover the world of small practitioners. It may not have been too clearly communicated, but we are putting a bit more emphasis on more general business issues these days - and there is more to come as we prepare for some important changes that will give such topics even more prominence, for example with a regular Business Bulletin.

Some of the people on this thread have mentioned the work going on to upgrade the site and its performance (which also affects how many people get involved) and we're hoping that this will liven things up when we start user testing - very soon, now according to our head of technology.

Keep the comments coming, and we'll try to do our best to ensure that AccountingWEB.co.uk continues to be a welcoming and relevant experience for you all.

Thanks (0)
By frankie
15th Jul 2011 11:26

insults

[removed by mod - continuation of above]

Thanks (0)
By ShirleyM
15th Jul 2011 11:33

Becky

I don't know what it is!

I thought maybe it was an angry little bee trying to provoke a reaction ... but I will resist swatting it!

Flash ... is my humour getting better?

Thanks (0)
avatar
By User deleted
15th Jul 2011 11:33

Still saving the world :)

And just to prove that my quiet life is only temporary retirement I'll save Shirley by suggesting that she just needs a good fly squatter or a can of bug spray! I'll even volunteer to practice my backhand :) (Do fly swatters still exist? I remember my gran had one when I was young - she must have enjoyed cleaning the windows when I'd gone home!!)

In The Swarm I think they ended up burning the critters over the sea (or that was one tactic, can't remember if it was the final winning stroke). I'm sure there must be somewhere that sells flame-throwers so maybe we should have the outing (as per a previous thread) to the seaside? BBQ first then ice creams and a sing-song on the way home! Becky can be our chaperone to make sure we behave and don't eat too many ice creams if she's available and John can drive the minibus :) 

ps @ John - 'obesessional involvement'? Surely you jest?! I can't believe anyone on here would be obsessional!! (Falls off chair laughing)

pps Is that why they don't have X Factor auditions in Bristol, because they don't know the words and end up humming?!

Thanks (0)
avatar
By User deleted
15th Jul 2011 11:42

@ Shirley

I don't think your humour was ever poorly!

And following on from my previous post - Amazon do a lovely orange Sheen x300 Flame Gun at £170.00 (free shipping too). Just think of the fun we could have with that! Apparently its excellent for eradicating weeds - I'd have thought it would eradicate anything that got in its way, not just weeds - oops, just eradicated my neighbour (no great loss), oh dear and his house......

Thanks (0)
avatar
By cathygrimmer
15th Jul 2011 11:45

I've got one!

A fly swatter that is - not a flame gun. I can lend it to you, Shirley. But I often find if I open a window and then leave the room, the offending insect goes of its own accord and the fly swatter isn't needed.

I too don't understand this comment about obsessional use of AWeb - surely no-one would be that sad??? Mind you, my daughter does roll her eyes and say 'Not accounting stuff again, Mummy' when I nick my iPad back from here in the evening to read Any Answers! And I was reading it in bed this morning - hmmmm, maybe I need therapy?

Cathy

Thanks (0)
By ShirleyM
15th Jul 2011 11:54

So much fun

I love threads like this. Totally off the wall .... just a group of people being allowed to air our views and agreeing/disagreeing without a slanging match.

A forum basically exists for us to help one another, but as far as I know, there isn't any rule to say we can't have a bit of fun, too!

... and for a bit more fun (the oldies among us, anyway, and maybe something new for the youngsters)  .....

www.youtube.com/watch

Thanks (0)
avatar
By thisistibi
15th Jul 2011 12:24

Fly swatters

I have one of those electric fly swatters that takes a 9v battery and frazzles the flies in mid-air.  Has the advantage of keeping the windows (and walls) clean.  Highly recommended but hurts if you electrocute yourself by mistake...

Thanks (0)
By Becky Midgley
15th Jul 2011 12:29

Good, clean, friendly fun is actively encouraged!

Go on, enjoy yourselves! It is Friday after all :)

Thanks (0)
By ShirleyM
15th Jul 2011 12:32

thisistibi

I had those 'blue light' electric fly killers in my stables, but my highly strung TB mare used to have a hissy fit everytime a fly landed on it 'cos it made a loud 'cracking' sound. In the end I replaced hers with the old fashioned sticky fly papers .... but they were effective.

So there you have it ... with a big stretch of the imagination we could say elephants are scared of mice, and horses are scared by flies ;)

Thanks (0)
By Steve Holloway
15th Jul 2011 12:34

On fly swats ...

 we used to go to my grannies each year and have a fly swat competition i.e. keeping count of direct hits. This was the 70's but why the hell were there so many flies ... we would often get to 30+ each after an hours play?! I also recall that we were rationed to three pieces of toilet paper each .... ah ... mystery solved then.

 

Thanks (0)
By Becky Midgley
15th Jul 2011 12:40

Did Granny live in the country?

It sounds horrible, but it's true I'm afraid: we used to get totally inundated with flies where I grew up every time they fertilised any of the fields around the house.  And once they were in the house they stayed for weeks! 

Thanks (0)
avatar
By User deleted
15th Jul 2011 13:11

£170 for a flame gun!

what's wrong with a can of sparkle and a box of matches!

Thanks (0)
avatar
By User deleted
15th Jul 2011 13:19

Although Becky with a fly swat ...

... sounds right up Max Mosley's street - lol

Oops, just saw the bit about "Clean" :o)

Thanks (0)
avatar
By Richard Willis
15th Jul 2011 13:26

Flash

Fly swatters readily available in Tescos, in the 'Keep it Handy' section!  The old ways are the best; now can anyone tell me where I can get a new quill pen?!

Thanks (0)
avatar
By poppydew
15th Jul 2011 14:04

Absolutely not!

I only found this site a couple of weeks ago and think it's wonderful! As a new bookkeeper I am looking forward to using it regularly and have already picked up tons of useful facts! Don't be so negative...

Thanks (0)
avatar
By 3569787
03rd May 2016 18:04

Fly swaps!

Thanks (0)
avatar
By User deleted
15th Jul 2011 14:29

Quill pens...

can be found in Tescos in the Back to School section on the bottom shelf, far right, where it says 'Quills, 2 shillings' - oh no, there's a 'Sorry we've run out and can't be bothered to refill the shelf this year' sign on it. You'd better try Diagon Alley then.......

Thanks (0)
avatar
By User deleted
15th Jul 2011 14:32

Richard

if you wait 'til Spetember I'll get you some pheasant ones!

Thanks (0)
By ShirleyM
15th Jul 2011 14:38

OGA

That reminds me of the old song about the pheasant plucker ...... oops ... I think I had better stop there!!!!!!!!!

ps. Welcome PoppyDew - we hope you stick around for a long time :) (but watch out for Flash ... he'll make you spill your tea!)

Thanks (0)
By Steve Holloway
15th Jul 2011 14:39

@ Poppydew

 I would love to think in this world that there is someone with the name 'Poppy dew'  . ... so if it is a non de plume then don't spoil the illusion!

Thanks (0)
FT
By FirstTab
15th Jul 2011 14:54

No

AW will never pass it sell by date as long as any answers remains. It is a great source of learning and asking questions.

For obvious reasons I want this site to concentrate on the world of small practice.

The recent job adverts  are not my liking. On the plus side these job adverts mean that the site remains free.

I prefer the AW the way it is. AW should not worry about getting new blood. New blood will come through making the content highly relevant to small practices and not venturing outside this. It should become the No 1 source of info (if not yet) for small practices.

Don't spread yourself too thinly AW.

 

 

Thanks (0)
avatar
By User deleted
15th Jul 2011 16:12

@ Poppydew

You'll also pick up tons of useless facts, plenty of fiction and spend half your day on it! (and the rest of the day mopping up the tea!!) By 11am I'd done just 10 mins of work, and that was only because a client rang and talked for 10 mins - disturbing me when I was typing a comment on AWeb no less :)

It's a wonderful place - as long as you don't have work to get done in a rush! Welcome :)

Thanks (0)
By Becky Midgley
15th Jul 2011 16:32

I have to say...

This is a lovely way for me to finish up this week.  It's been a tough week for me personally, but you guys have cheered me up with all this positive stuff (and the other constructive criticism has still given us good food for thought).

You will all (oldies and newbies) be interested to know that we are currently in the test phase of the new Aweb, and I hope to be able to annouce it's delivery to all next week!  I am so impressed with it, I can't wait to launch it.  I am sure you will absolutely love it!  And what's more, it is a real celebration of collaboration with you guys as well - you have told us what you would like/need from us and I think we will be delivering on it, and then some if you ask me!  But maybe I am biased.

I'm looking forward to next week now, it will be an exciting milestone for Aweb, and this thread is the perfect prelude to it. 

Thanks (0)
avatar
By Phil Rees
15th Jul 2011 16:54

I really

"it takes time before the users who have been put off from posting for fear of being attacked come back or are gradually replaced."

I find that comment quite incredible. I have been posting a little less in recent months for personal reasons. I am not deterred by self-styled internet hard men. I just ignore them.

 

Thanks (0)
avatar
By Sherlock
15th Jul 2011 17:04

technical content has dropped

Apart from Rebecca Benneyworth's contributions, the technical tax content has diminshed. I am a previous regular contributor, and still log into AWeb regularly.

Thanks (0)
By frankie
15th Jul 2011 18:50

-

[removed by mod - childish and unnecessary]

 

Thanks (0)
Teignmouth
By Paul Scholes
15th Jul 2011 20:02

Perhaps you chose your words to liven things up?

Well here goes......this is an open forum, and if you don't think the questions are worthy of the lofty heights of your technical  knowledge or skills in using the search facility, then sign off.  

I ask questions to help me with a problem which will help me grow (or probably maintain) my business, as do most other posters.  Perhaps you think that, before being allowed to post a question, we should all have to sign a declaration that we have trawled through our tax & accounting textbooks but have come up with a blank?

What's ironic is the hypocrisy in voicing your perforative  views when, "had you bothered to use the search facility", you'd have found both made several times over the years, eliciting similar responses.

Best I can do, but hope it helps.

Thanks (0)
By ShirleyM
15th Jul 2011 20:20

I hadn't noticed

In common with Paul, I haven't noticed a drop off, or repetitive posts that don't teach me something new.

There are many technical questions, and some very knowledgeable respondents who give their time freely. I'm not one of them, because anything out of the ordinary and I go looking for specialist support, but I learn a lot from these posts, even if I don't contribute anything.

I think earlier comments, by FirstTab and others, that this forum really benefits the sole practitioners, the new starters, and the small practices in general, is true. I doubt that anyone in a very large practice, with in-house specialists, would need Aweb as much as the 'little guys' and AWeb would be a waste of their time, apart from the 'social' aspect of being a member.

EDIT: just re-read my post and wanted to clarify my comment about posters from larger practices wasting their time. It would have been clearer for me to say that people from larger practices are more likely to give their knowledge, rather than look for knowledge.

Thanks (0)
Teignmouth
By Paul Scholes
16th Jul 2011 09:35

People from larger practices

Shirley - That's an interesting point, it was some time ago but, when I worked in larger practices, there were, at times, barriers to gaining technical knowledge because it meant asking others and if you were struggling with internal politics or had to track down someone in another department (eg tax) that wasn't easy.  Also, in my case, especially just after qualification, I dreaded asking something that others thought I should have known, an issue others have raised on here.

The availability of the web, and sites like this, would have made my life so much easier and even if someone told me my question was vacuous there is always someone else who would answer.

 

Thanks (0)

Pages