Finally have our Seaglass just how we want it- What do you think?

[enigma]

I think its ok not to give information about a specific thing that is your bread and butter.
However your 18 posts on the forum appear to be all either asking for advice for yourself or promoting yourself.
A little give and take is essential for a community to work.
Personally Im not a fan of sea glass so it doesn't interest me but we have many novices reading that Im sure you could have offered some form of advice to on occasion instead of just using the forum for your own purposes.

[handmadeblanks]

So just to be clear - you want help from other people, but you aren't prepared to help others?
That's not what this forum is for.

I didn't interpret what was written in that way. It looks to me as if Mick is not prepared to give away a very specific hard earned 'edge' and I don't see anything wrong with that. I have seen other well respected members in this forum say the same thing when asked how they did something very specific to their jewellery.

The mistake you made Mick was saying you weren't telling before anyone even asked.

[mick]

I think its ok not to give information about a specific thing that is your bread and butter.
However your 18 posts on the forum appear to be all either asking for advice for yourself or promoting yourself.
A little give and take is essential for a community to work.
Personally Im not a fan of sea glass so it doesn't interest me but we have many novices reading that Im sure you could have offered some form of advice to on occasion instead of just using the forum for your own purposes.

I agree you have to give back and i haven't much, but i am in reality very new to this and hope i can contribute a lot more as my experience grows

I may well take more than i give until my knowledge grows. Myself and my partner have no previous experience and i am transplanting my hand skills from another career. But hopefully i will be able to help people in the future

[mick]

I have to say as well to everyone. I had no idea that posting in here would be classed as for personal gain if thats the general consensus.

I posted those pictures because i wanted the opinion of real jewellery makers, to see if i have produced something to a standard people on here with far more experience rate. It was quite a nervous decision for me as i am very critical of what i make.

Thanks
Mick

[handmadeblanks]

I have to say as well to everyone. I had no idea that posting in here would be classed as for personal gain if thats the general consensus.

I posted those pictures because i wanted the opinion of real jewellery makers, to see if i have produced something to a standard people on here with far more experience rate. It was quite a nervous decision for me as i am very critical of what i make.

Thanks
Mick

I don't subscribe to the give and take philosophy. There must be lurkers who only take and never give but does that bother anyone?

People are free to make their own choices, some are happy to keep giving even if they get nothing other than a "thank you" in return.

Nobody is obliged to help and nobody can demand it either.

Forums thrive because there are always people seeking help in a specific field and there are always people willing to provide it freely...not because there is some kind of give and take rule.

[ps_bond]

I don't subscribe to the give and take philosophy. There must be lurkers who only take and never give but does that bother anyone?

Not so much, personally. The knowledge is still being shared, but without engaging there's less benefit to it. There's no "I refuse to share anything because lurkers might read it"... As you correctly indicated, it's the overt refusal (without any indication that anyone had a burning desire to know, even) that appalled me.

Nobody is obliged to help and nobody can demand it either.

True. However, when someone announces they're not going to do the former, yet do the latter, that is not a balanced approach and does not encourage me (or others) to assist and nor should it. Especially where there is actually nothing novel about the process being held up as "secret" (as a quick Google will show).

All of us have learned through the generosity of others. In all areas. As in many other walks of life, there is nothing new under the sun. Oh, and any skill requires practice to become proficient at it - just because I can tell you how to do micropavé, for example, doesn't mean you're immediately going to be able to do great things with it...

[pearlescence]

Out of curiosity, is that really sea glass - ie glass picked up off a beach or just bits of glass?
I know of lots of 'sea glass' which is really just glass bits shoved into a tumbler.

[enigma]

I agree you have to give back and i haven't much, but i am in reality very new to this and hope i can contribute a lot more as my experience grows

I may well take more than i give until my knowledge grows. Myself and my partner have no previous experience and i am transplanting my hand skills from another career. But hopefully i will be able to help people in the future

Thats fair enough Mick, most of us will 'take' more when we start out, I know I certainly did.
You may well be surprised if you stick around how many questions you are able to help others with

[enigma]

I don't subscribe to the give and take philosophy. There must be lurkers who only take and never give but does that bother anyone?

People are free to make their own choices, some are happy to keep giving even if they get nothing other than a "thank you" in return.

Nobody is obliged to help and nobody can demand it either.

Forums thrive because there are always people seeking help in a specific field and there are always people willing to provide it freely...not because there is some kind of give and take rule.

The whole of society works better with everybody giving a little back rather than just taking though don't you think?
Nobody can force it but if everybody just took it would be a pretty crappy place.

[handmadeblanks]

The whole of society works better with everybody giving a little back rather than just taking though don't you think?
Nobody can force it but if everybody just took it would be a pretty crappy place.

I don't believe in coercion. Society works best when there is voluntary exchange, and because we advanced beyond barter and use money as a medium of exchange there is no problem with regards to giving back anything. Do you complain about customers taking your jewellery and only giving you money and nothing else in exchange? OK, a compliment is nice, but surely you don't coerce them into doing that?

But this forum is free to use, so I'm not sure what can be suggested in regard to people who have nothing to contribute and only come here to learn. A limit on the number of questions? I can't see how that could make things better...actually, I don't see any issue with this forum or any other forum that operates on voluntary exchange.

This place will never be crappy as long as the knowledgeable people are content with answering questions posted by others. If the questions are genuine and pertinent, I couldn't care if the same person kept asking and the same person kept answering because we all derive a benefit even from that exchange. I don't even view it as one doing all the giving and one doing all the taking. Asking questions is indirectly helping those who may have the same or similar questions.

I think this thread has strayed off topic because the OP made the presumption that people would demand to know his secret technique that will make £££millions!

As a result I'm not telling anyone my secret Piri-Piri chicken recipe, so don't even think of asking!