What's with BiddingForTravel??
 

Has it gone belly-up? The moderator hasn't posted in over a month and those who used to help her out seem to have vanished as well. What gives?

I was on there this morning and noticed the same thing. Wonder what's going on?

She posted a note a while back saying that personal matters would not allow her to participate much if any for a while, and asking others to step up to the plate and help out. It appears that last part isn't happening too much.

I'd guess most of us don't consider ourselves expert enough at using priceline to offer the detailed bidding strategies that used to be given there. I'm happy to help out family and friends with what I know, but certainly can't claim to be an expert at all things priceline related, even for the couple of cities that I use it for regularly. I bet I'm not the only one.

Glad you posted the question because I had noticed something going on (or should I say nothing going on).
Thanks for answer jlm_mi.

She wrote one message in March regarding limited coverage, which Arrzee brought to the top by editing it in the beginning of July, but she hasn't posted anything that I've seen anyway, since June 7 when she said there would be limited coverage from 6-8 to 6-12, and as far as I can tell, the others who helped her are no longer around either. It seems as if something major happened there and no one is saying "boo" about it?

I'm not affiliated with BFT but I am "covering" a few of the boards in areas where I've been recently or know well (Portland). I hope others will do the same.

Andrew

I've started using betterbidding.com. Was scared I'd get jumped on by the BFT moderator (it seemed that happened quite often to posters a year or so ago).

I hope the personal matters are nothing of a serious nature. I do not wish ill on anyone.

That said, many of us here have reported having personal issues with her and her attitude towards posters who do not follow her rules.

I don't wish anyone ill, either, but, then again, it's hard to feel sympathy for someone who treated others the way she treated many on that board.

I've found the folks at betterbidding. com to be much more congenial and helpful.

Hmmm, another week has passed with no appearance by the moderator and no explanation as to what's happening there. I also noticed that the "community chest", where donations are made to sustain the board, has disappeared, as well as a method to contribute to it. I can't help but wonder if the board is finished?

A lot of people had the same concerns expressed above about the moderator. She could be sharp, no doubt about it, but she seemed to work almost single handedly 24/7 and that's enough to make the most sanguine of personalities rabid at times I'd think. :) Who knows, maybe she's just taking an extended vacation, deserved, too, but I don't think that's the case. Can't imagine it just ending without a word??

I think it is too valuable a tool for it to just end. I would think one of the big travel sites would probably swoop in and purchase BFT before it would go by the wayside.

Yes, Sheryl could be a pill but I think the same questions over and over without reading the FAQ would make me crazy.

"how can I be assured of getting hotel XYZ?"

"the hotel I won gets horrible reviews on Trip Advisor, how can I get a refund?"

"I only paid $85 for a four star hotel room in NYC in 2002 and I can't figure out why priceline will not accept the same bid for October/December. I think priceline is purposely jacking up the prices and ripping off the consumer".

I really hope she will come back soon and/or someone else will take that board over. It has so much useful information, it would be a shame if people failed to post their bids.

I saw a thread on BFT about the Community Chest. I think I read that Ezboard, the host of BFT, was discontinuing that feature (for all their customers, not just BFT). So don't read too much into that.

Andrew

I believe he said he "thought" community chest would be discontinued or not supported in future releases, Andrew, but he wasn't definitive...

It's just a curious situation going from something that was quite active to one where no one really seems to know what's going on.

<<I really hope she will come back soon and/or someone else will take that board over. It has so much useful information, it would be a shame if people failed to post their bids.>>

Who would want to? One would almost need a guarantee that people would read the FAQ before volunteering for such a thankless task.

And still no Sheryl and most of the other moderators at BFT. There have been some harsh things said about her, but my take is she was VERY strict and as a consequence BFT had much less wandering and junk than less sternly managed sites. Yes, I was verbally smacked a couple of times, but realized I was at fault and shaped up.

I've also been trying to help where my limited experience lets me.

Totally puzzled as to just what is going on, and hoping Sheryl and cohorts will return - Romelle

I only posted to BFT once and I was immediately banned. I asked a Sheryl question and she referred me to the guidelines. I felt so silly for not reading the guidelines I posted back saying, "duh," intending to poke fun at myself. Evidently she thought I was being rude to her so she banned me. I tried to send a note in the EZ Box to explain the misunderstanding but she had blocked me from sending her messages as well.

The worst thing is that I was not just banned from posting, she somehow banned me from even viewing this site, evidently by using my IPO address. I don't care if I never post there again, but I did want to view the site as it's a helpful resource for using priceline.

I have since bought a new computer (not because of this issue) and I can now view BFT, but under no circumstances will I ever attempt to post there again. I hope the problems in her life will be resolved soon, but if she's gone from BFT, then good riddance.

Sheryl's back.

Hope all is well in her life. My take on people being banned for not following the rules is that the business owners (Sheryl, etc.) have to realize that dealing with stupid and annoying people is part of the cost of doing business. I do not see it as any different than someone running a retail establishment - staff must deal with all sorts of annoyances and if they can not handle it, there are probably other lines of work more appropriate for them.

But they are not running a business, they are essentially running a volunteer organization. Even a business can choose who they want to deal with. Busineses cater to customer s when they want to encourage business, but BFT has more work than they can handle. If they choose to filter out those who cannot or will not follow their rules, that's their choice. As Sheryl has pointed out, their staff time is an extremely limited resource, there's no point iin using it up to cover material that's in the FAQ.