This made me think for half a second... forums are very easy to set up. If there's a void, maybe someone should step up and fill it and create an unofficial fan forum for discussions. I created and ran an unofficial fan forum for a band for 8 long years. The forum had in its peak 6 thousand very active members and received literally half a million guests a month. It was no piece of cake. In fact it burned me almost completely out. In the end I got absolutely no credit for it, I never got a thanks from anyone, and I never got as much as an eyebrow raise, that is, until I quit. Then people in and around that band took notice. Just the thought of doing that all over again makes me a little nauseous and dizzy. I enjoy blogging. It's like talking to the wall... there's no one there to give you instant feedback. You just put it out there, and hope someone likes what you have to say. I like it this way. It's still a shame that Mike closed his forum, but perhaps there's something better in store down the road. And if someone wants to create an unofficial one, I'll be more than happy to dispense some wisdom and advice.
UPDATE 11/1/12
Mike addresed this issue of his fan forum closing via his Facebook page:
Hi everyone. I wanted to comment on closing the Official Mike Holmes Forum. It was a difficult decision but we are going to use the knowledge we gained from the forum to develop more tips and articles to help you through your home renovations. Every home is different - and the best thing to do is call a pro in your local area. Thanks everyone for your support & understanding.
WTF? Why would they do this? -Dingo
ReplyDeleteYeah, is this a temporary situation or a permanent one? I loved that forum, would be a shame to see it go
ReplyDeleteGreat forum. Lots of knowledge (trades) people. Accent on Canadian codes etc. I loved it. Sad to see it go.
ReplyDeleteToo many of Mike's boo boos were coming back to haunt him on his own website. Bad PR, so they killed it. Just my 2 cents.....
ReplyDeleteI was the first & longest serving moderator of the forum & I was very shocked & disappoointed that the closure of the forum was done in such a sudden & unexpected manner. If for no other reason than courtesy, there should have been an announcement to the (9) moderators as well as the membership. A brief announcement on Facebook doesn't mean much. Not everybody subscribes to Facebook. The tips & articles that are on the current page are not going to replace the one-on-one, specific to a problem advice & information that the forum provided. Who wants to go through 7 pages of general information on Wet Basements?
ReplyDeleteThis closure was handled very badly in my opinion & is not in keeping with their famous slogan "Make It Right.
Jundee
Jundee!
DeleteThanks for all of your efforts and great attitude over the years on the forum! ...I am glad I found a post by you to be able to tell you directly.
All the best,
"Bobbo"
Agreed!
DeleteGood to see a familiar name, Jundee!
DeleteI couldn't believe they closed it! And they didn't tell any of you in advance?? I've been trying to get as much info from the forums as I could salvage using the Wayback Machine..
sigh... I LOVE Mike - but articles can't replace the family spirit those forums had. :(
If you or any of the old crowd decides to start up a forum - spread the word - I'll be there.
Benji's Girl
Just realized this forum died! I use to frequent it a lot! :( Hadn't been on there for a few years but was looking for some reno information and tried to get back in for some info and it was GONE!!! Cry... Gonna miss that site.
DeleteTaiser
I found the forum was very professional and helped a lot in making things right. I'm very disaponted with forum closure I guess that helping people is not as important for Mike Holmes Company anymore, show business took it over. On the former forum site now are few very general articles and links for finding contractors. If I need a quick opinions from professionals on my DYI project I need to find other place to ask what they think needs to "make it right". And find another folks I can trust with advise and doing the job in I'm not up to it. By the way I trusted forum way more than TV, we all know that on TV they make a show, the real troubles and hard work is off the camera.
ReplyDeleteThanks to all the moderators! It is a shame that all that information is not even available in an archive anymore.
ReplyDeleteA frequent lurker - and occasional poster.
I agree with Jundee, it seemed to be handled poorly and in isolation. Also the members should know that there was a lot of backroom stuff going on with spam and bogus posts.
ReplyDeleteDee in particular handled most of that and I am thankful for that. There was talk of it being a temporary situation, but based on the method of announcement it appears permanent.
All I can say, if you want the forum back up and running, email Mike and let him know. If there is a demand perhaps it will be re-established.
Cheers
John Kuehnl-Cadwell
Master Electrician
AKA Navyguy - Electrical Moderator (former)
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteThanks for all your help Navy, Just passed my final today thanks to some great advice you provided in posts and PM
DeleteI loved this forum, the great 1 on 1 advice and help to every situation was priceless. Its a shame to see it go. If it isn't set back up it would be great if a bunch of former members/mods decided to setup another on a free site just so we could re-establish the communications again.
Thank you Bobbo, Holmes spot & Navyguy. Very much appreciated. It pains me no end that after 9 years of supporting Mike & the Holmes organisations I now have to be critical of their actions.
ReplyDeleteI have been told that Mike knew nothing of what transpired & that the comment posted on his Facebook page did not comne from him. Even the administrator, his daughter, knew nothing.
If I had to speculate I would think that al qaeda has infiltrated the organisation to sabotage Mike's efforts to "Make It Right".
Jundee
LOL -- Well Jundee, again, I didn't post much there, but I completely appreciate your efforts and insight into this situation. It's really helpful in knowing what transpired. I'm saddened that they didn't give you the mods who made the forum what it was some advanced notice of the closure. As someone who's been a forum mod/admin, I would view what they did as extremely discourteous. Nobody is perfect, nope, not even Mike. :)
DeleteWell, to flesh it out things a little more...
DeleteSince early this year we started to have a serious spam problem which had reached the point, prior to the closure, where we were getting over 100 spam posts per day. Our admin tried all kinds of stuff but was handicapped by the fact that she had a 2 year old son & was expecting again with the baby born last month. Under the circumstances no one could expect her to continue as admin.
Various ideas were floated, among them to archive the accumulated info & close the forum. Another idea was to put advertising on the forum since it did not produce any revenue since hiring an administrator would cost money.
My view was that archiving would eliminate the one-on-one immediate response to specific problems and/or questions & people might as well just buy a book.
Putting ads on the forum would remove one of the most unique features of the forum & require a body to handle, which would cost money as well.
The last word we got was that the forum would be closed for a couple of weeks to try & find a solution to the spam problem.
In principle, I do not object to the closure of the forum. 9 years is a pretty good run & nothing lasts forever. I would have volunteere to act as moderator but I don't have the skills or knowledge for that & at age 80 don't know how long I could've done it anyway.
I also find it difficult to believe that no solution to the spam problem could be found. Others have done it.
I understand that Holmes has expanded into a conglomorate
but I don't buy the notion that the forum was not worth keeping because it provided no revenue. The thousands of members watched his shows, bought his books, DVD's & merchandise. The went to his appearances, book signings etc. The contributed to the overall success. They supported his charities & his foundation.
It seems that all of that doesn't count for very much.
To kill this off in such a cold blooded fashion just doesn't make any sense.
Jundee
Once again, your insight into the situation is extremely valuable. Thank you for that, and for the time you put into it. I had a huge spam problem as well on the board that I ran singlehandedly for 7 or 8 years, which had six thousand members at its peak. What I did for a while was require membership approval before users could post. Fortunately, with the type of forum I ran, real users chose somewhat predictable user names. I got tired of doing this after a while, so I transfered my board to a different host where there were better measures in place to catch spam. With the transfer, all of the users and their posts were preserved.
DeleteBeing a board admin or moderator is a very time consuming labor of love, and I can see how having a little one and one on the way could be tough. The biggest nuisance for me was user drama - being that the membership was 90 percent female - not so much the spam. Perhaps using a different board host would have solved many of their problems? Guess we'll never know.
Sooo disappointing! I agree with all the positive comments and share the surprise and concerns. I asked questions and contributed answers as well. Most of all I really enjoyed reading and learning about specific issues. And following the updates and Mike, his crew and activities. I've already left a comment on their Facebook. Their must be a better way to handle this! Thanks to all who made it such a joy and success.
ReplyDeleteBruce (mint402)
Awful thing they've done. A lot of us really depended on the useful advice, and went back time and again to our bookmarked threads as we worked out a project. They could have at least archived it, as I've seen many other forums do.
ReplyDeleteI just discovered that every reference to the Mike Holmes Fan Forum on Google now shows the new page they put up after closing the forum.
ReplyDeleteThere are 6 pages, going all the way back to 2006.
There has been no response from Mike Holmes or the Holmes Group to any of the comments that have been posted so far on this site, nor the Mike Holmes Blog Spot, nor Facebook, nor my letter to Mike.
I'm guessing that Mike still has not recovered from the illness he contracted when he was in Central America.
The obvious sign of that is the fact that there have been no new entries since Nov. 1st on the "Latest News" section of the opening page of their website that announce his activities, appearances, book signing, etc.
http://makeitright.ca/
Jundee
Hey Dee. Remember me??? LOL
ReplyDeleteFor everyone else, I am the original creator/owner of the Mike Holmes Fan Forum which turned into the Official Forum.
The reason they had so much spam is because of the registration controls and they they were still using the freeware forum software I handed off to them I beleive. It really is an I.T. job to keep it running. I know the current administrator was doing an awesome job keeping it running but there is only so much she could do. Poor girl has a plateful and then some.
Here's hoping it comes back. I didn't really visit it much in the public eye anymore, but it was a great resource...and I know they can make it work..
Peace!
Samahin
Hey Chuck, I'm glad to see you're still alive. I tried to phone & e-mail you over the years a few times but couldn't connect.
ReplyDeleteI'm getting some heat from some quarters about "ranting & raving" about the closing.
Most of those comments are from the US. I bet none of them were ever on the forum & they have no idea how much time & effort and, yes, even money we put into this deal for 9 years.
That deserves a little more than how this was handled. Especially with all that talk about doing it right.
Jundee
I forgot to mention that several weeks prior to the closure, while discussing how to deal with spam, I had suggested to have my son fix the problem without any cost to them.
ReplyDeleteHe's an I.T. specialist with IBM & deals with those type of problems all the time.
I received a nice Thank You & that it might be considered if nothing else worked.
Never heard from anybody after that.
I just discovered an interesting development:
ReplyDeleteThe following quote plus a couple of replies outof a total of over 130 has been removed from the Mike Holmes Facebook:
Re: Holmes Fan Forum closed !?!
Quote"Mike Holmes
November 1
Hi everyone. I wanted to comment on closing the Official Mike Holmes Forum. It was a difficult decision but we are going to use the knowledge we gained from the forum to develop more tips and articles to help you through your home renovations. Every home is different - and the best thing to do is call a pro in your local area. Thanks everyone for your support & understanding.
4Like · Comment · Share
Sherrie Lauthner, Krista Wyss, K. Scott Downs and 520 others like this.
2 of 131
View previous comments
Rainie Leroux Not good enough. No notice, no reason. Mike, I think you may want to make this one right. I have been on the forum since it opened and you did not even e-mail anyone with any sort of notice. Very bad PR and I have lost faith in you and what you stand for.
Yesterday at 9:55am
Bob DeZeeuw I, for one, am very disappointed with this decision, the complete absence of forewarning and the lack of rationale provided as to why the decision was made. It is leaving many of us guessing. The form was a fantastic resource for those who where trying to live the "Make It Right" mantra in their own homes. Thanks to all of the active posters and volunteer moderators for their continued efforts. First time that the Mike holmes "business" has disappointed me as a fan and vocal supporter of the message.
15 hours ago"Unquote
It appears that somebody at HOH has seen this & decided to get rid of it. I guess they didn't like that 99% of the responses were negative.
Jundee
Jundee... I just noticed that too... I was curious to see which way the comments were going and when back to look for it.
ReplyDeleteI was a frequent luker and occasional poster on the forum... probably back from at least 2005. I gained lots on knowledge and insight from you and the rest of the Mods as well as a number of other frequent posters.
As for the forum itself, like you, I'm disappointed but I understand there are many reasons for closing it down and closing it completely. The part that I'm pissed off about is how it was done. If nothing else, you and all the other mods that have put in count-less hours should have gotten some advance notice and a big thank you.
Personally, I think they should have left a spot for the Mods to leave some final words and left that as the "last page".
Anyways, Jundee Thank you for all you time and efforts on the fourms.
and if you are in contact with them also to NavyGuy, Samahin, Gencon, Stuart,... and more that I can't remember.
Cheerio!
Atomicatom
Thank you & I'll pass your comments along to the other mods & members.
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, I checked back earlier this morning and the posts on the Holmes Facebook site were back again. Don't know what to make of it.
Jundee
I hope the forum comes back! There are other DIY forums on the web but it was nice having one with a distinctly Canadian perspective (to understand local building code issues etc).
ReplyDeleteModern forum software has many controls available to easily cut down on spam - hopefully they will realize the mistake they made and bring it back.
Atomicatom,
ReplyDeleteI think I found out what happened with the Facebook postings.
Mike has 2 Facebook pages & it's possible I looked at the wrong one last night (or rather 2am early morning).
Jundee
I posted on that forum for quite a while... pretty sure I had a full "five hammers" or whatever it was, but life got in the way and I stopped posting for a while.
ReplyDeleteJust the other day as I was planning a new project I started thinking how I should log back in to the forum and document the project along the way. Much to my disappointment I visited the site only to find it was closed.
Needless to say, I'm very disappointed. It was a fantastic community - and I liked the indirect communication from Mike via Mandy. I still remember one time I was giving Mike a hard time about the numerous scenes where they were using wrenches to raise jackposts and I mentioned how it would be much easier to use hydraulic jacks and then insert the jack post. Mike was walking through the office at the time and Mandy asked him about it... he basically said I was right but sometimes they didn't have the proper equipment so they used what they had - plus I'm pretty sure it looked better on TV and in the show intro to see a big guy pulling on a huge wrench and jacking up a house like a superhero.
I wonder where everyone will land. Any hopes that someone will start an unofficial fan forum? I REALLY, REALLY wish they could have at least archived the existing content. There was a veritable treasure trove of material and knowledge there and now it is all gone forever. How incredibly sad.
I too was a "member" of the fan foum. Checked it out frequentley and posted a few times now and then and do miss it.
ReplyDeleteMy thought is that, why it was closed is none of my business really. I'm sure they have their reasons. It would have been nice, howvever, for some sort of advance notice so a person could have at least said a virtual "goodbye" to all the regulars there.
Still like watching the various Holmes shows (when HGTV and DIY decide to show them). I'd very much doubt Mike Holmes himself had anything to do with the forum's closing.
Finally "Googled" it today and this came up in the search results and decided to check it out for any info on the closing. Thank you Jundee, and I saw you posted similar things on another site as well. Can't recall what it was. Another one that came up but I'm not registered so...............
Aspen79
Well damn that sucks.
ReplyDeleteI was just going to ask some electrical wiring advice, but I guess not.
If this is it, I'd like to thank all the people that kept the forum going, and thank everyone who gave me advice, the many times I needed advice.
MJM
hardasnails: I was just to make posting in the 'Lounge" asking if anyone knows what to do about a mouse that gets into my glove compartment box of my car?
ReplyDeleteI think it suks that they killed the forum. I mean ... did Mike have any say in it? This is just BS.how could they do that!
I would have had no problem with advertising on the forum. No problem with it at all.
Hey - I logged onto the site but unfortunately I noted that the forum had been closed.
ReplyDeleteMy basement project has now been completed, passed all its inspections, and thanks to all the advice given, I did not have any trouble either with the contractors, or the work I did myself.
The place looks really nice now - In a nutshell, we gutted the old basement of moldy drywall and did the entire thing the Mike Holmes Way - it is now the warmest room in the whole house, and the 4 piece bathroom unit is the envy of some of our neighbours.
Just wanted to give a big thanks to all the moderators, as well as NavyGuy, Gencon, Stuart, Jundee and all the others who provided interesting stories and advice. We could not have done it without you.
Menorche
This really sucks. That was THEE best home improvement forum out there.
ReplyDeleteCan't help but feel that Mike Holmes has grown too big for his britches and no longer really cares about anyone or anything other than Mike Holmes Incorporated. If I had to hazard a guess, I would wager that some MH Inc. lawyer told someone at Mike Holmes Inc, "hey there's a lot of advice floating around on that forum - some of it bad. What happens if some do it yourselfer wires up his house wrong after reading bad advice on that forum and burns his house down and they come after us" Response - "yeah, better take down the forum and blame spam, they'll buy the span angle"
I was on that forum for years and I never saw that much (if any) spam frankly. So I'm just not buying the spam angle. Some Lawyer somewhere put the fear of "liability" in them. This is why the forum isn't even archived. Besides, even if there was spam - big deal, just skip right past it. I cannot believe for a second that MH Inc. with all it's money can't employ some Ryerson Grad for 50 grand a year or so to remove spam from a forum (amongst other things).
There were some very knowledgable guys on that forum and they helped me in the past and in return, I dispensed allot of free advice as well too.
By the way, I am a professional Engineer - Structural in Ontario and I doled out allot of free advice to people over the years that they would have had to have paid good money for if they called me up. I did it because I was part of "the community" on that forum. It is very very sad to read that it has been taken off.
I hope that someone starts up their own forum. They could sell advertising banners and make a living at it.
Signed
Jim Kirk, P.Eng.
Jim, The spam problem was no exaggeration. I dealt with most of it as far as removing it was concerned. We were getting more than 100 spam posts every day. Some posters repeated as much as 15 - 20 times a day. Our Admin. was expecting a 2nd child just around the time the forum closed & passed the problem on to the office for resolution.
ReplyDeleteWe were told that the forum would be closed for a short period to correct the spam problem & I suspect that someone in the office decided not to bother & just shut it down. In 9 years they never paid any attention to the forum & I guess nobody in the Holmes administration was interested in getting involved with it. They didn't care about it one way or another as long as they didn't have to get involved.
I even offered the services of my son for free to fix the spam proble. He works at IBM as a IT specialist & deals with that stuff all the time. I got a thenk you & nothing further.
Mike was in South America when the forum was closed & returned very sick the first ov November & if you check there are no activities by him listed on the Holmes website, just canned stuff that anybody in the office can handle. I don't believe that Mike had anything to do with the closing.
As far as the notion of lawyers and liability are concerned, I don't buy it. All the usual disclaimers were posted on the forum and it doesn't make sense that nothing of that sort ever came up in 9 years that it should happen all of a sudden now.
There is also another angle to this story. Michael Quast, the guy who convinced Mike Holmes to start this whole thing, left the company, "on good terms" in June or July according to Google and they have a new CEO. Maybe she decided to scrap the forum. That's just guessing on my part.
I'll see if I can find the link.
Jundee
Jim, click on July on this site & several articles are listed regarding the the departure of M.Q.
ReplyDeleteAs I've said before, what has bothered me most about this whole affair is that a company who preached integrity & "Make It Right" constantly apparently forgot all about it when it came to closing the forum.
After 9 years the members, the moderators, administrators & even the public in general, deserved that.
Jundee
If I had the time, I'd start my own forum. But working 60 hours a week and travelling all over Canada just doesn't allow for it. Someone could make some money at it I'm sure.
ReplyDeleteEven if there was spam, it's not the end of the world - it's like receiving telemarketing calls. When I see a 1-800 number or "Unknown Name, Unknown Number" come up on the screen, I just don't answer the phone. Ditto spam, sure, it can be a pain, but just don't click on the link.
The loss of the forum is tragic and to me it demonstrates to what regard those on who run the Mike Holmes empire really care about anyone other than the Mike Holmes empire.
As to the lawyer theory, it is my own (conspiracy) theory of course. But having worked for a MASSIVE Engineering firm for 11 years, and a small one before that for 8 years, I've seen first hand how utterly paranoid they were about "liability". It's all about avoiding liability believe me. Recently the company I now work for was building a bridge. The Engineering Consultant had 2 full time site insepectors on the job that the owner was paying for. We were having a conference call about pile driving and cleaning out the interior of the piles (they are pipe piles) prior to filling them full of concrete. Anyway, I say, "we will clean out the piles and then (Large Engineering Firm) will certify that they are clean and we will fill them with concrete"
Project Engineer from Large Engineering Firm says (in front of the owner and everyone else), "no, we won't certify". "You need to certify" (I.e. me). I laugh at him, knowing full well that he has had it pounded into his skull to avoid taking on all liability at all costs at all times. So I say, "sure, I'll certify, but tell me then, why are you even on the job if your field engineers can't even confirm that we've cleaned mud out of a damn pile properly? Why is the owner paying you?" The Owner actually takes the bait and says to him, "yeah, I would think that it is your job to make sure that he (me) has properly cleaned out the piles"
I could hear that he was stumbling, looking for words, and he ends up saying, "Ok, we will ATEST, but we will not certify"
Oh brother.
But this is the state of the world. One where lawyers are seemingly involved in just about every decision.
The forum may have been active for 10 years, but someone somewhere could have came on the scene and got nervous. I can just hear the lawyer saying, "all it takes is one guy wiring his house with the advice he got from our forum and burning the house down and we've got a million dollar lawsuit on our hands"
Dunno if it's the case or not, but spam just doesn't seem reason enough.
All I know is the forum is gone and it's not even archived and it seems very heavy handed to me.
Jim Kirk
Well, Jim, anything is possible but my views, based on my long association with the forum, are that the bean counters at the Holmes Group just didn't think it worthwhile to waste time on something that did not produce any revenue & that would require some expenditures because Mandy, our administrator, had her 2nd child around the same time that the forum was closed.
DeleteSince she had a 2 year old & a new baby it was not possible for her to continue. That meant they would have to hire & pay an administrator which I guess they were not interested in.
Sure, as you suggest, they could have added advertising but that would require somebody to handle which would entail costs as well.
They don't seem to have considered the P.R. value of the forum or that many of the members watched the shows, boosting TV commercial income, they went to his appearances, bought his books & merchandise. As far as I'm concerned that's a revenue stream.
I think the main reason why they closed the forum was that they are involved in to many projects, potentially worth a great deal of money, that take priority.
They finally got approval for that housing development in Alberta and they've started a new company that will be involved in other TV productions.
They even have a separate company for licensing & marketing the Holmes brand. (Amazing what you can find on Google).
The producer who was responsible for getting Mike started on Holmes on Homes was the CEO when they formed the Holmes Group and he parted company in June of this year. The separation was called "Amicable" but no details were provided. I find it kind of strange that being part of the concept from the very beginning, and after all these years, he all of a sudden departs.
I've always felt that Mike had a tendency to let his dreams run away with him. Take some examples; They stopped producing DVD's after season 5 & have not issued any for any following seasons like Holmes Inspection, New Orleans & I doubt there will be any for the current shows.
He's been talking for years about a cartoon series for children.
He announced hooking up with some Native group & there's been nothing further on that front.
The magazine turned into a disaster & according to what they announced it cost them 1/2 mill. & there has been no further news on that subject since their original post. I doubt that there'll ever be another magazine based on their experience. You have to wonder how much due diligence was done before they got taken in by a shyster.
That development in Alberta was announced years ago & it looks like nobody gave much thought to all the red tape you have to go through with a project of that size.
There was talk of Mike going to Haiti after the earthquake.
We even had some forum members offering to volunteer.
Somebody at the Holmes Group doesn't seem to realize that Mike is on person. He's the brand. If something were to happen to him, what would become of the Holmes Group then?
When I found out that the forum had suddenly been closed I wrote a letter to Mike, marked personal & confidential & delivered it to the office in person. He was out of the country at the time, which I didn't know about.
I've heard nothing since then.
For years I was showered with compliments, they gave me a plaque in recognition, they threw a birthday party for me at their office.
All of a sudden not only I but all the other mods are treated like lepers.
I'm sure I'm no longer held in such high esteem because I've voiced my opinions about how this was handled.
They could've avoided all this controversy if they would've used their heads. Nobody objects to their closing the forum.
It's their property & they can do with it as they like.
What people object to was the way it was closed.
Jundee
Jundee,
DeleteI am glad to read that, just like us, you were in the dark. Mandy has helped me in some areas and also with a personal problem... He comments and words of reassurance helped me deal with something really important.
Unfortunately, I will no longer be able to address Mandy and see out some info on CCFC. I can only hope that things happen for a reason and that we will hear more news officially and that they will 'Make It Right'.
I'd asked a couple of questions on the forum, and was about to post something this evening, when I found it closed. A quick google threw up this page.
ReplyDeleteVery sad the forum is gone, especially as a read-only archive would have been great.
What forum software was being used? Any idea if there is a backup of the site anywhere?
If anyone does happen to have direct contact with Mike, perhaps they'd ask his actual opinions on this. I'm sure this doesn't fit in with his Make It Right attitude.
If I had known about this closure I would have happily offered my services to maintain a forum, for free. Ok, so some cash for the hosting and forum software might have been required, but it should not amount to too much really.
Out of curiosity, would anyone be interested in starting things back up? Perhaps a few of us with the skills required could come up with a plan? Perhaps the "Not The Official Mike Holmes Fan Forum" could be created?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI am still speechless at finding the Forum closed this morning. As any registered member I expected I would get a message forwarning the closure. But no.
ReplyDeleteI was about to start a new project this weekend and wanted some advice. I was instead greeted by that COMMERCIALS filled page saying the Forum is Closed. WTF ?!?!What IS this?? Where IS everybody???
Finaly found my way here... and my heart sank as I read... and read... I wanted to write my disapointement long and large but reading through the comments here others have said it better than I ever could. I just wish I could remember all the names of all those who answered my questions and helped me through my projects so I could thank them properly. You never know what you got till its gone... never so true as now...
My screen name was SoreEyes and for a little while Darthalie as there had been problems with the account (which Mandy graciously fixed). Anyone remembering interacting with those screen names consider yourselves thanked many times over. :)
That Forum... or should I say : THAT COMMUNITY! was a goldmine mine of good advice. The picture thread alone gave me new ideas and the guts to get my own in motion. I am sorry beyond words to see it's gone... and more so to read how it was done! What a shame!
I have no experience with putting together a Forum the size that one was... but I am game to help if anyone does.
To all MH Orphans out there: Watch and learn. Ask and learn. Keep educating yourselves. Know when to persevere... and when to call for professional help!
Nathalie aka SoreEyes, aka Darthalie,
Jundee, this is the first time I've been back to this blog since posting previously. I read your post above and all I can say is I'm sorry that you have not even had the courtesy of a return call.
ReplyDeleteI still lament the loss of the forum.
I was hoping that an alternate forum somewhere else would have been set up by now.
Maybe someone can convince Brian to set up a forum.
Jim Kirk
I've heard absolutely nothing from anybody in the Holmes camp. I wonder how Mike would react if I showed up at one of his public appearances? Or maybe I should go to his office & return all the autographed pictures & books etc. I've received over the years?
ReplyDeleteI don't know if Brian would be interested, he's a friend of Mike's. He was even at his birthday bash. I like Brian & how he operates on his show. He's not as over the top as Mike tends to be. I doubt he would consider setting up a forum since his operation is not anywhere the size of the Holmes Group.
I would have considered doing it if I were younger because I still have the names of hundreds of members I exchanged letters & phone calls with but I'm to old for that now.
Jundee
Correction.
ReplyDeleteI've learned the reason why the forum was closed.
I can't divulge the details, you'll just have to take my word for it.
I feel like a jerk now for the comments I made & if I had known what I know now I would've supported how the closure was handled.
All I can do now is to offer my sincere apologies for the comments I made without being aware of all the facts.
Jundee
I was very sad to see the forums gone today. I didn't use them often, but when I did, I received lots of advice and positive feedback. It was mentioned above by the Mike Holmes team, if you have a problem, contact a local contractor. Well, many of the problems we have, we've already contacted a local contractor. However, if the advice or work we get doesn't seem quite right, having the forums here, gave us a place to get more information about our situation. As "Making it Right" clearly shows, having a contractor with references doesn't always mean the work is done right.
ReplyDeleteToday my issue is gutters. Installed correctly, or not, by a contractor with good reference? They leak after one winter. Not sure where to go now for advice.
Is there another resource online that lets us crowd-source advice on home renovations, repairs, contractor work, or general home questions?
James
Try some of these:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.diychatroom.com/
http://www.doityourself.com/forum/
http://boards.diynetwork.com/eve
http://www.diyforums.net/
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=39
I don't know how good any of them are.
Jundee
Sounds like Holmes' facebook statement is weak. Anybody sporting 500k hits a day or a month is huge. Enough to draw in advertisement and other revenue generating methods.. Who cares about the 'kudos'.
ReplyDeleteIf Mike didn't want his name on the site.. fine, rebrand it, but to take it down? Would not be surprised if Mike wanted some sort of money from the site. Home owners do not have time to wait for articles and stuff to get their answers. They need it promptly which the site did.
I was a big fan of Mike Holmes but now it seems that he is riding the empire on the same road as Bob Villa. This is where the integrity of his name, empire and family starts going down the drain. Should have supported and embraced the site and take it to the next level as he has done with other ventures.
We give a big thanks to you because you are truly a great person in the field, but on the flip side, the contractors that are used in your shows have now doubled and tripled their prices because they were on your show. Wish you well..
Hmmm, I am an avid Holmes fan, sharing the same Make It Right the first time mentality. This certainly isn't the way you do things, and honestly what was the benefit to closing this forum?
ReplyDeleteNot that it was probably Mike Holmes who made the decision, none the less he will get the most heat from it. With that being said, Holmes lost a few pegs today in my books.
This forum promoted more doing things right than his show ever will accomplish, because it was a personal approach versus a TV show that just showed you snippets of information. Thanks for all the knowledge from the Moderators (Jundee, Navyguy) just to name a few, and the tradesman on that site.
Tom
First off I'm a huge fan of Mike and his show. On this particular day it was a bad one. But I watched the episode of Hoofed roof and it made my day! I myself have been a HVAC technician from Local 9 in NJ. I absolutely admire how Mike carries himself and holds everyone to high standards. I wish all contractors would follow your lead,your a good man and a good contractor. Keep it up bud cause your a good man.
ReplyDeleteKen Yauger
Local 9 NJ
I know its late. Jundee (Dieter) passed away a couple years ago. He was my friend. He took with him the secret as to why the Holmes forum closed. I look after his house where Edith still lives. He gave so much, its the least I can do.
ReplyDeleteGencon
Hi there, I correspond with Dieter via email for months before he passed away. He told me the reason he thought, that Mandy (Mikes oldest daughter and forum moderator) had her second child, and she had a heart condition which required surgery. That, combined with the incessant spam that the board was inundated with became overwhelming to her and the decision was made to close the forum. That’s what he hypothesized at least. Thank you for caring for Edith, I know she was very much loved and he worried about her a lot. I still have some hats that he sent me that she knitted. Best wishes, R
Delete