EEVblog Electronics Community Forum
General => General Technical Chat => Topic started by: EEVblog on November 01, 2019, 04:46:17 am
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Someone on Youtube posted this and I think it's a hilarious idea.
Take money from all these companies that constantly ask for paid reviews and then post a real review on my EEVshill channel!
Would be interesting to see their reaction when I say "Sure, I'll do it, but it goes on my EEVshill channel".
Would of course need a large number of initial subscribers for anyone to be interested, so I'd have to announce it, get people to sign up and then sit back and wait for the suckers ;D
[attachimg=1]
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Or maybe EEVpaidshill to make it really obvious?
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EEVjunk would work for me. :box:
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EEVjunk would work for me. :box:
;D
That's the trick. This wouldn't be for just junk rubbish products, I might actually give the product a glowing review if it's good enough.
What I think is an interesting experiment is how many companies would take up a paid offer to appear on a channel called EEVPaidShill or some such.
"EEVshill - The finest in Paid Shill product reviews!"
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LOL I love this idea. I say do it.
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It would have to be a real review. If you did a joke review where you said "it is 10x better then a Fluke", then you would probably see on the product's website "Dave Jones of EEVBLOG says it is 10x better then a Fluke".
If you do a real review and you say truthfully "This product is actually pretty good. I would recommend it", then you get into that grey area where you are recommending a product in a paid review.
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It would have to be a real review. If you did a joke review where you said "it is 10x better then a Fluke", then you would probably see on the product's website "Dave Jones of EEVBLOG says it is 10x better then a Fluke".
If you do a real review and you say truthfully "This product is actually pretty good. I would recommend it", then you get into that grey area where you are recommending a product in a paid review.
Sure, it would definitely be a real review in my usual style, but at the start of the video it would have something like "This is a Paid Shill review, bought and paid for by The Widget Company.". Maybe with som cash displayed in the background ;D
So serious but piss-take at the same time.
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It would have to be a real review. If you did a joke review where you said "it is 10x better then a Fluke", then you would probably see on the product's website "Dave Jones of EEVBLOG says it is 10x better then a Fluke".
If you do a real review and you say truthfully "This product is actually pretty good. I would recommend it", then you get into that grey area where you are recommending a product in a paid review.
Sure, it would definitely be a real review in my usual style, but at the start of the video it would have something like "This is a Paid Shill review, bought and paid for by The Widget Company.". Maybe with som cash displayed in the background ;D
So serious but piss-take at the same time.
You could do it with the mailbag shelf background but have wads of cash you can just stick everywhere on the shelf. When you go to clear the desk to place he product there can just be a bunch of cash in the way that you swipe off too. :-DD Bonus if you do a tear down and there's cash in it. Just have cash in every possible shot.
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I would subscribe for the giggles.
Not sure many people would actually pay to be on the Shill channel but.
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Dave,
Go on...take their money ;D
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Realistically I'd say just do it main channel if you're going to and let them know it's honesty only, not some scripted garbage they provide. Also Cash.
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You definitely need to have a special hat on when making these videos, just to be sure there is no cross-channel confusion.
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You definitely need to have a special hat on when making these videos, just to be sure there is no cross-channel confusion.
+1
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If you do do this, would you disclose in the video the company's terms and how much they paid you?
Do they advise against publicly dissussing the terms of the arrangement or even forbid it?
I'd be interested to know where these companies draw the line of full disclosure. :D
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EEVShill&Chill: it's the new 'Hot or Not' :-DD
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If the reviews are going to be unbiased or obviously sarcastic, this could end up being a good idea. Why? -> Because many "YT influencers" will accept money in exchange for a positive "review", and when an inexperienced future customer starts googling the product, it will end up only seeing positive stuff.
This way Dave could take the $, and even if the review is not negative, it could raise awareness among potential customers that the seller is going around paying for reviews. To work this would mean that Dave needs to create the content in such a way that it can't be misunderstood or taken out of context.
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Make David2 do it!
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Wouldn't get very far. The first one will pull out when they see you've broken contract terms by posting something they didn't give approval for. Or worse, defrauded them.
It's an amusing fantasy, sure, but alas, that's as far as it goes.
Unless... the point is not so much the legit ones that actually care, but the ones that don't, that don't even notice that you literally have "shill" in the name.
A good argument against that is, "any news is good news", and you're just encouraging bad behavior (indeed actively participating in it).
There's also possible fallout from your existing advertisers, who may drop when they see how you're treating others. This seems like a lower risk, given the low-key ads you accept right now.
Of course anything done on your own, no money, no contract, that's 100% fair game. Want to shit on whoever's spamming you this week? Go all in!
Tim
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Make David2 do it!
David2 rocks :-+ but in this he's too nice a bloke,
it needs David1 to 'work it' >:D
Name wise for the channel, how about EEVshill4foodcashsexfreetestgear
Come on, all bases covered, like WHO wouldn't tune in to that? :D
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You definitely need to have a special hat on when making these videos, just to be sure there is no cross-channel confusion.
Hmmmm.... * mind wanders off ..... *
(https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/eevshill/?action=dlattach;attach=864784;image)
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You definitely need to have a special hat on when making these videos, just to be sure there is no cross-channel confusion.
Hmmmm.... * mind wanders off ..... *
(https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/eevshill/?action=dlattach;attach=864784;image)
That's not a hat!
A Dundee hat to go with the Dundee knife.
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www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKfGxzKRa9k (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKfGxzKRa9k)
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I would say go for it, you can probably spin it into satire,
Just need something like the beanie as a special hat
Edit: Ok brumby has me beat by a mile
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Of course anything done on your own, no money, no contract, that's 100% fair game. Want to shit on whoever's spamming you this week? Go all in!
Oooh, the EEVshill channel could be devoted to the best shill request email each week!
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So you are considering having two identities - one that is paid for doing reviews and one that is doing teardowns for the fun of it.. That is walking on a thin ice. Once people notice you are maximizing profit, you become indistinguishable from an advertiser. Do not get me wrong, there is nothing bad in making profit or advertising but I think you should focus on one identity only. Otherwise you will loose both your reputation as Dave the Engineer and as Dave the Advertiser.
And finally, why limit yourself to having two identities?
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Would marketers really be that stupid to pay money to someone who is obviously doing it as a piss take, and whos viewers are probably only there to watch the shill videos for laughs and probably have no interest in buying the products/services advertised? :-DD
Somehow I think not, but prove me wrong? :popcorn:
edit: Actually Im stupid and didnt understand the post. This sounds very entertaining. The worst that can happen is that they catch on and stop bothering you. :-+
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In my view, you have a large audience and a stellar reputation, you shouldn't do anything to tarnish it.
We sort of know which pieces of equipment were donated for testing, you talk about it in the opening monologue.
Your reviews have been balanced and fair.
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I would subscribe for the giggles.
Not sure many people would actually pay to be on the Shill channel but.
The Chinese companies would likely not know or understand the meaning of it and use it.
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Actually i have an idea - why not to play the game from the other side and actively reach to companies to promote the channel and with the offer of featuring their products on this channel :-DD
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Why not EEVil? :P
In my view, you have a large audience and a stellar reputation, you shouldn't do anything to tarnish it.
We sort of know which pieces of equipment were donated for testing, you talk about it in the opening monologue.
Your reviews have been balanced and fair.
Yeah, I agree with that.
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You should create an evil twin to do the paid reviews. I’m kind of partial to “Deep Reviews with Davey Jones”
Make a hand painted backdrop that looks like your mailbag set but obviously not the real thing.
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The channel does not have to be sarcastic. There are always positive sides of products that can be honestly highlighted without praising. Why not to take the money laying around. Separation can be achieved by various means from wearing a hat like was suggested, saying a disclaimer at the beginning of videos or inserting humorous but inoffensive (to the vendor) remarks about the nature of the channel throughout shooting of the episodes.
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You'll have to do the videos sitting in one of those clear 'cash grab' booths with the fan blowing the money around.
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Would it be fraud if you replied from your "EEVShill" email address to the original incoming request, and then hope that they don't notice the change in identity? Of course supplying correct information when requested (x subs, shill channel link, etc.). Yeah I think thats a bit unfair.
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As they say in marketing, there is no bad publicity. Vendors can be given a choice to send products to Mailbag for a free, albeit "regular" EEVblog style review, or to the EEVshill channel for a paid review where they can have a leverage to highlight strong points and benefits of their product in their own wish list. Garantee, will be a line up of vendors ordering the service.
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I cannot see how this would work because any company paying you to review their product is going to require they see and approve the video first. In other words they only buy the video if they like it. Then they pay.
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EEVjunk would work for me. :box:
If thats gon' be the name I'm down.
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It would be too ambiguous for viewers and companies alike and it is a question of time when things would be mixed. It would not even take a mistake on the side of the creator, it might be sufficient if viewers don't get it right and interpret their own mindset in, triggering reactions you wouldn't want to deal with or that ruin the serious part of all your effort.
Discussing youtube economy itself might be interesting, but almost anyone does that. Shill or not shill, who cares if what you do makes sense and enables people to form their own opinion, which is the whole point of consuming videos about specific products or comparisons between them.
Practically anyone taking part in social media could involuntary be taken for a shill because in an attention economy the meta is to attract subscribers/watch time/clicks. Well, unless you would be so horrible in it that no one would want to watch your content.
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It's a bad idea.
Likely companies won't go along with EEVshill as it's not the main channel with 673,000 odd subscribers.
If that doesn't worry them, then they get Dave to promote their possibly suspect product/marketing methods.
At the end of the day, most of this lot would be happy with getting an "influencer" like Dave shilling their stuff.
I know the chinese PCB companies don't give a crap who promotes their services, random youtubers who mess with electronics but couldn't design a PCB if their life depended on it have also gotten shill offers.
Anyone know of other companies with scatter cannon marketing methods ?
At the end of the day, Youtube needs less crapping shilling, it's just gotten out of hand at the moment. It's become a burden to watch some channels, too much like mainstream media (TV).
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and sell baseball caps.... M E G A
Make Electronics Great Again
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So you are considering having two identities - one that is paid for doing reviews and one that is doing teardowns for the fun of it.. That is walking on a thin ice. Once people notice you are maximizing profit, you become indistinguishable from an advertiser.
I agree. No matter how well you design it to underline the sarcastic intention, and no matter how good your actual intentions are, your precious image of a completely unbribable, objective expert will suffer as a result. It would be fun to watch - for a few episodes. After that, the joke gets old really quickly, but the downsides, the reputational risk, is an issue of your lifetime.
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I believe it is, perhaps, a little premature for some of the criticism that is being levelled here since Dave hasn't given an actual example for us to critique.
Nevertheless, unless Dave comes up with some performance recipe that stands the test of time, I must agree with this sentiment:
It would be fun to watch - for a few episodes. After that, the joke gets old really quickly
As such, I wonder if it would be worth the experiment.
Just my two cents
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Sure, do it. For extra shits and giggles, give the editing to the cheapest editor on freelancer.com. And maybe use the lowest possible production value. Like instead of shooting in the lab, just do it in the laundry room or something.
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This will cheapen the image of you, your company, and channel. There's a community on the net that would enjoy such a channel but do you really want to be seen as a professional or a joke. I suspect this would also hurt your existing relationships with some of the major companies who tend to avoid this type of channel and it would cheapen their image as well to be associated.
This is just my opinion.
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I reckon blacksheeplogic above has pretty much nailed it in two lines :-+
i.e. give it a miss for now, but consider it later on,
when social media and Youtube/Facebook etc sink further down in standards and morals :palm:
and just about everyone and their dog resort to tacky buck grabbing,
so product shill flogging won't be an issue, and most likely the norm
The other side of the coin/SHILLing is..
the manufacturer/sponsors may send DJ a pre-checked device, fine tuned, calibrated to specs etc
and not a typical 9 dollar WTF (in sky blue) unit hot off the TooHungLow assembly line
Dud product buyers will comment complaints, and or tr0ll DJ 24/7 and send the channel to internet oblivion
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Would marketers really be that stupid to pay money to someone who is obviously doing it as a piss take, and whos viewers are probably only there to watch the shill videos for laughs and probably have no interest in buying the products/services advertised? :-DD
Somehow I think not, but prove me wrong? :popcorn:
edit: Actually Im stupid and didnt understand the post. This sounds very entertaining. The worst that can happen is that they catch on and stop bothering you. :-+
That would be a bit of fun to watch but it would be a shame if it backfired in a way and I hope it doesn't affect all the other free goodies sent by manufacturers that Dave tears down and gets to keep after exposing the faults in them.
I misunderstood too from all the stuff they sent in the EEVShill video... they were asking for it for a long time.
It take it that it would be some parody with a bit of branding EEVShill.
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That would be a bit of fun to watch but it would be a shame if it backfired in a way and I hope it doesn't affect all the other free goodies sent by manufacturers that Dave tears down and gets to keep after exposing the faults in them.
What other free goodies? Those days are long past. Even mailbag doesn't get much love anymore. The only good thing about EEVShill would be if it injected new enthusiasm. But it wouldn't appeal to me.
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This will cheapen the image of you, your company, and channel. There's a community on the net that would enjoy such a channel but do you really want to be seen as a professional or a joke. I suspect this would also hurt your existing relationships with some of the major companies who tend to avoid this type of channel and it would cheapen their image as well to be associated.
This is just my opinion.
https://youtu.be/SToyIb9tNiY
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and sell baseball caps.... M E G A
Make Electronics Great Again
DAMN! I like that!
That would trigger countless people, I must do this >:D
[attachimg=1]
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Get the safety line ready ... Looks like Dave is going in!!
(https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/eevshill/?action=dlattach;attach=867768;image)
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It reminds me of someone who was pestered by telemarketers and he had his way with them.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-23869462 (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-23869462)
How one man turns annoying cold calls into cash
By Joe Kent
29 August 2013
Lee Beaumont is taking on the cold callers
A man targeted by marketing companies is making money from cold calls with his own higher-rate phone number.
In November 2011 Lee Beaumont paid £10 plus VAT to set up his personal 0871 line - so to call him now costs 10p, from which he receives 7p.
The Leeds businessman told BBC Radio 4's You and Yours programme that the line had so far made £300.
Phone Pay Plus, which regulates premium numbers, said it strongly discouraged people from adopting the idea.
Mr Beaumont came up with the plan when he grew sick of calls offering to help him reclaim payment protection insurance (PPI), or install solar panels.
He said: "I don't use my normal Leeds number for anyone but my friends and family."
Once he had set up the 0871 line, every time a bank, gas or electricity supplier asked him for his details online, he submitted it as his contact number.
Media captionLee Beaumont told BBC Radio 4's You and Yours programme about his 0871 number
He added he was "very honest" and the companies did ask why he had a such a number.
He told the programme he replied: "Because I'm getting annoyed with PPI phone calls when I'm trying to watch Coronation Street so I'd rather make 10p a minute."
He said almost all of the companies he dealt with were happy to use it and if they refused he asked them to email.
Warning
The number of calls received by Mr Beaumont has fallen from between 20 and 30 a month to just 13 last month.
Because he works from home, Mr Beaumont has been able to increase his revenue by keeping cold callers talking - asking for more details about their services.
Annoying calls
Citizens Advice commissioned a survey about unwanted PPI calls.
One in four of those who had received unwanted calls said this had interrupted family meals.
Calls remain the most common form of contact about PPI claims, followed by automated landline messages and text messages to mobiles.
Anyone who believes that they have been mis-sold PPI can make a claim directly to their provider.
PPI: The unintended consequences of a scandal
He admitted the scheme had changed his attitude, saying: "I want cold calls", and that he had moved on to encouraging companies to make contact.
After a recent problem with his online shopping, he declined to call an 0845 number but posted his number on Twitter in the knowledge that the number could be picked up by marketing companies.
But the premium number regulator Phone Pay Plus says the public should think twice before setting up their own lines.
They say phone line providers must meet consumer protection standards, which include transparency, fairness and complaint handling, which would mean clearly setting out the cost of each call to any organisation that rang.
They told You and Yours: "Premium rate numbers are not designed to be used in this way and we would strongly discourage any listeners from adopting this idea, as they will be liable under our code for any breaches and subsequent fines that result."
A survey for charity Citizens Advice found that two-thirds of those asked had received unwanted calls, texts, emails or letters about PPI mis-selling.
More than half said that they had been contacted more than 10 times in the past year.
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Get the safety line ready ... Looks like Dave is going in!!
It's triggered the snowflakes on Twitter already! :-DD
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I think its a great idea.
I would go for EEVshill rather than EEVJunk.
I think a lot of companies would be put off by EEVJunk as it implies their product is junk.
EEVshill is more likely to work, or slip through the cracks where no one notices until its too late.
Also any viewers who don't like the concept can simply not subscribe to the new channel.
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Turns out Zazzle don't have that style, you have to get it from another store, so I don't seen to be able to add it to my store.
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I'm not sure how much companies usually pay for paid reviews, so i'm not sure if this makes financial sense or not.
But I have an idea for even more LOLz on the channel.
Lets say brand X pays you for a review of product Z on EEVshil.
You do a proper review view of it.
If it comes out 'Thumbs Up' you do a giveaway for one of their products.
If it comes out 'Thumbs Down' you buy and give away their biggest competitors equivalent product. :-DD :-DD
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Troll report >:D
Didn't get ratioed!
105 likes to 31 offended snowflakes ;D
If Trump wins by that margin in the 2020 election then I called it here first!
[attachimg=1]
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Troll report >:D
Didn't get ratioed!
105 likes to 31 offended snowflakes ;D
If Trump wins by that margin in the 2020 election then I called it here first!
(Attachment Link)
Someone help me separate the people who genuinely think the idea is not great from those 31 who were offended snowflakes. Or is it just a bad idea to give Dave negative feedback?
I looked but couldn't tell.
For the record I don't think it is all that good an idea. But not offended either.
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Someone help me separate the people who genuinely think the idea is not great from those 31 who were offended snowflakes. Or is it just a bad idea to give Dave negative feedback?
You specialise in negative feedback of me that often borders on harassment, as I continually have to point out to you Wilfred.
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Someone help me separate the people who genuinely think the idea is not great from those 31 who were offended snowflakes. Or is it just a bad idea to give Dave negative feedback?
You specialise in negative feedback of me that often borders on harassment, as I continually have to point out to you Wilfred.
Well that's a debatable point which I don't have much interest in. But it doesn't answer the very valid question that your twitter followers who may not agree with all your ideas are not at the same time all delicate little snowflakes. It isn't possible.
Do you not think that to shut down critical comment in the manner you do may lead some to think of you as the snowflake?
Your response to my open question to the forum is a case in point. People will notice. Really they do.
Go right ahead and make this EEVShill if you want to. Make a hat that channels a Trump political slogan if you think the joke is worth it. I'm not stopping you. Any colour you like.
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Someone help me separate the people who genuinely think the idea is not great from those 31 who were offended snowflakes. Or is it just a bad idea to give Dave negative feedback?
You specialise in negative feedback of me that often borders on harassment, as I continually have to point out to you Wilfred.
Well that's a debatable point which I don't have much interest in.
You have admitted it before and apologised for it, but continue to harass me to this day. You specialise in criticising in a polite manner so that everyone else thinks you are the good guy just asking questions. But in reality you criticise every little single thing I say and do, hundreds and hundreds and of times, it's stalking criticism by a thousands cuts, and many people have noticed that. One day it will get you banned, and when that happens I want people to know it won't be for the one mild criticism, it will be for that continued stalking over many years and hundreds of posts.
Do you not think that to shut down critical comment in the manner you do may lead some to think of you as the snowflake?
Show me one example where I have shut down critical comment. I have not banned or blocked a single person.
Your response to my open question to the forum is a case in point. People will notice. Really they do.
That's because I will not engage with you on criticism any more, you lost my respect many years ago.
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You specialise in negative feedback of me that often borders on harassment, as I continually have to point out to you Wilfred.
Well that's a debatable point which I don't have much interest in.
I don't see much room for debate - and that easily explains your lack of interest.
You specialise in criticising in a polite manner so that everyone else thinks you are the good guy just asking questions.
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that's called "passive aggressive" - a well-known type of behaviour.
A lot of us can see it. It's not something Dave needed to point out.
(I have a little bet going with myself)
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@ DJ re Make Electronics Great Again merchandise:
An aussie flag included somewhere for the local patriots :-+ :-+ would be appreciated,
and or chuck in some kangaroos, wombats, koalas, Aboriginal art etc
just in case the flag thing upsets OSers :blah: :rant:
perhaps a lab kangaroo with soldering iron, head mag, EEVblog meter .. 8)
or... :-//
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:) David2 is not at @EEVblog anymore. I heard this on one of the recent "The AMP HOUR" podcast.
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I can see a parallel between products on these shill reviews and contestants going on Red Faces on Hey Hey Its Saturday. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hey_Hey_It%27s_Saturday#Red_Faces (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hey_Hey_It%27s_Saturday#Red_Faces)
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:) David2 is not at @EEVblog anymore. I heard this on one of the recent "The AMP HOUR" podcast.
First I have heard of it but I rarely listen to the podcasts. Save some time and post a link and time stamp.
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and sell baseball caps.... M E G A
Make Electronics Great Again
DAMN! I like that!
That would trigger countless people, I must do this >:D
(Attachment Link)
I would not wear it in Chicago as people have been beaten up wearing the red MAGA cap i recall.
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I wonder if any cheeky astronomers have made a red cap with "Make Aurigae Goats Again"?
(In Bedouin astronomy and early Greek mythology, the constellation Auriga (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auriga_(constellation)) is associated with goats. Now it is something like the charioteer or something.)
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:) David2 is not at @EEVblog anymore. I heard this on one of the recent "The AMP HOUR" podcast.
First I have heard of it but I rarely listen to the podcasts. Save some time and post a link and time stamp.
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/supporters-lounge/eevblog-staff-update/ (https://www.eevblog.com/forum/supporters-lounge/eevblog-staff-update/)