Muffy's May 2004 Message Board Review
It has been a while since I have given you all of the juicy industry gossip, and of course an update on the important business related issues that are affecting the online porn world. Hence, it is time for another one of my famous message board reviews. The boards are full of excitement at this time of year with the impending summer season and the plethora of webmaster events that are happening around the world. Here’s the lowdown of what is happening on some of our favorite message boards.
JustBlowMe
For this review, I have decided to replace Oprano with JustBlowMe, as I feel that Oprano has really gone down hill recently. I picked JustBlowMe because I had never been there before, and because our very own pornJester listed it as one of his favorites. I could not believe how big and busy this board was and how many of the industry’s big guys were posting here. It reminded me of a mixture of Netpond and GFY. An interesting topic being discussed was, “Who actually uses DRM and makes money with it?” The thread discusses the pros and cons of using DRM, ways to increase revenue with DRM, and tips on how to be successful with DRM. There are also some rather abstract threads like, “Was Jesus a Virgin When he Died?” and “I had sex with Madonna." I definitely liked the atmosphere of this message board and I believe that I will make it a regular stop in the future.
Netpond
Netpond has attempted to separate the business from the fluff by having two different forums. There is a forum that is strictly for business and the main forum which is for relaxed networking. I decided to give you a taste of both. The business forum contained exactly that; a good mix of industry related questions, tips, and matters related to the online adult business. There were a lot of great discussion threads, but one that I found helpful was someone asking if HTML structure was important for search engine rankings. Check the answers out at netpond. In the main forum, I liked the thread that was titled, “When did you get started in this business?” I find it intriguing to see how many people have been sticking this business out for several years, and how many just got their start.
GoFuckYourself
GFY is always a mixture of fluff, politics, business, and gossip, and this visit was no exception. It seems that the main topics of discussion were Britney Spears, George Bush, and Iraq, however I did find some intellectual banter and business talk wedged in between all of this subject matter. If you are a Canuck like me, one thread that would be of interest to you was one outlining a viable processing solution for Canadian webmasters. The Canadian company is called Moneris and it will process adult transactions. The processing fees are also pretty low at 3.9%. Of course there is lots of discussion about the recent webmaster show in Atlanta, which includes a lot of rumors, stories, hook-ups and shout outs. If you were in Atlanta, or you wish you were, there is a thread where F.U.B.A.R posted the pictures for all to see. For those of you that have an interest in video production, there is a thread where a GFY member is answering questions relating to production. Questions included things such as lighting, cameras, etc. It is a pretty informative thread for you newbies out there.
YNOT Masters
I found YNOT to be particularly political on this visit with threads like “ACLU: Oppose Infringement on the First Amendment”, “Rumsfeld owed American Gratitude?” and “The Great American Soldier”. However, YNOT, although political in nature, is a good place to go for business related discussion and a lot less fluff. One gossipy thread that I enjoyed which was at least partially related to this industry was “Ebay Auctions blonde stripper for sale…you have to see”, although there was no evidence to support this claim. If you are interested in acquiring a new host or changing providers, there is a thread discussing the most reliable hosts out there, “Adult Hosting”. There was also the usual talk about the happenings at the recent Atlanta convention, but on this board there seemed to be a little disappointment over the lack of YNOT presence at this event.
XBiz
I have always like XBiz as I have found it a perfect mix of business and pleasure and I was not disappointed this time. In lieu of the recent industry discussions about mandatory condom use, there was a poll on the board where you could go and register you opinion on the issue, “Condom Only Content?” It seems that webmasters at XBiz feel that content with condoms will either ruin the industry or it will not make a difference, and there were no webmasters leaning towards the reasoning that condoms could improve the industry. If you are curious about the cultural and lingual backgrounds of your fellow webmasters, there is a thread titled, “Languages Spoken, where webmasters can list all of the languages that they are familiar with. It always amazes me how European people are so much more multi-lingual compared to us North Americans.
Porno Junkies
Of course, I have to include the message board full of Canadians, but what can I say, I AM Canadian! The topic that I felt was most interesting, but not entirely industry related was, “Bad Sex versus No Sex”. It’s amazing how many people would rather go without, then participate in bad sex, and I couldn’t agree more. Another thread announced that there are going to be new Canadian spam laws on the horizon. It seems that Canadian lawmakers want to follow the example that the Americans have been making lately when it comes to unsolicited email. Lastly, here is a little something fun for you men out there who seem to believe that women have it made. The thread is titled, “100 Reasons Why it is great to be a guy."
Underwear Lounge
Our own message board is getting bigger and better every day. If you haven’t checked it out or registered as a member, then I highly suggest that you get your butt over there and do so. We have great discussions going on that combine just the right elements of business and pleasure and you can always find answers to any sort of question that you may have.
