Why are web uses so think and can not read.

[E.ric]

For about thirteen months now I have had a web site that has all the color
TV's and VHS-VCR's that have ever come out in New Zealand or about 99.9% of
them, it has Model, chassis number, B+ voltage, VCR mechanism type, etc etc,
over the year or more , NOT one person has given me information for it, yet
all the time I get Emails asking me to supply them with service manuals,
99.9 of which I do not have to supply them, My notes telling them I do not
have service manuals is getting bigger and bigger, The top part of the message is now 200pt
"information" takes up 200% of the screen with red color font, and still, I get Emails asking me
for service manuals, I was thinking of having a Javascript password
"PLEASEdoNOTaskFORserviceMANUALS" I am just about at the point of taking the
information off the web, I just think it is a real shame that when one puts
in a lot time for information on the web to be useful for others, one feels like
banging their head hard on a brick wall to relieve pain.

[NathanTheKind]

Most web users can read they just choose not to. They see you display something that they want a manual too, and don't read anything else.



Annoying but it is always going to happen

[Heather P]

A couple of years back I created a 4 page web site on parrots for my web design class. A simple template, colourful, easy code with a few facts out of encarta. Reason for it was I found students needed a working example to see how code fits together (and if necessary use the template for their own use).

Very clearly marked as a teaching tool and NOT a resource on parrots! To really enforce this the email goes to "Chief Parrot" and the address is in "Birdsville".

I also put in a robots.txt file (telling search engines to push off and not index it).

Do we believe all search engines are well behaved?

Not only have I had 2 enquiries from people wanting to buy parrots (?) BUT a search on Google found a school in the States had linked to it on their animal page as a resource on Parrots!

Go figure....

[Chris Wilson]

Web users are a subset of that group of animals known commonly as "the human Race" Watch them, they are a weird bunch.. really weird, they do unpredictable things, particularly at pedestrian crossings.

You MUSt remember to make allowances for the poor creatures, they can not help being what they are genetically preprogrammed to be, this programming will make them stupid and annoying. Bear with this. There are however rewards if you associate with the species. Unfortunately having your e-mail address available on your tv/video page does not seem to be providing you with any of them.

May i suggest that you link to the places where manuals might be (if you can be bothered) with a note on the page saying I found a manual Click here and a possible link for people who aren't satisfied, something like: "for manuals i don't have, click here." This could lead to a picture of your finger perhaps???????
Sometimes it is necessary to be blunt with the creatures.

[NathanTheKind]

Ok so I was wrong. Some Web users are thick
lol
:^O

[Susan B]

Some people must be so thick if they can't read the instructions and understand the message, eh?! :-(

Why not set up an automatic email notification so that when you get an email with the word "manual" in the header Outlook Express (or whatever you use) automatically sends them a pre-recorded email message to say "sorry, I don't have manuals".

You could also set the message rule to delete the original email after sending the notification so that you would never have to look at them again.

Unfortunately it won't work if they haven't got "manual" in the header but you would bound to know the most common ones and put them in your message rule.

I know you want to eliminate the requests entirely but since that's probably not going to happen unless you remove your email address from the site, it could be worth trying what I suggest.

[Heather P]

Nathan had the idea.

Create a link on your page "For manuals click here" with the URL going to Google!

[Peter H]

Out of interest, what is your site? Regards
Peter

[Heather P]

Peter, Why? Do you want a manual? ]

[Susan B]

LOL Heather