[SlugLUG] Yikes!!!

[Thomas Leavitt]

O.K. Sorry to initiate a flame war, was not my intention - I've just
known this guy since high school, worked together with him before, and
was trying to, in as non-spammish a way as possible (which is why i
explicitly pointed out the, at this point, non-specific and entirely
theoretical financial benefit I stand to gain if you say I referred you,
which also permits us to track where responses came from, which is
useful information), get him some real world feedback. I have no
financial stake in his company, BTW, just to be clear.

The response here illustrates the minefield he's walking through...
offering a token reward for participation in these things is entirely
reasonable, and so is offering a token reward as a mild incentive for
people to spread the word and generate referrals. I doubt anyone
believes they are going to make a fortune off referral gift
certificates, but it's a nice surprise to have one land in your inbox
occasionally. :) Unfortunately, the spammers have somewhat poisoned the
waters here, as elsewhere.

If it makes anyone feel better, I'll donate the first "gift certificate"
I get (whenever that is) for SlugLUG's use... whatever it is for. My
buddy's site isn't clear on what type of "gift certificates" he's giving
away, and he hasn't informed me, although he's giving away an Amazon.com
gift cert to the first person to guess who he is, so that might be what
he winds up using - I suggested he give away Starbucks gift certs --
geeks can always use more caffeine. :)

Anyway, the fact that my posting initiated a bruhaha is educational, and
I'll certainly let my buddy know about it.

Thomas