I actually asked repeatedly(going on what, 5 times now) why one would post an ad with bad data and I felt it was an absolutely legitimate question (not to mention I still dont have a valid answer)
this was your initial post, perhaps I am just way off base...but this certainly reads to me that you made your exchange post for the sole purpose of seeing "how it would work"...yet deliberately chose to input fake data so that it would never result in any successful automatic match thus ensuring the test is a failure right from the start.
I never asked you to change what was in your ad description, nor in any way suggested you alter what you had typed in any way shape or form, folks are welcome to add any additional comments in the description field as they see fit, its what it is for.
I merely questioned why you did not fill out the direct exchange ad using legitimate data so that it would actually be useful within the direct exchange system.
even a small chance of success is better than ensuring your chance is 0%
I would think that someone interested in making a direct exchange would actually want to achieve the best chance at successfully making an exchange, but again perhaps I am simply mistaken.
It’s not inputting data that’s not legit. It a different exchanging approach. You persist in describing my ad in a negative way, even though you know I’ve found that characteristization insulting. So strange to me that you’d persist like this, that your attachment to the Marketplace format is greater than your sense of goodwill to a long term TUG contributor like myself.
I’ve already spent way more time banging my head against the wall on this subject than it makes sense to- but I’ll try to answer your question as to why I have not input “legit” data.
My travel plans are not yet set in stone for 2020. I’ll take 4 weeks of vacation and a week of continuing education. I might do that in 2 week blocks or one week blocks. I will be working travel around 16-18 local bike races, 8-10 dachshund field Trials, 6-10 Earthdog events. Some of these dates are known, some of the events I have an idea of, some I could contact the organizer to try to get an idea, sometimes that will be successful, sometimes not. Some races and events I might be willing to skip for a great travel opportunity.
When I build my racing year, I always have a main event goal. It’s usually in June. I could pick one in Oct instead. Or maybe even another date. If I pick June, I can’t do vacation riding 60 days prior. So no trips then. But if a good trip came available, I could possibly switch to my A race being October. I’d have to weigh all the neg ramifications of doing that vs the desirability of the exchange. It would really depend. It would trigger me to look for additional races, maybe even rethink the discipline I’d focus on that year.
It’s way too early for most people to know their travel schedule for 2020. Yet I work in a small department and always run my plans by my colleagues and staff before booking. If there’s an exchange I’m interested in and my colleague tells me that’s her Dad’s 70th birthday and she’ll likely go home to visit him, I’d skip the exchange.
And so on. I have maybe 20 factors I’m juggling at any given time when I’m organizing travel. There are times when I have it narrowed down and can request specific weeks. Right now is not one of those times. When I get ready to book an exchange, I use ongoing searches for a minority of my trades. So if a TUG exchange ad in my style is not in place, TUGgers won’t have access to what I own for the most part, because I’ll find something on II that works and just book it.
There’s no way it would be efficient for me to pin down all the variables right now in order to post an exchange ad listing specific weeks, specific resorts. My ad expresses a willingness to accept non-timeshare accommodation, which is not possible using the current Marketplace format.
Jeez.
