Is it worth it???
 

This may be in the wrong area...but I'm just wondering...I've been considering purchasing a membership to officiating.com, but am wondering if it's worth it if I only officiate basketball. Are there any other online sites that offer training material and are a membership site? I LOVE these posting boards, but was just wondering how many of you belong to an online site, or do you find that the association that you're in along with this board is enough? I'm a youth pastor and won't be pushing to move up in the ranks (my time is somewhat limited), but I do want to improve and get more varsity games in the future. Been around the game for 17 years or so...officiated for about 7, played for four, coached for four...loved the game the rest of the time. Anyway...thanks for your posts!

Well, I think it's a really good investment, but then I write for them so for me to recommend it is a little self-serving, I suppose. On the other hand, the reason I started writing was so that there would be stuff for folks at just the level you're talking about, and it wouldn't just be the same old cant from the big dogs who don't remember what it's like. You know, "Just keep working hard." "Always listen to what your mentor says" and so on. It may be true, but it's isn't always very helpful or informative.

I would suggest subscribing for at least the first year, and then see what you think. That first year is definitely worth it, since you'll have access to the enrtire archive of what's been printed in the past. Match that, Referee Magazine!

And there'll be a great series starting about mid-September about gearing up for the season, with references back to various things from the archive. Great series, since I'll be writing it!

After you've checked it all out, and if you still have some suggestions or want to see a certain topic covered, be sure and let me know, or contact the editor directly. We always want to know what readers want to read!

Since they publish a couple new articles every weekday, you'll get an order of magnitude more basketball content at Officiating.com than you'll get in a year's subscription to Referee magazine. And it's good content, ranging in target audience from newbie up through early college. And as Juulie mentioned, all of their past content is available in their archive. You can even pose questions back to the authors.

What you won't get at officiating.com is current news, any kind of discernible editorial calendar, the warm and fuzzy feeling that they're hooked up with the NFHS, and most especially the insurance you would get by joining NASO (which includes a subscription to Referee Magazine).

But...at the end of the day, neither costs more than game fee or two. So why choose? Do both.

PS. If you're really torn, maybe this will help you decide: Juulie badly needs a raise, and your subscription to officiating.com may help! :)

What you also won't get imo is as much actual officiating knowledge as is available free on this forum.

So how come you don't write? (I know, I know....)

Also, you forgot to mention that the paid side doesn't include wading through all the trolls that you have to deal with here.

Oh?:D <i></i>

I totally agree -- to an extent. What you get from the forum is a lot of imformed and sometimes varied answers to specific questions. So if you're looking for help on a specific rule or mechanic, this is probably your best resource. What the magazines do, that the forum doesn't, is to take a topic and develop it from start to finish. The forum doesn't do that very well at all.

But perhaps the most damning shortfall of the magazines is the complete absence of that squirrel! :)

I seen a few articles in the magazine that didn't develop <b>anything</b> very well from start to finish either imo. I've seen things written that I completely disagreed with.

It all depends what you want to get out of the information available. Jmo, but there are quite a few people posting on this and other forums who are very knowledgeable about officiating. Personally, I find it easier to learn and keep current coming here.

Jmo, realizing that this site does have to pay it's bills also.

None of the options is all that and a bag of chips. Many posts here contain nothing more than (mild) comedic value, sensless bickering, political opinions, or pointless disclaimers of the "it may be different in your area" variety. But there is much that is of worth. And as for disagreeing with the content, I would think you disagree with a lot more of what's said here. And for good reason. The forum is completely unvetted. We'll allow anybody to post darn near anything, with nobody to do even rudimentary fact checking. The forum is definitely caveat emptor. I think it's fair and accurate to say that there is way more inaccurate and useless content here in a week than there is in both magazines combined for a year.

I stand by my statement. The magazines do a better job of developing an idea and presenting it from start to finish. The forum is better at answering questions. Both approaches have value.

I wouldn't disagree with this. I have, on several occasions, made my feelings about the value of the forum and the community here well known. I find the magazines have value too.

[edited to remove some unintended harshness from my response]

The problem I have with the paid site (if you want to call that a problem) is I do not like the credentials of most writers. My opinion is not limited to the basketball side. I just would like to read from officials that have a little more background in their particular sports. That does not mean that those who are there do not do their job well. Just like anything when you go to a camp you do not expect to see clinicians that have not accomplished the same things that you have. With all the things you can say about another magazine, you always get information from very accomplished officials. Not sure that is the same thing on this site. This might have also changed over the past years. When I was considering joining this was the case.

Peace

But the forum has something that no print media has: an immediate feedback loop which is just as unvetted and mostly uncensored. So if JR says something stupid he'll be immediately called on it. JR can write an article for a magazine and never have to publicly respond to his critics.

As for the off-topic, semi-humorous BS and predictable sniping you see here? Lighten up is all I can say. It's all part of human interaction.

HEY! What do you mean mild? :mad: I think the "comedic posts" here are at least Morey Amsterdam level.

http://www.nndb.com/people/547/00010...am-2-sized.jpg

I think he was mostly talking about you...you know, somewhere between recent Chevy Chase funny and any Pauly Shore funny

http://i.imdb.com/Photos/Events/2436...321023_400.jpg

http://images.usatoday.com/life/_pho...auly-shore.jpg

The term "Pauly Shore funny" is an oxymoron - mostly "moron". ;)

:p

Exactly. And some of the articles that I have read on the paid side certainly deserved critical response imo.

And I disagree. If the idea is basically flawed, ill thought out or lacking anything resembling new ideas or concepts, what value does it really have?

I'm not saying that the paid side would not be of value to <b>some</b> officials. I'm saying that it's not really of value to <b>all</b> officials. It's a personal choice.

Unless you're suggesting that every article in the mags, or even most of them, are basically flawed, ill thought out, or lacking new ideas, then your point is moot. Some of the "content" here at the forum is also flawed. However, the true value in these resources (mags or forums) is not diminished simply because some of it is flawed. And my statement regarding the nature of the two beasts is correct.

And in other news, the sun came up this morning and a dog bit a man. :rolleyes:

This is true. He did. I called him on it. :)

I was merely responding to JR's absurd argument in kind. To wit, if my assessment of the value of an officiating magazine is false because not every article is valuable then his statements about the value of the forum must be equally false because not every post is valuable. The one statement is as absurd as the other.

He says something stupid every other time he opens his mouth (or in this case touches his keyboard). I aint gonna defend him. I'm not sure I follow but it seems you and JR need to settle this like Bert & Ernie would. (Don't bring up Cookie Monster, he's still a little sensitive...)

What's that? I can't hear you. I've got a banana in my ear! :D

Me too. Oh yeah, I've lost a little weight.

http://www.explodingdog.com/dumbpict51/bannana.gif

1) Sure is flawed. But I don't have to pay for the flawed content here that is useless to me anyway. I can pick out what I personally feel is beneficial. And I also have access to the minds of experienced posters here that I have come to know and trust as being excellent sources of officiating knowledge and acumen. And, to be honest, I've seen some articles on the pay side that were obviously based on subjects that were fully discussed first on some of these various forums.

2) Are you serious? Why should anybody in their right mind <b>pay</b> for something that is flawed? Whatintheheck value is it to me or anyone else to have to wade through flawed material that is of absolutely no benefit to the reader?

Good luck in your writing career, BITS. I ain't sponsoring it though. The good thing though is that you don't have to worry about criticism or feedback over there, unlike this particular forum.:)

JMO.

:D

That's called feedback. It something that ain't present on the paid side. Unfortunately.:D