Well summarized Shadowman. It seems like our efforts to gain ownership and managment's attention on this issue is producing results. Like you say, the highest value of CRT is the power of its membership participation and as Sportsmans, La Armistad, Scores and Zona II have seen, it can boost your business when the membership backs and supports their marketing efforts. This is what motivates other businesses to want to advertise on CRT.
However, to attract, motivate and retain active members, the CRT website must provide them with information and an experience they cannot easily find elsewhere. The quality of the information is directly related to the level of the motivation of savvy members to share their experience with other members, and only a small amount comes from the direct advertising or discounting offered by sponsors. The quality of the entertainment / learning experience is a result of the quality of the discusions amongst the members (savvy and newbies) in providing relevant on-the-ground information and rebutting misinformation, plus the challenges resulting from differing points of view and/or personal experiences while in Costa Rica.
While the rebutting can get out of hand, the over zealous behavior of Admin 3, a/k/a Don Carlos seems to have caused many older and experienced members to drop out of posting on CRT, so the membership has suffered from a lack of quality information in 2013. The Owners and Management of CRT seem to now get this. They see the value of maintaining and supporting the CRT community.
However, the fun which came from the layout and functionality of the old photo galleries seems to have been foresaken and as a result it seems that no one but Admin 3 is posting pictures today. Many of us wish The Admin would take another look at restoring the touch and feel of the old photo gallery so that members might once again start posting photos like they did before. The old galleries provided entertainment as well as a wealth of information from both the photos and the comments which members would make about each one. The new photo gallery format we have today is more like what you might see on a travelogue website instead of a mongering website. If you agree with me on this, you might want to send The Admin a PM expressing your point of view.
