http://www.bunburyonline.com/

In this category.

http://dmoz.org/Regional/Oceania/Au...ia/Localities/B/Bunbury/Business_and_Economy/

I have been advised by the category editor, that a higher level editor will not let this site be registered, as it is part of a family of sites, and the Parent site only can be registered with DMOZ.

http://www.bunburyonline.com/ is a regional portal. It is totally about bunbury, and nothing else. I intend to build other regional portals at some stage, in nearby towns. They will all contain local, relevant, regional content, have different owners and will stand alone as unique sites.

These sites are not built, they are merely a future plan. I do agree.

I have a related group of sites here http://www.byron-bay.com/associatedsites.html which are linked, but are totally standalone sites with all local, regional content and they are all registered in their regional dmoz category and rightly so

Can someone please advise on this? If I build 5 regional sites. Can I not register each one in a relevant regional DMOZ catgeory? That I might one day build a larger site that refers to them does not seem like a reason to refuse to list them when they are obviously relevant to each regional category?

Anyone?

The site does not contain sufficient unique material to meet the listing criteria. Quite a few experienced senior editors have reviewed the site and all have come to the same conclusion. Sorry. Each site is dealt with on its own merits. I make no judgements about other portal sites which you may be associated with. Thanks for the enquiry.

Not sufficient Unique Content

I am unclear how the conclusion of insufficient unique content conclusion can be made.

(1) The site is the only portal in the region.
(2) All the content has been personally written by the site Owner.
(3) It is the only regional site that all the local real estates can lodge the listings on, thus it is the only complete local real estate directory.
(4) It is the only site that provides a local webcam.
(5) it is the only local site that provides local weather
(6) It is the only local business and information directory.
(7) It contains pages and pages of regional information, not found anywhere else.

Oneeye, is it possible for you to give me a bit more detail as to what basis the insufficient unique content decision was based on?

I am missing something. I expected it to be seen the most relevant... indeed the only, regional portal and thus a good candidate for DMOZ.

As a former editor you should be very much aware of original content criteria I would say. If not you can review the guidelines which are published and available to all. As I am sure you are aware, editors don't give specific feedback on how to make an unlistable site listable. And as I said before the decision has been made and verified by several experienced senior editors. Sending private editor feedback using an alias isn't going to change the decision either

Confused by your response

(1) My name is Michelle Iton. I have never been an editor of DMOZ. I have no idea OneEye why you think I have been one, certainly I've never claimed to be one. No one I know has been or is an editor.

(2) The regional category I sought to list in, is missing a category most regions have, Guides and Directories. This would have been the relevant category for the site. Of course, much of the content is not unique. Its a directory. By its nature it lists other sites. Why it IS unique is that it is the only site in the area that provides such a total information source for business in the bunbury region. It is the only site that lists properties from every real estate in the region etc, too many unique and relevant aspects to mention

(3) On instructions from the DMOZ editor for Bunbury… Graeme… I posted my question here, and then also using my name/forum nic, contacted a high level editor at DMOZ. My employer, also posted to the other high level editor in the category under his own name. There was no attempt at any impropriety, I acted on the instructions my employer received from the editor.

OneEYe, I can forward you the content of this email, or you may contact Graeme yourself to confirm it. I did exactly as I was instructed to do by the editor.

(4) I have reviewed the guidelines, and am still at a loss as to what is substantially different between this site, and the thousands of sites registered on DMOZ as directories.

I of course, will respect the decision, but I do hope the wrong assumptions made about me trying to rort the system did not prejudice my employer or his client. I appreciate the volunteer role of editors and that there are incidents of harrasment. This was simply not the case here at all.

Interesting - I documented a direct path between bunburyonline and a former editor but I don't seem to be able to retrace it. Never mind, it isn't important.

Well I'm not named as an editor in that category, or immediately above it, and I got an email. Again, never mind. But emailing multiple editors to appeal a decision isn't a good idea, it may appear like you are trawling for one who might take a different view.

The regional category I sought to list in, is missing a category

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Where this occurs, submit to the next nearest category directly above (where it would have been) - if the editor deems it necessary they will create the sub-category at their discretion.

I have reviewed the guidelines, and am still at a loss as to what is substantially different between this site, and the thousands of sites registered on DMOZ as directories.

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DMOZ standards are constantly evolving, sites evolve after they are listed. It is perfectly possible that sites are listed that met the criteria at the time of listing but no longer do because the site or our standards for inclusion have changed since. When editors have the time they review existing listings and will remove those no longer considered as listable.

I do hope the wrong assumptions made about me trying to rort the system did not prejudice my employer or his client

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Sites are reviewed on their own merits and if they are suitable for listing they are listed. Communications about a site, privately or here at RZ, do not have any influence at all on those decisions, nor on future submissions.