Brad

With 100 days left until Black Friday, I figured it was a good time to open the main BF forum for any early discussion. As we've done the last few years, we'll open the individual store sub-forums and the holiday discussion forum a little later on.

If my math is correct, tomorrow is the 100 day mark (ugh, down to double digits) so I'll likely open the main BF forum to get things going "officially".

We'll probably open the main BF forum later this month - likely around the 100-day countdown mark like we did last year.

Just an update: Apple has been having some security issues with their developer portal for the last week (search Google for full details), so we have been unable to get the replacement app uploaded. Once they have reopened the site we'll get the new apps up ASAP, both iOS and Android.

For now we should work with the regular Windows Phone Tapatalk app. Don't know if they have a free version of that or not, but it's a useful app either way if you use a lot of forums.

Not getting much help from our current developers so we are going to proceed with getting the new Tapatalk-developed GD apps in the iOS and Android app stores ASAP. With this developer we will also possibly be able to have a Windows Phone app in the future as well. The current apps will eventually disappear from the stores once the new ones are approved. In the meantime while we wait for the new apps to be approved you can always download the generic Tapatalk app and you should be able to find GD in the directory.

Made some changes. The daily newsletter should resume going out tomorrow morning.

The newsletter has absolutely nothing to do with the forum. It's run by a different company, different server, etc... but I'll look into it.

In order to get our forum users to become more active members, we have "bonuses" that you will receive once you have made 10 posts on these forums and have been a member for a little whilte. You will receive: - the ability to create a custom title for yourself (instead of "Member") - an increase in the number of private messages you can store - access to the semi-private GottaTalk Lounge & sub-forums We have an off-topic forum called the GottaTalk Lounge which will become accessible when you have been "promoted" by making 10 posts. The criteria for Lounge access may change from time to time. Once you have met the criteria for Lounge access, the forum will be automatically open to you. There are 2 sub-forums of the Lounge - Kids & Parenting and GD After Hours. We hope that these incentives will lead to increased use of the forums which will benefit everyone. If you have any questions about these bonuses, please let us know. Please note that members found to be posting frequently solely to gain these priviledges will face possible banning.

I'll check into it. I know there is a global setting for everyone, but there might be a way to get individual settings too.

Oh, OK that makes more sense. Yeah the companies like to use FB because when you do these things, you end up advertising it to all your friends. A lot of people make special FB accounts for contests only. Don't include any personal info, don't add friends (so you won't annoy them with updates about freebies you sign up for) and use it just for the free offers.

Can you be more specific? I'm not quite sure what you are referring to. I don't think any of the deals we post require Facebook.

For Android users, here are some temporary (or possibly permanent if we can't get the current app fixed...) GD apps you can use while we work on the existing apps: Download Link: http://tapatalk.com/rebranding/rebranding_download.php?type=4&apk=R290dGFEZWFs20130702110757.apk For those with Android 4.0 or later who want to try a newer beta version, here is a link to that version: http://tapatalk.com/rebranding/rebranding_download.php?type=4&apk=R290dGFEZWFs20130702110757-ics.apk Your device may not allow installation of non-market apps. You can enable it by following the instructions here: http://www.tech-recipes.com/rx/22616/android-allow-installation-of-non-market-apps/ These are GottaDeal-branded apps from the makers of the popular Tapatalk app. You'll have to uninstall the existing app to install these. If these become permanent, we'll put them in the Google Play Store, but until then you can get them right here.

http://www.gottadeal.com/images/target.gif Welcome to the Wonderful World of Target Perimeter Perusing! As many of you know, Target B&M stores are known for their terrific clearance deals. This thread is for GottaDeal.com forum members to share their latest clearance finds. Also, please keep non-clearance discussion to a minimum - there are other threads for discussing weekly sale ads and store policy. This first post will contain some background information on the wonderful world of Target clearance, otherwise known around here as Perimeter Perusing! You may have noticed that although the sticker price (the red-orange clearance sticker) show one price, many times the items will actually scan for a lesser amount. You can use this to your advantage because many shoppers without the benefit of being GottaDeal members do not realize this and pass the item by, thinking the sticker price is the actual price. Also, many times an item is not marked clearance in any way but still may be on clearance, so if you have an item that you would consider buying if it was on clearance, we suggest you take it to the nearest scanner and check the price that comes up. This is especially true of items which other members have reported being on clearance at their local store. The standard clearance pattern at Target usually begins by items being marked down 15% or 30% at the beginning. This price can last somewhere between two weeks to a month, depending on how well the item sells at this price and what department the item is from. Then the item typically drops to 50%, again for anywhere from two weeks to a month in most cases. Generally, the lowest an item will be marked down is 75% off, with a few exceptions. Items considered 'holiday' or 'seasonal' items have been known to go as low as 90%, and you will find a few occasional display items or things found in the stockroom after inventory discounted in the 80%-90% range. In many cases, the lowest price an item will go will usually end in $x.x4 or $x.x8, but this is not always the case for 100% of items, so take that into consideration. A typical markdown schedule for the seasonal or holiday clearance is as follows: http://gottadeal.com/forumsold/images/icons/target.gifTraditional Post-Holiday Target Clearance Schedule 50% off - marked down on the day after the holiday, usually lasts for three days 75% off - marked down on the fourth day after the holiday, usually lasts for three days 90% off - marked down on the seventh day after the holiday, usually lasts for 1-3 days Other than Christmas, this is usually the schedule used for post-holiday clearance, including Valentine's Day, Easter, Summerville, and Halloween, for at least the last few years. The holiday mark-down does seem to fluctuate from store to store on occasion, but to help demonstrate how the holiday clearance has gone in 2008 and 2009, here is the Decatur, AL clearance dates for Valentine's Day and Halloween, courtesy of Timswife81404: Valentine's 08 Feb. 15th, 2008 = 50% Feb. 18th, 2008 = 75% Feb. 20th, 2008 = 90% Valentine’s 09 Feb. 15th, 2009 = 50% Feb. 17th, 2009 = 75% (red dot dollar spot too) Feb. 21st, 2009 = 90% Halloween 08 Nov. 1st, 2008 = 50% Nov. 4th, 2008 = 75% Nov. 8th, 2008 = 90% Halloween 09 Nov. 1st, 2009 = 50% Nov. 3rd, 2009 = 75% Nov. 7th, 2009 = 90% Target initiated a controversial new return policy in November 2002 that says any seasonal clearance items returned will be refunded at the current clearance price, even with a receipt showing a higher purchase price. They updated the policy in April 2003 to specify these items as Christmas trees and decorations and Halloween costumes and decorations. Other seasonal merchandise should still be refunded at the price stated on the reciept. Christmas clearance is an animal all to itself. The dates appear to be as follows: 50% off - always December 26,lasts four to five days 75% off - within a day or two on either side of New Year's Eve/Day (12/31-01/01) 90% off - within a day or two of Epiphany (01/06) The Decatur, AL markdown schedule for Christmas in 2007, 2008 and 2009 was as follows: Christmas 07 Dec. 26th, 2007 = 50% Dec. 31st, 2007 = 75% Jan. 4th, 2007 = 90% Christmas 08 Dec. 26th, 2008 = 50% Dec. 30th, 2008 = 75% Jan. 6th, 2009 = 90% Jan. 2nd, 2009 = 75% Dollar Spot Christmas (black dot) Christmas 09 Dec. 26th, 2009 = 50% Dec. 31st, 2009 = 75% (black dollar spot too) Jan. 5th, 2010 = 90% Twice a year, Target has a major clearance on toys. Once in January and again in the summer. Here are the dates for the January toy clearance in Decatur, AL: Toys 08 Jan. 10th, 2008 = 75% Toys 09 Jan. 15th, 2009 = 75% on MOST toys some still 30-50% Jan. 29th, 2009 = 75% on remaining toys Toys 10 Jan. 15th, 2010 = 75% (Friday) Other departments have an annual major clearance. Dates will be posted here as they become known. Baby 09 Jan. 19th, 2009 = 75% on MOST already clearanced Jan. 26th, 2009 = 75% on remaining clearance Target is one of the few stores where many (although not all) of the cashiers have the ability to bargain when an item doesn't scan with a price. There are times when an item will scan as 'clearance + tax' - be happy in these situations instead of groaning. Sometimes the cashier can do a price override to find the most recent lowest price, but sometimes if you say "I'll take it for (whatever 75% off the marked retail price would be)" they'll just key that in. It's always worth a shot. The same thing applies for an item that scans 'NOF' (Not On File). This means the item is so old that it is completely out of the computer inventory system. Again, a good suggestion is to try offering the 75% off the retail price, but if necessary a price can usually be looked up at the Guest Services Desk. However, if an item has gone 'salvage,' this may backfire on you. In this instance Target marks the item back up to full retail value before pulling it from the shelves and donating it to a charity such as Goodwill or the Salvation Army for a tax write off. This is one of the reasons how Target can claim to donate so much to charity. The markdown teams in each many stores have been known to keep to a standardized schedule, but there are stores that have different ones, so your experience many vary. For those who do follow the standard schedule, the departmental markdown days are: http://gottadeal.com/forumsold/images/icons/target.gifTraditional Department Mark Down Schedule Monday - Electronics, Kids' Clothing, Stationery, Cards, Gift wrap Tuesday - Domestics, Women's Clothing, Pets, Market Pantry Wednesday - Men's Clothing, Toys, Health and Beauty, Lawn & Garden Thursday - Housewares, Lingerie, Shoes, Sporting Goods, Movies, Music, Books, Decor, Luggage Friday - Automotive, Cosmetics, Hardware, Jewelry Note that while this schedule says nothing about weekend markdowns, many Perimeter Perusers on the forum have seen items change in price between a Saturday morning shopping trip and one done on a Sunday afternoon. But nobody has found any rhyme or reason to what gets marked down on those days though - another part of the fun. Target does not have a layaway plan, but die-hard Perimeter Perusers have tried various methods of getting around this. Most are constantly debated on the forum as far as being 'ethical' or not, so we'll leave it for you to decide for yourself. Just don't be surprised to find some differing opinions if you bring it up in this thread. When an item goes 50% off and there are several left, some posters have said they find a hiding place to put the item. They then go back to see if the item is still there several weeks later, and if so, scan it to see if it has dropped in price. Some common hiding places shared are in the middle of a round clothes rack, where all of the clothes hide the item, about a third of the way off the floor of a stack of pillows or behind similar items, perhaps with newer packaging, on the proper shelf. Sometimes, when items are getting scarce at 50% off, posters will buy them at that price and hold on to the receipt. If they find the item later at 75% or 90% off, they will buy the item again, remove any clearance stickers that show the lower price and return the item at another time with the older, higher priced receipt, as long as it is within the 90-day return period. While not technically a clearance topic, in this thread, you may see reference to MM Juice or MM packs. These refer to 10 packs of Minute Maid juice boxes that can generally be bought for $.69. They are found in the juice aisle mixed in with the 15 packs. This usually includes only the Grape, Apple & Fruit Punch flavors -- never Orange Juice. They look exactly like the 15 packs which are generally stocked on the shelf, but instead of having 3 rows of 5 boxes, there are only 2 rows. They are often mixed in with the others, and even hidden in the back behind the 15 packs. You may go months or longer before you find your first set, but they really do exist. They are not an urban legend. And most of us can attest that you'll do a little dance in the aisle when you find them the first time. http://gottadeal.com/forumsold/images/icons/target.gifHelpful Target Clearance-Related Links Target Store Locator Target Coupon Generator Target Clearance Locator

Just wanted to make a dedicated thread for this. The apps we have are currently not working. The company that develops these apps is aware of the problems and is working on a solution. I'll update this thread as needed with any future updates. In the meantime, if you are on a mobile device, this new forum software has a great mobile theme which might load automatically when you access the site through a browser on a smartphone, otherwise you can change the theme on the bottom left of every page. Rest assured, we'll either get the app fixed ASAP, or I'll simply dump these developers and we can have a replacement app for both Android and iOS as soon as Google & Apple approve it. Just please have patience for the next few days while we try to get the current app up and running on the new software.

I might have fixed the image issue. If you get that error again, let me know.

Yeah I already commented about that earlier in this thread. I e-mailed the developer of our apps to have them change their settings for the new forum, so we're waiting on them. In the meantime, the new board has a pretty decent mobile version.

Yeah this one annoys me too. It's way at the bottom of every page (called "Mark Community Read"). I'm going to try to get another link somewhere near the top of every page. Anyone notice the "Spammers Stopped" counter at the bottom of the forum home page? 41 right now. The anti-spam tools are another reason why I wanted to make the switch. I know the changes will be jarring for a few days/weeks just like the last time we had a big upgrade, but it'll be worth it.

Try this: type some text in a reply (don't post it yet), then highlight it and right-click. Make sure "Check Spelling" is selected. Also click "Languages" and make sure "English" is selected. That worked for me and it's now working in FF (it wasn't before). Apparently it's an issue with Firefox more than anything on the forum.

Yep, you'll need to either upload a pic from your computer or enter a URL for another image you see. Eventually I'll put up a page with all the old stock ones in case anyone wants to use one of the old ones, but until I get time to do that you are on your own, so find something creative and original

Are they under "my threads"? I believe the posts is for replies and threads is for threads you create. They show up for me on your user profile page. The hits were set to update every 3 hours to save server resources, but I just changed it to update the # of views immediately, so that should be fixed now.

I think the spell check is a function of your browser, not the forum software itself. Which browser are you using?

I just sent an e-mail to our app developer to see if there are changes that they need to make on their end with the new forum software.

You can use that, but the URL for the image must end with one of those extensions I listed in my last post. I'm going to try to find a way to allow any URL like the old board. They restrict it to just those extensions because allowing any URL for an image can lead to a lot of security problems but I know that a lot of retailers don't use those extensions on their images so it can cause problems for deal posts. As for the other part, you might want to click the very first icon on the toolbar when posting (it looks like a lightswitch). That will change the post editor from the "what you see is what you get" to a plain text mode like the old board. If it's not in text mode, whatever you paste will keep the formatting from whatever site you copied it from.

Right now, images in posts must end with .gif, .jpg or .png in their URL. Where specifically do you mean pasting a title?