I think I love this new rule the forum is trying.
I know I love the restrictions on selling in the market place for those who haven't contributed with helpful post or questions about the hobby. 3 months seems very fair as well.
The part I'm not sold on is blocking newbies from the marketplace completely. < If i'm understanding this correctly.
Just because a individual is new to the SCR community does not mean they are new to the hobby. So why lock them out of trading with fellow reefers on the forums, or giving away things they no longer need? I'm not going to lie, the initial attraction to this forum for me was the marketplace. I found second hand equipment for a price I could afford. That led me to bettering my system, which got me better results and more "into" the hobby. I also had the pleasure of meeting some of the SCR community, most of which were great people who gave me solid advice. Most of the tanks were much more impressive and colorful than mine. So I got the bug, hopped on the forums and started asking questions and reading up on past topics to try and get the same results.
I don't see how letting new comers buy can hurt the forums. If all they want to do is buy, who does it really hurt? Its the ones that just come here to sell, flip and pick up free crap that drive some of us nuts. And if youre one of the people bothered by this, just don't give your free items to someone with a 10 post count that consist of "pm sent" or "ill take it".