maintainer: Chris Mitchell (lensman00@go.com)

1.

Q. Where can I find a specific product I'm looking for?

A. There are some good web resources for tracking down product information. Try one of the threads in our Marketplace section. The WWW Optiboard is a message base for opticians. Someone there may be able to locate an out-of-production frame or other item. OptiSearch is a large, free online frames database.

2.

Q. I've been prescribed glasses and I don't want to wear them! What should I do?

A. It's really up to you (except in some cases where a parent is involved or you need them for driving), but the hardest day is the first. After that you'll probably find that seeing well outweighs other concerns.

3.

Q. Aren't bifocals for old people?

A. No, bifocals are for anyone who would like help with both near and far vision. Bifocals are also worn by young people as therapy for myopia and to treat a condition called accomodative esotropia.

4.

Q. I find people with glasses very attractive. Is this normal?

A. This seems to be well within the range of normal preferences, particularly if glasses aren't an absolute requirement for socializing, dating or sexual arousal.

5.

Q. Can you recommend an online optical retailer?

A. Arlington Contact Lens Service seems to take consumer issues seriously. I haven't made any transactions with them personally. For reading glasses, Debby Burk Optical seems to be reputable, although I haven't personally done business with them. I'm impressed by Optical4less's understanding of the ES community and willingness to cater to some of the more unusual requests.

My advice for dealing with any online discounter: place a small order the first time. Then if you are happy with the service and product, show your appreciation by becoming a repeat customer. Caveat emptor.

6.

Q. Do you have any pictures of women with thick glasses?

A. Yes, I have a few and so do other people. Picture collectors in the glasses realm are generally quite willing to trade or even give files to those who ask nicely.

7.

Q. Is a particular person on Eye Scene a 'fake'?

A. There are people posting on Eye Scene under false pretenses. This seems to be true on virtually every 'community' web site, particularly those (like ES) with relatively loose controls. Asking this question in the public forums often invites lively discussion and/or flame wars.

8.

Q. Would you post the attached pictures on Eye Scene?

A. Eye Scene currently has no mechanism or reserved space for posting pictures. It is a text-based site.

9.

Q. Why was my post deleted?

A. Posts which make personal attacks are usually deleted, so as not to provoke flame wars. If a flame war does develop, all posts in that thread are subject to deletion, whether they are offensive or not. The administrator doesn't always have the time or patience to weed out offending posts one by one.

10.

Q. Can diopters be converted to visual acuity?

A. While there is no precise relationship, anecdotal evidence suggests that moderate minus prescriptions can be converted to a rough estimate of visual acuity. Take your prescription in diopters, multiply by 100 and place under the numerator 20. For instance a prescription of -3.50 works out to an estimated acuity of 20/350.

11.

Q. I'm bothered when people post about kids, can something be done?

A. Eyescene is a discussion site about eyewear. Some of the participants have been minors, others come here as parents seeking opinions, many of us wore glasses as children, and the psychological ramifications of being a child wearer of glasses are of interest.

Eyescene is also what might be called fetish-friendly, in that the association of sexual desire and eyewear is frequently a topic of discussion.

The fact that these two topics exist in parallel on the same site has led to hasty judgments at times. It is good to remember that each individual's psyche is unique, and we should be slow to project our own approach to this site upon others.

There exists a general taboo regarding children and sexuality. This varies in its particulars from culture to culture, but the administrator feels a responsibility to help protect children from harm. To this end, posts which solicit personal contact information from minors are strongly discouraged and will be deleted. Also, any discussion of, or links to material which portrays, pre-adolescents in sexual situations will be deleted.