Most of the questions so far are about updates to current kit.

This is why nobody has mentioned it.

With the K-30 on Tv or M exposure mode, and an AF360FGZ or AF540FGZ flash set to High Speed Synch, you can use flash at any shutter speed you choose, even up to the fastest 1/6000th/sec.

The 1/180th limit is the fastest shutter speed you can use with a single flash of light because any faster, and the trailing curtain has already started to obscure the sensor before the leading curtain has reached the end of it's travel.

Put simply, at speeds faster than 1/180th, less than 100% of the sensor area is exposed at the same time, which is what you need for a single flash of light.

+1

If I'm allowed a second question, "Why was control of an off camera Pentax P-TTL compatible flash omitted from the Pentax MX-1, and can it be implemented in a firmware update (please)".

As a loyal user of Pentax equipment I'd like to see some of the firmware functions found in current models appear in updates to more recent, but no longer current models.

Focus peaking is one that springs to mind, I'm sure others can think of some more.

I'm not talking about retrofitting new firmware based functions to the very old models, just the last one or two, like the K-5/II/IIs bodies.

My question is, "Why won't Ricoh/Pentax provide some of the firmware only enhancements from current models for our slightly older ones?"

That's understandable since most of us have invested such a lot of our time in this forum, but times they are a changin'.

Having invested all that time and still to be treated the way we are at times by one or two 'team' members makes me feel that our input is not as respected as much as it should.

I've been an active member of this forum for 9 years and I'm increasingly dismayed at the treatment some posts receive.

This is not a new problem, whilst the mods continue dealing with some posts by simply deleting them with no explanation, members are going to continue to be rubbed up the wrong way.

That said, in recent weeks we've had more say about how we feel than once would have been allowed without intervention, but that intervention did come . . . eventually.

The european Pentax forum is a good place to be and will continue to improve as its list of members increases, but it'll take time.

All the chat over there about what's going on here will die down, just as this thread will eventually, unless it gets locked of course.

I think my last achievement here will have been to get the name of the "General Chat" forum changed. Hopefully it means no more "General Chat" posts will be unceremoniously deleted and you can all enjoy your stay here as a result if that's what you choose to do.

How sad that "the team" have decided not to grant the wishes of a good number of the core contributors to this site.

Many other (Pentax Forums) provide a 'lounge' for their members and it is they who will probably benefit from this decision.

The OP will probably receive an email from this renewed interest and maybe come back. If he does, he can finally get some sleep, knowing what this bird actually is

There's still a huge number of superb images here that nobody ever commented on. It makes a change from just following the live threads and it's surprising how many comments these resurrected posts receive the second time round.