Forum Bandwidth-- Who's paying the toll?

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Chet18013

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 5, 2005
Posts
1,861
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Full time in RV. Home is where we are parked
Tom,

I hope this doesn't offed anyone.

I know someone is footing the cost of the hosting of this GREAT new forum. I hope it is not you, alone. Have you considered a method for those of us who have to have a daily RVForum fix to help with the costs? How about setting up a PayPal link for us to pay a nominal fee or voluntarily make a donation?

I for one would  favor, and be happy to have a small (optional for those who are on limited incomes, or those who don't want to help) annual fee to compensate for the forum costs.

Chet18013
 
A Paypal donation button would be perfect.  I am active on another forum that did just that, after some convincing of the owner to do it :).  Optional, and you can donate at whatever level you're comfortable with.
 
Yes Chet, it's on my dime right now. I was going to wait a while to see what costs accrue (based on traffic, storage, bandwidth, etc), and maybe hold a pledge drive "to help feed the Wizop", or some such, although I wasn't (and still am not) sure how that would be received.

Since you asked, if anyone is inclined, there's now a Donate button in the toolbar above.

Thanks for bringing it up, and I'll leave it to folks to decide for themselves. If nobody pays, Ned promised to set Sasha on them at the next rally they attend  :D
 
Chet,

I am quite certain no one will be offended.  I am in full agreement that Tom shouldn't bear the costs.  I think those that want to contibute should.  I see There is a Donate button in the toolbar above. to handle any contributions.  Thanks for bringing it up.
 
There is certainly no reason for anyone to be offended by an optional contribution. However, my past experience elsewhere is that some indignation appears as soon as you begin posting messages encouraging folks to contribute - even tough it remains optional. There are those who apparently feel that every lunch ought to be free [lol] and even the suggestion that it may not be is cause for righteous indignation. [sigh]  However, I doubt if any of the framily would feel that way...

And if some sad sack wants to grouse about being solicited, do we really care?  I think not...
 
Hi Chet,

I've had a similar conversation with Tom about footing the bill. It is only right that those of us that enjoy this forum should pay our way. Tom certainly should not have to pay for all of it. He has done wonderous things trying to keep this group together and it's worth every minute he spends.



 
Thank you very much Roger. Much appreciated. Glad to see you found our new home and that you see so many familiar faces.
 
Hi Joe Lacey!  Long time no see! ;D

I'm with you and would like to know what level of contribution to make.  I have no problem with the concept as I know someone has to pay the piper for the ammenities here.
 
I and probably most of us have no idea as to the cost involved. I would suggest we just make a contribution to start out with.  Hopfully Tom will let us know if the level of contributions are adequate to cover the costs or if they become too excessive.  The important thing is that Tom should not bear the cost.

I know we all appreciate all the time and effort Tom puts into this forum.
 
Joe-Cricket Lacey said:
I am with you Chet...what is my dues?

Hi Joe,

Right now, it's what ever you are comfortable with until Tom informs us differently.

Glad to see you're here. :) It seems like there is a lot of the old CS Classic folks crawling out from under the rug here. This forum is certainly a lot easier to use than that new (un) improved Compuserve. It's almost as easy as the old Ozwin. I hope you will become more active in this forum. I for one have missed your posts, especially your annual episode with holding tank dumping. :mad:

Where are you located now and what's the next posting?

Chet
 
Tom,

You posted:

Do I use this general button when what I really want to do is direct my donation to the SMF_forum?

Doug
 
RV Roamer said:
There is certainly no reason for anyone to be offended by an optional contribution. However, my past experience elsewhere is that some indignation appears as soon as you begin posting messages encouraging folks to contribute - even tough it remains optional. There are those who apparently feel that every lunch ought to be free [lol] and even the suggestion that it may not be is cause for righteous indignation. [sigh]? However, I doubt if any of the framily would feel that way...

And if some sad sack wants to grouse about being solicited, do we really care?? I think not...

It's funny you bring that up.  Right now, we have that same thing going on in the Wanderlodge Forum at Yahoo.  The Wizop is starting a new site and it requires some cost and contributions.  You would not believe how indignant some folks can be.  Can you believe it:  A $20 annual membership is outrageous for those driving Blue Birds.  Mind boggling to say the least.

 
Tom, Ive seen this on other forums where they have a few advertising banners at the top of the pages. Not sure how'd you go about it, but maybe some rv suppliers could pay for ads that would offset the cost of this site......???  (hint, hint  camping world!!!!)
 
I've had some experience with that with another website and can tell you it is tough to get ad sponsership.  It takes a lot of time to market the commercial value of a web site and takers are few and far between, even with numbers of members and page views much, much higher than what we have here.  I'm not saying it isn't worth a try, butyou really shouldn't expect much aid from that quarter.
 
Some of the ads on other sites are downright obnoxious. Gaudy flashing colors and the like that may not scroll out of view as you go down the page are very distracting and make reading a chore . Any Forbes magazine article you go to has a splash screen that remains there for a full 10 seconds before it lets you see any of the story. This forum is easy to read and navigate and I and everyone else should be willing to throw a few bucks into the kitty to keep it that way. Many folks think nothing of spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on new toys; I consider this forum a great time and money saver by learning form other members' experiences and not throwing good money after bad and will gladly pay to keep it as it is. Tom and others have spent a great deal of time, money, and effort and should not have to shoulder the burden themselves. Ads are not the way; member donations are. Just my opinion. :)
 
Karl,

The Donate link is now in the toolbar above..
 
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