Guest Guest_navybillsfan_* Posted August 20, 2004 Posted August 20, 2004 SDS, i would not mind a monthly fee, say 5-7 bucks. Set up a fantasy football thing here too sort of like Yahoo.com There are programs that run it and all is done is the stats that their main site does for you. Just something to ponder on I guess. But heck 5 bucks a month wont hurt a sole
T-Bone Posted August 20, 2004 Posted August 20, 2004 Your porn habit is becoming expensive! 920[/snapback] You can't get a decent DVD for 20 bucks...internet is a bargin.
Mark Long Beach Posted August 20, 2004 Posted August 20, 2004 I also agree that requiring a paying membership to post will dilute the pool of posters too much. I'm way out of state, and so this is my main lifeline to the bills, and have NO problem donating to help keeping the resource going. It's always easier to keep things voluntary, because once you have paying _members_ you add a whole different set of headaches. You already do a great job of keeping TSW up and running, I don't want to see you get fustrated by having a couple of whiney paying members, or just the simple hastle of membership at all. I vote that you do it in stages. It's time for a fundraising drive. So start it. See what happens, and then choose a course. Get that paypal linky, as I'm ready to contribute.
millbank Posted August 20, 2004 Posted August 20, 2004 could a pledge thread be pinned where a pledge of ten dollars would be asked for from each wall member that cares to , and as each member pays his pledge a x beside it denoting paid. I cant believe that each and every regular wall user could not come up with ten dollars each and every year. You break 10.00 down over a year that is TWENTY CENTS A WEEK or THREE CENTS A DAY. Are any of you really able to stand a say you cant afford THREE CENTS A DAY. Come on everyone get the thread up the pledges down and the money paid. Just 500 of us and we have a board the can be everything precious it is for years and years to come . Think about it THREE CENTS A DAY lets get it done
bills_fan Posted August 20, 2004 Posted August 20, 2004 I'm going to play devil's advocate here and say that donations should be just that - donations. You don't get anything special for donating (except maybe your name on a donations page I guess). But I don't think it should be required. Yes, the regulars who are here would glady pay and that's great. However, one of the things that make the site cool IMHO is when rival fans come and post during the game week. We all hate the trolls, but there are plenty of knowledgable fans who find the site and talk good football during the week, and then leave when the game's over. If you require money to post, you're going to kill that and that would be a shame. I'm sure plenty of people would donate money just to keep the place going - I know I would - but making it a requirement to post seems a bit extreme IMHO. CW I couldn't agree more here. Lets try it on donations. As a regular user, I would have no problem donating 25 -50 bucks to have this site up and running. I don'ty see any problem with that. I just would not want to make it mandatory. When I first stumbled in here, I know if I had to pay before posting, I would probably have left not to return. Only now, I see the value here and have no problems paying for it. So, if we want to keep growing, I think having a free site is the way to go. Also, I wouldn't want fans from other teams to not be able to post here. I enjoy the banter. Which is part of the reason I'd be willing to pay a little bit more to make it happen. My $.02 Also, Scott, is there somewhere I can send a check, I don't use paypal. Thanx.
mead107 Posted August 20, 2004 Posted August 20, 2004 SDS are u going to be at the game sat . nite ?can hand u some money then or will send a check monday.
soljc Posted August 20, 2004 Posted August 20, 2004 Well, if you only raised $1200 a couple years back, that mean only a handful of us donanted. Considering the amount of users here each day, a yearly registration fee of $5-$10 should be NOTHING to the folks who spend more time here than with real people. A link should be provided for Paypal I'd rather avoid the banners and junk which would cheapen the board. You shouldn't have to go that route. Nor should you have to worry about fundraisers at the opening tailgate. That should be a relaxing day when most people only get to see folks from here once a year. Consider other cutbacks overall. Certain boards perhaps. Obviously, registration would now be required. This would also eliminate all the BS with folks using multiple handles for attack purposes. Would increse the quality of the board and bring a lot of people back who now just lurk, fearing attacks,abuse,nonsense. The only people who would protest these ideas aren't worth keeping. They just wish to post for free and play their games with multiple handles, anonymous posts, etc. I can only see positives. Watch the quality of this place soar. Pin instructions to the top and start a 30-60 day " Reregistration " with a yearly fee of $5-10. I realize that probably digs at you, fearing people will leave in droves. The true supporters would NOT be offended. I think you'd be pleasantly surprised at the response. There are more good hearted people here than you think. 483[/snapback] Mark VI has got it. Forget the advertising, eliminate guest posts and charge a membership fee. If you really are against charging an annual fee, then solicit voluntary donations from registered members and offer them a nice title based on their donation (i.e. Gold Member, etc.).
mcjeff215 Posted August 21, 2004 Posted August 21, 2004 Ok, let me have a stab at all of this too, please =) First off, with regards to the current hosting configuration... I work for one of the larger web hosting companies out there. I deal with this stuff day in and day out usually. I don't do operations work, I'm the most senior software developer on staff. Initially, there are probably a half a million things that can be done to keep the load on the server down. For starters... are you given a choice of DB servers? I'd assume you're on a MySQL DB? While nice, MySQL can *suck* when it comes to concurrent connections if not built with the proper options/table types. It does table level locking out of the box. Server load is a function of the number of waiting processes. If you've got 100 processes (concurrent users/connections) waiting on MySQL queries which are blocking due to weak locking.. your load is going to shoot through the roof. All that crap said... if you want *technical* help on streamlining the board/system, I'd be more than happy to help out - as would a few others around here I'd bet. Next, remember you have *other* options. You don't necessarily need to go dedicated. Have you looked into VPS technology? SW Soft's Virtuoso or Interland's Freedom products. They're a nice middle ground between dedicated and standard shared. Additionally, some of the hosters out there have very tightly controlled shared products that will not LET you take down a server (I've done some work on a product like that myself). If you still want to go dedicated... look outside your company. You can get an entry level dedicated system for $99 a lot of places. I'm not going to go into charging for the site and whatnot. I'd pay, personally. I'd recommend taking a closer look at your hosting scenario while at the same time taking donations. I can just imagine it now, "I paid $20 like you, I can talk about whatever I want to!" Perhaps show ads for non-premium members, but remove them for those that pay... *shrug* -Jeff
LabattBlue Posted August 21, 2004 Posted August 21, 2004 I'd recommend taking a closer look at your hosting scenario while at the same time taking donations. I can just imagine it now, "I paid $20 like you, I can talk about whatever I want to!" 1693[/snapback] This same thought crossed my mind and would probably be played out several times a day.
Fan in San Diego Posted August 22, 2004 Posted August 22, 2004 Scott and all TBD participants. I will host TBD on my server and bear the cost for the whole enchilada. I use maybe 2% of the server and bandwidth capacity that I pay for. It seems a match made in heaven. All I ask is that we try using my XliRAD based chat and BBS software on a trial basis in return for the use of my server. I have been active with TBD since the beginning and will be to the end. So I'm not a Johnny come lately. If the collective says it sucks, then so be it and use the software of SDS's choice. What does the collective think?
Gotta Dream Posted August 22, 2004 Posted August 22, 2004 Perhaps show ads for non-premium members, but remove them for those that pay... *shrug* -Jeff 1693[/snapback] I think that would be a great idea. Banners for freebies, none for subscribers. Seeing that Fantasy Football is so huge, that could be used as a money maker. Scott and all TBD participants. I will host TBD on my server and bear the cost for the whole enchilada. I use maybe 2% of the server and bandwidth capacity that I pay for. It seems a match made in heaven. All I ask is that we try using my XliRAD based chat and BBS software on a trial basis in return for the use of my server. I have been active with TBD since the beginning and will be to the end. So I'm not a Johnny come lately. If the collective says it sucks, then so be it and use the software of SDS's choice. What does the collective think? 3269[/snapback] Have no idea on what you are talking about, but free is free?!?!
Gotta Dream Posted August 22, 2004 Posted August 22, 2004 Is there any money in putting a link/banner to hear radio/NFL broadcasts?
Fezmid Posted August 22, 2004 Posted August 22, 2004 Check out the DVD fundraiser: http://www.twobillsdrive.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=574
BillsWatch Posted August 23, 2004 Posted August 23, 2004 2Also, Scott, is there somewhere I can send a check, I don't use paypal. Thanx. 1498[/snapback] Agree completely. Paypal is used as last resort. Scott and all TBD participants. I will host TBD on my server and bear the cost for the whole enchilada. I use maybe 2% of the server and bandwidth capacity that I pay for. It seems a match made in heaven. All I ask is that we try using my XliRAD based chat and BBS software on a trial basis in return for the use of my server. I have been active with TBD since the beginning and will be to the end. So I'm not a Johnny come lately. What does the collective think? 3269[/snapback] Sounds like you would have a TRUE interest in keeping server up for it would be your model board for selling software. Good idea but depends on how comfortable SDS is at using software and how well Jay can Rosen it. Is there a sample board people can see so they know what features would be lost/gained?
Fan in San Diego Posted August 23, 2004 Posted August 23, 2004 Check out the DVD fundraiser: http://www.twobillsdrive.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=574 3991[/snapback] I just upgraded my server with new OS, motherboard, faster CPU, more RAM and faster drives and I have a one issue to work out. I'll post a link when the board is back up for analysis. The board is not as feature rich as the current software SDS uses, but we can add features, the server will be pretty much free to use as the TBD server. We can try a few experimental weekend runs and see how the performance is and how everybody likes the software. The price is right, thats for sure. It is a win win situation for everybody. Thanks, Fan in San Diego
Just Jack Posted August 23, 2004 Posted August 23, 2004 This server, are you going to be available 24/7 if there's an issue? If there is a HD Rosen, will we be back up in 1 hour? Will you leave any business meetings? Dinner? Vacation? By going with a legitimate company we can have those assurances, rather than someone who simply volunteers to have one in their basement. What about DNS, static IP, etc? I could hook up a system to my Road Runner, but I know even with a requesting a static IP from Time Warner, sometimes there are issues where that IP "disappears".
bill in Livonia Posted August 23, 2004 Posted August 23, 2004 I did not contribute at the event of the last crisis but I will send a check to help with the imediate problem. I believe that a small membership fee will be necessary for the overall solution
bill in Livonia Posted August 23, 2004 Posted August 23, 2004 Oh! when do you need a contribution and where should we send it?
Fezmid Posted August 23, 2004 Posted August 23, 2004 This server, are you going to be available 24/7 if there's an issue? If there is a HD cracs, will we be back up in 1 hour? Will you leave any business meetings? Dinner? Vacation? By going with a legitimate company we can have those assurances, rather than someone who simply volunteers to have one in their basement. What about DNS, static IP, etc? I could hook up a system to my Road Runner, but I know even with a requesting a static IP from Time Warner, sometimes there are issues where that IP "disappears". 5061[/snapback] If you tried hooking this up to your TW account, they'd close you down after the first month when they see you using 100G of bandwidth. CW
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