The Pledge.

[Sirpent]

Hi all,

 

OK, I'm going out on a limb here, haven't spoken to the moderators however I don't think they will mind either.

 

Last night after responding to Nizmo's dilemma about paint work, I thought about how we have been assisting each other, Ive had a lot of good will in the form of advice and help from a lot of the crew on this site, and then my thoughts turned to how many members actually get a whole lot of milage out of the site and the fact it was about that time of the year I renewed my donation.

 

So, I thought that it may be an idea to actually post a pledge thread where members can commit HOWEVER MUCH THEY ARE COMFORTABLE WITH in the form of a pledge to help Gav and the boys keep the place running.

 

So, I'm happy to be the first, if this thread is inappropriate, then I have no gripes with it being deleted.

 

Cheers

 

John

 

Pledge

 

$50.00 : Sirpent : John.O.

[Ledge]

HI John

I tend to agree that people should assist in the day to day costs involved with this sight as

the information and assistance people can get is fantastic.

But isn't that what the "CHIP IN" On the home page is for.

 

As i have the Shortcut in my Favourites to go straight to the Forum i never knew that the "CHIP IN"

was there until a month or so ago when i clicked on the home page and saw it and promptly

well "CHIPPED IN"

 

I think if every one done this occasionally that would be enough.

Maybe everytime you get some great or helpful information of the sight put 5 or 10 bucks

into the "CHIP IN" on the home page.

 

Regards

Paul

 

 

[nizm0zed]

Definitely agree there john, i'll have to make an effort to donate some cash (pay week next week)

I didn't even know it was there till it was mentioned.

Fwiw, the info john gave me is worth a lot more than a few dollars towards the site, and its not the first time i have got valuable info from here.

 

Perhaps a permanent link (like an add banner) at the top op the page for everyone to see?

[xa1973]

I think youll find many many people on this forum chip in , donate, contribute what they can when they can, all of whom as I can see it are silent about it and without accolades....

[Sirpent]

I think youll find many many people on this forum chip in , donate, contribute what they can when they can, all of whom as I can see it are silent about it and without accolades....

 

I agree with you totally, but my post wasnt a means of trying to ramp up recognition for myself if that was what you were reffering to.

 

For a forum with 2000+ members, where I doubt more than 5% support the site financially, the idea of the Pledge was to attempt to ramp up some support.

 

Cheers

 

John

 

 

 

[gav240z]

I think youll find many many people on this forum chip in , donate, contribute what they can when they can, all of whom as I can see it are silent about it and without accolades....

 

That's true many people do donate. I try and update everyone who has donated to status of donating member. Although recently I've been a bit busy and missed a few of these so again if anyone has yet to receive their status update. Feel free to drop me an email gavindoolan (@) gmail.com.

 

I agree with you totally, but my post wasnt a means of trying to ramp up recognition for myself if that was what you were reffering to.

 

For a forum with 2000+ members, where I doubt more than 5% support the site financially, the idea of the Pledge was to attempt to ramp up some support.

 

Cheers

 

John

 

 

 

 

John I appreciate the thread and the donation. What I've been doing is every month I set our target Chip In total. This month for example we need a bit more cash as I renewed the domain name viczcar.com for another 5 years at a cost of $10 p/year ($50). So that goes on top of the $170 odd for hosting.

 

So far we have been pretty good at reaching targets with the Chip In widget on the homepage. Although 1 thing I didn't consider is that people don't visit the homepage and they skip straight to the forum.

 

I might construct a banner to encourage donations that can alternate with the Otomoto banner.

 

[boyblunda]

Sirpent, good on you for raising this discussion.

 

The matter of what is a fair donation is not a question unique to this site. I think the idea of a pledge is a good one although  it need not necessarily be one that is made for all to see as it leads to the inevitable comparisons that might be made without regard to the circumstances and variables of individual members.

 

At this point in time I have a personal private pledge that reflects :

* my personal circumstances and current economic status

* my own thoughts about what a normal membership of any club might be

* the benefits I personally receive from my membership

* my appreciation of the donations of personal time and professional skills provided by the site administrators / moderators and

* any specific needs the body might have eg  upgrades to technical equipment or such

 

I think it is a great thing that we are able to let people decide for themselves how much, if and when they might donate.

 

It is also a great thing that so many people donate so much personal effort and expertise to this site - the value of which is inestimable. This site really runs on a shoestring thanks to the efforts of a few. I also believe that the quality of presentation and administration of the site is exemplary and maybe beyond that which might seem warranted given the activity levels it has. However, it is accessible, friendly, informative and expanding thanks to the contributions of ALL involved.

 

If I win lotto or if the site has a need for a one off financial injection I will donate more but if I lose my job I may have to consider donating less. I do appreciate that, at the moment, the decision is left for me to decide. I hope that the current situation is working sufficiently well for the site to continue without any stresses on the administrators but would maybe suggest that the monthly targets are increased a little to create a "rainy day" surplus should it ever be needed.

 

FWIW

Dave

 

 

 

[gav240z]

If I win lotto or if the site has a need for a one off financial injection I will donate more but if I lose my job I may have to consider donating less. I do appreciate that, at the moment, the decision is left for me to decide. I hope that the current situation is working sufficiently well for the site to continue without any stresses on the administrators but would maybe suggest that the monthly targets are increased a little to create a "rainy day" surplus should it ever be needed.

 

FWIW

Dave

 

Hi Dave,

For now donations are working well and we seem to hit target each month. We also do earn a very modest income from Google Adsense which tends to make up for any short comings and provide a very small buffer for the months where donations don't quite reach target.

 

I am also considering other ways to monetise the site and just now have implemented something that may bring in additional income although I'll have to give it a trial for a couple of months to see.

 

I have considered adding more adsense to the site, but I want  to try and avoid overwhelming advertising and I always try to keep the User Experience in mind.

 

I have been meaning to migrate the website to a more manageable CMS to make maintenance and new features easier to add but time has got the better of me.

 

I've always seen this website as an investment myself and I hope when the time comes to get started on the resto of my Z I'll be able to call upon a few favors .

[Ledge]

Hi Gav

The reason i have a shortcut straight to the forum page

is the home page takes a while to load up. Yes i do

have 1500+ broadband but the home page takes significantly

longer to load.

So i would consider not overloading the home page if its going to make people

avoid it cause of the load time.

Hope that helps

Regards

Paul