Your Support, Still
 

Dear Eratosphereans,

When things are running well, seemingly, the trials and travails behind the scene required to keep the software, machines and Internet lines humming happily, and the corresponding landlords (ISPs, licensees, . . .) paid and non-threatening becomes unnoticeable to the general membership. A sort of out of sight, out of mind scenario. Indeed, we have not suffered any downtime or system malfunction in over a year, and it was not for lack of trying by the hackers whose ever-evolving threats consistently require significant resources to monitor and set up redundant, fail-safe countermeasures.

I sincerely thank all who heeded the call for support last time I posted in this vein . . . which I generally try not to make unless it’s absolutely necessary. The fact is that the support has dried up for close to a year after the last such request. However the financial demands for server, bandwidth and storage space come monthly like clockwork, and sometime more often than that with the unavoidable upgrades and maintenance needs of the hardware and software. And I’ve been handling all of these personally, all this time, regardless of the dried up member support. Yes, member support is voluntary, but it will be a great thing if it doesn’t completely die down to zero for close to yearly stretches.

So, for those of you interested in helping out, and who are in a situation that allows them to do so, I’ll simply point out that donation link is at the top of most forum page, here . The available methods are credit card (through Google Checkout), Paypal (indirectly through 2Checkout), or check by snail mail. And every little bit does help.

Thanks!
…Alex

No worries, Alex! A little bit of 'help' is on the way!

Cally xox

Great! Thanks, Cally.

BTW, to those who've been pointing to me that the support sign is out of sight (and thus out of mind), I've just added an icon that's, hopefully, easier to see.

Cheers,
...Alex

Alex, as a relative newbie this is the first time I've been aware of such a request.
You oughtn't be out of pocket for managing this wonderful site! Why isn't there an annual membership fee to cover the expenses? Surely no-one would object to that?
My voluntary 'membership fee' is on its way - with profound thanks for all your hard work.

Alex,
I sent you a PM.
Cathy

Donation sent, Alex. Thanks so much for all you do.

Thank you all, Jayne, Cally and Catherine. Your support and kind words are much appreciated!

Cheers,
...Alex

Hello, all--

An annual membership fee makes sense to me. Or maybe a regular, twice-yearly request for donations, without any explanation, justification, or apologetic tone! I'm grateful to be able to participate here, and am happy to support the hard work and expertise that goes into maintaining this forum.

--Jean

On its way.

Thanks, Tim!

Thanks, Jean! And the reason why I don't want to go the annual membership route is because there are some members who, truly, may not be able to afford it. Thus, to keep Eratosphere open to all, contribution is not mandated but voluntary.

Cheers,
...Alex

I agree with Alex. Contributions should remain voluntary and not be mandated. I think all we need once in a while is a gentle reminder to send some financial help. For many reasons it's important that a site such as this remain open and free to all, including those who may be unable to contribute and even those who are unwilling to contribute.

Richard

Hi Alex,

Just another thought on the 'annual membership fee' idea: I appreciate that some people might feel embarrassed if the fee was more than they could afford, but on the other hand, might it not work out that a small fee from everyone would equate to more than a larger amount from just a few?

Regarding anyone 'unwilling ' to help (huh??), as they say in Yorkshire (or almost anywhere 'oop North') "You don't get owt for nowt."

...and we get plenty.

Hello Jayne,

Thanks again for the suggestion and support.

...Alex