Tech Section

[sv1000spilot]

Speaking of which, where's your blue star?

Says the one without the blue star.

Where it's always been, just above my avater

[nero279]

I don't agree with having to pay to gain access, quite simply i think we would run out of newbies coming in, and in a very short space of time and 3 or 4 years down the line i actually doubt there would be that many members left.

I just think that very quickly new members would be put off. How many newbies do we get on saying they are "looking to buy a 4x4 and like the look of the surf, what should i look out for?" how many of them would pay before posting?

likewise with the tech questions, newbie finds forum, knows nothing about it and before he/she can ask a tech question he(/she)'s got to part with cash, if they can't see how quick the responses are, the depth of knowledge shared and how active the forum is they'll have to be in a desparate state to part with cash so they can post, so then every new member ends up joining because they got a cracked head - the few that then part with cash before buying surfs only ever read about cracked heads and go buy pajero's.

I don't think there is a simple solution, i agree Koi shouldn't be out of pocket and fronting costs. And any other way it was done it would probably be the same few topping up the kitty every now and then. Advertising banners and so on can be a pain in the ass i agree, but it's the only way I can think of to get funds from anyone except forum members.

Subtle reminders to non subscribers, a pop-up or a splash screen or something when they sign in maybe?
Some features disabled i agree with, but i do think newbies should be able to view certainly the majority if not the whole of the forum, i think the fact that it is so active is one of the things that keeps newbies coming back, and if they can't see that they won't bother.

As for people with several hundred (or thousand) posts and still no blue star.....

[pops]

It's a tough one. There are some non-payers who are net contributors - i'm thinking Nifty Nev for example, no blue star but a useful bloke to have around.

I would personally remove searching from non-payers and also the ability to post anywhere but the technical section.

NO disrespect to
Nifty Nev or other non contribution payers to the Forum but dont they use MONEY where they live then? or are we suggesting paying the non contributers for there sometimes valuable info shared on here

[RodLeach]

How about different levels of subscriber packages?

EG : £10 = blue star!
£25 = silver star

??

That way Those who are new still get to check it out, those who appreciate the site will pay £10

those (like me) who visit daily would probably be more then happy to stump up for a 'posh' membership!

I aint worked out what 'extras' you could get - other then a different coloured star!

But still - if an option to donate more is there then people might take it!

[Osborne]

Cluttering the site with adds, pop ups etc is something I have steered away from as I personally hate a site cluttered with adds.

I would rather a site with ads than no site at all...

Another site I know of that was run as a coop used affiliate links in a thread which I setup, so members when buying products from Amazon, Dabs etc volunteerly bought through the links and created a couple of hundred pounds per year to help fund the forums, the funds raised were completely transparent in the thread.

No adverts as such because they were all in one thread, it did work very well to help raise funds.

That could be the best way to do it without cluttering the site, at the end of the day both suggestions require people to click the links to take them to their desired site to do their shopping. No real hardship and a way for all visitors to the site to support it regardless of where they are from and how often they visit.

[Woodzie]

How about different levels of subscriber packages?

EG : £10 = blue star!
£25 = silver star

??

That way Those who are new still get to check it out, those who appreciate the site will pay £10

those (like me) who visit daily would probably be more then happy to stump up for a 'posh' membership!

I aint worked out what 'extras' you could get - other then a different coloured star!

But still - if an option to donate more is there then people might take it!

I am skint enough owning a surf without having to pay for privilaged membership

[surfenstein]

a good valid though there rod.i for one dont mind paying the extra.but i also understand that its a tough choice to make and everyone has a valid point in what they are saying.

[daithediver]

As a newbie I would just like to say that I probably would not of purchased a surf if I had not found this forum,it gave me all the info I needed to make my mind up.Maybe its just me but I didn`t notice about subs till about 2mths after joining.Perhaps a more obvious membership fee should be on here somewhere. This is a brilliant site can`t fault it,keep up the good work everyone.

[logey79]

what about a weekly lottery draw.

some sort of thing could be sorted so that whoever wins gets half the pot, the forum gets the other half. be a laugh too. ideas on how this could be done and made worthwhile for the laugh of taking part?

[MattF]

Like others have said, £10 wont break ANYONES bank.

Never was and never will be the point. FFS, why don't we just start telling people they can't use the internet unless they have a third nipple and their name is Scaramanga too?

This shite seems to be becoming endemic these days.

[surfenstein]

Never was and never will be the point. FFS, why don't we just start telling people they can't use the internet unless they have a third nipple and their name is Scaramanga too?

This shite seems to be becoming endemic these days.

hi newbie here my name is scaramanga and i have three nipples just wanted to ask a stupid question...................

[Woodzie]

hi newbie here my name is scaramanga and i have three nipples just wanted to ask a stupid question...................

YOU FREAK

[pops]

Never was and never will be the point. FFS, why don't we just start telling people they can't use the internet unless they have a third nipple and their name is Scaramanga too?

This shite seems to be becoming endemic these days.

Easy you ginger northern jessie

[surfenstein]

YOU FREAK

IM A FREAK.pot calling kettle................

[Woodzie]

IM A FREAK.pot calling kettle................

yes i am a black yeti ........more commonly known as bigfoot