Tech Section

[BUSHWHACKER]

uhm.. im not sure how its going to be vince(unless its pay for the tech section)

I have no problem with that!
If people want a Surf, then they should research them before they buy. If they don't and have problems later on then paying a tenner to find out how to fix it is loads cheaper than just taking it to a rip-off garage.
Most people log in just to find out information, so charging them for it is fine, otherwise, cheery banter and bitchin' is free.

[Scorpion]

What about chargin to change your user name!!!!!

Totally agree. £5.00 to change your username or you can only change it when you pay your yearly subs.

(I just paid mine for this year so I get a freebee).

[gwh200]

I have no problem with that!
If people want a Surf, then they should research them before they buy. If they don't and have problems later on then paying a tenner to find out how to fix it is loads cheaper than just taking it to a rip-off garage.
Most people log in just to find out information, so charging them for it is fine, otherwise, cheery banter and bitchin' is free.

i couldnt agree more vince,but im probably being dense here.what has koi decided to do ?

[soramad]

i'm a relative newbee i visit most evenings and have a look at whats being said and discussed ,i also belong to the Lexus soarer owners club which i contribute information and advice to new and sometimes long standing members this lexus forum is free, no membership fees,it is funded by having sponsers (not all car orientated) and a club shop, this may be a way round some of the expenditure of running this club and enable it to stay free.

[Bibs]

Totally agree. £5.00 to change your username or you can only change it when you pay your yearly subs.

(I just paid mine for this year so I get a freebee).

Hee hee .....thts a point actually - does it run to the day you registered or the begining of the month you paid????

[BUSHWHACKER]

i couldnt agree more vince,but im probably being dense here.what has koi decided to do ?

OK, it isn't carved out in stone, just suggested, good as decided methinks.

[nero279]

Good point then all we do is charge £2 for membership and the ability to post ? therefore spam could not post...and the 662 peeps who post would stump £1324.... would that cover it?

how many of these would actually pay to ask the question though?

I can honestly see charging to view or post in the tech sections being the beginning of the end for the forum.

I believe the very nature of the forum would change over night, and even whatever it is that keeps the regulars coming back would be lost in a short space of time.

[gwh200]

OK, it isn't carved out in stone, just suggested, good as decided methinks.

ahhh,

best i go for some coffee now and get the swede working again.

[madcampbell]

how many of these would actually pay to ask the question though?

I can honestly see charging to view or post in the tech sections being the beginning of the end for the forum.

I believe the very nature of the forum would change over night, and even whatever it is that keeps the regulars coming back would be lost in a short space of time.

So your solutions is....?

[MattF]

OK, it isn't carved out in stone, just suggested, good as decided methinks.

You ain't alone in that thought.

[Tiger]

nobody is suggesting pay £10 or else. there are other forums that you can participate 70% of the site without paying, just a select section for members only. And it hasn't caused any problems.

POLL

[MattF]

I believe the very nature of the forum would change over night, and even whatever it is that keeps the regulars coming back would be lost in a short space of time.

Very well put.

One has to remember a simple fact. A forum itself is a central point for people of like mind and interest to congregate, so to speak. However, the forum itself is not the main consideration. It is the members which make the forum, not the other way around. Without users, a forum is nothing.

[MudSurfer]

From reading through 21 pages, most of which seem to be based on arguments and moaning, I've donated money to Nigel a few times as a thank you for him keeping this place running. The Tech section is great, the info is invaluable, and we pride ourselves on being part of the best forum on the Internet all the time - so what makes it so great???

The people, the info and it's availability.....

When I joined, I think I paid up quite early on - but agree that the link to the subscription needs to be made more obvious, and Rod - I like the idea of 'premium' memberships, I like the 'microsites' approach too - and I think that adding a charge to the Tech section may deter some users, and ensuring that people have to pay to post may also deter newbies - but will also reduce the overhead created by spammers etc.

Advertising, if there were banners at the top and bottom of the page, that isn't intrusive, and if a referral fee could be worked out with RoughTrax and Milners, then that should be looked into too.

Maybe a little section on how to use photobucket or similar would be good, to reduce the number and size of attachments so we just use links instead.....

We all benefit from this forum in some way, whether its tech help, advice on where to get your Surf dirty, and general banter - we all get something out of it - and if the number of posts or something along those lines could be restricted until you subscribe, this too may reduce admin overhead etc.

I don't know how the subscriptions are processed, and how the stickers are ordered and sent etc, but there may be a way of automating the star setup or something to lower the time overhead etc to do this - although this isn't the point of the post.

I'll be talking to the 'A' team about a possible fee for the Big Wales Weekend, as organisers of that and contributors to the forum, we could ask for a small fee for us running the trip that goes to the upkeep of the forum, and anyone else organising a big trip, in the same vein as RTTS, could do the same - a fiver per car isn't a lot of money, and 12 x £5 gives the forum £60 - do that 4 or 5 times a year for trips in Wales, Scotland, Ireland, South East, North East.....you get the idea....plus whatever goes to the forum from RTTS, you won't be far off £1000 for the year.

Even if the standard subscription was £15 - it's still not a lot to pay for the use of this site, and I would be happy to pay more each year....

So - can we think of viable alternatives that we can all participate in, and good ways to raise money, then let's see what we can do that may stop Nigel having to restrict access to parts of the site and take away one of the things that has been cited as a great part of this forum...

[BUSHWHACKER]

I'm watching xXx2 now anyway, some bitchin' motors on there I can tell you!

[madcampbell]

So your solutions is....?

bump..!!