[DaveR]

Dear friends:

I read this whole thread and have a couple ideas for fund raising.

1. Pay by the post. If you have something good to say, pop 50 cents to put it up. This will cut down on the trolls and one word comments, which are cute (not the trolls) but really not all that useful. Thereby the quality of commentary goes up and the detritus goes down. If you are seeking information, can't you pay 50 cents? People spend more on a phone call and then to only one source. So you pay to post your question, gather a bunch of private replies (direct e-mails, for instance) and post a cumulative response. Whew, a whole dollar and you've given HUGE, HUGE to the community here. Then go back to lurking.

2. Visit Red Ice Creations. They have a subscription model that I think works well. This would be for PC. The first half of the interview is free and the second is by subscription. The financially strapped people (me) get a bunch of good information free and those who can pay get more. Yeah, I know, "He who has, gets...". It's not exactly fair, but what is?

I agree with those who say the value of this forum is the members, but not every post has value for many. I saw one post in this thread that contained a single period. No value there!

Bandwidth is not free. Travel is not free. Neither are cameras, tape, editing systems, hotels, rental cars, meals, and all the rest. We will need to contribute financially somehow, or the thing cannot continue.

2 ideas @ 2 cents each - 4 cents please!

Dave