fish4fun Posted July 6, 2009 Report Share Posted July 6, 2009 Pursuant to the rule change, http://albertaaquatica.com/index.php?showtopic=25418, any thoughts on having an online auction similar to the "CLF Auction" except all proceeds go help support this forum? This may be a way for members to give back for using the forum for free for so long. I'm sure just about every member can afford to sacrifice one item to help support the forum. Any thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishclubgirl Posted July 6, 2009 Report Share Posted July 6, 2009 I'm totally for it!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanker Posted July 6, 2009 Report Share Posted July 6, 2009 I for one, do not support the idea. This is a terribly large amount of work to undertake (collecting items, controlling the bidding and then handling distribution and payment after the fact) for something I don't feel is a very worthy cause, exactly. The entire point of the sponsors is so that the majority of the members can continue to enjoy the forum without user fees or membership costs. We asked the membership for money once - when we moved off the InvisionFree forum and on to our own paid server space - and that was met with a level of support I don't often see in a community. There was actually an excess in the donations! Since then we moved to the sponsorship model to continue our operations and it's been a great run for the past several years. I believe it has been 3 years since Nandopsis, Rob from Majestic Aquariums, and I all struck a deal while standing outside at an ACE auction, and our first sponsor was on the forum. Since then we have seen some come, seen some go, and it's been a lot of fun for all interested. If we have an overwhelming response to this, then I may be inclined to lean the other way, but I think that auctions should be saved for special occasions, times of need, etc. They are a LOT of work and without the right reasons, can become a lot more headache than they may be worth. I appreciate the thought, but that is just my 2 cents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted July 6, 2009 Report Share Posted July 6, 2009 As the person who was in charge of the last auction, I agree with Tanker. It was a LOT of work to put together. You have to organize sellers, keep track of bids, collect the money, and give a lot of time(spanned over 3-4 months! and god knows how many emails). I think auctions should be saved for special occasions as they are really labor intensive. If/when we ever need to raise money to support the site, i think we should find an easier way to do it. Something as simple as a "tip jar" link where people could donate if they wanted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishclubgirl Posted July 6, 2009 Report Share Posted July 6, 2009 As the person who was in charge of the last auction, I agree with Tanker. It was a LOT of work to put together. You have to organize sellers, keep track of bids, collect the money, and give a lot of time(spanned over 3-4 months! and god knows how many emails). I think auctions should be saved for special occasions as they are really labor intensive. If/when we ever need to raise money to support the site, i think we should find an easier way to do it. Something as simple as a "tip jar" link where people could donate if they wanted. That's a good idea too. I understand that like all operations it takes money to run this and I, for one, would like to contribute. Just tell me how. However, I am just a hobby aquarist and not inclined to sponsor but still want to help out!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shai Posted July 8, 2009 Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 Something as simple as a "tip jar" link where people could donate if they wanted. I think the auction is a thoughtful idea but also agree it would be a lot of work. As for degrassi's suggestion, PayPal makes it wonderfully easy to accept donations. Set up a donation account and post the link--they even provide buttons ("PayPal Donate"). You can control what denomination the money should be, etc. A lot of websites I visit have them. People can click the link and (depending on settings) decide how much they want to give. People who can't or don't want to donate ignore the button. Done! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baos Posted July 8, 2009 Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 I really hope this site isn't costing a lot to keep going. I've seen a few points on here so far where things like an sql database might speed up some data entry and processing time. I get the impression the mods here have a pretty good understanding of the net. I started in 93 with some linux's and moved to the bsds around 97. Let me know if I can help out in some way. Possibly cut some fat around the belt with cheaper hosting options. Possibly build the servers from scratch with the necessary background apps instead of paying a fee to access them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snaggle Posted July 8, 2009 Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 If the member ship of the board wants to do an Auction, how about a summer auction, oranized by the members with rules simaler to the Edmonton and Calgary auctions. If we do it in the summer then it will not be "hurting" the 3 clubs in Alberta and will help us all out. We could even do it in Red Deer so it is more central for most members. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Chicklets Posted July 8, 2009 Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 If you want to do an off the forum auction, feel free to do so. But after the hassle of the online CLF auction we had last year we will not be doing anymore unless there is a specific and significant reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanker Posted July 9, 2009 Report Share Posted July 9, 2009 The forum is 'not' an expensive operation - nor are we going broke, any time soon. I resell web hosting, so we get a pretty good rate on some first-rate service The back-end of the forum is all 'standard' Invision software and I take care to run all the maintenance items as they are required to keep the database as clean as possible. The annual fees for the domains (we have the .com and .ca), the hosting fees and the actual license to Invision for their support is all 'reasonable'. I have been managing forums and website maintenance for a lot of years - I know where I can shop around and not get hosed on domains, etc. At the current time the forum has approximately 1 1/2 years of operational fees in the bank, and several pending sponsorships in addition to the current crop. We are certainly not in any kind of financial situation. I believe the recent 'rule reinforcement' in the Buy & Sell may be giving people the wrong impression. That was not a cleverly disguised cash-grab. It was done because it needed to be done, for the betterment of the forum in the long term. It had nothing to do with money, and everything to do with maintaining a forum that is a community of hobbyists - first and foremost. I hope that we can all just get back to doing whatever it was we were doing, before this 'rule change' occurred, as 99% of the membership here will never be affected by the 'change'. And the very few people who actually were affected? They have embraced the enforcement and agree it is for the best interests of everyone involved. This site is not an auction site, a classifieds section, or a swap meet. It is a web forum designed and built for the recording and sharing of information, discussion and opinion; a place to meet people, be informed and to contribute and grow in the hobby. That is what we DO here... so let's all get back to it - we all do it so well. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riflemn Posted July 20, 2009 Report Share Posted July 20, 2009 I am new on this but am finding that it is a terrific resourse for beginners like me. I agree with the other user that suggested putting up a link for donations. There is very little in this world that you can get for free these day so feel a donation can be made by those that wish to contribute. Just my thoughts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanker Posted July 20, 2009 Report Share Posted July 20, 2009 Sorry, I forgot to touch on PayPal in my previous post. There used to be a PayPal donation button on the home page, but I had to remove it as there was a conflict between the javascript it used to forward people to PayPal's site, and one of the javascripts used on the forum. Neither one would display at all! If someone wished they could still make a PayPal donation. The email address of 'donate@albertaaquatica.com' is still active with PayPal. There is also 'Certapay' which is also known as 'Interac Bank Transfer'. That same email can be used for those, as well. At this time there is no special consideration or unique member group available to donators, as I feel we do not want to encourage this. There is a list of the people who have made a donation, so that if we do implement something in the future you will not be forgotten. I do acknowledge that some people do like to contribute in a monetary way, so those methods are available at all times. As well, I will make my mailing address available via Private Message in the event of a cheque or money order. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shai Posted July 21, 2009 Report Share Posted July 21, 2009 Thanks for the info Tanker. Pesky Javascript! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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