State of the Club...

8 days ago we had our 'monthly' Registry meeting, this one came after a 2 months of not having a meeting because of scheduling conflicts between the 4 of us...

My club responsibility is to monitor and moderate this message board. Therefore, my pulse of the club is through the comings and goings and stats on this board.... So, after a couple of months not hearing the club's membership stats compared to the message board stats I was anxiously awaiting a BIG spike in club membership. I was VERY disappointed to learn our membership went up negligibly compared to the skyrocketing stats of registered message board members...

We are closing in on 3000 registered message board members and we've JUST broke over 650 paying club members.... :rolleyes:

So......... what's the deal:confused:

- Do we not have an effective 'club membership prompt' when you register for board :confused:
- Do the new registered board members not understand that club membership is the biggest part of our club's revenue :confused:
- Do the new registered board members not understand that this message board will not exists without club membership :confused:
- Is $30.00 a year NOT worth the not only the information shared on this board but four issues of the ESSES :confused:

I'm just not getting it...... :confused:

We've asked the membership many times if they would elect to keep receiving the ESSES in hard copy through the mail. And the overwhelming response has been YES. The publication and mailing of the ESSES costs almost $5000 per issue. We have about $10,000 in the bank... so once again we only have about two issues of the ESSES breathing room.

Now we are facing a new financial problem.... NO GERMAN AUTO FEST. We relayed on this event, combined with the Lit Fair, to clear about $5000 in merchandise income. This year, so far, we are looking at about half of that income......


So again,
Without actively soliciting advertisers, both in the ESSES and on this message board, how can the club passively solicit new paying club members through this message board :confused: The distinction between active and passive solicitation on our part is, as you guessed, the time commitment to the 6 volunteers we have running this whole deal....

If we had 50% of the registered message board members join the club we'd be in great shape for now and the immediate future...
Even if we had close to our 940 active message board members join the club......

So PLEASE join the Early 911S Registry that brings you this message board if you haven't, and promptly renew your membership if you're due......

THOSE WHO KNOW ME KNOW I HATE WRITING THIS STUFF:(
Joining the club only seems the fair and right thing to do ...... but maybe I'm not getting it... :confused:

Chuck

Make it so that to register you have to pay. Browse for free.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Longballa

Make it so that to register you have to pay. Browse for free.

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I'll second that...

If you wanna post (and most new users post QUESTIONS that rely on the collective knowledge of US), you should have to join and PAY. Let's do it!

I agree make people pay to register, what are we afraid of ? They aren't contributing $$$ so what is the loss ? I also like the brows only idea for non paying people. It's only $30.00 for Gods sake, give me a break !!! Ok I'm off my soap box now.

I'm a registered member and here's why:

1) I appreciate the collective knowledge available on this forum
2) I like the people who are "members" of this forum
3) I figured that I used the board so much that I might as well contribute my share
4) Nothing's free - someone is always going to foot the bill, and I don't think that it's fair to let a minority bear the financial burden of the majority.

I agree:

Pay to post.

Geez Chuck, I just spent $900 on a headlight .... not sure I can swing $30 to support the Registry :rolleyes:

I'm kidding, of course. Just trying to make a point! :cool:

We could self-police this deal too - just tweek the forum software to include membership numbers on each post. Those posting without a member number probably won't be getting a lot of assistance ......

Quote:

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Originally Posted by CurtEgerer

Geez Chuck, I just spent $900 on a headlight .... not sure I can swing $30 to support the Registry :rolleyes:

I'm kidding, of course. Just trying to make a point! :cool:

We could self-police this deal too - just tweek the forum software to include membership numbers on each post. Those posting without a member number probably won't be getting a lot of assistance ......

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Or will get assitance from other non paying "members"

I say pay-to-post is the way to go. We might loose some browsers, but I'm sure we'll gain much needed $$$$

This seems to be a perennial issue. Here are my thoughts on this topic from December 2006, over one and one-half years ago:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by reed

I'm not a big fan of restricting this site to those who are paid members. Look back and I bet all of us have been helped at one time or another by casual posters or someone who may have just stopped by because of some particular knowledge about a topic--in other words, someone who may not be interested in joining.

I think what makes all BBSs thrive is the constant influx of new blood. Restricting this site would at least in a small part diminish new members' participation. How many of us would never have gotten hooked on this site if they had to pay a membership to get full status?

I think a less draconian first step would be to include a small button next to a poster's avatar indicating whether or not they were a paid member of the registry. Sort of like posting delinquent members at a country club. Let peer pressure regulate in this area. Those who take unfair advantage of this BBS will quickly be brought to light and brought in line.

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Here is a link to the original discussion.
http://www.early911sregistry.org/for...ght=membership

I see Reed's point. I also understand pay to post. My question would be who would post the first time if they had to pay thirty dollars. That is an expensive comment.

I would increase the dues to the members who use the board they are the ones who see the value. I for one would have no issue with increased dues.

Sometimes you have to be on a site for a while to realize the value of it. I visited this site on and off for months before I joined, now I visit several times a day, and I have been a member for about two years. The local Va, D.C, Maryland Porsche forum "Dorki" (Don't ask):rolleyes: requests donations, to the site, and you get a sponsor listing under your avatar. There is a bit of friendly peer pressure ;) for those who are multi posters to become sponsors.

Link to Dorki

http://dorkiphus.net/porsche/index.php

This site has been very valuable to me over the years and I never thought twice about paying for it's use. Granted I have been the recepient of information far far more than a giver. I would gladly pay more than the $30 and maybe that price should be raised if there is a need for cash. Further, I do agree that you should have to pay to register.

I confess I have been freeloading for a while now. But I have just
paid up :-) I would have liked to receive Esses electronically to
save on the international postage but $47 is still chicken feed
compared with the knowledge and leads on rare parts found here.

andy

Its an unfortunate reality, but there is always a small group in anything that will be the ones doing the majority of the work load, or in this case there is a small contingent that is willing to pay for what they see as value. There is even a smaller group who is willing to put in time and personnel effort to make things happen. With this board there seems to be about 4 as Chuck mentions who gather monthly to keep the Registry members up to date and this site running smoothly. It can be very frustrating and thankless for those few that put in so much effort and see little to no return.
My thanks goes to those who put forth all that effort as I do receive more value than my $$ that are paid every year. I would pay more also if it was so needed.
In cost savings area I would like to see the Esses sent to me via email in a PDF format. It would save money for the club and be easier for me to archive and retrieve information from them at a later date. I know some like the hard copy version but I would think more then a few would like it electronically. Perhaps a way to download it from the site would work and those of us could request it not be sent to us in order to save some of those $$ for the club.
As to getting more people to step and pay for the use of the board I think those that are willing to have. There may be some on the fence and are lurking to see if it is worth it to them. The rest probably see no real benefit and will never pay. Just the way I see it.

How about a charge for threads in the for sale sections, whether
you are a member or not, that keeps the knowledge free. $1
per part and $10 per vehicle.

andy

How about you need to be registered and paid up in order to view images, I think other boards may be like this ... and you know how everyone loves seeing pics!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by TKO

How about you need to be registered and paid up in order to view images, I think other boards may be like this ... and you know how everyone loves seeing pics!

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+1 on paid up to view and post images.

I think paid up to post in the cars and parts for sale sections is the way to go, too.

How about everyone just sells their crap on Pelican for free instead? :rolleyes:

no pay no pictures:p

John

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kenikh

How about everyone just sells their crap on Pelican for free instead? :rolleyes:

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I think pay to post in these sections, not just pay to sell. Many people derive enjoyment from posting comments about other people's stuff for sale, and will pay for that privledge.

Never mind; my memory is failing me. I guess this hasn't been decided yet.

I say double the membership fee. Those who already pay will still pay.

Take a look at what the 356Registry does - they have free info on the main site (tech notes, etc), a free forum and a Members Only section. They publish the password to the Members Only section in their magazine. The key to this though, is the Members Only section must contain useful information. I personally would love to get the Esses as a PDF download rather than hardcopy - especially if membership gave me access to all back issues. The 356 Registry occasionally sends registered members DVDs with all back issues as PDFs. That is high value!

I for one would volunteer to scan and PDFize all back issues for this section if a loaner copy could be made available.

Just a thought.

Cheers,
Michael

What about a one-time members assessment fee for upgrading the site to support this then? If we are broke, these changes will cost money.

The internet has created the impression that everything is free. There is of course, no free lunch.

Pelican supports itself through the parts business. I don't go over there very much as it is a "shotgun site" catering to all Porsches. I don't necessarily like all Porsches and I certainly don't have time to read all of the posts about light bulbs, which spoiler looks cool on my car and how to wire my radio.

I am a member of several clubs and all of them require dues. You don't pay you don't play. $30 is "Chicken S#$t Money" to quote Pat McCormick's line in "Smokey And The Bandit".

Anybody who wants to be a part of this should pay. If you want to raise the dues then by all means do so. The money gripes need to stop and all of us step up and carry our own weight.

It can be handled like The 356 Registry and The Porsche Club of America. I pay them both and I have access to everything. I like the arrangement.

You will not (cannot) please everyone. It requires a talent that I know is in short supply here. (KMA)

Tom

I agree with the suggestion to double the dues and have a one time assessment fee.

I have no problem paying more for dues and will gladly do so, as Tom (Sithot) pointed out it is Chicken S#$t Money for what we get in return, but if the issue is that only a small percentage of people coming to the site are registered and paying I think it makes more sense to target the larger percentage non-paying people to 'cough' if they want to play.

I also frequent this site:

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/

Note (near the bottom of the page) that they acknowledge site supporters. As we have the PayPal donate icon, we could do the same.

I agree that there is really no point in trying to get those who have registered on the board already to join up and pay up. They will if they want to and no amount of prodding will make them do so. (Sorry Chuck - I know you are frustrated :o ).

Lots of valid and good points made in this thread.

Out of all of them I think a "pay to post" may be the easiest to administer. Everything else is going to require more work of behalf of the volunteer group who run the show and I guess we should be trying to avoid that. People can browse all they wish for free, but when they need to ask something or want to post then it's time to pony up at registration. Sooner or later they will need to register to glean the info they are looking for or share some info of ther own. We could be really bitchy and find a way to block the search function to non-members but I doubt that would be necessary.

OR - if it's easy to set up only Registry members should be able to post in the classifieds for free. Don't know enough about this software but if there is a way to set up a field to plug in your Registry number or specific details when posting in the classifieds then you advertise for free. Non-registry members should be charged a fee to advertise. Most car clubs operate this way - membership gives you the privilege of advertising for free and non-members pay a fee. Make it a flat rate for parts and a flat rate for cars. It doesn't have to be a big charge either - there is a reasonably high volume of ads being placed on this board and a lot of those seem to be by non-members. Don't try and disseminate between "private ads" and "trade ads". Lots of us are up front "trade people", but there are plenty of others out there who are making good money "dabbling" in these cars and parts who are not "in the trade". Too hard to work out who is who...

Whatever the solution, it needs to be easy and not cause more work for the small Registry committee.

Just MHO...

Cheers,

Lisa

Doesn't it seem perverse that 650 carry the other non-payers? That's like a government sponsored program and we all know how well those work.

Tom

Perhaps Chuck can clarify what is an Active Member for me. I spent a little time and did some research on Registered Members via the members list and this is what I found.
I sampled 10 random pages of members, 30 members to a page so 300 members or roughly 10% of what is stated at the bottom of the board. Of the 300, 127 had 0 posts. Of those 127, 109 had not visited the board in over 2 years. I did not count those with only a few posts (4 or less) but there was plenty of those also. With 650 paid members and 945 Active Members seems as there is a large group that registered on the site but have not returned for what ever reason. Maybe some house cleaning is in order to see what the real numbers are? If a registered member that has not visited the board in over 2 years can be removed we may have a better idea of the non-paying registered users.
I can say I did "browse" here for a few months before I registered and paid just to get a feel for the place. I don't post much because I don't really have much to contribute. My knowledge of these cars is limited. I do use the search function all the time and it has saved me tons of $$$$ with the information provided. To me this is the most valuable part of the board besides the people I have met. So I gladly pay the $30 to keep that going.
If the board went to a "Pay to Play" format I don't think it would see a decline in actual paid members. It would probably see a small increase do to the active members who are currently not paying who see the value but have not yet taken the time to annie up. I don't know how you can get new members to join and pay with out giving them a taste of what they are paying for first though. I am not familiar with all the in and outs of a bulletin board like this so I am unsure if a trial period could be done for those on the fence before they would have to pony up?
Again these are just my thoughts.

How about browse/lurk for free, register to post. Registration would be for free but only for the first 10 posts. After that, pay to play. Membership cost ($30?-I can't remember what the dues are, they are so low) for early 911S owners, $5 extra for others.

We could sell advertising space like Wayne Dempsey is on Pelican.

Membership may be more attractive if there were more events. Not poker and pizza runs like PCA.

Things like Dave Bouzaglou's New Year's Run. Events for people who like to actually drive their cars.

Maybe meet at Camarillo airport on a weekend morning and drive through the Malibu hills. Caravans to events like the Ventura Show (so sad its gone) are fun, too.

I know I would pay more for this. An activity fee would be natural, of course.

Just my crazy thoughts:rolleyes:

I am also a member of the Rennlist and the PCA. They both require membership before you are allowed to post items for sale. This generates a fair amount of membership.
Phil

As an admin who helps with the www.914World.com site (over 7,000 registered users), I'm totally astonished that you have 650 paid members. That's a huge number when faced with free and highly trafficed boards like Pelican.

I also work for www.harmony-central.com which is also free (4.4 to 5 million visits - 1.8 million unique monthly). Our traffic is consistently ranked within the top 100 BBS in the world.

I spoke my piece on this in another thread. I feel "endemic" advertising (advertising of interest - Stoddard, Pelican etc.) would help solve the problem with 0 impact on the viewers and potential future site-o-holics. If viewed in the proper light, it may even help our viewers (Hey, Pelican is having a brake rotor blow-out sales this weekend!) That being said, it is human nature and the inevitable outcome of basic personality profiling that says; those liking and disliking an advertising option will be 50:50.

I personally feel tremendous amount of negative energy has been put into the lack of sign-ups when, statistically... it kicks ass. This is what I do for a living (my real job). ;)

Thanks to our kind and non-critical nature this site seems to have become the center of the early 911 universe. ;)

And for those of us who don't use the board as a used car lot the technical info is awful good.

And what's possibly more important than that is the collective experience with various Porsche vendors. A reference from this group is a pretty big deal to both the vendor AND the potential customer.

You might consider gussying up the store offerings. i know a few folks that make very good livings selling t-shirts and all that is required for this site to do well is some artistic creativity and marketing. IMO the 'goods' section just isn't being sold well.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by berettafan

You might consider gussying up the store offerings. i know a few folks that make very good livings selling t-shirts and all that is required for this site to do well is some artistic creativity and marketing. IMO the 'goods' section just isn't being sold well.

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+1

I love my mock turtle neck, and every last one of you could use an Early 911S Registry key fob.

I would buy more Registry stuff if it had images of an early 911S on it, not just the logo.:)

If it costs $ to get images, maybe get photos of member cars?

Let's all first of all thank Chuck and the rest of the hard working bunch in SoCal that labor so hard to keep our little group afloat. For those of you that have not been here for years as I have, I can tell you that they have done wonders with newsletter quality, information and punctuality over where the Registry was in much of the 90's.. So thanks, folks!

Now let's look at the money. Chuck says $5000 per issue to publish & mail the newsletter. I don't doubt this number a bit based on the page count & consistent quality of the news letter. If that is a print run of 750 copies each quarter (members + 100 for later sale, etc.) then the per issue cost is $6.67 per issue. Each member gets 4 issues each year, so that is $26.67 just cover the newsletters. No wonder there are money problems!

I suggest that we raise the annual dues to somewhere between $55.00 and $75.00 for US subscriptions, and also charge non members to list items in the for sale areas, perhaps at an individual rate of $10 per listing, or a commercial rate of $50 per listing.

Then we could live within our means, and enjoy our wonderful cars instead of having to face the possibility that Chuck and the team will tire of this effort and we will be left without our newsletter, website, member list, decal shop, events, and all the rest of this fine Early S Registry.

I for one, will be very happy to pay the higher rate.

I think advertising on the borders of the web pages could be productive and helpful to those seeking parts for their car. The ads should be car-related products, though and NO POP UPs!

I still think some different T-shirts with cars on them would be good, too.:rolleyes:

On another note, I saw the member pages on the homepage and am wondering how these came about. The words talk as if any member can make one by clicking on a link and yet I cannot figure it out. I cannot put photos on that page, either. It is no big deal, I can just post them here or on Pelican but I was curious.:)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by silverc4s

Let's all first of all thank Chuck and the rest of the hard working bunch in SoCal that labor so hard to keep our little group afloat. For those of you that have not been here for years as I have, I can tell you that they have done wonders with newsletter quality, information and punctuality over where the Registry was in much of the 90's.. So thanks, folks!

Now let's look at the money. Chuck says $5000 per issue to publish & mail the newsletter. I don't doubt this number a bit based on the page count & consistent quality of the news letter. If that is a print run of 750 copies each quarter (members + 100 for later sale, etc.) then the per issue cost is $6.67 per issue. Each member gets 4 issues each year, so that is $26.67 just cover the newsletters. No wonder there are money problems!

I suggest that we raise the annual dues to somewhere between $55.00 and $75.00 for US subscriptions, and also charge non members to list items in the for sale areas, perhaps at an individual rate of $10 per listing, or a commercial rate of $50 per listing.

Then we could live within our means, and enjoy our wonderful cars instead of having to face the possibility that Chuck and the team will tire of this effort and we will be left without our newsletter, website, member list, decal shop, events, and all the rest of this fine Early S Registry.

I for one, will be very happy to pay the higher rate.

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I have been saying this same thing for the last 5 years.:confused: I truly fear that once Chuck, John, and all the boys decide the work is to much, the whole thing may just slowly fade into a black hole.:eek: To find as dedicated a group as we now have running the club could be a very hard task in the future, without having the dues raised enough to support a full time admin person or persons to continue to carry on the day to day operations of a club of this size. With gas at $4.50 plus per gallon, if I fill my 67S, it costs $63.00. To have the dues be at least $75 seems like a steal for all the information we all get from this club and site. Just my .02 cents:)

If you don't read the body of this, at least read the last paragraph.

I will add my experience on this site as a former non-member. I never new there was a magazine called esses and I certainly did not realize there was fee to become a member of the registry. Since I have a T, I had presumed that the "registry" was for S owners only. But I guess anybody will accept your money :rolleyes: .

Whenever I came to this site, I would always go directly to the parts list so I could shop (as I also do at Pelican). It wasn't until this week when I saw the caution triangle that drew my attention to this thread. As I read through this, I was feeling guilty that I would buy items and even redirect would-be buyers to pelican for items.

I feel that the importance of the resources this website offers is critical to so many of us that use this site, and it must never go away. I would trust the information from here more than I would from Pelican if there was a dispute about authenticity. I will go a step further in that the "experts" roam this board more frequently and have better items for sell. If you consider the parts you would buy here vs ebay, you would save over $35 a year easily, and you are helping others with like interests.

How about the difference in models represented? This site is only the early stuff. eBay and Pelican has every model and it takes quite a bit of time to filter through it all.

I offer my suggestion if it has not been offered up until now. Have a 12 hour delay for non-members to view new parts/cars for sale and let the members have first choice. So you know, I am now the newest proud member as of 5 minutes ago :) :) :) and I am looking forward to my first esses magazine.

Olin,

Welcome to the club, and thanks much for the positive feedback...

Cheers

Quote:

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Originally Posted by orange911

If you don't read the body of this, at least read the last paragraph.

I will add my experience on this site as a former non-member. I never new there was a magazine called esses and I certainly did not realize there was fee to become a member of the registry. Since I have a T, I had presumed that the "registry" was for S owners only. But I guess anybody will accept your money :rolleyes: .


...
How about the difference in models represented? This site is only the early stuff. eBay and Pelican has every model and it takes quite a bit of time to filter through it all.

I offer my suggestion if it has not been offered up until now. Have a 12 hour delay for non-members to view new parts/cars for sale and let the members have first choice. So you know, I am now the newest proud member as of 5 minutes ago :) :) :) and I am looking forward to my first esses magazine.

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Olin, first of all, welcome to the board, and to the Early S Registry, in fact. I want to respond to your comment about S owners, versus other cars, etc. Some years ago, when these cars were not so old yet, like in the 80's for example, the "S" model -- from before smog & safety became such a factor here -- was already recognized as being "special". It was the best car Porsche built in those years, and many of us wanted to own one more than anything. That's the kind of premise that the Registry was founded on, finding and keeping track of all these fine cars.

Since that time, we have all seen the newer cars from Porsche, some great, some not so great; and we have all collectively decided that ALL the 911s built prior to the safety bumper and smog era are pretty special, and should be identified as such and cared for if it is still possible. Kind of like what happened with 356s. First it was Carreras and Speedsters, then all open cars, now it's pretty much all 356s.

So, welcome Olin, your car and all of our cars are special and need to be preserved if it is still possible. Many early 911s are already gone, let's don't lose any more.

(Can I please get the magazine and the backissues I've missed?) ;)

As an example check out the logo on this guys site. I asked to be in line for a t-shirt (probably more than one) when/if he makes them. Just WAY cool and he created it himself!

Shirts like this would sell quite well and help fund the war chest IMO.

www.performanceoriented.com




ps-
having work done by this fellow now and will recommend if it comes back as described. i have a feeling he's going to be a busy mofo.

Back in 1990 or so I answered an ad in Road & Track magazine from a fellow named Vern Lyle who wanted to start a simple registry of early 911S owners, and the first 100 would receive a copy of a newsletter known at that time as "The Prototype" I'm # 90, and still have that issue of course, and every one since. The first official Registry meeting was in a bar during the Boston Parade, I seem to remember that there were 8 or 9 of us there. Of course all this was before computers took over our lives. (come to think of it....that wasn't so bad) Vern, and later his wife Betsi did the registry single handed for 5 or 6 years before they got burned out. At that time, most of who we now know as our current board, took over the club. I have met most of these people over the years and a better group of people you won't find!!! Until you have spent considerable amounts of time doing free volunteer work for some organization, going on what, 13 years now (first issue I have for the new regime is Oct. 1995) you cannot appreciate the dedication and resolve that it takes to keep doing this year after year. Where all this drivel is heading is that what ever is done I want to insure that it doesn't require yet more time, complication, and effort from the hard core bunch that keep this registry going. To me it is simple, and mostly voiced by others posting before me, other than the gift of being able to freely read these postings, anything further requires the commitment of membership. That's it pure and simple, as others have said much better than I on previous posts, with membership comes privilege, membership costs...that's it ...period.
Go try to play 18 at the local members only country club, the members there aren't going to support your habit, no free lunch...no government program (thanks Tom, well said) Other sites like Pelican can support themselves some other way, this is not a retail enterprise, you play...you pay. If you don't like what you see well enough to help support it, then go away!

I've had an abnormal volume of "trojans" coming through as well. I took note of a post last week where it was the 1st post of a new account. It was a porno type story from what I could make of it. I sent it to Mike Larson, Chuck and Fred Larson. I suppose it's gone now.

Pay to play.

Tom

Hi All.


I recently became a paid member from the uk. I would have paid if i could not get an answer for a question by posting on the forum. The information that is available, will probably save me several thousand pounds during my restoration. By far and away the best forum for information, worldwide.


Pay to post.

Regards

Stretch

Chuck I am sorry to think that you feel compelled to even have to write something like this. +1 for increase in dues, and pay to post.

My vote is anyone who balks at paying for entry should walk. And for those who are griping about using this site for free and now, gee maybe you have to shell out to gather and collect all this arcane information, ask questions of the experts on here, and repeatedly list your 250 THOUSAND dollar collector car, or as Curt says buy your 900 dollar headlights, think about what it would be like to have no registry. Really. Makes me mad.

I suggest we make this membership cost somewhat more relevant with the value this represents- make the re-up 100 dollars. How can this not be worth a 100 dollars a year?

How about a 'pay to post' on the classifieds? Or create an 'Honor System' that asks for a contribution to the 'Club' when your part or car sells on this Forum.

I've recently sold a handful of my parts on this Forum . . . and I respect the quality of the people I've done business with. I'd gladly contribute a portion of my sale to benefit the Club.

Just a 'half-baked' idea . . . more thought required I'm sure.

Can this be a "read only" board for all to use, member or not, and make it a requirement to join in order to post anything, gain access to the classifieds, or to see any of the wonerful pics, or downloadable information posted. By limiting what a freebie gets you will surely increase the yearly membership numbers.

Rennlist, for example requires membership to gain access to any member, which limits the ability to post, gain access to any photos or downloads, which are very valuable, and of course the classifieds are for members only. Take a look at that site, and the number of people enjoying it.

I'm sure others may have suggested all this already, if so, I support it. I just didn't read this entire thread.

Oh, and BTW, I would shy away from increasing the dues. I don't believe that's the problem. You must allow this to be accessible to everyone, price wise. $30-$35 is fine, $60- $75 is a different story all together. I honestly believe the problem here is allowing anyone access to the very valuable information that is shared among us, and often behind the scenes. You can look for free, but if you want to participate in any way other than lurking, you must be a paying member.

My .02

Best to all.

Explain this to me...
Most other boards (FChat-Shelby-Boss302-Pelican come to mind) don't require a fee to participate. And it appears we are saying that by paying, we can eliminate the virus problem? Is this what I'm understanding here? I don't get it. How do the other boards survive while operating for free with very little if any virus problems? Why are we different?

I have been involved with other Vbulletin sites and have some experience with the software as well as general forum issues. This Registry forum needs to upgrade to the latest version of the software, and badly. Secondly, hosting plans are cheap now. I would suggest moving the site to Hostmonster. Check out their prices! (not affiliated)
Last, and not least,
Thank you to all involved for a great and informative resource for the fans of these cars!

Gsjohnson, some of the other sites you mention, like Pelican, have a huge following, namely due to the various model lines they support, which includes other marques such as BMW. The boards are much deeper due to reaching out to a much larger population. The S Registry serves a much smaller community dedicated to early 911 cars for the most part. The S Registry also supports a wonderful mag, Esses that is quite expensive to publish and distribute. The others do not. Not sure about the virus thing.

I still believe that to limit participation to paying members will help to turn the operating revenue tide, but the cost to participate must remain very reasonable.

Again, my .02

I think I'm getting plenty in return for the minimal dues.
What "rights" does it buy me? Well, I don't know about
rights, but I get a fantastic club magazine at my door and
the warm fuzzy feeling of knowing that I've contributed in
a small way to the operating expense of the site/club. Sure,
I could get 90% of what I get out of this arrangement for
free but I just wouldn't feel good about that. And I'm just
not that cheap.

Jeez, I think the Esses subscription alone (especially the past year) is worth every penny of the measly $35 I paid as dues. Everything else is gravy and I'm thankful for the volunteer efforts of the few who make it all happen.

Doubling the rates penalizes those who are already members, but does nothing about the problem of people who are not members. In fact, this would discourage more people from signing up.

The site may be worth $100 per year for most of us, but once we start charging that much we will find that so many people will go away, it will only be the few committed who stay. At that point, it snt worth $100 to anyone!

Why no PAID advertising? The advertising is already here...its just that none of the companies have to pay for it! Last month, there was a company who was pimping thier LSD diff on the message board for free. Why should any of us pay for membership when companies are using the site for free? Forget the unpaid members, we are ignoring the biggest freeloaders on the site.

Do the math. Find 5 companies who would see the value of advertising to a focused audience. I can think of five right off the top of my head who already pimp thier goods for free on here. Make the rate very reasonable - $150 per month. That is cheap! So, 150 x 12 x 5 = $9,000 additional income annually! You would need 300 additional members to pull that off! (and you aint gonna get 300 new members with any of these other ideas)

Just think, with only 5 advertisers, the board could get a healthy revinue increase, none of us loyal supporters would be punished with higher fees, we could quit seeing these tedious threads and maybe Raj could even get his Concours section! :p

Oh,
and have a donate tab connected to the Classifieds for those of us who sell a bunch of parts. Click on the tab and it takes you to the Paypal of the site.

This is without a doubt the best place to sell parts for an early 911. I would pay a little extra for that privilage.

One reason the paying membership may not be as high as on the Forum membership is that once a member and paying dues, when your year is up you do not receive a renewal notice. Yes, it's on the back of the "Esses", but how many members forget to look and then just put off rejoining to some time down the road. With life as busy as it is...I guess most just forget to do it later. Think about it, you receive a "Esses" mag every three to four months...so you forget to renew when you need to...then four mouths later no mag, when do you start to miss it...at five or six mouths later?

I know to send out renewal notices it takes another volunteer...that is not easy to find. Fred keeps track of membership...that has got to be a giant job. THANK YOU Fred!

Just my 2 cents.

John

"Dues Paying Member"

I only recently became a dues-paying member -- partly because I had no idea there was a(n excellent) magazine as a benefit.

I encourage a clearer statement of member benefits, and perhaps some increased benefits.

As for raising revenue, well there are better ways than charging to post. Though charging commercial posters might seem attractive, the risk is that there are places to post for free that have many, many times the traffic.

Internet revenue is what I do for a living, and frankly the traffic volume on the Registry site now is not going to support a lot of income.

The best of all above suggestions, it seems to me, would be an 'honor system' dividend paid back to the Registry based on sales made through the classified ads by members and non-members. There is also valuable advice given freely through the forums that merit a voluntary payment to the Registry. A reminder with a link to a donation mechanism could be put into the page header. I would certainly go there first before imposing fees of any kind.

Thanks to those who are supportive of this club's service to the Early 911 community, and a sincere apology (really) to those it disappoints.... But, as stated in the other forum, this IS a volunteer organization run buy 4 pretty busy guys.... However this will change.

The club is healthier then ever before. And, the GREAT news is the club is evolving and expanding it's scope and reach every day. We are staring to track the new registered message board users vs. the new paid membership (most of the new paid membership is coming through pay pal through the message board) and it seems we are getting about a 30% paid member vs. new registered board users out of most given same time periods....... That's a BIG step forward....... :)

The 'wealth of function' on the other BIGGER boards has a lot to do with their willingness to have paid advertisers, or their company, advertise all over their boards........ so far we've avoided this... may be it's time to change strategy? ........ :rolleyes:

I've tried to discourage direct commercial solicitation in our classifieds with some success... however, as Dave C. stated, those who sneak in clandestinely or with my tacit approval truly undermines the implied ethic....... I'll try harder, but may be it's time to change strategy? ...... :o

We listen to your suggestions, we do our best, and hopefully there will be changes soon.......

Meanwhile, when we do make a request for help........:http://www.early911sregistry.org/for...ad.php?t=30939
PLEASE take it to heart and step up if you can, we don't make these requests lightly or often.....

Again, thanks for your support, and apologies for your frustration......

Chuck

Quite a jump since May of this year: http://www.early911sregistry.org/for...ad.php?t=27364

Interesting info, Chuck... a shame that the growth in online members isn't represented by correspondingly bigger coffers. Cornpanzer and others are right: charge to post classifieds if not a paying club member. The "commercial" sellers aren't usually recognizable, some are just small parts sellers/flippers. No dough for the club, no ads. Open forums such as this one are increasingly the defacto medium for sellers as it costs them nothing and they're rarely called out. Sorta diminishes any "fraternal" sense when seeing the same offenders post sales ads repeatedly, but never a single tech or general participation post. :mad: They aren't one of us.

FWIW, I'd be happy to pay a little more in dues just to ensure a clean site free of spam/IT/jive seller issues and support publication of Esses.

And encourage you and the board to continue with less stress. ;)

I find the registry to be a good value and appreciate all of the hard work from the volunteers. For $30/year, I get a window sticker, 4 issues of the Esses and a hosted internet web site. I can easily justify the value in terms of entertainment and research benefits.

I don’t believe that you should raise the yearly fee since you would be penalizing the very foundation of your internet property. In other words, the S Registry's intellectual value (as a business) is simply the stored technical content that its users provide over time along with the eyeball hits that the content attracts. Higher user fees IMO would discourage membership growth and/or content generation, which would ultimately mitigate club growth.

Based on this thread, I have been wondering about the financial structuring of the club. For example, is the registry a non-profit or somebody's business? If somebody's business, what do you need the additional money for? If a non-profit, why don't we see the tax returns? Why is circulation info not published, per US Post Office regulations, in one issue of the Esses per year? If we donate, are we eligible for a tax deduction?

I've also been wondering about the governance of the club. For example, who pulls the strings behind the curtain? Why do we never hear from him or her? Why do we not vote on a board of directors and club agenda? When we do vote on something (i.e. show your full name vs. personal handle) why aren't the results of the polling considered or implemented? Why are Club goals never communicated to members?

Club growth/participation initiatives or ideas:
-change the name of the club to capture a wider audience (i.e., to Early 911's from 911S)
-hire somebody from the 356 Registry to act as a consultant for getting the club to the next level
-improve transparency for governance and/or financial issues
-advertise the club in industry periodicals
-organize local chapters/events so that "members" can identify with other members
-establish a club charter and agenda for achieving stated objectives – no goals no growth
-acknowledge/support your content creators and abide by their democratic decisions
-promote inclusion not exclusion
-provide each new website user with one free issue of the new improved Esses so that club value can be realized and appreciated.
-solicit website commercial advertising
-merge with R Gruppe to reduce overlap and competition!
-provide rationale for financial needs and objectives
-generate some by-laws and governance framework
-reduce backroom decision making

Anyway, just my two cents. I’m not under the delusion that any of these suggestions will be implemented or that any of my questions will be answered, but if someone truly needs money then I think that they need to proactively listen and discuss issues openly with the “members”. I look forward to supporting the club in the future and seeing it prosper.

Hi All,
Inam one of those who forget, but not to get it cheap, just because lack of attention..I guess it is one favor of getting older....:)
Bute here is an idea Cornpanzer had already mentioned.
You could set up the membership fees in a way with registering to the sites and after a year you have to renew the registering otherwise you are out of the loop and with a direct link to paypal, everybody would.
It's just it is inconvenient, we are too much logged into our ways and don't do the extra effort ( of course all the good paying members excempt here...)
I think nobody would be bothered after a year to see a reminder to register again and pay the fee.
Second, yes make the for sale section linked to a paypal.You sell a part you pay a nominell fee, just say $ 5 + minus paypal is $ 4.50 x 36000 posts = $ 162000... we could make ,buy and establish our own Early S Registry Show....
I don't believe that anyone who sells stuff in the classified would not share the benefits of a 100% focused reader potential.....
For my part if you ad an additional fee to the add for showing on the web site would be a benefit I would go for and be part of.

I, for one, really appreciate the job the 911S Registry guys are doing. $35 a year is a bargin for all the useful information & entertainment I derive from the website. Throw in 4 issues of ESSES and $35 is a steal.

Having been an unpaid volunteer (PCA newsletter editor for 2 years) in the past, I know how difficult it is to deal with dynamic personalities who feel they're not getting enough of my time or talent for freakin' free.

I don't want to see tax statements or care if you conform to USPS regulations. I remember that as being a PITA.

I don't even care if you buy beer with my dues, if fact, I encourage it.

I for one really appreciate the club and all that it offers. I want to thank all the volunteers who put in what has to be significant time to keep this kink of quality going. The Esses publication has just gotten better since I became a member and it is a real treat to me when it shows up in the mail. I am really impressed with the new format and the poster this year is stunning (logo could have been a little smaller, but I love it anyway).

My membership lapsed in the last quarter because, like others, I simply forgot to check the back of Esses. I did just renew last month, and just now saw this thread. As a solution, I would agree to have my credit card be on file with the club and have an automatic renewal like you would with other online vendors. As to increasing the membership numbers, I support the pay to post idea. I agree that if you want to be able to do more than browse you need to join the club. Too many Pelican tire kickers come here looking to sell stuff and not contribute to the cause. Nothing against Pelican, but the mentality and focus is different here. I hate to see the volunteers stressed out about the finances of the club when like some have said we are all still buying parts and having fun.

Thanks again club staff!
Chad Cox

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by varunan123

There are pleanty of passionate people who have left and no amount of dues will replace that-you can take that to the bank-be careful what you wish for you may just get it.Sanitize and make it look like a staged house.But,the reality is a house that is lived in with it's good and bad is a house that is warm.Raj

---

I am with Raj on this one, and it is my #1 concern. I want the curmudgeons back. Sure they are like grandpa at Thanksgiving, scratching themselves and farting at the table. Is their behavior inappropriate? Yeah. But let's face it, life is better on the holidays sharing a meal with grandpa. Let's figure out how to fix this.

+ 1 what Richard said. And +1 to Raj as well- (although I have to admit I only understood the section that 911SC fanatic excerpted- the rest was a little tough for me to get). Let's not forget the original inspiration for this entire community- a weird little family run car company in Germany that was so dysfunctional and eccentric that to this day it still provides endless opportunity for debate and confusion over an entire universe of messy details. And this forum- where else can you argue in earnest over whether a 68MY had elephant hide door trim, or not. Or where else can you tap into a thread like Random Historical Racing pics- it brings all this history to life with people from all over the world diligently sharing their personal images and stories frame by frame. It's messy. It's irrational. And I don't give a damn about the tax status of the club or any of the other minutia that was mentioned.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jloucks388

I find the registry to be a good value and appreciate all of the hard work from the volunteers. For $30/year, I get a window sticker, 4 issues of the Esses and a hosted internet web site. I can easily justify the value in terms of entertainment and research benefits.

I don’t believe that you should raise the yearly fee since you would be penalizing the very foundation of your internet property. In other words, the S Registry's intellectual value (as a business) is simply the stored technical content that its users provide over time along with the eyeball hits that the content attracts. Higher user fees IMO would discourage membership growth and/or content generation, which would ultimately mitigate club growth.

Based on this thread, I have been wondering about the financial structuring of the club. For example, is the registry a non-profit or somebody's business? If somebody's business, what do you need the additional money for? If a non-profit, why don't we see the tax returns? Why is circulation info not published, per US Post Office regulations, in one issue of the Esses per year? If we donate, are we eligible for a tax deduction?

I've also been wondering about the governance of the club. For example, who pulls the strings behind the curtain? Why do we never hear from him or her? Why do we not vote on a board of directors and club agenda? When we do vote on something (i.e. show your full name vs. personal handle) why aren't the results of the polling considered or implemented? Why are Club goals never communicated to members?

Club growth/participation initiatives or ideas:
-change the name of the club to capture a wider audience (i.e., to Early 911's from 911S)
-hire somebody from the 356 Registry to act as a consultant for getting the club to the next level
-improve transparency for governance and/or financial issues
-advertise the club in industry periodicals
-organize local chapters/events so that "members" can identify with other members
-establish a club charter and agenda for achieving stated objectives – no goals no growth
-acknowledge/support your content creators and abide by their democratic decisions
-promote inclusion not exclusion
-provide each new website user with one free issue of the new improved Esses so that club value can be realized and appreciated.
-solicit website commercial advertising
-merge with R Gruppe to reduce overlap and competition!
-provide rationale for financial needs and objectives
-generate some by-laws and governance framework
-reduce backroom decision making

Anyway, just my two cents. I’m not under the delusion that any of these suggestions will be implemented or that any of my questions will be answered, but if someone truly needs money then I think that they need to proactively listen and discuss issues openly with the “members”. I look forward to supporting the club in the future and seeing it prosper.

---

agree for the most part (other than R gruppe merge but this isn't the place for that discussion).

i get Rich's comments (beer, taxes, etc) and if the club is happy to stay status quo then this suits. but i suspect that to grow and start handling real money (to cover significant expenses) the above comments are worth considering.

Hey Guys

I love this site, for an early 911 guy it's unbelievable. I just recently joined and the Esses magazine blows me away. Great job, I appreciate the effort of the guys who run this thing.

I would suggest a modest fee for non-members to post in the classified sections. Say $10-15 to advertise a car and $2 for parts. It's not big money but it adds value to memberships and revenue for the board. We all know this is the best place to sell early parts so what's a couple bucks to hawk your wares.

I agree with Mr. Tallon . He has some very good thoughts here, but to a point.

I do not know about the paying to post idea either. BUT, it would not break my heart if the dues did increase to lets say.....45-50 bucks.

I think the lurkers need to adjust their sense of honor and just do the right thing. Pay to play.

The wealth of info here is PHENOMENAL. The Esses magazine is beyond reproach.
And the level of professionalism exhibited by the writers, the Editor, and the keepers of the light on the message board, is a real telling point of the Great guys here who work so we may enjoy.

HATS off to THEM........Our many Thanks for your efforts.

So fellow readers, just do the right thing.

Join one of the greatest sites on Porsche knowledge, get the Esses magazine, and support the Boutique by buying a few goodies.

The world...and the Porsche world... and the early 911 world.... is full of people that live by the title of my post.

We might think they should do the right thing, the proper thing, the full of integrity thing. BUT you have to appreciate that they don't see it that way.

If we are willing to share it for free.... well then, we are just plain stupid and DESERVE our fate. THAT is what a lot of people believe. They sure aren't going to willingly pay good money for something that is given away.


If you haven't figured it out yet, I am in the PAY TO PLAY group.


I do appreciate that there are some people who may come and look but don't find the site worthwhile enough to pay. I go on some sites that simply aren't beneficial enough [or are owned by people selling products] and I wouldn't hesitate to walk away from if it cost.

So, I hope we bite the bullet and require $$ to post. Viewing for free..ok.

John Rice

Pay to post, view for free.......i can live with that.

What knowledge i have gained during ownership is almost entirely due to the GENEROSITY of others who shared without putting their hand out. I'd like to share without putting our hands out. I think this is accomplished with the above scheme.

The world is FULL of people putting their hand out every time they so much as tell you what time it is. I say such people are typically not 'producers' but rather 'resellers' be it of goods or information. My sense of karma tells me it is far, far better to be a producer than a reseller.

i just re-read the whole thread. I'm not sure if the club's financial crisis is still acute, but ...

My thoughts:
- i pay to be a member to ensure the club is sustainable and has longevity
- but also as a matter of integrity .. i'm getting a benefit because of others volunteering their time and expertise.

I especially agree with most of the thoughts /comments of Cornpanzer (#61/62) and Stefan (#68), along with many others, my key points being:
- in theory, i'm not keen of a hefty rise in membership, as the majority of readers don't pay anything at all. However, if that majority don't read every day as i do, or even very often .... then they probably shouldn't pay anyway. (are there any stats ?). Having said that, the superb Esses, which must come at additional cost, now makes an increase understandable .... !
I agree with:
- 5 companies to advertise along the top ...
- a "donate" key for sellers
- download of back-issue pdf Esses for members
- concours section
- renewal notice emailed, with follow-up
- membership notice emailed to registered members on a periodic basis
- happy for some of my fees to go to pay an admin person, to ensure our volunteers do what they do best ... the content pieces

This entire thread is refreshing regarding the insights into another Porsche registry membership/volunteer organization that supports a website, magazine and some form of an active face to face worldwide/regional/local club. What I can say is this, every and I mean every post and point of view expressed thus far in this thread has been discussed before on and on by a sister/brother Porsche club organization that I am familiar with. Perhaps the stated situations are basically inherent in Porsche clubs today; perhaps even the 356 organization which is an extremely well oiled machine with decades of history, experience, $$$ and volunteerism to fall back, on deals with these issues.

Much of the Discussion here has been regarding this web site and the “free loaders” of which I am one, however I am a dues paying member of another longhood Porsche organization who’s web site many of you regularly visit and post on especially in the “for sale” section as non paying members. Having participated in the discussion of charging a fee to access the organizations web site for many years now, here is a different approach. Allow the “free” access to your site serve as a recruitment tool and an introduction to the entire world of longhood Porsche enjoyment. Without new individuals coming into the fold, where are the new buyers of cars, parts and ephemera going to come from? The ownership pool is in a constant process of ebb and flow, circulation if you will. And that circulation is as much knowledge as $$. Sure, how tired can it get to continually answer the question of what size tire should I install on my car? These individuals did buy a car and will buy parts and do need technical assistance and will eventually see the light and become a paying member of the organization which directly supports the web and print presence.

Our organizations continually need to address the question regarding “value of membership”, what do you get for your membership dollars. Most of us support our member organizations, “just because” not for $$, not for ego, and not for technical superiority. Free access to an organizations website serves a valuable purpose but there is much more to a clubs value. Limiting access to the technical and/or for sale sections of a site to members only appears to add value to membership and can serve to increase membership numbers and operating budgets. This now becomes a problem for the programmers and data trackers. Sounds easy? Have at it.

Let’s not get started on the issue of printed vs. “e” magazines and printing production costs taking up ¾ of membership budget. Is that really how best to spend the membership $$$?

68911+1
Some great points

You guys probably know me for my caliper restoration service but I have a day job.

I help manage a website that has 1.8 million unique visitors a month. We have 4-5 million visits monthly and they view over 28 million pages of information each month. We're consistently ranked in the top 50 boards in the world by "Big-Boards.com"

I also work for a catalog that has a mailing list of 3 million and we mail to roughly 800k to 1.2 million each month depending. We became the dominant leader in print media in our industry in "one" year by channel marketing.

I've also admin'd on another automobile website that had over 7000 members... a following very much like this one and very passionate about their "Porsche" mark.

Ask me what they all have in common.

In my "other" industry I'm considered one of the leaders in web based marketing. There "are" concrete answers for this club/site. It just depends on the wants and desires of those who operate it. It's their site.

I just noticed on my recent copy of Esses that my membership is expiring. It's in my bedroom on the night stand, far away from a computer.

Would it be difficult/time consuming to send a PM when your membership is about to expire, with a link to pay? That's a no-brainer to click and pay.

Having to remember to update your membership based on "EXPDEC09" on the back of Esses is an impediment to re-subscribing, which should be as easy as possible in any subscription model.

Shaun,

You are absolutely right...... it would be easier

Well, if not a PM on this board, then a simple email from the info you registered with... not all members frequent our message board...

The way it works now is:
If you fail to respond to your expiration date on the back of the ESSES you are THEN sent an email. If you don't respond to that you are sent a snail mail post card.

It seems it's a bit easier on Fred Trueman, are data base advisor, to catch it 'after the fact' then to be pro-active before....

I will have a talk with him...

Thanks for your input, suggestions, and support...

Raise membership fees, don't let people post unless they are members. I don't want to lose this resource! 40-50$ is not unreasonable the new esses is worth it. I just wish I'd known about this organization years ago.

I don't think most would object to a modest increase in dues to support this wonderful resource. There must be some way to automatically trigger an email request for renewal of membership to alleviate some of the work for Fred. A "pop-up" window reminder to join ("Thank you for visiting Early S _____ times. Wouldn't you like to become a member?") or for renewal may also work.

I also think that it is very reasonable to allow nonmembers to view text and perhaps even post to see what the club has to offer. As an encouragement, do not allow photos to be viewed by nonmembers. This is how Fchat works. I am a nonmember, do not own a Ferrari, but enjoy the F1 discussions and I occasionally read about 60's v-12's :) I do believe that some sections are NOT open to nonmembers. I do not visit very often, but if I ever got one, I would in a heartbeat due to my experience on the board.

Interestingly, I did not really want to join the EarlyS Registry until I had acquired a pre-74 911. I also remember stopping by the 356 Registry booth and speaking with what must have been Barbara Skirmats several years ago at the Heshey Swap Meet. I said I always loved the 356's. She encouraged me to join the club even if I didn't own one, but I said "I'll join the day I have one."

I think that the ability to download an older version of the beautiful new Esses in pdf would also serve as an added incentive to become a member. Raj's idea of a yearly decal for members would also be very cool (Are you listening, Bob? ;) ) The bird site made a very tasteful tribute decal recently:

Please keep us up to date as this continues to evolve. I'm all in. :)

Cheers,

Henry,

Thank you for your constructive comments...... :)

Chuck, I just sold some parts, got the paypal in, and just as I was clicking transfer to bank account, I thought I should divert some to Early S as my membership is ending in a few days.

Clicking on the link above, I hit renewal radio button and enter my member # only to find I have re-enter everything again.

I know this sounds petty, but no one wants to re-enter all their stuff again for a renewal. I just want to enter 1462 and click continue.

hope this doesn't sound mean, just trying to be helpful. renewals should be practically 1-click events.

I would pay an extra 25.00 a year just for the ability to upload pictures without having to resize them.

Hey Tony,

Try up loading something kind'a big in the 'Test' forum....... see if it re-sizes and up loadson it's own.

I've been getting away with lately........ you have to WAIT a bit longer... but try it.....OK?

Cheers

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by 911quest

I would pay an extra 25.00 a year just for the ability to upload pictures without having to resize them.

---

+1 That would be a great feature.

+1 "Pay to Play" heck, I'm ok paying $45 or $50 for the Esses Mag and use of this board.

Pay to Play......


'nuff said. :)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by 911quest

I would pay an extra 25.00 a year just for the ability to upload pictures without having to resize them.

---

I would imagine that uploading image files as large as 3-5 Mb could eventually tax the storage and bandwidth capacities of the host server. Our webmaster could answer that more accurately though.

There is code the webmaster can insert to automatically resize an uploaded image file. I believe Pelican's forum does that. Same with visible image code you can preview and arrange around the text message before submitting. The vBulletin website might help.

Alternately, the image size settings can be adjusted in the backend of this software to accept larger image files (realizing the above caveat). In addition, most folks prefer to not scroll back and forth/up and down to see an image that could be potentially larger than their monitor (in addition to the additional load time). There are public domain programs on the internet to easily and automatically batch-process images to the desired dimensions for internet use. Try a google search term like "image batch resize".

Sherwood

I got the "your membership has expired" email and responded with my credit card info, scrambled with carriage returns and spaces, but anyone receiving it and reading it would know what it is.

never got a reply or confirmation. is that normal?

Shaun,

Please get directly in touch with Fred Trueman asking if all is OK and moving forward......at:
fctruem@verizon.net


Cheers