b1ackmarket

I dont want to seem ungrateful but why do u guys have to make the maintence section paid member only? I like to read through the things. I dont have my own bank account so i cant donate any kind of money. My parents only donate to the veterans organization and the red cross. Why are you making people pay for services which should be free. I really dislike this. Not that i dont have the money but my parents wont let me donate it to a Car Club.

SC300T

I agree...
Donations appreciated, yes, I understand. Even a more moderate fee for unlimited access to special articles, but pay to access a public forum????? Disabling features if you don't pay?

disc108

because if it were 'donations', people are too cheap to donate. plus, the cost of maintaining the site is too much based on just donations.

retrodrive

I liked the donations way better. It can't be that much to maintain the site! I mean there is $300 from each 10 paid members...actually $200 a month is more then enough to maintain any site and some hosting for it ($9.99 a month?).

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

Don't quite get your math there retro...

Donations aren't per month - generally they're per YEAR.

Plus, ClubLexus now needs a lot of bandwidth and a LOT of storage now, plus a database, and you can't get that for $10 a month (I've looked). $100 a month maybe. So if Mike needs $1200 a year to run the site, not to mention his time (!), that's 40 people paying $30 a year, which may or may not be easy to generate, I don't know.

This is the dilemna of many non-commercial sites like this one... either someone eats the cost, or you start to get advertising and sponsorship and perhaps sell things to make money.

ClubLexus is basically a victim of its own success! It's become so popular that it can't be run just like a trivial message board any longer.

ObiDon

Sponsorship is the way to go. Lexus dealers, Corporate sponsers that advertise on the form should offset the costs. The donations of help and expertise in this form by the folks that take the time to help out with answers to questions should be enough of a fee for the rest.

retrodrive

I thought the donations is a monthly feature...is it not?

Anyway, I am with the ObiVan on this one. If the name "Steve Gantz" or "SRT" gets mentioned here so often, why won't these guys sponsor? Its not excpensive at all if there is a person behind it all who knows his way around computers, hosting etc. (Like Mike)

DevilDog

FYI, last time I talked with Mike the site currently cost $350 monthly to maintain. That's a car payment! (maybe a lease)

It consumes alot of bandwidth just posting all these Hot Woman in the Lobby!

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

OK, I believe both those points.

$350 a month is 140 $30 dollar donations. With what, 3000+ users, it seems like that ought to be doable. But as has been said, it's not really a 'donation' if it gives 'perks', it's more like a 'membership' at that point.

If I were Mike though I'd stop allowing the uploading of female pictures! Has nothing to do with Lexus, probably violating a ton of copyright, and is eating a LOT of bandwidth, not to mention storage of all the images. *LINKING* to images on other sites though doesn't eat any bandwidth or storage.

retrodrive

It attracts too much attention (the woman thread) and that what Lobby is all about. Also, only paid members can store pictures on the site, others just link to their own web space.

Copyright laws? These get broken by millions every day to get profit by **** web sites. As long as no one is making any money on these pictures, its all good. Also, if authors want to copyright their images, they put their name on it.

Since its $30 a year it really is not much at all. I actually though it was monthly donation.

///MDex

Expensive how? Money? Time is money. Can you place a cost on your free time? If not, you will when it becomes scarce. Mike is not doing this as a primary income generator; he's doing it in his "free" time, which really isn't, is it?

b1ackmarket: you do seem ungrateful, and full of excuses too - take yourself to the post office and purchase a postal money order and ship it to the address Mike has posted; Who says the services shouldbe free? You? Puh-leeze. I like a lot of things too that I have to pay for, why can't I have free access to those items? Life isn't fair, is it.

As much information as each of us glean from this site, IMHO, $30 is a drop in the bucket. Belly up to the bar, or don't ***** about having to help the cause.

We're all here to help one another out - don't get so caught up in the $30 - its an adminstrative fee - get over it.

retrodrive

Yeah, I realise that mike doing this as a hobby, but then I also see other sites like ClubSI, I-Club, DTMPower etc. who operate freely for everyone and non of these discussion arise.

SC300T

Why the heck should this site support the pictures presented in the Lexus Lobby?

The administration thing is B.S. The site can be as expensive or cheap as desired. Bandwidth isn't a result of text, its these non-lexus pictures that people are posting. Why even support pictures? We can all post our own links, other forums do it this way and are successful at preventing the bandwidth from growing too much. Even boards of this size aren't very demanding if images are kept to a minimum. The value of this site isn't a contribution that the host has provided, but the cumulative content of its members. I just don't see the value in promoting overgrown sites full of features that I would never use to begin with. If this site generates so much traffic, surely some advertising sponsors would find it worthwhile to post ads, and credit the hosts for references... Why no sponsors? Why delete features like private messaging that have no real cost value? Why not just impose a fee for users using Club Lexus as storage for images? Its the images that are hogging bandwidth.

I just think this whole site may be going in the wrong direction. I just don't think the value of all the bells and whistles is really worth turning off prospective members put off by the fee schedule. After all, the members ARE THE CONTENT!!!!!

///MDex

I don't think what other sites are doing is relevant to the adminstration of CL. They all have banners.

I have a low tolerance for those who complain when there are few alternatives. Either add positve content to the site, or make a worthwhile suggestion, but I personally don't think that whining about $30 is a worthwhile addition to this section.

I say, start your own site and run it how you want it, that way, it'll be just how you want it. Otherwise, spare us the boo-hoos.

And ret, this isn't directly to you, but to anyone. No angst.

Peace

///MDex

SC,

I agree with most of your post.

The members are the content - yep - BUT, without this interface (CL), we wouldn't be able to share the knowledge.

The picture thing - lexus pics sure, but I'd cap it there

Features - you may not want them, but its not just your site

Again, I think if CL was the only thing Mike had to do, then a lot of these details would be addressed or considered, but its not, and its a hobby.

I think we should be working together to improve what we have instead of trying to beat it up from the inside out.