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SNOWEST FORUMS: Member Comments on "Letter to All Members"

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The profit motive is so boring, and makes people to really un-natural things.

MD.

If only SnoWest were non-profit. That would solve everything. I think everyone should run their organization as non-profit. Making money is way over-rated. Oh, and they should run those organizations at a loss, so as to not put anybody out.
 
I am not going to get caught up in all the debate on this issue but will say that as a long time forum member who is currently unemployed (and has been for 2 years now) and have to account for every dime these day, will find the money somewhere if nothing more than to support a forum that has given me the means for soooo much help in doing the sport I love.

Thanks Guys,

MX
 
I hope I can convey this in a sincere way,

Having read through all 963 posts and given some time to let this all settle in it dawned on me.

It’s probably over here.

The days of friendly advise, a joke with a friend and a gripe about the world is all but coming to a close. Just look around here, just about every section has people in proverbial fistfights over snowest’s status. This really comes at a time of year I enjoy the most on here. Seeing all the new sleds, seeing the cool turbo sleds. Hearing the stories of storms coming.

I realize time and a few days in nipple (Sorry Ladies) deep snow will fade the memories of this mess, but I am afraid the damage is done.

This thread is in many was a testament to what destroyed the moral of SW.

Christopher, when the day comes, and there’s little doubt it’s coming, the one thing you can never say is that you weren’t told!

Christopher, you broke snowest’s spirit and heart, shame on you:(
 
Chris stated in the original POST

"1. SnoWest will no longer share hardware or server resources with the other Harris Publishing web-sites or communities.

2. We’ve ordered brand new switches, firewalls, load balancers, UPSs, file-servers, database-servers, and web-servers exclusively for the use of the SnoWest forums.

3. We’re upgrading the SnoWest forums to the latest and greatest versions of all our software, across the board."

As the owner of a web development company my response to each of the above......

1. This is a good idea. When a form doesn't have the bandwidth needed to operate it suffers and needs to then be moved to its own server.

2. Looking at the traffic this form gets the forum software and database(s) can EASILY be run on a single server. No need for multiple servers and certainly no need for load balancers. WTF??

3. This forum runs vBulletin which runs $110 per year the last time I bought it. PHPBB is another software which would operate this forum and its free. They both utilize mySQL as a database app which is also opensource and free.

I'm not looking for a job by any stretch but I could run this FORUM for as little as 9.95 per month. I have forums which charge a membership and others that do not. You can almost never successfully take a free site and make it a paid membership site - most of the members are there because it was free to begin with.

I say if you must charge a membership then be honest and don't bull**** your readers with load balancers. Do something with 100% of the fees such as hire lawyers to fight area closures.
 
1. This is a good idea. When a form doesn't have the bandwidth needed to operate it suffers and needs to then be moved to its own server.

2. Looking at the traffic this form gets the forum software and database(s) can EASILY be run on a single server. No need for multiple servers and certainly no need for load balancers. WTF??

3. This forum runs vBulletin which runs $110 per year the last time I bought it. PHPBB is another software which would operate this forum and its free. They both utilize mySQL as a database app which is also opensource and free.

I'm not looking for a job by any stretch but I could run this FORUM for as little as 9.95 per month. I have forums which charge a membership and others that do not. You can almost never successfully take a free site and make it a paid membership site - most of the members are there because it was free to begin with.

I say if you must charge a membership then be honest and don't bull**** your readers with load balancers. Do something with 100% of the fees such as hire lawyers to fight area closures.

The site currently runs on a whole lot of equipment and still has difficulty keeping up with the load. While it might be okay to run 4,000 active users off one server - to do so would assume that all requests are consecutive and not concurrent. And it's easy to estimate what you think a site might need, but to make such authoritative statements about what it would take without actually knowing what it takes makes you sound a little silly.
 
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Just wanted to put my 2 cents in. I have no problem with all the changes being made to the site. What I do have a problem with, is paying for it. I will be finding another site for all of my sledding questions and snow reports.
 
Everybody chill out here. I can understand the cost of operating a forum, and just as a suggestion, (and this may have been brought up already), maybe charge a lifetime membership fee? With all the great members here, and the many more who will join, there would be plenty of money to support the forum and all of its servers and tech staff and whatnot other technical BS that I don't understand. I know that this will kill Snowest, unfortunately. We will see what happens, I will more than likely pay the subscription for at least a year, if after a year there is nobody left here and the forum is no use to me, I will save my money and find other means of sled tech support and communication with Snowest Members. Just my input. Agree or disagree with me. I don't care.

~speedemon
 
Please excuse me if others have posted similar opinions, I do not want to read 20 pages worth.

Congratulations to snowest for completely killing your online community. For you to think that you can sell access to information provided by the subscribers is insane, even more so when you couple that with the fact that there are dozens of other already established online snowmobile communities--many of which your current members are also active.

Regardless of the extra features provided I will not subscribe to the website. Good luck.

Chris.
 
Re:

Thank you. A truce is in order. I will appologise for flying off in a moment of rage.

Your actions are noted. 1 respect point (even though it matters not).

:beer;

It won't be because of me. Unfortunately, I don't have any pull round these parts anymore :(

I saw your thumbs down to the post above and decided to edit out the sarcasm. That was before your war rant above

Pot, meet kettle.
 
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I am not acting as a mod right now just a person.
I'm not suggesting anyone leave, actually I want them to stay. But these guys set here and say they are leaveing. But never do, they stay and stir up trouble for others. How can that better the site? I don't understand. This whole thing has been BLOWN out of control. That letter was not even done. And someone got a hold of it and released it. How can that help?

Oh, I get it. Your comments are 'off the record"...

Well super -mod(echo-echo) you can't have it both ways. Your post are the posts of a mod and will be held to that standard.

As I pointed out in another thread, you have not been here long enough to judge us. Many of us have been here for plenty of changes and we have stuck it out.
You came here a month or two ago with no sled asking US for help and advice. It was FREELY given to you in a spirit of kinship. You did not have to pay for it and you even made some valuable contacts.
Some how you ended up a super-mod(echo-echo) and you want us to play nice with your new found friends.
You expect those of us who passionately disagree with the direction this site is head to just post our opinion once and then sit back and wait.
Just what military were you in again?
Very few battles are won with a single volley.

BTW Christopher reads every one of these posts. WE DO NOT NEED YOU TO ASK HIM ANYTHING! We can do that on our own.
 
I just read the news in another forum that this was becoming a paysite. Curiosity caused me to come to Snowest to see if I could still get on the forum. How ironic that I couldn't get on the site for the last 6 hours. Ever since all of the wonderful "change" started happening, the site works terrible. I quit coming here because all the new bs made it work terrible. Now there's going to be MORE changes that make the site work worse? What use do I have for a video conference? How about make a forum like the old one and make it free? I'll have no problem enjoying mountain riding without paying for Snowest. See ya later folks.
 
hmmm...smells like it....feels like it....tastes like it....yikes this site already stepped in it...oh yea...don;t worry...i will say it for ya...yep the smell will go when alot of us leave..but at least if we smell we still know we are alive...this site just maybe unlucky enough to have no smell at all
 
OK, Uncle

I give up trying, I have tried to make suggestions, but as with most others, no reply or only arguments........


Do you feel like you are talking to a brick wall? I agree with your suggestions....however, the admin views me as a troublemaker....so I don't have much weight. ;) :beer;

If ya speak up bluntly you are labelled a troublemaker and a bad seed....poor sensitive guys....boo hoo. I would love to see how they would react in person...we might see actual tears.

Good news though....my boy got a hat trick today and his team won 7-6! What a game...Dad is so proud!!!!!


.
 
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Do you feel like you are talking to a brick wall? I agree with your suggestions....however, the admin views me as a troublemaker....so I don't have much weight. ;) :beer;

If ya speak up bluntly you are labelled a troublemaker and a bad seed....poor sensitive guys....boo hoo. I would love to see how they would react in person...we might see actual tears.

Good news though....my boy got a hat trick today and his team won 7-6! What a game...Dad is so proud!!!!!


.

a hat trick...awesome..and its early in the season..!!!..Christopher has to get one as well...but a little differant kind...he has to pull a rabbit out of the hat..
 
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