The future of JTRForums

[Paul]

Okay. So how much money is needed? What would an individual donation be?

[D.J.Adams]

How many regulars are there?

[Chris Phillips]

Okay. So how much money is needed? What would an individual donation be?

If I understand correctly, the total annual cost for the site - as it is now - is about 900 dollars, including the web hosting and the separate hosting of image files.

[Paul]

So, to state the obvious, 9 people contributing $100 each. Surely there are 9 people here willing to do that, or 18 people willing to sacrifice $50. If nothing else, it might give us time to investigate ways of preserving (and distributing?) the research here.

[Chris Phillips]

So, to state the obvious, 9 people contributing $100 each. Surely there are 9 people here willing to do that, or 18 people willing to sacrifice $50. If nothing else, it might give us time to investigate ways of preserving (and distributing?) the research here.

I hope we'll be able to get there between us. Of course nobody should feel there is a minimum acceptable contribution. Whatever people are able to give will be welcome.

One person has contacted me privately mentioning the amount they are willing to give. I think it would be helpful if others are able to put a figure to it, and then we'll be able to see where we stand and make more definite plans.

[D.J.Adams]

Have big medical bills.My small donation would be Aus$30 late October.
Will require an email address to send it via PayPay.

[Gary Barnett]

So, to state the obvious, 9 people contributing $100 each. Surely there are 9 people here willing to do that, or 18 people willing to sacrifice $50. If nothing else, it might give us time to investigate ways of preserving (and distributing?) the research here.

What did you have in mind by ‘distributing’, Paul?

[Chris Phillips]

Have big medical bills.My small donation would be Aus$30 late October.
Will require an email address to send it via PayPay.

Thanks. That's very helpful. I hope soon we'll have a clearer idea of where we stand and will be able to make some definite arrangements.

[Paul]

What did you have in mind by ‘distributing’, Paul?

Well, I'm not sure, Gary. The main thing is that we preserve the data that's stored here. The second is that it is available to researchers in the future. If we can't keep raising the funds each year, then we need to look at the ways in which the data can be moved elsewhere; I don't know what that would be or if it is even possible,

[Gary Barnett]

Well, I'm not sure, Gary. The main thing is that we preserve the data that's stored here. The second is that it is available to researchers in the future. If we can't keep raising the funds each year, then we need to look at the ways in which the data can be moved elsewhere; I don't know what that would be or if it is even possible,

Thanks Paul.

I’ve taken screen shots of some stuff that I didn’t have elsewhere, but it’s obviously not practical to do that for everything of value. Remembering what there is and where it is is part of the problem.

[Chris Phillips]

I think the best way of preserving the historical discussions would be as an online archive of static web pages, which I'd hope could be hosted a lot more cheaply than at present. I am working on that, and I think it will be worth doing regardless of whether and in what way the forums continue actively.

In principle such an archive could also be copied to DVD, though I think the images currently on Photobucket would be too large to include.

[Gary Barnett]

I think the best way of preserving the historical discussions would be as an online archive of static web pages, which I'd hope could be hosted a lot more cheaply than at present. I am working on that, and I think it will be worth doing regardless of whether and in what way the forums continue actively.

In principle such an archive could also be copied to DVD, though I think the images currently on Photobucket would be too large to include.

Would that be readily searchable, Chris?

[Chris Phillips]

Would that be readily searchable, Chris?

That's a good point. If it were on a DVD it would need a search facility to be added to it, and that would need looking into.

A static online archive should get indexed by Google sooner or later. There are also website search services, though the site may be too big for the free ones.

These search options would be more limited than the ones that are currently available - just words and phrases, without being able to specify contributors, dates, threads and so on.

[Chris Phillips]

One person has contacted me privately mentioning the amount they are willing to give. I think it would be helpful if others are able to put a figure to it, and then we'll be able to see where we stand and make more definite plans.

Just to give a progress report - so far seven people have generously offered financial help towards the cost of renewing the hosting of the site.

The offers so far add up to just over $600. That is not too far away from the $758 that would be needed to renew the main hosting package in November. (There is also the ongoing cost of the Photobucket image hosting to consider, but that is now being paid monthly, so we don't need to raise a large sum upfront for that.)

So we are not quite there yet, but the amount that's still needed is not as challenging as the initial target may have appeared.

[Gary Barnett]

That’s encouraging news, Chris.