Bill, Going back to the early days when you asked for voluntary contributions would be a start. I fully appreciate the odious response when you ask freeloaders for dough on something they believe SHOULD BE FREE. There are many companies, like mine, that have used the list to further our business and we SHOULD PAY for it. There are other companies whose employees use the list to further their business interests but who, as employees, have no authority to authorize payment and would be hard pressed to persuade those who sign the checks that it is a worthwhile investment. A simple, for a start solution would be to set out a budget and ask for help in meeting it. Companies like mine would respond; a lot of folks would not, but all their contributions to the list make it a valuable business asset for those of us who would happily pay a fee to keep the list from going away. I have no objections to viewing advertising. I mean, like where do you go for anything that hasn't got some message wrapped into it? I just throw out 50% of the Sunday paper and fast forward through the ads on the rental video. As for the chronic whiners, "Adios, MF". Best, ----- Original Message ----- From: Bill Thoen <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Friday, September 22, 2000 11:41 AM Subject: Advertising to fund MapInfo-L (was MI ANNOUNCEMENT: MapInfo-L is moving! -No Advertising!!) > [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > > > > One Comment about the advertising with the e-mail. > > > > Don't do it! > > > > That's the sort of thing that could run me off from this list faster then any thing else. > > Would you be willing to pay a subscription fee to get the list > mail then? How do you suggest we afford the service? Would you > prefer twice-yearly fund drives like they do for public > broadcasting? > > It's been free because I managed to get a good deal at Colorado > Supernet for the last 6 years. That made it cost so little (and > was helped by some donations and the proceeds of an auction) that > my business carried it these last few years. It cost $14.95/mo > plus my time, which was gladly given because it has also been > good for my business. But SuperNet got bought out by Qwest/US > West, and because SuperNet isn't profitable enough for the big > wheels, the wheels are closing down that service. The hard, cold > Morlocks meet the Eloi of the Internet. > > In a perfect world advertising serves to connect people who have > needs to products and services that answer those needs, and > that's the goal we would try to attain. I am all too aware that > in our real world, advertising also tries to *create* needs and > wants and stick a straw into your wallet and suck hard. We all > know that activity sucks, but is there any creative solution that > we can come up with where we can generate enough cash to pay for > the infrastructure we need to make this list a success? Lists do > not live by email alone. > > Perhaps we can do a mix of paid subscriptions with no advertising > with some freebie subscriptions that come with a helping thinly > sliced spam. How about the USGS buying up a block and giving them > out to employees? Maybe people with deeper pockets could fund > subscriptions for students who are full of bright ideas, but no > money. Maybe we could charge enough for advertising so that there > wouldn't be many (but if there were none, that wouldn't help) Or > maybe the ads wouldn't be so bad or common anyway. Maybe we could > do a mix of donations, light advertising, auctions, and fund > drives. But all that work takes volunteers or paid staff. > > Advertising is the easiest solution. If you don't want it at all, > get creative, and not to put too fine a point on it, put your > money where your mouth is. The form that these will take has not > been decided yet anyway. All that's been talked about is that the > service can be offered and that advertising would be a covenant > way to afford it. > > As Henry D. Thoreau once said, "All great enterprises should be > self-supporting." > > How about some ideas instead of complaints? > -- > - Bill Thoen > ------------------------------------------------------------ > GISnet, 1401 Walnut St., Suite C, Boulder, CO 80302 > tel: 303-786-9961, fax: 303-443-4856 > mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED], http://www.ctmap.com/gisnet > ------------------------------------------------------------ > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from this list, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and put > "unsubscribe MAPINFO-L" in the message body, or contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and put "unsubscribe MAPINFO-L" in the message body, or contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]
