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Forums will stay up
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reader50
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Jun 22, 2016, 09:07 PM
 
The end has been postponed for us. We're told so long as residual MacNN and forum traffic pays the bills, the forums will stay up.

Not completely reassuring, but the forums will not be shuttered on July 1.
     
Waragainstsleep
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Jun 22, 2016, 09:20 PM
 



I wouldn't have thought the cost of keeping the forums up would be too high.
I have plenty of more important things to do, if only I could bring myself to do them....
     
sek929
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Jun 22, 2016, 09:26 PM
 
Looks like our big final dance number saved the summer camp boys
     
OAW
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Jun 22, 2016, 09:30 PM
 
Well alrighty then.

OAW
     
iMOTOR
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Jun 22, 2016, 09:43 PM
 
     
turtle777
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Jun 22, 2016, 09:57 PM
 
That would be great news. Still don't feel like this is going to last.

Wouldn't advertising be affected if most of 'NN shuts down ?

-t
     
starman
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Jun 22, 2016, 10:05 PM
 

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OAW
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Jun 22, 2016, 10:19 PM
 
And now the question becomes how long will it take for forum traffic to return to a crawl again?

OAW
     
Cap'n Tightpants
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Jun 22, 2016, 11:16 PM
 
Originally Posted by reader50 View Post
The end has been postponed for us. We're told so long as residual MacNN and forum traffic pays the bills, the forums will stay up.

Not completely reassuring, but the forums will not be shuttered on July 1.
Patreon would be good.
"I have a dream, that my four little children will one day live in a
nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin,
but by the content of their character." - M.L.King Jr
     
starman
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Jun 22, 2016, 11:22 PM
 
Originally Posted by Cap'n Tightpants View Post
Patreon would be good.
I don't think the Pay-To-Argue model will work.

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Cap'n Tightpants
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Jun 23, 2016, 12:19 AM
 
Can't see why not. It wouldn't be the only forum with paying subs, not by a long shot.
"I have a dream, that my four little children will one day live in a
nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin,
but by the content of their character." - M.L.King Jr
     
milhous
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Jun 23, 2016, 12:27 AM
 
I'm relieved. For me, MacNN was always about the forums, though the stories and reviews were also very important. In the age of reddit, twitter, etc, I'm not sure when I last posted to a bulletin board forum, but it sure feels nice. I'm willing to help in any way that I can.
F = ma
     
starman
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Jun 23, 2016, 12:38 AM
 
Forums still work for organization.

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ajprice
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Jun 23, 2016, 01:53 AM
 

It'll be much easier if you just comply.
     
Laminar
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Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
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Jun 23, 2016, 12:00 PM
 
Just whitelisted NN under AdBlock. Don't make me regret this.

PS How much would it cost to buy admin status?
     
Laminar
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Jun 23, 2016, 12:06 PM
 
Wow it took all of about a minute for that to go poorly.

     
Mike Wuerthele
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Jun 23, 2016, 12:13 PM
 
Jesus, do you even go to other forums? One text and one ad is a problem?

Anyway, just got the word a Patreon is do-able for the forums. I'll continue the conversations about it with TPTB even after June 30.
     
Laminar
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Jun 23, 2016, 12:16 PM
 
Originally Posted by Mike Wuerthele View Post
Jesus, do you even go to other forums? One text and one ad is a problem?
No, one giant ad that doesn't exist within the confines of the page isn't okay. And especially since the ad loads after everything else on the page, right as I'm about to click a button, moving the button halfway down the page. It has happened twice already.

I run adblock on every other forum I visit. The content I create is my gift to those forums.
     
starman
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Jun 23, 2016, 12:18 PM
 
Originally Posted by Laminar View Post
The content I create is my gift to those forums.
Is that what I smell?

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Laminar
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Jun 23, 2016, 12:31 PM
 
Five times now.

Originally Posted by starman View Post
Is that what I smell?
Not this forum.
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Jun 23, 2016, 12:41 PM
 
Block if you want -- your computer, and your call.

I understand both sides of the argument, but we have very reasonable ads, and are responsive to complaints about them.

Just don't ever, ever tell me that there aren't consequences to others.
     
andi*pandi
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Jun 23, 2016, 12:44 PM
 
Billboard size ads are one thing, they are new ad hotness. However, they can be a pita if a) the container isn't built to accommodate them properly, and b) they cause page jump/reload/scrolling back up when a user has scrolled down.

Also, Google thinks this is relevant to me:

Found- Jesus's Lost Words
Major Find in Egyptian Desert Stuns Biblical Scholars. Details Here.
     
subego
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Jun 23, 2016, 01:03 PM
 
While annoying when they're out of spec, MacNN ads aren't annoying enough for me to Adblock.
     
OAW
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Jun 23, 2016, 01:19 PM
 
I whitelist MacNN and ArsTechnica because I frequent those sites. Everywhere else gets blocked by default.

OAW
     
subego
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Jun 23, 2016, 01:22 PM
 
This has been a question I never got an answer to.

When a big, non-spec ad gets through, are you at least paid the extra I presume sites get paid for choosing bigger ad specs?
     
reader50  (op)
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Jun 23, 2016, 02:01 PM
 
I could bump the header space so the big ones fit. I was hoping we could kill them back to normal size, but considering the circumstances...
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Jun 23, 2016, 02:50 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
This has been a question I never got an answer to.

When a big, non-spec ad gets through, are you at least paid the extra I presume sites get paid for choosing bigger ad specs?
Don't know for sure, but a provisional yes.
     
Laminar
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Jun 23, 2016, 04:47 PM
 
Six times.
     
andi*pandi
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Jun 23, 2016, 04:59 PM
 
I've been reloading trying to get that billboard, laminar, to get some css for reader.

However, what is truly annoying, is the ads are slow and jump the page around. So you are trying to read and the page jumps. Giving me epilepsy. 15 seconds to load all the page and ads.

My work just switched to adobe ad server. Has lots of configuration under the hood for smarter targeted ads.
( Last edited by andi*pandi; Apr 14, 2022 at 11:04 AM. )
     
turtle777
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Jun 23, 2016, 05:08 PM
 
I'd rather pay like $10 bucks a year than disable adblock.

Get the tip jar going.

Or: How about selling customs stars.
I bet many would "sponsor" NN for that.

-t
     
sek929
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Jun 23, 2016, 06:16 PM
 
Originally Posted by turtle777 View Post
Or: How about selling customs stars.
I bet many would "sponsor" NN for that.

-t
Shut up and take my money.
     
starman
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Jun 23, 2016, 06:17 PM
 
Originally Posted by turtle777 View Post
I'd rather pay like $10 bucks a year than disable adblock.

Get the tip jar going.

Or: How about selling customs stars.
I bet many would "sponsor" NN for that.

-t
I would

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Waragainstsleep
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Jun 24, 2016, 12:56 AM
 
I don't get ads that are that intrusive. I'm not running adblock.
I have plenty of more important things to do, if only I could bring myself to do them....
     
Ham Sandwich
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Jun 24, 2016, 08:42 AM
 
In that case I just added yet another bug to my list of annoying unfixed bugs in El Capitan, for your reading pleasure
( Last edited by Ham Sandwich; Jun 24, 2016 at 09:12 AM. )
     
Jim Paradise
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Jun 24, 2016, 09:05 AM
 
Great news to hear after a day of Brexit b.s.
     
Laminar
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Jun 24, 2016, 12:09 PM
 
Seven times.
     
andi*pandi
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Jun 24, 2016, 12:13 PM
 
what is the ad for Laminar? I keep getting regular 728x90 banner ads, for afleck etc.
     
Laminar
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Jun 24, 2016, 12:17 PM
 
Same type I posted here. I was searching for Rustoleum spray paint this week so no surprises on the ad content.
     
subego
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Jun 24, 2016, 12:46 PM
 
I'm pretty inured to those at this point.

Whomever is in charge does a good job if popups slip through, but out of spec banners are a low priority (I surmise based on my experience).

It certainly causes almost constant instances of

     
Laminar
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Jun 24, 2016, 03:58 PM
 
Eight times.
     
Stogieman
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Jun 24, 2016, 04:49 PM
 
Originally Posted by turtle777 View Post
I'd rather pay like $10 bucks a year than disable adblock.

Get the tip jar going.

Or: How about selling customs stars.
I bet many would "sponsor" NN for that.

-t
That is a great idea. Please allow us to sponsor other members. I would pay top dollar change Dakar's stars into smilies.

Slick shoes?! Are you crazy?!
     
subego
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Jun 24, 2016, 04:50 PM
 
Originally Posted by Laminar View Post
Eight times.
Yeah, uhh...

Counting is probably not a good idea.
     
reader50  (op)
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Jun 25, 2016, 12:47 AM
 
I've just bumped the header ad space, so big ones will stop bouncing the text around. I've clicked into the wrong thread a bunch of times, when the page jumped.

Feedback welcome. Is it too much wasted space?
     
subego
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Jun 25, 2016, 02:26 AM
 
So far I've only gotten Activia ads. There's still a jump, but it's much reduced. Even though there's enough space below it, the large banner still borks the centering (which is responsible for some, if not all of the movement as everything slides right once the ad loads).

Not too much wasted space on the Activia. It's too much if the ad times out, but I don't know what you can do about that.
     
ghporter
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Jun 25, 2016, 08:29 AM
 
Activia no longer thinks I need help, but The Home Depot apparently disdains the color of my walls... But at least Home Depot isn't bouncing my screen anymore. YAYYYYYY!

Issues with funding will be tricky. Patreon isn't just a front-end bill collector/pay wall (though they like to look that way to the user community). Subscriptions would mean some sort of pay wall code - which may be part of vBull but may cost extra (vBull appears to be licensed differently from typical apps). Ads are something that appear to have been a major turnoff for many users - there's no telling whether the uncooperative ads have lowered traffic, though.

I want to say that this has been a great place to converse, discuss, and even argue. I've learned tons of stuff, and hopefully I haven't come across as belonging on the short bus too terribly often. The one thing I get here that I don't get - or even see a hint of - anywhere else is that mostly we all understand that not only are we all individually different, but that that's pretty cool. Just about every other "discussion forum" is so homogeneous that it's like echos instead of discussions. How lame.

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
Cap'n Tightpants
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Jun 25, 2016, 08:42 AM
 
No need for that, just place an official MacNN forums Patreon link and ask people to contribute, no need to go through the rest, IMO.

Just say, "Hey, here's the link, give if you use Adblock and if you can, we appreciate it. We'll even give you free titles and funky badges!"
"I have a dream, that my four little children will one day live in a
nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin,
but by the content of their character." - M.L.King Jr
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Jun 25, 2016, 09:36 AM
 
The Soundcloud is mine, and unique content belongs to the creators now (but it gets to stay on the MacNN page with a free license.)

So, the Soundcloud is mine, so that makes the iTunes repository mine as well. Charles and I are going to keep going on Friday/Monday, and I've spoken with William and Malcolm and they are as well. Purely hobbyist. We won't be able to call it MacNN, but we'll figure that out.

So. Not ENTIRELY bereft of new content, as long as you meatheads promise to listen and participate in the fora.
     
Cap'n Tightpants
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Jun 25, 2016, 11:18 AM
 
Originally Posted by Mike Wuerthele View Post
So. Not ENTIRELY bereft of new content, as long as you meatheads promise to listen and participate in the fora.
We're still bickering and contributing, so you're fine.
"I have a dream, that my four little children will one day live in a
nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin,
but by the content of their character." - M.L.King Jr
     
subego
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Jun 25, 2016, 12:37 PM
 
I feel the only advantage to Patreon (for our purposes) is it automates a recurring donation.

I assume singular donations via PayPal would incur a lot less overhead.

I like Patreon, and think they offer a good service, but I'm not sure what we want from them is really worth the cut they're going to ask for.
     
turtle777
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Jun 25, 2016, 12:40 PM
 
don't know Patreon, but I agree, PayPal should work for what we're trying to do: donate occasionally, or even recurring.

-t
     
 
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