Re:Duckworks Charging for Subscriptions
My own strategy will be to buy the subscription, and then plie Chuck
with enough book reviews and columns to reduce the effective price a
long way. I get a kick out of getting my views published and I like
to help Chuck.
Peter
with enough book reviews and columns to reduce the effective price a
long way. I get a kick out of getting my views published and I like
to help Chuck.
Peter
Chuck never hoodwinked anyone that I know of, and his site has been
full of constantly updated boatbuilding stuff for many years. Even
Pepsi and Chrysler don't plan their capitalist schemes that far in
advance.
Short of MAIB, where can you find even a tiny fraction of Duckworks
timely, informative and full colour boatbuilding specific articles?
Nowhere! And without funding, that's where you'll be able to read
such content, nowhere!
Duckworks is so good that it has grown to the point that Chuck simply
can't support it as a hobby site any longer. I've seen him work on it
for 4 - 5 hours a night, for almost nothing! The ad revenue wouldn't
keep me in beer, let alone compensate me for a 40 hour hobby biz, pay
for tons of enhanced computer systems, broad band servers, the lot!
To keep it all in perspective, the cost is, at least in Ontario, less
than a case of beer, and far less than a gallon of epoxy. If that
small contribution helps keep this great institution running than
it's far better than having Duckworks fade away becuase the time and
effort was being underfunded.
His choice, as I see it, was to let Duckworks slip away or make it
pay for itself.
He made the right choice, I'm a subscriber, and I wish him all luck.
Bruce Hector
full of constantly updated boatbuilding stuff for many years. Even
Pepsi and Chrysler don't plan their capitalist schemes that far in
advance.
Short of MAIB, where can you find even a tiny fraction of Duckworks
timely, informative and full colour boatbuilding specific articles?
Nowhere! And without funding, that's where you'll be able to read
such content, nowhere!
Duckworks is so good that it has grown to the point that Chuck simply
can't support it as a hobby site any longer. I've seen him work on it
for 4 - 5 hours a night, for almost nothing! The ad revenue wouldn't
keep me in beer, let alone compensate me for a 40 hour hobby biz, pay
for tons of enhanced computer systems, broad band servers, the lot!
To keep it all in perspective, the cost is, at least in Ontario, less
than a case of beer, and far less than a gallon of epoxy. If that
small contribution helps keep this great institution running than
it's far better than having Duckworks fade away becuase the time and
effort was being underfunded.
His choice, as I see it, was to let Duckworks slip away or make it
pay for itself.
He made the right choice, I'm a subscriber, and I wish him all luck.
Bruce Hector
Hey Chuck, if you are following this, providing paying subscribers
with the Duckworks CD at the end of each year might take the sting
out of paying for something entirely virtual.
Good luck with your endeavor. As to whether I will subscribe, I
honestly don't know. I don't think it is an outrageous price,
Duckworks is great--the best thing on the net for boatbuilders in my
opinion. I simply don't know if my budget and my skinflint nature
will allow me. Either way, a long internal struggle within this
cheapskate boatbuilder is likely.
Judging by past contributors, I'm guessing a lot of your audience is
in the, uh, "frugal" category.
I am also curious to know (if what is currently offered will remain
free - as stated) what great new stuff will be offered to tempt me
out of a subscription fee. The CD might help.
I have long enjoyed the results of Chuck's labor, and that of the
contributors. I hope this all works out to the satisfaction of
those two groups. We readers (potential subscribers) will just have
a simple $ vs Need decision.
bye all,
Rav
with the Duckworks CD at the end of each year might take the sting
out of paying for something entirely virtual.
Good luck with your endeavor. As to whether I will subscribe, I
honestly don't know. I don't think it is an outrageous price,
Duckworks is great--the best thing on the net for boatbuilders in my
opinion. I simply don't know if my budget and my skinflint nature
will allow me. Either way, a long internal struggle within this
cheapskate boatbuilder is likely.
Judging by past contributors, I'm guessing a lot of your audience is
in the, uh, "frugal" category.
I am also curious to know (if what is currently offered will remain
free - as stated) what great new stuff will be offered to tempt me
out of a subscription fee. The CD might help.
I have long enjoyed the results of Chuck's labor, and that of the
contributors. I hope this all works out to the satisfaction of
those two groups. We readers (potential subscribers) will just have
a simple $ vs Need decision.
bye all,
Rav
--- Inbolger@yahoogroups.com, Doug Harrison <prototype@c...> wrote:
> It's a paper vs crt thing. Perhaps some market exists for ezines -
news and events for instance. I find it hard to accept
> that hobbiests will be willing to give up the reference value of
that growing stack of magazines piled up next to the
> recliner chair.
>
> Doug
It's a paper vs crt thing. Perhaps some market exists for ezines - news and events for instance. I find it hard to accept
that hobbiests will be willing to give up the reference value of that growing stack of magazines piled up next to the
recliner chair.
Doug
that hobbiests will be willing to give up the reference value of that growing stack of magazines piled up next to the
recliner chair.
Doug
--- Inbolger@yahoogroups.com, "Mark A." <marka@h...> wrote:
ads is a different matter than charging readers. Charging the
readers is OK too, but charging for articles that were contributed by
folks who thought they were going to a free site steps over the line
in my mind. Of course this is just my opinion, and obviously anyone
else can feel free to agree or disagree.
If the idea (from the beginning) was to eventually charge readers for
the site (and I am not saying it is), then the contributers have been
taken advantage of and Chuck ought to be ashamed of himself.
I think I myself will pass on both the subscription and the articles
I was working on, at least for now and probably in the future too.
If I had articles that I had contributed in the past I would consider
whether to ask to have them removed or not. If I decided that Chuck
was planning to convert the site to a subscription site at the time I
contributed them, I definitely would ask him to remove them.
Personally I think this venture will fail if success is measured by
making a profit. Charging $25 a year will reduce the number of
readers, but more significantly the compensation structure is likely
to discourage contributers. If the contributers jump ship there
isn't anything to attract subscribers and the readership will fall
futher. It is a vicious circle. I wouldn't be surprised if
Duckworks was gone a year from now. I kind of hope I am wrong.
Pete
> I am amused that so many don't realize it has been anI tend to think that making a profit from selling stuff or running
> effort toward a profit making venture all along. What
> do they think all that advertising is about?
ads is a different matter than charging readers. Charging the
readers is OK too, but charging for articles that were contributed by
folks who thought they were going to a free site steps over the line
in my mind. Of course this is just my opinion, and obviously anyone
else can feel free to agree or disagree.
If the idea (from the beginning) was to eventually charge readers for
the site (and I am not saying it is), then the contributers have been
taken advantage of and Chuck ought to be ashamed of himself.
I think I myself will pass on both the subscription and the articles
I was working on, at least for now and probably in the future too.
If I had articles that I had contributed in the past I would consider
whether to ask to have them removed or not. If I decided that Chuck
was planning to convert the site to a subscription site at the time I
contributed them, I definitely would ask him to remove them.
Personally I think this venture will fail if success is measured by
making a profit. Charging $25 a year will reduce the number of
readers, but more significantly the compensation structure is likely
to discourage contributers. If the contributers jump ship there
isn't anything to attract subscribers and the readership will fall
futher. It is a vicious circle. I wouldn't be surprised if
Duckworks was gone a year from now. I kind of hope I am wrong.
Pete
s_paskey wrote:
amused that so many don't realize it has been an effort toward a profit making venture all
along. What do they think all that advertising is about? The copy gets the eyeballs.
Good luck, Chuck. Build a better mousetrap at a decent price, then they'll come.
Mark
> Incidentally, if only a fool writes for free, the web is inhabitedAnother way to look at Duckworks, so far, is as a very well moderated chat group. I am
> largely by fools (as is this group.) Long live fooldom!
>
amused that so many don't realize it has been an effort toward a profit making venture all
along. What do they think all that advertising is about? The copy gets the eyeballs.
Good luck, Chuck. Build a better mousetrap at a decent price, then they'll come.
Mark