Please, feed the hungry Dalek Kitty ...before he exterminates us!
Donate today!
Posted on 01/11/2011 5:28:06 AM PST by paulycy
FYI -
Here are statements from Jim about the future of FreeRepublic.com for those who missed them. They are quite serious.
===
"Well, I can say that there are definitely two things that will never happen. 1) Banner ads. 2) Oracle [a completely new database system.] And a third is a total replacement [of the current damaged system.] Don’t have the financial wherewithal."
"To those who wish to leave because of it, see ya."
"If FR dies, that’s that."
===
[To: paulycy]
Hey, you want us to get an all new system with all new software and add a few more pricey techs, system programmers and database administrators to keep it all working 100% of the time 24/7/365? Well, start coughing up the big bucks.
It’s going to take tens of thousands of donations and many with at least three zeros each after the comma to accomplish the task. And that would be EVERY month like clock work to make the payroll. Once you take on a big load of expensive overhead, there’s no going back. As it is, we get a couple thousand donations per quarter averaging about $30 bucks each and there’s no guarantees we can cover this quarter’s expenses much less next quarter. We’re on a pay as we go system and we have zero employees.We just ask for enough to pay the bills.
Throwing more money at the problem won’t solve it. [This latest glitch] was a technical issue and we just had to keep troubleshooting until we found it. And no, we’re not going to invite a bunch of strangers in to get their hands on our secure systems. John has been programming since he was 14 and he’s pushing 40 now. He built these systems and he’s an expert in them.
And no, we are not going to throw out our software and rewrite it and no we’re not going to move on to some other database system. There are no guarantees that any other system can do a better job and not without hiring a staff to build and maintain it and that’s for sure. And we don’t have the financial wherewithal to do any of that anyway. Maybe if we had a couple million bucks at our disposal and a couple years to do it in we could build an iron-clad system. And maybe not.
All I can say is, if someone else can do it better and cheaper, then please step right on up and get ‘er done!! I’ll bow out and retire. Thankyouverymuch.
Hit it boys:
https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/
And no, we have no plans of taking FR commercial. I like it the way it is. Not sure I could handle getting rich.
===
- Jim Robinson
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2653583/posts?page=168#168
I even have an islamic rage kong image lurking somewhere out there.
You're the one with the fetish about emoticons. The rest of us can live with out the eye candy.
If you like kiddie forums better, go there. There's no need to drag FR down to that juvenile level.
Deej, there would be some value to learning how the next generation uses internet content. My offspring gave up wire line phones altogether in favor of cell phones, and next gave up desktop internet service in favor of iPhones, and this is people in their late 20s-early 30s approaching the peak of career. We do not want to make FR a geriatric-only site, but also have appeal to the coming generation of conservatives who will not only have to carry the ball, but also repair the grave damage of the postwar generations.
Since everyone is touting their creds, I might as well add that I made my living for several years as a consultant to a global hi-tech company researching and predicting the short- and long-term future of the technology marketplace, including likely user behavior when certain innovations moved from the pipeline into user's hands. The speed with which an older business model can collapse is one of the primary dangers of today's rapid development cycle. As one example, you can see how big-box stores like Home Depot and WalMart wiped out mom'n'pop businesses within a decade or so. As another, you can see how quickly Netflix and RedBox decimated Blockbuster, which is now in bankruptcy after having been a major recreational destination a decade ago. And the collapse rate for online destinations can be even faster.
Emoticons are not the important issue; timely technological innovation to retain market share is the issue. And the market for conservatism is going to shrink unless we can attract and hold the last generation who grew up under Reagan. There's been little but cultural Marxism ever since.
Please, feed the hungry Dalek Kitty ...before he exterminates us!
Donate today!
We always like to have cane chairs in the dining areas. It makes the after-dinner contests so much less muted.
Exactly. A great idea that could apply well to FR. Thanks.
The two ideas (interns; children of FReepers) are not necessarily mutually exclusive.
Content is king. You seem to know your stuff, AW.
If you do the 'Greasemonkey' add-on to a Firefox browser it gives you almost all of the capabilities you mention.
Greasemonkey is a good browser add-on. Its a quick and easy posting helper.
I still have a cord phone landline. During a storm when we lose power it's the ONLY phone that works. Cordless and cellphone batteries need to be charged.
I understand what you are saying but not every "new" thing is as good as what it purports to replace. Kids and young people latch on to it because it's new and "Fabulooouuus!" not because it works better. Honestly I think young people need to learn that new isn't always better.
Let's say for the sake of argument that society collapses. How will kids survive? They won't unless they have an old geezer at hand. The young need to learn what is truly valuable.
OT, back to FR. I don't know any younger people that cruise the net on their phones etc. Text? Yes. Check weather? Yes. GPS? Yes. Post online? Nope. They have a laptop for that.
Followed by flexible delivery systems that are (excuse the loathesome jargon) "platform agnostic."
That would be true . . .
less muted on at least 2 dimensions.
Of course.
I'm right with you. My background and education is educational technology, instructional design and user interface. I like content-driven apps and I'm primarily a software guy. I hate proprietary OS/hardware wars.
I'm always on the user's side. I like FR quite a bit, by the way, but we need to look to the future, too, especially stability and speed.
A huge 2nd to paulcy’s post. We need people like you around, even just commenting on threads, whether or not you’re ever involved in the infrastructure here.
There is a difference between what may be essential and what will help make FR a better, more inclusive site that will attract more people and help the conservative cause. I remember when one quite crotchety president of one of the world's largest computer companies said that personal computers were just fancy stuff that weren't essential and people didn't need.
Well, that company no longer exists. Before that, though, there was a computer engineers who wanted to create a new operating system with all kinds of icons and fancy things. When he was told it wasn't essential, the guy went somewhere else to do it. What he did was create Microsoft Windows, which helped put his former company out of business and pushed Apple back to a meager (5%) market share. Lesson: Adapt or die. Very few things that technology based can sit still and survive. You know what else is true? We are all resistant to change but often find that some of the new stuff is really very good once we use it and then wonder how/why we did without it.
Best regards,
The big difference between posting from in-depth factual research and posting from personal opinion and preferences is a big difference, indeed.
But speaking from personal observations, in my world both youths and adults post content online from a hand-held. I’ve gotten handheld forwards of considerable length in the past week from several friends in their 60s who are still active in career.
Wow, you don’t quit do you? Who made you the arbiter of any discussion concerning this site? Parroting a few bits of information Jim has dropped over and over again does not make you appear wise or knowledgeable.
When someone like pt17 appears offering suggestions, why does this seemingly threaten you so?
Why don’t you find some Liberal to harry?
LOL!!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.