[charles norton]

Jason, as far as I recall, we had just recently donated to you VERY SUBSTANTIAL amount of money to buy the new computer - complete, to get your own privat T1 line to your ow house, I's sure you are using not only for maintenannce of this site, and to get the software and pay monthly fees. The donation amopunt exceeded substantially (we are talking (>thousand) the ammout the server and everything else costed.

IF you plan to do this as bussiness and charge for it, fine, but announce it as that. At ~$10.00 per member and ~2 - 3,000 member base se are talking $20-30,000, so whom you would be kidding here, about this to be needed as to run this site.

I strongly support:
diesels,
trucks,
freedom,
guns, etc, as well as

free enterprise and enterpreneurism, but only straight shootin!! kind.

chn


IF you

 

[jgun]

Sorry, have to jump in once more. To charles norton bfranklin and those of you that say $20 is to much, I ask have you ever tried to keep something like this going? Believe me it could easily be a full time job. It pisses me off to see people come in here and benifit and save $100's from the information JASON provides and then you talk about I can't afford $20 bucks??? We'll remind me next time you pass me on the road and I'll give you the $20 bucks just to not have to hear your greedy little attitudes.

I apologize to those of you who are in the right on this issue. I just think it's wrong to use Jason like that!

------------------
99.5 F350, PSD, CC, 4x4, Off-Road, LWB, SRW, Silver, XLT, Camper PKG, TT
Auto, ESOF, Trailmaster 3" leveling kit, RS9000 Shocks, 285's, TuffCountry
stabilizer,Comp/Temp Mirror Pkg, K&N oil and air filters, Fumoto oil drain valve,
Snug-top Highliner, Arma-Coat Bed Liner, Brite Box, Clifford Alarm, Yakama Racks

 

[mhardin]

$20.00 is NOTHING compared to the information I have received from this site. The first example that jumps to mind is the bad torque converter that Ford chose to ship. Without this site, I would still have the "nosiest truck in Texas". I'm willing to pay, in fact, I did so today, a lot more than $20.00. Come on, you paid $30 -$40 thousand dollars for your truck, don't you want to see it maintained properly? Or do you trust your dealer to take care of you? While I think I have a great dealer, I still don't totally trust them. This site gives you the information that helps keep your truck 100% and your dealer honest. That is worth something to me.



------------------
Mike Hardin,
99.5 F250, SC,PSD, XLT, White, Born on 1/99

 

[George C]

May I add something here...
Please......
Give C. Norton a break..
Jason does not provide any information here..
Enough smoke blowing..
Some of you guys make me sick..I am ready to puke...
The last time Jason had a run of donations, he made out very well, and I am glad for him.. He also make a few thousand more than expected.. Thats also fine by me...
If he asks, I will donate again, but please quit blowing all of this smoke up his rear end..
May I remind you that the members make up this website..
It is the members who spend the time and post their findings, not Jason...Thank the people who provide you with what you need..
Jason provides the vehicle, which was paid for by the members..

Jason, if you have run out of money, ask....
Also, try to lighten up, your attitude when you close threads is getting abrasive.






[This message has been edited by George C (edited 09-24-1999).]

 

[M_Carter]

I spent $25 on dinner tonight.

If anyone can't afford that once a year for all the information (and entertainment) they find here, then maybe they can't afford to pay their ISP either. Yeah, probably some are still working on their 100 free from AOL.

T1 rates are a teeny bit more expensive than your average phone bill.

Also, most of those 3,000 users probably looked and left, never to return. For sure most of the 3k will never pay one red cent.

Just tell me where to send the check. It's worth it to me.

 

[mhardin]

George C,

You're right, the members make up this site, and mostly make it what it is. But, without Jason hosting it, where would we be? Someone has to host this thing, and it ain't cheap! Sure, nowdays hardware is bargain basement but, priced any data lines lately?

------------------
Mike Hardin,
99.5 F250, SC,PSD, XLT, White, Born on 1/99

 

[George C]

I never said that this sight should be free.
Last time the man asked for 20 bucks from everyone.
I sent a check..
Cool with me..
I hope he makes a whole lot of money..
No problem with that...It has to be getting old at times, and it has to be a big hassle.

I just have a problem with all of the smoke blowin' going on, and then reading scolding remarks from the webmaster when it is not necessary.
The administrators Jason picked on this sight are great, all of them.. They handle sticky situations with personality and respect..
Jason can learn from them..

 

[mhardin]

George C,
I assume you are talking about the "You all can complain all you like" post. If so, yeah, I can see where you're coming from. For my part, I'm going to figure it was just a bad day, or maybe he was worried about the future of the site. I agree the post won't win any public relations awards, but I still support him (at least 'till he makes a habit of it).

------------------
Mike Hardin,
99.5 F250, SC,PSD, XLT, White, Born on 1/99

 

[George C]

No, I didn't read that one..
I support him too (with my donation), but I do not like to see ego play into it here, and I do not like some of the schoolyard scoldings that are handed out...
Reminds me of "get out of my tree house"
I think that most of us are adults who log on here for not just info, but to communicate with friends who have the same interests...

I do know that some situations call for extreme measures which he seems well suited for..
Aside from that, it is a very well run website..

I am just venting a little here because I can only take so many "thank you Jason" posts before I vomit......

 

[Alaska Doug]

O.K. Jason- If you charge, and say, you make $20,000. How much do your administrators get? After, of course, the cost of upgrades etc...

 

[JLester]

Lighten up George, or I'll kick you off

As far as site finances, we have done very well with donations and sales over the last year. Up until that point however, the entire site came out of my pocket (about a year and a half).

We used the Spring donations to buy a pretty hefty server, this forum software, a nice new scanner, two desks (for the server and development computer) and assorted office stuff for the day to day operation of the site. The line to my house was $250 for installation and a recurring $60/month (I have a special deal with the local ISP for that price). I've been meaning to take pictures of the office setup where Ford-Diesel.Com is coming from, but keep forgetting. All Ford-Diesel.Com income is in a separate account. We pay all expenses (product design costs, shipping, line charges, etc.) from that account.

Note that this does not cover any of my time maintaining the site. I spend about 2 hours per day on maintenance. Bringing the site online back in April probably took about 40 hours since every page on it except for the Forums was programmed by myself only. Major updates of articles and photos take about 3-4 hours depending on the complexity. I bill clients at $30/hour for my programming time. I hope you don't feel my time is worth nothing although that's the idea I get from some of the messages. I would like to run the site as a small business, but there's no way it would generate enough income.

All donation and product sales go towards maintaining the site first and foremost. Any extra is put into the account where it may or may not be used personally.

What future plans do I have for the site? First of all I want to finish the user database section. I've almost got it, probably 5-6 more hours to get it working correctly. It's fairly complex with lots of fields to list info about yourself. I would also like to put the chat server back in place after I do some tests to see how it will affect performance. I'm also considering bringing a couple of editors in to help with the articles, photos, and news sections of the site.

Hope that answers all the questions.

Jason


------------------
Ford-Diesel.Com Webmaster
1997 F-250 PSD 5-speed Banks Stinger-Plus

 

[George C]

Jason,
I call it as I see it.

 

[bfranklin]

jgun, What about the people that post information on this site? Should they get paid?? I like reading about different peoples trucks. And give advice when I can. Save hundreds? My good friend is a PSD mech at the local Ford truck dealer. If I need anything I go to him. I have no problem DONATING money. But I do have a problem with a high membership. Jason, I will gladly sent you a check. Please e-mail me the adress.

------------------
96 250 SC LWB PSD E4OD 4x4 4:10 B&M aux trans cooler, K&N,Banks Git Kit,pillar mount boost&pyro guage & DIS mandrel bend tailpipe. And not a drop of anything synthetic.

 

[dslman]

I don't mind helping to support the website but Jason's comment about the extra money "may or may not be used personally" raises some questions.
If I'm going to help pay for a new Powersrtoke it's going to be mine not his.

------------------



1990 F-250 4x4 reg. cab 7.3 with Hypermax charger.

 

[Ken Hatch]

This post was copied from my post on the other thread but I think it also fits here as well. As far as I concerned we ALL work for a living in one way or another and that makes our time valuable. If Jason is spending enough of his time maintaining this site that it has become a labor as opposed to a hobby and it's taking time away from his real job(what ever that may be) and his family than he should be compensated for his time. I'm not talking about volunteering advice to someone in a post with a question, we all do that because we think we may have something to add to the post. What I'm talking about is the maintenance to the system to keep it running and improvements to make it run better. If I had the knowledge(and I don't) and the passion(and I don't) to start my own site I'm free to do that but I prefer to stay here and participate in this site and I'll support this site as necessary to keep it going. Ken Hatch

(copied from another thread)
Here's how I see it. I surfed into this site sometime in the spring of 1998 while I was researching information to purchase a new truck. This site was FREE and since I only have computer access from here at work so "FREE"a big deal to me. When I came here I don't think the membership was very large at all, the 1999 boards did not exist at the time and 1997 trucks were still the latest model. I truly believe this site saved me many $$$$ dollars in sales/service and headacks and although I've never met anyone from this site I feel I've made some lasting
friendships. When Jason asked "needed" donations this spring to improve the site for all of us I sent mine almost immediately. I would not be here if this was a pay first site but know that I'm here I would gladly pay to stay because I know it's value. Because of this site I have a continuing relationship with D.I.S. and I can tell you
there is no comparable parts vendor in my area, again saving me $$$. When I had my ONLY warranty problem with my truck the "experts" here knew more than the dealer I took the truck too, so with posts in hand I went to
the dealer and presented them with the information, they were amazed that this site existed. I think we lose sight of how much this site means to us, we come here and discuss everything from trucks to politics and NEVER look in the back ground at how the site is maintained. SmokeyWren has some great ideas on financing "our" site and some combination of his ideas and Jason's thoughts on running this site should be implimented to keep our site FREE to newcomers and a paid/donation membership for those that wish to stay. I'll support the site either way. Ken Hatch

------------------
Ken Hatch, 1997, F350, E40D, 4x4, 4.10LS, Hunter Green, PSD, Rancho 9000's, Trans Temp gauge(Isspro), EGT Guage(Isspro), Boost Gauge(Isspro), 3 Guage dashboard console, 5th wheel Hitch, Reese Titan V hitch, Steel Horse cab shelf, Cherokee CM10 CB, Lance 1020 Slide-in, Air Lift suspension, Lear Crown Cap, Extang bed cover, Rhino Liner & Stainless bed rails.



[This message has been edited by Ken Hatch (edited 09-28-1999).]

 

[SmokeyWren]

bfranklin said: >>Jason, I will gladly sent you a check. Please e-mail me the adress. <<

Jason Lester
350 Henry St.
Abingdon, VA 24210

 

[Al]

Some of you appear to be envious that Jason may make a little profit. Why should you care as long as the site is maintained? If the thought of him making a few bucks is more than you can stand-start and maintain your own site. Make it a free site and you too can have the joy of soliciting money or peddling goods to keep the site running. Some have suggested he should do it "for the love of it"so to speak.
Why do you expect him to work for nothing?

 

[lwsii]

I also think there are some contributers whose contribution to this site helps make it what it is & should not have to pay. Most of us recognize who they are & I don't know the best way to handle it, but it should be kept in mind.

 

[jwhunt3]

As far as I am concerned, I hope Jason can make a profit off running this site, I already have profited immensely from it. And if Jason is only charging $30 an hour for programming, he needs the money.

------------------
2000 F250 SD CC 172" WB 4x4 Lariat,Dp Wdgwood Blue/Harvest Gold, PSD, 6SP, TT, 54E Telescoping mirrors, ESOF, LS, Capt Chairs, CD, etc.
Adding BedRug, Extang Black Max, Ignition Override, ISSPRO Pyro/Boost Guages, A-Pillar Mount, Ford Fog Lights and Mud Flaps
Ordered: 7/26/99, Status: Built and released from factory 9/21, ETA 10/13

 

[Mark E.]

Jason, it's been over a week now and your address has been posted all over the site. So are any donations rolling in yet.