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dclary

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Mac, I know the site needs to pay for itself, believe me I know that, but it seems to me that in the last month or two, the number of ads at the top and bottom of the forums has tripled. For me (my experience may be different than others) I actually have to scroll down on any page in the forum before I see *any* content that isn't advertising or breadcrumb/user info.

Would it be possible, given that most of us are going to have monitors that are wider than tall, to put the "books by AW'ers" ad-space in a vertical space to the left or right of the forum, instead of above it?

Alternatively, do you offer a "payperview" mode for AW? Something to consider: accept payment in exchange for a user experience that is banner-ad free?
 

Fenika

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Well, they beat me to it:

Also, perhaps an international section where members could write in other languages besides English? It would be a bit of a nightmare to mod, though.

I don't know about writing in other than English, but an area where we can emphasize other cultures would be great, even if it were in broad sections- Eastern European being one ofc :D

I don't know about an international section just for different language posts, but it got me thinking.

What about an international/world books subforum? Maybe in the genres section? For translated novels/short stories or foreign authors writing in other languages or locales?

Yes, this. We particularly need a foreign author section. And if it's available in English, then a major number of AWers could check it out.

Needs more giant squid, boss!

Not a bad suggestion.

Also, we need more sparkly dragon avatars to offset all the new hoofstock around here. ;)
 

Silver King

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...Alternatively, do you offer a "payperview" mode for AW? Something to consider: accept payment in exchange for a user experience that is banner-ad free?
That's an excellent idea; or better yet, just charge all members a token amount, say one dollar per month. Most folks could easily afford twelve bucks a year to help maintain the site. Hell, I spent more than that today on lunch alone...
 

thothguard51

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Since arriving 8-9 months ago, I have enjoyed the company, banter and, publishing information I have received. I particularly love reading Med's take on things and she has opened my eyes to a lot of publishing news this newb was totally ignorant about.

Thank you to all the mods and members who make AW a great place...

If I had to suggest anything, it would be to ENLARGE the search functions. They are so tiny and so lumped together I often hit the wrong search topic and have to start all over again.
 

MacAllister

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No promises regarding the ads, folks - but I'll look into how fussy a non-ad, paid subscription would be to implement. I know there are a handful of big boards that do it that way.

I'm always mindful of the ads, too, and try to work hard to keep them as non-intrusive as I can. In fact, we're actually carrying fewer ads in the header right now than we were a couple of months ago, though--so that's a case of perceptions not always being accurate.
 

KTC

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I have NO problem with the ads...and I do click on them.

As a member...I could suggest that members donate when they can. It's a great place...well deserving of some of your 'extra' cash every now and again. (-;
 

MacAllister

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As for the international section, we'll definitely do something with that. I know the P&CE threads about what's going on internationally are always my favorites, too -- and I read a lot of books by non-USian writers. I think that's a terrific idea.
 

poetinahat

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I'm fine with the ads - anything that helps keep this marvelous place going. Really, is there anywhere on the internet that's half as rewarding and one-tenth as welcoming?

I'd probably be more likely to patronise the advertisers more if I weren't overseas.

I'm trying to think of suggestions, but I've caused enough ruckus in the past with "improvements".

The one thing I can think of - and maybe it's something I could offer - is an ancillary Newbie Guide; something more like, say, a Day in the Life of an AWer, that walks through how one does certain things here, and how others respond. Say, for example, submitting a SYW work, and the responses to expect.
 
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KTC

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I'm fine with the ads - anything that helps keep this marvelous place going. Really, is there anywhere on the internet that's half as rewarding and one-tenth as welcoming?

I'd probably be more likely to patronise the advertisers more if I weren't overseas.

pull up to the bumper, baby.
 

Wayne K

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I'm no help with stuff like this, but I'd like to chime in about what a great job you guys do.
 

EFCollins

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That's an excellent idea; or better yet, just charge all members a token amount, say one dollar per month. Most folks could easily afford twelve bucks a year to help maintain the site. Hell, I spent more than that today on lunch alone...

Heh. I'd shit a brick if I spent twelve bucks on a lunch in a single day. Unless it's a special occasion (IE: My birthday, my kids' birthdays, my mom's, spouse's anniversaries etc.) I don't just blow money up the tailpipe.

I am perfectly willing, however, to pay my rent here. I've spent enough time on AW to owe my share of the bills. A dollar a month sounds more than fair, and actually, to be honest I'd be willing to pay more. I've seen many, many writer's forums trying to be what AW is and they don't manage it. This place is great, and I think that is mostly because of Mac. (MHO... not brown nosing) Mac doesn't take shit, doesn't tolerate shit and she weeds it out quickly and without mercy. (I've seen it. I don't think I'll ever forget when she posted to one person about how they came to the wrong place if they expected a nice circle jerk. Frigging classic.) Mac and the mod team give a damn, you know? They don't know every person on the boards, but that doesn't matter. No where else, that I have found, cares about writers and writing as much as AW mods, Mac and the community that makes this whole place go. I'd pay more than the 20 dollar subscription I have now. Just because AW has that spirit.

/end sentimentality

Sorry. Carry on.
 

kaitie

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I've got adblocker installed and that kills just about all ads anywhere. It's one of the Firefox add-ons, and it's very easy to use. If the ads really bother you, I'd suggest using something like that.

Or, you know, we all donate twenty bucks to AW so she doesn't need to use them. :tongue
 

Synonym

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Actually, I'd cough up the twelve bucks too. Every time I think I've got a little extra lying around, something sucks it up. There's a cosmic law at work here someplace, I'm sure. If I knew I had to plunk it down, say on my anniversary of joining...I'd find a way to come up with it.

I'm very lucky that this is the first place I found when I began searching for help with writing. Very lucky. :D
 

Chris P

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I like encouraging international participation, and I wonder if an ESL/EFL SYW section would be helpful?
 

Fenika

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...I'd settle for shiny?


Why yes, I should be writing, why do you ask?
 

Silver King

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I mentioned earlier a small membership fee not so much to talk Mac into it (she doesn't like the idea), but more as a way to remind folks that even a small donation, say five or ten dollars here and there, goes a long way to help defray the costs of running this site.

I can't really talk about what I know from a mod standpoint, but I hope I can say this much without betraying anyone's trust: The owner of this site often has to reach into her own pocket to keep AW above water as a going concern. I've seen it happen.

Mac never asks for help, ever, but I'm not shy to do so on her behalf now and hope it will spur some of us to donate just a small amount to show our appreciation for what this site means to us.
 

Collectonian

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I asked before no long after I got here, but the post never seemed to get read, so asking again...please please please please please please please please please please please turn off the "feature" in vBulletin that auto marks all threads read X minutes after you come to the site, regardless of what you are doing. I have missed so many posts from that thing marking stuff read while I went to the bathroom or was catching up on a longer, more involved thread, or got a phone call or etc etc etc. It is a seriously annoying element of the software, IMHO, and I'd much rather have full control over when I mark anything as "read"

:)
 

MacAllister

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Collectonian, I'll take a look and see what we can do about that. The problem is, the forum is frakkin' huge -- so if we turn it off entirely, it's going to take a really, really long time to load for everyone, partly because of the sorts of other functions the time-limit serves. Remember, there are hundreds of threads started every day. Turning off the time-out will break several other features like "New Posts" for example.

I'm not quite sure what trouble you're encountering, to be honest, since this isn't something anyone has ever complained about. I do recommend using the subscribe feature for threads you're interested in following.

But it might be we can lengthen the parameters a bit, or something.
 
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Collectonian

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Two other forums I read use the same software and neither have the auto marking as read turned on. :) One has 28k active members, and dozens, if not hundreds, of threads going at once. As far as I know, the New Posts still works fine with it off. I can go to those, see new messages by clicking the little symbol by the thread title, or going into the thread and hitting go to first unread post. With the other forums, I can pop in if I have just a few minutes, read a thread or two, leave, come back hours or even days later, and the stuff I hadn't read is still showing as unread.

Basically, when I come to the forum, I'll start reading the areas of interest. Something distracts me, or what not. After 15-20 minutes, even if I've come back and am actively reading again, suddenly every thread in the forum is marked as read, so I have no idea what I have and have not read. So I'd miss quite a few posts because it no longer let me see what was unread. I'd think turning it off would actually boost performance, as it would no longer be constantly checking how long you've been logged in to do the auto mark as read, instead if would be something done manually :)
 

SaraP

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As for the international section, we'll definitely do something with that. I know the P&CE threads about what's going on internationally are always my favorites, too -- and I read a lot of books by non-USian writers. I think that's a terrific idea.

Being "international" myself, I do wonder what would be the purpose of this.

I have one suggestion to add regarding newbies. I know that many never actually read the Newbie Guide and there is great info on it. Maybe make it so they have to get past it, the same way one has to get past the disclaimer on Erotica SYW?

I also wanna say I love the subscription/unsubscription option. I had never encountered that in other forums and it's mighty useful.