If forums became subscription, what would you do?

If forums became subscription, would you subscribe? I'm not making seperate options based on money, because I want to know if you would pay, even something marginal, or rufuse on principle.

for me, no. but, if it was included as part of the regular windrivers subsribtin than those people allready subscribeed would most likely stay if the price did not change.

no, WD is mostly just a forum I post on to chat and to ask tough tech questions, but 95% of my questions can be answered elsewhere.

I'd spend more time slashdotting if I was asked to pay for the forums.

I go else where

I had put that I would leave. Then I though of just how absurd that this idea would be. How could you change techs to come give out free advice?

Come pay $20 per year to dispense what you would normally charge $25-$35 per hour for. I can't see anyone going for that. You'd have to have some pretty big 3a11$ ask someone who does a service for free they would normally be paid for to pay to do it.

Even if you gave free memberships to the old heads and whatnot - how could you tell who was helping and who was not? Personally, I help when I can but a lot of my posts wind up in the lounge ot tech tales. I try to hit tech to tech as much as I can, but who could say if I was pulling my weight or not.

I can't see anyone paying to give free support - then again if asked I'd have said that no one would pay for links to drivers, but we saw that go over quite well. <img src="confused.gif" border="0">

I'd throw things around the forums and run....

There would be no purpose for the forums to become "paying", as the information exchanged inside comes free from individual contributors.

You would have to pay the contributors for their collaboration to start charging an entry fee...

Yeah, this has already been talked about anyway. It would be stupid to make them subscription because of what Adept said. Why would I pay to help people, do you pay to work at the helpdesk?

Think before you speak also applies to typing

[quote]Originally posted by thirdfey:
<strong>Think before you speak also applies to typing</strong><hr></blockquote>

Do you ever follow your own advice?

Play nice now..

[quote]Originally posted by EvilCabbage:
<strong>Play nice now..</strong><hr></blockquote>

Heh Heh, just thought it was a little shady of him to pick on the kid..

I think I'd have to spend more time at
my own forum at AC.

[quote]Originally posted by thirdfey:
<strong>Yeah, this has already been talked about anyway. It would be stupid to make them subscription because of what Adept said. Why would I pay to help people, do you pay to work at the helpdesk?

Think before you speak also applies to typing</strong><hr></blockquote>

YEAH, I'll spend all my time at, what was your free forum again Thirdfey???

I would definitely leave.
I wouldn't have a big problem if I had to pay for help, but I would never pay to help!

I agree with all the above. I personally have a big problem with sites that you have to pay to access (I thought that's what all the banners were for). As for this site in particular, as I recently just started hitting the site again after being away for the last 8 or so months, I was very upset that the rest of the site became paid subscription only. As for these boards, I'm with the other guys, although we learn alot from each other here, we are all here to help others as best we can. Most of those who use the boards are regulars, who follow the posts and keep coming back for months. I think a good percentage of those 'regulars' would not continue to come back if the boards went to pay-for-use, meaning that those who do end up paying will no longer have the wisdom of the many knowledgeable people who hang here. They/we shouldn't have to pay to give free advice that we make livings off of chargeing others for. I can accept the rest of the site being subscription based, as it is more of a news service/handy place to get drivers/info for the layman. But, as for these boards, I think the loss of such a collective to the community as would happen is not a good thing.

-Danyll
>>Plus my detox would suck as I'm already addicted to the boards again<<

[quote]Originally posted by DSTech:
<strong>(I thought that's what all the banners were for)</strong><hr></blockquote>

Actually, John Phillips at MaximumPC (aka MaximPC)wrote about this in his release notes a couple months back about how inaffective an advertising tool banners had become when in comparision to TV commericials and magazine adds stating that TV commercials are the only thing on the TV at the time, they are not in a banner at the top of the screen so obviously they get your attention unless you walk out of the room and magazine adds kinda the same thing, some are full page and grab your attention quite well. Banner adds, well, he states even a newbie user to the internet learns to ignore banner adds within a couple days of browsing the net. My own experience now is when I go to the weather channel's home page to check the forecast I sometimes get a full page flash animation to get my attention.

Tony

For the most part I come here just to relax. I couldn't see myself paying to do that when there are other free forums. I come here for the bondness that everyone has.

What good are forums if no one is here to read/answer them. Kind of falls under that "If a tree falls in a forest and there is no one there to hear it, does it make a sound?"

(By the way, the physics answer to this is "NO". There are three things necessary for sound. 1. Something to make the sound 2. A medium for the sound to travel through 3. A receptor for the sound. That's not my personal opinion, just my physics teacher's. He had a PHD....I figure I can't argue with that.) :rolleyes:

Arstechnica Openforums already have certain areas in which only subscribers can post. <a href="http://arstechnica.infopop.net/OpenTopic/page?a=frm&s=50009562&f=34709834" target="_blank">see here</a>

I'd celebrate because JungleMan is leaving... :D :D j/k JungleJuice :)

On second thought I might pay for that

What I wonder is?, if there were to be a charge for the forums, would it be a reduced fee from the Windrivers "Premium" service price? or would it be included in that? or would it only be available to the "Premium" users with an additional surcharge? Damn, I'm gonna stop this before I get scared and internet.com gets ideas...
Highly contingent on the rate and services I recieve, I MAY subscribe, or not I can't honestly say exactely what I'd do. I think most of it would depend on how many users here actually subscribed, but I imagine the vast majority would leave en masse, because most all of the tech info here CAN be found elsewhere, as has been said previously. I would still miss it, there have been for most all of us *especially me*, times that we need a quick answer to a question that may have stumped us..and the chatroom and forums provide a vibrant and freindly atmosphere that is sadly lacking on many other boards. But I understand what most of you are saying, "how could you charge for the services WE render for a fees?," Shouldn't we then be compensated for our posts in the tech forums?* Of course, this is all whistling past the graveyard, but I honestly can't imagine our friends at internet.com being THAT stupid, but stranger things have happened...so until that time I'll continue enjoy it while we have it. *imagines some clock counting down to 0 hour*

i wouldnt pay, i would join a forum that talks about porn movies or new porn movie releases.

[quote]Originally posted by Sheriff Q:
<strong>I'd celebrate because JungleMan is leaving... :D :D j/k JungleJuice :) </strong><hr></blockquote>

AMEN Brother "Q" ! I'd pay for that!