LOOK & THINK

[Ldub]

I'd like you ALL to look at the upcoming events header...click on the appropriate "event"...& think about how the withdrawls felt yesterday... :(

Dig deep friends... :cool:

[MSHardeman]

Dub,

Really, what's to think about?

Done and done.

What would I do without this place? :wtfb:

[Ldub]

Dub,

Really, what's to think about?

Done and done.

What would I do without this place? :wtfb:

Well said... :cool:

[don moore]

i just joined the ranks of the VX info and I dont even have one yet.....
I glad to do my part in supporting this site.


chin up

[biju]

My question is... if the cost of a new server upgrade is beyond the total we come up with - is Scott going to feel obligated to foot the rest of the bill to upgrade everything out of his own pocket? I wouldn't feel good about that; he undoubtedly does so much for us already. Does anyone know the approximate amount we need to obtain so that Moncha doesn't have to pay an arm and a leg for our addiction? I am willing to donate in monthly installments if needed, but it might be beneficial to know what kind of goal we need to meet!
Agreed. If I knew what the goal was i might be able to find more scratch laying around to help. Anyone know what a server cost these days?

-biju.

[VehiGAZ]

And if you let us know what you might need Scott - maybe someone can coax the required items out of their office IT groups...

[k4tmc]

Yes, I can contribute more, but would like to know some of the statistics...

What is the average current contribution?
How many current supporters versus users?
How much extra is needed from current contributors?
How much extra is needed if all users contributed?

Henry
(standing by with PayPal account...)

[Moncha]

Looks like I'm going to have to chime in :)

First, thank you Tone for instigating this. True, I don't want to ask for more money.. When I started this project, the site was fairly simple, the "Family" was around 150 people, I had (still have) a great job that paid decently and Ms Moncha was owner of her family business and was making great cha ching. I just wanted to make a place that we could control rather than being a minor part of someone else's forum without the ability to simply back up our own data base.

In the last five and one half years, we have made great improvements (with a bunch forthcoming), the family has grown to over 2700 members, we have almost 7500 photos in the data base, we have over 10,000 threads and almost 100,000 posts. and We've given out tons of prizes.

When we started all those years ago I was able to absorb the cost of the server as it was way less than $1000 per year to keep up. The members at that time didn't get much, save for a place to post messages. With the growth and popularity of the site, I felt compelled to add features to make the place a true "one stop shop". With that, I began the "donation" program to see if the some burden of the additional cost could be defrayed. It HAS helped immensely

The unfortunate part is, we still are on the same server, albeit a safe server (for those that remember the "great hack attack"). Even with that, the fees for the server (Yes, it's a leased, dedicated server), network, maintenance (for stuff I can't do) and licenses are still there and have increased over the years. Like I said, the donation program has helped but, not enough, the site has always operated in the red. Even after adding several small client sites to the equation.

I'm gonna now bore you all with the "poor me story". Although I'm still gainfully employed, the wife doesn't have the great paying job she used to have and my personal expenses due to taking care of my ailing father and mother are making it tough to add into the pot. I am, and always will be dedicated to the promise of keeping this site available for the masses, but.......

As you have noticed, we have been experiencing some outages. A lot of this is due to server load. The answer to this problem is to upgrade the server and the network it's connected to. As you guessed, this costs money. For those that are interested, here's a light summary:

We have a membership of approximately 2700 folks. Albeit, some of those are somewhat inactive. Of those 2700 members, as of today, 96 are on the contributing members list. This is slightly skewed as in the last 2 days there has been a surge in new contributions, so to be more accurate, I subtracted the last 2 days which leaves us at 84. Just a hair over 3% of listed members are making donations.

Last year, it cost a total of $2500 to run the server for this site (I subtracted the percentages for the sites I host)

so, $2500 (Broken down to $208.33 per month)
-$1680 (84 x $20.00 = $140.00 per month)
------
$820 ($68.33 per month out of pocket AS IS in current configuration)

To upgrade the server to a modern server it will cost about $80.00 to $90.00 a month additional to the current fees. So, It has been put on the back burner for me as I just couldn't afford the additional output.
Along with that, I would need an additional $800.00 to $1000.00 for setup, license and transfer fees.. REALLY not going to happen for me.

To break that down, it would be approximately $300.00 a month and that translates to just 14 members out of 2700 donating $20.00 a month (Excluding the initial setup fees). That's just 168 folks being kind per year!

It would still be a leased server, but a very good configuration over the old configuration.

Old system= 2.4Ghz P4
60GB hard drive
512MB RAM
750GB transfer
10 Mbps Uplink
FTP offsite back up (My House)

New system= 3.0Ghz P4
250GB x2 RAID 1
2048MB RAM
1500GB Transfer
100 Mbps Uplink
FTP offsite Back up (My House)

Along with the new server, there will be lots of benefits to the members such as increased speed and storage.

I hope this helps in answering some questions. Like I said, I was not going to ask the community for help as I don't want folks feeling obligated but, since the cat is out of the bag... Please see what you can do to help this community move forward and stay strong!

Thank you for those that have and keep supporting this site and for those that are going to help out, thank you in advance!!!

[CrnCnn]

Looks like I'm going to have to chime in :)

First, thank you Tone for instigating this.

?????????????????

Did I miss something?

ldub???

[CrnCnn]

I get paid next week, I think I can come up with some extra scratch. I Visit this site Everyday and with all the knowledge and groovey people, it is definatley worth it. Do we just go to the donation part again? What is the best way for you Moncha(Scott?)?

[Anita]

Scott,

The amount of money I have saved by being part of this site = thousands

The quality of friends I have made here = priceless

I will be sending you $$$ to make this happen.

[cyronman]

?????????????????

Did I miss something?



Yes.
I did too the first time around.

On the HOME page, look directly under the calendar.
(VX.info Server Upgrade DONATIONS Needed....) (http://vehicross.info/forums/calendar.php?do=getinfo&day=2007-10-14&e=249&c=1)

This should answer your other question too.

[Moncha]

I'm sorry, Ldub did bring this bring this more to the forefront. Ultimately, Tone started it. But I want to thank you all!

[johnnyapollo]

Scott,

I looked at the Donations page and it's not apparent how to send a donation of more than $20 - I'd like to increase the amount and it can't be done on PayPal either. Can you post the PayPal payment email address you're using? I'll get some $$ off to you today.

-- John

[Ldub]

I'm sorry, Ldub did bring this bring this more to the forefront. Ultimately, Tone started it. But I want to thank you all!

No "sorry" needed Boss Man...I just don't want to see this site disappear.
I've said it before...I find it astounding that fewer than 100 members can scrape together twenty dollars a year to support a site that has the potential to save them THOUSANDS of dollars in stealership repairs...I guess I was raised different or something. :rolleyes:

I know that not all of the membership is active, & I guess I can understand it if you haven't visited the site in years, but on the other side of the coin, there are those that are inactive & still feel this place is worth a little extra scratch...I dunno, I'll never understand human nature.

TWENTY BUCKS A YEAR ???...that's four less Starbucks foo-foo latte coffee beverages...a year...that's one less every three months... :rolleyes:

Allright...I'll get down off my soap box now... ;)

[Ldub]

Scott,

I looked at the Donations page and it's not apparent how to send a donation of more than $20 - I'd like to increase the amount and it can't be done on PayPal either. Can you post the PayPal payment email address you're using? I'll get some $$ off to you today.

-- John

Look at the paragraph below the paypal logo...or hit the "donate" button more than once on seperate visits. ;)

[johnnyapollo]

Thanks Ldub - I missed that. $$ sent.

-- John

[Ldub]

Thanks Ldub - I missed that. $$ sent.

-- John

WOW John...that's a lot of guests...WELL DONE !!! :cool:

[CrnCnn]

Guests are sent....

[k4tmc]

Scott,

Thanks for posting the statistics. I have made a new contribution. And...I'll make some more over the next few days.

Suggest changing the PayPal setup to allow other payment amounts ($40, $50, $75, $100, etc.)

Henry

[Moncha]

At the very bottom of the page, there is a link for just that... Thank you all very much!!

[Dino]

It's a bit ironic that the day after I became a site supporter, the server crashed! :rolleyes:

[CrnCnn]

It's a bit ironic that the day after I became a site supporter, the server crashed! :rolleyes:
Well now we know the main cause.... :p

[Dino]

I'll be sending another donation after I get home from vacation. ;)

[rowhard]

First, I am shocked at how few are contribution. As Anita said, the money I have saved (minus the money I have spent on mods) (well, I'm sure I'm in the red) but the knowledge that I have gain is worth every penny spent. My next action will be to look for the link at the bottom of the page. Thanks Scott:)

[pbkid]

wow, its really great to see all the people that are willing to keep this site going how it is. however i wish i could put some money into the pot, but im still trying to save up enough to get my vx on the road. much less finding what i need to get it fixed...aka motor....i dunno if it will ever live again...

[nfpgasmask]

Funny, I read this initially, and was like, "man, what is LDub smokin today??" :)

I just checked back on this thread and now it all makes sense. I will send over my donation tomorrow.

Now, all that aside, I have to ask, Moncha, is this the only way you can run the site? I mean, what about a hosting service with enough bandwidth and server space? I am just thinking, I mean, my gasmasks.net site is pretty huge (content wise) and I push a lot of traffic through. I am on a hosting plan that costs me only $250/year. So, why does VX.info need its own dedicated server? Forgive me for asking, I am just wondering. Is it bandwidth? The backend? Reliability? Space? Just curious as it would seem there might be other options?? Again, just slap me if I am talking out of my arse.

:) Bart

[Kenny]

No "sorry" needed Boss Man...I just don't want to see this site disappear.
I've said it before...I find it astounding that fewer than 100 members can scrape together twenty dollars a year to support a site that has the potential to save them THOUSANDS of dollars in stealership repairs...I guess I was raised different or something. :rolleyes:

I know that not all of the membership is active, & I guess I can understand it if you haven't visited the site in years, but on the other side of the coin, there are those that are inactive & still feel this place is worth a little extra scratch...I dunno, I'll never understand human nature.

TWENTY BUCKS A YEAR ???...that's four less Starbucks foo-foo latte coffee beverages...a year...that's one less every three months... :rolleyes:

Allright...I'll get down off my soap box now... ;)

Here, here.
If you can afford an internet connection, you can spare $20 a year.
There is absolutely no excuse not to donate if you visit and don't leave empty handed. I mean who doesn't tip excellent service after a nice dinner?

If it wasn't for this site, I wouldn't have a VX.

[Pghachey]

I not only have gained knowledge from the site, but entertainment from reading some of the comments and watching some of the videos, not to mention the hundreds of pictures that are priceless. Thanks
Money will be sent without question. :)

[Knigh7s]

I will most definitely send some money once I get my paycheck. If it wasn't for this site, I would have never gotten my VX. I can't believe I didn't even notice my subscription was past due! =P shame on me!

But Im with Bart... I don't know what happened back then when the site first started. But I am curious as to why you went dedicated on the "safe server"? If you don't mind me asking... How many GB is this site currently at and how much bandwidth are you going through per month?

Here is some information of the hosting I use.

Fast Dell® Intel Quad-Core XEON processors (8 cpus) with RAID protected drives, 6GB+ of DDR ECC RAM
1100GB Storage
6000 GB (6 TB) Bandwidth
More info here (http://lypha.com/hosting_plans.shtml) if you are interested. This was also not intended to be an add. Just information for those that are curious.

But hands down, I have to say this is one of my favorite places to visit on the web. I can't go through a single day of work without checking this site!
Thanks Moncha!!!

[EDIT] I notice you mention that the site was hacked... That answered my question... But security has changed since then...

[johnnyapollo]

Scott,

I'm curious to know how much more you'll need for the equipment upgrade - I think if there's a definite $$ goal for phase 1 (equipment) then the target will be easier to attain. Phase 2 would be hitting the yearly hosting, divided by monthly fees (what I'm thinking anyway).

-- John

[Ldub]

UuuuuM PA-PA....oh woops, I sometimes get my polka tuba noise mixed up with...

BUMP...

[nfpgasmask]

I just kicked in a donation. I hope we can all get it worked out!

Thanks for the great site and all your work Moncha.

Bart

[Moncha]

Funny, I read this initially, and was like, "man, what is LDub smokin today??" :)

I just checked back on this thread and now it all makes sense. I will send over my donation tomorrow.

Now, all that aside, I have to ask, Moncha, is this the only way you can run the site? I mean, what about a hosting service with enough bandwidth and server space? I am just thinking, I mean, my gasmasks.net site is pretty huge (content wise) and I push a lot of traffic through. I am on a hosting plan that costs me only $250/year. So, why does VX.info need its own dedicated server? Forgive me for asking, I am just wondering. Is it bandwidth? The backend? Reliability? Space? Just curious as it would seem there might be other options?? Again, just slap me if I am talking out of my arse.

:) Bart

We've had the experience of using hosted accounts and VPS. For the purpose of programming, speed, space, bandwidth, reliability and just about everything else I could think of, I decided a long time ago to go with a dedicated server. The forum itself does not take much room, but the photos, videos and other files do. I actually had to limit the size of photos that folks could upload to save space. Now with a huge drive capability, I'll be changing that. Have you ever played on a shared gaming server compared to a dedicated one?? It's night and day differences.

Just for future plans, it made sense to go dedicated.

Hope that helps...


But I am curious as to why you went dedicated on the "safe server"? If you don't mind me asking... How many GB is this site currently at and how much bandwidth are you going through per month?

Here is some information of the hosting I use.

Fast Dell® Intel Quad-Core XEON processors (8 cpus) with RAID protected drives, 6GB+ of DDR ECC RAM
1100GB Storage
6000 GB (6 TB) Bandwidth
More info here (http://lypha.com/hosting_plans.shtml) if you are interested. This was also not intended to be an add. Just information for those that are curious....

[EDIT] I notice you mention that the site was hacked... That answered my question... But security has changed since then...


We are at about 20GB in storage right now for the site. When I up some of the limits, that will skyrocket. I do like what you have posted for an option but, I do have some 3rd party accounts and that plan would not work according their TOS... Their reseller accounts aren't large enough for what I have planned.

To expand on the hack.. We had a Stanford student that was a jeep fanatic, decide he didn't like the VX very much so, he tried and did a good job of crashing the site and corrupting a lot of the files. He really knew what he was doing but, he was a little sloppy. I found info that traced him back and was able to prosecute. He's no longer a student of Stanford and got 2 years probation.... Security has been tightened a lot!


Scott,

I'm curious to know how much more you'll need for the equipment upgrade - I think if there's a definite $$ goal for phase 1 (equipment) then the target will be easier to attain. Phase 2 would be hitting the yearly hosting, divided by monthly fees (what I'm thinking anyway).

-- John

We need $1000.00 for the switch over to the new server. Right now we are at $800.00 which is a great achievement!! THANK YOU ALL! I'm sorry I haven't had time to break this all down into a more logical project... It truely was a surprise to me when this got started.. I am getting my mom into a nursing home today so, I'm hoping that will take some of my time load off of me so I can re-focus on this.
This weekend will be a good one to sit down and make sense of this and present it properly..

[nfpgasmask]

Moncha,

Thanks for the info. It seems you are 100% on top of things. Hopefully we can get the dough together and get that new server in place! I will try to kick a little more dough after my next paycheck!

Take care of your Mom and yourself first though, buddy!

:) Bart



We've had the experience of using hosted accounts and VPS. For the purpose of programming, speed, space, bandwidth, reliability and just about everything else I could think of, I decided a long time ago to go with a dedicated server. The forum ...SNIP....I am getting my mom into a nursing home today so, I'm hoping that will take some of my time load off of me so I can re-focus on this.
This weekend will be a good one to sit down and make sense of this and present it properly..

[rowhard]

I second what Bart said, we are your extended family, take care of your mom.

[tom4bren]

I thought I was going through withdrawals last week when I couldn't check in here. I made my donation to make sure that never happens again.

Good luck with all you have going on in your life right now.

[cyronman]

Donation added...

BUMP

[Ldub]

There's that sound again... :eek:

B U M P

[CrnCnn]

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f180/Jimmylongwong/image008.jpg
To the Top!!!!!!

[Ldub]

AH OOM BUMPA-OOM BUMPA-OOM BUMPA MAO MAO... :p

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/OakridgeboysSMALL.jpg

[kelledee]

Glad I found this thread and I donated. My VX will be paid off in November :p and I am going to be here alot more as I am going to use the extra cash to modify. Already ordered some stuff from Tone. Can't wait to get mine lookin' like some of yours!

[Ldub]

Glad I found this thread and I donated. My VX will be paid off in November :p and I am going to be here alot more as I am going to use the extra cash to modify. Already ordered some stuff from Tone. Can't wait to get mine lookin' like some of yours!

Well done & welcome...another donation makes the embarrasment of posting a pic of the oak ridge boys (the original boy band) totally worth it ! :rolleyes:

[circmand]

I think they are way past being the Oak Ridge BOYS Maybe The Oakridge Grandpas or The Oak Aged Men

[ZEUS]

So Moncha, are we getting close to what we need? Pay day is coming up!

[Ldub]

BA-DUMP-BUMP... :rolleyes:

How bout some of you fellers with INCREDIBLY important thoughts on how this country is being run...isn't it worth twenty bucks or so to have a place to spout off ??? ;)

[IndianaVX]

DONE!! with more guest to come......
Thanks Scott, for keeping things up and running. im sure it takes alot at times....it is appreciated!!

[ZEUS]

I paid my 2nd installment this morning. We have got to be getting pretty close!

[Ldub]

DONE!! with more guest to come......
Thanks Scott, for keeping things up and running. im sure it takes alot at times....it is appreciated!!




I paid my 2nd installment this morning. We have got to be getting pretty close!


Well Done! :thumbup:

[Moncha]

Hi guys I'm back.

My god! Do you know how hard it is to duct tape your a mom to a bed in a nursing home? I didn't know she could squirm so much!

Here's the latest, We've hit the $1400.00 mark!! Yea! After the initial set up costs, that should leave about $400 to $600 for the monthly fees which would get us about 2-3 months. So, keep those donations coming in. Remember, only 168 donating members per year to keep the place up and running..

When I have the new server online, I'll make up a nice graphic showing our donation based on a yearly (Maybe a monthly level) level so everyone can see

As soon as I have a transition date, I'll post it so everyone will be aware. I'm trying to make it so it won't impact us very much, I just hate seeing so many suffer through withdrawals.

I want everyone to know how great all of you are, and I appreciate all that you are doing to help this family grow!

I'll post more when I can and when I know...

[Ldub]

Hi guys I'm back.

My god! Do you know how hard it is to duct tape your a mom to a bed in a nursing home? I didn't know she could squirm so much!

Here's the latest, We've hit the $1400.00 mark!! Yea! After the initial set up costs, that should leave about $400 to $600 for the monthly fees which would get us about 2-3 months. So, keep those donations coming in. Remember, only 168 donating members per year to keep the place up and running..

When I have the new server online, I'll make up a nice graphic showing our donation based on a yearly (Maybe a monthly level) level so everyone can see

As soon as I have a transition date, I'll post it so everyone will be aware. I'm trying to make it so it won't impact us very much, I just hate seeing so many suffer through withdrawals.

I want everyone to know how great all of you are, and I appreciate all that you are doing to help this family grow!

I'll post more when I can and when I know...

Sorry to hear about having to put your Mom in the "Home". I know it's not an easy thing to do.
But on a lighter note...server donations...

:dance: :thumbup: :_beer: :_cop: :_beer: :thumbup: :dance:

[MrCrowley]

I just emailed the webmaster for address information. Not only do I not trust strangers who work at banks (or PAYPAL) with my money or personal information, my address for people i dont know or for business use is a UPS store mailbox!!! :laughing:

[CrnCnn]

Any news?

[Ldub]

B U M P

You didn't think the crusade would stop just because the new server is up & running...did you ?:rolleyes:

Any more peeps new or old wanna pony up $ome more jing ???:naughty:

[Rooster]

Just put $20 in the kitty...

[Ldub]

:dance:
Just put $20 in the kitty...

:thumbup:...:thumbup:...:thumbup:...:thumbup:..... .:cool:

[Ldub]

BUMP! Couldn't help it... I think we can all agree Scott and Laura have enough to worry about right now. Let's make sure they don't have to worry about the funding that keeps this site up and running. We fell short of the goal last month. :(

That's usin' the old noodle Zeus...:thumbup:

I seem to remember at least a couple of noobs who have already $aved literally hundred$ because of the info. here...:sighwgray

I guess I COULD start naming names...:naughty:

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.
not that I ever would...:rolleyesg...:razzgray:

[nfpgasmask]

I'm broke as joke, so what's another $20?? I just chipped in another $20 to the best forum on the WWW.

Bart

[nfpgasmask]

I guess I COULD start naming names...:naughty:

Sure, why not! ;)

Bart

[Ldub]

I'm broke as joke, so what's another $20?? I just chipped in another $20 to the best forum on the WWW.

Bart

Well done Bart !!!:thumbup:...:thumbup:...:thumbup:...:cool:


Sure, why not! ;)

Bart

:rolleyesg...It just wouldn't be right...:smilewink...see my new improved edit of said post.

[CrnCnn]

I'm broke as joke, so what's another $20?? I just chipped in another $20 to the best forum on the WWW.

Bart

I am way bad off right now... almost cancelled the trip. So I will Re-up when we get back.

[nfpgasmask]

I am way bad off right now... almost cancelled the trip. So I will Re-up when we get back.

Dude, don't let me hear any of that cancelling stuff! :p YOU'RE GOING! :)

According to my calculations, it will take 3-4 tanks of juice to get there, and 3-4 tanks to get back. Its 750 miles each way, and if you get 250 miles per tank, that's 6 tanks round trip. I would throw in a few extra tanks depending on how much driving you do while we are there.

You can always bring a length of tubing so you can syphon gas from other peoples' cars too. :) JK. I'm glad we have locking gas caps.

:) Bart

EDIT: Its actually only 700 miles going on 50, that 750 miles was if we take I-80, which we are not, so that's even less. We should definitely make it there is 3 tanks.

[CrnCnn]

Dude, don't let me hear any of that cancelling stuff! :p YOU'RE GOING! :)

According to my calculations, it will take 3-4 tanks of juice to get there, and 3-4 tanks to get back. Its 750 miles each way, and if you get 250 miles per tank, that's 6 tanks round trip. I would throw in a few extra tanks depending on how much driving you do while we are there.

You can always bring a length of tubing so you can syphon gas from other peoples' cars too. :) JK. I'm glad we have locking gas caps.

:) Bart

EDIT: Its actually only 700 miles going on 50, that 750 miles was if we take I-80, which we are not, so that's even less. We should definitely make it there is 3 tanks.

I dont want to highjack anymore but....

yeah I know, it will be tight until the thursday we are there. then my check goes in the bank.

[Rooster]

:dance:

:thumbup:...:thumbup:...:thumbup:...:thumbup:..... .:cool:

LOL, so now you guys know I'm seriously gonna keep my VX...

Oh yeah, and the site has a boatload of good info and great people. :wink:

[nfpgasmask]

If your membership is up to date (like mine) and you still donate to the site (like me), it may not show up on the monthly goals - at least not at first. Keep 'em coming!

Yeah, I noticed after I chipped in another $20, the number didn't move??

Bart