There are 9,142 images in the galleries, dating back to 02/99. If these images average 1/2 a meg each, that's close to or more than 1/2 a gigabyte of space... Is anybody actually going back that far in the galleries to look? I don't. I check out the new stuff every few days, and if I see something I like, I print it out and hang it on my wall. Maybe the galleries should only go back a few months. Better still, maybe the images should be hosted on another site, like the freestuff. And as for freestuff, there are 1,388 things in there, going back to 02/99. There's bound to be a few hundred broken links in there, don't they take up space as well? My opinion is this: Make the galleries go back only 6 months or so. Limit the amount of gallery uploads per member to 3 or 4 per week. No test renders or WIP, post them to the appropriate forum for comments. Host the files someplace else. And instead of thinking about just charging money for one or two sections of the site, how about a $10.00 per year membership fee. If you keep all 15,000 members, that's $150,000 a year, that should be more than enough to pay for this place, and if we can't afford $10.00 per year, (I'm struggling to support my family on social security, and even I could afford it) Then we'll just have to live without it.

thanks BM. we have considered some of those ideas as well. the problem we saw regarding removing images from the gallery is that though no one goes back that far, many do check out a specific artist's personal gallery. we also do every several monthes check the links on the freestuff area for broken links. in fact, we have a check up coming up in june. as for the idea of the membership fee, it would rub wrong on the very basis of the forum itself. a free site for information and the sharing of ideas. and deep down inside i don't see very many paying for a resource that can be found free at other great places like the Big-I forum or the PFO and the like. thanks very much for bringing these ideas up, though :) they are, as well as the time you put into them, are GREATLY appreciated. thank you brainmuffin. BTW, LOVE the name! ;)

Ed, What about making people find a site to host their images? Would that save any money? After all, we have to find someplace to put the freestuff, so we could easily put our images there too.... Btw, thanks. My wife came up with the name.

Actually it wouldn't be that much easier. Most sites prevent remote linking because 1 bandwidth and 2 pressure from customers who do original graphics and found them hot linked on another site. So yes it would save on bandwidth but prevent a lot of the people who post their images for us to see from posting. I could still post but probably for only a limited amount of time. And we wouldn't see a lot of the fantastic creations because somepeople can't afford the bandwidth or domain name and host. Storm

"And instead of thinking about just charging money for one or two sections of the site, how about a $10.00 per year membership fee." And those without credit cards? what about us financially smart people without a piece of plastic that seems to make money troubles manifest out of nowhere? sure, $10 year membership is reasonable...it just doesnt include every person's eligibility for becoming a member. :/ -X

Xtinction, I don't have a credit card either, For much the same reason. That's why i suggested a YEARLY fee, beacuase it's easier for me to go down to the post office to get a money order to send out for my membership than it is for me to do it every month..... Most places do still accept money orders from those of us who don't like the "buy now, pay MORE later" plan...

I know i wouldnt pay to hang around. My stuff will always be made available to the public with easy access and totally free. Do i care that i'm not making money off of stuff that very well could? Not in the slightest. I like having people view my art and hopefully get something out of it. But i'm not gonna have people pay to view my millions of computer pixels neatly arranged. To me it's silly. I dream of a desk job. I'll probably never make my talent my carreer...because i get stressed when i have to meet a deadline for my work. The work suffers and i feel guilty of getting payed for crap. I think its better if i keep it free. It IS a hobby and i love to do it but i'll never have it be a slave to the dollar. But thats me... :) -X

Well, the main thing that I'm worried about is this: If we have to pay for one section of the site, like paying to post in a specific gallery for instance, will it end there? of next year will we have to pay a separate fee to post, another fee to view the galleries, a fee to be able to post free stuff, another to be able to download... I know this is kind of paranoid, but just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get me.... Personally, I'm not married to the idea of a yearly membership fee, I'd just rather see that happen than have to pay so much per month for "perks". And I'm not asking for people to pay to see your art Xtincion, I'm asking people to dig a little out of their pockets each YEAR, once a year, for a few reasons: So that Ed and Jack don't have to shoulder the monetary burden of this place alone, and because, well, it's worth a few dollars a year. Think about how much you've gotten from this site in the past MONTH. What freestuff have you downloaded? What new techniques have you learned? What cool pictures have you seen? How many new people have you connected with and talked to? Learned from? Taught? Now multiply that by 12 months, a whole year's worth of stuff. That's not worth a few dollars to you?

Ah but there are still people out there like me who see the word "membership" on a site and hit the back button. And then there are some people who dont. I'm jst sayen that I'm a back button pusher. (actually my back button reads "b4c|" because its been worn down so much) heh. -X

Re-considering the donation approach... Work with places like http://www.paypal.com. They make it easier to make tiny but frequent donations.