hmvf news HMVF's future..

[ChasSomT.]

I agree with everything Minesweeper said (post 48) It would be 'Tragic' if this forum went belly up.

Just let us know how, and how much!

 

Chas.

[Jack]

Last time I mentioned anything about making a donation to the forum I was shot down in flames as I recall. At the risk of being shot down again, I would rather make a donation through a donation button than take out subs for Pathfinder mag.Nice bit of marketing though!

 

Rick - was going to reply to your rudeness but frankly I can't be bothered as it is ongoing with you.

 

May be it is time you shut the door firm on your way out.

 

Jack.

[Bazz]

I personnally would have no problem with a suscription.

[Topdog]

The problem I have with just a 'donate' button is that loads of folks will not bother and it will be funded by the loyal few. I also think that this will revenue will fall off rapidly over time and we will be back to square one.

 

The problem with members only is that it might put off new joiners until they realise what benefits are available.

Just a couple of thoughts from me. apart from that - sign me up to Pathfinder.

 

Realistically, if the total cost is shared between the membership then it will be manageable.

 

See you all at W+P

 

Dave

[Marmite!!]

iF ITS BAD NEWS i DON'T WONNA HEAR IT!!

 

"IT'S BETTER TO BURN OUT THAN FADE AWAY!"

 

Strange comment???

[Snapper]

I'm just interested to read all opinions, whatever the stance. So keep them coming please.

 

 

 

Enquiries about editorial matters of TPM should be PMd to me please. I leave the commerce to Jack.

[Tony B]

As most Pathfinder contributors are HMVF members . Lets get both working! Finally the MV world has a forum not run by committe! Mark comes a cross a s such a softie! :hug: Try getting a coma in the wrong place on an articale! :beatenup:

[R Cubed]

I feel as I need to say something with reference to this forum.

 

It has taken our family to new events and met new people all of which has been a very pleasurable experience, the questions and answers back and forth, have been very well received and for once in our hobby people are starting to talk to each other and help with advice and pictures of how to do something on your vehicle, this is what our hobby should be about, we all have problems and require help or assistance at some stage and I have to say this is the first place I would come to and ask for some advice.

Years ago if you met other people at an event and said you had a problem they did not seem to be very forthcoming with help, with the HMVF this is changing.

 

The HMVF is a very worthy and useful tool for our hobby and the fact that it is having an impact with regards to this MOT thing has to be a good thing.

 

So Jack keep strong and stick with it this IS FAR TOO GOOD to close down and people need to realise what they would loose out on.

 

If you need help funding this forum then so be it.

[Eastblock]

Sounds like a win/win solution to me. However I think there would be no harm in a donate button in addition to the subscription option but I'm happy to bow to the decision of the forum owners.

 

Michael

[MiketheBike]

I think the difficulty is that content etc is as important (if not more important) to the newbies. I still take much more from this forum than I give, because I don't know nuffink...just a fact. Now if you got library of vehicle documents (that you cannot download or print)...that would also be well worth paying for?

 

Maybe there is a sliding scale, you get access to standard stuff non-subscription, but all the valuable stuiff (clives corner, classifieds, technical stuff) can only be seen on subscription. If there is enough good stuff in teh non-subscription areas it may act as a hook for new people to subscribe?

 

Its gonna be a difficult nut to crack!

 

Maybe its registered as a charity, like MVT? At least you could also get the tax for those that pay it?

 

Mick (in brain dump mode)

[eddy8men]

hi all

why not do both? subscription for those who want to receive pathfinder (i do) and a donate button for those who don't,i came to hmvf from another forum www.warrelics.eu they have 120,000 members and keep going thru donations so what's the harm in doing both here.it works for them!

personally i don't care what you ask me to do to help the forum, just consider it done !!!

 

eddy

[rosie]

 

I still take much more from this forum than I give, because I don't know nuffink...just a fact.

same here, I know even less about MVs then you! But I love this forum. I just post the odd funny comment/remark and take the pi mickey out of certain people here!:-D

[Degsy]

I am not at all surprised that it has come to this, I have been concerned for some time about Jack's pocket.

This forum is far too important to be allowed to die and in order to pay whatever subscription Jack requires then I will simply cancel my subscription to other mags in order to afford it. It is quite simply a no brainer.

[snowtracdave]

I feel that I have gained so much from becoming a part of this family .

 

Friends that I have made - several of whom I have still to meet in person - and the help , encouragement and support I have been given .

 

All this adds up to something which I feel I could not put a price upon and has a value far beyond that of money .

 

I already subscribe to TPM . That's paid for and forgotten about .

 

Jack - I now need to know where you would like me to send my subscription for HMVF.

[chevpol]

I agree with everything said, without this forum,life would be very boring!!!! I have made new friends here, had fun here, leant a lot to, because without this forum, I would not now be looking at war graves, knew next to nothing about WW1 vehicles before joining, take the mickey out of dodge, jeep owners safely!!![incoming!!!] and had a lot of fun.

 

Had a thought, what do the members think of a standing order? would £5 a month off everybody help? What do the members think?

 

Jack, you tell us what to do, we will follow

 

Mark

 

Will get a subscription to you soon.

[plainmilitary]

Jack remember many moons ago when I approached you about the Salisbury Plain weekend? Remember the advice you gave me, the help you gave me, The freinds you gave me??? remember when you said, no matter how hard it gets stick with it, if you believe in what you do it will work?

Well let me just say this, I took all that on board mate.

Over the last few years I have meet many good folk through your forum. Its given me a new place to bore hundreds of people with my pictures and its given me a new direction in my life, a direction I wound not have taken if it were not for your helping words. I will help HMVF and surpport TPM all the way with what ever you need. I am more than happy to pay if need be, its the least I can do.

Now stop your moaning, sort yourself out, get some sort of payment system sorted and lets get back on track. If you don't the Plain Military boys will be round to run a mock over your Jimmy and give you ten of the best.

Chin Chin old chap, and remember theirs allway a silver lining.

Tony and the SPTA crew.......

[simonsfotos]

I had no idea of the history of the forum or that it was basically down to the pocket of one man! Now I know! I've seen ads for TPM but never got around to subscribing. This has given me the kick to get it done!

 

A few points about what has been mentioned in some of the comments. I am a member of a few forums, though this is the only MV one that I am on. The others relate to my big interest of aviation and model collection/making (aircraft but mainly WWII British MVs of all types). All those are free but fund themselves mainly via ads or sponsors. They are all run by a few very dedicated individuals. But the point is that they are funded. HMVF needs funding in some way shape or form so if subscribing to TPM works then I am all for it.

 

Making it a Pay For Use might put off a good few especially casual visitors who might wish to contribute very occasionally or who have maybe one question to ask. Levels of membership could be a minefield of complication, not least for Jack and anyone he has helping him to run the forum. Remember, the more detailed a forum becomes, then the more hours have to be spent in running it and lets face it, they are entitled to a life away from the froum just like the rest of us!

 

Donate buttons work for some and not for others. Some close friends of mine run an aviation resource website and have had a donate button on there for the 8 years it has been running. Despite thousands of visitors over that time, not a single visitor clicked on the donate button! It has ended up with them having to make a decision as to whether to close down the site which is dear to their hearts or rattle an online begging bowl which was the last thing they wanted to do. Fortunately, their appeal has worked and it will continue for another year at least. Perish the thought that HMVF should ever get to that stage.

 

So many of us (meaning the world wide us!) happily click away on the internet without a thought that even in this computerised age, someone smoewhere has to run the sites that we are looking at. Loads of course do it as a job and therefore are paid. But millions of website owners aren't, but we still view the sites freely.

 

Enough of this ramble but I hope it makes some valid points.

 

So, Jack as I said above, if subsriptions to TPM will help, then go for it! But make it plain and easy for all to see. A big bright button visible anywhere on the forum (within the header at the top of every page would work) to go straight to an online subscribing area would be an essential I should think!

 

All the best and thanks for all the hard work.

[Rick W]

Would it not be better to do as the WW2 re-enacting forum have done and just subscribe to the forum?

[Chrisg]

I subscribe to TPM and if you want subs for the forum thats fine.

Made some new friends on here, won a skittles trophy.Life without the forum means I might have to watch some crap tv show :-(

[Rick W]

For what its worth I think keep subs to HMVF and TPM seperate. Im quite happy to pay subs for the forum, met many virtual friends etc. But Ive cancelled may subs for mags over the past 12 months to tighten the purse strings. Plus I would rather read things online rather than fill up the recycling bag. Why not combine both and sub HMVF and include an online version of TPM?

[Tony B]

I am not at all surprised that it has come to this, I have been concerned for some time about Jack's pocket.

This forum is far too important to be allowed to die and in order to pay whatever subscription Jack requires then I will simply cancel my subscription to other mags in order to afford it. It is quite simply a no brainer.

 

All siting down? Degsey is totally correct! The clubs have a place, but the forum allows almost instant communication and a very real world of knowledge. How many times have we all posted in a panic and got answers almost immedatiley?

[simonsfotos]

For those who don't want a 'paper'mag, yes an online version would be preferable possibly, but it takes yet more time for Jack and crew and yet more bandwidth etc expense. Personally I like a 'paper' mag as online reading just isn't the same in the bath!

 

Also, as I said in my main post, I am sure that Jack wants to keep it as simple as possible, not only for him but for the forumites as well.

 

Oh, by the way subscription done and First Issue ordered as well!

[plainmilitary]

All siting down? Degsey is totally correct! The clubs have a place, but the forum allows almost instant communication and a very real world of knowledge. How many times have we all posted in a panic and got answers almost immedatiley?

 

Total agree Tony, I have decided to bin the Plain Military web site and concentrate all my time on the PM forum. The main reason behind this is so we can conmunicate direct and in almost real time with ourmembers. The web site has been great fun to me but we must move on to keep up with the trends. We have also looked into an electronic mag or article type threads, but at the moment we are just sorting bits out. At the end of the day, forums are a great meeting place for all types of people and interests..

[ArtistsRifles]

Bit of a "no brainer" there as others have so eloquently said. For my sins I spent 16 years in the world of websites and servers (as well as honking great databases) and know only too well the costs involved.

 

Already got the subscription to TPM and I would be more than happy to make either a donation or pay a sub to keep this resource alive and kicking. Somethings take on a life of their own - HMVF is a leading example of this and the MV world would be sorely lessened by it's loss if were ever to come to that.

 

Ergo - it must NOT be allowed to come to that - so tell us what is needed oh fearless (and hairless) leader and the members will find a way of meeting those needs. Preferably without using the assorted armour owned to knockover the Bank of England and Fort Knox!!

[Tony B]

Batteries don't go flat on Pathfinder, and it's...almost... Jack proof.