Forum Graphics Need Changing - Think ££££

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John Disdale

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We all now know that this forum desperately needs financial voluntary donations for its future survival, and whilst this might be obvious at this point in time it will not be long before the topic is driven off the front page of the forum, to then be forgotten about. With this in mind I firmly believe that the graphics at the top of the forum page should be modified to spell out the situation day in and day out.

Currently the visual links between this forum and the A2 Owners Club website is extremely poor (and visa versa), and if donations are to be gathered I believe the links should be BOLD.

This is only my opinion, which might not be worth much – but what do others think ?

Regards
John Disdale
 
In my defence, there is a huge button on the left hand side of my site saying 'A2 Forum' on it which links directly to this forum. This has been there from day one which must have contributed in some way to drive the past 60-70 new forum members here. There are also a number of links elsewhere on my site that link directly to the forum.

I have been accused in the past of trying to make the forum part of my site, which I guess in affect is true, it is part of it. But I have never accepted credit for it and have always set the record straight when people have tried to ask me about the forum etc

I would however, very much like to see somewhere on the forum site a direct link back to my site. Or even a permanent section/topic relating to the A2OC. This is something I have asked for a few times but I guess it would mean more traffic and cause more problems in terms of bandwidth etc.

2001 TDI SE, Open Sky System, 16" six spoke alloys, Kenwood Mask CD.
A2 Owners Club: www.Audi-A2.co.uk
Have you signed up for the club social yet?
 
I'm with Stuart on this one - IMHO I probably wouldn't have found the forum if it hadn't been for the A2OC web site.

I just hope that we can find some way of getting the best of the forum and A2OC. I just like it the way it is at the moment!

Take Care

Kit

Soon to be the owner of a Dolphin Grey 1.6 FSI SE with Red Leather, ECC, DIS & Symphony 6 CD
 
yup - I found this forum from the A2OC site.
We need to keep this forum and the A2OC site going. Where else can you find such friendly banter on so many subjects. Cars, Shopping at Tescos.....

MartinW
 
The A2OC site will continue for as long as I own an A2...which will be atleast another 2 years! There is no question of there never being a forum. I don't know what the future of this forum is, that is up to David but if he chooses not to continue it then I will take it over or start a new one. The financial support definitely helps and will secure both sites futures without too much more discussion on money issues.

2001 TDI SE, Open Sky System, 16" six spoke alloys, Kenwood Mask CD.
A2 Owners Club: www.Audi-A2.co.uk
Have you signed up for the club social yet?
 
Stuart,

I would hate to think that the word “defence” or “attack” are associated with this discussion, when I believe we are all united with the common goal of trying to save the forum from extinction, and to extend its server facilities – hopefully with genuine worthwhile archiving.

As I previously mentioned (for your evaluation) I have the A2OC “no frames” page “bookmarked” on my computer, and I see no mention of the forum, or of donations. If this is what I visually see then I can hardly be alone.

In terms of individuals making financial donations I seriously worry that the level of appeal does not drive home the importance that it’s about SAVING the forum. I would hate to think some people might feel that it’s only about creating less of a financial loss to David’s personal pocket, and handing over a shilling to the A2OC for the fun of it.

This must now be the third time that the forum has been on very shaky ground, and like night follows day I can imagine many people would be deeply upset if they suddenly found that this forum was non-existent. Indeed under such circumstances I can see many individuals stating that if ONLY they had known of the importance of making a donation then they would have happily done so. My own appeal to others is not to reach the “if only I had known” situation – and instead to do something worthwhile now.

Regards
John Disdale
 
John - your pressure tactics are unusual. We're all busy people and I make changes to the A2OC website in the slots of free time when I can as I said I would to the noframes page. There are now a total of 12 links to the forum from the A2OC site. Where's my link back from this site or even a sticky topic that actually stays sticky...?

I have just received an email from David stating that the cost of the forum is £150 + vat + annual hosting costs. I would like to know what the future of the forum is if I do not buy it off him. Personally I am not prepared to spend that out of my own pocket - as I'm sure none of you would expect me to. But there are alternatives which I am looking into.

2001 TDI SE, Open Sky System, 16" six spoke alloys, Kenwood Mask CD.
A2 Owners Club: www.Audi-A2.co.uk
Have you signed up for the club social yet?
 
I think I've briefly moentioned before that I'm happy to give some of my hosted webserver space to A2 matters - but more on the lines of pictures than the forum. Especially as it doesn't run ASP (It's on Apache with PHP for those tech's like me!). I try to click on banner ad's when they interest me, but they're few and far between. Perhaps something like the Amazon referals can be started, so all forum members buying from amazon go through the link and the forum gets a small percentage of the order value. If enough people brough from them it could go a good way to covering costs.
 
Would Tescos consider sponsering the site, Tescos get more references then A2's, well nearly.
 
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