Re: ADMIN: More on upcoming list changes

[Sella Rush <sellar -at- APPTECHSYS -dot- COM>]

Here's the actual quote from Eric's post yesterday:

>Quote:
>Here are the givens:
>Moving TECHWR-L to a dedicated list host would cost (at list prices)
>up to $36,000/month (that's not a typo). Realistically speaking,
>after negotiations and shopping around, we'd be looking at costs
>of around $600-$700/month for server access alone.
>End of quote.

>From the beginning Eric has said that our monthly costs will not be as high
as $36K--that was simply one list price.  At $700 per month, plus some
significant startup costs, the $5 per year made sense.

However, Eric's second post today mentions only the big numbers:  10K+ per
month minimum.  This is confusing.  I don't want to nickel and dime this
issue, but it would be nice to see a good, solid price breakdown, factoring
in all the foreseeable costs for each option.

(Yes, I took that personality test yesterday, and yes I did admit to needing
lots of facts and lots of deliberation before making a decision, ok?  (Turns
out I'm an INTP but only one question away from an INFP.)

Re the archives issue, which seems to be the only negative point about using
a free service like one-list:  I use the archives quite a bit, but
invariably prefer the Documentation.com site.  It's a perfectly usable
archive, and assuming we can get some kind of commitment from them re the
future, I see little reason to spend potentially 10K per month solely for a
redundant service.  The only other negative point appears to be quality of
service, but based on the anecdotal evidence we've seen so far, this seems
to be a non-issue.

What would be the disadvantage of trying a free service, and then opting for
the high-ticket option next year if the situation becomes intolerable?

I'm not keen on the subscription option, mainly because it inserts a
inevitably volatile element into this volatile list.  What happens a year or
two from now when prices escalate, and Eric is forced to request $30 or even
$50 per year?  Name calling, recrimination, and then some one of us decides
that Eric must be mismanaging *our* funds (conveniently forgetting the hours
he and Deb have donated over the years). Accusations and counter accusations
fill the list for weeks.  Does anyone seriously think this won't happen?  If
so, please tell me how the weather is up there in the clouds?

(Some people might scoff at the idea of people squabbling over a lousy $10.
I can tell you from personal experience that it happens and its nasty.  I
recently severed contact with a local writers organization because of
horribly nasty behavior by a few members over the budget of our $10/year
dues.  Two of the nastiest were the wife of a retired--and extremely well
off--nuclear engineer and a computer programmer who, with her husband, pulls
down well over $150K per year.  Because, see, it's not about money.  It's
about power.)

Sella Rush
mailto:sellar -at- apptechsys -dot- com
Applied Technical Systems (ATS)
Bremerton, Washington
Developers of the CCM Database

(who'd willingly ante up her share, but would be gone at the first angry
complaint)

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