I GUESS I NEED TO BECOME A SUBSCRIBER

[GooberPHX420]

Wow, how things have changed! Just 4 months ago when I left the HardOCP Hardforums, I was amazed at how fast anandtech was. I was like so excited and I used to go back and make fun of the HardOCPers. Anyways, have they like totally masacred the bandwidth available to nonsubscribers? This is stooping down to the hardforums level man! Ah well, guess its time to collect my change and share my $3 a month

 

[Zim Hosein]

GooberPHX420, I too plan on doing the same, but I need to save enough up to buy at least a year because I dislike re-occuring bills

 

[LaBang]

Same here. I protested all I could. This forum is UNUSABLE without subscribership. That is lame. Mark me up for $30. I think that that ammount in unreasonable to ask everyone that wants to have decent access to a wealth of comunication. At $15-20 I would have extreemly happy to sign up. Poor me.

 

[Geekbabe]

I don't think that $2.50 a month to subscribe is unreasonable

lol,however the bill for all the keyboards I've ruined from spilling
stuff on them because I'm laughing so hard at stuff that's posted
here is another story

 

[gopunk]

<< I don't think that $2.50 a month to subscribe is unreasonable >>



that's how i feel... it's like one latte!

of course, this is only because i have a job. i remember when was still young () and didn't have a job... i valued money a lot more then.

 

[b0mbrman]

It doesn't feel unreasonable at all...

 

[luvya]

I am just not gonna subscribe no matter what. If anand try to screw non-subscribers like this, ok..let him do that. I will leave no problem at all. While it's fun to be here, it's definitely not the end of world without the forum. I HAVE A LIFE!

 

[Stiler]

No matter what i will never subscribe, no one should be charged to access things that should always be free. I hope that it doesn't go like ign did and belly up to subscriber only.

 

[Jimbo]

I always wondered what happens if you subscribe and then get BANNED. Do you get your money back? Are you ban proof?

 

[Jokeram]

<< I always wondered what happens if you subscribe and then get BANNED. Do you get your money back? Are you ban proof? >>



LOL.. thats a good question..

 

[ILikeSprite]

<< I always wondered what happens if you subscribe and then get BANNED. Do you get your money back? Are you ban proof? >>



nope, you lose your money.

 

[Passions]

me too. i aint gonna subscribe no matter what. if it gets to be a pay only forum, then i will leave to another board. simple as dat!

 

[gopunk]

<< No matter what i will never subscribe, no one should be charged to access things that should always be free. I hope that it doesn't go like ign did and belly up to subscriber only. >>



why should this always be free?

i'm just curious as to your reasoning.

 

[Entity]

<< If anand try to screw non-subscribers like this >>


So you'd be willing to lose a hundred grand a year just because a few people bitch?

This issue has been hashed and rehashed over. Some people never learn.

Rob

 

[Lucky]

Perhaps instead of subscribing you should be out keying cars, eh? :|

 

[QTPie]

While it's fun to be here, it's definitely not the end of world without the forum.

I agree. well, $20/yr is OK. But if it's not free, I'm not coming here.
Is your Hotmail, Yahoo email accounts more important that this forum? Are they free?

<<why should this always be free?>>

Because you can make money from banner ads.
Because you can get more members (= more money from banner ads)
Because you can be more popular by doing that = higher rating = higher advertising fee = making more money.
Because this is Anandtech!

<< If anand try to screw non-subscribers like this >>
So you'd be willing to lose a hundred grand a year just because a few people bitch?

Last time I checked, non subcriber's page has ads.

Frankly speaking, I don't visit the homepage very often anymore, what's up with the contents? The only reason I go to anandtech is just the forum. Sorry!

 

[murphy55d]

Yeah.. the $20 a year really isn't much compared to the damage you do to other people's cars.

 

[minendo]

I agree with gopunk and baffled2. $2.50/month or $30/year is not that much money, and I am even a broke ass college student. So I take $2.50 out of each paycheck and save it on the side for when my bill comes. Big f-ing deal.

 

[Stiler]

you all keep saying "oh its not that much" EVERY THING KEEPS ADDING UP, First subscrition games, thats fine then they jack the prices, then ign goes subscriber only, i always hear everyone "oh its not that much" IT ALL ADDS UP TO BE MUCH! If everyone just keeps saying "oh that extra 5 is ok, oh 10, why sure i can handle it, they are just going to keep going up and up until no one can afford it.

 

[Grommet5]

<<Because you can make money from banner ads.
Because you can get more members (= more money from banner ads)
Because you can be more popular by doing that = higher rating = higher advertising fee = making more money.>>

Because a majority of users run some sought of pop up remover, or turn of java, so they dont ever see the banners. Also, most people only visit the forums and never the main site. There goes your argument for banners.

<<At $15-20 I would have extreemly happy to sign up>>

Oh please, even at $5, people would still bitch and say i would for $4. If you ever saved or made any money on the FS/FT forums, or got any great deals from the hot deals forum, than $30 is not alot.

Finally, most of the people who complain about the prices are a bunch of hypocrits, because they probably spend more than that in a week on stuff that doesn't even matter. You people do realize bandwidth cost money, and i'm sure the forums and main site probably use alot of it.

 

[isasir]

Tho' I'm currently not a subscriber, and don't know if I will ever be one, I still get a kick outta hearing people bitch. I could easily justify paying $30, cuz heck, that's about what I'll spend in 2 hrs. at a bar in Manhattan, something that'll last one day and I'll basically forget about the next day. Anandtech at least would last a year.

 

[tm37]

<< Same here. I protested all I could. This forum is UNUSABLE without subscribership. That is lame. Mark me up for $30. I think that that ammount in unreasonable to ask everyone that wants to have decent access to a wealth of comunication. At $15-20 I would have extreemly happy to sign up. Poor me. >>



Yeah the phone should be free too.

Also internet Access.

All rich people should support our whims to get what we want we shouldn;t have to pay for anything!

Of course he should charge IF he is losing money, which he is.

I will be subscribing soon.

 

[SALvation]

I don't plan on subscribing but don't use the excuse that it is only a few bucks a month. This isn't the only site that is charging "a few bucks a month" now. Look at ign.com, hotmail (for a bigger account), yahoo (some games are pay now)...this is just to name a few.

Adding "a few bucks a month" from each of these sites adds up to a pretty decent bill every month. So don't put people down that don't want to spend the money for something that was given to them for free for years. If you don't want to subscribe then go somewhere else. There are thousands of forums on the net. If you are a subscriber, good for you, but don't bitch at people who are complaining.

...end rant

 

[minendo]

<< If you are a subscriber, good for you, but don't bitch at people who are complaining. >>


We wouldn't have to bitch if non-subscribers stopped creating threads complaining about how slow the connection. Everyday there is at least one or two threads created about how slow the forums are. You are given the choice to deal with it or subscribe.

 

[DavidTigerFan]

Jeez, does anyone remember the piece that some tech show did on anand a while ago? Way before this stupid subscription crap came? Anand was driving a pimped out BMW and going to school full time. While Anand did not reveal how much he made, it was obvious that the advertisements alone were enough to pay for the bandwidth, server, his school, and there was enough left over to pay for a freaking BMW! Please don't give me the crap about how bandwidth costs money and poor anand, he's so noble to have given us this forum for free. He jacked the bandwidth from the nonsubscriber forum to the susscriber area. Think about it, its perfect....take the bandwidth away from the unsubscribers, and then sell it back to them when they subscribe! Its genius I say!

I for one won't be paying, just for the way that it went about. Maybe if the speed wasn't throttled and I just had 20 bucks to blow, but its principle now. If and when it gets unbearable, I'll leave.

-D