October 21, 2004

• Not me. I have started seeing a rash of things here, then on MeFi 2 days later. To wit, these 3 are over there today, all in a row: "We're not going to have any casualties." This is the response that George W Bush gave to Pat Robertson, during a meeting in which Robertson expressed deep misgivings about the impending war in Iraq. There's been a lot of discussion about just how self-assured the President is on his positions (and how he won't admit any mistakes), but where does assurance end and delusion begin? posted by almostcool at 9:21 AM PST - 26 comments TV-B-Gone. A remote with only one button: Off. posted by me3dia at 9:01 AM PST - 24 comments John Kerry supports using evil powers to blast back a crowd The lighter side of photo ops. [via MoFi] posted by TungstenChef at 8:39 AM PST - 22 comments
• Ho hum. I might do - it's only $5, and it's be nice to have for AskMe alone. I'd still spend most of my time here, though. This is my 'hood, after all. Matt, would it be possible to have a page where people from countries such as say Thailand, who want to join MeFi but for whom US $5 is a large sum of money than it is for an average american, to make a post requesting to be let in and some current members could just sponsor their entry? Dang. Hope that doesn't work the other way round, what with the value of the dollar as it is right now...
• Why fork over $5 over there when I signed up here for free? It's not like he's asking the existing 17,000 users to pony up any cash, and The Lord* knows that some of them owe money just for the stink they make in that blue room. *The Lord being the name of the cat owned by the most powerful man in the universe.
• I'd join at least to try it. Plus, I've lurked for long enough to want to give whatever the MeFi version of a banana is to a few people.
• Is there a MeFi version of a banana? Biy, I hope there's no entrance exam. * goes to google "Pepsi Blue" *
• Biy -> Boy
• MetaFilter is dead to me. Long live Monkeyfilter!
• I wonder if people who pay their way in will have their names in a special color and be treated with contempt, kind of like a lottery winner at the country club?
• chimaera: It's not like he's asking the existing 17,000 users to pony up any cash Actually, some of the users who joined in late 2002, had to pay up in order to do so.
• I'd give Matt $5 just to thank him for what he's done. I've gotten a lot from it already, even without being a member.
• I'm suprised there are no comments concerning us. Seems the last couple of times membership briefly opened or was being considered, there were a few jabs.
• Mayor Curley is a playa.
• I just sent Matt an email telling him I plan to charge my "service fee" to my Visa as soon as possible if it will be a chance to confess my undying love for Troutfishing.
• Actually, some of the users who joined in late 2002, had to pay up in order to do so. I stand corrected. :) But my sentiment remains. Considering the vitriolic atmosphere which arises in any MeTa discussion about adding new people, I'm often tempted to put Metafilter into the same box as Orkut, File Under: Outsiders Who Now Have An "In" Place To Be, So Keep It Down To Invite Or Special Favor-Only Entry. I can't tell you how many Orkut invites I've never activated, or how many Gmail ones, either. Just smacks of inside/outside childish tribalism to me. But I could be categorizing Metafilter with the "bad" crowd perhaps too much.
• At this point, I would sooner pay $5 to join MoFi than get into MeFi for free. I just like the monkeys here better. I took MeFi off my RSS reader months ago.
• I'm with you, Jerry Garcia. They scare me, too. Heck, I have a hard enough time posting here, and monkeys are nice!
• Same here Sandspider. People seem less self-important here, as a general rule. Not that there aren't some nice ones over in Mefi.
• *seem to be less self-important, oops
• I'd probably join at the entry level, if only because it seems like there are fewer FPP and more discussion within the threads. Here on the ... yellow? Beige? whatever, I've been frustrated by posting a few comments, and then watching those FPPs slide right off the front page and into the archives. Being the lazy lazy man that I am, I just can't be bothered to find those threads again. That being said, I have noticed, like drjimmy11, that more and more material is surfacing here, and then appearing in the blue two days later. Seems like the blue is in bad need of new blood, as a lot of the political threads have gotten predictable, and the offbeat stuff isn't as offbeat anymore. And on a completely unrelated note, I am none too upset of the loss of archives here. Now I can post anything and not have it be a doublepost! Now where did I put that shirt folding link?
• Like LarimdaME, I wanna put in my two cents on discussions. But that being said I will, as I already do, spend most of my time here.
• I'm already a member? there, but prefer here much more. Nicer people, less anal, and less prone to run to mama and tell on people who aren't awake yet and post questions on ask.
• I'll do better/well, I'll do better/ swinging through the trees/naked in the breeze/ 'cause truth loves to go naked! /bow wow wow
• A Monkey Maid Shall I Be Forever And Ever, And None Shall Come Between Us.
• No
• some sort of pro account thing First the Onion, now metafilter.
• $5? Sure, there've been a number of times when I would've liked to be a member, and the money would be well-spent, but it just rubs me the wrong way.
• for $5 i would be getting 3 fewer letters in my URL... hmmm... i think i'll stay put.
• *considers charging each mofi member five bananas, remembers that too many bananas make you constipated*
• How about three bananas and two prunes?
• I hate to say it, but I can see the MetaFilter "power users" lording it over the plebes like "Total Farkers" do on Fark.com. Some of them, anyway. But who knows, give MoFi a few years (hopefully!) and maybe there will be the same kind of entrenched antagonisms and running battles that we see on MeFi/MeTa. Familiarity breeds contempt and all that. I'm glad that our über Monkey has so far decided to stay away from a separate "MonkeyTalk" - I think MetaTalk intensifies and generates hostility more often than it resolves conflicts - because it leaves us to clean up our own shit, and if we don't the consequences might be harsh. That being said, I do sometimes like reading a 94-post MetaTalk thread about a FPP that had only a handful of posts before it was "deleted". I'm a cyber rubbernecker when it comes to MeFi pile ups (pile ons).
• Bringing in paid users over there is going to turn it into a massive Slashdot system without filtering. I think the only hope MeFi ever had was to purge some of the users and start screening newcomers. Whatever interest I had in joining MeFi a couple of years ago is pretty much nil. I couldn't be more happy with MoFi and its regulars.
• I'd pay Matt $5 and not even join. If I hadn't lurked on MeFi, I'd have never joined MonkeyFilter. so it would be a "thank you." Cheap at twice the price, especially since MeFi has been suffering from lack of funding lately (slow response,especially), and it does have some sentimental merit. Plus I still check it out. And, I'd pay more than that to cover our 'bashi's costs, if she'd just let me. We've overwhelmed a host or two, and we're only at 2100 members, and #1 and #2 have spent a lot of time recovering from that and making our playground more fun. I don't know (because I'm so uninformed) how long it will take before we need to have our own server and what ever else it takes. but this might be a good time to start planning for it. I wouldn't like to see a general assessment, since I know that some would be strapped to afford it, but there must be a way to set up a fund for the future.
• What path said. I'm sure most monkeys would be willing to help in any way they can.
• path - From the sentiment around here, seems like there'd be plenty of volunteers if funds were ever necessary.
• Monkeyfilter: Less anal Thanks, DamnitK Monkeys Untie! [sic]
• From tracicle's blog: "We really need to sit down and work out what the future of MoFi is - whether we need to continue as a metafilter clone or whether it's time to move away from that look and feel. It's something to think about, anyway. Posted by tracy at October 19, 2004 09:00 PM" MoFi RSS title bar: "MonkeyFilter-A metafilter spawn for lurkers waiting to register" Maybe it's time for an update. I got $5 on it.
• As much as I love MeFi, I think drjimmy11 has it right: there never was a more xenophobic tribe than those who post under the Blue & Gray. Even though they count as a Community Website for the Bloggies, MeFi really isn't friendly and open the way MoFi has always been. In part, I think MeFi's early entrance onto the post-usenet community-discourse scene helped siphon off the first class donkeys, leaving us more human writers--ironically--to be Monkeys.
• I remember reading about the possibility of Matt selling t-shirts with member names or numbers on them. I'd be willing to throw money at that, especially if I could have quonsar's. I think its...best...that I don't have the ability to post on MeFi.
• And, I'd pay more than that to cover our 'bashi's costs, if she'd just let me. Me too. Reading this thread, and reading Matt Haughey's thread and thinking about the time/costs involved in this kind of adventure has got me thinking that at the least we monkeys need a chance to donate if we want to. How about it tracicle? Has MonkeyFilter gotten bigger than you thought it would and is it costing you more than you thought it would in time and money? I thought so. Let us help if we can. If you get enough money to do something fancy like a hardware improvements, great, if not, at least let us pay for some of the time you spend spanking your monkeys. We trust that you won't abscond with the funds and move to Canada. :-)
• I'd gladly pay five bucks to join big blue. I can't tell you how many intelligent, thought-provoking threads I've seen over there that I have SO wanted to soil with inane comments -- such as this one! Wasted talent. *sniff*
• I'd give Matt $5 just to thank him for what he's done. I've gotten a lot from it already, even without being a member. posted by Cali at 12:24AM UTC on October 21 I'm with Cali. And also because if it weren't for Mefi, I never would've found Mofi. I'm proud to be a Monkey, but only have time for one Fi obsession, and (thankfully) here be it. Also wot Jerry Garcia said. Especially the bit about the spanking.
• And, I'd pay more than that to cover our 'bashi's costs, if she'd just let me. Yea what they said, I would willing help out our 'Bashi.
• Yeah, whatever haters... like we'd want you monkeys at MeFi. MeFi has gotten weirder and weirder as we get closer to the election. It would appear that a certain group has begun to assume that we all want to hear about how much Bush sucks. All the time. AskMeFi, though, has been a real success, even through these troubled times. I certainly hope those folks who want to contribute over there can soon... 'cuz, we could always use your help.
• I got into to MeFi in April, and while i love MoFi I also like MeFi. They can be very different entities and I don't really see why someone can't like both. If I hadn't got in in April, I would pay $5 now, because I like being able to contribute there when I have the time.
• Can't be arsed, frankly. And #1 & #2 do a damn site more to look afteer MoFi than Matt does MeFi - it feels like he only moves, grudgingly, when someone/thing else (eg MoFi) threatens MeFi's mindshare. Perhaps I'm being uncharitable. But really, I don't find MeFi proper that great these days, and I'm sure it's not going to improve come the day all the Freepers pay their $5 to "bring balance" to HomoLeftyFilter...
• I'd maybe do it just for the various AskMe questions I've longed to answer. I don't think I could handle trying to particitpate in discussions in the blue or grey versions of MeFi, for any number of reasons.
• Really, it's not like MeFi has a monopoly on intelligence, wit and downright stupidity. I find these things are like going to the pub for a few. Why would you bother getting in the car or getting on your pushy if you can walk to a local that's full of entertaining, smart and wise characters who won't hit you with a barstool when they imbibe too much?
• how about every one sent two actual cents i'll make a penny sculpture and it will be our userlogin:monkeyfilter us and them us and them one of us one of us goddamm dirty apes almost missed it in the sea of blood
• monkeyphiller -- abstract monkeyfisher -- questions goddamndirtyape- snark monkeyshines -- flashfun banana, anyone? better in a bunch join in
• LOL
• I'm almost too silly for MoFi, there's no way I could make it on MeFi. Plus, it ain't what it used to be. Plus the monkeys are more civilized- compare how MeFites and MoFites responded to exceptionally goofy FPPs.
• Big peace to everybody, but the thing is, I just wouldn't care to be a new face over there, as much as I love the joint. If mathowie wanted to charge to read, I'd be pissed. But five bucks buys a lot of pork rinds, and I'd hate to miss those, too. Straight Dope passed around a collection plate a few months ago, and I was glad to kick in. It hasn't changed things much, which is fine with me, I like it there. But the Blue, somehow, I've come to think of as performance art, and I'm happy in the audience. But we all have our own internets, and I can only wish Matt well, and thank him. If tracicle should ask, however, I'd have no hesitation, 'cause this nest's so much softer.
• I just can't be bothered to find those threads again Yeah, can we please get our posts and comments archived like on MeFi user pages? I hate having threads disappear never to be seen again...
• Meta-what? No thanks.
• I'd totally pay $5 to comment, use Ask MeFi & in general thank Matt for all the entertainment.
• I don't know whether I'd be willing to pay $5 to post at Metafilter or not. If it hit me at the right time and I really felt like I needed to say something, maybe. I think I'd be reluctant to post substantive comments to anything but the Ask section, and the occasional desire to say "what a cool link" may not be worth the annoyance. (I hate using Paypal.) I would be happy to kick in $5+ for hosting costs/hardware/monkeybashi time here, because I feel like I've gotten $5 and more in amusement value from reading and posting comments in the time since I registered.
• I'll pay the $5, to participate in AskMe and to have a place to snark if I am having a really bad day.
• No way. MeFi has devolved into an echo chamber, where the same users rehash the same arguments over and over and over again. Perhaps this will change once registration is reopened, but I'm not about to pay just to find out. The Monkeys here are far friendlier, more open to others' opinions, and considerably more convivial. I'm a Monkey all the way.
• Metafilter: That was not worthy of a FPP! (waaaah!)
• You realize that a Kerry/Boston vs Bush/Houston prophetic matchup could be just around the corner?
• I have better things to do with 5$, like put it in my pocket and then go stare at the wall.
• Monkeyfilter: Is anything not worthy of a FPP? hell, it took like ten Curious Georges to find a pair of socks for christs sake.
• How long before the first 'customer' asks for their money back?
• Late to the game. But if I had any money, I'd send it to matt, because he's willing to do wild experiments while we sit back and watch. He came up with the *filter format, and if he's willing to try new features, more power to him. I also agree with Languagehat. We definitely need a post history/comment history on our profile pages. I think the code may actually exist in the MetaPhilter stuff we use, but we probably have to enable it/make it efficient.
• . Now send me money. /Nostrildamus
• Metafilter is old and busted. Monkeyfilter is the new hotness. I would seriously entertain the idea of donating the selfsame 5 bux to Tracicle if it would help (I've got a job now - I can afford to do stuff like that again).
• How long before the first 'customer' asks for their money back? There's the rub plegmund. With the payment of a fee (vice a donation or somesuch) come expectations and some sense of entitlement. I can see this quickly clashing with the current crowd's we-were-here-first sense of entitlement. The performance issues, uptime, and day to day admin of the site also need to be a damn sight better than that are now if people are going to be charged. Matt is smart and I am sure he has considered these things, but will they be followed through on? He seems, to me anyhow, to have lost interest in MeFi. Personally I don't know if I would pay to join MeFi. I would probably be booted within a week for pissing off "the old guard" anyhow. Ask MetaFilter is pretty cool though. If I were to join it would be after say a month of not seeing a Cold Fusion/JRun error or the server being down. Would also be cool to see Matt a bit more active in the site and get that trainwreck back on the tracks. I echo the good vibes given to #'s 1 and 2 for all the hard work and effort with MoFi. It is much appreciated on this end. I hope as we get more monkeys join the troop the site keeps it's lighter side to it.
• Yeah, I'll pay lazy ass Matt 5 bucks to post on his site. In ass pennies. He can go jump in a lake. What a sell-out. "Yeah I'll open new accounts .. if you pay me." Fuck you, asshole.
• I might join MeFi... if someone paid ME $5 to do so. Only Monkeys (dual citizen with MeFi or not) get my dubious graphics for free. Anyone else can pony up. But then, I was never a MeFi lurker in the first place, so I don't have some number of months or years of lurking and feeling its allure to make me even consider it. Besides, MoFi is home.
• I agree with those folks who say they've gotten enough pleasure out of reading MeFi over the years that a $5 thank you isn't unreasonable. True, MeFi has gotten less and less interesting as it's gotten more and more political--but AskMe is consistently fascinating and positive. Matthowie's explanation of why he's charging $5 is that it's "so I can spend my time separating the great new people from the vicious trolls [which] will take my focus off everything else. It also puts the brakes on rapid growth that we've seen in the past, when 500 random folks showed up one day to shit all over." That's not an unreasonable explanation.
• Not me. never pay for anything on teh intarweb, not even pr0n... the monkeys are always so much nicer anyway.
• "That's not an unreasonable explanation." Yeah it is. Trolls come with the territory. Anyone setting up a popular website should understand that the internet is an anarchic place, and recognise that. He just needs to be smarter about the way he deals with it. Like.. delegate. 5-10 judiciously chosen administrators would leaven the troll issue quite effectively. By making the thing a fee join up, he's destroying one of the very elements that make such a website enjoyable. There is no justification.
• 5-10 judiciously chosen administrators would leaven the troll issue quite effectively Administrators? You putz. If you're fighting trolls, you need magic-users, clerics, maybe some fighters with, like, shit loads of hit points. What the fuck is an administrator going to do? Ask them to fill in some forms? God, I can't wait 'til tracicle gives me the power to ban you, Nostril. That would be fucking sweet.
• leaven the troll issue What do you mean? Expand it with yeasty super-powers?
• Hmmmmm... yeast. But seriously, I propose that we start forking out our $5 to help foot the MoFi bill. Godsnose how much the hosting for this site costs, and #1&2 are the only one's out of pocket.
• I'd pony up the ducats. That being said, MoFi is now kind of my online home, so I probably wouldn't be too active over on the blue. Bananas forever.
• I'd pay the five bucks over there and more than that here. As so many have said, AskMe alone is worth it. The Blue is way too intimidating and the Grey is way too nitpicky, but the Green is... fabulous.
• Hell yeah! God, I am so out of here as soon as Matt lets me give him money.
• please, please, please stop being a metafilter clone. seriously. i'd love to see this place go somewhere else.
• *rolls natural 20, decapitates quidnunc with a bastard sword, victoriously does the "cabbage patch" at the gaming table and inadvertantly knocks over a bag of Doritos, incurs wrath and scorn of dungeon master*
• I'm not too certain that we'll ever completely get away from the whole MeFi thing, given this site's origin. When your name is a parody of/homage to the name of another site, there's an expectation of similarity to some extent. I'm down with whatever direction the site goes in, but if I wanted Plastic, I'd actually log into my account over there. I don't really care for that style of moderation. I humbly submit that tracicle should have named the site GhettoFilter, though. That would have been rad.
• quidnunc, make a saving throw vs. bones for half damage on your decapitation.
• Ha! stynxno, you don't want us to ape MeFi - but how you liking D&DFi, eh? Want to touch my "magic missle"?
• (previous comment typed without a head)
• You sick fucks.
• Hey, I e-mailed you the other day, but you didn't reply. So I cried and cried and then KILLED MYSELF. I hope you're happy.
• For all that monkeys rag on the annoying anti-monkey comments of Mr. Curley or the MeFi atmosphere, there is plenty of anti-MeFi poo flinging going on over here. I think it's disingenuous of some monkeys to poke Matt and MeFi with sharp sticks one minute and then call ourselves a kinder, gentler filter. But okay, whatever. I think MeFi really needs to be opened to new users. I also understand it will be a more significant time commitment for Matt, not just because of troll elimination, but also because of the potential for abuse and corporate whoring. Does anyone remember the MeFi millionforchrist.com post, where a new member joined MeFi just to secretly do a FPP about his own personal site? A MeFi FPP can lead to the posted site getting from 1K to 5K hits in the next day or so. It would suck for the users if the site turned into a marketing tool. I think MoFi should keep attuned to these issues, too.
• I also don't think the comment that Matt should open up the site by tapping administrators is fair. MetaFilter was Matt's idea, and it's his site -- he should be able to run it the way he wants.
• I have nothing but admiration for mathowie. The guy has the patience of a saint, no joke. But some users of MeFi make me hope beyond all hope that matt will add either a USENET-style ignore feature, or a Slashdot-style karma rating feature.
• That's happened over here, too. The time I know of took us five FPPs before we noticed that he only linked to one site. But that's only cause we're kinda stupid. Otherwise, we'd catch'em faster.
• nostril, the thing is matt doesn't want to give up the power. i understand. once considered collaborating with another guy to combine our two websites, but it didn't work - i couldn't make myself give up total editorial and creative control of my baby. when you put as much time and work into something like that, with absolutely no expectation of a return of any kind, you become very attached and protective. allowing someone else to help admin the place would also allow someone else to touch the keys to the kingdom, so to speak, and matt kind of wants those keys to be kept in his pocket. i don't know. 14kers got in by ponying up a ten-spot and apparently caused a ruckus due to some feeling of entitlement. i got in through a script error that didn't stop new sign-ups at 20 like it was supposed to. others got in free, just like they do here. the problem is that some day, if mofi keeps the growth rate up, this community will start to have the same problems mefi does, and we'll be the old farts complaining about how these damn kids won't get off our lawns, and how nice it used to be back in the day... tracicle has the advantage of a more robust code base (no Jrun errors here, folks) but the metaphilter engine, like the mefi model, will eventually run into issues as the user base increases. right now we're a nice small town, we know each other, and we don't mind if flashboy doesn't use his turn signal because we kind of know where he's going anyway. bluehorse leaves her front door open so we can wander in, have a chat, and steal a few of GrandMa's cookies on the way out. beeswacky loiters in front of the grocery store making up rhymes for us as we walk in, and we don't see any of this as strange. metafilter is the big city. it's crowded, congested, and currently the cost of living is too high for a lot of folks. there are lots of decent people there, as well as a few well-known nuts (talkin' to you here, quonsar) that everyone has learned to love, ignore, or at least tolerate. but there are also the screaming streetcorner preachers and dirty politicians, weird-smelling vagrants and the hoity-toity nervously clutching their purses closer to their chests. not all of us in small town monkeyfilter want to go live in the city, but we'll need to look at it and do some urban planning. we're growing. we don't know everyone on the block any more. in a couple of years we'll have our own thriving metropolis. don't be too quick to call foul on matt's request for an "incoming" tax until we've seen how our own 'filter handles the crowds. me? i prefer to commute. the small town is comforting, friendly, and nice to come home to. but still, the city has some nice features, and i enjoy the discourse at mefi (as long as it doesn't get too bitchy). plus i like to talk, and not being able to throw something in now and then annoys the piss out of me. i started out as a mefi lurker (almost joined one day a few years back, then said "heck i'll do it tomorrow" - the next day matt closed new membership..) so i'd be hypocritical to say that i have no interest there, but i really was pleasantly surprised to find monkeyfilter when i did. i didn't jump ship when i got the precious mefi membership. i still post here, i still visit here daily. i like mefi and mofi for different reasons. really, it's nice knowing you all, even the new kids down the block. (when did you move here? ain't you living in the old macgruder place? town will never be the same, without old doc macgruder around...)
• Hmm... the question to ask yourself is this: Would you rather make fun of MeFi on MoFi or MoFi on MeFi?
• "I think it's disingenuous of some monkeys to poke Matt and MeFi with sharp sticks one minute and then call ourselves a kinder, gentler filter. But okay, whatever." I have never claimed this. I have actually gone on record as saying that I *like* poo-flinging and enjoy not only flaming people but trolling them as well, on occasion.
• I like both sites. I like this one a bit more. $5 isn't that much to me, so I'd pay it to either. I'd probably also pay a bit more to this one. And that's that. That said, my thought: Mefi Dunking Stool. THAT would rake in the moolah.
• Although so as not to sound TOO warm & fuzzy, I do read Mefi-Blue mostly for the fighting, and MeTa entirely for the fighting. So YMMV.
• My blog was FPP'd at both MeFi and MoFi when I was doing my hurricane blogging at the beginning of September. I received about 100 hits from MoFi over the next few days, and 800 from Metafilter. I would imagine that's on the low side of hits from MeFi FPPs; I suspect that a lot of folks don't click on blog entries posted there. The self-link issue is a real one. It's not so much a problem on Metafilter due to closed registration, but it's been a concern here (I remember calling two people out in a many days a couple of months ago). The obvious argument, for the "why is it a big deal?" crowd: If people start using the *Filter sites for self-aggrandizement, the risk is run of crowding out legit links that people stumbled across and wanted to share. I like the signal-to-noise ratio here, and self-links tip it in the opposite direction. It's not a huge concern, and nothing worth getting violently upset over... believe it or not, I don't sit vulture-like over my laptop waiting to ponce on double-posts or self-links. Maybe I should, though; I can use a hobby. Anyhow, as a community we need to straddle the line between being welcoming of new posters and vigilance against the FaceMans and daisy_mays of teh Intraweb. I try to err on the side of "not being a dick" as much as possible with callouts. Note that I said "try:" obviously I don't always meet that standard, as anyone who read the dasiy_may thread prior to the Great MoFi Purge can attest.
• I might consider paying the money, so I can ask those questions that confound me. But like others have said I would be happy to pitch in for MoFi as well. Like Wurwilf I check out Metafilter for the infighting, grudge matches, flaming meltdowns, hissy fits, cyberthreats, and general ponytail pulling. This place is more robust and friendly, and I learn many new and interesting things. Plus, Monkeyfilter hasn't been blocked by those IS nannies at my workplace. That's kewl!
• CLF: Your sure do talk a purty analogy. (Retreats to cabin on edge of town).
• Ok, I totally figured it out. This is the answer. It'll work. Make a really ugly stylesheet. Flashing hot pink, 3l33t font. Have crap over lap. Then make this the default style! It'll drastically cut down the number of new users, without actually locking the doors. It'll be a masquerade!!!
• I've sent MeFi contributions over the past few years, gratis -- first in thanks for a particularly useful or interesting bit of news there, another time in gratitude for the MeFi jailer's keeping the current inmates there confined (grin).
• He can go jump in a lake. What a sell-out. "Yeah I'll open new accounts .. if you pay me." Fuck you, asshole. Hey look, you can toast marshmallows over his head! Grab a stick everyone! S'mores are on the way! heheh.
• I really want some of those ass-pennies.
• Okay, I guess that I need to make a statement on this issue, being a duel-citizen and early adopter on both (MeFi #206, MoFi #74), so, now, everybody repeat after me: It's only a website. It's only a website. It's only a website. IT'S ONLY A F-WORDING WEBSITE! As sources of information and entertainment and places where my squeaky voice can be heard by a receptive audience, both sites are worth more than $5 to me. But I draw the line at $11.37 (that includes excessive California sales tax). What can I say?
• Wendell: I think you said it all, including the implied "thank you" to the owners of both sites. And to those of us who think it should all be free: Apart from the time involved, I'm sure that there are real money costs to matt and tracicle, though I'm blissfully ignorant of exactly what they are. Neither of them took on the responsibility with the idea that they'd make a living by doing so, but there has be be a point where the cash suckage becomes too much. And the time spent administering these sites is not an unimportant issue. So, Matt is lazy because he doesn't devote his spare time to improving Mefi? The guy has a job, a family, and a life. If he chooses to pay attention to those demands first, I think his priorities are in the right order. He implemented Google ads at one point, but how much does he really make from that? (Again, blissfully ignorant.) And, MoFi has just recently seen some of the problems that come with growth. And, we have 2 people working on solving those problems. Even though #2 seems to let the site be #1's personal space, he's willing to pitch in in an emergency. We don't have ads, we just have fun. What's that worth, if push comes to shove? A general assessment sounds like a great idea, but there are many of us who couldn't spare even a few bucks. Asking for donations is a possibility, but, as I found out on the iPod caper, folks can't always come up with what they pledged. Asking new members to pay a small amount before accounts are activiated is probabably the only way to be certain that you collect what you need (assuming that the field of entrants is big enough.) MoFi doesn't appear to be on the cusp of requiring substantial contributions, but, if our popularity increases substantially, we will be someday. It's tracicle's choice, really, as to how that's accomplished, but I'd hate to see us second guessing her.
• It's not the idea of making contributions, it's the idea of forcing people to contribute. You can't have any pudding until you eat your meat. How can you have any pudding if you don't eat your meat? I hate that. I'm happy to contribute to tracicle because she doesn't ask me to.
• My love for Nostrildamus and quidnunc deepen with every passing comment.
• please, please, please stop being a metafilter clone. It's up to us, isn't it?
• Wendell: What can I say? Your MetaFilter password?
• Just want to say, a little late, that what clf said, like yeah.
• Path, good on you for saying these things. I find it amazing that these people (Matt and Monkeybashi) can devote such time and energy to making a MeFi and a MoFi run. Seems like such altruism to keep these sites up and running, what with the time, energy, and financial committment. I for one vote we crown our Monkeybashi with a wreath of banana flowers, deck her with a robe made of Dole stickers, and give her a curved yellow scepter. All Hail The Bashi!
• I feel somewhat small for jumping on the MeFi wagon today, but after all, MeFi led me here, for which I am very grateful, and I'd sorta like to be able to mess with Q once in a while. What about this T-shirt thing providing funds for MoFi upkeep?
• Fishy, you can mess around with the q over here if you want. He's a member and a regular visitor.
• Anyone noticed a distinct FARK-smell over there now? I humbly beseech Monkeybashi to close MoFi to new memberships immediately. Everybody into the basement!
• Pete, not the basement! That's where the MeFi mafi-a stash the newbie bodies!
• Just my $.02 late in the game, but I'll echo what Nostril said about mandatory contributions, and add that it may be especially egregious given the long history of lurking and pleading for memberships over there. It's like the girl you've always been chasing in high school suddenly turning around and saying she'll go out with you... for $50. Suddenly you suspect that she isn't worth your time, let alone a penny.