February 25, 2004

• as a late-coming member, but longtime mofi/mefi lurker, i'm into it.
• sure, if they fix the custom colors thing. Adsense is probably the only ads i dont block because i dont find the at all obtrusive (the system works!) and have even found a couple good things through them. Transparent scroll-following flash ads with blaring announcements, on the other hand...
• I'm all for Tracy breaking even on this project, so let's have some text ads. If you use IE and want to block flash, try the free Flash & Pics Control I highly recommend it.
• I want to see Tracy spend more money on this website to no appreciable gain.
• Well, see, actually I like flash. I just dont like flash ads. I use mozilla, adblock, and have a gigantic host file from K++, so most ads dont get served. I just dont want to have to kill flash because of a few annoying ads, but I think that those are rapidly killing the usefulness of flash as a tool.
• I can't imagine why anybody would object to this (unless it's a villainous bank owner who holds the mortgage on Tracy's house and is conspiring to drive her into the street.) Since whether or not to put ads on the site is pretty much Tracy's decision, and not necessarily a a topic of debate, maybe it would be most helpful to use this thread to suggest profit-making activities, on the offchance Tracy doesn't know about them. In addition to Google's adsense, there's Blogads, and Textads.biz. I've never used any of them--anybody want to pipe up on what tends to be the most profitable? In addition to ads, there's the merchandising route. Cafe Press seems to be the most popular option. Not sure what sort of Monkeyfilter merchandise you could market, but I thought it was worth mentioning. I guess the other profit-making option is if the machinations of the evil bank owner lead Tracy to consider suicide, triggering an alternate reality in which we all see what our life would be like if she had never been born, at the end of which, we'd all chip in lots of money so she could buy Christmas presents for her family. But I think Adsense might work out better.
• *Twirls mustachio* Jacobw has figured out my dastardly plot. Guess I'd better tie little Nell to the train tracks instead. As for ads, if Tracicle wants or needs them, then fine. If not, then finer. If she can find a way to support the site using trained gorilla labor, then finer-er.
• Thanks, Skrik! A lot of the software on that site looks really good - simple and useful stuff. Oh, and I'm all for the ads (also, every time a little bell rings, a monkey gets its wings. Or something like that).
• Google AdSense = Good Sense
• I occasionally even look at ads on a site I like and appreciate. I know, it sounds crazy.
• Matt Haughey wrote a great entry on AdSense that people should probably read if this becomes a serious proposition.
• Trained gorilla labour, hmm? *looks shifty* I'm glad you guys care and stuff, but jeez, I keep saying: it doesn't cost me anything more at the moment than hosting my domains would have anyway. But sure, I'll read your little links and stuff, just to make you feel good. You won't be seeing any advertising on MoFi for some time yet. Or is it that MoFi isn't a "real" site until it has ten trillion ads and popups? Is that it? Is it? Is it? I like the textads on Metafilter. They even had one for goats.com recently.
• Wait a second: you mean the rest of you AREN'T paid subscribers? But Tracicle said... I feel so used.
• * points at forky * ha-HA!!!
• Not only do I sometimes want to click on AdSense ads, sometimes I actually do, and on certain sites I click 'em just out of love. You better believe that MoFi would be on that list. Also, I am all over tipjars, cafepress schwag, or occasional trips to Iceland. I want the Monkey to be happy.
• ulotrichous, youll have to sacrifice your firstborn to do that.
• Bad, Tracy! Bad!
• Sacrifice it to...er, to Wolof!
• dudes, you know tracicle's a bot, right? what, I wasn't supposed to say that? why not? . . ohhh right . . forky . . sorry
• SOYLENT GREEN IS MONKEYS! IT'S MONKEYS!
• But it tastes so gooood...
• Soylent Green : over 1,000,000 monkeys served.
• One reason not to get ads: Tracicle has told us that she's running MoFi as a hobby to help keep her young-mother brain alive during a rather house-bound part of her life. Lives change: someday she may need to close the Filter. Maybe the Little Monkey will be in full-time school; maybe her family will need more income; maybe she'll join the Blue, and in her fabulous new jet-set geek life not have the time or inclination to keep a monkey house any more. Or maybe she'll not close MoFi, but leave it running and decaying slowly from bit rot, with her new life and priorities not allowing the time for maintenance. I fear that ads on MoFi might create a sense of entitlement in its users. "Damn you, I paid for this service clicked on your ads-- you can't close this!" I've seen it before, obnoxious and annoying.
• goetter, don't worry. MoFi will be around (and looked after) as long as there's people posting. Do you see Matt shutting down Metafilter while he goes off and takes photos every day? :)
• yeah he says the fan died. *snkk* - oh, right Matt, computers have fans. . . I mean c'mon!
• I'd prefer no adverts, if only for selfish reasons - I bloody hate adverts, even google's textads (which are certainly less annoying than most). Maybe you should enable a paypal donation box, though, Tracy.
• Why doesn't Tracy sell ad space. The bigger this site gets the higher she can charge for prices. She might be able to come out a little ahead.
• I say our first ad should be for Forky's stats counter.
• tracicle: if ever the cost of the site ever does become an issue - cost in time or money - please don't ever hesitate to get ads. We live in a world of advertising - if advertising money goes to good people, that just makes me happy.
• Oh, and definately advertise forks' hit counter - it's fascinating!
• forks has a hit counter? Seriously, jb, I'm with you. I doubt I'll ever need to (and I don't think I'm being naive -- I was expecting to spend some money from the outset and it turns out I'm spending no more than I would on hosting anyway) but I'll certainly never ask any of you to simply give me money. If there is ever any need, I'll go for textads or similar.