Two major problems that I have observed over the years are:

1. The complete invasion by spammers - from an administrative point of view, it makes it a chore to even come here.

2. No email notification of replies to posts. This doesn't sound like too big of a deal, but when newer members come here and post something, then get no notification of replies (ditto for the anyone who actually does reply), it can get discouraging and cause interest to drop FAST.

These are just my two main observations/gripes; other issues, many of them mentioned over the past few years, are just as valid, maybe even moreso, because they come from people I trust and respect greatly. The problem is that I see no clear and real solutions jumping out at me. I spent years "recruiting" people with little luck, although I must say the ones who did join as a result of my efforts have been some of the best and most active members, so my thanks to you all.

Events of the last year or so I have proven to me that when people pull together for a good old-fashioned "barn-raising," great things can happen, so I am going to propose this here and we will see what all interested members think of the idea.

One thing about the forum is that the price has always been right - it's free to join, free to participate and free to use, with no ads etc. Some of the problems, of course, have been noted above; these problems lead to other problems and the overall direction is down.

But, If we can come up with about 85$ each year, I can bring this forum up under WebWiz's paid hosting services and make some drastic improvements to this forum, including a new software version, greatly-enhanced spammer control, email notifications, better interface for mobile devices, some enhancements that mesh with social media and other features that may or may not be important.

We've done this at my other site ( http://foodsoftheworld.activeboard.net/ - http://foodsoftheworld.activeboard.net ) and I see no reason why it can't be done here as I am confident that it can be done with no loss of archival data. I've seen some real and positive success with this at FotW, and it should be just as successful here, if not moreso.

The thing is, I cannot afford to do this on my own - but what we did over at the FotW site was to spread it out where active members really only have to donate only 5 or 10$ each (or more if they want to, of course!). 10$ or so is something I can afford, and so can just about everyone else here who has an interest in the forum's future. We can also save money by setting up the service for 2 years at a time - I think it's 155$ then, give or take a little (the amount is based on British Pounds Sterling).

If you are interested in this, please signify by replying here or in private. If we get enough interest to give it a go, I will set it up. One thing I want to say up front is that ALL donations will be used SOLELY for forum expenses - hosting, upgrades etc. Not a single penny will go into my pocket.

Another thing: over at FotW I set up a service for that site called "VigLink," which is something that is already there and I figured might as well be put to work for the forum. VigLink is a deal where key words (a few of the ones that come to mind are Amazon.com, eBay.com, WalMart.com etc., but there are hundreds more) generate links that, when clicked on, will generate revenue for the forum and help it pay for itself. The thing I like about these is that they are non-invasive and un-obtrusive like pop-up or banner ads are - you barely know they are there. I find it useful at the FotW site because you can be talking about a product or a recipe and put a link to the associated product, recipe book etc.; all a reader has to do is click on it, and that's it - money for the forum and more info for the reader. As an example, I could talk about something I read in Jack O'Connor's The Art of Hunting Big Game in North America. Along with the discussion, I can include a link to Amazon  (or even simply say that the book is available on Amazon) for anyone who wants to check it out and maybe buy the book. Using the Amazon example, I'm a big fan, because you can get a used book there for mere pennies, plus shipping (usually 3.99$ but often free). So it's helpful, it brings money in, and it could be good for a reader looking for a product. It's a win-win for everyone involved. Best of all, NO pop-ups, no banners, no porn no irrelevant diet or real-estate ads. Best of all, this VigLink thing doesn't cost anything to set up or use.

If there's any interest, I can get all of this set up over the next month or so, and depending on donations we could probably have it ready to go in time for the fall hunting season. If we did this, PLUS tried to bring friends or fellow hunting/shooting enthusiasts in, I do believe that it would be one heck of a boost.

On the subject of trying to bring in a few new members: many of us are on FaceBook, GooglePlus, Twitter and whatever else. We can post favourite links or discussions here at BSB on our feeds at those sites to bring in interested people, and perhaps gain membership through that route as well. This has worked very well for the FotW site, and we have picked up some very good members because of it.

One of the topics -and a completely valid point - that has come up is that we're top-heavy where admins are concerned. Admin or mod status has always been on a volunteer basis and any admin can opt out at any time. HAVING SAID THAT, I've always thought of the admins here as being a big help with administrative stuff that I should probably be doing myself but just don't seem to have time to do anymore - we have always been and I believe we do best as a largely-unmoderated site where posting is concerned. I've tried extremely hard to "intervene" only in the most extreme cases, and then only when other avenues have been exhausted. The obvious exceptions have always applied and always will apply - these have all been covered in the past and will be covered again if necessary in the future on a case-by-case basis. Of course, if things go well with the proposed changes above, with larger membership there MIGHT come a need for the number of admins that we actually have, so I'd ask that the admins we do have please stick around for a little while. By Christmas or New Years, we can probably have a better idea of where things stand, and if anyone wants to opt out then, we can adjust.

I can't think of much else to address the issues that have been raised lately, but if anyone has anything else to bring up, PLEASE DO SO as a reply to this thread, or in private to me, if you prefer. This has and always will be a forum that does its best to accomodate its members - I've always said that it's YOUR forum, too - even moreso now that we might be moving to donations-based hosting. It has worked very well for the FotW site, and I am very sure that it could do even better here.

My thanks to you all - please feel free to offer opinions, comments etc. here.

Ron

Seeins to how I have been here for 10 years I think 10 bucks would be pretty cheap considering all of the information I have gotten from you guys.

Count me in.

Let us know what we need to do to get payment to you.

Wing master

Taz;

I'm in of course.  PM me the addy.

900F

I'm in.

Can we have a cosktail party!

Hey, guys -

First, I am grateful for the outpouring of support here. I think we have a shot at this, and I am very confident that we can get the first year set up easily. The one thing to stress is that once we do this, there probably won't be any going back: This forum WILL rely on donations and any VigLink income to stay alive, so each year (or every two years, if things go well), we will have to "pass the hat around." In the meantime, please be sure to click on any VigLinks that show up in posts, and perhaps even consider making a purchase or two based on those links.

The other thing I wanted to mention is that this is all electronic these days, so the donations will be a snap. There will be a "DONATE" button at the top of the page, which will go directly to a secure PayPal location. You do not need to be set up with PayPal yourself to make a donation - any electronic transfer should work. This is very convenient and very easy; to see an example of what I am talking about, take a look at the way it is set up at http://foodsoftheworld.activeboards.net - http://foodsoftheworld.activeboards.net . The button is right on the front page.

Tash,

Will the "Donate" button be on this site or will it be on the new site?

I assume you will need a little cash to get the ball rolling. What ever we need to do, just let us know.

Wing master