Poll on the Future of Trek-rpg.net

[spshu]

I am offering to purchase the site on behalf of the community here, but want to know if there is any support for the site continuing and for me to front the purchase even though I am a unknown dispite lurking here since 2002.

So vote!

[spshu]

I am look for about 100 votes in favor so I can move forward. The general plan is that I will purchase the site on behalf of the community then organize the community to run the site with me only in an administrative position. A longer plan is at the Ferengi Blue Room.

Proposal to Save Trek-rpg.net.

[Ineti]

I'm not sure that we have 100 regulars here to get those votes, but I think the first option is the ideal solution. Not sure if we'll get that or not, but I'm willing to donate to the cause.

[Tobian]

yeah you're not going to get 100 people to vote - there just aren;t that many regulars

[spshu]

Originally posted by Ineti
I'm not sure that we have 100 regulars here to get those votes, but I think the first option is the ideal solution. Not sure if we'll get that or not, but I'm willing to donate to the cause.

How many regulars do you think site has? The most on the site stat I think shows 60+ at one time.
I am going contact various members starting with moderators then moving onto high posters of the site to get people to vote. If you would help that would be great (or any one else).

[KillerWhale]

I'd be for purchasing the site as a whole, only if costs are not prohibitive. We could move the boards to phpbb, saving a vBulletin license, which amounts to a lot...

[Owen E Oulton]

I say don't bother. TrekRPG was Don's site.

Much of the old content from the main site is now up on Memory: ICON, and new discussion boards are already in place.

Time to let it go. Respect Don's decision and move on.

[spshu]

Originally posted by KillerWhale
I'd be for purchasing the site as a whole, only if costs are not prohibitive. We could move the boards to phpbb, saving a vBulletin license, which amounts to a lot...

A vBulletin (an outright not a year to year) license for 1 domain is $160. If we buy Don's license which is not the current version, he could discount it. See the above linked post at the Ferengi Blue Room.

[Dr. Jonas Bashir]

Originally posted by Owen E Oulton
I say don't bother. TrekRPG was Don's site.

Much of the old content from the main site is now up on Memory: ICON, and new discussion boards are already in place.

Time to let it go. Respect Don's decision and move on.

There are two details not accounted there: the users that sometimes come (and leave for a good while), and the unedited content submitted to the website.

While we could save much from Don's work, we wouldn't be able to save the true spirit and all the effort made by him. Much would be lost, even when much has been rescued.

It may even be the case that, in a time, the website, if acquired, loses the name 'TrekRPG.net', but at least the community and the material is fully preserved.

At least, that's why I'd say 'Buy it fully' and the reasons for my vote.

[Tobian]

It's more than just about the forum. We could rebuild the forum sing PHBB and using Matt's knowledge, etc, but keeping the actual domain name is a good idea, simply because it's a well respected fora, and it's the name that counts.

It also takes pressure of Matt's funds because he can't host everything, he's just a mere mortal with a decent, but not extraordinary bandwidth.

it was something that Don wanted was to get the website back up and running too, and to have a full Trek RPG website and forum would be fantastic.

[KillerWhale]

What Tobian said.

[Don Mappin]

I've recieved a few inquires thus far regarding the site. Just for ease of use, here's the blanket response I've been giving to set the ground rules of what is for sale:

At this time I am still in the process of defining and soliciting offers from individuals. I see two specific assets that are available:

1. Domains: This primarily the trek-rpg.net domain and subsets (lotr-rpg.net, trekrpgs.net, etc). These are recognizable assets that have a small degree of branding to them plus existing links across the web. The domains represent a built-in user component that would drive visitors to whatever new site exists.

2. Message boards: This contains two components, the lifetime vBulletin license and software (2.3.2), valued at $160 (http://www.vbulletin.com) and the boards themselves. This includes 2,000+ member records, unique e-mail addresses, demographic information, and of course, 133,000+ posts. This also includes the vBulletin custom template and graphics that I created for the forum.

I'm entertaining offers for both.

If you want to talk site specifics of what it takes to run, just ask; I'm happy to help.

Yes, you could convert the DB to another PHP app but I wouldn't personally bother. Conversion is a pain in the ass and not worth it. Plus I'm including the lifetime vBulletin license; you might as well use it. (You can continue to use 2.3.2 or upgrade to v3.x if you'd like.)

I use PHP 4.2.x and MySQL 4.x, both of which are free. The bulk of the costs come from the server itself. Someone already pointed out that I lease through EV1servers.net. Based on what I had planned for the site (not just the message boards) I would recommend a leased (dedicated) server. Back in the day our bandwidth pushed 200 GB a month with downloads. Dynamic pages are difficult to cache; that number would go up.

Domains are entirely optional. There are plenty of links out there on the web that point here. Purchasing the domain ensures you don't miss that traffic. (Point of order, it ALSO prevents someone else from STEALING the domain [Decipher?] and the traffic.)

There are prices that I have in mind. No, I don't intend to recoup my expenses from 1998. I just want to put down a base price to set a commitment level. If I gave away the DB who knows what would happen to it. Tying a dollar figure to all this helps set a level of dedication.

Trust me, you need to be dedicated to do this.

E-mail me for specifics or with offers.

[Don Mappin]

Originally posted by spshu
A vBulletin (an outright not a year to year) license for 1 domain is $160. If we buy Don's license which is not the current version, he could discount it. See the about linked post at the Ferengi Blue Room.

You're not buying the license; you're buying the DB and the software. The license lets you run the site (any site) for as long as you want. vBulletin sells the license separately from the software.

So there is no such thing as a "current version" of a vBulletin license; they're all the same.

[Tobian]

I like the idea of keeping the domain to keep it out of the hands of a comercial interest, and keep it for the fans. More than anything that's a good consideration!

[KillerWhale]

Ah, a lifetime license, this changes things a LOT. Much more interesting IMHO

However, there is something I'd like to make sure of, and please do not take this the wrong way, this is the last thing I want, like everybody here I thank you for all your hard work (and you are NOT letting us down; you carried us much further than most would have). It's just that the idea of "selling" the DB, which is a joint effort to say the least, and includes personal information for most of us, just seems... odd to me. I'm probably just nitpicking, but I'm incomfortable with the idea that my info, posts, contributions and all would be... sold. I'd prefer to know that the DB would be freely offered to the guy wanting to carry on the flame, as a bonus with all the rest that truly carries commercial value (licenses, domain names et al), for the same price - it's just a question of principle.

I know, I'm nitpicking and I'm probably being utterly ridiculous here, but as when it comes to money it's my opinion that things are best when perfectly clear, I preferred to voice my concern - and that does NOT belittle the awesome work you did nor is meant as a personal slight.