It's that time of year. Time for the (Semi) Annual Fundraiser. As you may or may not know, a site such as PCQandA requires a lot of money to run. Hosting alone runs us approximately $370 per month. Overall, we need about $4,500 per year to operate. We'll have another fundraiser in half a year's time, so we're looking to raise $2,500.
If you'd rather send a check or a money order (in US Dollars -- sorry, but we can't accept International Money Orders at this time), make it out to Jason Levine and send it to:
Jason Levine PO Box 392 Slingerlands, NY 12159
Be sure to: 1) Include your e-mail address in a note along with the check/money order so we can thank you. (PCQandA screen names would be nice also in case the e-mail doesn't go through for some reason.) 2) E-mail me at jason@pcqanda.com to let me know that a mailed donation is coming. (This way I'll know to look for it and will be able to alert you if it doesn't arrive.)
Curious just how close we are to our goal? Check out http://www.pcqanda.com/fundraiser.php for the most up-to-date figure. (Payments are added to the total manually, so don't expect the figure to update the minute you make a payment.)
Jason, As soon as we get home I will buy a money order and send my donation. But right now I am in VA at my youngest son's house and will be here for two weeks. I don't have access to my funds at the moment. But I will let you know when we get home . Daylilydayzed Daylilies are the Lord's smiles, new one every day.
Thanks to everyone who has donated so far. Eleven days in and we're already at 34% of our goal (over $850). Remember, if you mail a check or money order, please e-mail me to let me know that it is on its way.
Damn it, this is great! Have not been able to contribute for a couple of years because of potential job lost. My wife and I BOTH work at the same place where, two years ago, our staff was cut, furloughed, from 42 down to 18 in one day! Fortunately, we both survived, because of seniority, but initially we did not know how it would all pan out so we played it safe for a couple of years and really cut back on everything.
Any way, we both survived, and it is a damn good feeling to be able to finally contribute once again!
We've now collected almost $1,000 and are almost 40% of the way there. We still have a long way to go, though. If you've donated already, thanks. If you haven't, please send in a couple of bucks. Remember, no donation is too small. (Though we certainly won't turn our noses up at big donations. )
Jason , I am still in VA. but when I get home(we leave here to go home at the end of this month), I will get a money order and send my donation then. Right now I am unable to get access to my bank account. Daylilydayzed Daylilies are the Lord's smiles, new one every day.
#38. "RE: PCQandA Summer Fundraiser" In response to jasonlevine (Reply # 0) Wed Aug-03-11 07:21 PM by TV Man 436 163
Quote:
QUOTE: Hi all,
It's that time of year. Time for the (Semi) Annual Fundraiser. As you may or may not know, a site such as PCQandA requires a lot of money to run. Hosting alone runs us approximately $370 per month. Overall, we need about $4,500 per year to operate. We'll have another fundraiser in half a year's time, so we're looking to raise $2,500.
If you'd rather send a check or a money order (in US Dollars -- sorry, but we can't accept International Money Orders at this time), make it out to Jason Levine and send it to:
Jason Levine PO Box 392 Slingerlands, NY 12159
Be sure to: 1) Include your e-mail address in a note along with the check/money order so we can thank you. (PCQandA screen names would be nice also in case the e-mail doesn't go through for some reason.) 2) E-mail me at jason@pcqanda.com to let me know that a mailed donation is coming. (This way I'll know to look for it and will be able to alert you if it doesn't arrive.)
Curious just how close we are to our goal? Check out http://www.pcqanda.com/fundraiser.php for the most up-to-date figure. (Payments are added to the total manually, so don't expect the figure to update the minute you make a payment.)
Thanks in advance,
I sent you a check to: Jason Levine PO Box 392 Slinglerands, NY 12159
And it was returned to me with the info that the PO Box was closed And that they were unable to forward to sender. What address do I mail the check to?
Sorry about that. We thought that the PO Box renewal date was later than it was. In the past, if we missed the renewal by a few days, the post office held our mail until we paid. This time, apparently, they decided to return all the mail and change the locks.
This happened at the beginning of the fund raiser and, as I hadn't received any notices of mailed donations, I had hoped that we caught the problem before anyone's donation was mailed. I apologize to everyone that had their checks returned. The PO Box has been renewed and should accept donations now.
QUOTE: Sorry about that. We thought that the PO Box renewal date was later than it was. In the past, if we missed the renewal by a few days, the post office held our mail until we paid. This time, apparently, they decided to return all the mail and change the locks.
This happened at the beginning of the fund raiser and, as I hadn't received any notices of mailed donations, I had hoped that we caught the problem before anyone's donation was mailed. I apologize to everyone that had their checks returned. The PO Box has been renewed and should accept donations now.
#47. "RE: PCQandA Summer Fundraiser" In response to jasonlevine (Reply # 42) Fri Aug-12-11 07:16 PM by TV Man 436 163
Quote:
QUOTE: Sorry about that. We thought that the PO Box renewal date was later than it was. In the past, if we missed the renewal by a few days, the post office held our mail until we paid. This time, apparently, they decided to return all the mail and change the locks.
This happened at the beginning of the fund raiser and, as I hadn't received any notices of mailed donations, I had hoped that we caught the problem before anyone's donation was mailed. I apologize to everyone that had their checks returned. The PO Box has been renewed and should accept donations now.
Hi Jason
I sent another letter and check postmarked on 08-05-2011 to: Jason Levine PO Box 392 Slingerlands, NY 12159
Again it was returned to me on 08-12-2011. Is the problem on my end or your end?
I'm on the phone with the post office now to find out what the problem is. We definitely paid for a whole year so nothing should have been returned now. I have a bad feeling that they messed up and forgot to remove a "didn't pay" sign from our mailbox. If so, I'm going to be very upset. I don't know how many donations were returned and won't be sent again. (Not to mention the fact that people shouldn't have to send a donation back one time, much less two or more times.)
If anyone else has gotten a returned donation, please let me know by replying to this message. Include when it was sent and when it was returned. Thanks and I'll keep everyone up to date on the status of this.
Ok, the post office is claiming that nothing's wrong on their end. (Not sure I believe them completely.) Is there a sticker or stamp or something on your letter that indicates why it was sent back?
QUOTE: Ok, the post office is claiming that nothing's wrong on their end. (Not sure I believe them completely.) Is there a sticker or stamp or something on your letter that indicates why it was sent back?
There is a yellow sticker on the envelope that was returned to me. the info. on the sticker is:
122 N7E 1 711I 00 08/09/11 Return to sender Levine Box Closed Unable to forward to sender BC: 141218363629 *1913-14032-06-41
Jason checked with the post office and found that they had neglected to remove the "return to sender" sticker on the box even though he had renewed it for a full year. The problem is cleared now. we are sorry for any inconvenience to our members.
Oh, that I knew, you can link any major credit card to PayPal, but I thought you were saying that American Express would convert a payment somehow to PayPal.
I have a credit card linked to PayPal, but usually I just have PayPal transactions deducted directly from my checking account.
Jason. We are now back at home here in FL. But I do not have funds yet. I get paid on9/9/2011 and will make my donation then. I will make it through Pay Pal. Daylilydayzed Daylilies are the Lord's smiles, new one every day.
As of today, we have just under $1,440 in donations. That's only $57.6%. We still need another $1,060.45 to go to reach our goal. Thanks to the folks who donated. (Everyone should have gotten a Thank You e-mail already. If you haven't, let me know.) To those who haven't donated yet, please donate. Remember, not everyone needs to give huge donations. If everyone contributed a little bit, we'd reach the goal in no time.
QUOTE: As of today, we have just under $1,440 in donations. That's only $57.6%. We still need another $1,060.45 to go to reach our goal. Thanks to the folks who donated. (Everyone should have gotten a Thank You e-mail already. If you haven't, let me know.) To those who haven't donated yet, please donate. Remember, not everyone needs to give huge donations. If everyone contributed a little bit, we'd reach the goal in no time.
Daylilydayzed Daylilies are the Lord's smiles, new one every day.
This Friday I get paid so I will make my donation. I haven't had any money since the end of June to spare for any thing. My job only pays me as long as school is in session and my hubby only gets SSI from S. Security. Summer is always a bad time to need clothes or anything like a new car since no money is coming in on a regular basis.
Julia, we appreciate your desire to help, but please do not feel obligated to contribute if it will be a financial hardship. Too many have always refused to help though they could easily afford to, and too many have given money they need in the past because others were just selfish. You will always be appreciated here whether you contribute or not.
Shelly, It is not a hardship once I get paid. I always support this forum since I get help that saved me money when I had a problem with the computer and couldn't afford to take it in for a repair. I am always glad to support PCQ&A. Daylilydayzed Daylilies are the Lord's smiles, new one every day.
Just to echo what Shelly said: My prodding was not meant to be directed towards those who can't afford to donate, but rather a message to 1) those who can afford but choose not to or 2) think that donating requires some large amount that they can't afford (when a smaller donation would be within their budgetary constraints).
Come on people, we can do better than this!!! This forum is the best place to get computer help. There are many knowledgeable people here always willing to help and exchange ideas. The value and savings provided here are worth much more than the typical donation. If we don't raise enough money from our members, this place won't be here. For those of you who are able to afford it and still haven't pitched in, its time to pay your fair share.
#80. "RE: PCQandA Summer Fundraiser" In response to DR (Reply # 79)
1and1 is crap. This site requires much better hosting than that. Grogan has us set up on high-quality dedicated server hosting at a world-class data center.
#81. "RE: PCQandA Summer Fundraiser" In response to DR (Reply # 79)
We are always on the lookout for less expensive but qualified professional hosting. We will never go to a small service aimed at and equipped to handle only hobbyist websites that no one would miss in extended downtime, or so low in bandwidth that the forum would run frustratingly slow.
It is also a vital consideration that any host be able to retain our many years of archives that are used all the time by people you never see posting here.
#82. "RE: PCQandA Summer Fundraiser" In response to DR (Reply # 79)
Those services are shared hosting services. What that means is they take a server and stick a certain number of people on the same box. Depending on the company it can be in the hundreds or even thousands. Obviously, all of these sites have resource requirements. As they jockey for resources, some might lose out and slow down. Good shared hosting companies will find the sites that are hogging resources and either direct them onto other types of services (dedicated, for example) or cut them off (especially if they're acting shady).
Shared hosting services aren't all bad. I use them for my other sites. However, PCQandA is too big for a setup like that. We'd either be identified as a resource hog (by the simple fact that we use so much traffic) or we'd be impacted by other resource hogs (thus slowing down PCQandA).
On a dedicated server (like PCQandA uses), only one site is on the server: ours. Well, unless we decided to host other sites on our server. Even then we'd be in complete control as to how many other sites our server could support before performance was impacted.
Jane
Sid
Fortunately, we both survived, because of seniority, but initially we did not know how it would all pan out so we played it safe for a couple of years and really cut back on everything.
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