[ETSList] ETS please consider helping

[Ronald Loneker Sr. KA2BZS]

This is K3TKJ Al Waller, who donates his space to the Amateur radio
public
FREE...he sponsers our website and also this etslist...maybe we can get
Al W2KOG to send a 'nice donation' to help keep the ball rolling..
Thanks de Ron



Subject: Help K3TKJ Keep QTH.NET Going

I saw the following on another qth.net reflector:

Today has not been a good day for me.  I am totally bummed out.

Other than the technical things with the servers, much of my time is
spent
trying to find creative ways to finance what we do and not make it
commercial.  I usually remind our users in the late Fall of donations
and
during this time of the year I have 2 "Platinum" sponsors that I
contact.
These 2 account for about a third of our yearly expenses.  Today I made
the
calls and both are not able to help us any longer, I can understand
this.
The economy is flat and who knows when it will get rolling again.

We are in trouble....

This means we are $10K short for the year at the start, but it gets
worse.
I can't put any more money into this than I already do, to do so would
not
be fair to my family.  The only place I see this being made up is from
the
users with a great deal of effort on our part.  If every user gave us a
dime
we could operate for 18 months or so, If every user sent us $1.00 we
could
operate for the next 20 years.  What actually happens is about 600
users/clubs donate an average of $10 each and we never hear from the
rest.
I'm not ungrateful for the donations don't get me wrong but it is the
same
users year after year and that will cease too, I'm afraid.  With no help

we
will be in deep dodo by Fall.

I don't want to sound like a TV evangelist always begging but I guess
maybe
that's what it takes.

I need you to be aware of the financial needs of the system and to
remind
your users as frequent as you see fit that we depend on them to do their

part so that you and I can do our part.  Please don't go off yelling the

sky
is falling and/or posting this mail to your lists, but sometime in the
near
future state our case and ask for user help.

The majority of the expenses monthly are for Internet access, this
access
is
only affordable in 2-3 year contracts.  We have one now that is $12K a
year
for 3 years.  That T1 is at about 105% and is getting so slow it is
unusable
at times.  We have another broadband circuit due to be installed Friday
morning, this one will be $6K a year for 3 years.  This will solve the
bandwidth congestion but adding the $600 a month to the $833 a month we
won't be getting from above and suddenly we are $18K in the red this
year.

To give you an idea of how much bandwidth it takes to run all this,
imagine
the next time you download a program or something from the net and the
little box says your speed was 194KB (a 56K modem would be about 5K) Our

output is 194KB 24/7 it drops off the peg for just a few hours after the

US
goes to bed...Our incoming is a paltry 50KB 24/7....

If you have any other ideas how to support us I am listening.

As always thanks for your help, Al

To help with a donation, go to; http://www.qsl.net/donations.html
Send this message to any qth.net reflectors you subscribe to for posting

if
you haven't seen it posted there yet.




--
Ron Loneker Sr.  KA2BZS
http://www.cwforever.com
NJDXA - #1DXCC - 160m DXCC
JUST SEND IT!....