Let me try again to explain my position: As far as I'm concerned, I AM looking at this as a business, and the fact that it's a coop is a minor detail...yes, it's much more friendly than a real business, but the same rules of scale should apply somewhat...I have no problem paying my share to get the EXACT same level of service as when I first joined, which was more than adequate for my needs, but when my costs go up because we are adding more members, that's where I have an issue...in case some missed it, I did offer to pay some more to make up most, if not all, of the difference from what my costs were when I joined, as they were around $3-$4 per month then, and lately have been around $2...
I'll use this analogy: Suppose I used a airport shuttle service that operated a van...it got me and my luggage to/from the airport...then the service became more popular and needed more capacity...so they bought a stretch bus...and then raised the price to double what it was...the bus doesn't get me there any better than the van, which was adequate for my needs...so because they got more users, instead of it costing me the same or less due to more users to carry the increased expenses, it costs me more...in that case, I'd have to find another service that still uses a van and charges that cheaper rate... Ok, so it's not completely identical, but it's a way to say what I'm thinking. I also agree that while I'm a heavier user than a number of other users, but compared to some, I'm a trivial user, IMHO, as Nathan nicely pointed out...the primary reason I needed HCoop services was that other "normal" providers did not allow user written CGI scripts for the price point that I desired...that's why I joined! -- Franklin Gordon Bynum <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: We have reached the limit of our current architecture and need to expand to grow further. We can't accept new members to support this without new equipment. Your stance leaves a chicken and egg problem: how do we grow without current members fronting costs? If this were a business from which you were purchasing hosting services, then the business itself would invest in new equipment and seek to recoup that investment through future user fees. But this is not a business from which you are purchasing services. You are a member/owner of a cooperative. YOU own a share of this organization. YOU are partially responsible for this organization. You have a vote on how it is run. If there is capital investment to be done to ensure the stability of the co-op, you are responsible for your fair share. Period. _______________________________________________ HCoop-Discuss mailing list [email protected] http://hcoop.net/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/hcoop-discuss
