Yeah, it did escalate quickly, sorry about that. I didn't know the backstory nor did I realize Cliff was a long time member of the list. I thought he was crashing in and just posting an advert for a pay site. The *nix side of me took over when I saw that the site cost money I guess. I apologize to the list and Cliff for ruffling feathers.
On Thu, Dec 10, 2015 at 4:57 PM, <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > -------- Original Message -------- > Subject: Re: [mssms] An open letter to the ConfigMgr Community > From: Ryan <[email protected]> > Date: Thu, December 10, 2015 2:45 pm > To: [email protected] > > From a consumer standpoint ad revenue is great, but from the business end > one user paying for a $30 subscription = thousands of users viewing an > article. You can't really make money off a model like that when: > 1) You are writing for a small audience (SCCM is a small audience) > 2) You are writing for an audience who uses ad blockers (IT people tend to > have those) > > If you're looking to make money off your work, you'll need a pay model and > not just rely on ad revenue in this space. I don't have a problem with > someone doing something like this. I see it in the same light as people > publishing ConfigMgr books. A lot of the information they gained was found > from community members, but no one complains when the books are published > (I've even seen books advertised here!) > > If the content is good, I don't see a problem with this. Something like > this is worth it to a business if you save a few hours researching > problems. > > That being said, I won't be a subscriber. I just see the value in it for > other hypothetical people :-) > > On Thu, Dec 10, 2015 at 3:08 PM, Marcum, John <[email protected]> wrote: > >> Personally I've never paid for access to any website. Ad based revenue is >> a better model IMO >> >> Typos courtesy of Apple. Sent from my iOS device. >> >> On Dec 10, 2015, at 3:06 PM, Johan van Dijk <[email protected]<mailto: >> [email protected]>> wrote: >> >> +1 >> >> From: [email protected]<mailto: >> [email protected]> [mailto:[email protected]] >> On Behalf Of ccollins9 >> Sent: Thursday, December 10, 2015 9:41 PM >> To: mssms <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> >> Subject: Re: [mssms] An open letter to the ConfigMgr Community >> >> Well that's good you got permission, had you mentioned that I wouldn't >> have said anything. >> >> However, I still think it's a total advert on a free list. What bugs me >> is that you've essentially taken all that knowledge that people have >> graciously and freely shared over the years, which you admit has saved your >> bacon, and put it behind a paywall. That just doesn't sit well with me. >> Just my opinion, maybe I'm in the minority here, I don't personally know >> you or most folks on this list as I've only been using it for a few years. >> >> I'll bow out. >> >> >> >> On Thu, Dec 10, 2015 at 2:53 PM, Cliff Hobbs <[email protected] >> <mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: >> Thanks for the reply, comments inline in green ☺. >> >> From: [email protected]<mailto: >> [email protected]> [mailto:[email protected] >> <mailto:[email protected]>] On Behalf Of ccollins9 >> Sent: 10 Dec 2015 16:39 >> To: mssms <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> >> Subject: Re: [mssms] An open letter to the ConfigMgr Community >> >> Thanks for the SPAM! I don't get nearly enough of it ;-) >> >> BTW, you're in violation of the rules of this emil list. >> >> http://www.myitforum.com/absolutenm/EmailLists.aspx >> >> Email list rules: There are not many rules for the email lists. The lists >> are yours to use to find answers to technical issues. However, the lists >> are NOT marketing vehicles. Posts that the community deems unacceptable in >> relation to 3rd party product marketing or 3rd party product announcements >> will be taken under advisement, reviewed, and a warning given to the >> vendor. Any 3rd party vendor who breaks this rule more than once after >> receiving the warning, will be booted from the lists for 3 months. This >> rule applies only to 3rd party vendors, not community members who create >> free tools for use, support, and collaboration. >> >> Just to clarify, I approached Rod BEFORE posting this and asked for his >> permission to post it sending him a copy which he signed off on. >> • Lack of screenshots/ “real world” troubleshooting experience. >> >> Getting help from folks with real world experience is why free listservs >> like this exist. >> >> I’m not disagreeing and as someone who has been on this list from 1998 I >> know all about that ;-) There have been countless occasions where folks on >> this list have saved my bacon but I’d like to think I’ve given back where I >> can. >> >> • In the case of physical books the content either being out of >> date by the time you get the book, or there being a delay whilst the book >> is written and even then the content soon becomes out of date. >> >> This is why free TechNet exists >> >> Even TechNet has it issues such as lack of screenshots, “real world” >> troubleshooting experience. Sure it is the official word from Microsoft >> but even it has some holes which I’m aiming to fill. >> >> • Everyone writing/ blogging about the same content with whole >> parts of the product not being covered. >> >> Many resources > one resource (or site in this case) >> >> Not disagreeing just don’t see much coverage of some parts of the product >> which is a gap and frustrating if you’re using them, have an issue and the >> search engines return tumble weed. >> >> • How can you trust the content you find in the search engines is >> going to work/ isn’t going to break something else/ put you in an >> unsupported position unless you know the author? >> >> So, are you guaranteeing that your paysite WILL keep you in a state of >> "support", will not break anything, and will always work? How can you make >> such a guarantee? Are you a Microsoft employee formally trained in >> Configuration Manager? >> >> We’ve all seen content on the Internet that is questionable and this >> problem isn’t just limited to ConfigMgr. Of course as I’m not the guy >> writing the ConfigMgr code I can’t give a cast iron guarantee. What I can >> guarantee is that my content doesn’t make assumptions and will get you from >> A > B without you wondering how you managed to do so or getting lost along >> the way. >> >> • Having to wade through the list of results from search engines >> to determine whether what you found matches your issue. >> >> Again, many resources > one resource >> >> I’m just trying to pull everything together in one place to save you >> searching through page after page of search results trying to locate an >> answer to your question/ resolution to your problem. Sure there are plenty >> of folks happy to do so, I’m just trying to give folks a choice, >> >> Sorry for my snark, but if I were running a pay knowledgebase, the LAST >> place I'd advertise is a free Listserv filled with wonderful folks that >> help each other out of the kindness of our hearts and in a spirit of >> professional comradery within our shared industry. We make each other >> better admins everyday. >> >> No problem everyone is entitled to their opinion. I’ve been a member of >> this list since 1998 and giving away content since then. It’s just >> frustrating for me that I have so much content to contribute and am >> passionate about writing, I’m just trying to find a way of doing it that >> allows me to pay my bills. >> >> Just speaking personally, the only people I pay support to are the makers >> of the product or a certified partner/vendor. When you take money to >> provide a resource of support people can rely on, you need to be able to >> back that support up with follow-up support. >> >> Agreed and if something doesn’t work I’m telling you, is wrong, >> incomplete then of course I’d welcome the feedback, it’s the only way we >> can improve. >> >> Sorry, I'm sure your site is nice and I commend the entrepreneurial >> spirit, but this isn't a place to advertise. >> Let me clarify. This isn’t an advert. It’s a way of me trying to >> explain to the folks on this list many of whom are good friends that I >> wouldn’t have met otherwise, and have used my content/ site in the past why >> I’m doing what I’m doing rather than just throwing walls up around my >> content and folks wondering Huh? What happened? >> >> I hope this has answered your points. Feel free to reply to this thread >> or if your prefer to me offlist ☺. >> >> >> On Thu, Dec 10, 2015 at 10:34 AM, Cliff Hobbs <[email protected] >> <mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: >> Dear all, >> >> since starting to work with SMS 2.0 back in 1998 I’ve been keen to >> capture and share my experience with the product. Since then I’ve tried >> through FAQShop to write regular, high quality ConfigMgr-related content to >> make all of our lives easier. Unfortunately this has proved difficult due >> to limits in technology (trying to do things the way I want to do it), and >> financial backing to pay for my time to write content. >> >> A year ago I had a eureka moment and since then I’ve be working on >> project “OneFAQ” which I've officially released today that currently >> contains over 2,000 new, never published before FAQs. The initial focus >> has been on Troubleshooting and some of the design stuff but my ultimate >> goal is to cover everything. >> >> In a nutshell, the existing page structure on FAQShop will remain i.e. >> organising content by product version and then into categories (“What’s >> New”, “Design and Planning”, “Installation and Configuration”, >> “Administration”, and “Troubleshooting”). Each page then contains the >> relevant related FAQs. >> >> However, rather than publishing the content on FAQShop, effective from >> today each page will contain a list of links that link out to corresponding >> OneNote Notebooks hosted on my OneDrive. This provides a multitude of >> benefits not least it allows me to better structure, organise and manage >> the content rather than trying to do it on the FAQShop website which was a >> right pain (I could end up spending longer organising content than actually >> writing it). >> >> The other benefit to me is that I can control access to my content. >> Several people have commented FAQShop is like a book and I must be crazy to >> be literally giving it away for free and I’ve come to realise that if I >> want to fulfil my passion of fulltime writing, the only way I’m going to be >> able to do this is to charge for my work. >> >> Sure there are plenty of ConfigMgr resources “out there” like books, the >> Microsoft website and a host of other resources where you can find a lot of >> ConfigMgr-related information, but these each have their limitations such >> as: >> >> >> • Lack of screenshots/ “real world” troubleshooting experience. >> >> • In the case of physical books the content either being out of >> date by the time you get the book, or there being a delay whilst the book >> is written and even then the content soon becomes out of date. >> >> • Everyone writing/ blogging about the same content with whole >> parts of the product not being covered. >> >> • How can you trust the content you find in the search engines is >> going to work/ isn’t going to break something else/ put you in an >> unsupported position unless you know the author? >> >> • Having to wade through the list of results from search engines >> to determine whether what you found matches your issue. >> >> The list goes on. >> >> With Microsoft releasing the new version of ConfigMgr earlier this week >> and their plans to update it quarterly, the need to be able to keep up with >> this rapid pace of change has just become a lot more challenging, but I >> believe my strategy allows me to just that. >> >> With OneFAQ you can browse FAQShop for free to see if your FAQ is covered >> and then pay for an Access Pass (24 hour or Annual), to get access to the >> content you require. I’ve based the pricing on £0.01 per FAQ which I think >> is fair given the content that’s in there currently and by signing up to an >> Annual Pass you not only get access to the 2,000+ FAQs in there today you >> also get access to all updates coming over the next year which includes me >> continuing to expand the ConfigMgr 2012 content, and starting new Notebooks >> for ConfigMgr 1511 (and later as the product evolves). >> >> This is just the start. With the content being hosted centrally in >> OneNote (which is free), I can centrally update the content ensuring you >> always have access to the latest content. Basing the solution on OneNote >> also provides you with flexibility in deciding: >> >> >> • Which Notebooks you open >> >> • The order you wish to have the Notebooks displayed in >> >> • Flexible searching allowing you to search the current page, >> section, Notebook or all Notebooks. >> >> I’m also not just covering ConfigMgr but everything associated with it. >> So far example rather than just saying “Load ADSI Edit” I’ve created a >> bunch of Windows FAQs that tell you how to do it as not everyone knows how >> to do such operations – my goal is that an Alien could land from outer >> space and by following OneFAQ they’d be able to Design, Install, Configure, >> Administer, and Troubleshoot on ConfigMgr. >> >> I’ve created a new FAQs page explaining the reason for my decision and >> more details on my approach: >> http://www.faqshop.com/wp/faqs >> >> Many thanks to everyone that has helped me over the years and I hope that >> by adopting this strategy it will allow me to spend more time doing what I >> do best and that’s writing high quality, regular content for everyone’s >> benefit. >> >> I am under no illusion that trying to create a ConfigMgr/ Intune hybrid >> Knowledgebase covering everything is no easy feat but I’m up to the >> challenge if you are willing to support me financially. >> >> The bottom line is I need everyone’s support to make this happen. I’m >> willing to put in the hours to write the content, but putting it bluntly I >> need your money to make it a reality without having to do other jobs that >> detract from me writing to allow me to provide for my family. >> >> I have great faith in you all and wish all of you and your families a >> Very Merry Christmas and Happy, Healthy, Prosperous 2016. >> >> If you have any questions please let me know either on here or email me >> directly cliff AT faqshop.com<http://faqshop.com> >> >> Kind regards, >> Cliff >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> ________________________________ >> >> Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail is from a law firm and may be >> protected by the attorney-client or work product privileges. If you have >> received this message in error, please notify the sender by replying to >> this e-mail and then delete it from your computer. >> >> > > >
