An Issue regarding the ads.
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(Please Read the entire thing before giving your opinion)
Specifically the one on the top of the page.
I find it very hard to ignore and I have a few unanswered questions about its purpose.
I understand that It's there to help pay for the new server, however, I do not understand why only players who aren't upgraded can see it while the players who already upgraded can't.
The new update regarding the new ad placement is quite vague. It explains why it is there but it doesn't elaborate why only players who aren't upgraded can see it.
Since there is and was no explanation given to me I'm going to have to assume that Robyn placed it there so people would upgrade their account (By purchasing bones with actual USD) so they wouldn't have to see the annoying ad.
I also wouldn't feel right to purchase people's hard-earned money with fake currency, such as Alacrity money.
This seems like a way to get more money to me. Which I honestly think is a 'not nice way to earn money for your site'.
For an example, if I were to tape a piece of cardboard to your forehead which also made you see a box like figure above everything you see, Seems irritating, right? But what if I told you that the only way you could remove it would be by paying $15. That seems Unfair, Am I wrong?
I was told to make a polite approach towards this issue that I have, this is what I thought of. I don't mean to offend Robyn in any way, And I do not like putting her on the spot like this, however, this was her doing.
I would like to hear your opinions, I'm sure that the vast majority of you will side with Robyn, because you look up to her. But if you agree with my point then you can either speak up and post here, or you can message me what you feel and I will post it here minus your name and ID# making it anonymous. Whatever option you feel comfortable with~
Specifically the one on the top of the page.
I find it very hard to ignore and I have a few unanswered questions about its purpose.
I understand that It's there to help pay for the new server, however, I do not understand why only players who aren't upgraded can see it while the players who already upgraded can't.
The new update regarding the new ad placement is quite vague. It explains why it is there but it doesn't elaborate why only players who aren't upgraded can see it.
Since there is and was no explanation given to me I'm going to have to assume that Robyn placed it there so people would upgrade their account (By purchasing bones with actual USD) so they wouldn't have to see the annoying ad.
I also wouldn't feel right to purchase people's hard-earned money with fake currency, such as Alacrity money.
This seems like a way to get more money to me. Which I honestly think is a 'not nice way to earn money for your site'.
For an example, if I were to tape a piece of cardboard to your forehead which also made you see a box like figure above everything you see, Seems irritating, right? But what if I told you that the only way you could remove it would be by paying $15. That seems Unfair, Am I wrong?
I was told to make a polite approach towards this issue that I have, this is what I thought of. I don't mean to offend Robyn in any way, And I do not like putting her on the spot like this, however, this was her doing.
I would like to hear your opinions, I'm sure that the vast majority of you will side with Robyn, because you look up to her. But if you agree with my point then you can either speak up and post here, or you can message me what you feel and I will post it here minus your name and ID# making it anonymous. Whatever option you feel comfortable with~
»ƊƳƝ« (#10757)
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08-10-2011 at 2:44 PM
Alright, I all respect what you have too say. I guess I'm just being a bit too sensitive, sorry everyone.<br />
GeistNoir (#4246)
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08-10-2011 at 12:16 AM
The site needs funds to run. Without funds, the site would have to go down, probably permanently. I feel that it's completely fair to look at a few spare pixels on my side account for that, and I've already earned the luxury of no-ads on my main account by it being upgraded. <br /> <br /> I don't understand the fuss in the slightest
Horseman (#4055)
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08-9-2011 at 9:12 PM
I'm not really siding with Robyn here, but I'm totally fine with the ads on top. They are a way to pay for the site's server hosting. When you're upgraded, it usually means $15 USD or more was donated to the site because donations are the only way bones go into circulation. And that 15 or more dollars makes up for the loss of money caused by not placing the ad for upgraded users. If anything, it's a nice little thing to do because it would have meant more funding if the ads were made visible to all players.
♥XxKarlyxX♥ (#584)
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08-9-2011 at 3:17 PM
As its probably already been said.<br /> <br /> Upgraded players most likely don't see it because the majority of us donate thus our donations help pay for the site, on every sim/pet site I went on they had ads and if you donated you could hide the ads so you didn't see them.<br /> Its not like Alacrity is the only site with this feature, $15 for a year upgrade isn't a lot of money.<br /> <br /> The ad isn't there to make you donate just to upgrade cause you can quite easily buy bones with Ala cash, I'd understand if the only means of getting bones was by paying with real money but it isn't.<br /> <br /> Owning a site isn't a walk in the park, hosting and servers can cost a fortune, if you've never owned a site then it might seem pointless but its pretty simple to understand why the site needs the ad and why upgrades don't see it. <br /> XxKarlyxX~♥
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2011-08-09 15:19:58 by #584
2011-08-09 15:19:15 by #584
Crestfallen (#37)
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08-9-2011 at 2:28 PM
If I didn't have an upgrade, I'd be fine with the ad on the top. I was actually surprised that upgraded accounts were free of the ad, I expected to be subjected to it.<br /> <br /> DeviantArt has the same exact thing going on, and you're not asking them why they have it.<br /> <br /> Maybe DA has millions of people on their server a day, possibly thousands of people registering names, and then millions of pieces of art being uploaded to the site. Millions of comments added a day and so on.<br /> <br /> Maybe Rob's server(s) aren't subjected to that sort of work, but for the amount of accounts, dogs, and activity this site's servers had to be upgraded or else the downtime would kill us. The only way Rob could make the switch affordable was to put an ad, a single ad bar, at the top of the page. Those ads pay for us to have the site, and even then it doesn't pay a lot.<br /> <br /> It's not the fact that people are 'siding with Rob' or anything like that, it's if you understand how much money it costs to host a site like this. It can cost hundreds of dollars, I personally don't know how much it costs because that's not my business to know. The server is a requirement to run a site, I can tell you I rather have an ad than hours of downtime.
Shay (#43)
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08-9-2011 at 2:12 PM
The idea of the ads is to help support the server. This will allow more players to join up and play at the same time without the server crashing a lot. <br /> <br /> Robyn is not looking to fill her banks to the brim with cash while being Scrooge McDuck or some malicious business company. Robyn is trying to support the server. <br /> <br /> Players who upgraded have either earned hard for the bones or bought them, thus helping pay for the server to run.<br /> <br /> The small advertisements are there to help pay for the free players. <br /> <br /> Robyn isn't making you pay anything. She is trying to make her site, our site we love to play, able to have more players and easier for everyone to use.<br /> <br /> I do not see a single problem with this. People who pay money to be Upgraded will have benefits. =]<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> I can promise you she isn't going to go crazy and decide that she's going to delete everyone's account and pets if they don't pay on a certain day, or make everything cost money to play. She is a very considerate, kind game master. <3
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2011-08-09 14:13:14 by #43
Aphotic (#2054)
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08-9-2011 at 2:05 PM
The idea of the ads makes perfect sense to me, as well. I have an upgraded account, therefore, the bones I bought to get the upgrade went to help pay for alacrity. <br /> I think that the reason upgraded players don't see them, is because with the bones we bought, we've helped pay for alacrity's upkeep, therefore, we do not need to see the adds. <br />
KaT (#5747)
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08-9-2011 at 10:15 AM
I'm fine with it being there, it helps pay for the server and if we didn't have it Ala would be really slow and laggy for everyone, she did it in everyone's best interest.<br /> <br /> Honestly if you don't like it try an ad blocker, I use one and Rob said that she still gets money for it whether or not you use an ad blocker =p
Kaisuke (#240)
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08-9-2011 at 10:06 AM
I think it makes perfect sense. The ad helps pay for the server, paying for an upgrade to get rid of the ad helps pay for the server. Coming from a non-upgraded member, it makes sense and I'm fine with the ad being there. It's not unfair in the slightest.