Apology to Readers – Request for Help
Dear Readers:
This post is a mix of good news and bad, concluding with a request for help.
The good news is that the blog is increasing in hits, having a positive impact, and making a difference.
The bad news is that I must apologize for the recent reduction in quality of photographs. Let me explain and make a request for help.
Several weeks ago, I got a notice from my original blog host service that I had greatly exceeded my bandwidth – largely due to the number of high quality photographs I post, which are large files.
As a result, I had to change servers, and lost about 2 weeks of posting while the change was made (that’s why all the old posts have all those random weird symbols that look like capital A’s. The transition did not work out completely right).
Well, today I got an overuse warning from my new server – imposing significant additional bandwidth use charges (lesson learned: always read the fine print in the host agreement! But I would not have understood it anyway! Guess I’m experiencing the shock new cell phone users got for excessive minutes).
At any rate, the new server costs significantly more than the old one and now the new extra bandwidth charges come at a really bad time financially.
To avoid these charges, I am forced to reduce the quality of the images (my tech advisor, my son, tells me that the bandwidth is a function of the size of the image, the image quality, and the volume of hits to the site. I can control only the image quality variable, and have gone back and reduced the size of some of the photos. This has visibly reduce quality (jut look at Senator Weinberg!). Obviously I want to increase hits, but that is uncontrollably increasing my costs).
This blog started 5 years ago by invitation of the Star Ledger to write as the environmental voice on their new “NJ Voices” page.
After I was kicked off the Star Ledger (great story there), I started my own blog Wolfenotes.com.
I do this blog as an adjunct to my work – I spend a lot of time on it, and work hard to get it right, but I love doing it and am not paid to do it.
I assume that readers get some value or enjoyment from the material I post.
As a matter of principle, I’ve never asked anyone for money or considered making this a subscription service.
In an effort to avoid commercialization at all costs, I have refused many solicitations by internet advertisers.
To be blunt, I barely keep my head above water financially.
With all that in mind and the new server and increasing bandwidth charges, I thought I’d abandon my pride and make my first appeal to readers for funding.
So, readers out there, if you enjoy this blog and would like to support our efforts and have some change to spare, please consider making a contribution. If you can afford it, send whatever you feel is appropriate to:
Bill Wolfe
PO Box 112
Ringoes, NJ 08551
Much appreciated.
Note: Any assistance is NOT TAX DEDUCTABLE , purely voluntary, and comes with no strings attached.
(ps – no pipebombs, please. And that means you “Grandfather of NJ Toxics” Hal Bozarth, and Benton and Brogan and Engenton and the rest of “murderers row”!)