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The End Is Nigh. Nebhead Send a noteboard - 27/07/2016 11:16:33 AM

Hello, one and all. Yes, even you there in the corner, covered in cobwebs.

This site is rapidly approaching its 7th birthday and I'm sad to say that, in it's current state, it will be its last.

I'm sure this comes as no surprise to the few of your who find yourselves drawn back here every couple of days. The sad truth is that the community here has evaporated, and I can no longer justify the expense of hosting and maintaining a graveyard purely to satisfy my own sense of nostalgia for good times which are firmly in the past.

The reasons for this are many and varied, but I'll primarily lay the blame on three things.

First: The way people interact online has shifted dramatically over the past five years, with instant interactions on closed networks such as Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp now the norm. There is no longer the patience or inclination to use a "traditional" - read "antiquated" - message board system that is distinctly non-mobile friendly.

Second: I built ReadAndFindOut to be a copy of Wotmania, for reasons of comfort and nostalgia - to try and capture and preserve something which meant a lot to me personally. I was proud of being a prominent part of a caring community (and, particularly, of having met the most wotmaniacs in real life - a title which I think I still hold, though Tim may have snuck past) and I didn't want to lose that by messing with something that was worked. This was shortsighted. I had in my mind at the time that the site would evolve to become something like Goodreads is now. I should have just built that from the start.

Third and finally: I simply do not have the time or resources at this point to take what little traffic and audience ReadAndFindOut has left, and turn it around into something which is modern and capable of surviving further. I've not announced this to very many people yet but I am in the process of starting up my own company. I've dropped down to part time hours in my regular job in order to get this going, which still receiving some income, but as you might expect I am now squeezed for both time and money. While I've made optimisations and adjustments over the years, the £50 a month I pay for hosting this site is no longer justifiable, purely from a practical standpoint. That's, like, food for two weeks


This isn't to say I want to shut down ReadAndFindOut - simply that I don't have time to take it forwards, or the cash to maintain the status quo. I would be happy to consider offers from anyone who wants to try their hand at developing the site, or wants to contribute to server hosting in order to at least keep the site up. Failing this, though, I am likely to look at shutting down this site within the next 6 months or so.


It's all my fault...
Vegas Aug 17-18 - A Night to Remember

signature_images/100.gif
Spoony made this aaaages ago for me. Never got to use it though... until now!
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The End Is Nigh. - 27/07/2016 11:16:33 AM 9623 Views
The End is Nye - 27/07/2016 06:26:50 PM 1287 Views
Nah, but seriously - 27/07/2016 06:27:14 PM 1269 Views
Thank you, Ben - 27/07/2016 06:27:13 PM 1333 Views
Thank you Ben - 27/07/2016 07:56:12 PM 1208 Views
Yeah... - 27/07/2016 10:26:43 PM 1283 Views
Re: Yeah... - 28/07/2016 05:25:48 PM 1254 Views
Yes - 28/07/2016 10:44:25 PM 1189 Views
*sniffle* - 29/07/2016 02:13:03 AM 1308 Views
aww... - 29/07/2016 02:27:52 AM 1159 Views
Much love Ben - 28/07/2016 12:01:51 AM 1365 Views
Hey, you're alive! Hope you're doing well. *NM* - 15/08/2016 02:54:05 PM 787 Views
Re: The End Is Nigh. - 28/07/2016 02:58:40 AM 1136 Views
Thanks as well Ben - 28/07/2016 05:51:53 AM 1138 Views
<3 <3 <3 *NM* - 28/07/2016 05:27:25 PM 882 Views
Sadness - 29/07/2016 01:57:07 AM 1363 Views
And wishing you best of luck in your new adventure *NM* - 29/07/2016 02:01:25 AM 782 Views
McAngsty *NM* - 02/10/2016 02:13:34 PM 756 Views
*woe* - 29/07/2016 01:58:26 AM 1249 Views
Mega Huge Thanks! - 29/07/2016 04:39:39 AM 1158 Views
Re: The End Is Nigh. - 30/07/2016 12:16:40 AM 1512 Views
<Dusts off cobwebs> - 01/08/2016 09:26:02 PM 1358 Views
Wow, 121 members? - 02/08/2016 05:00:54 AM 1129 Views
See this journal entry. - 03/08/2016 01:14:41 PM 1374 Views
Great to see that list..... - 04/08/2016 04:32:44 AM 1136 Views
I really wish I'd have gone to the Michigan 2004 Gathering - 08/08/2016 12:21:25 AM 1117 Views
So I might've been the "one" ... - 03/08/2016 06:24:03 AM 1203 Views
Sad are the endings which mark the passage of time ... - 03/08/2016 06:21:49 AM 1109 Views
Thanks for all the work Ben.... - 03/08/2016 02:18:47 PM 978 Views
Thank you for everything - 04/08/2016 05:50:19 PM 1104 Views
May you... - 05/08/2016 10:08:15 PM 1188 Views
PM me if you want contact info *NM* - 11/08/2016 06:11:14 PM 686 Views
Thank you Ben - 16/08/2016 09:51:17 PM 1053 Views
If anyone wants to stay in contact with me - 16/08/2016 10:18:17 PM 1126 Views
All good things must come to an end. - 23/08/2016 07:19:03 AM 908 Views
Thank you - 01/09/2016 06:26:40 PM 1109 Views
So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish! - 03/09/2016 08:15:55 PM 1082 Views
Good effort - 23/09/2016 10:36:12 AM 1112 Views
Cheers *NM* - 24/09/2016 04:01:47 AM 691 Views
Re: The End Is Nigh. - 02/10/2016 02:25:14 PM 1239 Views
...I honestly don't know how I made it 7 years in without realizing you were dart_board. - 12/10/2016 08:12:48 AM 1024 Views
Not in a long time. Link me to it please. - 13/10/2016 05:01:59 PM 1154 Views
dartboard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - 18/10/2016 04:38:14 AM 952 Views
Re: dartboard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - 16/11/2016 01:18:55 PM 977 Views
Re: Not in a long time. Link me to it please. - 27/10/2016 08:57:52 AM 880 Views
Thank you! *NM* - 16/11/2016 01:19:47 PM 588 Views
Thank you, Ben <3 - 14/10/2016 07:21:14 AM 1011 Views
Thanks for doing all that you've done, Ben. - 12/11/2016 09:02:04 AM 1438 Views
<3 *NM* - 18/12/2016 10:03:32 PM 620 Views
Thank you - 21/11/2016 08:19:44 AM 1031 Views
Thank you for everything, Ben. - 30/11/2016 12:30:48 AM 998 Views
<3 *NM* - 18/12/2016 10:04:48 PM 672 Views
❤️ *hugs* *NM* - 01/01/2017 01:20:31 AM 863 Views
Any update on when this happens? - 06/01/2017 06:23:43 PM 922 Views
No kidding.... - 20/01/2017 02:11:32 PM 1073 Views
Thanks! - 26/01/2017 03:07:44 PM 1099 Views

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