Who is going to pay the new memebership fee for this site?

5 Jan 2015

Quote by Dani

People don't post as a guest. When they delete their accounts, it defaults to the 'guest' account.

As the posts above are timed very close together, do you mean deactivate rather than delete?
After deleting a new account would not hold previous history of posts either.
As such, a user of Lush, however intermittent, should still be referenced to any contributions made.

Of all our inventions for mass communication,
pictures still speak the most universally understood language.

Walt Disney

5 Jan 2015

I will not be paying the membership fee.

5 Jan 2015

Quote by Guest
I am sure you have received the latest email saying this site will now be a pay site. This is how the internet will die. Government regulation and fees that keep increasing will surely destroy the free flow of information as it is designed to do. Will you pay a fee for this site? This fee will need to be paid with a traceable credit card payment that will be directly linked to this site and whatever company owns this site. You will now be financially directly linked to it. This site and its content will be traceable and linked directly back to you and your user name. Very dangerous! Will you actually do this?

You are a Tosser. And ill-informed.

I've been a member for Five Years. My profile photos are ME! Lush Stories HAVE all my details almost since Day One. I've NEVER been compromised in any way whatever, by THE SITE OWNERS or even by a fellow member...

As it happens, I couldn't give a FUCK who knows I'm here, but that's NOT the point. I understand others might, of course. The POINT is that there is NO WAY a site like this would EVER risk the privacy of its membership!!! WHY WOULD THEY??? That's SITE SUICIDE!!!

The BOLDED part of your message, (I'm sorry, Man...) proves your IDIOCY. The Internet ISN'T 'going to die' you DOLT! Pay sites have been HERE since DAY ONE! THIS SITE has NEVER charged a fee till now, till it was unavoidable. The GOVERNMENT, (You Tea-Party WANKER!) has NOTHING to do with it!

This is me being POLITE and RESTRAINED, BTW...

xx Steph

5 Jan 2015

Quote by Frank

As the posts above are timed very close together, do you mean deactivate rather than delete?
After deleting a new account would not hold previous history of posts either.
As such, a user of Lush, however intermittent, should still be referenced to any contributions made.

No, if you deactivate all your post stay in your name. Guest/Lurker is when you delete.

5 Jan 2015

Quote by Frank

As the posts above are timed very close together, do you mean deactivate rather than delete?
After deleting a new account would not hold previous history of posts either.
As such, a user of Lush, however intermittent, should still be referenced to any contributions made.

No. I mean delete. I'm not sure what you mean by the timing of the posts. Posts times are independent of active or defunct accounts. I can make five back-to-back posts right now, delete my account, and the times would still reflect that.

A deactivated account will still show up as any other active account would in the forum. In fact, people can deactivate their accounts and still be active on the site (post in the forum, chat, etc.). It happens all the time. However, when you try to go to their profiles, you will get a '404 Page Not Found' error.

When someone deletes their account, their forum posts remain, but the defaulted 'Guest' account shows up where their avatar, username, and stats would be. Once an account is gone, it's gone. How can you reference something that no longer exists?

Anyhoo, we've derailed this thing enough. I'd be happy to take this up with you in private.

░P░U░S░S░Y░ ░I░N░ ░B░I░O░

5 Jan 2015

I've been watching the debates and discussions over the new site structure with interest.

It seems to me that no matter the change, there will always be those opposed to it.

For me, well, I think that the changes are very positive and I would like to thank Nicola, Gav and the rest of the team for all of their continuing effort and hard work.

When Gold membership was introduced to the site some years ago now, there was much unrest amongst the Lush populous who feared it would polarise the community and surely be the end of Lush - it didn't as we know now. I was fortunate at that time to be gifted a gold badge for my services as a story verifier. I was delighted, as it was a huge thank you for the time and effort that I (as part of a hard working and gifted team) put in. However, I still wanted to make a financial contribution to support a site that I feel provides a great service and I have since purchased gold and silver memberships as gifts for some of my friends here. I'm happy to do it and I know of many others who have done the same for their friends.

Many people seem to be up in arms about the proposed changes but at the end of the day, there will still be a free option and then if you wish, without any pressure, you can upgrade to the service you require, or not. $10 does seem like a very minimal amount and very fair. I'm sure that if privacy or ease and anonymity is problematic, then Lush will look at ways to make the transaction as easy and discreet as possible (although from what I've read in these threads, it doesn't look too complicated) and of course we all have plenty of time to decide, given that we've all been gifted a limited membership, or more.

One might imagine that a site with more paying subscribers would put paid to the elements of trolling or down-voting that we occasionally see, and most likely dual accounts. I would like to think it would continue to lift the site above the rest and assure its deserved place as one of the most popular, well appointed and carefully maintained sites on the internet - I know that I spend more time here than most other places (not as much in recent times, but it's my intention to be back writing and socialising here again soon)

I think that it's important to remember what Lush means. For me it's been a place where I've learned to express myself, to explore my inhibitions, it's been a support while I've been going through some tough stuff in real life, I've made some very good friends, I've even found love because of this growing community and quite frankly, no amount of money could ever buy that.

In short, it's actually changed my life and I will continue to support and frequent the site as best I can. It's worth every penny.

Nothing to see here...

5 Jan 2015

I already paid. I cannot find many other places where I can have so much fun for a mere $20. For me, it was a no-brainer!

5 Jan 2015

I already paid. I waste more money every week than this will cost for a full year of friendship.

I'm sure there are substantial costs associated. If anyone is concerned why don't you just pay with paypal!

5 Jan 2015

I was happy to pay for membership. Once I paid money for a bag of pinecones, so how could I not support a website I've gotten so much pleasure from?

5 Jan 2015

I've been Gold for quiet a while. Just to help offset the cost for them a bit. It cost a lot to maintain and run servers for this site and bandwidth isn't cheap either. It used to be 75 for gold so I'm getting a better deal staying where I'm at. Although I'm not on as much as I used to be It's well worth the money for the friendship of friends.

Well that's just my opinion, sorry if you don't like.

BigDaddyRich

6 Jan 2015

Steph, thanks for an intelligent rebuke and clear headed observations. Love your calling it like it is, that was refreshing and even got a slight chuckle out of me! Right on girl, you get it obviously. Thanks to the crew who have successfully kept this site vibrant, fresh, accurate and trustworthy! Growth is a sign of health and vigor and success, so congrats to all those who dedicate their time and talent to make this site such a marvel. Happy New Year one and all. I'll be back in a writing mode once the muse finds me once again. In the meantime I'll enjoy the ride. 3some

6 Jan 2015

Quote by JohnSmith10
I don't think I will be paying for membership.

Correct me If I'm wrong but I think the features that I use the site for e.g. reading and scoring stories, posting in the forums and occasionally being in the chat rooms are available to free members. I don't write stories or visit the store so don't think a subscription is required.

You are correct however you will not have access to the Premium Story Library.

6 Jan 2015

I totally agree with most everyone who supports the New Lush World Order! let's face it folks, for the price of a few extra cups of coffee (have you priced the stuff lately) you can have a year of Lush fun and games. And for those who are afraid that "Big Brother" in the form of a significant other might find out you are doing something you ought not to be doing, well if I read Nicola's thread right, those who write will automatically get a Bronze badge which is enough to do everything we are doing now save priority tech support and a few details like that (please someone correct me if I'm wrong here).

So in summation, the Bronze badge or Silver badge isn't going to cause financial ruin to anyone, and if you write a couple stories, it's free anyway! Supporting a site like Lush that provides so much fun and entertainment to so many is a good thing. Where else are you going to get a years subscription to anything for so little? And Nicola has gone one better and given you 6 months to come up with the $10-50.00 dollars. I think that is more than fair.

6 Jan 2015

Quote by simplyjohn
You are correct however you will not have access to the Premium Story Library.

Stupid question here, but what's the premium story library?

6 Jan 2015

I would be willing to pay and probably will at some point. The site as given me something money simply can't buy. The ability to be myself, to learn about and express the person I have become. I have found friends here that I never would have found otherwise. I was given a Bronze membership and for that I am grateful but at some point when I can afford it I will gladly and willing pay for the use of this site with no complaint. For me, it's just worth it.

6 Jan 2015

Totally agree. It costs money to keep this up and as we all have seen the membership is growing to large numbers. Was an accountant and know that adding 10 people at work force of 100 doesn't always increase costs 10%. And buying more storage space for archiving these pics, talks, data don't come cheap. How much will you pay to go to some peep show, or video porn shop, pay for sex? This is cheap at the price and I appreciate it. Also, what about the friendships and relationships you have made here. How much to go and see people any time day or night to converse with and have fun together. Thanks Lush! I'll[ pay and gladly.

A determined person with perseverance can overcome many obstacles. They can, many times, perform better than those who are more intelligent, stronger and with better finances by determination and perseverance

6 Jan 2015

Totally agree. It costs money to keep this up and as we all have seen the membership is growing to large numbers. Was an accountant and know that adding 10 people at work force of 100 doesn't always increase costs 10%. And buying more storage space for archiving these pics, talks, data don't come cheap. How much will you pay to go to some peep show, or video porn shop, pay for sex? This is cheap at the price and I appreciate it. Also, what about the friendships and relationships you have made here. How much to go and see people any time day or night to converse with and have fun together. Thanks Lush! I'll pay and gladly.

A determined person with perseverance can overcome many obstacles. They can, many times, perform better than those who are more intelligent, stronger and with better finances by determination and perseverance

6 Jan 2015

Quote by jollylolly
I was happy to pay for membership. Once I paid money for a bag of pinecones, so how could I not support a website I've gotten so much pleasure from?

Were they MAGIC pine-cones? confused5

xx Steph

(giggle!)

6 Jan 2015

I'm firmly convinced that we are entering a new financial paradigm because of all this new technology, while financial institutions, governments and economic elites try to convince us all that it will all be business as usual and happy ever after.

Very little that is free at the point of use is actually free. There's a truism in media studies that if you're not paying for something, you are the product - which is to say that if you watch commercial TV, you as a viewer are the product (as viewer) that advertisers are paying the TV company to hand them. The same is more graphically true with something like Facebook (which is why I don't do it).

Until some kind of new and hopefully better (more equitable/benign) economic paradigm asserts itself, using the Internet is a bit of a Faustian pact. You basically have to work out whether what you want is worth various forms of tracking. Look carefully at what kinds of ads crop up on , and you'll see that they're often related to pages/areas of interest you've visited in the past. Tracking people isn't difficult, if someone really wants to, for whatever reason.

It's really up to the individual to work out the risks/benefits of what they do on the net. Given the choice/means, I'd rather pay for something than feel that "I" was being sold on to third parties. We all know that websites cost money to run and maintain. For that reason I don't have a problem with the idea of a membership fee, per se.

The only thing is that I don't (and you can call me paranoid if you like) conduct financial transactions of any kind over the internet, though I'll probably feel compelled to at some point in the future. I am, though, very grateful for the Bronze Membership and will endeavour to contribute in the same way as hitherto by publishing stories that (hopefully) people want to read.

6 Jan 2015

Quote by stephanie

Were they MAGIC pine-cones?

xx Steph

(giggle!)

Maybe they were, you don't know. They smelled enchanting anyway.HG4uGw4eehzjgIeo

6 Jan 2015

Quote by Mazza
I've been watching the debates and discussions over the new site structure with interest.

It seems to me that no matter the change, there will always be those opposed to it.

For me, well, I think that the changes are very positive and I would like to thank Nicola, Gav and the rest of the team for all of their continuing effort and hard work.

When Gold membership was introduced to the site some years ago now, there was much unrest amongst the Lush populous who feared it would polarise the community and surely be the end of Lush - it didn't as we know now. I was fortunate at that time to be gifted a gold badge for my services as a story verifier. I was delighted, as it was a huge thank you for the time and effort that I (as part of a hard working and gifted team) put in. However, I still wanted to make a financial contribution to support a site that I feel provides a great service and I have since purchased gold and silver memberships as gifts for some of my friends here. I'm happy to do it and I know of many others who have done the same for their friends.

Many people seem to be up in arms about the proposed changes but at the end of the day, there will still be a free option and then if you wish, without any pressure, you can upgrade to the service you require, or not. $10 does seem like a very minimal amount and very fair. I'm sure that if privacy or ease and anonymity is problematic, then Lush will look at ways to make the transaction as easy and discreet as possible (although from what I've read in these threads, it doesn't look too complicated) and of course we all have plenty of time to decide, given that we've all been gifted a limited membership, or more.

One might imagine that a site with more paying subscribers would put paid to the elements of trolling or down-voting that we occasionally see, and most likely dual accounts. I would like to think it would continue to lift the site above the rest and assure its deserved place as one of the most popular, well appointed and carefully maintained sites on the internet - I know that I spend more time here than most other places (not as much in recent times, but it's my intention to be back writing and socialising here again soon)

I think that it's important to remember what Lush means. For me it's been a place where I've learned to express myself, to explore my inhibitions, it's been a support while I've been going through some tough stuff in real life, I've made some very good friends, I've even found love because of this growing community and quite frankly, no amount of money could ever buy that.

In short, it's actually changed my life and I will continue to support and frequent the site as best I can. It's worth every penny.

Well said Mazza

6 Jan 2015

There are wonderful things and wonderful people on Lush. I knew within a few weeks of my arrival that I'd found a new home. I mentioned to a friend here how much I enjoyed the site, and that I intended to buy a Gold Membership. Before I knew it, he had gifted me one. I've been active on a lot of different social sites over the past nine years. I've even owned and operated one of my own for a couple years, and know from personal experience what a challenge it is to make a site successful. For the past five years, I've worked as an administrator on a friend's lesbian social-network, and see all the hassles she goes through to finance the site, fend off attacks from hackers, write code, and keep the membership active and vibrant. I have nothing but respect for anyone who can pull off this feat, and Nicola has certainly done that with Lush. If ad revenues no longer cover her costs, her choices are limited, and the ones she's made seem perfectly fair to me. I know the 'something-for-nothing' crowd will always howl. These are the same people who happily enjoy roads, fire departments, and public libraries, but whine about taxation and vote down every operating-levy that comes along!

There are givers and takers. If you've enjoyed being on this site for years and never contributed, you are part of the problem, not the solution. I intend to renew my Gold Membership this summer, because I want to see this site continue and thrive.

6 Jan 2015

I already bought gold

6 Jan 2015

Quote by Shylass
I have family in the military. They won't touch social media (Facebook, etc), or allow photos (either on home turf or from theatre) to be used anywhere, because of the information they contain. They won't even use apps like Strava for tracking physical leisure progress on their private phone.

If you access the internet, however you choose to, you can be tracked in different ways. Therefore, it is important how we conduct ourselves. Anything within private messages, and even from those thingies that disguise your location, etc, can be scrutinised by those who know how.

We all know our private lives are our own, but that the world seeks to bring some down in whatever way they can. In such instances, as long as our activities are not illegal, or borderline, then we have a small corner to fight from.

As far as being tracked goes, welcome to the 21st century!

Nicola has built something that most could only dream of, and not only afforded immense pleasure (sexual, emotional, etc) to thousands (millions?) of individuals, but she has also educated and freed people such as myself in different ways.

This is not some massive commercial company from the off. It was built from nothing by starting with one individual's dream, and it is a pleasure for me to know that not only does she (rightly) ask for help with the running costs, but perhaps in the future, she might even make some profit for herself.

I can't currently afford to pay, but have been gifted Bronze because of my drop of offerings in this heaving ocean of pleasure. If I could afford Gold, then I would buy it. I would buy it for two reasons: because it is time to give something back to keep this growing site (and it WILL continue to grow) travelling onwards and upwards, and to show one woman and her team that they effing deserve support from this user.

As for being tracked, as long as I'm not stepping near or over any legal lines, then I'm happy to be scrutinised. I no longer work in a certain field, and if I did, there is still nothing that I am ashamed of, or that could lose me my job via private investigators for ignorant people with nothing better to do than hound those who need some help getting off for stress release.

So yes, when I can afford to pay, I will. Because not only do I believe it is right and good to put something back if I am able, but Nicola has also chosen to keep the original features of the site FREE. Her concept is still here, and still available. There are different branches that have grown, and we can climb higher if we wish. But the trunk of the tree is still accessible. It would be nice if the dogs didn't pee where I'm sitting, but I'm prepared to sit around the other side of the trunk and ignore them.

Observe, she writes beautifully even when just making a comment! I want her writing here.

6 Jan 2015

I echo Maz on this one - the site is the best I've come across, I will be staying and at an appropriate point upgrade from Silver to Gold, regardless of having been published here.

Sven (tE)

6 Jan 2015

I am grateful for the free bronze membership, and I think the free 6 months (if I remember correctly) for newbies is a wise move as well (as I said in a previous comment, if I hadn't been able to contact people via email/bb, I doubt I would have stayed).

I am content with bronze, so doubt I'll buy a higher level, but might. It is certainly worth it. I really like what Nicola (and all the members) has built here. A caring, literate, (mostly) respectful, friendly, supportive group, some of whom have become close friends. Even with the semi-anonymous avatar/username thing going on, we are all sharing some very personal, private sides of ourselves here, and you need a safe and supportive environment to feel safe enough to do that here.

Paywalls are an unfortunate fact of modern life. If you need a new server, you need money for a new server! I'd have been willing to donate, and I am sure others would have been too, when the sever first crashed. Someone mentioned a donate button, and that is not a bad idea.

Thanks for keeping the site alive, Nicola, and all the Lushies.

6 Jan 2015

I've said it elsewhere, but I think quality costs money and I believe this is a quality site. I would never have thought a 'literary' adult site would interest me as much, or that I could find rewarding friendships (and more) here, but I have. It even inspired me to write, after decades of just dreaming about writing, and for me personally, that has been very rewarding. I get a tingle when readers provide feedback that indicates that they enjoyed my meager offerings. I guess I'm a loyal lushie. And if the owner makes a buck or two on it, God bless her...nothing wrong with that, in my opinion.

“It's nice sometimes to open up the heart a little and let some hurt come in. It proves you're still alive.”

6 Jan 2015

Quote by stephanie

I've NEVER been compromised in any way whatever, by THE SITE OWNERS or even by a fellow member...

xx Steph

Oh I've tried!!! You play so hard to get.

6 Jan 2015

To answer the original question; I received the email and a Bronze membership, so I could stay as I am. However I absolutely love this site and for 1$ a week I now intend to take out a gold membership even though I hadn't considered it before.

If you've ever visited similar sites or submitted stories you'll know how good this one is, the people who work on here do a fantastic job.

6 Jan 2015

this is the best deal on the Internet for those who want to read and write the best erotica. I heartily endorse the charge.

Some folks argue they cannot afford it. $50 a year for Premium Membership works out to 14¢ a day. I will just leave that for consideration.

Where can you get this amount of friendship, entertainment, intellectual stimulation and, yes why we are all here, sexual arousal for 14¢ a day? dontknow

Walter