hikerboy wrote:

Just Bill wrote:

Everyone wants to make some money doing what they love- I hope I can find a way. Hell if Cheryl strayed gets paid- why not me or mike or you HB

If not- I agree- you do it because you want to. If it pays out- awesome. If not- you helped out. Like life in general- do what you love and things will work out.

I have seriously considered your idea Rasty- a "book" style online site would/should do well and fill a void. It would either need to be closed to comment, or relatively locked down. But if it was laid out in a section/chapter/topic type format with some sort of progression i think it would cater to all folks better. I think the digital age has progressed enough that you don't turn off your older demographics as much as you used to. Hell- what's the average age of the folks here? You could add interactivity to it with a comment thread in each chapter and even a voting system to elevate posts or tips into the permanant site- but the main structure would need to be maintained and an editor and limited author (screened) system would be needed to streamline the info. But you could much more ecconomically include the high quality photos and videos needed to effectively communicate your information. WB has tons of info- but you would need to spend tons of time just to find it, and still be unsure where it came from in the first place. BPL turned out the same way. Thier article system and archives are nicer, but not right either. If I want to check out sleeping bags I should be able to go to say- the sleep system section, read an overview, read the sleeping bag article, then click onto various updates, reader tips, gear reviews, and even link to a manufacturers website (or even purchase directly from the site).

A website could also evolve over time in ways that a book cannot- it can expand and contract in content as needed and have the ability to stay current with trends, gear, and general technique. It could tie into a community like this site does.

I know nothing about websites, design, or monetization of them. Money would be a neccessary evil to compensate the host and site maintenance, as well as cover the cost of quality content. And from a purely selfish standpoint- why would I or another author give away their content for free (consistently). Or the flipside of that arguement- with payment you would have the means to generate that content more frequently. The downfall of BPL seems to be that after the initial slurry of membership and first burn of info- cold hard reality sets in- we all have to pay our bills- so when it's just for love... you kick out an article when you can. I'm 35 in the middle of family and child rearing responsibilities so the cold hard dollars always rear their ugly head in my direction. So perhaps my jaded opinion, but if it was going to work you couldn't half-ass it or part time it.

Who knows- you guys (and gal) have made a big leap here. Sgt. Rock would be an excellent fella to hear from on the topic. Not sure if Stick has made it over here but he has a popular site too.
WB has the numbers and clear indication that folks are seeking it- there is definetely an audience.
You guys have the community.
BPL has some quality content and the right idea (trusted authors and screened content- but loosely organized)
TrailGroove has the heart.
Backpacker can sell stuff, but little else.
The web has some quality bloggers and individual sites.
Mags and the trail show crew have an interesting angle.

If you could round them up and back it with quality content in a useable format you would have a very clear winner.
Bring them for info, hook them on community, pump them with stories and news, sell them stuff they would already have bought someplace else.

I'd be very open to talking about it

ok,you;re hired.


the pay sucks,though