New GFF
From GFWiki
First, read this official message from bobo:
http://www.geneseo.edu/~rkr4/gf.html
Archived donation page (http://www.condign.org/archive/html/gf-2006-02-27.html)
| Table of contents |
Gamingforce returns
The donation target of $1350 has been reached, and bobo has purchased a new, cheaper server. GFF is scheduled to return on 2/29, notwithstanding the minor detail that 2006 is not a leap year.
Current status according to bobo
bobo has finally appeared in #gfchat (Feb. 20, 7PM EST) and has answered several questions.
Server management
bobo plans to move GFF to a cheaper server; one that will cost under $300 a month. Furthermore, he states that admins will have FTP access to GFF. He says he would allow staff to work on the server side, but only if they are well experienced with PHP.
Revenue
bobo has reviewed the Google Adsense method of paying for the server and is considering it. He also has been informed that there are certain people willing to donate key sums of money on a regular basis to keep the site running.
Stocks
bobo still plans to sell stocks. He says he will incorporate Gamingforce and make it publicly traded. It is unknown what will represent Gamingforce businesswise, except for what bobo states, which is the "community".
Old data and code
bobo has said the old data on the server may or may not be recoverable, even if the $1350 bill is paid in full. If it is not recoverable, the most prevalent opinion is to just use the old code (if obtainable), and start fresh on the data side. This will still need to be discussed with bobo's server company.
External links
- New GFF forum (http://www.condign.org/forum/viewforum.php?f=2)
- #newgff discussion (irc://irc.xelium.net/newgff)
Old wiki article content
To sum it up, it will take $1350 just to pay the overdue bills. This will also bring back our data as it was at the time the boards crashed. However, after that, it will still cost an estimated $300-400 per month in order to keep the place running.
bobo has also given the option of buying shares of Gamingforce: 1000 shares at $50 each, or $50,000 for the entire deal. This would entail ownership of the Gamingforce name, as well as the forums, all software, etc. This is at least what we are to assume; it is unknown how legally binding this would be.
As it stands, many people question bobo's ability to properly manage and support Gamingforce, and would like to see a change in management should the forums return.
The first step
...is contacting bobo. Several people are hesitant about bobo's "business" plans for GFF. They are unsure of how the place will manage to stay afloat after the initial $1350 is paid off. Furthermore, there is some discussion going around that bobo may be paying more than he needs to, or possibly even using the money for non-GFF causes.
The only way to clear up this doubt and speculation is to get all of the information from bobo. However, at the current point in time, he has proved to be unreachable.
The next step
There are two options that most people are currently considering at this point:
- Pay money to bring back GFF, but establish a change of management as well a new method of funding.
- Start a new forum and leave bobo and the Gamingforce name behind, because the community of people is the most important element of GFF.
Hosting requirements
From what information could be gathered from bobo, there is a greater emphasis on having enough CPU (processing power) to manage GFF, rather than just the bandwidth alone. In fact, bobo's hosting plan gave him more bandwidth than we even knew what to do with.
