TOP Closing Up Shop*

*(Just for a few days)

I'm not the best fundraiser. Not more than once a month, and sometimes less often (because I forget), I've tried to selfishly remind people how they could help support TOP.

It's not so hard. The three main ways:

1. By checking out our advertisers, such as rawworkflow.com;

2. By making your Amazon and B&H Photo purchases through our links (we get a little commission when you do); or

3. By sustaining the site, i.e., making a recurring voluntary donation of $6, $2, $1, or 25¢ a month.** Sort of like subscribing to a magazine, only optional.

I usually take this opportunity to thank everybody who helps out in any of those ways. Which I hereby do, again.

However, a new book has convinced me that YOU should really thank these people, too! Assuming, that is, that you're one of the many who read this site without ever pitching in. According to the new book Free: The Future of a Radical Price by Chris Anderson, who's been making the television talk show circuit lately, the magic of digital distribution is that overhead is so low that lots of people can now enjoy something that is paid for by only a few.

...Which sounds good, I admit, if you're riding in the fat part of the canoe and never dipping a paddle in. If you're drafting behind the leader. If you live to put the lie to that old saying about the free lunches. But don't forget, I still need to pay my time, and times are tough as I'm sure you don't need to be reminded.

And the important thing is, it needn't cost you anything. If you are going to buy a camera or a lens or any one of thousands of other photo-related products, please consider buying it from B&H Photo. Or, if you need to buy a book or CD or piece of software, just check out Amazon first. (Here for those in the U.K.) And, pretty please, remember to use our links when you do buy from B&H or Amazon. It helps. A lot. Really.

Or click on our advertisers, or consider a subscription.

But seriously, thanks to all of you who have helped. You are very kind, and it's very much appreciated.

Vacating
Meanwhile, it's that time of year again—I'm closing up shop for a few days to get some old-fashioned August R&R. (The cheek—sticks his hat out, then goes on holiday.) TOP will resume its merry ways on, around, about, or in the vicinity of August 10th. The payoff for your patience? I am at my least curmudgeonly when I return from vacation. Although I admit it can be hard to tell.

In the meantime, why not delve into the Archives a bit? There's lots of fine stuff moldering away in there lonely and forgotten and not doing anybody enough good.

See you soon.

—Mike, One Man Fundraising Army, with slacker private

**By the way, quite a number of these have been canceled. When this happens, I assume it's something the subscriber did on purpose; but I've found several times that it comes as just as much of a surprise to the subscriber. So if you signed up to contribute and your subscription was canceled out of the blue and it was nothing you did, well, it was nothing I did, either. I don't know what's causing it.

Comments

[Jim Hart]

Mike,

As one who completely, absolutely hates "vacations", you have my deepest sympathies.

As a monetary contributor, I heartily commend your fundraising efforts - (misery loves company?) - the more folks who kick in, the more leisure time you'll have for writing. When you aren't on vacation, of course.

As a daily visitor - STOP WITH THE "SHUTTING DOWN" HEADLINES. You nearly made me spill my scotch. Gee whiz! I'm in Detroit and those types of headlines in these times generally bode ill.

I hope you have a marvelous vacation, and come back rested and ready to entertain, inform, provoke, and educate your readers.

[Diego Jose]

Have a great R&R trip Mike!

[Stan B.]

Enjoy the respite!

[Wilhelm]

Have a GREAT vacation. (Or STAYCATION, if your pocketbook is as threadbare as mine.)

[William Furniss]

I almost had a heart attack! Happy holidays.

[James McDermott]

Awww. Can't we be having a heated debate on which bucket and spade Mike whould be packing?

[Roger]

That headline caused a "say it ain't so" moment! Enjoy your break from slaving over a hot keyboard.

[Maarten B.]

Have fun! And please remember the next time that the RSS feed does not show a subtitle i.e.: "*(Just for a few days)". Pffeww, I was really startled.

[Ove]

Yep, that headline caused me a slight shock, too... :)

[charlie d]

Ta-Ta

Eat some fish.

[DrDom]

If your're back August 10th releaxed and refreshed when will you be back at your curmudgeonly best?

[CB]

Thanks for the reminder about the links. I buy from Amazon and B&H a lot, and try to remember to use your links, but in fact frequently forget. I think frequent reminders are an appropriate thing for you to do. Otherwise those links are invisible to me - blocked by my mental ad filters.

[Andy Johnson]

A common cause of subscriptions being cancelled is when a new credit card has been issued and the subsciber hasn't updated their PayPal account. I'm sure it is worth a email to let people know their subs have been cancelled.

Andy

[Jean-Louis Cuvellier]

Hi,
Checking my bank account, I realized that since my Visa card has expired and I've got a new one, my subscription has been canceled...
So, i'm going to suscribe again!
But maybe this explain that**...
Have a great time!
JLC

[Mike Johnston]

"If your're back August 10th releaxed and refreshed when will you be back at your curmudgeonly best?"

That should take until about August 15th. [g]

Mike

[Alex Vesey]

Enjoy, enjoy--this is the time of year to kick. I do hope you take your camera, though.

On a business note, is there any way to get the amazon.jp.co link back? I recently moved to Japan, and now have a research budget to buy thousands of dollars of goods from that site every year. I would be happy to see some of that go to you.

Alex

[Peter MacColeman]

Hey, dumb question anyway we can set up a virtual thermometer that would show how close each year we are to a goal of funds for the site? That way people might feel like we are working towards a goal.

[robert e]

Alarmist much? I haven't been buying as much as I used to, and I'm sure there's a lot of that going around. OK, I'll lobby one more time for a good old fashioned tip jar, though I understand how subscriptions can work better for a proprietor. On the other hand, the jar might work better for some readers.

While we're on the topic, for readers it may concern: it surprised me to learn that Amazon affiliates get commissions for digital downloads (music, movies), too (if I read their terms correctly).

Mike, thank you again for this wonderful ongoing contribution to reason, sanity, peace, humor and other, less tangible, stuff. I wish you a wonderful, relaxing, refreshing vacation. (Having said that, I'm not sure that a lot of us TOP readers would prefer a less curmudgeonly Mike Johnston, so go easy on that part, eh?)

[Geoff McCann]

Come on all you tight bastards, cough up!
The man's an artist, a little patronage wouldn't hurt.
Happy holidays!

Geoff

[T]

My subscription was cancelled when I changed my Paypal credit card. Freakin' annoying. And Paypal doesn't allow you to "uncancel" -- I actually asked them (Paypal didn't even warn me that cancellation results from a credit card change). In whatever number of months (herein lies the problem), I'll have to remember to put in a "new" subscription".

[Player]

Mike, for the amount of knowledge and entertainment I've gleaned from your outstanding site, the subscription is a mere pittance. I still owe you.

Have a great well-earned rest!

[Clayton Lofgren]

Do you ever think that if you had spent a grand less on each of those women......?

[Ed Hawco]

Have a nice vacation! And when you return, you might consider an affiliate link to Amazon.ca for us Canadians. Just sayin'... :-)

[David Littlejohn]

Here's a suggestion for your loyal readers. I changed the B&H Photo "Favorite" in my web browser so that it points to your website instead of to B&H. That way, whenever I want to go to B&H, I come to your website first. Then I can just click your B&H link. Costs me an extra click, makes you a little money.

[Steve Rosenblum]

The easiest way to be sure that you "remember" to use the TOP affiliate link when buying from Amazon and B & H is: 1. Click on the link from TOP 2. When you get to the site, then bookmark it as your "Amazon" or "BH" link. Then when you've got the itch to spend some of your hard earned cash just go to your bookmark and, VOILA, Mike gets his pound...errr, ounce, errrr.... gram of flesh!

[Andrew]

"The Offline photographer" might not be the greatest advertising strategy ever - However we wish you the best possible respite and happy exposures!

[Dave Cattell]

Mike,
I understand your preference for subscriptions, but I have a strong aversion to them. I much prefer the ability to make one off donations. I think it is so that when I'm feeling flush I can be generous, but I can save when I feel I need to.

It would also mean that you would get a higher proportion of the payment. I have missed a couple of your funding rounds for this very reason. I would be surprised if I were alone in this attitude.

Love your blog and would like to Donate.
Dave.

[Cyril]

Ed Hawco:

If you click on the right hand side on the "Amazon links" image on the right hand side, between the B&H and Subscribe links, you will end up on a page with several Amazon links, including one to amazon.ca.

That's what I try to use, although I must forget just as often...

[Jan]

I live in Germany, and I would help you by using your Amazon affiliate link. So, please give me one for www.amazon.de ! :-)

[Nick]

Mike you ripped my heart out for a second. This is my favorite photography blog! Have a great vacation.

[Dennis]

Sorry it's taken me so long to subscribe, especially to one of the few websites that I have any sort of affection for (is that weird?). What made it click for me was the poll a few days ago asking if Ctien should write about other topics - of course he should, all of you should write more. <3

[Roy]

Have a good break, well deserved.
Your scary headline finally prompted me to subscribe - only quarterly, wish I could manage more for the wealth of useful info that flows from your site.

[Gregory Close]

Hi, I had a subscription, but it canceled when I canceled my credit card, which was registered at PayPal. The subscriptions don't automatically transfer to a new credit card. This may be the cause of some of your cancelations. FYI.

[Spiny Norman]

Just ordered an Olympus body & lens through the link.

[David Bostedo]

Yet another person who hadn't updated the credit card info on Paypal which caused the subscription cancellation. It would be nice if Paypal notified you when that happened...

[Francisco Silva]

Dear Mike,

It's funny to ear you whining about that.

I once subscribed for 1 year of your payed newsletter and only got 2 issues - it seems you killed the newsletter and didn't even bother to email an explanation...

So, I consider my support to TOP paid in advance.

Best regards and have a nice vacation.

Francisco

[Chris V]

Trying to figure out how much I'm contributing by using your Amazon link: does the amount you get depend on whether I buy anything there and/or how much I buy? And do I have to share my new Hitachi router with you for having used your link?