Adverts (was: Funny Linux animation)

[bscott at ntisys.com]

On Wed, 29 Jan 2003, at 10:08pm, travis at scootz.net wrote:
> I think the best way for a site to make money is to sell a real product.
> ... Slashdot is under the same umbrella company as thinkgeek and they sell
> cool (but usually overpriced) stuff.

  Incredible.  You assert that the best way for a site to generate revenue
is to sell merchandise, but then complain when said merchandise necessarily
has a higher price.

  Back in 2001, the cost of operating Slashdot was estimated at roughly one
million dollars per year.  Where, exactly, should that money come from?  
Hats and T-shirts?  You need to sell a lot of hats, or sell them at a rather
high mark-up, to generate one million in revenue.

  TANSTAAFL = There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch[1].  Everything has
a cost.  That cost *MUST* be covered.  This is more than just economic
theory; it is the Law of Conversation of Mass and Energy.  You cannot escape
it.  Attempting to do so is folly.

> When banner/skyscraper/box/button ads are paying 0.0000003 per impression
> it's time to look for a better source of revenue.

  Indeed.  Which is one of the things I am trying to get at.  People seem to
object to adverts.  Yet at the same time, they complain when other forms of
cost recovery are attempted.

  To use another cliche[4]: You cannot have your cake and eat it, too.


Footnotes
---------
[1] If you have not read Robert Heinlein's classic _The Moon is a Harsh
    Mistress_, you may not understand the significance of "TANSTAAFL".
    Briefly: In an isolated colony with limited resources[2], failure
    to understand the underlying principle of TANSTAAFL will kill you[3].
[2] The story was set on the moon, but it applies just as well to colonies
    here on Earth.  Look up mortality rates for early North American
    colonies if you don't believe me.
[3] For the literalists out there: No, I am not implying that Flash
    animations or television adverts are a life-or-death situation.
[4] I like cliches[5].
[5] I like footnotes, too.

-- 
Ben Scott <bscott at ntisys.com>
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