I can run an additional server, for a small fee.

[Chicago_Faucet]

Hey,

These boards get extremely slow during the day, and with the ultimate wisdom of Cecil growing in popularity everday, they are only getting slower.

For a small fee, I can host a regional server to help with the load.

Just let me know.

[Troy_McClure_SF]

I, as a mere member, appreciate the offer, but we’ve been trying to give 'em a few bucks, and they can’t take it. And trust me, we all know the server woes quite well. It’s part of this place’s charm.

[rowrrbazzle]

Some related info from the ATMB thread FAQ - technical issues - please read this BEFORE posting a question:

The Chicago Reader is currently investigating possible solutions to the speed problem. In the meantime we appreciate your patience and ask you to bear with us.

<snip>

Q: Why doesn’t the Chicago Reader do anything about this?
A: This message board is not a big part of the Chicago Reader business, and they get very little revenue from it, so they don’t spend a lot of money on it.

Q: Are there any plans to make revenue from it?
A: People at the Chicago Reader are discussing possible ways to start getting revenue from the board.

Q: Would you like suggestions on how to make money from the board?
A: This has already been discussed at the SDMB multiple times, at great length, with many different types of suggestions, so forgive the staff if they don’t become actively involved in any new discussions.

Q: Oh come on, how expensive/hard can it be to beef up the SDMB server?
A: Any hardware upgrades done in the past have almost immediately been met by increased demand, and the board speed went back to its usual, not-so-fast (at peak times) self.

[elmwood]

Impossible for now. vBulletin can’t run as a distributed application. I don’t think MySQL can, either. (vBulletin doesn’t work with PostgreSQL or Oracle.)

[Irishman]

Shouldn’t that be “PostgrySQL”?

[Una_Persson]

*Originally posted by Chicago Faucet *
**Hey,

These boards get extremely slow during the day, and with the ultimate wisdom of Cecil growing in popularity everday, they are only getting slower.

For a small fee, I can host a regional server to help with the load.

Just let me know. **

Considering that many people have offered substantial hardware, financial support, and other upgrades for free in the past - and that the Board cannot be run as a distributed application anyhow - it seems that there would be no incentive for the Reader to enter into a business deal like that.