Except I don’t have the money and haven’t yet been able to pay my person-who=paid-=for-me.
I don’t have to re-subscribe until August and I really can’t afford to do so right now.
I must admit that I do have a classy custom title in mind for myself though.
Custom titles are just supposed to be for fun, the equivalent of a vanity license plate. If you don’t want one you don’t have to get one. You’ll still have all the core functionality needed to participate on the board. As for other boards offering more bells and whistles, I venture to say most of them aren’t pushing the limits of their servers the way we are. We’re serving up close to 7 million page views a month. This afternoon we were hosting more than 800 simultaneous sessions. We’re reluctant to put any more strain on this pup till the next upgrade.
While I personally bask in the warm fuzzy embrace of charter membership, I can see Domokun’s point. It seems unfair to create a perpetual upper class of charter members and tell all future subscribers they can never hope to enter this group. Maybe membership should instead be divided into “regular members” and “long-term members” (with the ltm’s getting the privileged rates). All people who subscribed back in the beginning would automatically be given long term status. New subscribers would be regular members, but if they stick around for a period of three years, will be upgraded to long-term members.
I guess I just don’t understand why so many people are upset by this idea. It’s not as though anyone would take it seriously - do you honestly consider someone’s tenure here in weighing their opinions? I don’t. It’s just a cute little recognition of the fact that the board changed in a significant way at one point in time. I just don’t see what it matters if someone’s got “Charter member” below their name.
Then you’d be just as cool about having the distinction scrapped, I take it?
Excalibre, maybe you didn’t read the OP. Are you aware that charter members only pay half as much as regular members?
We did it mostly so everyone would be clear on what subscription rate they qualified for. (It tells you in the subscription box, but I was trying to head off questions by people who hadn’t yet gotten to that point.) After renewal season we’ll probably change everyone to “Member.”
I think the slowness of the boards at times is probably the only issue that would stop me re-subscribing so I hope something will be done in that direction.
This “cool stuff” though is a bit worrying too. Custom titles is one thing but dirty great big avatars or flashing scrolling titles etc. etc. would be hard to bear.
One of the best things for me about these boards is that the lack of avatars and pictures means I don’t have to worry (too much!) about browsing at work - nothing worse than a big pair of animated boobs appearing on-screen as the boss walks past…!
Excuse me if this question has been asked & answered before: Due to personal situation, I may not be able to use charge this time and have never used Paypal. Any way I can send you guys a money order? any other ideas? Thanks, for everything.
Does this mean that taking our shirts off won’t get us in a priority queue for the best titles? Damn, I was just wetting down my t-shirt, too.
No, what they said to me last year, and it makes sense, is that they’d have to hire extra staff or reallocate some to open envelopes, deposit money, etc. You can post in the “Make your pay my way ask here” thread in ATMB. I had someone pay for me on credit card and I sent them a check in the mail.
It’s pretty cool around here because if you don’t pay, it’s easy enough for the person to scream it all over the boards and shame you into paying. So I don’t think people worry as much here.
Or you can get a friend’s credit card.
Sorry, but no.
Perhaps you can get a friend to help you here. This includes not only your friends in real life, but your friends on the board. See the thread Make my “pay my subscription fee” request here. for more information. You can maybe work something out to get your fee covered and send/give your friend the money order.
your humble TubaDiva
Precisely. Mentally, one should simply replace “arter Member” with “eapskate”. 
Just like the annointed 144,000 of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. When this thing finally goes sour, the charter members will ascend to the roof-top garden of 11 East Illinois St. in Chicago to reign with the Perfect Master, where we’ll finally get a definitive empirical answer to these two burning questions.
And the rest of the membership will live in a “paradise” down at street level consuming pizza and Old Style.
For certain younger Charter Members, there will be the option of spelling it, “eapsk8r.” 
I’ll pony up the penny, but good luck finding someone who’ll surrender their beer.
Renewal by 4/28 gives a difference of $2.47 between charter and regular members. $7.48 is not half of $9.95. Those who signed up initially on time did pay only half as much as those who procastinated. What was wrong with that? Now, the difference will be only $2.47 a year, unless you procastinate again.
How about a category for us Day One joiners?
Founding Overlord sounds good…