Crowdfunding Translations

[sam]

Bad news.

the version of the "software from hell" I am using has so lousy documentation that it was not apparent that it has a limitation that renders the license given by paypal invalid. They have covered this really smart so one only finds this out after having invested month in work, and now is faced with the decision to either pay another half grand for an update from their "commercial" to their "enterprise" version, which I wont because first I dont have that money right now and second I wont spend it on that piece of shitty code they throw at you combined with the worst EVER support I have seen in a long life as a computer consultant.

There may be or rather certainly IS another way of collecting fungs, as hundrets of people use the commercial license I have, it just wont be as clearcut and nice as I had hoped it to be. I also may call it a day as I can see no big support here for the idea (with the exception of Andro), after all it may just have been a fancy of mine.

we will see, I have asked paypal to outline other options, maybe they do, maybe they dont ...

 

[Ghislain]

I feel for you Sam

Good luck in your endeavours.

Ghislain

 

[Awani]

I also may call it a day as I can see no big support here for the idea (with the exception of Andro), after all it may just have been a fancy of mine.

Maybe people are waiting for the site to be finished. I still think there are other options, but you said none of those options work... well they might work more than the site you have been trying to make (which seems not to work at all). If you build they will come, but only if you build.

 

[sam]

trying out stripe now instead of PayPal. its relatively unknown which is a disadvatage, but the implementation seems a lot easier. if that works we maybe ready in a few days as the site as such is already 100% done. it is only the PP integration I am struggeling with (to be precise the bugs in the CF software that make this integration so difficult).
To make things worse, this software company is strictly 9-5, so my 5 (!) support tickets went unnoticed on thursday and wont be looked at before next wednesday because of easter holidays.

 

[sam]

OK, I'm done with this software. If you look at their wordpress-site NOW you can see 7 (!) 1-star reviews from people who had the same or similar experiences,
https://wordpress.org/plugins/ignitiondeck/
but you can also see from the dates that these wheren't there when I started working, so due dilligence wasn't really the issue here. After spending about $250,-, 3 month wasted and a new bug creeping up every time one is solved I finally throw in the towel.
That does not mean I give up on the idea though, I just give up on this particular software and the idea of shelling out all that cash in advance, reminds me too much of my last book translation ventures
What I will do instead is this: I have searched the web for a good but also not too expensive web-programmer, fluent in php and CSS, both of which I am not. The usual going rate for a fully functional CF website is around 5-6.000 U$. That is a big sum. I have located a India based developer who's portfolio looks good, who has done 2 CF platforms in the past and will do it for 1 grand. Now obviously I wont pay that, but what I will do is set up a crowdfunding project to finance that, havnt decided yet on which of the available platforms, but will of course post that here - and all over the alchemy web. With this approach more than one fly is killed: I get an idea of the acceptance of CF in the community, and I also get an idea of the willingness to let action follow that willingness, in the from of hard cash.

-sam

 

[sam]

OK everybody, here we go, please fund this project!

-sam

[link broken]

with this money we will either create a new platform with a new face or make this one work, which would just be as good:

[link broken]

(you can play with it, its only a sandbox, meaning no realy money moves if you "contribute" on the cfalchemy site)

 

[Ghislain]

Looking good so far Sam!

Ghislain

 

[sam]

This is now running 4 weeks and not a single soul has contributed. The saddest thing IMO is that the armchair alchemists at Mcleans forum where I have posted a link to the CF site has been looked at 406 times, yet the total call for the CF site itself is only 120, meaning 120 souls had enough interest to LOOK at the CF site - nowithstanding participating in the funding. This number includes everybody, all people from this forum as well.
So without much exaggeration one can say that the concept of CF is so alien or unintesting to those folks that a click and reading a few paragraphs seems too much work.

Still one translator I personally know is willing to finance the continued work on condition of anonymity. However, I am not sure if I want to put in the extra work, even if funding is available (that is funding for the version we already have to make that workable, not a new version).

I have however received 3 offers for works to be translated that looks very interesting and of which I would love to read any one of them (but of course I already can because i do speak German...) One includes a transcript from a very old handwriting.

I will watch this a little longer and then decide how to proceed.

 

[Awani]

I have worked with fundraising for more than a decade and it doesn't work as easy as making a site and posting a link.

I think the text you wrote is not a text that inspires giving at all.

Examples:

www.kickstarter.com/projects/fred/the-emoji-translation-project?ref=discovery

www.kickstarter.com/projects/clarke...ese-science-fiction-translation-p/description

Why do these work? Study how they do the "ask" and I think you can figure it out.

Also another tip: focus on the positive, benefits... not the negative, errors etc. It is not inspiring to give to someone complaining.

 

[sam]

I see your point, however this is not a normal CF campaign.

In a "normal" campaign the originator asks for money for a task he himself finds useful and others, though sharing his opinion, will usually not have much benefit from it. Many campaigns are thinly veiled donation requests.

This here is different, each and every one who wants to read a German text should be interested to have a workable solution for paying the translator, its 100% useful for him. in fact each and every one who funds this has the same and equal benefit from it. Its almost like a shared company where each funder is a shareholder.

So I do not see the need nor will I submit to begging. If people are dumb enough to believe the situation "as it is" will give them more translations so be it.
If they are happy with what they've got - so be it too.

anyone who needs to be d*ck-sucked into his own benefit is definitely too dumb for me to deal with.

-sam

 

[Awani]

So I do not see the need nor will I submit to begging.

Well I hear what you are saying but I don't think you realize the fundamentals of fundraising... and your campaign is "normal"... but the manner in which you have performed it well that is not normal and why it is not working. If you are above begging then life will be hard. The word "beg" is just Old English for "to ask". Fund-raising = asking for funds, begging, asking...

anyone who needs to be d*ck-sucked into his own benefit is definitely too dumb for me to deal with.

This kind of energy output is the main reason why I don't think you are getting any donations I'm afraid.

 

[sam]

is this on purpose or arnt you getting it?

If we two lived in the same appartment and wanted a TV for our living room would I ask you for a DONATION if I wanted 50% of the purchasing price?

if your answer is yes dont bother posting it

if your answer is NO you have a good metaphor for whats going on here.

 

[Awani]

I must say NO because I don't watch TV... and it is not a good metaphor because I do not think that is what is going on here.

It is much easier to sell eggs to people than it is to sell chickens.