Comment by js2 | Hacker News Reader

Comment by js2 | Hacker News Reader

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Can't remember the last time I read a DI article, but I've definitely read them before and value the non-AI content[^1]. Donated.

(Good golly, GoFundMe defaulted to a 17.5% tip. WTF?)

> This fundraiser is entirely separate from our Give a Damn donation system, which aims to cover Damn Interesting monthly expenses —web hosting, subscriptions, usage licenses, link curation, and that sort of thing. An amazing array of donors support us through that system, and those lovely people are the reason we survive to this day. This new experiment is specifically so I myself can afford to spend more time writing and running the site.

I'm left confused...

Why you don't run this experiment through that same system?

Why you don't pay yourself out of that system?

What will happen if this experiment fails?

[^1]: "Rider on the Storm" is very memorable - https://www.damninteresting.com/rider-on-the-storm/

There are a few considerations. One is that the 'Give a Damn' system only aims to collect about $1,800/month, an approximation of our monthly expenses (not just hosting, but author payments, subscriptions to archives, research expenses, etc). And most months it barely collects the target amount. I've tried nudging the goal upward to see if I can slowly push it into actually-make-a-living territory, but it seems to have plateaued; increasing the goal there just means we usually miss our goal.

There's also the fact that the 'Give a Damn' system is supporting the site, to the benefit of all of its contributors, not just me. Changing that dynamic could be detrimental to morale.

There are lots of other small things making it very difficult to just update the existing system, not least of which being the same time shortage this fundraiser is trying to relieve. I'd need to make a bunch of changes to a very sensitive money-handling chunk of code, which requires careful coding and testing.

> What will happen if this experiment fails?

I have a series of decreasingly appealing follow-up plans if this one falls too short. But it's already earned enough to get me through at least a few months, so I'll have a chunk of time to take some positive action. Maybe that means I only get 6 months off before I'll have to resume full-time work, but I'll take what I can get.

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