SoylentNews

Happy New Year!
As the final hours of 2021 here's wishing everyone a Happy New Year!

In light of the holiday, I am inviting the editorial staff to post stories on a weekend/holiday schedule. Thank you for all your hard work in 2021. Here's wishing for a better year to come! Enjoy!

We did it! [*]
([*] I think).

Current Status:
Thanks to a VERY generous subscription of nearly $1,000, we reached our fundraising goal for the second half of the year THANK YOU!: $4,132.81 on a goal of $3,500.00 (all amounts are estimates):

*SPOILER* (click to show) *SPOILER* (click to hide)

mysql>  SELECT  SUM(payment_net) AS Net,  100.0 * SUM(payment_net) / 3500.00  AS GoalPercent, MAX(ts), MAX(spid), NOW() FROM subscribe_payments WHERE ts > '2021-06-30' ;
+---------+-------------+---------------------+-----------+---------------------+
| Net     | GoalPercent | MAX(ts)             | MAX(spid) | NOW()               |
+---------+-------------+---------------------+-----------+---------------------+
| 4132.81 | 118.0802857 | 2021-12-30 17:36:36 |      1744 | 2021-12-30 23:45:49 |
+---------+-------------+---------------------+-----------+---------------------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>

And for those of you interested in the details:

*SPOILER* (click to show) *SPOILER* (click to hide)

mysql> SELECT spid, ts, payment_gross, payment_net, payment_type FROM subscribe_payments WHERE ts > '2021-12-29 22:06:03' AND payment_gross > 0 ORDER BY ts ;
+------+---------------------+---------------+-------------+--------------+
| spid | ts                  | payment_gross | payment_net | payment_type |
+------+---------------------+---------------+-------------+--------------+
| 1728 | 2021-12-29 23:16:21 |         20.00 |       18.81 | user         |
| 1729 | 2021-12-30 00:15:05 |        100.00 |       96.80 | user         |
| 1730 | 2021-12-30 01:08:02 |         20.00 |       19.12 | user         |
| 1731 | 2021-12-30 01:13:58 |         30.00 |       28.01 | user         |
| 1732 | 2021-12-30 01:45:50 |         50.00 |       48.25 | user         |
| 1733 | 2021-12-30 02:35:54 |         40.00 |       38.54 | user         |
| 1734 | 2021-12-30 03:12:48 |         20.00 |       18.81 | user         |
| 1735 | 2021-12-30 04:24:07 |        924.43 |      897.32 | user         |
| 1736 | 2021-12-30 07:05:37 |         20.00 |       18.51 | user         |
| 1737 | 2021-12-30 07:50:05 |         20.00 |       18.51 | gift         |
| 1738 | 2021-12-30 09:23:14 |         20.00 |       19.12 | gift         |
| 1739 | 2021-12-30 12:22:42 |         20.00 |       18.51 | user         |
| 1740 | 2021-12-30 12:24:24 |         20.00 |       18.81 | user         |
| 1741 | 2021-12-30 13:59:52 |         40.00 |       38.11 | user         |
| 1742 | 2021-12-30 17:33:36 |         20.00 |       19.12 | gift         |
| 1743 | 2021-12-30 17:35:13 |         20.00 |       19.12 | gift         |
| 1744 | 2021-12-30 17:36:36 |         20.00 |       19.12 | gift         |
+------+---------------------+---------------+-------------+--------------+
17 rows in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>

That's great news! So why the equivocation?

Looking Closer:
Actually, it's more of a stepping back to look at things over the course of the entire year:

*SPOILER* (click to show) *SPOILER* (click to hide)

mysql> SELECT SUM(payment_gross) AS Gross, SUM(payment_net) AS Net, ts, max(spid) AS SPID FROM subscribe_payments WHERE ts > '2020-12-31' ;
+---------+---------+---------------------+------+
| Gross   | Net     | ts                  | SPID |
+---------+---------+---------------------+------+
| 6916.61 | 6611.75 | 2020-12-31 21:47:25 | 1744 |
+---------+---------+---------------------+------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>

The fundraising goal for the first half of the year was also $3,500.00. So... (2 x $3,500.00) is $7,000.00 but we have a total of... $6,916.61?

The Crash:
And then I remembered. Early this year we had a server (fluorine) crash. We had backups (yay!), but they were borken (Boo! Hiss!). We lost over a day's worth of activity, including a number of subscriptions. I *was* able to manually reconstruct people's subscriptions (time) based on information displayed on a window I just happened to have open at the time. But that was in a table separate from what is used to generate these numbers. After 3 days' effort, I'd patched things up as well as I could. Thankfully the official numbers (on which income and taxes are calculated) are kept on a completely separate server. Whew! One that I DO NOT have access. I'd concluded that we'll just have to sort things out at the end of the year. And that time has draw nigh.

tl;dr:
We're probably all set for the year, but there is also the matter that (unknown to me) we had previously been running at a deficit for a couple years. So anything additional you can contribute will go to replenish our funding base. (NCommander and Matt_ each put up $5,000.00 of their own money that to get us started.)

You guys are GREAT!

Previously:
In our last Fundraising Update we had raised $1,808.21 (net) towards our goal of $3,500.00 for the 2nd half of the year. (And five days earlier we stood at just $1,510.49).

Currently:
And where are we now? Hold onto your seat...

*SPOILER* (click to show) *SPOILER* (click to hide)

mysql>  SELECT SUM(payment_gross) AS Gross, SUM(payment_net) AS Net, ts, max(spid) AS SPID FROM subscribe_payments WHERE ts >= '2021-07-01' ;
+---------+---------+---------------------+------+
| Gross   | Net     | ts                  | SPID |
+---------+---------+---------------------+------+
| 2435.06 | 2307.23 | 2021-07-01 02:15:00 | 1727 |
+---------+---------+---------------------+------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>

In that time, we had 4x $50.00 subscriptions and a $100.00 subscription (flagged by an "*" below):

*SPOILER* (click to show) *SPOILER* (click to hide)

mysql> SELECT ts, payment_gross, payment_net, method, submethod, payment_type FROM subscribe_payments WHERE ts > '2021-12-28 13:01:56' AND payment_gross > 0 ORDER BY ts ;
+---------------------+---------------+-------------+--------+-----------+--------------+
| ts                  | payment_gross | payment_net | method | submethod | payment_type |
+---------------------+---------------+-------------+--------+-----------+--------------+
| 2021-12-28 22:28:09 |         *50.00 |       47.76 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-28 22:48:32 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-28 23:33:57 |         *50.00 |       47.76 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-29 00:54:44 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-29 02:47:41 |         *50.00 |       47.01 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-29 03:08:48 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-29 04:50:49 |        *100.00 |       96.02 | paypal | NULL      | gift         |
| 2021-12-29 07:01:43 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-29 10:58:54 |         10.00 |        9.16 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-29 12:46:04 |         25.00 |       23.26 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-29 13:32:12 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-12-29 13:37:36 |         *50.00 |       48.25 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-12-29 14:16:35 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-29 14:24:29 |         40.00 |       37.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-29 21:11:32 |         12.00 |       10.91 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-29 22:06:03 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
+---------------------+---------------+-------------+--------+-----------+--------------+
16 rows in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>

Yes, the larger subscriptions are attention-getting, but $220.00 of that $527.00 came from subscriptions of $20.00 or less.

Remaining:
Since I started writing this, we received two more $20.00 subscriptions! All told, we need just $1,173.96 to make our goal and only 2 days to go. Can we do it? We Can Do This... Please Subscribe!

Ahem. Got carried away there. But seriously, every bit makes a difference; please help.
--martyb

I hope this reaches you after a safe and healthy holiday!

Where We're At:
In our last fundraising update on 2021-21-20 we stood at $1510.49 towards our goal of $3,500.00 for the second half of the year. I am happy to report that we have since collected additional net subscriptions totaling $279.72. Thank You! You Rock!

mysql> SELECT SUM(payment_gross) AS Gross, SUM(payment_net) AS Net, ts, max(spid) AS SPID FROM subscribe_payments WHERE ts >= '2021-07-01' ;
+---------+---------+---------------------+------+
| Gross   | Net     | ts                  | SPID |
+---------+---------+---------------------+------+
| 1908.06 | 1808.21 | 2021-07-01 00:41:45 | 1711 |
+---------+---------+---------------------+------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>

There were a total of 81 (YAY!) subscriptions purchased in the second half of this year (click to see):

*SPOILER* (click to show) *SPOILER* (click to hide)

mysql> SELECT ts, payment_gross, payment_net, method, submethod, payment_type FROM subscribe_payments WHERE ts >= '2021-07-01' AND payment_gross > 0 ORDER BY ts ;
+---------------------+---------------+-------------+--------+-----------+--------------+
| ts                  | payment_gross | payment_net | method | submethod | payment_type |
+---------------------+---------------+-------------+--------+-----------+--------------+
| 2021-07-01 00:41:45 |         20.00 |       19.12 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-07-01 02:15:00 |         20.00 |       18.82 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-07-01 02:20:50 |         20.00 |       19.12 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-07-01 02:34:13 |         20.00 |       18.82 | paypal | NULL      | gift         |
| 2021-07-01 03:26:34 |         20.00 |       18.82 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-07-01 14:19:33 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-07-01 16:35:50 |         22.34 |       21.39 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-07-01 18:36:56 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-07-02 10:49:17 |         20.00 |       19.12 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-07-02 14:43:16 |         20.00 |       19.12 | paypal | NULL      | gift         |
| 2021-07-02 21:06:24 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-07-05 21:59:27 |         40.00 |       37.94 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-07-05 22:07:16 |        400.00 |      388.10 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-07-06 14:07:24 |          5.00 |        4.55 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-07-18 14:27:40 |          5.00 |        4.55 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-07-19 15:13:31 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-07-22 12:14:55 |          4.00 |        3.52 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-07-25 07:14:27 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-07-29 11:57:17 |         10.00 |        9.41 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-08-06 12:30:41 |          5.00 |        4.34 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-08-13 10:28:11 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-08-18 11:54:17 |          5.00 |        4.34 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-08-22 12:11:44 |          4.00 |        3.31 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-08-29 13:03:40 |         10.00 |        9.16 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-09-03 12:33:49 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-09-06 10:20:14 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-09-06 13:35:17 |          5.00 |        4.34 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-09-10 18:30:22 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-09-11 23:56:46 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | gift         |
| 2021-09-18 10:37:19 |          5.00 |        4.34 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-09-22 10:12:38 |          4.00 |        3.31 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-09-29 14:37:56 |         10.00 |        9.16 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-10-05 00:31:51 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-10-06 10:58:25 |          5.00 |        4.34 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-10-14 11:33:56 |         30.00 |       28.46 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-10-16 09:38:51 |         13.72 |       13.02 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-10-18 11:21:58 |          5.00 |        4.34 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-10-21 13:29:39 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-10-22 12:00:55 |          4.00 |        3.31 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-10-24 19:27:39 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-10-26 19:43:45 |         40.00 |       38.11 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-10-29 12:01:11 |         10.00 |        9.16 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-10-30 18:22:11 |         50.00 |       47.01 | paypal | NULL      | gift         |
| 2021-11-06 12:28:43 |          5.00 |        4.34 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-11-08 15:02:34 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-11-09 19:14:31 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-11-10 06:40:55 |         50.00 |       47.76 | paypal | NULL      | gift         |
| 2021-11-10 11:47:46 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-11-12 03:08:14 |         30.00 |       28.46 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-11-17 01:01:32 |         12.00 |       11.35 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-11-18 12:22:21 |          5.00 |        4.34 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-11-21 14:54:31 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-11-22 12:28:08 |          4.00 |        3.31 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-11-27 18:53:45 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-11-29 10:45:50 |         10.00 |        9.16 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-03 15:58:30 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | gift         |
| 2021-12-04 02:20:36 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-06 11:29:58 |          5.00 |        4.34 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-11 04:02:13 |          4.00 |        3.31 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-11 12:38:48 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-12 11:08:54 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-13 20:52:42 |         12.00 |       11.09 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-15 09:21:39 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-15 16:00:03 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-16 10:32:40 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-16 13:42:40 |        100.00 |       96.80 | stripe | CC        | gift         |
| 2021-12-18 10:16:24 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-18 10:52:56 |          5.00 |        4.34 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-20 23:21:01 |         20.00 |       18.81 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-21 02:21:21 |         40.00 |       38.11 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-21 05:25:20 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-21 17:14:58 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-12-21 21:00:59 |         50.00 |       48.25 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-12-22 10:26:01 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-22 10:45:00 |          4.00 |        3.31 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-23 05:17:16 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-12-23 18:26:06 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | gift         |
| 2021-12-23 20:05:03 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | gift         |
| 2021-12-25 12:02:11 |         40.00 |       38.11 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
| 2021-12-26 01:32:21 |         20.00 |       19.12 | stripe | CC        | user         |
| 2021-12-28 13:01:56 |         20.00 |       18.51 | paypal | NULL      | user         |
+---------------------+---------------+-------------+--------+-----------+--------------+
81 rows in set (0.00 sec)

What's Next?

The sharp-eyed among you have already recognized something: that's not nearly enough:

We need to net an additional $1691.79 to reach our goal.

WE CAN DO THIS! 😃

Just click on Subscribe and follow the instructions! (Click the "*SPOILER* for more details.)

*SPOILER* (click to show) *SPOILER* (click to hide)

Select whether it's a subscription for yourself or a Gift to someone else. For a Gift sub you can provide your name to tell the recipient who the subscription is from or blank it out if you want to remain anonymous. Then choose a duration (30, 180, or 365 days). Important! You can accept the minimum amount offered (4.00, 12.00, or 20.00) OR type another (larger) amount into the field. Then click the "[Continue]" button.

NB: All transactions are processed remotely — SoylentNews sets up the transaction but does not actually participate directly. Also, if you have an Ad Blocker such as No Script or uBlock Origin installed, you may need to allow an exception for "soylentnews.org", "stripe.com", and "stripe.network" for the transaction to be entered and accepted.

You're on the Home Stretch! Click a button: PayPal (1) "[PayPal Buy Now], (2) "[PayPal Subscribe]", or (3) "[Pay with Card or BitCoin]" (Actually only "Card" is accepted at this time).

You are then taken to a form on their payment processor's site where you provide the payment information and confirm the transaction.

That's it! The payment processor then informs SoylentNews of the transaction amount and their processing fee.

Should you have a question or problem, please feel free to reach out for help on IRC (Internet Relay Chat) and/or leave a message here in the comments.

These funds pay for hosting our servers, incorporation fees, taxes, and a CPA. All income goes to paying for the site. Period. Staff is all-volunteer. Nobody here has ever been paid anything for working on SoylentNews!

--martyb

On behalf of all the staff I wish all of you a Happy Thanksgiving!

I am grateful for all the support the community has shown us since we started SoylentNews.org on February 12, 2014. Has it really been that long? Back then, the internet was dominated by HTTP; it would take some time (years?) until we transitioned to Gandhi and then Let's Encrypt!

I have been active on the site since we started. Why? It was the spirit of gratitude I saw here to be free from having "corporate overlords"; how people pitched in trying to help. They were looking not at what they could get but rather what they could give! That spirit lives on to this day. Where? I see it in the people who submit stories and journal articles. I see it when people post (and moderate) comments. And lets not forget those who subscribe to the site which pays bills (hosting fees and accounting expenses, primarily). We are all volunteers here; nobody has ever been paid anything for their work here!

I'm taking this opportunity to thank all the editors who perform the seemingly thankless task of selecting, reviewing, editing, and posting stories to the site. I hereby invite them to enjoy the long holiday weekend.

We will be on a holiday/weekend story schedule from the start of Thursday through the end of Sunday (UTC). Enjoy the well-deserved break! Thank You!

Another story will be along presently; this story is in addition to our normal schedule. --martyb/Bytram