Forum Operating Costs

Although ProBoards provides the software for the Forum and hosts it at no cost to us, there are expenses associated with our Forum's operation.

The purpose of this thread is to provide transparency regarding the actual costs of operating The Stamp Forum -- the four items described below are the only costs incurred.

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Ad-Free

To keep the Forum free of ads for members signing in to their accounts, I've obtained a subscription beginning in May 2018 that provides 50,000 ad-free page views per month at a cost of $6.00 per month.

At present, we are using less than 30,000 page views per month so this cost should remain stable for the foreseeable future.

When we need to transition to a subscription providing 100,000 page views per month, the subscription cost (at present) will increase to $11.50 per month.

EDIT: We are currently paying for 100,000 ad-free page views for members who sign in to their accounts. Guests or members who have not singed in will see ads.

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TSF Image Host

After the Photobucket affair, on July 9, 2017, I purchased a 3-year prepaid image hosting package (a Chevereto/TMDHosting bundle) for $112.59.

The package included a one year domain registration for the tsfimagehost.net domain.

On June 12, 2018, I renewed the domain registration plus ID protection for a two year period to cover the remainder of the period of the hosting package at a cost of $49.47.

This equates to an average cost of $54.02 per year to maintain the image host through July 8, 2020.

At that time I will need to renew the hosting package and domain registration at a cost that will likely exceed what has previously been charged.

For awareness, in addition to images, we are also storing the Forum Newsletters on the TMDHosting servers.

EDIT: The image hosting service is set to renew during July, 2023 for a period of three years and a cost of $430.20

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APS Chapter Membership

The Chapter membership fee has remained constant at $45 per year since we first became an APS Chapter in 2014.

While it is possible that this fee might increase, I've seen no indication to date that such an increase is being considered.

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APS Chapter Newsletter Competition

To participate in the competition, Chapters are required to submit three printed copies of their last three Newsletters for the competition year, regardless of the manner in which the Newsletter is delivered to Chapter members.

The cost of printing and binding 3 color copies of our Newsletters for the 2017 competition at Staples on January 8, 2018 was $100.37 before taxes.

The total printing outlay, however, was $53.39 after applying a $50 printing credit that I had remaining in my business account.

The cost of mailing the entry to APS by Priority Mail (to ensure it arrived prior to the submission deadline) was $13.60.

The total cost for the 2017 competition entry was $66.99 (money well-spent considering the award!).

I have since found a printer that I should be able to use for the 2018 competition entry at considerably less expense. 

EDIT: As of January 2019, APS has discontinued its Chapter Newsletter and Website competitions so this item is no longer a Forum operating expense.

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At some future time I may solicit donations to help offset Forum operating costs; however, I have no need for assistance at present, nor do I envision a need in the foreseeable future.

In the event I begin accepting donations, their amounts and donors will be listed here, along with the expenses that they are (or will be) applied against.

EDIT: Donations to the Forum are being accepted via PayPal to sjtomisek AT verizon Dot net. Should you choose to donate, please note that it is a TSF Donation.