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Which Best Fits You?

I have never donated + I use Adblock 0.11581920903955 11.6% [ 41 ]
I have never donated + I view ads 0.053672316384181 5.4% [ 19 ]
I used to donate, but don't anymore + I use Adblock 0.24011299435028 24.0% [ 85 ]
I used to donate, but don't anymore + I view ads 0.1045197740113 10.5% [ 37 ]
I currently donate + I view ads 0.11016949152542 11.0% [ 39 ]
I currently donate + I don't view ads 0.34463276836158 34.5% [ 122 ]
Other / Free Gold 0.031073446327684 3.1% [ 11 ]
Total Votes:[ 354 ]
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PAFenix's Wife

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Quote:
An almost attitude of "I should be able to use the site and pay nothing and view no ads, and anyone who contributes is funding the evil that is gaia"


As someone who has never given money to the site (because s**t paying job, bills, and all that fun stuff) this mentality irks me the wrong way. I don't pay anything and I can use the site, quite well actually, thanks to the people who still buy g-cash. If anything I'm appreciative that people who can and choose to buy Gcash for their own personal reasons do, regardless of if they buy items for personal use or put them on the MP for people like me to buy with gold.

But, with that said, I also don't think non-gcash users should ever be pushed away or out, we're still consumers but in different ways. Gaia needs both cash users and non-cash users equally, I don't understand why people on either side have feelings of superiority or anger towards each other tbh.

I think the real problem is that Gaia is just such a mess as a company and people are just really antsy about it. I don't think they're would be as many issues or debates like this if Gaia would just reach out and make it look like they're making a real effort to keep things like the economy stable. There's so much of the same things gcash and non-gcash users want but Gaia isn't throwing any of us a bone.

I didn't get that that phrase was meant to insult people that don't give money or use adblock. I think what was meant was that it was odd that those people would claim anyone that spends money is the devil, essentially. If you aren't trying to berate people spending money, then I'm pretty sure it didn't apply to you! smile

And I do agree with your last point for sure. If Gaia could figure out what the heck it was trying to do, most everyone would be much happier!

Magic Hobo

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Well, to put it quite simply, I don't believe that my worth and merit as a member of a community is solely determined by the amount of money I can dump on it.

In fact, if you take that attitude, that you're only worthwhile, that you only have a purpose and a place if you're a consumer, and scale it up to IRL, you can discover just exactly how much of a s**t person thinking something like that makes you.

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I see Gaia as a fun video game style site

if your willing to pay $60 for a console game why do you blanch at $20 for a game you spend even more time on

Sparkling Dragon

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          Here's the thing you have to remember and respect. Some of them use Ad Block because they have slightly older systems and can't risk getting any more infections on their computers. That's one of the few legitimate reasons they have for using Ad Block on any site. They say it happened on one site and they don't want to take the risk so they block them on every site they go to. They're not against Gaia having the support they need but they don't trust the ad provider Gaia goes through to be on top of every single ad that uses their services to be free of malicious hidden programing.


See, while I understand the whole fear-of-the-big-bad-internet-bugs idea, these days it's actually pretty hard to find a respectable site that actually serves bad adverts. I mean, yes, it does occasionally happen, but it's getting pretty rare. If you are out on file sharing and shady streaming sites, yes, you are going to run into that kind of garbage, but legit web advertising providers don't stand for that kind of nonsense anymore, and are pretty quick to pull things that are malicious. I honestly don't think I've gotten an infection on my PC in well over a year.

Chibi Halo

          The ones who block because they find the ads annoying or don't want Gaia to have any money and have never once supported the site in any way because they hate cash and hate the management on the site yet say they want to see Gaia thriving and surviving are being hypocritical in a way. How can the site survive without some kind of monetary support? The protests and boycotts aren't doing any good they actually serve to make things worse because with less people supporting the site the more Gaia is forced to increase the amount of cash items and the like around the site. Heck, this anti-cash environment around the site has turned some people vile and vicious and it's literally becoming a huge part of the reason why a lot of things have been taken from us by the upper level management. A lot of attitudes need to change around here.

          I'm one of those that fall in the "I donate on a monthly scale but I choose to see the in house ads" category. I really don't like the turn online advertising has been taking with the invasive in your face forms of advertising and if not seeing those ads is a thank you perk of donating to the site then it's a perk I'll gladly take advantage of. The other major perk has been ended so I might as well milk the ones we have left for all they're worth.



I turn off the in house ads when I donate too; mostly because the noise startles me when I mouse over them. xd

Gatekeeper

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Ayleria
Star of the South
Quote:
An almost attitude of "I should be able to use the site and pay nothing and view no ads, and anyone who contributes is funding the evil that is gaia"


As someone who has never given money to the site (because s**t paying job, bills, and all that fun stuff) this mentality irks me the wrong way. I don't pay anything and I can use the site, quite well actually, thanks to the people who still buy g-cash. If anything I'm appreciative that people who can and choose to buy Gcash for their own personal reasons do, regardless of if they buy items for personal use or put them on the MP for people like me to buy with gold.

But, with that said, I also don't think non-gcash users should ever be pushed away or out, we're still consumers but in different ways. Gaia needs both cash users and non-cash users equally, I don't understand why people on either side have feelings of superiority or anger towards each other tbh.

I think the real problem is that Gaia is just such a mess as a company and people are just really antsy about it. I don't think they're would be as many issues or debates like this if Gaia would just reach out and make it look like they're making a real effort to keep things like the economy stable. There's so much of the same things gcash and non-gcash users want but Gaia isn't throwing any of us a bone.

I didn't get that that phrase was meant to insult people that don't give money or use adblock. I think what was meant was that it was odd that those people would claim anyone that spends money is the devil, essentially. If you aren't trying to berate people spending money, then I'm pretty sure it didn't apply to you! smile

And I do agree with your last point for sure. If Gaia could figure out what the heck it was trying to do, most everyone would be much happier!

Yeah, I didn't mean to say I think that the phrase is insulting for those that don't because I don't think it is either. I meant it more as a general point, because there have also been people who belittle non-gcash users just like vice-versa. I did phrase my post kinda bad though, but that isn't what I meant :3.

I'll go back and make it more clear xD. I'm not always the best when it comes to being clear with what I mean.

Loyal Kitten

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Bowie-Spawan


Gaia has a history of starting a lot of ambitious projects that ultimately ended up tanking. That's a lot of money lost in the past and I guess it finally caught up to them. I just hope they eventually tone it down again. I do take issue with some of Gaia's recent business practices and think that users should definitely criticize what's going on. Being a glass half full kinda person, I still hope for betterment though and in the meantime, don't see a reason to stop spending cash on items I like. Money talks in different ways, sure you can compeltely boycott cash, but what the marketing department will likely understand better is what kind of things sell and which don't. So I buy items only and shun the gold gens.

/rant

captcha: how quaint cool


I couldn't agree more. Only buying items (especially when they're decently priced), bundles (like the basket one) and item gens while shunning gold gens would definitely send a message that they would hear loud and clear. Sadly, I don't think you could get enough people to do that to really make a difference.

I also hold out that things will get better for Gaia and the users here. I think that the way we interact with each other also has damaged things here. People insulting each other based on whether or not someone has bought GC or not, that sort of thing, is really damaging to the sense of community. We need to be critical of Gaia but we don't need to tear each other apart to do it.

Time-traveling Senshi

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scuttlefish
I am a "non-customer" as you put it, never spent a cent on the site in the eight years I've been here. I do keep adblock disabled to watch the daily treat videos, which I might add don't even work more than half of the time, so by watching the ads and receiving no GC payout at the end I am still generating revenue for Gaia at no cost to them.
My reasons for not spending money on the site were never a boycott, I simply feel my money is better spent elsewhere, and while I am a poor college student even if I had the spare money I wouldn't spend it here. Not because I think Gaia is a big evil corporation, but because I have always been able to make gold and buy the items I want; sure I can't afford the pretty expensive items but dressing up my avatar isn't the biggest priority for me as I use this site mainly to RP and socialize with friends and guildies.

Do I think people should stop spending money on the site? No, of course not, paying customers are what keeps the site alive.
If Gaia's sales are dropping they're likely to take even more desperate actions with the gold generators that have been ruining the gold economy for non-cash buyers such as myself.

I'm not sure what point you're trying to make, because in any successful freemium model even the non-paying users should be treated as potential customers because if they are having a pleasant experience on the site they are likely to decide to spend money in the future. Would you want to spend money on a game that alienates its users from the get-go by making it near impossible to achieve anything without spending any money?
This is why so many similar sites and games that took the same path that Gaia is starting to go down have failed. There's a thing called customer service. If Gaia continues to treat every new user who doesn't immediately open up their wallet as "dead weight" this site won't be around much longer.


          I think the whole gist of this thread is there are people on the site who have the means to do so yet refuse to buy cash at all not because they're saving for something real world or have major expenses but because they think Gaia management is evil. They don't want to see Gaia get any money from the users so they join the boycotts and protests and use Adblock not because they've had issues with hidden viruses on some online ads but because they want to cut off every revenue stream to Gaia as possible. These are the people that rag on those of us who willingly buy cash and make some who return to buying cash feel so bad about it they start to feel guilty for even spending five dollars on the site and having some kind of Cash balance. I've seen so many "Oh my god what have I done" type of posts after they spend five dollars to get a limited item from the Cash Shop or a pair of letters that you have to wonder if they really do feel guilty or if they don't want to be ragged on by other users. Then these same users demand to have the same or more rewards for being "loyal" to the site as the Cash crowd gets because they claim they were on the site first and are far more "loyal".

Handsome Man-Lover

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Persnicketease


I couldn't agree more. Only buying items (especially when they're decently priced), bundles (like the basket one) and item gens while shunning gold gens would definitely send a message that they would hear loud and clear. Sadly, I don't think you could get enough people to do that to really make a difference.

I also hold out that things will get better for Gaia and the users here. I think that the way we interact with each other also has damaged things here. People insulting each other based on whether or not someone has bought GC or not, that sort of thing, is really damaging to the sense of community. We need to be critical of Gaia but we don't need to tear each other apart to do it.


I'm a firm believer in politeness, my mother put a lot of emphasis on that in raising me razz
So while I'm in favour of criticism and discussion, I'd prefer it be done without insults and in a calm and reasonable manner, heh.

Sparkling Dragon

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Mr A s t a r o t h x
I don't appreciate being called dead-weight. Haha.
I see the logic, but I don't appreciate it.
It's your money, do what you want with it
I never saw much sense in berating people
for spending or not spending their own cash

I'm not gonna dog on you for buying GC
but don't dog on me and call me useless because I don't.
And I think the entitlement goes both ways. There was one lass
in the SF forum who insisted that because she spent real money here
and supported the site, that her ticket should
be seen first over everyone else's

As for ads, it's already been said that
Gaia has been notorious for having iffy ads
I'm not comfortable financially to splurge on virtual items
I'm certainly not financially comfy to risk a shot laptop
because of viruses from shotty ads here.


hmm, I think it might have not been communicated well, but I really don't think you are the sort of person I was referring to when I was using the term dead-weight. You don't seem to be actively trying to throw your weight as a consumer around while being a non-consumer and you seem to be contributing to the community in a respectful and constructive manner.

Loyal Kitten

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Bowie-Spawan


I'm a firm believer in politeness, my mother put a lot of emphasis on that in raising me razz
So while I'm in favour of criticism and discussion, I'd prefer it be done without insults and in a calm and reasonable manner, heh.


Same here. Though I got to say I've gotten my fair share of nasty PMs from people who disagreed and apparently didn't want people to see how shitty they were being, I guess because they didn't think you could report PMs or something.

I like discussions, which is why I hang around here a lot (besides how awesome you all are emotion_awesome ). I just think if you start to get really upset over a post to take a bit of a break and cool off instead of being insulting and belittling others. That just might be me though. XD

Handsome Man-Lover

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Bowie-Spawan


I'm a firm believer in politeness, my mother put a lot of emphasis on that in raising me razz
So while I'm in favour of criticism and discussion, I'd prefer it be done without insults and in a calm and reasonable manner, heh.


Same here. Though I got to say I've gotten my fair share of nasty PMs from people who disagreed and apparently didn't want people to see how shitty they were being, I guess because they didn't think you could report PMs or something.

I like discussions, which is why I hang around here a lot (besides how awesome you all are emotion_awesome ). I just think if you start to get really upset over a post to take a bit of a break and cool off instead of being insulting and belittling others. That just might be me though. XD


Oh, I agree 100%
Really? Nasty PMs? That's just disappointing :/
Taking a step back from the computer and getting some fresh air is something I'd recommend to anyone every once in a while, hehe.

Time-traveling Senshi

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Chibi Halo
          Here's the thing you have to remember and respect. Some of them use Ad Block because they have slightly older systems and can't risk getting any more infections on their computers. That's one of the few legitimate reasons they have for using Ad Block on any site. They say it happened on one site and they don't want to take the risk so they block them on every site they go to. They're not against Gaia having the support they need but they don't trust the ad provider Gaia goes through to be on top of every single ad that uses their services to be free of malicious hidden programing.


See, while I understand the whole fear-of-the-big-bad-internet-bugs idea, these days it's actually pretty hard to find a respectable site that actually serves bad adverts. I mean, yes, it does occasionally happen, but it's getting pretty rare. If you are out on file sharing and shady streaming sites, yes, you are going to run into that kind of garbage, but legit web advertising providers don't stand for that kind of nonsense anymore, and are pretty quick to pull things that are malicious. I honestly don't think I've gotten an infection on my PC in well over a year.

Chibi Halo

          The ones who block because they find the ads annoying or don't want Gaia to have any money and have never once supported the site in any way because they hate cash and hate the management on the site yet say they want to see Gaia thriving and surviving are being hypocritical in a way. How can the site survive without some kind of monetary support? The protests and boycotts aren't doing any good they actually serve to make things worse because with less people supporting the site the more Gaia is forced to increase the amount of cash items and the like around the site. Heck, this anti-cash environment around the site has turned some people vile and vicious and it's literally becoming a huge part of the reason why a lot of things have been taken from us by the upper level management. A lot of attitudes need to change around here.

          I'm one of those that fall in the "I donate on a monthly scale but I choose to see the in house ads" category. I really don't like the turn online advertising has been taking with the invasive in your face forms of advertising and if not seeing those ads is a thank you perk of donating to the site then it's a perk I'll gladly take advantage of. The other major perk has been ended so I might as well milk the ones we have left for all they're worth.



I turn off the in house ads when I donate too; mostly because the noise startles me when I mouse over them. xd


          While it is harder for that to happen, if they've had it happen once they don't want to take the chances of it happening ever again. It's a choice I can respect because most of the time they don't spend money on websites because they need to save their money for real world expenses, like college loans; mortgages; rent; or new kids, yet they're still very grateful for the people who do buy cash and they try to do as many of the offer videos they can. They're some of the more mature non customers around the site because they don't rag on people who fully support the site and they buy only those things that won't hurt the site in the long run. Those are the kind of people I respect.

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I use Adblock because Gaia's ads have become annoying and invasive, and are apparently riddled with viruses (although I've managed to avoid those). I never bothered with it before this website, and I don't block ads on others I want to support.

I used to do Free Gaia Cash Offers. I don't care for a lot of Gaia's Cash Shop items, and have never spent more than 2000 GC at one time. The items I do tend to buy are usually MCs, Bundles, or R/EIs. So I could manage to save up video offers fairly easily, on the off chance I wanted something from LV this month.

Because of the constant stream of Gold Generators, (which makes it seem like Gaia is forcing users' hands when it comes to obtaining new CIs), and the constant influx of GC-related Announcements, I have been discouraged from supporting the site.

Gaia no longer seems to listen to user feedback, unless it creates more revenue for them. If a decrease in sales is the only thing that will get their attention, then that is the method some people will use.

Bara Doge's Queen

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I have adblock on because this isn't the only site I use. Other sites have pop-up messages and ads and I don't appreciate that.
With this being said, I used to buy stuff with gcash. Not often, and when the cash tree appeared I was happy. Too bad that it will only work in America by now.

With this being said, what people have complained about in the past isn't getting stuff for free while contributing nothing to the site, but for Gaia to stop the release of gold generators and constant sales bombarding on the announcements.
These two things affect the economy of the site on a negative way, causing hyperinflation and making people who can't afford gcash and are questing, give up on their quests or giving in and open their wallets to get an item.

If you have disposable income after covering your priorities and you wish to spend it on pixels, that's your prerogative, but I personally think that the site could handle their marketing strategies better since they have not been really subtle with them.

Skilled Raider

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I still buy GC, if there's a item that appeals enough to me, to invest 5-10 bucks into it.
I don't go above that tho, everything above 1k gc is a nope to me.
I think, if I need gold badly, to buy something from the MP that's not available in GC anymore, I'd just buy a item with GC and sell it for gold in the MP.

I don't support their gold generators, because it's them that ruin the economy in first place.
So yeah, I support the site for the things I still like on it.
But I don't buy their ridiculous Gold RIGs.
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