October 10, 2011
Last chance to support 3QD and make it better!
Update 11/9/11: We have reached our goal! Thanks to all our supporters and loyal readers!
Update 11/7/11: Sorry that the ChipIn widget for our fundraiser was not working properly for several days. We have already raised more than 85% of our goal. PLEASE HELP US NOW. Most of my own money is spent buying books for our miracle cat Freddy who has a voracious appetite for them (and is the real brains behind 3QD) as you can see below. :-)
Update 10/13/11: New posts will always appear below this one for now, by the way.
Dear Readers, Writers, and Friends of 3 Quarks Daily,
I am writing to you today to announce our Fundraising Drive. We plan to keep doing what we already do well—linking you to the most interesting philosophy, science, culture, and politics on the net. But we want to give the 3 Quarks Daily website a new look and improve the site as a whole, to make your reading experience that much more fulfilling.
You may not realize this, but the immense amount of time and effort that has kept 3 Quarks Daily going every day, without fail, for more than seven years is done entirely on a volunteer basis. In the past, funds for technical improvements and maintenance have come out of our own pockets. We know you have been hit hard by the global economic problems. We have too. But we also know how much 3 Quarks Daily means to you. We can see it in the readership and in the community of commenters. To be blunt, it is simply not possible for us to keep running the site on our own personal funds. We have started to reach out for regular funding for 3QD through institutional grants. But that will take time, and meanwhile we need funds to keep going!
If you value what we do, please help us raise $25,000. Consider that going to the movies for an evening for two people costs $30-$45 (depending on the size of popcorn you like to get--I admit I am a Super-Combo man myself!). What is it worth to you to keep 3QD running? Do you check the site regularly? Do you take comfort in our daily toil to separate the internet wheat from the internet chaff? Please help us NOW by donating whatever you can, and please spread the word to others. Use the ChipIn widget below or near the top of the right-hand column. It's easy. It's fast. And it'll be much appreciated.
And please post this link on your Facebook wall and/or Tweet it: http://tinyurl.com/6fxy75l
Thanks very much for your attention and your support.
Yours,
Abbas
Posted by S. Abbas Raza at 01:05 AM | Permalink
Comments
I just made a contribution and will gladly kick in more if your goal isn't reached quickly. (I also subscribe to the kindle version--maybe you should promote it a little and it could provide some sort of income stream.)
Your readers will not let you down.
Posted by: ellen | Oct 10, 2011 6:48:31 AM
Thank you SO much, Ellen!
Posted by: Abbas Raza | Oct 10, 2011 6:50:27 AM
Will do! Also, are you registered with Readability? You might get a bit of revenue through them:
https://www.readability.com/faq#view-plainGuidelines
Posted by: Harlan | Oct 10, 2011 8:00:42 AM
Will try cause it is a great site.
Posted by: Dredd | Oct 10, 2011 9:28:30 AM
Worth it if only for that photo!
Posted by: Zara | Oct 10, 2011 10:08:50 AM
I check 3QD everyday. I love your daily poems and your contests for the best writers in several fields.
Posted by: Gail Jonas | Oct 10, 2011 10:16:58 AM
And what can columnists do to advance this worthy cause...?
Posted by: aditya dev sood | Oct 10, 2011 10:24:13 AM
I appreciate what you do -- glad to chip in!
Posted by: Alyson Hinkie | Oct 10, 2011 10:49:37 AM
You guys should really look at kickstarter.com
much better way to raise money than chipin.
Posted by: adrian | Oct 10, 2011 11:01:44 AM
Thanks so much for all your work in providing 3QD.
Posted by: Matthew Labarge | Oct 10, 2011 11:03:41 AM
Great work -- chipped in!
Posted by: CJH | Oct 10, 2011 2:30:15 PM
Thanks to everyone, and especially Harlan for the Readability info. I am very touched by the response so far.
Posted by: Abbas Raza | Oct 10, 2011 4:54:41 PM
Dear Abbas,
Just chipped in and will do so again - and again.
Your site is pure intellectual hedonism every day. Thanks so much.
If you need any help, let us know. I have free time.
Posted by: Orla Schantz | Oct 10, 2011 5:43:46 PM
about to chip in but i have to say- i ADORE those sunglasses and so remember wishing i could look/ be as cool and wonderful and beautiful as you!! your adoring niece, Z**ba!
Posted by: zee | Oct 10, 2011 7:22:17 PM
can i "like" orla's comment? so true: intellectual hedonism.
Posted by: zee | Oct 10, 2011 7:28:13 PM
Abbas & team, keep up the awesome work! Chipped in with something but hard to pay you guys back for this sheer pleasure of a site.
Posted by: Fawad | Oct 10, 2011 7:48:34 PM
Chipped in my little bit – with gratitude. Thank you for these daily quarks.
Posted by: Suzanne | Oct 10, 2011 9:09:59 PM
Done and done.
Posted by: bill | Oct 10, 2011 10:41:36 PM
love this site, thank you raza! donated my bit
Posted by: t | Oct 11, 2011 8:52:03 AM
Oh beautiful Swat.
Not sure if you're set on paying someone to build out the new site, but I'd be more than interested in donating my web development expertise to help improve this great resource.
Please reach out if interested.
Posted by: Abid | Oct 11, 2011 12:08:49 PM
Looking forward to the overhauled 3Quarks! A new look, a more navigatable structure. Once you open up the MASSIVE archive to easy exploration, making a few more pennies out of this should be easy.
There is a great community here just waiting to explode into life. A better 3Quarks is worth all our pennies.
Good luck!
Posted by: Daniel Rourke | Oct 11, 2011 2:43:28 PM
Happy to contribute to this wonderful site!
Archives please....
Posted by: Philosopher's Beard | Oct 11, 2011 5:55:35 PM
Abbas,
Done, a couple of hours ago. I was at Starbucks, online, when I read the appeal. If you were around I would have bought you and Margit a latte. Now I'm curious to see what the new and improved 3QD site will be like.
Posted by: Norman Costa | Oct 11, 2011 11:07:57 PM
Folks, the fundraising seems to be tapering off. Not good. If you visit this site frequently and can afford to donate, please step up and do so now (I feel like those beseeching voices on public radio). How much value would you place on encountering a truly insightful and enjoyable article that 3QD editors found and linked to? The price of a taco? And doesn't that happen a few times each month? Help keep the 3QD community going, lest there be a 3QD-shaped hole in your consciousness!
Of course the site needs renovation. It was an intelligent design to begin with but now it needs to evolve. :-) For what it's worth, here are some of my suggestions for this evolution:
-- Flexible/wider width (use up those gray areas on the left and right)
-- A more alluring/navigable home page design (e.g., project syndicate)
-- Better integration with social media (e.g., Facebook has a lot of great social plugins)
-- 3QD author archives (each author gets a link on the sidebar?), author managed bio pages
-- Posts by major subject categories (religion, philosophy, economics, politics, history, etc.)
-- Clicking on a comment should take me to that comment, not to the start of the comments area
-- Most commented on posts, most read posts, most 'liked' posts, most [whatever] posts
-- More focused "debates" on the site by invitation, like the one with Bilgrami
Finally, echoing Zara, isn't that photo of Abbas worth a million bucks? We can surely raise $25K!
Posted by: Namit | Oct 12, 2011 12:30:18 AM
@ Namit:
Regarding your comment about the evolution of the website and its origin in Intelligent Design, I assert that 3QD is only a theory. After all, Abbas is certainly the prime mover. Try using the search filter on 3QD and you will come to understand irreducible complexity. No one can figure out how it got that way.
Our offerings are going direct to the Goddess Margit, whom we humbly ask to intercede for us with Lord S. Abbas Raza. Perhaps we ought to consider tithing.
Posted by: Norman Costa | Oct 12, 2011 2:47:37 AM
As the previous poster pointed out, there is a ton of wasted screen real estate. That is not necessarily a bad thing though. . .Part of the reason I love 3QD so much is that it is more 'mature' than other sites; it is less loud and aggressive with crazy blinking shit and headlines and whatnot everywhere. Unfortunately the internet seems to be heading towards the hypersaturated page layout, and if you want to stay current you guys will probably have to follow suit.
Also, don't overlook Google+ as the potential future of social networking (for the next 5 years or so). All of the 'cool kids' here in CA are switching over from Faceboook.
Anyways guys and girls, I will donate as soon as I can afford it. Next paycheck (of sorts) is comin' up soon. In the meantime I have a lot more time than money right now. Is there anything volunteers can do to help out? I am decent with C++ and HTML, but mostly I am a massive information addict that can help you guys find suitable articles or contribute content etc. Or I can help with advertising/spreading the word. Let me know!
DtD
Posted by: DrunktankDan | Oct 12, 2011 2:51:38 AM
Good stuff, Namit. I would like Abbas to switch out his photo several times for the rest of the fundraising drive -- I'll bet he's got lots more good ones. Would others enjoy that?
Also, this might be a time to re-post some of the most popular columns from years gone by, and hit the deep nostalgia chord. I can think of many I'd like to re-read, and we have new readers who have never seen them. Thumbs up or thumbs down?
We have many wonderful writers who have been here barely a year. On any given Monday, there are so many that the chances of everyone getting read are not great. One of the great strengths of 3QD is original essays written to an extraordinarily high standard of journalism -- no bloggerese here. I would love to see the Monday essays spread out over several week days -- would anyone else like that?
Posted by: Elatia Harris | Oct 12, 2011 2:53:40 AM
Elatia summons several wonderful ideas. Those Monday columns really kick my ass. You never know what you are going to get!
Digging through the archives also sounds like a good way to generate a thoroughly pleasant chunk of content for us longtime readers (and an attractive nugget for newer ones). However, that may be just the type of time consuming and tedious project that Abbas and the crew are trying to outsource and finance with this pledge drive. . .
There would be no shortage of labor though. Unemployed Americans (and global citizens more generally) like myself would love to help out with something like that. Let us know how we can get involved if we don't have any cash on hand at the moment
Thanks for all of the intellectual hedonism :)
Posted by: DrunktankDan | Oct 12, 2011 5:32:44 AM
"technically" support of the web site could be one of the permitted uses of zakat: to win over those who may be favorably inclined to your cause.
web sites like this also counter the lunacy of individuals such as Robert Spencer among the low-brow, and Naipaul among the highbrow.
Posted by: hyderabadi | Oct 12, 2011 12:06:49 PM
The ChipIn widget doesn't seem to be updating. It looks stuck, still showing contributions made till October 10th.
Posted by: Sach | Oct 13, 2011 2:03:55 AM
Elatia, I would certainly like that.
It is one thing to have 10 new linked articles appear and slide down everyday—those articles get their primary and (usually) multi-day exposure on the venues where they first appeared. But to see 10 Monday articles by 3QD authors get the same billing as linked articles breaks my heart. These original articles are at the core of 3QD's personality and community, and they disappear too fast to be read by even the regular visitors. So yes, original pieces somehow staying above the fold longer (for a week via links on a 'Mondays sidebar'?) would be terrific encouragement, at least to this author—and allow audiences more opportunities to read content that is unique to 3QD.
Posted by: Namit | Oct 14, 2011 2:11:10 AM
Make every day Monday! I agree with Elatia. Spread the original articles out over the week, or make them sticky. Do the filter blog stuff in parallel.
Posted by: Zara | Oct 14, 2011 1:19:18 PM
Abbas & co
Keep up the great work.
Just chipped in.
Posted by: shiban ganju | Oct 14, 2011 6:15:36 PM
I chipped in. I wish I could give a hell of a lot more, you definitely deserve it.
Posted by: Simon | Oct 14, 2011 7:09:05 PM
Mmmm-Mm! One gorgeous photo! Should deeply titillate quite a few readers with strong affinities for the pre-Modern. Puts me in mind of Rilke, for one, and that's extremely exciting. 50% there? That's magnificent. "The rest" should come in on those grounds alone, since that achievement is a superb predictor. Excelsior!!!
Posted by: Elatia Harris | Oct 17, 2011 9:53:35 AM
If you PhotoShop a porkpie hat and sunglasses on Morgan you could pass for the Tirol-Blues Brüder.
Or maybe the Fratelli Blues Tirolo.
Posted by: Norman Costa | Oct 17, 2011 4:36:29 PM
You are my favorite information source in the world. Thank you. I just made a donation
Posted by: Paul | Oct 17, 2011 9:26:59 PM
This is a wonderful, wonderful site. I actually find its current layout appealing precisely because it doesn't have too much stuff. As one commenter above says, it is great because it is "mature"--it doesn't have blinky things and too much crowding into a small area. I think the gray space is necessary for thought, for breath, for sanity. The Huffington Post, for example, is completely unreadable--I won't even open it. Facebook makes me feel like an overstimulated six year old. This site makes me feel like my intelligence and focus are respected.
So, I suppose this is just a plea for temperance, and for resisting the urge to change too much just to change. Evolution should happen because adaptation is necessary, not because one finch looked at another and said, WTF, his beak is bigger than mine. Ergo, I should grow my beak.
Love your site.
Posted by: kara | Oct 17, 2011 10:47:13 PM
thanks for doing what you do
Posted by: bob | Oct 18, 2011 12:51:17 AM
Thanks so much for this site. I haven't found another as satisfying, as broad or as intelligent.
Posted by: Mike Cope | Oct 18, 2011 9:51:57 AM
Thanks Abbas for the great work, my two cents on how the site can be better, what to change, and what not to:
1 - An easy way to identify original writing by 3qd contributors vs linked content.
2 - Keep the grey side bars.
3 - When you click on comments, they appear and close beneath the content, instead of redirecting to a new web address.
4 - 3qd is not a popularity contest so I would prefer that there are no rankings. Readers can go through the postings and read what interests them. If you have rankings, inevitably some postings will not be read because they were not ranked highly.
5 - Preferably an easier way to sort content would be on a daily basis, subdivided into original and linked postings. i.e a bar on top where you could click on the recent 5 days of postings. Newer to older content, by days, left to right. And if original contributions are still just on Mondays, a tab for that as well.
6 - Social media use, I would say the lesser the better. Of course it should be used to bring traffic to the site, but none of that crazy like, dislike and other teenage stuff.
The site should be simple, easy on the eyes, and not blingy. In other words more functionality so content is not lost after a lot of postings, but it shouldn't really be "pimped up" just for the sake of it.
Posted by: Shahzad | Oct 18, 2011 10:15:34 AM
Would you look at THAT! Almost 15K!!!! Great going. Like a teenager, I'm off to tell Facebook...
Posted by: Elatia Harris | Oct 18, 2011 10:51:58 PM
I have come here since 2005; you are a part of my morning coffee reading. I could only contribute a small amount right now, way too small than I'd like, but I'm not working and funds are very tight right now.
In response to people's suggestions for changing things: I've had no problem using this site as it is. I never look at the sidebar recent comments because if there's an article I like I save the link and go back to it to see comments. There aren't usually tons of comments and if I didn't care for the article, to be blunt, I don't care about comments on it. I'd rather the sidebar have a link to resident and frequent contributors to articles.
Please do not doing rankings or 'likes' for people's comments. Most people just say that they like or agree with a person's comments. Again, most posts here don't have a lot of comments.
I don't look at Facebook or any connected media. I just scroll down and if I've missed a day I can always go to the archives. However, when I look at your archives today for Poetry, I see only one poem. I would just say to check the archive organization.
I believe in the KISS rule: Keep It Simple Stupid. Again, for six years as a daily reader, I've had no problems with your site as it's been.
To add: Thank you! You are a favorite aggregator of quality articles. I would hope the frequent sites that you link to, e.g. the Smart Set, the scientists, et al., would help contribute since we're clicking on their links. I also love Jim Culleny's poems and am glad he came along.
I hope you reach your goal. Even if people can only contribute small amounts it will add up.
Posted by: wolfstan | Oct 19, 2011 9:43:09 AM
Just donated for me and my brother, thank you for keeping us moving in all directions simultaneously.
Posted by: derin | Oct 19, 2011 8:59:13 PM
Way to go, Robin--running to that goal of $25,000.
Actually, the photo reminds me of images portraying the runner from Greek antiquity.
Posted by: Norman Costa | Oct 24, 2011 4:23:41 PM
What a great photo! No one can resist!
Posted by: Elatia Harris | Oct 24, 2011 10:32:03 PM
I chipped in because of Robin's cool style.
Posted by: Raza | Oct 27, 2011 12:08:51 AM
I posted on my facebook. Suggest we all do that.
Posted by: Raza | Oct 27, 2011 12:27:08 AM
Good luck. I hope you make it.
Posted by: Stephen Page | Oct 27, 2011 10:27:59 PM
@ Abbas:
When you get to 85 percent, you need to go for a strong closing. So, I recommend using a photo of Margit. You'll hit that 100 percent mark in no time at all.
Posted by: Norman Costa | Oct 28, 2011 2:15:04 PM
Am I the only one who would double my donation if Abbas would quit smoking?
Posted by: Zara | Oct 31, 2011 1:11:16 PM
brilliant, zara. just superb.
Posted by: Elatia Harris | Oct 31, 2011 1:20:57 PM
"I'm going to make you an offer you can't refuse. Oobatz."
Posted by: Norman Costa | Oct 31, 2011 4:04:49 PM
well, its the end run. how many will double their previous donations or become donors right now if there are semi nude photos or photos in speedos from brixens acquarena? sorry, no grammar or punctuation on my ipad, but you get it, right? note that such photos must be of abbas...
Posted by: Elatia Harris | Oct 31, 2011 8:56:55 PM
Your Grazie photo reminds me of the infamous Herman Cain smoker/Slow Smile ad!
Best of luck.
Posted by: Shelley | Nov 1, 2011 2:05:27 PM
Love the 10/31 photo. What can I do to prove myself worthy?
Posted by: Ken Pidcock | Nov 1, 2011 10:27:48 PM
I would like to simply send a check. Is there a mailing address somewhere? I do admire this site and want to help. Nils Peterson
Posted by: nils peterson | Nov 3, 2011 1:14:27 PM
Has anyone else had problems with the donation widget loading in the past 24 hours?
Posted by: bjm | Nov 6, 2011 2:19:17 AM
85%!!!!! Well done everybody! Now, how do we squeeze that orange one last time!
Posted by: Elatia Harris | Nov 7, 2011 1:58:51 AM
93% !!!!
Posted by: maniza | Nov 8, 2011 10:24:00 AM
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