Support OCR Month 2009 was a triumph!

[big giant circles]

$5000+/5000 raised!!!

FINAL UPDATE

DJP announced our success in the latest ReMix (http://www.ocremix.org/remix/OCR01836/), but I'd like to mention that we actually raised MORE than double last year's amount. :)

Anyway, I would just like to formally say how grateful I am for the TREMENDOUS generosity that has been displayed here this year. I'm absolutely thrilled and touched to see the enormous support for this fantastic community, and the way we've given back to it in these financially gloomy times tells me that it's something that most of us consider a blessing and a gift. Pardon my over-the-top-cheesy-ness here, but I cherish so many experiences I've had that have occured directly because of OCR, and I'm so happy to see so many of you apparently feel the same way.

For those of you who did not donate, again, I think no less of you for that, but I do feel that you owe some thanks to everyone who donated this month--it's only fair. As DJP said, the donations ranged from $3 to $500. In my own humble opionion, if you're reading this, it would mean a lot if you were to take a moment and thank the people who contributed. (Well, besides myself. I'm not looking for thanks, all I want is the continuation of this site and community.) :)

Now then, April is over (or will be in a few hours depending on where you live.) Does this mean that we're good until next year? Well, I think it's safe to say that we shouldn't have to worry about the site going under for the next 12 months, but that does not mean donations are unnecessary or unwanted. Think of it this way. The more donations we get, the more opportunity the site has to grow EVEN MORE! Exciting things are always on the way, and plentiful funding ensures not only stability but growth! So if at any point in the next 12 months you find yourself particularly glad at the content we're offering, toss that extra $5 (or hey, $500 if you wish) towards the site. It's going to a good place, and good things will come of it, I promise.

Here's to another fantastic year. See you all next April!

Thanks to Binjovi for this awesome picture!
http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p238/biggiantcircles/4TanSupportOCRsuccess.jpg


***OLD STUFF***
UPDATE

Taken from a post later in the thread:
We've had over 1200 registered users visit the site this month. We currently have about 50 people on the list. That's only 4% of this month's visitors donating.

Since last April, the site has had over 6,750 registered users visit. In other words, 0.71% of the site's visitors have shown their appreciation monetarily. While I want to make it clear that by no means do we expect any of you to pay for that which we strive to make freely available here, I can only look at the figures which tell me that each person on that list is making a sacrifice for 140+ other registered users to enjoy our site's awesome content.

Q: Hey BGC, why do you keep emphasizing registered users?
A: Because, that's not even counting the loads and loads of UNREGISTERED guests that pass through here and grab our content (over 93,000 unique hits from April 1 - 16th!) If any of you who are reading this happen to be an unregistered guest and think we have awesome content that we're working hard to make available to you, please consider making a small donation to help ensure our progress!

Ask yourselves, even in a poor economy (and considering all the time you've spent here or spent listening to the music here), would you really miss a mere $5 if you misplaced it? What if it was stolen? Would it bring you to your knees and bring your livelihood to ruin or utter hardship?

If you are being 100% honest with yourself, and you answered YES, then please, continue to enjoy our free content, and we are glad to provide it to you. And instead of money, please consider showing your appreciation by reviewing some of the great tracks on here and letting the ReMixers know you appreciate their fine work!

Otherwise, if you know that you truly could do just fine without that $5 that mysteriously vanished (and if I were to wager, then I'd be willing to bet that most of us fall into this category), then you know what to do. Don't let less than 1% of the people in this community make 100% of the sacrifice.

Be true to your school. The school of ReMix.
******************************

Last year, djpretzel mentioned in a write-up that “Sometimes, because of our content policy, our LLC status, the amount of content on the site, or any number of things, people mistakenly think that we're an actual business that has ample resources and makes money, etc. This is not the case - money from all our ads, shirt sales, and donations combined only barely breaks even these days due to the operational cost of hosting the site. In other words, we always need whatever help you can provide.”

The same holds true this year as well. Before I get right to it, however, I’d like to cover a few points. OverClocked ReMix has experienced some tremendous growth in the last year - I think it’s fair to say that none of the “old-timers” ever anticipated how popular it would become or the impact it would have on so many people on so many levels. With Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, we managed to make our way into a major video game franchise, we’ve gotten a lot of positive attention online and through events like Video Games Live, and we’re receiving an ever increasing number of submissions from both aspiring and renowned musicians from all over the world. Why does any of this matter? The larger the site grows, the more resources it takes to keep moving forward.

Many of you will remember that this time last year, I unofficially declared April to be “Support OCR Month”. It seemed appropriate, since the site was not only officially standing on its own two legs, but was growing rapidly, with the cost of things like bandwidth and hosting quickly outgrowing the limited funds generated from T-shirts, stickers, hoodies, and ads. Whether you've personally downloaded one or all of the remixes that are hosted here, enjoyed any of the album projects, made it to a meet-up or convention and had a blast, played a game online with friends you’ve made here, learned a skill you didn’t have before, improved a skill or ability, helped someone else in the same way, sit and spent minutes or hours and hours on the forums, or any combination of these things etc, that's all made possible by djp's continued work on the site and our ability to make such resources available. This year’s A1 gag (http://www.ocremix.org/wiki/images/OC_ReMix_-_April_Fool%27s_Day_2009.png) was great, but it’s not entirely unrealistic—that is, the possibility of losing the battle to site operating costs and watching the site disappear. In fact, though we aren't quite in dire straits (http://www.ocremix.org/forums/showthread.php?p=413235&postcount=303), we walk closer to that ledge than many people think.

As a member of the judges panel, I'd also like to address a concern we’ve seen increase over the past year. Those of you submitting music may have noticed that the process has become slower lately; this is a frustrating thing, and rightfully so. Let me officially say that this is not something that the staff has overlooked - we are thrilled with the growth we’ve had, but we also want to encourage that growth, not restrict it. We are not content to let our success in carrying out the core mission of “appreciating and promoting video game music” reach a plateau when it is capable of expanding further. The judges panel is going to commit to a higher level of accountability and productivity. The queue is scary sometimes, and the inbox even more so, but we realize that patience has been stretched with the amount of time it takes to submit and have new remixes posted. We now ask just a bit more as we reaffirm our commitment to ensure faster results as we are in this transition of continued growth. Things are only going to get better, not worse; that much we can promise. :)

I enjoy statistics, and shall thus provide some. As of now, April 2nd, we’ve had roughly 660 registered users visit this site since yesterday. If we assume that at any given point, there are twice as many unregistered users enjoying our content, that’s nearly 2,000 visitors in less than 2 days. If a mere fourth of those contributed a mere $5, that’s about $2500. Under the assumption that we’ll probably have quite a few more visitors by the end of the month, we ought to be able to generate a substantial amount of funds to support the site.

For those who are interested, last year we raised about $2400 for the site. This year, I’d like to double that goal. I think we should easily be able to raise $5000 (http://www.ocremix.org/forums/showthread.php?p=413230&postcount=302).

Here is a simple banner that you can put it in your sig and help spread the word!

http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p238/biggiantcircles/random%20stuff/supportOCRsig.jpg

Copy paste this next part: (but remember to take the spaces out of the , [/img], and [/url] tags :)

Click below for more info![/ size]
http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p238/biggiantcircles/random%20stuff/supportOCRsig.jpg[/ IMG][/ url]


FAQs:

Q: [I]How/where do I donate?
A: PayPal link is above the sidebar over on the left.

Q: Will I receive recognition for my donation?
A: Sure, we'd love to thank you publicly. Please note your forum name in your PayPal donation. And if you are not a forum member, please register! We're not a bad bunch, stick around, make some new friends!

Q: I don't have the money right this minute--can I contribute later?
A: Absolutely. If you post in this thread, I'll consider that a commitment. It's on your honor to actually pay if you say you will.

Q: Can I just [URL="http://www.ocremix.org/store/"]buy an OCR shirt/hoodie/stickers (http://www.ocremix.org/forums/showthread.php?t=22786) instead of donating?
A: Yes--every little bit helps. Donating, however, is the most direct way to help, since we only get a percentage of merchandise sales, but any support we can get is still very much appreciated.

Q: How much money have we raised so far?
A: We'll tell you when we're done. I will tell you if we break our $5k goal, though! :)

Q: I thought there were prizes involved.
A: There were, but Paypal deemed our offering prize incentives as part of this fund raiser as a form of gambling, which violates their TOS. So until further notice, and much to our own regret, there are no prizes being offered. Believe me, we are very, very sorry about this.

Q: I have questions that are not answered here. Who can I ask?
A: Feel free to PM me (big giant circles) and I'll do my best to get back to you in a timely fashion.


http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p238/biggiantcircles/1luvu.gif PEOPLE WHO WILL/ALREADY HAVE CONTRIBUTED (__/6750+) http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p238/biggiantcircles/1luvu.gif
-1337 1
-Abadoss
-the prophet of mephisto
-djpretzel
-Brushfire2004
-FREAK55
-Kentarre
-Vivi22
-big giant circles
-linkspast
-Bahamut
-Jewbei
-Bleck
-Audix
-Orange Pylon
-Cecilff2
-crazy_dewmaster
-SoulinEther
-The Mutericator
-Shortmann
-BardicKnowledge
-Power Smoothie
-iskyoork
-pixietricks
-TheHands
-AnotherSoapOpera
-Moguta
-Harmony
-Shadow Wolf
-The Otaku
-D-Lux
-Jago
-JigginJon "The-Original-Mr.-5/4" Titterington
-Bart Klepka
-MaxFrost
-rAnDOm_rOguE
-phirro
-Majin GeoDooD
-HalcyonSpirit
-Dhsu
-DJ Mokram
-NinjaKirbysomething (he vanished before I could catch the end of it)
-Kizyr
-K.B.
-RagingWolf
-GeneralJehy
-Brushfire2004
-Eluros
-genesis_SOC
-Polo
-SirChadlyOC
-JadeAuto
-Cyril the Wolf
-Shaltif
-Dr_Graevling
-Neo Samus
-fil_razorback
-Fishy
-Wild Armor
-DJChAko(?)
-The R3venge
-abg
-jmr
-GRiM_BoB
-nesdude
-Avatar of Justice
-hobodactyl
-jatalu
-Torzelan
-ifirit
-Zephyr
-Gario
-SuperMod
-Majin GeoDooD
-ChloroPhil
-Global-Trance
-Dr.Flintlock
-Rexy
-Fratto
-many, many, many, many others who donated "anonymously" :)


Take over the interweb with us!
Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2210239078), Facebook Fans (http://www.facebook.com/pages/OverClocked-ReMix/7350358374), Twitter (http://twitter.com/ocremix), MySpace (http://groups.myspace.com/ocremix), YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/group/ocremix), Last.fm (http://www.last.fm/group/OverClocked+Remix), Orkut (http://www.orkut.com/Community.aspx?cmm=5991), Folding@home (http://fah-web.stanford.edu/cgi-bin/main.py?qtype=teampage&teamnum=48303)

[big giant circles]

Also, last year I threw together a pretty crappy sig in like mspaint. Surely there's someone out there who can do a better one for this year :)

[SLyGeN]

There was some deal where if one bought music gear through a certain site and mentioned OCR, OCR got a cut.

I need VST instruments, and I figure that would be a very reasonable thing for OCR to try and find a deal on. If that happens, I'll set aside some time to browse the inventory.

edit: yes, this, I found the Amazon store. Is it only for inventory listed on the website?

[Liontamer]

There was some deal where if one bought music gear through a certain site and mentioned OCR, OCR got a cut.

I need VST instruments, and I figure that would be a very reasonable thing for OCR to try and find a deal on. If that happens, I'll set aside some time to browse the inventory.

Yep, if you shop Zzounds through our Zzounds link (http://www.zzounds.com/a--925434), that's a way to support!

[Abadoss]

I'll probably be able to throw in $10 again...

[Bahamut]

Also if you shop on Amazon, try to add items to your cart via this page: Amazon Outlet - OverClocked ReMix (http://www.ocremix.org/forums/../amazon/)

[1337 1]

Consider me in. Although living in Australia, you can probably count me out of the prizes; the shipping would likely be too expensive :< Still I'll contribute like last year, just let me see how much I can donate.

EDIT:
Alright, its coming, I've started it, and its just got to get cleared. You should have about US$100 within the week.

Also, I kinda forgot to add my username to the thing, can I pm the details to someone?

[SLyGeN]

Yep, if you shop Zzounds through our Zzounds link (http://www.zzounds.com/a--925434), that's a way to support!

I'm getting a server interrupt error.

I'll try to find the link on the page itself, and I will certainly have a look.

If you'd care to do a little of my work for me, you could recommend for me a good strings VST, guitar VST, vocals VST, and piano VST. They do have demos, correct?


edit: mm, yes. The site store's link is giving me errors, too. I certainly want to go through a link that will benefit OCR. This is the slight push I need to justify purchasing more instruments than I already have to work with, at this point.

[big giant circles]

Consider me in. Although living in Australia, you can probably count me out of the prizes; the shipping would likely be too expensive :< Still I'll contribute like last year, just let me see how much I can donate.

EDIT:
Alright, its coming, I've started it, and its just got to get cleared. You should have about US$100 within the week.

Also, I kinda forgot to add my username to the thing, can I pm the details to someone?

You should be fine. Just PM me the email or whatever that you used.

Also, we'll ship it anywhere, regardless of the shipping cost :)

[prophetik music]

i'll take whatever 1337 can't get in terms of prizes =)

i submitted a small donation. i'm hoping to do more as of next pay period, but right now my car repairs are sappin' mah bank account. it should be pretty obvious who i am, although i didn't include my handle.

[Brushfire]

You can count on me BGC!! I can't do it this week but on the 15th a Benjamin is coming your way OCR!!

[FREAK55]

I'm willing to throw in ten dollars again this year. Always happy to support this awesome site!

[Kentarre]

Long time lurker throwing in my donation of $10, more when I get my paycheck hopefully

[Vivi22]

I believe last year I threw in $10, but in honour of trying to double the money raised this year I'll throw in at least $20. More may follow as the tax man has been fairly generous this year, but I can't promise anything as those funds may need to be appropriated for other purposes. I may even get around to buying a shirt (which I've been meaning to buy for the last two years or so).

[big giant circles]

I believe last year I threw in $10, but in honour of trying to double the money raised this year I'll throw in at least $20. More may follow as the tax man has been fairly generous this year, but I can't promise anything as those funds may need to be appropriated for other purposes. I may even get around to buying a shirt (which I've been meaning to buy for the last two years or so).

Man, that is like, more rad thank timbale licks; what a great attitude to have! Thanks for sharing that awesome perspective!

[linkspast]

+10. 10characters

[Bahamut]

I forgot how much I donated last time this was done, but I'm hoping to donate at least $100 this time around once my tax return + this month's salary comes in.

[Jewbei]

by like the 21st of this month i can donate between $50-$100. This site helped me a lot it seems rather selfish if i stand by and do nothing to return the favor :-P

[Bleck]

I donated 6.33$ CND

[Sole Signal]

I really appreciate all the support and interest I've received from the community here, and will be making a donation shortly!

[Orange Pylon]

Donated! $20 as a thanks for years of fun.

[Cecilff2]

I should be good for $50 again this year. Will do when I get home tonight.

[SoulinEther]

April has always had special significance in my life: it's my birth month. OCRemix has "given" me a lot by way of music, inspiration, mystifying my friends, witty and entertaining write-ups, etc. over the past two years - more than I could ever ask for in a simple birthday present.

So, in order to say thanks, I'll give instead of just receiving this year. I'm not sure how much I'll put down just yet, but I'm sure I'll be making use of the OCR Amazon store and buying a t-shirt (make sure you guys have these in stock!).

[The Mutericator]

Donated $5. Might buy a hoodie later.

[Shortmann]

Like I did last year, I'll donate some money when I get all my bills paid and can figure out how much I could actually donate. Since I have more than half the songs on this site on my computer, I think it's pretty necessary I contribute in some way shape or form.

[BardicKnowledge]

I'll throw down again this year towards the end of the month -- we're currently avoiding shopping and money spending to help absorb the cost of our new laptop. Will edit my post when I get around to it (probably on one of the last few days of April).

[Power Smoothie]

While I haven't got working paypal at the moment, you can bet I'll be chipping in as soon as I'm sorted :)

OCR is what got me into music production. I sure as hell owe you one.

[iskyoork]

Donated my 10 dollars because I am to lazy to change my Signature.

And the fact I get most of my music from here.

[Jillian Aversa]

Done and done!

[big giant circles]

Thanks guys, keep up the great help!

I think we're off to a good start, but we could be doing way better.

So far, of the ~810 registered members that have visited the site in the past 4 days, only 21 have donated. That's only 1 out of every 38 people. Also, this thread has had nearly 900 views (I'll account for a few of them mainly due to updating the list) but still if you've read this thread, we need your support! And you unregistered lurkers reading this thread now, show your love! Show us how much you enjoy the site! And in addition to helping us move forward and provide you with more awesome music and information, why not take a shot at winning some great bonus prizes as well?

[TheHands]

I'm hoping to get a card to link to paypal in the near future, this would make it possible to actually contribute... and buy stuff.

Will do if possible.

[anosou]

Jimmy, slap me in the face around the 15th on irc and I'll do some serious contributing.

[Moguta]

Just donated.
Thanks for the great site & music. :-)

[Harmony]

Donated. This place and its people have been so great to me for the past 5 years. Thanks OCR :)

[Shadow Wolf]

I've got 100 coming your way as soon as the eCheck clears. This place has been a part of my daily life for too long to go under.

[Otakatt]

Well I donated! I probably just put my username in the wrong field when I did, haha. But that's okay.

[D-Lux]

You'll be +10 by the end of the week.

[Jago]

$100 donated. Thanks for a fantastic site!

[big giant circles]

You'll be +10 by the end of the week.

And hope you're having a great b-day, as well bro!

[JJT]

donated, but only cuz i can't think for myself

[Bart Klepka]

Rock on OCR!

[big giant circles]

Rock on OCR!

If this means you donated, then I'll add you to the list.

Also, JJT, make me a sandwich.

[MaxFrost]

I know I donated 20 bucks! yay for ocr win!

[JJT]

Also, JJT, make me a sandwich.
sandwich en route via the post

[prophetik music]

sounds like when you could buy milk with super saver shipping at amazon.

[Jillian Aversa]

Also, last year I threw together a pretty crappy sig in like mspaint. Surely there's someone out there who can do a better one for this year :)

How's this?

http://soundtempest.net/jill/ocr/ocrdrive.gif (http://www.ocremix.org/forums/showthread.php?t=22786)

Feel free to put this in your sigs if you'd like to help promote the drive. Image location is http://soundtempest.net/jill/ocr/ocrdrive.gif, and be sure to make the GIF link back to this thread at http://www.ocremix.org/forums/showthread.php?t=22786!

[Abadoss]

Uh, shouldn't it say something on it, though? As to why we're giving people seizures?

[big giant circles]

That's really awesome, Jill!

I do agree with Ken, though, in that I wonder if it'd be possible to add a small line of text at the end that said something like "Click here to learn more!"

Otherwise, that puts my crummy one from last year to total shame, and that's awesome! :)

[rAnDOm_rOguE]

US$50 donated. Considering I listen to some OCRemixes more often than some other music I've paid good (or bad) money for, it's the least I can do.

[phirro]

Done ~ Every little bit helps, right?

Also, it's my first post. Hi everybody! :)

Does this mean I'm not a lurker anymore?

[Jillian Aversa]

That's really awesome, Jill!

I do agree with Ken, though, in that I wonder if it'd be possible to add a small line of text at the end that said something like "Click here to learn more!"

Otherwise, that puts my crummy one from last year to total shame, and that's awesome! :)

That's why you should have the image itself link to the first post in this thread. Unfortunately, I don't have the time to change anything about the GIF. It took me FOREVER.

[Harmony]

It took me FOREVER.and I'll second how really awesome it is :)

[Majin GeoDooD]

+20! Though I forgot to include my forum name on the payment.. shouldn't be hard to figure out with the e-mail address I used to pay :P

[big giant circles]

Anyway, it's still great, and I've updated the first post to include it. Thanks a ton, Jilly Bean!

[HalcyonSpirit]

1) Added pixie-ad to sig!
2) Will be donating soon; just need my next money-infusion to arrive. (Paying for housing for next year makes my wallet cry!)
3) What did you use to make the ad, Jill? If you still have the original files, I may be able to add that last bit about clicking it if you're too busy to do it yourself right now. Just an offer, if you choose to accept it.

[Dhsu]

Just bought Rhythm Heaven from the OCR Amazon storefront. Dunno if that qualifies for a raffle ticket, but whatever, it's RHYTHM HEAVEN.

[Dj Mokram]

I'm fairly new here.
But I've found a formidable and unique way to express myself & to reach people all over the world with music.
And that wonderful mean of expression & sharing is OCR.

Therefore I'm more than willing to participate and support the site when I can, so I've made a 50$ donation.
It's not much in comparison to the knowledge I've gained and the fun that I had since I've joined.
But I hope this contribution helps making OCremix an even better place. ;-)

[big giant circles]

So far there we've had a fantastic week, and I'd like to extend a huge thank you to those who have donated so far. Some of you have truly gone above and beyond, and whether or not the raffle goes well for you, you have our utmost and sincere thanks.

Also, those of you who have read this thread but have not yet donated, please consider doing so. If your name appears below, or on any of the following few pages, now is a great time to show support to a site that undeniably means a great deal to you. :)

http://www.ocremix.org/forums/memberlist.php?order=DESC&sort=posts&pp=30

[Scufo]

You won't be getting a dime from me, ya buncha freeloaders!

...Oh god, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. Please don't make that face! Okay, okay...I can spare $10. Now cheer up, okay?

...

(+$10)

[The Mutericator]

Done ~ Every little bit helps, right?

Also, it's my first post. Hi everybody! :)

Does this mean I'm not a lurker anymore?

Yes. Just make sure you keep posting or else you'll go back to lurker status.

Glad to have you. ^_^

[big giant circles]

Those of you who have donated, I encourage you to use Jill's sig and help us spread the word! Feel free to wear it in other video game/game music related forums. Blog about it! Livejournal it! Positive spiral, woot!

[Bahamut]

Rock on OCR!

Whoa, I didn't know you were still around. I remember my brother liking your stuff way back (8 years ago?).

[NinjaKirby1322]

Even ninja must be seen doing something good every once in a while.

I grant you $10. Now I must be off. Ninja, vanish!

*throws smoke bomb*

<(' . ' )> <( ' . ')> <( ' . ' )>

<( ^ . ^;)>

[jayc4life]

I really need to throw some money in the pot for this place. I've gotten so much music off thie place it's only right that I do.

I'll see what I can afford at the end of the month, I've money yet to move around, and I missed a rent payment this month, but rest assures something IS coming from me, I'm just not sure how much and when you'll get it. But you will get something, you've got my word on it.

[SoulinEther]

Just as a side...question, how did Paypal catch this? I've known many (illegal/legally questionable) private game servers that offered services/incentives to people for donating. I'm not encouraging that you do something against Paypal's policies, but I just wonder how so many shady operations can get by under the radar.

What if you gave everyone who donated something, thus not making this a raffle/lottery? Would that be ok with Paypal? Considering the amount of money that might have gone into the prizes, a small gift to everyone who donated would be cool and maybe less costly; something light, preferably thin to fit in one of those bubble wrap document mailers. Maybe you could give out each donor's choice of OCR album CD(s) with their labels pressed on them, magnets... Just a thought. If it's not possible, I'm sure people will still give. This setback might even serve to encourage more to support OCR - I don't know.

[prophetik music]

Rock on OCR!

holy crap, when you think you've seen everything...

your dune mix is my favorite mix ever!

[linkspast]

I too am curious as to why they care, or even how they found out about this....
and also. Its not what OCR can give to you. Its what you can Give to OCR, Plus if you have each track downloaded thats at least $1,000 worth of itunes music, So what is 10 dollars. Back towards more great music,

[anosou]

http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p238/biggiantcircles/1luvu.gif PEOPLE WHO WILL/ALREADY HAVE CONTRIBUTED http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p238/biggiantcircles/1luvu.gif
-djpretzel

That made me happy :)
Also, my paycheck this month is a tad bigger than expected so I'm game this year too! I'll keep you posted.

[big giant circles]

Well, my own speculation is that someone (probably who doesn't like us for whatever reason) may have reported us, however it is possible that they found it on their own; either way it doesn't truly matter. I understand that by technical definition I suppose, we are "gambling" in some way, although to anyone reading this thread/post, we know that that's a very very skewed perspective, and obviously not what we're about here.

It's merely a fundraiser, and it was MY IDEA to offer prizes to those who donated. Believe me, if I was able, I'd give away prizes to every single person that sent in any money at all. Obviously, that's not exactly feasible.

I'm just really disappointed at this whole mess. I've participated in this exact same type of thing before, where donations were asked for, and in some cases prizes were rewarded, many for charitable causes. It's unfortunate that Paypal is a large entity, bound more by fine print than any sort of conscious judgement. We may figure out a better way to carry out our "gambling"[/smirk] in the future, but for now we have had no choice but to abide by PayPal's request.

[RocketSniper]

Well, you know, you could just pick OCR members at 'random', and somehow happen to get names on the list every time to receive OCR thanks for listening gifts... Just a thought. :-o

[big giant circles]

Believe me, I've considered that, and again, perhaps there's another way that does not involve using Paypal that we could offer prizes, but I reiterate, for the immediate moment, our options are limited and adhering to PapPal's requests is what must be done.

[Liontamer]

Just noting that our PayPal access has been restored. It took some persistence on djp's part to say the least, but now everything's cool. That said, we did have another contest idea just for musicians that we may be able to use some prizes for, and I do like Jimmy's idea of thinking of another giveaway angle unrelated to the donations. We want to give you guys something, so I'll think of a way we can do that for this month!

[Shadow Wolf]

I don't need prizes, this site's been giving me free prizes for 7 years, they're filling my hard drive right now. How about post more mixes and we'll call it good?

[Kizyr]

Man, didn't know PayPal had those kind of restrictions. Though it doesn't really surprise me...

Good to hear it's restored at last. I'll donate some this evening. KF

[Moguta]

I don't need prizes, this site's been giving me free prizes for 7 years, they're filling my hard drive right now. How about post more mixes and we'll call it good?
I echo this sentiment. The only prize I care about is Dave whittling down the to-be-posted-ReMix queue. ;-)

[SoulinEther]

How about post more mixes and we'll call it good?10 characters. lol

[1337 1]

I don't need prizes, this site's been giving me free prizes for 7 years, they're filling my hard drive right now. How about post more mixes and we'll call it good?

I second this notion; I entered into my donation not expecting anything, and I stand by that. You guys have always done so much for the community, so I can't expect anything in return because, well, I already got so much.

Besides, I've always been of the mind that the community here on OCR is, in my experience, the best I've ever seen. Its no single thing that makes it stand out, but just the way the community can stand together like it does...I've never seen any other community like it.

So consider my donation a small thank you for staying awesome over the years. After all, many other forums I've been on have fallen to the dogs, but OCR has always stood together, strong and tall. No other place does it like OCR.

[Dhsu]

I demand a refund, as well as remunerations for wasted time and emotional distress!

[Neo Samus]

Ah sweet it's that time of the year again? I have to wait till the 15th, but I will donate, I just don't know how much yet, but you have my word. :)

[Monobrow]

I demand a refund, as well as remunerations for wasted time and emotional distress!

Yeah and he peed his pants from the trauma too!

[big giant circles]

This just in, we can no longer offer refunds because we have spent all your donation money on Depends for Dhsu.

:tomatoface:

[Kizyr]

Ok, I just donated. A day late but it's still April!

I'm gonna go ahead and update my sig in a moment. KF

[K.B.]

Recommendation: put that PayPal button (or corresponding link) in the first post. It took me several minutes to find it - I'm so used to seeing it in the sidebar that I didn't realize it was there. Putting it in the first post would, at the very least, make it easy on newbs; it might even draw in a few more bucks.

If this has been said before, well, then it's been said again. (tldr beyond first post)


Regardless, thanks djp, lt, and everyone else who keeps ocr alive and kicking.

[BardicKnowledge]

I was kind of hoping for a prize after witnessing this travesty. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKGTM-SU9Q0&feature=channel_page) Of course I'll still throw in my $10 anyway sometime after Wednesday :p

Seriously though, what a bunch of crap about the laptop drawing :(

[RagingWolf]

I'll be glad to help. It's like back-taxes for all my downloads over the years. :oops: Couldn't find where to put my username while donating, though.

[big giant circles]

Recommendation: put that PayPal button (or corresponding link) in the first post. It took me several minutes to find it - I'm so used to seeing it in the sidebar that I didn't realize it was there. Putting it in the first post would, at the very least, make it easy on newbs; it might even draw in a few more bucks.

If this has been said before, well, then it's been said again. (tldr beyond first post)


Regardless, thanks djp, lt, and everyone else who keeps ocr alive and kicking.

Well, there originally was a link to the paypal button, but I took it down when they decided to be complete idiots about the whole thing even after we had adhered to their demands. I suppose I should put it back up.

[GeneralJehy]

I only donated $25.00. I wish I could give more, because I absolutely love this site, the music, and the remixers.
You hear that? I LOVE you guys as only one could when drenched in psychomagnotheric slime.


Cheers.
J.

[Neo Samus]

Ok I made my donation. I only did $10, but at least it's something. My wedding is in just a little over a month so money is tight. :oops:

[Kholdstare]

You have my 2 cents.


Rather 5 dollars; but keep going strong guys!

[Brushfire]

As promised, I dropped my Benjamin to DJP this morning. I hope that C-Note goes to the David Q. Lloyd Memorial Foundation of Mixes to Help Better Mankind, and Some Water Fowl, or DQLMFMHBMSWF for short.

I'd work on that acronym though.

[Eluros]

Well, I've been visiting the site at least weekly since around December 2006, and figured it's a good time to give back. I donated $20; hope it helps. Thanks for the great site!

[big giant circles]

Update:

We've had over 1200 registered users visit the site this month. We currently have about 50 people on the list. That's only 4% of this month's visitors donating.

Since last April, the site has had over 6,750 registered users visit. In other words, 0.71% of the site's visitors have shown their appreciation monetarily. While I want to make it clear that by no means do we expect any of you to pay for that which we strive to make freely available here, I can only look at the figures which tell me that each person on that list is making a sacrifice for 140+ other registered users to enjoy our site's awesome content.

Q: Hey BGC, why do you keep emphasizing registered users?
A: Because, that's not even counting the loads and loads of UNREGISTERED guests that pass through here and grab our content. If any of you who are reading this happen to be an unregistered guest and think we have awesome content that we're working hard to make available to you, please consider making a small donation to help ensure our progress!

Ask yourselves, even in a poor economy (and considering all the time you've spent here or spent listening to the music here), would you really miss a mere $5 if you misplaced it? What if it was stolen? Would it bring you to your knees and bring your livelihood to ruin or utter hardship?

If you are being 100% honest with yourself, and you answered YES, then please, continue to enjoy our free comment, and we are glad to provide it to you. And instead of money, please consider showing your appreciation by reviewing some of the great tracks on here and letting the ReMixers know you appreciate their fine work!

Otherwise, if you know that you truly could do just fine without that $5 that mysteriously vanished (and if I were to wager, then I'd be willing to bet that most of us fall into this category), then you know what to do. Don't let less than 1% of the people in this community make 100% of the sacrifice.

Be true to your school. The school of ReMix.

[anosou]

$20 for you lovely sons of bitches that run this site! Who are the these "judges" anyway? I hope this donation goes towards replacing them with some kind of bot..

[genesis_SOC]

I just donated $5. I love this site.

[GeneralJehy]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqp8C0FUqmM

Cheers.
J.

[big giant circles]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqp8C0FUqmM

Cheers.
J.

<3

I like the bit about the change jar, too. I didn't even think of that.

[Polo]

Paypal link is above the sidebar over on the right.
You mean the left. ;-)

You can now click on all the 150+ random characters at the top right of the site to read bios on them written by 16 members of the community, organized by David "Dafydd" Hesselbom! (Thanks, guys!)
Totally. If not for OCR, I would never have learned why Dan Hibiki, Voldo, the HUnewearl, or quite a few other mascots are so unique. The Mascot Bio Project turned into quite a library of info.

In addition to dropping comments in the Reviews forum since the start of the month, I donated $30 to the goodwill of one of the most welcoming sites I've returned to time and again.

[big giant circles]

You mean the left. ;-)

No, I said it right. Wait, you mean you don't browse the internet standing on your head too? Alright, fine, I'll change it to left.
:tomatoface:

[SirChadlyOC]

In honor of everyone who's had a birthday sometime this year, I donated $20. You know who you are. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! :<

[JadeAuto]

Donated $15.00 - The device must always be modified!

[anosou]

-AnotherSoundfont

ROFL what now? :nicework:

[big giant circles]

I don't know what you're talking about.

[Shaltif]

+25

Keep the good times rolling, and the updates flowing!

~Brandon

[anosou]

AnotherSandich? Not Sandwich? Ok.

[Dj Mokram]

I've been following from behind the scenes...
-AnotherSoundfont
-AnotherSandich
-AnotherSalmon
-AnotherSworfish
-AnotherSoftdrink
-AnotherSoundFX
-AnotherSouthParkEpisode
-AnotherSoundofMusic
-AnotherSoapOpera
April is support 'Another' month! :mrgreen:

[Dr_Graevling]

I've been coming to this site and thoroughly enjoyed the music here since 2001, and although I've never really taken any part in the community I find myself coming here at least once a day to browse the music, look around and read some comments and reviews. It's one of my favourite sites on the whole internet, and as such I feel that I should contribute in some way, even though I am no musical artist.

So I decided to donate 50 US$ to keep the site alive. It's not much, but I hope it will be of some help.
I look forward to hearing more great music from all of you guys.

[big giant circles]

AnotherSandich? Not Sandwich? Ok.

Man, I still have no idea what you're talking about. Have you been taking your medicine?








































































































<3

[anosou]

I love you BigGiantGenitals

[big giant circles]

Great news guys! Taken from DJP's writeup of http://www.ocremix.org/remix/OCR01831/

First, the good news: As of today, we've beaten last year's total for our April fundraiser!

Now, the "bad" news: Only 87 people have donated. Of course, we have no delusions... this IS the Internet, people EXPECT things to be free, and to get even 87 folks to chip in and help support our not-for-profit VGM-evangelizing organization/website is truly awesome. However, as BGC's pointed out in the thread, there are thousands of registered members and far more unregistered members who visit the site each week, and if everyone could chip in just a little, things would add up REALLY fast. This *is* the money that will make OCR possible for the next 365 days (and hopefully beyond), and we're doing our best to make this month particularly awesome. You probably saw our hopefully-not-pesky-but-rather-enlightening email, but to recap:

We published three interviews with DKC (& more!) composer David Wise, Christopher Tin (Civilization IV), and ReMixer/Composer Steffan Andrews. Thanks to each of them for taking the time to chat with us!
You can now click on our randomized mascots and get cool biographies. Try it, it's addicting.
We JUST turned on a new presentation system for mix comments that shows them RIGHT on the mix detail page, for convenience, along with some visual/usability modifications to our lists pages (e.g. games, mixes, systems, etc.)
We've already posted 8 mixes in April, this being the 9th, and they all kick butt.


So the good news is that over TWICE the people I've got on the list in the OP have actually donated. The bad news is that we've had over 100,000 unique IP hits this month, so there's definitely room for improvement. Keep it up everyone! There's still plenty of time left in the month to reach our goal of $5,000! And at the current rate, I can promise you, we'll do it!

[fil_razorback]

I'm downloading so much stuff from this place I'd have felt guilty if I had let you die like that :P

25 bucks in =)

[Fishy]

YARG. I was going to donate this month, and then my bloody card linked to my paypal got eaten by an ATM. Once I get the replacement you'll get your moneys!

[Wild Armor]

Made a $10 donation just in the past 10 minutes.
Contributions from vgtoreviews.com (http://www.vgtoreviews.com/);)

Note: I was late on the bandwagon because I'm stocked with enough classwork as it is. Hopefully next time I can keep up with news when it hits. :)

[Chako]

its about time... lets get dis sh!d rollin...

[The Rev3nge]

Put me down for $15. This site fuels the memories of my childhood.

[big giant circles]

its about time... lets get dis sh!d rollin...

lol, does that mean I should add you to the list?

[abg]

I told myself I'd donate once I got paid, and so now you guys have $20USD from me as well! I forgot to stick my forum username in my donation though :( It should say it's from Shawn Overn incase you don't believe me!

If it weren't for this website I might never have discovered video game music remixes, and I might not have taken up the enjoyable hobby of remixing. What I owe this community is greater than my donation so I hope you'll all accept a big THANK YOU from me as well!

[jmr]

It's been seven years (to the day) since I first registered here... so it's about time I actually contributed. :<
+$10.

[big giant circles]

three-letter profile names unite! :lol:

<3 thanks guys.

Keep it up everyone! We've got 6 1/2 days left to meet our goal! Let's finish strong!

[Neo Samus]

How close are we to the goal of $5000?

[GRiM_BoB]

holy crap my account here is still alive. I haven't been visiting too much and was never a huge contributor, but just dropped $25 USD because I adore this site, its community, and what it's doing for video game music and culture (not to mention, of course, the music, I fucking love the music that pops up here). things have changed since I started visiting around 2002, all for the better. keep it up, you people are win.

[nesdude]

Alright, you guys have given me access to enough music where I almost feel like a crook, so I sent some cash your way. Small $5 PayPal and also bought a black OCR t-shirt (everyone likes free advertising!).

Keep up the awesome site. You guys are awesome, and I look forward to many more years of OCR!

[BardicKnowledge]

I'd like to give a HUGE shout-out to all of the forum lurkers that have contributed. It's awesome to see your generosity, and I'm sure that the regulars would agree. Here's hoping we see more of you around the site!

Aside from getting more involved on the forums, a lot of us play Steam games online -- check the threads for Team Fortress 2 (http://www.ocremix.org/forums/showthread.php?t=17376) and Left 4 Dead (http://www.ocremix.org/forums/showthread.php?t=18633), and coordinate things in our IRC channel (http://www.ocremix.org/community/chat/applet/), which we'd love to see you guys a part of.

[big giant circles]

I don't have the exact figure this moment, but we really are very close. If we continue to receive $5, $10, $25 here and there like we've been getting, I promise you we're going to reach our goal.

[Avatar of Justice]

I have to say if it weren't for the donation thread link being in zircon's signature I would've totally missed this donation drive. Go OCR!

[hobodactyl]

Hey guys, I just made a $20 donation, but since I did the "Pay Now" option with my PayPal account it didn't let me put my name as a note or anything. Anyway, you guys provide almost all the music I listen to, so I plan on contributing regularly :)

[jatalu]

Yo, just plopped $25 down. You guys have been beasts for 10 years running. Cheers and best of luck, OCR is unbelievable.

[Abadoss]

Okay. Took a while, but I've put in the ten I promised...

[big giant circles]

Guys, we have a little over 4 days to raise about $700 or so.

Let's get on this! Lurkers, let your powers combine!

[Torzelan]

+ $20
/birthday boy

[BardicKnowledge]

Finally got around to throwing down my $10. Sorry I took so long!

[ifirit]

Sorry to be tardy to the party! +$10

[Zephyr]

I get a lot out of the community, time for some giving back. Sorry to hear about the whole evil no gambling paypal conspiracy, but it saves me the time of typing in my username.
+10

[Thin Crust]

Hold the phone. I've just got my debit card and was all set to donate, but then I find out you can't take debit card? Sorry guys, but that's the only way I can contribute.

[Thin Crust]

+ $20
/birthday boy

Hey, it's my birthday today.

[Gario]

It took me a while to get around to it, but I've donated 20$ for you all.

I learn a lot here (not to mention download all the stuff here), so I figure it's the least I can do.

[Liontamer]

Take my 5 dollars, I do not want them! :lol:

[Majin GeoDooD]

I just passed the 7 year registration mark myself, so consider a +10 on the $20 I donated earlier!

[big giant circles]

<2 days left! We've done great this month, let's finish strong, we're practically there!

[ChloroPhil]

Even though I haven't been around the site much this last year I just put in 10 bucks. Let the ReMixes continue.

[Moguta]

Hold the phone. I've just got my debit card and was all set to donate, but then I find out you can't take debit card? Sorry guys, but that's the only way I can contribute.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought you could use a debit card in a PayPal transaction.

[Abadoss]

Assuming it's not an ATM card and has a Mastercard, VISA, or (maybe) American Express symbol on it, it should work...

[big giant circles]

1 DAY LEFT.

I'd just like to thank everyone who's contributed thus far again. Those of you reading this who haven't, there's still time to show a small slice of love to one of your favorite sites for awesome free music and info!

Whether we know who you are or not, your contribution goes every bit as far, and our gratitude is no less!

~24 hours to go!

[big giant circles]

I've been following from behind the scenes...

April is support 'Another' month! :mrgreen:

Aw man, you're including my typos and everything. I blame this dang wireless keyboard! Yarrg!

[Global-Trance]

I just threw in my $10 via Paypal!

[Dr.Flintlock]

Hey, I'm new to the forums but not to the site. I think I've been lurking around since the "blue look" if anyone gets that, sometime in March of 2003. Since I'm not much of a stranger, I noticed that you guys needed some donations so I went ahead and dropped $110.00. Consider it a sort of "internet penance" for all the bandwidth I've taken downloading music from the site over the years.

Its been great seeing this site and its music grow into what it is today and I look forward to what it may evolve into in the years to come. Now, hopefully I too can have an opportunity to share in what you all have created in this little pocket of the internet.

~Erik

[anosou]

Hey, I'm new to the forums but not to the site. I think I've been lurking around since the "blue look" if anyone gets that, sometime in March of 2003. Since I'm not much of a stranger, I noticed that you guys needed some donations so I went ahead and dropped $110.00. Consider it a sort of "internet penance" for all the bandwidth I've taken downloading music from the site over the years.

Its been great seeing this site and its music grow into what it is today and I look forward to what it may evolve into in the years to come. Now, hopefully I too can have an opportunity to share in what you all have created in this little pocket of the internet.

~Erik

You my good sir is a hero amongst men!

[Rexy]

I've only just helped the cause too. $20 for the OCR team :)

[Gario]

Originally Posted by Dr.Flintlock http://www.ocremix.org/forums/../images/vbulletin/buttons/viewpost.gif (http://www.ocremix.org/forums/showthread.php?p=539832#post539832)
Hey, I'm new to the forums but not to the site. I think I've been lurking around since the "blue look" if anyone gets that, sometime in March of 2003. Since I'm not much of a stranger, I noticed that you guys needed some donations so I went ahead and dropped $110.00. Consider it a sort of "internet penance" for all the bandwidth I've taken downloading music from the site over the years.

Its been great seeing this site and its music grow into what it is today and I look forward to what it may evolve into in the years to come. Now, hopefully I too can have an opportunity to share in what you all have created in this little pocket of the internet.

~Erik
You my good sir is a hero amongst men!

Seconded, here. That's just awesome.

[GeneralJehy]

Yeah, way to make the rest of us look bad Erik!
Nah, I'm just kidding.

So how far away are we from the goal?!

Cheers.
J.

[Fratto]

$ 25

[nesdude]

Congrats guys, here's to another year of OCR!

Also, the t-shirt is awesome (and was higher quality than I was expecting!) and I will wear it with pride because you guys are awesome. Congrats again on $5000, hope to do it again next year :razz:

[big giant circles]

Original Post updated. :)

http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p238/biggiantcircles/4TanSupportOCRsuccess.jpg

[Dj Mokram]

5000 already! Thats great! OCR is saved! :grin:

http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/2486/supportocrsigsuccess.png

[big giant circles]

awesome sig, bro :)

[Dj Mokram]

I had to make one to celebrate the occasion.
Yours is way better though! ;-)

[Salluz]

I shall contribute. I did last year and missed out this year since my life has FALLEN APAAAAART!

[Bahamut]

Jeez, who donated $500?

[Platonist]

congrats!
next year i'll probably afford to send some myself.
I'm freakin poor these days

[hobodactyl]

Yay, I'm so happy the goal was met, I contributed what I could :) Congrats to everyone who supports and contributes to OCR in whatever way they can :]

[Nekofrog]

I donated last year, but couldn't afford it this year.

DAMN YOU JOBLESSNESS.