Mike Carroll's Vanity Call Site going down??!!

(Edited 8-11-2002)
Please check Mike's website at Vanity HQ. He has added PAY PAL and a link to his mailing address for donations to be sent in support of his web site. Thanks to ALL for the great response!
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I just checked into Mike Carroll's Vanity Headquarters and the news is bad...

"Vanity HQ Going QRT - QST...QST...QST...Due to a lack of funds, Vanity HQ will go off the air sometime in the month of August 2002. I do not know exactly which day I will pull the plug. Since I have been unemployed all year, my cash on hand is dangerously low and I can no longer afford to spend money on anything except living expenses. This action will also make all my email addresses invalid. Thank you everyone for your support and friendship. Best regards to all, Michael - N4MC"

Guys, we need to do something! Let's hear it!

 

Thats awful. That site helped me find my dream call. Its said that it has to go. Thanks Mike, while you could. Maybe someone can pickup the slack with another of the same type.

 

Maybe everyone who ever used the site vanityhq.com to find a new callsign should send Mike a couple bucks to keep it alive! With over 1.2 million hits on the site, that should probably last a few years. Just look up "N4MC" above for his address. I'm mailing my $2 tomorrow.

73...Lance

 

OK here's a little update...
I have had several hams e-mail me and say they want to help. I have e-mailed Mike Carroll and asked him to reply to us as to what we can do. We'll wait for his response and see.

It's good to know hams know a valued resourse when we have one.

 

It wasn't for Vanity HQ I wouldn't have been able to obtain my call. The ability to search the calls that are still available allowed me to only apply once, all with calls that I knew to be available. More recently, I have used the site for a club I belong to that is considering a vanity call. To loose a resource such as Vanity HQ would be catastrophic. I agree with the idea of trying to keep the site "alive". I will be sending a donation myself tomorrow. Bandwidth is not cheap, to keep a site like this going for as long as Mike has is extraordinary. If I have learned anything in the few months I've had my ticket, it's that hams help each other; whether it's raising a new tower, lending a radio to the newly licensed, or running a website to share your experiences. By keeping the site up and running, your not only helping Mike, but every ham that is in search of a vanity call.

73, Brian

 

When I first saw that I also sent a message and had a short e-mail conversation before his site went off the air.

While I (and certainly many others) can certainly host the server without much problem, the rub comes because the software which updates the server is a Microsoft Windows GUI C++ program, per Mike's description. Hence, you have to run windows to update the site.

I don't put Windows into my data center, so that ruled me out. Perhaps someone else can work something out. Also, realize, you can no longer e-mail him to my knowledge.

Cheers,

Doug

 

To Pestilence76

Brian, with reference to your quote at the bottom of your message

I think you mean "GRAB THE BENCH"  not  "seize the tape"

73's......Bill.......WB6BNQ

 

If he can host it on Linux, I just sent him an email volunteering to host it for him. I have the extra bandwidth here just lying around and I'm paying for it and it's going nowhere most of the time =). As another gentleman said, I'm not going to convert to windows hosting. I don't want to deal with the licensing costs and almost daily updates needed to keep the web server from being hacked.


Kurt, N1PFC

 

ALLRIGHT!!

Here we go... Mike is going to try to keep his site up and running! Here is the web address:
Vanity HQ.

http://www.vanityhq.com

He has a link there where we can send donations via Pay Pal or a link to his mailing address.

And hey, everyone give themselves a pat on the back, because YOU represent what hams are all about...SERVICE!

 

Just sent my donation -- the ease of using PayPal, plus the "free money" in my PP account from eBay auctions of unneeded radio/computer items, helps.

The site was helpful when I wanted to go the vanity route.



Frank N3KD

 

I just sent my $10.00 and was glad to do it!

 

Really good website if you're looking to get a vanity callsign. It helped me and I sent in some help ,too.

  73 and dig in those pockets ,gentlemen and ladies

  de Tony K8EEI

   

 

Well I'm just a recent "no code" Tech but I sent a few bucks to keep him going for the possible use future.
73 and God Bless

 

It's going to take everybody helping out.  No matter what you send, SEND SOMETHING!  Even if it's a lone dollar bill.  If you can do more (or much more), please consider doing so.  I used the PayPal button at VHQ, and it worked just fine.

Thanks

Steve
W9HC

 

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (KC8UGM @ Aug. 10 2002,16:22)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Well I'm just a recent "no code" Tech but I sent a few bucks to keep him going for the possible use future.
73 and God Bless[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
Even Technicians are eligible for 1X3 vanity calls.