After three amazing and inspiring days for everyone involved with SitePoint we are humbled to announce that our 5-for-1 book sale, where all of the proceeds will be donated to victims of the recent Australian bushfires, has come to an end…
We started out with a $50K target, and early figures suggest it’s gone well beyond our wildest expectations. To everyone who placed an order (or two or three), from the entire team at SitePoint – thanks for supporting this worthy cause.
We want to be able to verify every cent goes the Red Cross Appeal, so we’ve employed the auditing services of Deloitte to make sure every dollar is accounted for.
Rest assured we’ll announce the official total as soon as Deloitte have confirmed it.
If you missed out, and are still wanting to contribute to this worthy cause, please donate directly to the Red Cross.
Congrats to all concerned, Sitepoint has done an outstanding job of unselfishly donating time and money to raise what I’m sure is going to be an awesome amount, if the approximations are anything to go off. Massive hat tip.
February 13th, 2009 at 5:15 pm
damn! It didn’t occur to me that it’d be finished by the time I wok up on Friday :(
February 13th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
Thanks to everyone who supported us this week by helping to spread the word; to our customers who took advantage of the offer; and of course to our amazing team here at SitePoint who worked tirelessly all week to make this happen – you should all feel very proud. I can’t wait to find out the final figure next week, but what I do know, it’s huge!
February 13th, 2009 at 5:37 pm
Congrats to all at Sitepoint – your hard work and dedication has paid off in a big way !
The generosity of people from all over the world who took part in this fund raising appeal has been truly amazing.
February 13th, 2009 at 5:49 pm
Great stuff. :)
February 13th, 2009 at 6:08 pm
I wish I had thought about the time difference between the US and Australia….No books for me.
February 13th, 2009 at 6:15 pm
Outstanding guys!
February 13th, 2009 at 6:46 pm
Yes – I’m in the UK and left ordering until Friday too while I decided which books to get. Seems I also missed out :(
February 13th, 2009 at 6:55 pm
Was the target not changed to 100,000?
February 13th, 2009 at 7:19 pm
I agree with a couple of comments above. I received the email at 2/11/2009 5:47 AM CST. That was hardly three days! I am extremely disappointed that I was unable to take advantage of the sale.
Next time you put a time frame on a promotion, you should explicitly state the exact time the promotion will end so that people like me won’t be so disappointed. I couldn’t tell when the promotion started or ended. As far as I knew it should have been 3 days / 72 hours from the time I was notified.
I will just make a donation.
February 13th, 2009 at 8:01 pm
ouch! I wanted to verify if I still had the twitaway CSS book before plunging in (to avoid getting the same book twice), which I thought I had downloaded while at work (which I didn’t, or not on this computer anyway). I thought that since it is still Friday morning here, I would buy them now… and found out that the time difference is wider than I thought.
Anyway, congratulations for your results both to sitepoint and all the people that chipped in.
February 13th, 2009 at 8:01 pm
I found a great idea this good action from you to help the victims and also to improve my knowledge with this great books. Yesterday (February 12th)I read on the site that the 5for1 book sale would be finished at February 13 th. I’ve just entered the site to place an order, and the sale has finished. It’s stil February 13 th. Why it’s already gone?
February 13th, 2009 at 8:23 pm
I found a great idea this good action from you to help the victims and also to improve my knowledge with this great books. Yesterday I read on the site that the 5for1 book sale would be finished at February 13 th, I’ve just entered the site to place an order, and the sale has finished. It’s stil February 13 th. Why it’s already gone?
February 13th, 2009 at 8:25 pm
I’m too missed the sale. I thought it ended late friday (atleast open during business hours).
February 13th, 2009 at 8:32 pm
Yes same here. I didnt realise the time differnce !
February 13th, 2009 at 8:32 pm
Oh no I missed it. Like above the time zone differences didn’t occur to me!
February 13th, 2009 at 9:03 pm
Same sentiment as above…I was waiting for payday today (Friday) and even got up early to make the purchase. I agree that a specific deadline would be helpful in this international community. Any chance of extending the sale another day?
In any case, thanks for your efforts for a good cause.
Barry
February 13th, 2009 at 9:14 pm
Er… When is three days not THREE DAYS? You’ve managed to move me from feeling really good about you to now feeling thoroughly p’ed off. It is still Friday in Melbourne FFS.
February 13th, 2009 at 9:19 pm
Thanks for your generosity!
I wasn’t generous at all; I just bagged five of your excellent books for the price of one!
Much respect.
I’m in the UK, so ordered my books last night to make sure I beat the time difference, but yeah, an explicit time zone mention would have been helpful. I guess some people don’t even know you’re in Oz…
February 13th, 2009 at 9:39 pm
Thanks for your generosity!
I wasn’t generous at all; I just bagged five of your excellent books for the price of one!
Much respect.
I’m in the UK, so ordered my books last night to make sure I beat the time difference, but yeah, an explicit time zone mention would have been helpful. I guess some people don’t even know you’re in Oz…
February 13th, 2009 at 9:44 pm
Congratualtions on the amount you raised.
Must say I’m pretty disappointed as well as your website said there was two days left yesterday so I thought here in the UK I had today to order.
February 13th, 2009 at 10:03 pm
Thanks to girlfriends credit card, I managed to get involved. Great idea guys, and a truly staggering achievement!
February 13th, 2009 at 10:35 pm
It would be churlish to complain too much about this, but I would echo other comments, that closing at the end of the Australian working day (not even midnight) is rather misleading to what may well be most of your readers, i.e. Europe and USA.
However, congratulations on a generous and successful offer!
February 13th, 2009 at 10:43 pm
BUMMER!!! I didn’t think about the time difference. I expected to place my order this morning and it’s OVER. I’m really unhappy since I was ordering for coworkers as well.
February 13th, 2009 at 10:58 pm
Congratulations SitePoint on an excellent effort, Being from Melbourne myself I couldn’t resist making a donation. Well done to all.
February 13th, 2009 at 11:25 pm
I agree with the time difference comments.
February 13th, 2009 at 11:29 pm
You’ve missed out on a lot of UK money by ending early, I have just come to the site to place my order and it’s over.
February 13th, 2009 at 11:50 pm
I just went online to order the 5-for-1 deal, and I was surprised to see that it had ended. I received the TechTimes email at 1:00PM (GMT 5:00, Eastern Time, USA) on February 11th, and now it is February 13th at 8:55AM… not even two full days since receiving the email. You mentioned in the opening that this offer would be available for the next 3 days.
I am disappointed as well that the offer has ended so soon. I do wish the terms of the offer were communicated more clearly.
February 13th, 2009 at 11:54 pm
I received the email on the 2/11/2009. That was hardly three days! I expected to place my order this morning!
February 13th, 2009 at 11:57 pm
I didn’t know about the time difference either. Just came on to order, and found out that the sale was over. It’s only Friday morning here, but I didn’t realize it was based in Austrailia. They should have put a time zone in the notifications, so people in the US and other countries would account for that and order sooner. :(
February 13th, 2009 at 11:57 pm
I agree, the timezone issue is a shambles, a lot of UK and US purchasers can’t take advantage of the offer. Please open it for a couple more days!
February 14th, 2009 at 12:02 am
I really love your newsletter and I was excited about picking any 5 of the sitepoint books in pdf format for the bushfire relief. Unfortunately the sale has ended, but the timing doesn’t match up. We didn’t even get 2 FULL days to partake in the sale because we live in the U.S.. Please don’t forget your readers overseas.
February 14th, 2009 at 12:03 am
Me Too!
Lucky for me, and the appeal, I managed to buy 5 books the other day. I came back tonight to buy a few more. It is an hour after midnight now here in Eastern Australia, I was thinking SitePoint would have been working on US time because that is probably their biggest audience.
We never know, maybe they will switch the bush fire appeal 5-for-1 book sale back on again in the Australian Morning…
I’d just like to say, and I expect each and every one of my fellow Australians would agree, I am deeply moved by the generosity of people overseas who have come to our aid. Thank-You All.
February 14th, 2009 at 12:13 am
Just found out about this great cause and opportunity yesterday. Too bad it was not mentioned the 13th was on Oz time. It is still the 13th all day here in the US. Guess, like those posting above we miss out.
February 14th, 2009 at 12:28 am
Awww. Sat down to order this morning (as I couldn’t last night) and it’s no longer Friday in Australia. Darn! Awesome thing that you did, though, gentlemen. :)
~Elaine
February 14th, 2009 at 12:37 am
hey
it should end today. I would buy today!
February 14th, 2009 at 12:41 am
Thanks for a very generous offer both to us and – more importantly – to your fellow citizens affected by the bushfires. I hope (but realistically don’t expect) that those who apparently started the fires will have a change of heart now they’ve seen something of the devastation and suffering they’ve caused.
Meanwhile good for SitePoint!
February 14th, 2009 at 12:42 am
How about a 12 hour extension for those in different time zones? It’s still February 13 here.
February 14th, 2009 at 12:55 am
How about a 12 hours extension for those of us in different time zones? It’s still February 13 here.
February 14th, 2009 at 1:12 am
another victim of the time difference, planned on ordering this morning..
February 14th, 2009 at 1:35 am
OH NO!!! I thought it was USA time!!! I’m SO upset I missed out!!!!!
February 14th, 2009 at 1:45 am
Congratulations on an effort well-done. I realized the time was probably local to sitepoint and made sure I bought my books as the world turns (Thursday evening U.S. Eastern). I almost feel as if I’ve taken advantage of the situation, but in all honesty I also realize that I would not have sought out the means to donate to the Austrlian Red Cross otherwise — plus I’ve been budgeting for the books I ordered for a while.
This campaign was a great idea to raise awareness, allow your audience/readers to purchase something they can use (with a limited carbon footprint — no shipping! no paper!), and get much needed aid to those effected by the fires.
Great work guys. Can’t wait to see the tally!
February 14th, 2009 at 1:47 am
Likewise another disgruntled UK customer – the offer was not on for 3 days and there was no mention of what time (GMT or otherwise) the offer ended. If you really cared about giving lots of money to the charity, then why only run it for such a short period of time?
February 14th, 2009 at 2:16 am
Not many people will trust PWC in India, after the Satyam scam. Well we don’t need a audit, we trust Sitepoint.
February 14th, 2009 at 2:21 am
Congrats on your tremendous gift to the survivors of the fire. You’re very generous! but… I’m also very frustrated about the time-difference thing! I live in the U.S., and spent the last two days reviewing the samples so I could choose well for my five. Only to find out that I missed the deadline due to international time issues! Quite frustrating! Please consider extending the offer for those of us in different time zones. We count too, don’t we?
February 14th, 2009 at 2:38 am
I came to the site this morning to buy my books. Found out the sale is over. Can the Offer be reopened and extended for a couple of more days. That would make a lot of people happy
February 14th, 2009 at 2:44 am
Another disappointed Sitepoint fan. It is still Friday, February 13 in the United States.
February 14th, 2009 at 2:49 am
I too, like others, waited to get orders from others in our company only to find the sale was not based on US time. Can the sale be extended?
February 14th, 2009 at 2:57 am
I just posted on my blog (shameless plug) that Sitepoint should absolutely extend the sale. Though I think those of you who lost out are to blame and not Sitepoint, Sitepoint will lose very little in revenue since these are PDF files but gain greater customer satisfaction by extending the sale as well as helping out their friends and family.
Extend the sale Sitepoint!
Now I’m going to go read one of the books I bought yesterday morning
February 14th, 2009 at 2:58 am
ARG!!! I was expecting to order today as well!! Didn’t realize the time difference. SHOOT! Very Dissapointing!!
Well at least the fund raiser went well! My prayers go out to those affected by the fires.
February 14th, 2009 at 3:04 am
I thought it went through midnight Friday US time as well (time zone wouldn’t matter, US time). Debated buying the other day, came back just now to buy. If they do extend it I hope I catch it this time.
February 14th, 2009 at 3:10 am
For a site that prides itself on accuracy, your sale information was horrid. Unless I overlooked it, I didn’t see any mention of time zone nor a statement that the sale was over once you reached your goal of $50K.
I’m happy that you reached your goal but disappointed with the promotion material.
~Jo Carr
February 14th, 2009 at 3:15 am
I’ve just come to make a purchase, and it’s already closed?
I’m in Spain, it’s not 3 days since the email arrived…
February 14th, 2009 at 3:16 am
Agree with most of the posts here. I ordered books yesterday and came back this morning expecting to purchase more and help out the cause. Yet I see this blog post saying the sale has finished? Unfair to those in other timezones.
February 14th, 2009 at 3:18 am
I can’t believe I missed the tweet on this sale, any extension like over the weekend. I guess Friday the 13th holds up to it name.
February 14th, 2009 at 3:20 am
Some of the above posters should be ashamed of themselves. This is about helping people who have lost everything including their children. People died in these fires because they didn’t have the precious gift of a few seconds to escape their homes, and here people are throwing public temper tantrums thinking they’re entitled to special treatment because they didn’t get three days notice to buy a book! I just hope the people who have been affected by these fires don’t read some of these utterly selfish comments; and I sincerely hope that some of you never find yourself in need of unconditional help.
February 14th, 2009 at 3:25 am
yeah, I was getting ready to order early this morning here in US. A more explicit deadline would have been appropriate for our international community.
anyway, nice effort.
February 14th, 2009 at 3:29 am
It would be nice if sitepoint extended this deal for another day or two to let the people who only got a 2 day notice…it certainly wouldnt hurt to donate more money through this offer!
February 14th, 2009 at 3:46 am
Extend the sale and make more money for fire victims! The time difference affected me too!
Sitepoint! Come on!
February 14th, 2009 at 3:52 am
You should definitely extend the sale! I wasn’t able to buy until today (Friday) and I assumed when the advertisement said the sale ended on Friday that it indeed ended on Friday, not Thursday.
February 14th, 2009 at 3:55 am
I’m also one of the disappointed Americans who woke up this morning excited about purchasing 5 for 1 books, only to find that the sale ended a couple hours earlier on Melbourne, Australia’s time. I would have bought them yesterday, except I was looking over the sample chapters to choose. The site should’ve had a countdown clock or explicit statement of the time zone. Alas, it’s hard to be too upset about it because it’s for charity, but a lot of the US and UK customers would be happy if a special extension was made to make up for the miscommunication.
February 14th, 2009 at 4:10 am
I, too, was disappointed this morning to find the sale had ended. Since I received the email mid-day on Wednesday (in the US) I thought I would have at least until Friday afternoon or evening to make a purchase/contribution.
February 14th, 2009 at 4:23 am
I’m very sorry if you missed out on our fundraising drive. It has far exceeded our initial targets, and we look forward to announcing the final figures once the PriceWaterhouseCoopers audit is finished. If you still want to support those affected by the bushfires, I would strongly encourage you to donate directly to the Australian Red Cross Appeal here:
https://www.redcross.org.au/Donations/onlineDonations.asp
Of course, our books in both PDF and print form also continue to be available through our online book store: http://sitepoint.com/books/
- Matt Mickiewicz
SitePoint Co-Founder
February 14th, 2009 at 4:36 am
Yes, I to came to the site today thinking Friday was Friday… Not Friday local time for Sitepoint… Grr… :(
February 14th, 2009 at 4:37 am
You guys didn’t specify the time zone. .com is a United States domain so you would think it would be based on American time zone. Please extend the sale!!!!!
February 14th, 2009 at 4:41 am
Damm… just tried to get it via the google cache of the page for:
http://5for1.aws.sitepoint.com/
and
http://sale.sitepoint.com/
And didn’t work… :(
February 14th, 2009 at 4:41 am
Issue isn’t missing out, it’s that when I read post that twos were left… they read to me as two days being left.
“I’m very sorry if you missed out on our fundraising drive.”
Yeah, I am too… cause I’m not visiting sitepoint anymore.
February 14th, 2009 at 4:46 am
Maybe PriceWaterhouseCoopers should audit if the promotion was really “72″ hours…
February 14th, 2009 at 4:50 am
Oddly, the sale appears to been until… until close of business on Friday, not midnight — since the blog was posted before Friday was even over… “Friday, February 13th, 2009 at 5:11 pm”
The blog listing the promotion was before Wednesday too… “This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 10th, 2009 at 4:51 pm,”
All and all… sitepoint is letting the success of the promotion be undercut by their poor execution of the promotion. If the promotion was under the goal, I’d bet there wouldn’t be a post saying “too bad, we’re sorry.”
February 14th, 2009 at 5:09 am
Bought our books during the sale and am thoroughly pleased with both the accomplishment and the books.
I do agree though, wasn’t the goal $100K USD? If so aren’t all the proceeds (even beyond $100K) going to the victims?
Thanks again!!
February 14th, 2009 at 5:13 am
I sat with a coffee, deciding which books to order…and when I went to place the order (4 hours later) the chance was gone. I too, didn’t consider a time difference. Anyway, thank you so much for what you have done to help others.
February 14th, 2009 at 5:30 am
Hum… I get mixed feelings from a lots of these posts…. but my 2cents…
Those taking the occasion to donate the money can still do so…
Those who were just looking for a bargain should stop complaining, everyone knows SitePoint is in Australia, making assumptions especially about time zones usually does not work.
And for the rest of us, developing online businesses, well this is a lesson learned when doing promotions and contests *wink*
February 14th, 2009 at 5:38 am
I’ve purchased many books from Sitepoint over the years, but this offer leaves me with a really bad taste in my mouth, as I did not have the 3 days to purchase, as supposedly offered. Reminds me of a bait-and-switch routine. Unless I see the offer made available again, I’ll be calling myself a former Sitepoint customer.
February 14th, 2009 at 5:46 am
The promotion very clearly stated it ended on Friday, it did NOT end on Friday — it ended at some time around 5pm on Friday…
That’s a great idea, since sitepoint’s going to make S20-30k off of the tax break they’ll get from the promotion…
February 14th, 2009 at 5:52 am
Great jobs guys, unfortunately I couldn’t download one of the pdf’s (Simply javascript) – Kept getting an XML error and support didn’t help?
February 14th, 2009 at 6:20 am
As with above comments – different time zone means I left ordering until Friday 13th UK time and now seem to have missed out not only on the chance to get a great deal on great books but also to give money to a worthy cause.
February 14th, 2009 at 6:44 am
I read on the site that the 5for1 book sale would be finished at February 13 th, I’ve just entered the site to place an order, and the sale has finished. It’s still February 13 th. This morning, my cart looked fine and I just came back to checkout and see the sale’s gone. It’s still the 13th here in Washington, DC.
Why it’s already gone?
February 14th, 2009 at 6:54 am
I, too, missed the deadline. How about an extension?
February 14th, 2009 at 7:05 am
This was a great idea and I’m really proud of all involved (even though I don’t know you personally!) and am just continually pleased to be even an outlying member of this community at Sitepoint. Good job, everyone.
February 14th, 2009 at 7:17 am
I received the e-mail about the sale wednesday afternoon. E-mail said the sale was for the next 3 days. Came back 2 days later on Friday (payday) to buy the books and sale is closed already. Pleasae consider extending the sale. Even consider privately extending just to those that posted on here wishing to buy today. Anyway thanks for giving money to such a worthy cause.
February 14th, 2009 at 7:25 am
Pretty frustrated this is closed. I thought I could still buy until the end of Friday. I’ve got my card in hand, ready to buy, and was even going to buy another $100 worth to get two additional books in hardcover.
Oh well. Please email us all if you decide to reopen (which would be a really good idea.)
Don
February 14th, 2009 at 7:31 am
Adding my voice to those in North America who thought the end of the sale would be Friday all over the world. Will you consider extending?
Either way, glad you made your goal!
February 14th, 2009 at 7:44 am
The e-mail and webpage announcing the sale did not say that “Friday” on was Friday Australia time. Had it specified the time zone, I think most of us (that missed it) would’ve made our purchases yesterday. And yes, I was only interested in the sale. What do you expect? I was under the impression that SitePoint had the sale to thank their customers AND help a worthy case. If all SitePoint cared about were the donations, then they shouldn’t have had the sale.
February 14th, 2009 at 7:53 am
I don’t feel bad as I am not the only one who missed this deal! I am in the US and it’s still Friday the 13th. Isn’t it in Marketing 101 that the best sales are done on Fri-Sat-Sun time frame…especially on pay day week? Ah well.
Regardless, God Bless Sitepoint, the contributors, and the folks doing the good work in and for Melbourne.
February 14th, 2009 at 8:06 am
I just counted the number of people that planned on ordering but missed out (just in this thread) at 61.
That’s $1830.00 the fund raiser missed out on because of this time zone floop.
That’s just from those who have expressed disappointment, I’m sure there are many many more who have neglected to say anything. Plus, that’s estimating that everyone who missed out only would have bought one set of five when many were considering buying more than just one set…
February 14th, 2009 at 8:17 am
Just think of how opening it back up would be beneficial. For every person who took the time to write a complaint there are 5 more who did not but yet would still purchase your promotion.
Its up to you Matt but there are obviously a lot of upset people from the unclear deadline with your international audience.
I think an email to everyone is in order.
February 14th, 2009 at 8:28 am
I would just like to make two more points.
1. It is clear that SitePoint wanted to raise US $50K for the cause.
It is also clear that they are not interested in selling more books “for the cause” at the ridiculously low price that they offered.
Clearly they know that they messed up the promotion by not explicitly stating the closing time. (They know that they are an international entity on the Internet.)
2. Here in the US you can have a sale that closes on 2/13/09, but that ALWAYS means that the prices are good until the end of business on that day. Since SitePoint is an Internet site, the close of business is midnite, or 11:59 PM on Friday the 13th. I made my first post at approx. 8:00 PM THEIR time on Friday the 13th.
Since they were able to raise such a large amount of money in such a short period of time, I am certain that they will save this particular promotion (or some facsimile) for the future and execute it perfectly next time.
I have instead donated my money directly to the cause, hope everyone will do the same.
IMHO SitePoint should most certainly do something (I don’t know what) to make up for this blunder. Almost any action (save a simple message) would make me less upset with the organization.
Thanks
-edhouse
February 14th, 2009 at 8:53 am
I believe this article should turn off comments to push this to the forums. The response I received from support doesn’t state any inclination to further the “deal”. Seeing more people respond to this is just frustrating. Especially Americans that respond. Sitepoint is Australian based. This incident and this campaign is Australian based. The Sitepoint team hit their target. Case closed.
The only logical step is to move forward. No emotion, just business. If Shayne, “The Marketing Guy” and the Sitepoint Management team forgot WWW means world wide audience (24 clocks….then you can draw your own conclusion on how fast they must have been moving to think this through and get an accounting team solely for this campaign.
Americans, we have our own problems. If you think you can do better business, then set up your own shop like Sitepoint and you won’t have to worry about time issues. Maybe you won’t forget in sales 101 that a “call to action” scheme requires a deadline. Everything in America is 24/7 anyway. Remember, this is just business. If you don’t take care of the customer, somebody else will be happy to. The Lord knows there is a whole planet to serve.
February 14th, 2009 at 8:59 am
End of the work day (and pay day) here in D.C. USA and came over to make my purchase… I think the other comments already say it all. Just wanted to add my name to the list of people who were about to spend the $$. Disappointed but no hard feelings. Glad you were able to raise so much for a good cause.
February 14th, 2009 at 9:01 am
I was lucky…I ordered just in time. Thanks Sitepoint. Glad to help out a good cause and get some great books to boot.
February 14th, 2009 at 9:03 am
The reason we had to close our sale early is because we were contacted by Consumer Affairs in Australia who told us we can’t proceed with our fundraising efforts any longer without completing a formal process to become a registered fundraiser. The amazing success of this offer has unfortunately been our undoing – under a certain amount raised you don’t need to be registered.
The process to become registered is not necessarily arduous, but unfortunately it takes 28 days to be approved. We risked hefty fines and/or imprisonment if we didn’t remove the offer immediately, so we had no choice but to close it down.
I know you’re all disappointed but you can imagine how the SitePoint team feel. We’ve been busting our guts all week on this raising hundreds of thousands of dollars only to be shut down early. I can understand why these processes are in place, to protect consumers, but you’d think a little common sense would prevail in Australia’s worst natural disaster ever. This has cost bushfire victims at least $100,000, maybe more.
As mentioned, next week we’ll sit down with PWC (an independent 3rd party auditor who are also generously donating their time) to audit the final figures and donate all the proceeds to the Red Cross. We’ll also speak with our lawyers and Consumer Affairs about our options, but I don’t like our chances of having this offer back online anytime soon.
Sorry guys, I didn’t really want to part with this information mainly because we’ve worked so hard and I didn’t want this to end on a sour note for our team, but at least now you know it’s out of our control. I hope you understand.
Thanks again to everyone who has supported this cause.
February 14th, 2009 at 9:07 am
Just remember, things aren’t always what they seem, so stop jumping to conclusions. Perhaps Sitepoint were forced to stop??
So how bout you all just quit your whining. Here in Melbourne we’re surrounded by death and destruction, idiots lighting fires on purpose and all you can whinge about is that you didn’t get 5 books for the price of one.
Think about all those people that now have nothing. 7000 homes have been destroyed…….. 181 people are DEAD! So forgive me if I don’t give a damn if you didn’t get to read 5 sitepoint books from the luxury of your computer room.
Sitepoint should be applauded, and I wish there was some way I could have done as much as they have. So I’ll just donate to causes here in Melb, and help out as much as I can, cos my house is still standing and I still have all my loved ones.
And no, I’m not a Sitepoint person.
February 14th, 2009 at 9:08 am
Mark,
Thank you for the explanation. It is good to know the clarifying details about the situation and I for one don’t think it’s a sour note at all. It would figure that red tape gets in the way of a good cause. I appreciate your honesty and openness to this group of concerned users. Although I wish I would have ordered yesterday I feel better knowing it was out of SitePoint’s control.
February 14th, 2009 at 9:19 am
Really proud of sitepoint for contributing to such a worthy cause. Really shows the power of what the web can do. Unfortunately I was one of those who missed out. I think the mix up was with the time being Aussie time. Hope you all do another soon.
February 14th, 2009 at 9:21 am
Mark: Could you not “donate” the books to an existing registered charity, like the Red Cross themselves, with the appropriate permits already in place, and have them selling the book instead? Taking a $30 donation and sending each donor a URL or file attachment shouldn’t be too big an undertaking for them, since they probably do something very similar anyway.
February 14th, 2009 at 9:44 am
I’m completely bummed. We had a wind storm on the East Coast of the US and lost power and internet. Thought that I would be able to take advantage of it tonight.
I have most of the books already, but wanted the Ajax book as well.
February 14th, 2009 at 9:45 am
How many of you WHINERS will continue to donate your $30 to the Australian red cross (hyperlink is in the blog post)?
February 14th, 2009 at 10:06 am
To ALL of those saying they missed out because of a mix up was with the time being Aussie time…
Sitepoint ended the promotion BEFORE Friday was over their time — the promotion closed 7-hours ahead of time…
February 14th, 2009 at 10:37 am
@Mark Harbottle / Sitepoint
Here’s a solution — give the books for FREE to those who provide prove that they gave $30 or more directly to the Australian Red Cross. I am sure that this would NOT break any laws.
February 14th, 2009 at 10:45 am
SitePoint team, congratulations on raising so much money for the bushfire victims. You can be proud of yourselves knowing that you did everything you could do to help out. My heart cries for all the lives lost in the bushfires and although that can never be undone and never be forgotten, it’s actions like these that help survivors to make their lives livable again.
Linda, the Netherlands
February 14th, 2009 at 10:53 am
Aussies stop getting mad at non Aussies for being upset about not getting the promotion and stop making it seem like we don’t give a damn about the death and destruction from the bushfires (ahem…FFS)
Non Aussies, stop posting about missing the promotion. I’m sure you’ll get another chance at a great deal, and most importantly a chance to help those that are in dire need.
What we all need to celebrate is that we’ve banded together as a web community and really made something happen. Forget the pdf book sale, forget the bad that has already occurred from the bushfires, and look at the good that has already come from it.
(…and no I too missed a chance to take part in the sale, but I still donated)
February 14th, 2009 at 10:55 am
@Mark Harbottle Sorry, but what you say doesn’t add up.
The Consumer affairs website has the following on its ‘How to Register’ page (content updated 9/2/2009):
Consumer Affairs Victoria will fast track all applications for registration as a fundraiser on behalf of victims of the bushfires in Victoria.
…
CAV will endeavour to respond to all applications on the same day.
The CAV Guidelines and Application (pdf link on website) documents make no mention of a $50000 limit.
The article in The Briefing (dated Wednesday, 11 February 2009) on http://www.smartcompany.com.au says: “Sixteen hours later he has raised $75,000 and expects by the time the sale ends in three days to have raised $150,000.”
What gives?
February 14th, 2009 at 11:16 am
Perhaps next time you will put the time zone the sale ends. I too had waited as I checked it out on the 11th, but thought I had until midnight the 14th in my time zone. Guess this is a lesson for everyone on globalized presence. One would think you’d want to get as many people as possible and would therefore go from midnight in the earliest TZ to midnight on the 14th in the latest TZ to maximize your efforts.
Oh well, no donations from me. Guess you don’t care as much as you could have.
February 14th, 2009 at 11:19 am
Sorry to hear about the pettiness of the Victoria Consumer Affairs. Just goes to show that sometimes it’s the small minded people within a closeted room that can cause all the problems when they can’t see the real world around them.
February 14th, 2009 at 11:50 am
@ jas88,
Nice one, a positive comment, a creative idea to get this back on the original track.
To those Americans and others who feel disappointed, Australians frequently get caught out while shopping on-line with US companies, we get excited, go through the checkout procedure entering numerous fields of information, only to be told very bluntly (and with not a gram of compassion) at the very end end that “We only deal with buyers in the US”.
To SitePoint, I can feel a new book coming from this, “How to run a global on-line appeal.” Seriously, thanks so much for this wonderful effort and display of generosity and compassion, thanks for the efforts of all the staff at SitePoint. You gave us all an opportunity to help a worthy cause and rewarded us with this great deal. You really did bring out the best in many of us.
I’m so disappointed that red tape had to put a sour note on this appeal and bring out the worst in some people.
February 14th, 2009 at 11:56 am
I’m too missed the sale. I thought it ended late friday US Time.
February 14th, 2009 at 12:08 pm
Ha, isn’t it ironic!
Hot of the press! Tribune #433 – Controversy as a Marketing Tool?
February 14th, 2009 at 12:10 pm
I’m very frustrated – have been spending the last three days in discussion with my very busy partner, and finally reached an accord on which 10 books we were going to order. Went online to place the order at about 6:30 pm Friday evening (US Eastern) only to find that the sale was already over. We wanted the books, and wanted to help, but as a result of the misleading info (”now thru Friday”) we were unable to make our purchases and feel a bit miffed.
February 14th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
Congratulations on bettering the target amount. Especially congratulations on helping reach an imicable solution on the Twitter hashtags which enabled both your effort and the information/update flow on #bushfires to do their respective bits in this time of our community’s need.
February 14th, 2009 at 1:16 pm
Another disappointed reader who thought Feb 13 meant Feb 13.
February 14th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
AGGGHHHH!!!! I got up early this morning to order (6am in central Texas) and it was closed already. I had to wait til my paycheck was deposited but if I had known it would be closed by Friday I would have borrowed a credit card.
It’s a great cause and I’m so glad you’ve raised such a great amount of money to help.
Maybe next time instead of an actual date, you could have a countdown clock showing how much time was left to order?
Love the books!
February 14th, 2009 at 1:37 pm
I just scrolled up to read all the comments and saw Mark’s on why it had to end early.
Trust legal red tape to mess up a good thing for a company trying to do some good and wildly succeeding. To think you’ve been penalized for raising too MUCH money, that’s crazy.
All my prayers to you guys living in this nightmare and I’ll make the donation directly to the Red Cross.
thanks for the effort
February 14th, 2009 at 1:45 pm
It’s still the 13 here and I didn’t get to order. I’m way bummed!
February 14th, 2009 at 2:44 pm
What a great offer. Everyone wins! Heard about it yesterday evening from one of my ngs, ordered and am reading Simply Javascript. I love the tone of that book and I know I’ll finally learn and use this language properly. I am so glad to have had this opportunity and that you will be able to substantially support the victims in Australia. MH
February 14th, 2009 at 3:16 pm
Geez,
I like many others were going to take advantage of this offer, but it expired way before the end of the day, Feb 13th in the US. I’m quite disappointed as I finally had my books picked out that I was going to purchase.
February 14th, 2009 at 3:40 pm
I cannot believe the selfishness of some of the posters to this thread and couldn’t keep quiet any longer.
To all you whingers out there – please stop your whining! What you are doing is belitting the good work carried out by Sitepoints’ staff to help the fund raising appeal for the victims of the Victorian Bushfires.
The promotion was primarily to help the victims not to pander to people who only saw the ‘great deal’ and not the ‘intention’ behind the promotion.
So you missed out on some books, big deal ! Other’s have lost their lives, their properties, everything they own… who should we feel sorry for ??
If you were really affected by the bushfire scenes the whole world has by now seen, you should be going directly to the Red Cross webiste to donate your money, not spend time here whining that Sitepoint should open up the promotion because you missed out on a couple of books – think of the victims not yourselves !
And before posting again about *your* loss then maybe you should read why the promotion was stopped earlier than expected
For those saying they won’t return to Sitepoint because they missed out due to time zone differences and the mistakes made by SitePoint, grow up !
Again, in case anyone missed it – read Marks’ comment early in this thread.
February 14th, 2009 at 4:14 pm
Nadia P: Couldn’t have said it better myself!
To all the folks at SitePoint, much kudos, a great initiative, and a great result (bar CA getting involved). Congratulations to you all!
To all the people who donated and/or bought the books, I’m sure there are many Australians who thank you from the bottom of their hearts!
My faith in humanity has been somewhat restored :)
February 14th, 2009 at 4:50 pm
Reading Sitepoint books is really a pleasure. Today, I got The Art & Science of CSS from the local library. Yeh, it’s wonderful, give me a better picture on those markups I need.
I have bought 5 books from SitePoint (not this time) though and they’re all very good.
Thanks for the good initiative of SitePoint team.
P.S. I also missed out just because I was slow to check my emails.
February 14th, 2009 at 5:49 pm
For those who are still wondering why the sale closed early, Mark’s statement that was posted in the comments earlier. We’re gutted:
February 14th, 2009 at 7:46 pm
Mark’s statement makes no sense.
1. The Consumer Affairs site, on its ‘how to register’ page says “CAV will endeavour to respond to all applications on the same day.”
2. Their explanatory leaflets make no mention of a $50,000 limit.
3. An article (dated Wednesday, 11 February 2009) on www smartcompany com au in The Briefing says: “Sixteen hours later he has raised $75,000 and expects by the time the sale ends in three days to have raised $150,000.”
To Nadia P and others saying we shold stop whining, try for one second to imagine that this was just a “special offer” (oh it was – just like prvious ones by Sitepoint). Now think how you would feel about missing out when a supposed 3 day offer only lasts about 2 days. The offer was designed to encourage enlightened self-interest in us (the customers) but was also done on that basis by Sitepoint.
February 14th, 2009 at 8:18 pm
Can anyone even imagine an American company getting stick from their customers for not stating explicitly that they, amazingly, run on US time?
Sitepoint have donated a small fortune to a very good cause — and having run this promotion will cost them a massive amount in lost revenues probably for months to come. If you personally didn’t receive any benefit from their generosity, you have a choice between stamping your feet and whinging about how unfair life is or growing up and ceasing to be so obnoxiously self-absorbed. The point of this promotion was not to give you free books. Everything is not about you.
Thank you, Sitepoint, for a good job well done.
February 15th, 2009 at 12:37 am
Mark – Thank you for the update. I am very glad to hear that Sitepoint’s fund raising was able to do more than expected. The photos of the destruction being caused by these fires should be enough of a reality check to make people understand it is not about $30 dollars for some books. It’s $30 dollars to help victims of this natural disaster.
Kudo’s to PriceWaterhouseCoopers for providing their services for free to help the cause.
February 15th, 2009 at 1:01 am
Wow… Really can’t believe how bad sitepoint is dropping the ball on this!!!
February 15th, 2009 at 4:38 am
Appalled at the anonymous whiners who seem to be motivated more by the chance to save a couple bucks on books than to help the victims of the bushfires.
Can I suggest changing the sitepoint homepage to highlight a link to the Vic or Aus Red Cross?
February 15th, 2009 at 4:49 am
Given the (probably very necessary) regulation intended to keep people from using disaster as an excuse to run a scam, is there any way that the fundraiser could be extended via the Red Cross’s website, with charges going directly to the Red Cross?
This would be reassuring that the money is actually going to the intended charity, as the regulation is intended to assure, and would allow those who still want to buy the e-books as a donation to get them.
I’d think that the Red Cross’s fundraising department should be able to work with you on this, to ensure that they get the needed funds in a way that complies with the laws and the spirit of the law.
February 15th, 2009 at 5:36 am
My prayer for the victims of Australian bushfires, I understand perfectly well how devastating a natural disaster can be, either by cause of Nature or worst, by men. I helped Civil Defense when there was a disaster where I live, 10 years ago, that took the lifes of more than 25.000 and left homeless more than 250.000.
Money is vital to help relieve the immediate needs of the affected, but you can not imagine the emotional shock and losses suffered by the survivors of those catastrophes, and how they value when somebody crosses the frontier of the safety to provide them food, shelter, help, compassion and communication, I saw it and lived, one thing is watch it in the TV, that gives you an idea, and other very different is been there. I can not imagine how there is people insensitive to human suffering.
My words of affection and gratitude to the generosity not only of Site Point, but the authors of those books who have demostrated courage, they gave for free the precious work of their lifes, to help and support those in need, and I am so sorry for those who do not understand that we are all in the same world, subject to these events and they could be the next tomorrow.
Site Point have demonstrated they are one of the best web companies of the World both technically and more important in the human sense. In my humble opinion, the capacity to be honest and help others are the most precious assets a company or a person have. Hope this can be understood by Consumer Affairs.
Cheers! Site Point staff.
Best regards
joejac
February 15th, 2009 at 6:15 am
+1 for the wish to extend the sale. I was out of town and came back to find the email in my inbox… Clicking the link brought me to a regular purchase page. I would love to add to the amazing donation amount as well as take advantage of an awesome deal!
Please do consider extending the sale.
Regards,
Frank
February 15th, 2009 at 8:58 am
End on a sour note? Most definitely you won’t Sitepoint Team! How dare people complain that they were ‘out of the office’, too late because they were deciding which books to buy… parents watched their children consumed in fire in front of their eyes in these bushfires. Get some perspective.
Thank you Sitepoint, you made it easy for me to donate. We twittered and you succeeded. …and thank you too to the authors for their donation to us. I have respected you for many years now and you have just confirmed that my judgement was correct.
Hils
February 15th, 2009 at 10:12 am
Thank you SitePoint! You made me proud to be Australian when you announced this sale. It’s a shame that Consumer affairs Victoria couldn’t join in the spirit and make an exception for such a worthy cause, but I guess they have their job to do.
I have to shake my head in wonder at all the people complaining.
First, this was a fundraising appeal to help people who have lost homes, families and livelihoods. Like the staff of SitePoint, I know people directly affected by the fires, and I live close by.
Second, it’s kind of amusing when the boot is on the other foot. As someone pointed out, the number of times we in Australia get to the checkout only to find an offer is only available in the US is ridiculous. And I wish I had a dollar for every time that an online form has refused to accept my telephone number as “not valid” simply because it doesn’t conform to the US format. I would have thought it was clear that SitePoint is located in Australia. That fact was certainly pointed out on the offer page, where the reason for the offer was explained.
February 15th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
To all the sanctimonious SOB’s from Australia who think others have been trying to take advantage of a SitePoint sale:
Think again.
Not everybody lives in Australia.
Some of us, with the intention of doing some (international) good, were disheartened that we were not allowed to participate and help.
How many of you Aussies contributed to the International Red Cross Fund when Hurricane Katrina destroyed the American city of New Orleans?
While my heart is broken about the horrors we all experience in a natural disaster, I think it’s rather inappropriate for sanctimonious folks to be telling me what my motivation is/was when complaining about the fact that a recent sale was ended before I was able to enter my CC number!
I was hoping to be able to avail myself of a number of reference books in a PDF format for a reasonable price AND help victims of a natural disaster. I had no way of knowing that your government pitched a hissy fit because SitePoint was too successful. Actually, I’m thrilled to see that a company I pay attention to has managed to do some good! The comments of many folks on this board make me feel like I shoudn’t have even thought about trying to talk my boss into buying some PDF books which would coincidentally help folks messed up in a bad situation!
It is very easy to cast that first stone.
For all of you who have judged others based on this forum… shame on you! They MAY have been trying to help folks a half world away – and frankly, we haven’t seen much about this in our (U.S.) media at all. Get off your phreakin’ high horses, realize that we were disappointed to not be able to help (and help ourselves at the same time to some awesome PDF books) and castigated for our lack of sensitivity to something we don’t even know much about. So much for TRYing to help!!!
NOT anonymous!
Bruce Anthony Cirrinone
Designer/Developer
Z Tech Systems
http://www.ztechsystems.net
February 15th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
PLEASE, CAN WE KEEP THIS CIVIL. We are trying to absorb the shock and horror of discovering BBQ’d friends and relatives.
Thank-You.
February 15th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
I’m sorry, nightwatchman that you think me less than civil. However, despite the ignominies of Katrina in New Orleans not that long ago, I’m trying to understand why Aussies are yelling at me for trying to contribute. And if it’s any of your business, I’ve already made a contribution through the International Red Cross. My point is that a company with whom I’m comfortable doing business made an offer, and then withdrew it before it should have been over (in my perspective as a Yank) – and I’m feeling a bit wanked. I expected X hours to be able to take advantage of the offer, and at X minus 24 or so, I find that I cannot buy those PDF books at a discount NOR$ help my friends in Oz. Bollocks.
February 15th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
@ Mr Bruce.
I don’t care who is yelling at who, I am not yelling at anyone, and I didn’t address you personally. I certainly don’t want to exacerbate this kind of tasteless behaviour.
I did point out previously that probably ninety percent of US based companies who trade on the internet exempt overseas buyers from being eligible to purchase from their web-sites, period. They email us with offers on a daily basis only to cut us off at the very last step in the purchase. I promise I did not point this out to inflame the situation, merely to show that we understand how you are all feeling, only too well.
We don’t need to be told repeatedly how “useless SitePoint is”. We are absolutely stoked at the effort they have made to help out. Any attempt to castigate them will be met by defensive admirers.
I sincerely appreciate the efforts of all who tried to help the bush fire victims, and I can be sure that all Australians are equally thankful of any effort to assist.
All I ask is, please try to put aside your angst and bitterness long enough for the fires to be extinguished and the dead to be buried.
Please, if you must, direct your vitriol at the government department responsible for the early closing of the sale.
Once again, Thanks to everyone who helped and tried to help. We are all truly thankful.
February 15th, 2009 at 3:42 pm
By the way, my house is full of smoke, the wind is gusting to 40 knots, the Fire Siren just went off in town and I’m on an off-shore island. Feel for those poor bastards in the thick of it.
February 15th, 2009 at 4:00 pm
For those who haven’t read the update at the top of the post, or the entire list of comments, I’ll just direct you again to Mark’s explanation for why we were forced to close the sale early. The number of people who missed out because of this included Australian customers; it wasn’t just those in a different time zone.
February 15th, 2009 at 6:56 pm
@ Mr Bruce
Just in case you haven’t noticed…
Sitepoint was forced to stop the sale early by a Government Agency.
I can’t put it any simpler for you.
The real reason people are annoyed is that folks like yourself are still blaming Sitepoint for something out of their control.
February 15th, 2009 at 7:07 pm
I’ll try this again one more time. I’ll use small words since it seems I’m being misunderstood. I’m NOT angry at SitePoint, nor have I blamed them for a thing! They’ve done an amazing (good) thing. I understand that some governmental agency made them stop the offer. I’m angry at my inability to reach a decision and take advantage of a good offer before it was withdrawn. End of discussion. I wish you all well.
February 16th, 2009 at 1:02 am
I missed out on the offer as well, but if you put things in perspective, we don’t have any reason to complain. Other more unfortunate ones have.
However I do think that a lot of frustration/complaining could have been avoided if Mark’s explanation had come faster. If a promotion gets ended sooner than planned, with a perfectly good reason, people like to know it, that’s all. And since this particular blog starts with “After three amazing and inspiring days…”, there was not really an indication that the promotion was ended unexpectedly while actually it was.
The majority of the (often misplaced) comments were posted before the explanation was given so for those it might have felt like injustice was done to them, and when people experience it like that, they tend to forget the global picture. Something the Australian government is to be blamed of as well apparently.
Let’s hope everyone starts using their common sense soon. And if you want to support the victims, donate to the Red Cross. If you want cheap Sitepoint books, wait for the next promotion.
February 16th, 2009 at 3:30 am
Given that SitePoint is so US-centric, it’s surprising that their offer didn’t account for the US time difference.
However, this and many other relief efforts have all sprung up in the moment to meet a dire need, and it’s a credit to all how much the fire-ravaged communities have been supported–not only by locals but from all around the world. A few glitches here and there are to be expected. We have all learned a lot from the Katrina episode.
As an aside, we Aussies still have to pay for SitePoint books in US dollars, so the books cost nearly twice as much for us–mainly thanks to the US-inspired financial meltdown!
February 16th, 2009 at 9:03 am
For those that are complaining about the red tape and the “pettiness” of Consumer Affairs please stop. You look like a moron. I have been in the industry for several years, so I am fairly well versed in the reasoning behind it.
It’s a two pronged approach:
First and foremost is to stop con artists swindling people. Victoria has a limit, but some states require registration before you can even hold a fundraiser (New South Wales is an example). Like all other rules and impositions, this comes about because of various people with false intentions. 1 ruins it for the rest.
Second is to help separate and track once off activities versus regular activities. Sitepoint’s offer was a good example of the once off activity. They made an offer and then when the pre permit limit was reached, they had to terminate it. The Red Cross or any other charity would have a permit because they do this regularly and often reach the threshold.
The legal requirements are there to protect both the entity running the campaign, and the donor. I bet if there was no protection and then you got conned you’d be up in arms as to why there was no regulation.
I would also like to offer my praise to Sitepoint for donating their profits to this worthy cause. I am sorry that I wasnt able to make a purchase through the site, but I have already made several donations via other means.
February 16th, 2009 at 9:33 am
Wow I wish I could have taken advantage of the offer. It had nothing to do with you guys…I just haven’t checked in with SitePoint in a few weeks. Not sure why I didn’t get the email though. It is a shame they shut you down early. While I can understand why some are upset about missing the offer, let’s realize it was out of SitePoint’s control as far as closing the offer. You guys have always been and continue to be awesome. This latest offer only demonstrates that even more. Let’s keep those in Aust in our prayers as well as the victims/families of those involved in the recent plane crash in the US. SitePoint continue what you are doing. You keep raising the bar to new levels!
February 16th, 2009 at 9:49 am
@ MrBruce
In that case, we are also sorry about you’re inability.
Happens to us all occasionally.
Hugs and kisses,
An Aussie SOB
February 16th, 2009 at 10:19 am
Great work Sitepoint – it’s amazing to see how all us Australians come together in a time of tragedy and what you’ve done is truly fantastic! Congratulations.
To all those who are crying over missing out, it’s just another example of Americans who think the world revolves around them. It’s a fundraiser, not a promotion for Sitepoint – get over it!
February 16th, 2009 at 12:06 pm
Ok, everyone….
*group hug*
It worked in the other blog about this topic… I figured its worth a shot.
February 16th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
@ BrewPig, Spot on!
February 16th, 2009 at 12:24 pm
Sitepoint should have predicted the fires 28 days earlier to avoid the problem with government
February 16th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
I’am glad to know that I have made a contribution to the distaster fund. I am based in the UK and put a copy of the offer on the Stop Press box of the http://www.freshfordsomerset.co.uk website. I hope that also helped to raise some more money. What a brilliant idea! Well done Sitepoint! What a pity about the red tape stopping the offer continuing, as I’m sure that word would have got around and even more money would have been raised.
Let this be a model for other companies to help raise funds. :)
February 16th, 2009 at 11:34 pm
Thanks for the explanation, Mark (at SitePoint). Now that I know the whole story, I am no longer disappointed that the sale had to end earlier than expected. I definitely wouldn’t want SitePoint to get into trouble. And to those of you who were whining because we wanted an explanation…bite me. I know this may be hard to believe, but questioning something that don’t make sense to you does not make you a bad person. :)
February 17th, 2009 at 12:56 am
Hi Mark,
I can understand your situation but at the same time Sitepoint could have immediately put a link stating the issue on your site itself or an automated email for those who tried to get the download. I have received the message from your site with order number and pdf link (with log in error message.) and ultimately now i know what was wrong. your log in error message could have been a decent explanation and that could have saved my one telephone call all the way from bahrain to australia and two days of waiting for monday to come to get a neagtive reply. anyways thanks for the explanation.
please see the email below.
anyway i am ready to buy your books on a normal price. because i am a customer. sigh!
kind regards
umd
——————————————
Hi,
Thanks for contacting us.
I think you’ll find that you have not been charged for this order. For some reason it has not processed properly.
Please check with your credit card carrier to see if you have been charged, and if you have please forward me the transaction ID.
If you have not been charged, unfortunately you will need to place your order again.
Kind regards
Andrew Gardner
SitePoint Customer Support
On Fri, 13 Feb 2009 17:45:14 +1100, umd wrote:
> **** Customer Support Email — Feedback ****
>
> From: unnikrishna menon damodaran
> Email:
>
> Regarding Order No: 196767
>
> View the customer’s order here:
> http://www.webmasterbase.com/admin/salesnew/index.php?action=customer_view&transid=196767
>
> Customer’s message follows:
> ———————–
> hi,
> this is my second email to you on the same subject. no reply yet.
> i have paid 29.95US$ through my credit card (not Pay pal) on 12th february.
> for 5 PDF downloads but I am getting log in error message when trying to download pdf log in page. also i have not received a confirmation email yet.
>
> please fix the problem and reply and send me the confirmation too.
>
> kind regards | umd | unnikrishna menon damodaran |
February 17th, 2009 at 3:29 am
Here’s what I don’t GET… sitepoint did this to raise money for the fires — they missed up, and the customer pays for it. Meaning all they had to to was post a update saying the sitepoint would get 100% of the $30 from the sell of the books — and then of THEIR own free will, give the money to the fires. They didn’t and should make the promise that they would, but doing so would likely fix 90% of the issues for ALL parties: SitePoint, SitePoint customers, and Consumer Affairs. Meaning selling books IS NOT fundraising if the is ZERO promise to use the sells for anything other than PROFIT.
What sitepoint does with those FUNDS is it’s business — don’t punish the customer.
February 17th, 2009 at 3:34 am
Sitepoint…THANK YOU!!! Soon as I received the email, I purchased the five for 1 deal. Now I have to find the time to read them! Thanks! I love you guys!
February 17th, 2009 at 6:13 am
@ Anony
Ahem…
How about this… the staff at SitePoint put together this promotion in 1 day. So what usually takes 3 weeks to organise they crammed into 1 day. Which also meant their already packed work schedules got even more packed. Plus they sacrificed their own personal time.
Unfortunately, all their crystal balls were in the shop and stuff happened they didn’t expect.
But, they raised a shed load of money for a good cause. In fact, they are donating a lot more than some of the bigger, more well known companies in Aust.
In the end nothing else matters except raising funds for the Bushfire appeal.
SitePoint didn’t punish anyone… in fact they are the ones hurting most from this whole affair. (Apart from the Bushfire victims of course)
February 17th, 2009 at 8:19 am
@ TheBrewPig
Yes, exactly!
February 17th, 2009 at 8:29 am
@ TheBrewPig, uked
PPL bought the books because they wanted them, if they wanted to give money to the brushfire… they would do so directly. Sitepoint wanted to give money to the fire, so they did a promo — then pulled the promo when they were told they couldn’t do what THEY wanted to do. Pretty simple.
February 17th, 2009 at 8:42 am
Thanks for making this offer available. Despite being bogged down in regulatory spaghetti, you guys deserve a pat on the back. Let’s hope our collective contribution goes towards making some difference to those affected by this disaster.
February 17th, 2009 at 8:55 am
@ Anony
Whose PPL? Anyway I bought the books because, not necessarily, because I wanted them, I have enough to read! But as an offer it seemed irrestible. The fact that sitepoint was prepared to donate all the proceeds of their sale to the distaster appeal was a clincher. I would not have donated that money to the distarder fund. Sorry, I am a UK pensioner with a small income and a web design and hosting business to supplement my income. I am however quite happy to spend time publishing this appeal in the UK.
I don’t think that anyone should need to donate funds to help disaster victims anywhere in our World. To be honest it’s a disgrace, but how many worthy causes are there?
Do you really think that all of that money would have been given other than through Sitepoint’s offer? It is the most I have donated to any charity ever! And the factor is that I have those ebooks in return which reduce the actual cost to me to an insignificant level. I have not donated 20 odd dollars Sitepoint has.
February 17th, 2009 at 9:27 am
@ Anony
Some people did, some people bought books just for the fundraiser. (Some already had the books hardcopy, but bought the PDF anyway cos its for a good cause)
Some donated directly.
What is simple, is that SitePoint only raised this much because of the way they promo’d it.
And yes, they obeyed the law.
All of this is beautifully wonderful in hindsight.
But right now, its all a moot point.
February 17th, 2009 at 9:37 am
Plus, technically they are doing the whole:
Truth is, if they sold books as per normal, and just gave money they wouldn’t have been able to give nearly as much.
As soon as you mention its going to bushfires to get more people to buy, its an appeal.
February 17th, 2009 at 9:43 am
I too, missed the opportunity, but am NOT complaining. Glad to hear that your efforts were successful. My prayers go out to those affected by these fires.
February 18th, 2009 at 4:48 am
Good things come to those who wait?
No on the Internet.
Especially not when it comes to a sitepoint deal!
February 18th, 2009 at 5:10 am
I am very happy to say that i managed to take this offer . I do feel good also about the fact that the money will go to something worthwhile as helping the bushfire victims .
February 18th, 2009 at 5:21 am
Man, I wanted to get my hands on this power pack b4 the offer expires but was kinda late! Do you think it will come around again, any time soon? Please?
February 18th, 2009 at 5:35 am
It’s now over a month on, any chance of announcing a total?
March 18th, 2009 at 7:03 pm