Many of us came online tonight to find many changes. especially in the chat room. Most of us are very unhappy with the new changes- we can no longer chat and read posts at the same time, the format is different and we can no longer private message. now we hear about upcoming changes to include "premium" membership? wth?

Many of us have found invaluable support and advice from this site. we look forward to the daily interaction. however, i will not be paying for services on this site. I thought thats what all these ads are on here for.

I, for one, am very upset about these changes that occurred without any notifications whatsoever.

Please, reconsider these changes. why fix something that isnt broken?

All of you who dont agree with these changes please hit "like" or post to show our solidarity. Havent we been thru enough already?!

Sorry this turned out to be a rant, we are all upset right now.

i second that tink. read my post it is called Paying and this Site

I love this site...but I will not pay for ANY site!

http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/80457-let-me-pay-to-not-see-ads/ here is the proof

I don't know about the chat room.. I've never used it and wouldn't mind if they did away with it for good (sorry) but I think the premium option will cut out the ads? Right I'm thinking for the ones that don't want to pay it will stay the same???

Right Alex?

http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/80457-let-me-pay-to-not-see-ads/

Here's the link referencing a potential pay for use system. I also hate the removal of chat the way it used to be, and the removal of private chat. We all benefit so much from this...is the profit from the ads really not enough? Is it really necessary to squeeze just a bit more out of those who simple seek support while undergoing such a life altering process?

These sites don't run for free, unfortunately. I run several for my business and if my ad revenue doesn't meet my costs, I would take them down or charge for use. That said, I like this place but I am not paying for it. I am sure that all we are facing here is ads or no ads.

As for the chat? Never used it. We formed a few groups on fb for drama free chatting and they are all I need personally.

When I had started on the track toward WLS, I searched the internet for an informational site that provided not only forums, but a sense of community where I could actually meet people and make connections, this was the only site I found that offered all of that.

That being said, I believe this site is very helpful and would continue to be helpful to an extent through the changes, but the chat feature was a great way to actually GET TO KNOW other people going through the same experiences and build a support system. And speaking from a psychological and emotional standpoint, I think having that support system when going through such a major life change may be even more important than all the facts and advice obtained through the forums.

If the point of this site is to TRULY HELP PEOPLE, then don't start removing vital resources or making it only for people who have the money to pay for it!!

LipstickLady, I totally get the business side of things, and I actually have no problem with instituting a premium fee in order to have the option to hide the ads. I also belong to one of the Drama Free groups on FB and love it. However, I enjoyed both the public and private chat features here, and am highly disappointed that we were given no notice or opportunity to offer input about the features of this site we like & use the most.

What do you mean you can't private MSG?

we no longer have the option to private message live, like before when in the chat room.

LipstickLady' date=' I totally get the business side of things, and I actually have no problem with instituting a premium fee in order to have the option to hide the ads. I also belong to one of the Drama Free groups on FB and love it. However, I enjoyed both the public and private chat features here, and am highly disappointed that we were given no notice or opportunity to offer input about the features of this site we like & use the most.[/quote']

Umm.. You can just pm the person you want to talk to...

LipstickLady, I totally get the business side of things, and I actually have no problem with instituting a premium fee in order to have the option to hide the ads. I also belong to one of the Drama Free groups on FB and love it. However, I enjoyed both the public and private chat features here, and am highly disappointed that we were given no notice or opportunity to offer input about the features of this site we like & use the most.

I appreciate that.

What? There used to be a chat?!? Lol I obviously have been missing out on a lot... Ads, chat? Oye.

We're gonna fix this in the morn.

On EST, that's about 39 seconds from now.