"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available [LWN.net]

For a while now, certain LWN subscribers have been asking us to add a more expensive subscription level. We are happy to announce that, at long last, we have done it; the new "maniacal supporter" level is now available for those of you who are feeling sufficiently maniacal to pay $50/month for LWN. The additional benefits of this level are small in number, but we assure you that they can be had nowhere else; from the LWN FAQ:

Subscribers at this level have all the access given to "project leader" subscribers; they are also credited as supporters in their comment postings. LWN staff will happily buy supporters a beer (or other beverage of their choice) at any conference where they may meet.

In the end, this option is the result of a rule of thumb which has never steered us wrong: always do what Rusty says. We are most curious to see how many of our supporters are willing to take this next step to help keep LWN going.

Thanks to all of you for supporting LWN at any level.

to post comments

"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available

Posted Apr 28, 2011 5:56 UTC (Thu) by rusty (guest, #26) [Link] (3 responses)

I trust the "maniacal" will be removed from the name soon.

Most of us early Linux FOSS hackers lucked into secure jobs. Jon et al chose a less lucrative yet indispensable role. I don't think this small contribution is maniacal at all!

"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available

Posted Apr 28, 2011 21:12 UTC (Thu) by rgmoore (✭ supporter ✭, #75) [Link]

I trust the "maniacal" will be removed from the name soon.

It should obviously be replaced with "fanatical". That level could then come with neat red uniforms.

"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available

Posted Apr 29, 2011 7:45 UTC (Fri) by dlang (guest, #313) [Link] (1 responses)

it looks like the numbers next to the names are being reset as people upgrade, if that is the case then it means that is about two days (by the time I got around to upgrading), over 300 people have opted to pay 4x the prior max amount.

wow, I expected my fellow readers to support this, I didn't expect this many of us this quickly

I hope that people maintain this level of support and don't have to drop back down over time.

"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available

Posted Apr 29, 2011 12:54 UTC (Fri) by corbet (editor, #1) [Link]

No, we're not doing anything with the numbers. I'd actually thought of that, but decided against it. You have the number you've always had. Just the stars are new :)

"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available

Posted Apr 28, 2011 7:58 UTC (Thu) by kirr (guest, #14329) [Link] (4 responses)

$50/month could be too high for some countries. Could we please have something in between 14 and 50 so that people could choose whatever level is appropriate for them? Something nearby 30 seems to be missing in series of 3.5,7,14,50. Thanks.

"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available

Posted Apr 28, 2011 8:44 UTC (Thu) by niner (guest, #26151) [Link] (3 responses)

You can change your subscription level at any time. So if $50/month is too much to pay all the time, you can still do it for half of the year and spend the rest at professional hacker level. Just make sure your a maniac supporter while visiting a conference to get that beer :)

"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available

Posted Apr 29, 2011 1:16 UTC (Fri) by Baylink (guest, #755) [Link] (2 responses)

My suggested implementation would be: allow each subscriber to choose their monthly/quarterly/annual contribution level, and give out whatever bennies accrue based on the highest level they've passed.

Hey. That sounds familiar.

Anyone got a totebag?

"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available

Posted Apr 30, 2011 15:15 UTC (Sat) by jzbiciak (guest, #5246) [Link] (1 responses)

Interestingly enough, I donate approximately the same to NPR as I've been paying for LWN. Hmmm...

"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available

Posted Apr 30, 2011 15:21 UTC (Sat) by jzbiciak (guest, #5246) [Link]

When I put it in those terms, it seemed fairly obvious I should adjust my LWN subscription level. ;-)

"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available

Posted Apr 29, 2011 21:06 UTC (Fri) by Julie (guest, #66693) [Link]

We are happy to announce that, at long last, we have done it; the new "maniacal supporter" level is now available
Yay, just in time for my subscription renewal to come up! Thanks to Rusty for nagging Jon, and Jon for caving in.

"Maniacal supporter" subscription level now available

Posted Apr 30, 2011 18:24 UTC (Sat) by Stephen_Beynon (guest, #4090) [Link]

Thanks for adding this option. LWN is well worth $50 per month.