[davea0511]

I'd like to say at first that I think it makes sense that only donating members get access to certain features, like Gdocs Redesigned. I'm self employed myself and understand, everyone needs to have some kind of remuneration.

That said, the instructions on how to unlock the Gdocs Redesigned is just plain misleading. What it says is you have to join the "Supporters" and "to join the Supporters please consider making a donation to the Google Redesigned project".

In fact, that is not what is required to join the Supporters Group ... merely considering making a donation isn't enough. Instead you have to make a donation (which I'm completely fine with), not just consider it. What's more, the word "please" preceding the entire sentence even indicates that perhaps it isn't even necessary to merely consider making a donation.

So all I ask now is just a simple question ... why not call it like it is and say "to join the Supporters make a donation to the Google Redesigned project"? That isn't an unreasonable nor even discouraging request, and if you could provide a screenshot of what it looks like at the time I can guarantee you that those who might make the donation would be more guaranteed to make it beforehand if they can see what they'd get as a result. The rest of us would also be satisfied having seen the screenshot without having to clutter up your user-base, and file it away for future use if we ever plan on using GDocs in the future. As it is, I'm just not as likely to do that now, and I'm sure others in the same boat as me are similarly affected.

[Evgueni Naverniouk]

Hello davea0511,

We've tried to make the process as simple as possible. After you make your donation you'll receive a confirmation email that asks you to register for an account if you choose to join the Supporters group, and reply back with your username. We then manually verify your account, and upgrade you to Supporters. After which you can unlock the GDocs Redesigned style.

The reason we didn't make this entire process automatic and require users to register first before making a donation is because there are a lot of users who merely wish to make a donation to our cause without wanting to join the Supporters group, and we wanted to ensure they can do this easily too.

I will review the wording of the instructions and try to make it clearer.

I'm not sure which screenshot you are referring to. There are screenshots of GDocs Redesigned on our project page: http://www.globexdes...age=screenshots

In the meanwhile, please let me know if there's anything else we can help you with.

[GFY]

+1 for davea0511

I too, am happy about donations but some clarity would be appreciated.

Something like " GDocs Redesigned is available after donating to the project."

Sweet, and nobody has to wonder..

and I love the work, it looks great..

[Evgueni Naverniouk]

We are in the process of working on an automated system for user upgrades. No release date is available at this time.

[Ben Jendrick]

Evgueni Naverniouk, on 11 March 2010 - 04:31 PM, said:

We are in the process of working on an automated system for user upgrades. No release date is available at this time.

Several weeks ago, I donated & followed all the instructions for signing up. Is there somewhere special I need to check to activate my GDocs feature? I'd love to have an e-mail or message here indicating what is necessary to complete the process. Thank you.

[Evgueni Naverniouk]

Ben Jendrick, on 15 March 2010 - 09:27 AM, said:

Several weeks ago, I donated & followed all the instructions for signing up. Is there somewhere special I need to check to activate my GDocs feature? I'd love to have an e-mail or message here indicating what is necessary to complete the process. Thank you.

Please follow the instructions provided to you after donating: http://www.globexdes...gr/?page=donate

[Angelo]

There should be an automated system for this. In the meantime, I'm still waiting.

Edit: Ah! Joy!

[xun]

Okay, I'm a little confused here.. How can you not understand what exactly they offer or how donations work?

I'm not trying to offend in any way, I really would like to know.. Maybe I can help..

It clearly states what you need to do if you want to get access to GDocs.. They offer pretty much everything else for free and they give you access to an early release of GDocs as a thank you for donating & requesting to have you membership status changed to "supporter." -- It's not a purchase, do you understand that? You are DONATING. In order for you to be eligible to get GDocs you have to be a "Supporter" and in order to become a "Supporter" you must have donated and then requested to upgrade to supporter status. Supporter status gets you early access to GDocs. Now, to simplify.. All members who have "Supporter" status have donated. But not all who have donated have "Supporter" status. Now, while you can be the literal definition of the word supporter simply by sitting at home saying "I support this site" but that doesn't change your status to "Supporter" in terms of the classification of the word as a status level for memberships instead of just using it as a way to describe someone's personal opinion. What it sounds like you people want is an option to simply purchase GDocs, which they might consider adding if enough people want it.. But the most likely scenario is that they want to continue offering their main stuff for free, while relying on giving members the ability to choose whether or not to donate.. Something to potentially increase donations is offering members to have their accounts officially upgraded to "Supporter" status which then gives the member access to GDocs. But you have to choose to request this, just like you have to choose to donate. They don't force you to do anything.

Again, I apologize if I offended anyone, that was not my intention. I was just a little confused about what exactly caused any of you to feel mislead in any way..