Toolhaus.org
Toolhaus Shutdown FAQ
Toolhaus has received many questions about the recent shutdown and possible end to our tool suite - Here's our attempt to answer those questions, and others! (Updated 01 Jun 2014)
If you use Toohaus, please consider supporting it!
Many thanks to our generous donors! (Updated 07 Jan 2020)
Contents:
- Was it eBay?
- Okay, then, what was it?
- You need money? How much?  
- Do you need a new server?
- Now what?

Did eBay shut you down?
I know this will come as a surprise to many people, but eBay did not shut us down. I think they're too busy working on their own particular problems currently...

They were still blocking us on occasion, as before, but that was impersonal, for lack of a better term. They're not targeting us at all, and my guess is that since we haven't received a Cease and Desist letter in over a decade of operation, we're not about to now.

Okay, then, what was it?
It's just like I told my old friend Ina Steiner, over on EcommerceBytes:
"The root of the problem in running Toolhaus is money - contributions have been down for over a year, and I've had to move to (ahem) cheaper and cheaper hosting," he said. "I've never been in this for the income, but I do need to cover the basic costs. There are technical requirements for running Toolhaus, and I'm learning that those are hard to find when you're on a shoestring budget."

You need money? How much?
About $10 more than you gave us last year. For most of you reading this – don't lie to yourself, you know it's true – that would be $10. Our other FAQ page got about 30 hits per day. At even a buck apiece, that would be plenty for Toolhaus's needs. (Who, me? Bitter?)
Well, why didn't you ask for it?
We've had the PayPal button on the front page, and on all of the tools, since 2003. For many years, that method worked fine - we received a fairly steady number of one-time contributions, and a few year-long subscriptions. We didn't get big bucks, but we got enough to pay our expenses, and that was all we really needed. For the last couple of years, though, those contributions have trickled off. I don't want Toolhaus to be a public radio station, bugging people for just a few more dollars so that we can survive just a few more days.
But if you're shutting it down, why are you still asking for money?
Original answer:
The fate of Toolhaus is still unknown at this time. If it survives, all contribution will go toward maintaining the new server; otherwise, I will be refunding all contributions. PayPal's time limit for refunds is 60 days.
Fortunately, many generous donors promptly came forward, and contributed more than enough to keep Toolhaus alive for another year. Not all of them asked to be listed on our
donors page, but many of them said "Even if you do shut down, please don't refund my donation." I am deeply impressed, and deeply grateful.

Do you need a new server?
Original answer:
I'm currently talking to someone who might be able to provide hosting for Toolhaus, resulting in less work on my part, and we're comfortable with the current income level. That may or may not come to pass - I'll keep you posted. Meanwhile, thank you for your kind words... and your dollars.
We have a new server, at a price we can afford (Did I mention the
generous donors?), and we're hoping the setup will be stable for quite some time... Internet time, of course.

Now what?
"Your patience is appreciated." Check back with us, we'll try to add updates to both the main Toolhaus page and here as things progress. Predicting the future is a difficult task, though!
Made with vi whb@toolhaus.org
Last Modified 01 Jun 2014