Predents.com: Still use it?

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Hey all, been a long time since I've been here!

Here is the deal. I'm a second year resident and have absolutely no $$ or time. I couldn't afford my server anymore so it got shut down (it was either that or have my electricity shut off).

I still have the domain name even though it's pointing somewhere else right now.

Here is my question to you all. I could start my server back up and resurrect PreDents.com but I would need to know two things:

1) Do you all still use it?

2) Would any of you consider donations?

I'm taking the ads down, they are lame and don't pay for the server. I'm not looking to make $$ off the site, just pay the server costs.


...discuss


PDizz

Originally Posted by PDizzle

Hey all, been a long time since I've been here!

Here is the deal. I'm a second year resident and have absolutely no $$ or time. I couldn't afford my server anymore so it got shut down (it was either that or have my electricity shut off).

I still have the domain name even though it's pointing somewhere else right now.

Here is my question to you all. I could start my server back up and resurrect PreDents.com but I would need to know two things:

1) Do you all still use it?

2) Would any of you consider donations?

I'm taking the ads down, they are lame and don't pay for the server. I'm not looking to make $$ off the site, just pay the server costs.


...discuss


PDizz

Hi there PDizz,

How much are the server costs? Feel free to PM me the details if necessary. I am in a position to help, and would gladly do so for the benefit of so many.

Thanks

Haven't had a chance to visit it yet, but I think it would benefit most of us here. I could donate if I didn't have to pay my loans lol...

Once I graduate from my residency and start making $$, I can fit that bill to give back to the community that helped me so much, but I'm at the point where I'd cross a freeway if I saw a quarter on the other side!

If I get more positives like this I'll probably start that thing up again.

PDizzy

1) yes, and I believe a lot of people use it :-)
2) yes, I would be happy to do something that helps pre-dental students, including me

I too am a definite advocate of getting the site up and running again. I enjoyed it quite greatly when I was first looking into the cycle. Money and what not are tight on my end as well but I see no reason why it shouldn't work if we can get so many interested parties to join in.

I feel people still use it regularly, and if you set up an online donation you would probably be able to keep it going.

PDizzle, have you thought about setting up a paypal account? Once you get the site running again, maybe get a paypal going?

I'm a wee bit broke at the time after secondaries but sure, PM me if you need some donations.

I use it! I love it. Lets all pitch in and get this thing up and running!

I agree ... I think its a valuable resource and I would contribute to keep it running, just PM.

What kind of ball park costs are we talking?


I would be willing to contribute time/money to the website as well.

Is it possible to make the site a pay site but very reasonable at something like $5/year per user just to keep the site up and going?

likewise

Still use it.

I definitely still use it and I was really looking forward to using it to scope out my competition this cycle

I still use it. What kind of costs are we talking? I might be able to throw you some money if it benefits everyone. The tuitions to the schools need to be updated, and some of the new schools like UNE might need to be added to the list, which I might be willing to help with as well.

Originally Posted by sacapuntas

What kind of ball park costs are we talking?


I would be willing to contribute time/money to the website as well.

Is it possible to make the site a pay site but very reasonable at something like $5/year per user just to keep the site up and going?

I agree with sacapuntas. Except I cannot contribute time. I can only contribute money.

"Is it possible to make the site a pay site but very reasonable at something like $5/year per user just to keep the site up and going?"

This is a great idea by sacapuntas, but even if you're not into subscription and all, I'd be happy to donate. I didn't use it much in the past, but the "Which school are you freaking out about now?" menu always made me laugh!

I use it. Thanks for doing such a great thing for pre-dents. I would be willing to donate.

I still use it.

I'm in my gap year right now so I definitely can contribute time to helping you run the site.

I could contribute money as well to support your server.

I'm a statistics buff so I really like sites like predents.com.

I'd be down for donations. I disagree with the idea of making it a subscription or pay site, though.

Originally Posted by lemoncurry

I'd be down for donations. I disagree with the idea of making it a subscription or pay site, though.

Just so myself and others can understand both sides of the issue, can you explain your reasoning about keeping the site away from being a very inexpensive subscription site?

Originally Posted by lemoncurry

I'd be down for donations. I disagree with the idea of making it a subscription or pay site, though.

It also might be illegal to make it a pay site as the data on schools is based off the the ADEA manual (you're basically repackaging the data and selling it for far less than the ADEA charges).

Pdizzle-You could always put a ton of banner ads on. How much does it cost to run the site?

Originally Posted by Zbtb7

It also might be illegal to make it a pay site as the data on schools is based off the the ADEA manual (you're basically repackaging the data and selling it for far less than the ADEA charges).

You're not repackaging the data, though. The ADEA manual gets data directly from dental schools. Predents is a site where people self-report data (and we know that there are biases that come with that), which is nowhere near as accurate as the ADEA data on schools. Do you really think the two are comparable? Predents is helpful, but it's never going to replace the ADEA manual itself.

I use it...I would donate...Pleasure to hear from you Pdizzle!

Originally Posted by baby tooth

You're not repackaging the data, though. The ADEA manual gets data directly from dental schools. Predents is a site where people self-report data (and we know that there are biases that come with that), which is nowhere near as accurate as the ADEA data on schools. Do you really think the two are comparable? Predents is helpful, but it's never going to replace the ADEA manual itself.

I'm not talking about the self-reported applicant stats, I'm referring to the data on acceptee stats at individual schools (in each school tab, there was data on schools above the info on which predents applicants applied, were interview, and were accepted. This data was taken directly from the ADEA manual. That's the issue. You're getting the information from the ADEA and not from the schools; you're repackaging.

I use it! I am employed! I can throw some cash your way no problem.

Seems the fastest way to get it up is to put up a donation link and hope everyone isn't just talk. Then decisions can be made about future plans. Possibly handing over some development and updating to those who can give time and skill. I think there was even an offer from someone to host it. I assume they have something robust in mind. But this is your baby...the baby just needs fed at the moment.

Originally Posted by jeffity

Seems the fastest way to get it up is to put up a donation link and hope everyone isn't just talk. Then decisions can be made about future plans. Possibly handing over some development and updating to those who can give time and skill. I think there was even an offer from someone to host it. I assume they have something robust in mind. But this is your baby...the baby just needs fed at the moment.

Well, one way to find out...

...http://forums.studentdoctor.net/announcement.php?f=17

I kid, I'm sure everyone has the best of intentions.

Originally Posted by Kahr

Well, one way to find out...

...http://forums.studentdoctor.net/announcement.php?f=17

I kid, I'm sure everyone has the best of intentions.

I am jealous of your massive collection of icons. All good things! How recent is the mod? Remind me to high-five you in the hall or at our lockers.

Give us your PayPal email address, we will send you donations.

Originally Posted by terrorist96

Here's a site to hold people off while predds is down:
predds dot net/dental-school-admission-statistics-2/

and slightly older:
predds dot net/dental-school-admission-statistics/

It's stupid how predds dot net is filtered..

I think it dislikes non-affiliates or something. Even big dog Chad is filtered. I also think I should go to work and stop the chatter.

1) as useful as the site is, I'm not sure if it is something people would pay money to use.
2) instead of forcing users to pay, allow those that wish to continue the site's original purpose to donate of their free will.
3) usually if you are going to pay for access to a site, you expect the site to give you something in return. Referring back to #1, I don't think the site as it is offers enough to be switched to subscription only, and Pdizzle certainly doesn't have the time to try and add services to the site so that people feel like they are getting their money's worth.

In a nutshell, free will giving is better than forced subscription.

Originally Posted by jeffity

I am jealous of your massive collection of icons. All good things! How recent is the mod? Remind me to high-five you in the hall or at our lockers.

Sorry, I'm a total badge/icon ho! Aiming for SDN Author next.

Umm, when did I mod, I think it's been about a month now.

Shoot, I was totally planning to be all stealthily anonymous in school! Yeah, it's good to know that there are a fair number of us going to the same schools. Looking forward to meeting everyone.

Originally Posted by Kahr

Sorry, I'm a total badge/icon ho! Aiming for SDN Author next.

Umm, when did I mod, I think it's been about a month now.

Shoot, I was totally planning to be all stealthily anonymous in school! Yeah, it's good to know that there are a fair number of us going to the same schools. Looking forward to meeting everyone.

I wonder if we could arrange a Predents donor badge? A lot of people would probably donate under that condition.

Originally Posted by PDizzle

Once I graduate from my residency and start making $$, I can fit that bill to give back to the community that helped me so much, but I'm at the point where I'd cross a freeway if I saw a quarter on the other side! If I get more positives like this I'll probably start that thing up again. PDizzy

It would be a heck of a lot safer if you gave up your six pack.

I would definitely be willing to donate money to keep the site up.

I'd donate. I thought that site was awesome.

OK, I got almost 100% positive feedback with most of you saying you can contribute so I will start the process to get it back up and going. It will take a little initial dough to start it back up and some time because I am just swamped right now!

About the site being a pay-for-service, I agree with Lemon, that would be a bad idea. Even charging 50 cents or something small like that would drop the number of contributors significantly, which in turn drops the legitimacy of the site, which in turns drops the subscription rate, which.....you get the idea.

I don't feel right about asking for donations until the site is up, so the initial investment will just be a risk.

I'll keep you all posted on the progress. I'd say by mid August at the latest.

In the mean time, since I'm gonna do this again, now is a good time to talk about any additions to the website you all might want.

Some things in the past that I have suggested that a lot of people liked was:
1) Internal PM system in PreDents.com for limited conversation.
2) Information updated by users to ensure accurate data. Kind of like WikiPedia does it.
3) With expressed permission from SDN, interview feedback data base with associated graphs and charts listing all kinds of things about the schools. If SDN would allow this, I think it would ROCK!! (reason for permission is that I am a partner of SDN and they have a similar feature)

Originally Posted by PDizzle

In the mean time, since I'm gonna do this again, now is a good time to talk about any additions to the website you all might want.

Some things in the past that I have suggested that a lot of people liked was:
1) Internal PM system in PreDents.com for limited conversation.
2) Information updated by users to ensure accurate data. Kind of like WikiPedia does it.
3) With expressed permission from SDN, interview feedback data base with associated graphs and charts listing all kinds of things about the schools. If SDN would allow this, I think it would ROCK!! (reason for permission is that I am a partner of SDN and they have a similar feature)

PDizzle, thank you so much for working to keep this site working! I hope we can all help you out in any way we can to keep PreDents going, because it is a wonderful site.

Btw, I love the ideas you have for the site! All 3 of them are !

Originally Posted by sacapuntas

What kind of ball park costs are we talking?


I would be willing to contribute time/money to the website as well.

Is it possible to make the site a pay site but very reasonable at something like $5/year per user just to keep the site up and going?

I agree, if everyone paid $5 per year each, hopefully that would be enough to cover costs and then some. It's something like that I would certainly be willing to pay. I enjoyed the site back when I was first interested in looking at specific individuals' stats, and could especially make use of it now.

Originally Posted by cluckyducky

I agree, if everyone paid $5 per year each, hopefully that would be enough to cover costs and then some. It's something like that I would certainly be willing to pay. I enjoyed the site back when I was first interested in looking at specific individuals' stats, and could especially make use of it now.

I really dont think many people would use it for 5 bucks. Maybe a gunner here or there.

5 bucks per person would cover the costs, and then a new car for Pdizzle.

Originally Posted by PDizzle

Some things in the past that I have suggested that a lot of people liked was:
1) Internal PM system in PreDents.com for limited conversation.
2) Information updated by users to ensure accurate data. Kind of like WikiPedia does it.
3) With expressed permission from SDN, interview feedback data base with associated graphs and charts listing all kinds of things about the schools. If SDN would allow this, I think it would ROCK!! (reason for permission is that I am a partner of SDN and they have a similar feature)

Thanks for all that you do. One additional suggestion:

4) Update the stats (tuition, average DAT scores, average GPA) for each school. They seem to be about 6 years old. For example, one of the schools lists total 4-year tuition as approximately $50,000, but it's actually now around $120,000.

If you want this updated information, please PM me, and I can try to make a spreadsheet for you.

As a re-applicant, I still use it and I'm willing to donate!

Originally Posted by NonTradHopeful

Thanks for all that you do. One additional suggestion:

4) Update the stats (tuition, average DAT scores, average GPA) for each school. They seem to be about 6 years old. For example, one of the schools lists total 4-year tuition as approximately $50,000, but it's actually now around $120,000.
.

Seconded, and willing to donate so future predents can benefit from your site too.

I feel like a weirdo making my first post after having this account for 2+ years.

That said, being that I'm planning on applying sometime in the future I would be willing to donate whatever I can to bring predents back on line.

Originally Posted by NonTradHopeful

Thanks for all that you do. One additional suggestion:

4) Update the stats (tuition, average DAT scores, average GPA) for each school. They seem to be about 6 years old. For example, one of the schools lists total 4-year tuition as approximately $50,000, but it's actually now around $120,000.

If you want this updated information, please PM me, and I can try to make a spreadsheet for you.

your #4 is my #2! hehe

That's what I meant by that.


PDizz

Originally Posted by PDizzle

Once I graduate from my residency and start making $$, I can fit that bill to give back to the community that helped me so much, but I'm at the point where I'd cross a freeway if I saw a quarter on the other side!

If I get more positives like this I'll probably start that thing up again.

PDizzy

1. YES
2. YES

Thank you for all you have done, I will gladly contribute.

When predents stopped working I felt like I couldn't breathe! And I can definitely donate to help keep the site running, I found it invaluable to say the least.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN Mobile app

I used the site practically everyday and as one of my main sources to scope out which schools I applied to this cycle. It helped a lot to gauge where I stood. I miss it already

I wouldn't suggest a subscription type donation because I doubt many people would subscribe. If you reopened the site with a message at the beginning explaining your busyness, financial situation, etc., I bet a lot of people would send a one time donation. I know I would. It was such a valuable resource. Second to SDN for me...

I share the opinions expressed in the previous posts, and would also donate immediately.

Thanks pdizzle, I'll keep the peepers peeled for a place to contribute!