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 So, what is the PDA247 club? Basically it is a database containing contact details of the people who have done any of the following:- Donated to PDA247 Sent in multiple, good quality news articles Written reviews or helped out with the site maintenance, design and in many other ways. What do you get if you are a member of the PDA247 club? You will get exclusive discounts on accessories and software Advanced news items (now and then I am sent news which is not for public broadcast but which could be used for a select group of visitors- this can include future software releases, general Palm industry news and even hardware releases from the likes of Sony and Palm who may complain if details are broadcast on a public site) Beta releases (because of the site, receiving advanced copies of Beta software happens a lot and I am in discussions regarding giving you guys the opportunity to try some things out first...) Free software (there is the possibility of some free software being given to members but this has not been confirmed) PDA eBook (when I finish writing it you will all get a free copy- normal price will be $5) There will be Monthly Prize Draws for members and the winners will win software and accessory prizes of their choosing (you don't have to do anything as you will be notified if you come up lucky:)) and whatever else I can dream up... I dreamt this idea up 6 hours ago and already have the following for the first PDA247 club email:- PROPORTA: 20% off ALL hardware and 30% of ALL software products SEIDIO: 5% of ALL products they sell Between 20 & 40% off ALL software by five prominent developers Full details of how to claim these discounts will be in the first email... Where's the catch? There isn't one. When I asked people for their ideas on ways to help develop the site and make it worth the time and effort a lot of people advised to go for a subscription news site where the user pays to enter the site. Personally this does not appeal to me as the site's success has been built around having the daily news freely available to everyone. The idea is to let the masses continue to experience the site as they do now and to reward the people who have made an effort to help it develop. 98 people (the current number in the club) will receive an email later explaining how it will work and, in my opinion, this can only be beneficial to everyone concerned- it gives developers a target audience of interested people, it may save me time if more people send in articles and reviews to join the club and it will have no negative affect on the site as a whole. If I am not on the list, how can I get on it? Quite simply really, there are 3 ways- 1) Make a donation ($5) via the donations link on the front page (right hand navigation bar) 2) Write and send in some articles and reviews 3) Send in some 'good quality' news articles- not just Handango and PalmGear picks. If I am on the list and don't want to be on it? Just send me an email (webmaster@pda247.com) and I will remove you straight away- don't want to be accused of spamming:) History of PDA247 club 19th November 2003: Welcome email sent to first 98 members 20th November 2003: PDA247 club Newsletter #1 distributed- first part of exclusive series detailing the development of Jason Goldman's new game (3D modelling screenshots included), discount offers: Between 15% and 35% off products from Proporta software/hardware, Natara, CrazySoft, Jason Goldman, Xavier Martin / details of the first monthly draw (3 members will win a Megasoft title of their choice) 22nd November 2003: Prize draw made for 3 members to win any Megasoft product of their choosing. The winners were Bill, Murtaza and Sumeet. 25th November 2003: PDA247 club Newsletter #2 distributed- Announcement of a competition for club members to win a brand new Sony Clie before Christmas! 100% discount codes for 10 Syncronized Magazine, ClieWorld Magazine and Mental Block Magazine issues (value: $10) BIG discounts on software from some big developers including FunCam for only $6.96, between 10 and 20% off Toysoft products, 10% off Top of the League, 10% off any Handable product and further discounts on Agendus, SplashMoney, Warfare Inc. and Calypso. On top of this ALL of the discounts from the last issue are still valid including 30% off Proporta software and 20% off Proporta hardware, some very nice discounts from Natara, Jason Goldman, Xavier Martin and CrazySoft. 26th November 2003: Here's the details for the PDA247 club Christmas competition. All you have to do is write a PDAThoughts style article and send it in before Christmas day to be in with a chance to win either a brand new Clie TJ35 or Clie TG50. I will publish all entries and a decision will be made at the start of January. Only PDA247 club members registered on or before 15th December are eligible to enter. The final choice of prize will be made within the next 2 weeks. 2nd December 2003: Includes details of prize draws to win 2 copies of AcidSolitaire and AcidFreecell from Red Mercury as well as a soon to be announced Dreamway competition. Also included are codes that gives 20% off JACK and MONSTA from indus3, a huge 30% off the funSMS 3/funBOOK bundle and between 10 and 20% off Toysoft products. 10th December 2003: 4 exclusive screenshots of Redshift's upcoming RPG- Legacy sent to all PDA247 club members. 18th December 2003: 4 exclusive screenshots of R. Zane Rutledge's game 7 Hexes sent to all members. 20th December 2003: 10% discount code for Redshift's Legacy sent out. 3rd January 2004: Palmary Clock made available to club members for $6.00 (normal price is $9.95) 4th January 2004: Palm Congressional Directory (2004) 3.0 offered to member for $11.95 ($3.00 discount) 14th January 2004: Big discounts offered to members on various Deluxeware products including an $8.00 disount on Navigator 23rd January 2004: MegaClock offered to club members for $9.45 (a 37% discount!) 30th January 2004: Escape offered to club members for only $2.45 2nd February 2004: MegaCom offered to club members for $7.95 (a $5 discount) 17th February 2004: iTunes 4 - 3 Pocket Tunes Skin offered for $2.50 (50% discount) 19th February 2004: Animation offered for $19.99 which represents a $10 discount 24th February 2004: 3D Engine screenshots and detailed information sent out to all members (exclusive) 29th February 2004: 20% off all LinkeSoft products and PhoneMagic sent out. 9th March 2004: 100% discount on SNAKE for Palm OS offered 29th March 2004: 50% discount offered on TouchTris ($7.48 from $14.95) 30th March 2004: $5 off any TealPoint titles (when spending $15 or more) 8th April 2004: 15% off pointWORLD by fun4palm 22nd April 2004: 2nd part of ProjectX sent out 26th April 2004: Preview of MicroQuad sent out 29th April 2004: 20% off MicroQuad offer sent out 7th May 2004: $5 off Fish Tycoon offered 26th May 2004: 20% discount on all HANDY entertainment titles 30th May 2004: Exclusive screenshot and description of new game 19th June 2004: Details of PDA Server Fever sent out 10th July 2004: Quick email detailing the plans for the club over the next few weeks 21st July 2004: Astraware Competion details sent out (5 copies of Candy Cruncher, 5 copies of Equilibriam and 5 copies of Hellfire up for grabs. 2nd August 2004: Special offer on the Clove Pro X 512MB SD Card sent out 15th August 2004: Holiday Competition Planner details released to members 19th August 2004: Clove Aluminium case offer sent out (£5 SAVING) 21st August 2004: MegaPackOne: MegaLauncher 3D Icons 1 competition details released 20th October 2004: $5 discount for Trip Boss sent out 31st October 2004: PDair offer distributed (£15 per aluminium case!) 20th January 2005: Pre-release copy of MegaCalc 3.0 available for testing (members only) 23rd January 2005: $5 discount offered on ShapeShifter from Astraware 17th February 2005: $1.50 discount offered on The Daughters of Freya 21st February 2005: $5 discount offered on Check List Pro 27th April 2005: 37% discount offered on UNIcons 2005 16th June 2005: 10% discount for ALL software in the 247 Software Stores 22nd August 2005: 20% off Mastersoft SuDoku and up to $15 off 2 popular Palm titles 15th September 2005: 10% off ALL Chapura products 23rd September 2005: 15% off Smart Box Design products |
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