Help me fix the internet

Remake of a popular meme reading "Thenks suporter for my rent' (sic)"

Who I am & what I do

In 2020, I quit my job as a Silicon Valley software engineer to embark on a mission to bring the internet back to the place of joy and creativity I grew up in.

The initiatives I launched and am currently leading include:

BobaBoard, a privacy-centric, open source, forum-like software for online communities
Fandom Coders, a 200+ people community where expert and beginner coders in fandom meet for friendship, support and learning
Random fun stuff, including RobinBoob (a “ship-ownership certificates” marketplace parodying the NFT craze), and FujoBoard (a reimagining of the old Yaoi paddles phenomenon for the modern fangirl)

I've also introduced many people in fandom (often members of communities underrepresented in tech) to open source and web development, and I'm actively working on related educational material.

How to support me

My well-thought-out roadmap towards a better internet cannot survive without a full-time person at its helm. With your contribution, you will become an active enabler of the movement I'm spearheading, and will rest assured that someone out there is fighting the good fight (also) in your name.

Self-hosted support tiers

a nice egg

$3/month

Can you offer me a nice egg in this high-inflation time?

Support my exploratory work on healthier online communities
Help me bring more underrepresented people into coding and open source
Ensure the creation of more fandom-oriented Ethical Chaos™
Periodic discounts on bobaverse merch

Give $3 monthly

Pay with Stripe

specialty coffee & boba

$8/month

I mean, it's a latte, Michael. What could it cost?

All previous perks, plus...
Access to quarterly(ish) update town halls for close supporters

Give $8 monthly

Pay with Stripe

almond butter toast

$15/month

Frankly, my dear, I don't like avocado.

All previous perks, plus...
Send in questions for the quarterly(ish) town halls

Give $15 monthly

Pay with Stripe

subsidized massage

$25/month

"It's like one of my Silicon Valley start ups!"

All previous perks, plus...
Half-yearly 30 minute call to discuss *anything* you want
Support Ms Boba's continued health by adding $3/month to her massage fund

Give $25 monthly

Pay with Stripe

...or through these external websites:

Looking for one-time support?

You can also support me by buying a ship ownership certificate on RobinBoob ($10+, digital), a yaoi cheese paddle on FujoBoard ($20+, physical), or grab a pay-what-you-want Boba-tan emoji set!

Want to give more? Consider sponsoring me!

Sponsorships are custom support tiers for those who wish to make even more of an impact! They can be one-time or ongoing, and they can include custom rewards that are particularly meaningful to you. If you're interested in sponsoring me, please reach out at essential.randomn3ss@gmail.com for next steps!

FAQs

How are you splitting your time these days? What am I buying with my support?

As my projects page hopefully conveys, I work on an eclectic variety of projects mainly focused in these areas:

“A more fun, more social web” for fandom and beyond
Internet freedom and open source development
Accessible technical education for underrepresented communities

These days (late 2023), I’m proritizing the following projects:

Shipping FujoGuide Volume 0: not only a succesful Kickstarter deserves a successful delivery, but making Git+GitHub accessible to a new public will redefine who can be building the web of tomorrow
Secret WIP project: Not ready to talk about it yet, but it fits nicely with everything else :)
My Own Worksona: My professional online presence, including this website. In 2024, I must start bringing in enough money so I can continue empowering myself and others to build towards a better future for the web
BobaBoard Community Handoff: BobaBoard (the main project I’ve worked on since 2020) is ready to leave its cozy nest and be embraced by the broader web. To that end, I’m helping transition the project from being led by me to being led by its own community.

Your support buys you early access to news about these projects (and beyond), as well as my eternal gratitude. Refer to the tier cards for more info!

Which support mode do you prefer?

If you love (moderate) adventure, joining my attempt at a self-hosted support tool is very appreciated. Alternatively, Patreon is a very popular option.

Is my payment info secure?

Yes. I’m selling subscriptions through Stripe and PayPal links, which means your credit card information never leaves those sites.

How do I cancel?

You can log in to your PayPal account to manage all your subscriptions. For Stripe, click here for the customer portal.

In case of any issue, contact me at any time at essential.randomn3ss@gmail.com.

What if I'm currently on the old $5/month plan?

You can keep that, and be automatically enrolled in the "almond butter toast" support tier as a thank you for donating before it was cool.

If you wish to up your amount, you can cancel that subscription and create a new one. As long as it's using the same email, I'll make a note to leave you at least as "almond butter toast", regardless of amount.

In case of any issue, contact me at any time at essential.randomn3ss@gmail.com.

Help! Something isn't working!

Thanks for letting me know. This is a very experimental page, and things might break unexpectedly. Please do let me know what went wrong by contacting me at essential.randomn3ss@gmail.com.

In the meantime you can also donate through Patreon or Ko-fi.

I'm a proud "subsidized massage" supporter. Can we really discuss anything on our call?

When I say anything, I mean, well, mostly anything. Crying over the present state of fandom? Absolutely! Reading me your sexy fanfic? Totally fine. Venting about your overbearing boss? Been there, done that!

As long as the subject is something two friends in fandom would "reasonably" discuss, then it's fair game! If a topic falls outside my own boundaries, I'll let you know with no judgement.

Can't I just support you by buying a premium BobaBoard account?

While BobaBoard is the main project I work on, I work on a lot more than BobaBoard. It's important that I continue doing so for the long-term success of our goals.

Even more importantly, there are many reasons why tying my ability to survive to the success of the social software I build is a bad, bad idea. While this might end up being its own blog post at some point, for now I ask you trust me: if you want to see more of what I do, please donate to me directly.

Who designed these beautiful icons?

My amazing friend SKUMSUCK generously created them for me.