I paid a flat fee to join. I think it was like $7 or something. I think the price used to go up incrementally with each new signup.
I gotta say though, the whole value proposition he made back then was a one-time fee. I had no problem with the switch to subscriptions for new users. But asking those original folks to switch over means that they can never not pay from that day forward without losing access to their once-permanent service, right?
Yeah not only was the value proposition a one-time fee, but also paying at all. A lot of alternatives were free, and the pitch IIRC was if you pay then the archive is more sustainable.
I'd be interested to see what a re-up of a one-time (two-time?) fee looks like. When I'm being frugal I tend to cut subscriptions, but today I can afford a lump sum.
I'd sooner pay today for the 2011 Pinboard Civic and run it until it needs replacing, than lease a 2021 Pinboard Model Y.
I gotta say though, the whole value proposition he made back then was a one-time fee. I had no problem with the switch to subscriptions for new users. But asking those original folks to switch over means that they can never not pay from that day forward without losing access to their once-permanent service, right?