Feedback people....tis what I am seeking....

Undoubtedly some people, if not most of us, started as free members to see what this site had to offer. Is it worth it to become a premium member? If someone is considering it then should they say yes and become a premium member? What are your thoughts? Ideally it would be good to hear from both premium members and free members.

Just don't turn this into some nasty debate full of hate and drama...All I want to know is if it is a good idea or a waste of money--and your reasoning behind it. The little I can see as a free member of what is offered to premium members is very tempting stuff.

Hi

 I am a paying member but I played here for a few month for free also. I wanted to start a club and this gave me an opportunity .

One question I have. Is it would be nice to have a sliding scale for different countries as $30.US is a big piece of money to a lot of people. Just a thought. If you can afford it, go for it, as it offers a lot and you are also supporting a very dynamic chess site.  Rolef

It is REALLY worth it to become a platinum member if you will be on the site daily. Diamond memberships are only for the people who want to use chess mentor often and get computer analysis on all of their games.

Go to the "Member" tab at the top and click "Memberships" to learn more.

If you spend a lot of time on here it's definitely worth it.  You gain the ability to view your ENTIRE game archive, as well as the computer analysis feature.  If you time out on a game you get "auto vacation" so you won't ever lose on a timeout.  You get to use tactics trainer and if you upgrade to the higher level you get chess mentor (which is awesome).  These are some of the main benefits.

If money isnt a big issue i would recommend you to become a premium member. I spend time ts this site every single day(often too many hours), so for me its worth paying some cash to get all the features that you get, when you are a paying member. I am planning to upgrade to diamond membership soon, because of chess mentor. If money isnt a issue at all, and you really want to learn as much as you can about chess, i would say: "get the Diamond-membership":)

On more thing that made me become a premium member, was because i really love this site, and love the effort the staff are putting in to make this the best chess site, so i felt like support the staff so they can improve this site even more:)

Gee, if only they offered some kind of free trial.

They did offer a free trial but I only had one day to decide if I wanted to do the free trial thing. However that is not what I was asking about.

Your sarcasm is appreciated though...

honestly.. I am a paid member and rarely use the services.... I am admittedly a "statistics" man so the advanced statistics and looking at your opponents stats are kind of nice but a day or two after the novelty wore off I found myself regretting the $$ spent.

I'm happy enough (and only have the time for) just playing my opponents and trying to improve the old fashioned way- experiance.

I'd say to sign up for a low level paid membership, and see if you like it.  If you decide it's not worth it, you can always go back to being a free member, with little money spent. 

M-42 huh?

A membership is certainly worth it, without doubt.  The countless added features and convienences make this site many times better.  Chess Mentor has been said to increase ratings by over 500 points (true ratings, not just on this site) and tactics trainer only makes your game better.  For all it's worth, purchasing a membership here is more efficient than purchasing many chess books and instructors.  Chess Mentor shows moves, tactics, openings, and endgames, but most importantly it shows why you should do what it tells you to.  This allows you to apply the newfound knowledge to your own games, vastly increasing your skill.

You know, i'm not convinced you really appreciated my sarcasm at all.

NCC-1701---close. It's the Horsehead Nebula. But it is in the Orion constellation though. I don't think the Horsehead Nebula has a Messier number attached to it (but it is knows as IC 434 and Barnard 33 though).

I appreciate everyone's input! Keep it coming!

 I agreed with this,why not start with $5 a month if you really like it go for $30 a year (which is cheaper than per month) if you are that serious about chess and you are keen to learn more then go for the permium or diamond if money is not an issue.

many good stuff here, but the best part of this site is the review of others' games

there are no secrets

Well I am considering it heavily. Just not sure if it's worth the price....But I am finding out a lot from the members and getting good info to make my decision...Keep 'em coming people!!

For people in Australia, here are some ROUGH calculations:

$30 USD = about $50 AUD due to exchange rates.

definitely worth it if you go on a lot

the exchange rate changes all the time; a few years ago it was 98 Us dollars= 1 Oz dollar.

I am considering upgradin to premium for more chess mentor. Live Chess doesn't work on my computer, so I another site for that. Although the free membership is generous