This blog has never had a paywall, and I do not plan to add one. Lately, though, two questions keep coming up: occasional slowdowns when loading long pieces, especially the Android stability and Linux memory management series, and whether there is a paid reading plan that readers can support.
I want to answer both openly.
The costs behind a free technical blog
A blog can look free to readers and still cost real money to keep online. Here is what it takes to run this one.
- Server: 2 cores, 4 GB RAM, 50 GB SSD, and 6 Mbps bandwidth. The plan is renewed every three years at ¥1,500, or about ¥500 per year.
- Domain and certificate: domain renewal is about ¥100 per year. SSL currently uses Let's Encrypt's free certificate, but maintaining it still takes time.
- Object storage: images are stored in an Alibaba Cloud bucket and billed by traffic, roughly ¥10 per month.
- AI-assisted tools: I use ChatGPT on a shared subscription and hallucodex, an AI API aggregation platform, for some work. Cover images are made with AI, kernel study uses free web resources, and automated analysis calls APIs billed by token. The monthly average is about ¥50.
- Time: a long article usually means 10–12 hours of research, writing, and code verification. Server maintenance, backups, and optimization take additional time.
Taken together, the cash cost is around ¥600–800 a year, not counting time. That is not a large sum in absolute terms, but for a blog driven purely by personal interest, it is a real operating consideration.
Why I am keeping it free
Readers who have found the Android stability and Linux memory management series useful have suggested more than once that the content is worth paying for, and that a paid reading model would be welcome. My answer has not changed: no paywall, no knowledge monopoly.
There are a few reasons I keep coming back to.
Technical knowledge is inherited. Everyone's growth stands on work that others shared freely: blogs, documentation, open-source code. They are like lighthouses in the dark, one after another, until the path becomes visible. I would rather be one more lighthouse than put up a gate.
Lower barriers matter. Many younger developers and students are not in a position to pay for every resource they need. If a paywall blocks the people who need the knowledge most, the real barrier is not the difficulty of the subject but the difficulty of reaching it. Removing that obstacle lets enthusiastic engineers with thin wallets reach core knowledge on equal terms. Sometimes that small act of goodwill can light up a young person's confidence in the whole industry late at night.
Technical exchange should stay clean. This may be the most romantic part of being a technical person. When discussion is not measured by commercial gain, when an argument is about what is correct and what is better, the feeling of focused exploration is what attracted many of us to technology in the first place. I want this blog to remain a purely technical space, not one disturbed by commercial interests.
I am still a learner. I have to be honest: I am a learner first and a sharer second. The technical world is vast, and no one holds all of it. Every article I write is a distillation of my current understanding, not a final answer. It will contain omissions, limits, and sometimes mistakes.
That is why I do not see myself as a mentor or an authority. I would rather be a sincere recorder and a thoughtful sharer. At the end of every article there is an unwritten invitation: help me find the part I have not seen yet. If something confuses you, if you find an error, or if you reach a different conclusion, please tell me. Correction is one of the best forms of help. Technical knowledge works like open-source code: review, discussion, and revision bring it closer to the truth. I want the relationship with readers to be a two-way exchange, not a one-way transfer.
A voluntary invitation
With all of that in mind, I have made a few decisions:
- All articles will remain free and open.
- There will be no paid reading, membership, or subscription requirement.
- I have added a completely voluntary donation channel.
There is a donor list page on the blog. It is meant to be transparent: donation records are publicly visible, anonymous donations are supported, amounts can be hidden, participation is entirely optional, and the list is updated within one to three business days after a donation. Nothing about access to content depends on giving.
If an article here has helped you solve a real problem at work, saved you a significant amount of study time, or simply made technical sharing feel warmer, and if your financial situation allows it, you are welcome to support the blog's continued operation through the donation channel. Every contribution, whatever its size, will be recorded on the donor list unless you choose full anonymity, turned into a better server experience, and used as encouragement to write deeper technical articles. All content will stay permanently free.
For anyone who wants to go a step further, there is also a tip option at the end of some major series articles.
What keeps this going
Writing this blog is, for me, about 70% technical curiosity, 20% a sense of responsibility to pass knowledge on, and 10% the reality of operating costs. Every read, share, and like is already the strongest confirmation I could ask for. The donation channel exists only for those who want to support the work further. Whether or not you donate, you are an important part of this technical community, and you are always welcome to come and discuss.
Thank you to the people who read every sentence carefully, to the thinkers who ask sharp questions, to the readers who share posts with people who need them, and to the long-time readers who quietly stay around. This blog will remain here, with the best content I can produce, waiting for anyone who loves technology.
There is no towering guru here, only another traveler on the same technical road. When I move a little faster, I can turn back and lend a hand; when you spot a problem, you can call out to me. That is how we keep going farther together.
That is the kind of technical blog I want this to be.