Concerning Price's List, Dean's current plan was simple: to focus on localized free services.
Yes, free. Whether it was because of federal regulations prohibiting online commercial transactions or as a newly launched website, free was the best choice.
Moreover, METANET, which provided services only within the state, was particularly suited for localized service websites.
Because its users were essentially all from Ohio, not necessarily in the same city, but definitely familiar with or had heard of each other's cities.
This naturally brought people closer together and also facilitated the site's spread within the state.
Before the federal government eased up on internet regulation, this was the most suitable route for Price's List.
As for online commercial behavior, it wasn't absent now, but these were mostly on a small scale, generally private transactions.
For example, hobbyists ordering computer parts through email or individual companies conducting business internally through their own local networks.
But Dean didn't plan to commercialize Price's List too soon—at least he wouldn't do so overtly.
It was alright to engage in some minor maneuvers to make some extra cash from time to time, as it was a universally tacit practice.
But the moment he dared to openly use Price's List for commercial activities, believe it or not, countless people would pounce on him, eager to take a bite.
Don't expect any integrity from competitors; once any fatal weakness was exposed, they would show no mercy.
And since the internet had not been born yet, as a large local network, METANET didn't have the capability to commercialize Price's List.
Given this, why not be generous? Thus, Dean directly replied to Debbie via email that Price's List was still in the testing phase, so all services were completely free of charge.
Not only that, but he also placed this announcement in a prominent position on the homepage. He did this simply to attract users and encourage them to engage in various interactions.
Price's List indeed wasn't involved in commercial activities, but if users used the network to make offline transactions, that didn't breach the internet's terms of use.
Once the site's activity levels rose, it would naturally attract more people. When the government eventually relaxed its supervision, the users of Price's List would become a vast wealth.
Of course, to achieve the network scale effect, Price's List still had a long way to go.
Dean needed to promote his website; users were everything, otherwise, any future supposed profits were just empty talk.
And to promote the website, he couldn't possibly advertise in newspapers or on television—he was sure that wouldn't be effective.
In those days, there weren't many who had even heard of the network, so the effectiveness of such advertisements was predictable. Moreover, accessing the network required certain thresholds; without the necessary computer basics, most people couldn't grasp what the network was.
So, in the days following Christmas, Dean had been dealing with various bugs on the site. To attract users, improving the browsing experience of the website was the most effective approach.
In the wild west days of computer development, the most basic word-of-mouth was an effective means of information dissemination.
After a few days of continuous updates, having fixed a few of the most frequently reported issues, Price's List had accrued more than 100 users.
These individuals mostly spread out slowly from Dean's circle of friends, without exception all residing within the area of Youngstown.
Their messages finally made the website not look so deserted, and the variety of posts on the forum section became increasingly rich.
Beneath the classified section on the homepage were also postings looking for friends to watch shows together or to find lost keychains—trivial matters like these.
But this was life, the core essence of a classified ads website.
Of course, with more users, new problems arose. The most feedback Dean received was about the website's increasingly slow access speeds.
Regarding this, he wasn't surprised; after all, the entire operation of the website was supported by that computer in his bedroom.
It seemed the $80 Commodore 64 needed an upgrade; using it as a server was too much of a stretch.
Having dealt with these trifling matters, it was the end of December, and Dean and Peter had also moved out of Charlotte Street.
They needed to clear out the house before January for Karen, who had previously signed a contract.
Dean moved into his aunt's house, and his computer was set up in Frank's garage. Even to ensure the website's operation, Dean had the telephone company install a dedicated telephone line for dial-up internet access.
This additional cost would be paid by himself, as he signed up for a monthly package, and American United Net provided him with a promotional price of 600 US dollars.
A 600-dollar internet bill is unimaginable in later times when broadband was common, the price range back then would be 30 to 100 US dollars.
It shows just how expensive the early days of dial-up internet access were, and it was something most people simply couldn't afford. If most people needed to use the net to send and receive emails, they would choose to pay by the hour, which didn't take too much time after all.
As for Peter, also moved out of Charlotte Street, with the help of Frank, he rented a studio apartment a bit further south of the city for 230 dollars.
Originally, Dean had thought of contacting the landlord he had met during the training course at the welfare building or using his Price's List to find a place for his father.
But Frank said that would be entirely unnecessary. Frank dealt with numerous landlords every day; how could this small issue pose any problem?
So, after a phone call, Peter found a new place to live in the south of the city.
This left Dean feeling slightly embarrassed but also gave him some inspiration. Could his Price's List tap into some insider housing market information from Frank?
As a moving company worker, Frank had contacts with both tenants and landlords, having information from both sides.
Susie was right when she said in the landlord training class that tenants screen houses just as landlords screen tenants.
And perhaps Dean could provide them with that information, especially the non-public kind. Naturally, it wouldn't be free.
These thoughts slowly fermented in Dean's mind. Maybe, once he understood the logic behind it, he could give it a try.
Having moved back into his aunt's house, after spending two days sorting out the website, Dean rose early on the third day.
"Uncle Frank, are we starting from the north of the city?"
"Dean, are you sure you want to do this? Even if you're looking to scavenge something useful, I'd recommend you wait until we're clearing out the south and then get on the truck," said Frank, already in his work clothes, offering Dean some genuine advice based on his own experience.
"No, Uncle Frank, I'm fully prepared," said Dean, eager and fully geared up with gloves on.
"All right, hope you don't throw up later," Frank shrugged and then beckoned Dean to get into the truck.
January had just begun, and some of the people in Youngstown returning from holiday break had started working in the new year.
This naturally included Dean's uncle Frank. The period from the end of the year to early spring saw the highest turnout of moving trucks in Youngstown.
Even Dean and Peter had enjoyed the services of the Eagle Moving Company that Frank worked at just a couple of days ago.
But today, Dean was the one providing services to others, as he was going to work with Frank as a moving laborer.
Ever since last night when Frank mentioned at the dinner table that he had a special eviction job in the south to handle today, Dean had been paying close attention.
Eviction work was one of Eagle Moving Company's main services. These were usually commissioned by landlords to remove tenants from their properties.
Of course, all this was on the premise that the court had ruled against the tenant in the eviction case; otherwise, landlords couldn't just evict tenants at will.
The reason this eviction was special was that the property's owner had recently been incarcerated. It was only until the end of December, and as January began, did the landlord call Eagle Moving Company to clear out the property.
After all, although the tenant had been jailed, his rent hadn't expired yet. Only when the new month came and the rent went overdue could the landlord legitimately clear the space without legal risks.
The reason for Dean's interest was that this tenant was an electronics enthusiast. When Eagle Moving Company clears a property, they generally deal freely with unclaimed items.
So, Dean planned to go along and see what he could find. There was a good chance he would find things he needed in the room of an electronics enthusiast, like computers, floppy disks, and so on.
Didn't Price's List website need more computers to serve as servers? See, this was one of the avenues.
As for buying a brand-new Apple or IBM computer? Sorry, even the cheapest of those cost over a thousand dollars and Dean didn't have that kind of spare cash.
Although he had made some money, that wasn't to be spent here. Good steel needs to be used on the blade's edge.
After getting into Frank's car, the two drove through the drizzly morning mist towards the north of the city.