It seems to me that the level of challenge you're able to face is very high; go, you! And it also seems to me that you have lots of roses. You should be able to cut some of them for in-the-house flowers, no?

@ozarque - 

The roses are over. We may get another flush from the others once it cools down, but the pink one is a one-shot bloomer.

That site is lookin' good!

"And I no longer have any compassion at all for people with old browsers."

As a person who is recovering from losing a job 6 years ago with no new job in sight, being homeless and someone who only has a computer because someone else gave her one, I have to say that this kind of attitude will lose you customers.

I can't tell you how many times I've tried to buy something from someone, but couldn't see their website, and THEN gotten a snippy email from them saying I shouldn't be a cheapskate and I should go out and buy a whole new computer if I want to do business with them.

When I read stuff like that it sounds remarkably like they're saying "We don't want your business. Go spend your money elsewhere." And that's exactly what I do. AND I even boycott the physical stores of companies that have websites like that and take that attitude about it.

Would it have hurt them so much to say something more along the lines of "We're sorry, we tried, but we don't know html, so we're unable to construct a website you can see."? And then ask me to call at a specific phone number to see if they could help me?

I'm sorry. Most of this isn't directed at you.

Joann Fabrics just advertised a SALE on some yarn I've been trying to find for two years and nobody's had it, let alone had it on sale. And they've chosen this exact moment to redo their website so that I can't see it or access it.

So, for once, I actually have the money to buy it, but although they'll advertise it, they won't sell it to me, even at the lower price, because of their website. They would last week, but not this week.

Keep in mind this problem with your customers. The nicer email probably would have kept me as a customer, but getting the nasty emails I've gotten from some companies has lost them business. I really don't understand how people want to lose customers in this economy.

Please don't take this personally, because I'm not mad at you, I just don't have a way to yell at Joann Fabrics people. And maybe this info will help your customers help their customers.

@lostarts - 

I totally get what you're saying. The thing is, new browsers are free. People just get in the habit of using old ones. But very few people use the old ones, so it's not cost-effective to spend hours trying to make sites work with every conceivable browser.Not to belittle your concerns -- and I do tell people at my blog that they need to have phone numbers and helpful human beings. But browsers aren't about money.

Browsers ARE about money when the only way you can run them is to buy a whole new computer.

@lostarts - 

Your computer won't run a modern browser? That's unfortunate. It's still not going to be affordable for a small business to pay the extra cost of getting their site to work with older browsers, but that's certainly something to have compassion for.