LTG: Under New Ownership

GAD

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If it's not yet obvious, there have been changes 'round here.

In December of last year after a bad outage, I had a talk with Don and offered to move the site to my server and to act as an admin for the site since the then current hosting company wasn't cutting the mustard. As Don and I continued to talk, I broached the idea of buying the site outright, and after some negotiations we came to a a deal that resulted in letstalkguild.com now being owned by me, or more accurately, GAD Technology (and yes, that's a real thing). :encouragement:

I offered Don the chance to post a message himself, but he's got some stuff going on, and lets just say that sometimes the Internet is the least of our worries, so I decided to take a moment and make things official.

My goal is not to change anything, or at least not to change anything for the sake of change. Why? Because this site is pretty darn great the way that it is. I love LTG and aside from some of the things I've done like turning on photo uploads, I only want to make things work better. My primary goal in obtaining this site was to make sure that the amazing resource of information doesn't get lost. For example, with access to the database I was able to save QVart's amazing S100 post in the solid body forum and the mods and I are working on fixing the reference post in the amp thread. If you know of any other threads with bad links to the old site, let me know and I'll fix them.

There may be some minor fixes here and there as time goes on, but one of my goals is to not make the mods' lives more difficult, a goal that you could see in action when I did just that in the photo upload thread after making a draconian rule about photos on the fly. :nightmare:

Honestly, I kind of still consider the mods to be in charge, and I encourage them to give me a talkin' to if I get out of line. I'm just here to keep the gears turning and to act as a steward for all the great content that's here.

To close, here are some fun facts about LTG:

It was first started in 2003 as The Guild Pages and looked like this:

Screen Shot 2020-06-05 at 8.37.00 AM.png


The LetsTalkGuild domain was first registered on June 1st, 2005 and looked like this:

Screen Shot 2020-01-19 at 11.18.56 PM.jpg

The first non-admin user was none other than Hans, followed by Walter Broes.

From what I can tell, the first posts were these:

https://letstalkguild.com/ltg/showthread.php?141750-First-Post!!!
https://letstalkguild.com/ltg/showthread.php?141758-About-the-move

The first non-Don thread? From Hans! https://letstalkguild.com/ltg/showthread.php?141751-Old-Guild-parts

I came along in February 2009 with this post: https://letstalkguild.com/ltg/showthread.php?152524-Greetings! And I'm happy to say that my photo links still work!

There was a move in there from phpBB2 to VBulletin, and between hosting companies as well. There is talk about the earlier board before 2005, but that was before my time. Anyone care to fill in that history?

Anyway, that's the story. Finally I'd like to give a HUGE thanks to Don for making this place in the first place and for all the work that was done to keep it running for all those years! The Internet is a better place for your efforts!
 
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GardMan

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GAD,
Thanks to you, Don and all the mods who have helped make LTG what it is!
 

Bonneville88

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Congrats GAD, good to know the history and for taking this on and making
it the best it can be!
 

coastie99

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Thank you so much Don for giving us the platform for having the fun that we had.

And, to all my mates from the good old days, blessings to you all.

Farewell, Gary
 

gilded

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Ah, coastie99, don’t use big words like ‘farewell.’ Use small words like, ‘see you soon.’ Every thing changes, amigo, but please stick around!

And GAD, congratulations on becoming the new owner here. Long Live the King!

gilded
 

davismanLV

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Thanks, indeed, to Don for bringing about this amazing forum and creating the great resource and place to get our answers and share for all these years. Also, kudos to our Moderators who keep things running smoothly and set the tone for one of the best forums on the internet. Your work is greatly appreciated.

Almost all I know about guitars and how they work is due to spending time here listening to those who know so much more than I. Congrats to Gary on acquiring Let's Talk Guild. I look forward to the upcoming years and to my continued education on this sensational forum. Thank You!! :encouragement:
 
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dapmdave

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Glad you stepped in to keep things going. Thanks.
 

GGJaguar

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Thanks to Don and thanks to GAD for taking over the helm!

There is talk about the earlier board before 2005, but that was before my time. Anyone care to fill in that history?

Yes, I was there pre-2005 when it was called Guild Pages Discussion Forum (or was that a different site not related to this one?). Anyway it was http://guildpages.aimoo.com/ with many of the same members as today. Honestly, it feels like a lifetime ago and I don't really remember much other than it had the same vibe and format as the board has today. It's a shame that all the posts from that board are lost in cyberspace.
 

HeyMikey

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Many thanks from a relative newbie to Don and all of those who have contributed over the years to make this such a terrific forum. Such an incredible brotherhood and wealth of information. I’m very happy that it will continue to shine.
Mike
 

The Guilds of Grot

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Thanks to Don for building our "clubhouse" and thanks to Gary for taking it to the next level!
 
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geoguy

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One more hearty thumbs up for Don, GAD, & crew . . . your upgrade efforts are much appreciated, GAD.
 

Cougar

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....after some negotiations we came to a a deal that resulted in letstalkguild.com now being owned by me, or more accurately, GAD Technology....

Wow! That's one majorly appreciated undertaking! Thanks, GAD!
 

GAD

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Thanks to Don and thanks to GAD for taking over the helm!



Yes, I was there pre-2005 when it was called Guild Pages Discussion Forum (or was that a different site not related to this one?). Anyway it was http://guildpages.aimoo.com/ with many of the same members as today. Honestly, it feels like a lifetime ago and I don't really remember much other than it had the same vibe and format as the board has today. It's a shame that all the posts from that board are lost in cyberspace.


Cool - thanks! And thanks to the Wayback Machine, I found these:

2001:

Screen Shot 2020-01-20 at 11.31.00 AM.jpg


2005:

Screen Shot 2020-01-20 at 11.27.51 AM.jpg
 

walrus

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Wow! Great news! I concur wholeheartedly with all the posts so far - thank you, GAD, we are in good hands!

And the "historical" posts you have included above are very cool!

walrus
 
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chazmo

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Congrats, Gary, and thank you for stepping up to the plate for this. My best wishes to you now and going forward, of course. If you do decide you want to change policies around here, your moderators are here to give you a lot of lip but help make transitions as needed.

Don, thank you so much for all the years of gentle caretaking here and the occasional words of wisdom which set things right. I know all of us wish you well with your continued activities with your family, etc. Don't be a stranger!

-- Charlie
 

SFIV1967

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That sounds like great news! Many thanks to Don for all his efforts to keep us running during difficult times and all the good luck to Gary for opening a new chapter in the LTG history! Hope coastie will continue visiting! And still looking forward to Hans next book!

Ralf
 
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