Please welcome the new owners of Deskthority

[Easy_Spinach]

Welcome Oliver, I see that we now have you as the ultimate keyboard warrior.

So what's your favorite switch/board?
Mine is IBM beam springs in the IBM 4978 beamship

wouldn't have guessed.

[photekq]

Welcome Oliver. I share other people's concerns in regards to your low post count, generic username and recent registration, but I trust heavily in webwit's judgment.

Would it be possible for some kind of forum backup to be made available? Thread data and images, perhaps in the form of a torrent. We've seen countless threads and images lost during previous migrations, software updates, etc. which some of us have found very upsetting. A lot of the information/images currently on this website don't exist elsewhere; if it's lost, it'll stay lost until someone finds another example of the keyboard in question. Just the same as some of the already lost information hasn't been recovered and might never be.

I'm not concerned about this because of the change in ownership, but it seemed like an appropriate time to suggest it.

[E3E]

ok.

[pngu]

Welcome Oliver!

As per your privacy policy and in accordance with german data protection laws I'd like to request insight into and subsequent deletion of my personal data off your systems.

Edit/Addendum: Currently deskthority.net is hosted on infrastructure of Hetzner Online GmbH in their Datacenter Falkenstein, Germany, and as such is subject to german law, as implied by RIPE data on its current IP address of 159.69.68.22.

My request is based on a template provided by the non-profit Datenanfragen.de e.V., an NGO focusing on privacy rights. It might be a good idea to look into streamlining this process as soon as possible so the transition is not drowned in a sea of paper, messages and emails. If anyone else is concerned about the safety of their personal data in the new owner's/owners' hands, the templarte can be found here. The formal part of my request starts in the following paragraph.

---

I am hereby requesting access according to Article 15 GDPR. Please confirm whether or not you are processing personal data (as defined by Article 4(1) and (2) GDPR) concerning me.

In case you are, I am hereby requesting access to the following information pursuant to Article 15 GDPR:

1. all personal data concerning me that you have stored, including any potential pseudonymised data on me as per Article 4(5) GDPR;
2. the purposes of the processing;
3. the categories of personal data concerned;
4. the recipients or categories of recipient to whom the personal data have been or will be disclosed;
5. where possible, the envisaged period for which the personal data will be stored, or, if not possible, the criteria used to determine that period;
6. where the personal data are not collected from the data subject, any available information as to their source;
7. the existence of automated decision-making, including profiling, referred to in Article 22(1) and (4) GDPR and, at least in those cases, meaningful information about the logic involved, as well as the significance and the envisaged consequences of such processing for me.

In case you are processing anonymised data concerning me, please not only inform me about that but also explain the procedure used in an easily understandable way.

If you are transferring my personal data to a third country or an international organisation, I request to be informed about the appropriate safeguards according to Article 46 GDPR concerning the transfer.

[Please make the personal data concerning me, which I have provided to you, available to me in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format as laid down in Article 20(1) GDPR.]

My request explicitly includes any other services and companies for which you are the controller as defined by Article 4(7) GDPR.

As laid down in Article 12(3) GDPR, you have to provide the requested information to me without undue delay and in any event within one month of receipt of the request. According to Article 15(3) GDPR, you have to answer this request without cost to me.

I am including the following information necessary to identify me:

- My uniquely identifiable username on your platform (deskthority.net) is "pngu".

If you do not answer my request within the stated period, I am reserving the right to take legal action against you and to lodge a complaint with the responsible supervisory authority.

---

Thank you and best wishes for the future.

[wobbled]

Get a life ^

[powwu]

Get a life ^

No need for toxicity. Peace and love.

[Erderm_]

Welcome Oliver!

As per your privacy policy and in accordance with german data protection laws I'd like to request insight into and subsequent deletion of my personal data off your systems.

come back to reality, this is a forum about computer keyboards.

[kekstee]

It just had to be a German pulling this.

Enjoy this eccentric bunch. :)

[pngu]

Welcome Oliver!

As per your privacy policy and in accordance with german data protection laws I'd like to request insight into and subsequent deletion of my personal data off your systems.

come back to reality, this is a forum about computer keyboards.

I'm well aware. Are you implying forums about computer keyboards are not subject to their own terms of service, privacy policies, and applicable national and international laws? How about *you* catch up on reality.

[Muirium]

User deletion is easy enough. There's a button for it in phpBB, and one or two DT users have indeed requested it over the years. It's probably the only practical way for an amateur community like us to fulfil your data privacy request.

[ZacAndCheese]

Welcome Oliver!

As per your privacy policy and in accordance with german data protection laws I'd like to request insight into and subsequent deletion of my personal data off your systems.

come back to reality, this is a forum about computer keyboards.

I'm well aware. Are you implying forums about computer keyboards are not subject to their own terms of service, privacy policies, and applicable national and international laws? How about *you* catch up on reality.

[melka]

Well, the problem is that GDPR doesn't care if you're Facebook or a tiny forum... There's not many solutions : either you cut off EU users, you don't do anything but are then open to complaints, or you comply with GDPR.

[wobbled]

These GDPR requests should be sent via PM or email, not in a public forum post where we're trying to welcome a new owner (God help him...)
Unless of course pngu would like the findings of the insight into his personal data to be released into this thread where he made the request prior to its deletion, he wasn't specific on that...

[Easy_Spinach]

These GDPR requests should be sent via PM or email, not in a public forum post where we're trying to welcome a new owner (God help him...)
Unless of course pngu would like the findings of the insight into his personal data to be released into this thread where he made the request prior to its deletion, he wasn't specific on that...

yes I think that is exactly what he wants.

[webwit]

Phpbb doesn't do personal data or tracking except your email address and anything you posted or pm-ed, i.e. your own content. You can review your email and download your pm's. You can also delete stuff or ask for account deletion. Since you have 29 posts/pm's total, this should be trivial. All the data is there for you to review or delete, there is no other data.

[Muirium]

Self immolation is an… interesting way to say hello.

[listofoptions]

Phpbb doesn't do personal data or tracking except your email address and anything you posted or pm-ed, i.e. your own content. You can review your email and download your pm's. You can also delete stuff or ask for account deletion. Since you have 29 posts/pm's total, this should be trivial. All the data is there for you to review or delete, there is no other data.

good to know! how do we know that the data is actually deleted? or is this a byzantine generals problem?

[Erderm_]

come back to reality, this is a forum about computer keyboards.

I'm well aware. Are you implying forums about computer keyboards are not subject to their own terms of service, privacy policies, and applicable national and international laws? How about *you* catch up on reality.

This is beautiful lol thanks for the art

[webwit]

Phpbb doesn't do personal data or tracking except your email address and anything you posted or pm-ed, i.e. your own content. You can review your email and download your pm's. You can also delete stuff or ask for account deletion. Since you have 29 posts/pm's total, this should be trivial. All the data is there for you to review or delete, there is no other data.

good to know! how do we know that the data is actually deleted? or is this a byzantine generals problem?

I don't know about in the future, it is not for me to answer, but in the past, phpBB deletes it from the database, and it's gone. Then matt3o had a nightly backup going on, and it would be gone a little while later from the rotated backups.

[Erderm_]

Welcome Oliver!

As per your privacy policy and in accordance with german data protection laws I'd like to request insight into and subsequent deletion of my personal data off your systems.

come back to reality, this is a forum about computer keyboards.

I'm well aware. Are you implying forums about computer keyboards are not subject to their own terms of service, privacy policies, and applicable national and international laws? How about *you* catch up on reality.

Im implying that "welcome the new owners" doesnt translate to "look like a huge tool requesting something that can be handled privately, in a thread ment to welcome new owners"

[keyboardjoy]

Good evening everyone,

Please excuse the delay in responding to all of your comments, do allow me to first introduce myself.

I came across this forum serendipitously when seeking advice about how to adapt my keyboard to make it more personable for my office, which had banned it for making too much noise. The keyboard is an absolute delight. My background in this hobby pales in comparison to the likes of webwit and matt3o and I am doing my utmost to fully catch up and delve deep into this space.

Years back I was a moderator for a couple of pretty niche forums (one was fountain pens, but I digress)... and when I came across Deskthority I was impressed by the quality of this community. I then noticed that DT was seeking a new owner, I was intrigued and reached out to the admins.

My motivations for buying DT are several.

The first is, I really enjoyed moderating forums in the past and I relish the opportunity to delve back in.

Secondly, the acquisition was to protect the integrity of the wiki. Throughout my career I have been involved in open source communities, in some I played a role in governance. I am still on the committee of a couple of major open source software foundations. I truly value the importance of communities, trust and having access to pooled knowledge resources.

Thirdly, this strikes me as an opportunity to preserve the community but also invest in its development, initially from an infrastructure point of view, which will be done delicately with full awareness of the importance of the preservation of the rich information that you have all built up over time. I believe there is room for growth and I'd like to use my experience to help develop more attention for the community, through deeper community engagement, and perhaps a crowd-sourced blog.

This isn't about pesky advertising or commercialisation. For me, the future lies in authenticity and trusted, open sourced information, and quality forums like DT are a testament to what can be achieved - a self-perpetuating community that produces excellence. I want to understand how to harbour and nurture a community like this.

Also, everyone needs a hobby... keyboards are relatively new to me and I am excited to be able to combine my new interest with working with you to help sustain and develop this community.

Perhaps this post won't satisfy some - with a low post count, generic username and a new account, I almost feel like an intruder. I have discussed this carefully with webwit and he is still there, standing behind me to help direct what this new relationship with the community may look like.

This is new to me too and I'm going to rely on you to help guide me, and I hope you may be receptive to some of my new ideas. A user-generated blog is on my list, perhaps some of you may wish to contribute.

As for me personally, I'm in my mid-20s, currently based in London but hail from Scotland. I come from a tech background and was brought up to love computers and all things associated by my father, who is himself a computer scientist and mechanical keyboard enthusiast.

It's getting late here but I'll be in touch and will do my best to address your individual comments.

As for now, I'm going to wish everyone a very pleasant evening!

[keyboardjoy]

As for GDPR requests, these are a serious matter. I will take note of each one that has been logged here but I would prefer if anyone has a sincere request to forward it to me privately.

[pngu]

As for GDPR requests, these are a serious matter. I will take note of each one that has been logged here but I would prefer if anyone has a sincere request to forward it to me privately.

Thank you, I'll do that.

[Muirium]

Good evening everyone,

Please excuse the delay in responding to all of your comments, do allow me to first introduce myself…

Sounds good to me. I mean, half my keyboards are older than you (only this beamspring I'm on now is older than me!), but you come from the right place. And I only half mean Scotland! Rather: you say you know your way around tight knit internet communities and open source foundations. That's the stuff! I always reckoned Webwit would choose wisely, and on first glance it seems he has.

I'm up for contributing to the blog, by the way. Everything I do inevitably turns into one, so might as well make it official…

[darkcruix]

Neo: I know you're out there. I can feel you now. I know that you're afraid... you're afraid of us. You're afraid of change. I don't know the future. I didn't come here to tell you how this is going to end. I came here to tell you how it's going to begin.

[v.equals.c.rhino]

Spoiler:

Good evening everyone,

Please excuse the delay in responding to all of your comments, do allow me to first introduce myself.

I came across this forum serendipitously when seeking advice about how to adapt my keyboard to make it more personable for my office, which had banned it for making too much noise. The keyboard is an absolute delight. My background in this hobby pales in comparison to the likes of webwit and matt3o and I am doing my utmost to fully catch up and delve deep into this space.

Years back I was a moderator for a couple of pretty niche forums (one was fountain pens, but I digress)... and when I came across Deskthority I was impressed by the quality of this community. I then noticed that DT was seeking a new owner, I was intrigued and reached out to the admins.

My motivations for buying DT are several.

The first is, I really enjoyed moderating forums in the past and I relish the opportunity to delve back in.

Secondly, the acquisition was to protect the integrity of the wiki. Throughout my career I have been involved in open source communities, in some I played a role in governance. I am still on the committee of a couple of major open source software foundations. I truly value the importance of communities, trust and having access to pooled knowledge resources.

Thirdly, this strikes me as an opportunity to preserve the community but also invest in its development, initially from an infrastructure point of view, which will be done delicately with full awareness of the importance of the preservation of the rich information that you have all built up over time. I believe there is room for growth and I'd like to use my experience to help develop more attention for the community, through deeper community engagement, and perhaps a crowd-sourced blog.

This isn't about pesky advertising or commercialisation. For me, the future lies in authenticity and trusted, open sourced information, and quality forums like DT are a testament to what can be achieved - a self-perpetuating community that produces excellence. I want to understand how to harbour and nurture a community like this.

Also, everyone needs a hobby... keyboards are relatively new to me and I am excited to be able to combine my new interest with working with you to help sustain and develop this community.

Perhaps this post won't satisfy some - with a low post count, generic username and a new account, I almost feel like an intruder. I have discussed this carefully with webwit and he is still there, standing behind me to help direct what this new relationship with the community may look like.

This is new to me too and I'm going to rely on you to help guide me, and I hope you may be receptive to some of my new ideas. A user-generated blog is on my list, perhaps some of you may wish to contribute.

As for me personally, I'm in my mid-20s, currently based in London but hail from Scotland. I come from a tech background and was brought up to love computers and all things associated by my father, who is himself a computer scientist and mechanical keyboard enthusiast.

It's getting late here but I'll be in touch and will do my best to address your individual comments.

As for now, I'm going to wish everyone a very pleasant evening!

Welcome

[TheInverseKey]

Spoiler:

Good evening everyone,

Please excuse the delay in responding to all of your comments, do allow me to first introduce myself.

I came across this forum serendipitously when seeking advice about how to adapt my keyboard to make it more personable for my office, which had banned it for making too much noise. The keyboard is an absolute delight. My background in this hobby pales in comparison to the likes of webwit and matt3o and I am doing my utmost to fully catch up and delve deep into this space.

Years back I was a moderator for a couple of pretty niche forums (one was fountain pens, but I digress)... and when I came across Deskthority I was impressed by the quality of this community. I then noticed that DT was seeking a new owner, I was intrigued and reached out to the admins.

My motivations for buying DT are several.

The first is, I really enjoyed moderating forums in the past and I relish the opportunity to delve back in.

Secondly, the acquisition was to protect the integrity of the wiki. Throughout my career I have been involved in open source communities, in some I played a role in governance. I am still on the committee of a couple of major open source software foundations. I truly value the importance of communities, trust and having access to pooled knowledge resources.

Thirdly, this strikes me as an opportunity to preserve the community but also invest in its development, initially from an infrastructure point of view, which will be done delicately with full awareness of the importance of the preservation of the rich information that you have all built up over time. I believe there is room for growth and I'd like to use my experience to help develop more attention for the community, through deeper community engagement, and perhaps a crowd-sourced blog.

This isn't about pesky advertising or commercialisation. For me, the future lies in authenticity and trusted, open sourced information, and quality forums like DT are a testament to what can be achieved - a self-perpetuating community that produces excellence. I want to understand how to harbour and nurture a community like this.

Also, everyone needs a hobby... keyboards are relatively new to me and I am excited to be able to combine my new interest with working with you to help sustain and develop this community.

Perhaps this post won't satisfy some - with a low post count, generic username and a new account, I almost feel like an intruder. I have discussed this carefully with webwit and he is still there, standing behind me to help direct what this new relationship with the community may look like.

This is new to me too and I'm going to rely on you to help guide me, and I hope you may be receptive to some of my new ideas. A user-generated blog is on my list, perhaps some of you may wish to contribute.

As for me personally, I'm in my mid-20s, currently based in London but hail from Scotland. I come from a tech background and was brought up to love computers and all things associated by my father, who is himself a computer scientist and mechanical keyboard enthusiast.

It's getting late here but I'll be in touch and will do my best to address your individual comments.

As for now, I'm going to wish everyone a very pleasant evening!

Can you please go into more detail with to past forums that you have moderated? As I think the community would be more at rest if you are able to provide examples as how this forum is going to be run going forward.

[UnscrambledEggs]

Thank you for that detailed and kind answer! Glad to have my favourite hobby in the hands of someone so down-to-earth.

This isn't about pesky advertising or commercialisation. For me, the future lies in authenticity and trusted, open sourced information, and quality forums like DT are a testament to what can be achieved - a self-perpetuating community that produces excellence. I want to understand how to harbour and nurture a community like this.

And thank you for keeping DT commercial free! You sound like a great person to talk with, and I extend a warm welcome to you for the hobby! Have a great now :D.

[matt3o]

Good evening everyone,

Wish you best of luck, keyboardjoy! I'm sure webwit picked the right guys to make the forum thrive.

As per all the "delete my account" requests, just send a PM, we've always honored requests of accounts deletion... even though we don't keep personal information except for the email that... you know... could be set to a disposable mailbox.

[ntv242ver2]

Just want to say hi, and thanks for keeping the DT culture alive