The mystery of DT's new owner - SOLVED

[headphone_jack]

Pandorify was previously in trouble for posting illicit content involving drawn children in a keyboard discord server. No surprises he's this annoying outside of it. If you're going to troll this trainwreck of a thread, at least be funny.

[ZedTheMan]

I will say @keyboardjoy , doing things like handling our little (accused as I do not have proper proof, though I do trust the source on this claim for this claim) pedophilic troll, would be something of a necessity for ensuring proper forum management.

[ZedTheMan]

Thank you for removing that user.

Do be prepared for alternate accounts, though that should be expected.

[ZedTheMan]

4pm Discord tomorrow, happy to follow up here thereafter for those who aren't present.

If I may recommend one thing (on the assumption that all things are done in good faith, and I'm the event the following has not already been/is not already being pursued), it would be wise to let the discord moderators know and perhaps to work with them to help ensure that the AMA has the greatest chance of going smoothly.

[Easy_Spinach]

Let's just all chill the F out until after the AMA when we know more (hopefully)

[ZedTheMan]

Let's just all chill the F out until after the AMA when we know more (hopefully)

Amen to that.

[ZedTheMan]

Also, tis a shame, for I will be busy during the scheduled AMA time. It would be good for people to keep notes, or perhaps better yet, make and upload a recording so those who cannot attend may view?

[v.equals.c.rhino]

Let's just all chill the F out until after the AMA when we know more (hopefully)

How will you join AMA if you are banned from that server

[keyboardjoy]

https://gh1d1gqn5p6.typeform.com/to/kVenKkUi

It'd be great if you could submit your questions in advance of the Discord AMA.

A recording will be made available.

[keyboardjoy]

4pm Discord tomorrow, happy to follow up here thereafter for those who aren't present.

If I may recommend one thing (on the assumption that all things are done in good faith, and I'm the event the following has not already been/is not already being pursued), it would be wise to let the discord moderators know and perhaps to work with them to help ensure that the AMA has the greatest chance of going smoothly.

Yes, indeed. I'll ping them in the morning.

[keyboardjoy]

To that effect, I've moved it to Wednesday 2pm GMT so we have time to gather questions and let the moderators know in advance.

[kbdfr]

Opening post of this thread:

Many of us have wondered about […]

Good research job, of course, but isn't registering a brand new account to open this thread also obfuscating who you really are?
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[…] DT used to be owned by members, webwit threw all that in the trash for a payday. […]

You're claiming ownership of DT, but do not have a (paying) DT Pro membership and apparently never donated anything to DT,
while webwit has been managing the site for years after he created it together with sixty.
I think criticizing (or even insulting, as others did) him for selling DT is a bit inappropriate from such a background..
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There has also been a small effort to try to develop video content to reinvigorate the Deskthority YouTube channel.

I'm pretty interested by this, I'm pretty sure DT has the most compact yet diverse userbase, and it would prove to rival some other community figures and have better information out there instead of a single source as far as vintage goes. […]

[Bjerrk]

Opening post of this thread:

Many of us have wondered about […]

Good research job, of course, but isn't registering a brand new account to open this thread also obfuscating who you really are?

I am especially fascinated by the fact that, just a few weeks ago, trying to find Soarer out of genuine appreciation for his work was considered "doxxing", while sarcastically posting pictures, personal details and digging into the past of this person is somehow broadly speaking fine.

I have no skin in the game either way. But it is at least striking ...

[RBithrey]

Uhm, folks... I realize I'm not a keyboard grognard with thousands of bolt-modded Model Ms and a 3279, but...maybe, just maybe, instead of splintering the community...how about we give the guy a chance to prove his intentions - and in particular whether they're entirely money-oriented; he wouldn't be the first to find a new passion in life and seek to make money from it while still enjoying it for itself - before we call him a dirty rotten so-and-so and jump ship?

Well said. We could at least give the guy a chance.

[troglotype]

People selling and buying forums is fine with me. I am concerned when the knowledge many users contributed over the years becomes the property of a commercial outfit. It seems that the users made their contributions with the understanding that this knowledge will remain available and help other users with restoring / building / purchasing keyboards. I think it's important to raise this question during the AMA on Discord. Would the new owner agree to a creative commons license (at least CC BY-SA) for all content already contributed and for future content?

Edit: I know the Deskthority Wiki copyright page exists, but perhaps having a clear policy on licensing would be helpful for all involved.

Edit 2: I asked the question through the AMA link provided earlier in the thread. I guess it would help if others also asked similar questions about copyright / licensing.

[Bjerrk]

People selling and buying forums is fine with me. I am concerned when the knowledge many users contributed over the years becomes the property of a commercial outfit. It seems that the users made their contributions with the understanding that this knowledge will remain available and help other users with restoring / building / purchasing keyboards. I think it's important to raise this question during the AMA on Discord. Would the new owner agree to a creative commons license (at least CC BY-SA) for all content already contributed and for future content?

Completely agree. The licensing discussion (while a bit tedious) is important!

[an_achronism]

a few weeks ago, trying to find Soarer out of genuine appreciation for his work was considered "doxxing"

No, this is not what was alleged at the time.

What was being described as doxxing was not simply finding Soarer, but posting his full name and address on a public forum for all to see, as esr repeatedly insisted was necessary. This is therefore a misleading false equivalence.

Soarer is anonymous by choice and everything known thus far points to him evidently not wanting to be "found". The same cannot be said for the recent acquirer of Deskthority, whose identity was public already. That said, I can't say I would defend some of the behaviour in this thread, just as I wouldn't defend a lot of the shit-slinging in the Finding Soarer one. Just don't want people misrepresenting what actualIy happened.

By the way yes, licencing matters w.r.t. the wiki, and note that there's a lot of info in the body of the forum itself that isn't on the wiki.

[troglotype]

By the way yes, licencing matters w.r.t. the wiki, and note that there's a lot of info in the body of the forum itself that isn't on the wiki.

Yes, a very important point!

[webwit]

The sale contract includes that user generated content is still owned by the user.

[ZedTheMan]

A good assurance to have in the contract, certainly.

[headphone_jack]

I'm curious as to if webwit knew who he was selling to or not. Either OneCommerce told a very nice story, or webwit lied to us about what the deal he made was.

[keyboardjoy]

Questions about data and the licensing of the Wiki should be directed here:

https://gh1d1gqn5p6.typeform.com/to/kVenKkUi

I am looking forward to answering and discussing further tomorrow at the AMA.

[troglotype]

The sale contract includes that user generated content is still owned by the user.

That's good to know. But does that include future user generated content? If not, this should be clarified to restore user confidence.

[troglotype]

Questions about data and the licensing of the Wiki should be directed here:

https://gh1d1gqn5p6.typeform.com/to/kVenKkUi

I am looking forward to answering and discussing further tomorrow at the AMA.

Thanks. Done.

[Redmaus]

[…] DT used to be owned by members, webwit threw all that in the trash for a payday. […]

You're claiming ownership of DT, but do not have a (paying) DT Pro membership and apparently never donated anything to DT,
while webwit has been managing the site for years after he created it together with sixty.
I think criticizing (or even insulting, as others did) him for selling DT is a bit inappropriate from such a background..

I'm not claiming ownership, I'm simply stating that the forum used to be owned by members which is factually no longer true.
Also I was a member a few years back, at one point I didn't see much reason in renewing my membership.
I'll criticize him all I want, he threw the whole forum under the bus for a payday. All I can say is I hope it was worth it.

[Archie]

So who wants to stand up a new forum we can migrate to?

Already working on it! With a much better and less dated forum software

Is there any progress? Something based on vBulletin I suppose?

[purdobol]

Oh wow. First hearing that forum was sold. Is there any summary of the AMA available to read?
Hope this site will not end up like freenode...

[Redmaus]

Is there any progress? Something based on vBulletin I suppose?

https://nexthority.net

Feel free to take a look, I've been on a hard grind making the wiki and forum as easy to use and powerful(in terms of features) as possible. I'd love any feedback you or anyone else has to share. Discord server is also on the top right of the splash page

[Archie]

Wow, perfect! Just registered, awaiting activation email to arrive...

[Archie]

Received email, but the link gives "Action expired. Please start again." message.