Time to say Goodbye?

[coral1]

Due to a lack of funding, and more importantly, the lack of skilled volunteers to do the necessary maintenance for ERT, it looks like we will be closing our site by the end of May.

We could probably scrape up the $108.00 USD for the Host renewal, but with the email notifs down again, and the site under attack by spambots, there is not much sense in staying open under the present conditions.

There are still about 6 weeks left, and if enough people can pitch in to help, those of us still here are more than happy to keep the site up.
There is a small but steady traffic coming through, and that is all we ever expected, as we were trying something different.

I would like to say a big THANK YOU to all those that put in their time and energies into making this work as long as it did (too many to name, but you know who you are), and with a little luck, ERT will return one day when things are a little better.

Anyone that wants to find the Articles, Tutorials, and Forum questions, can find most of it at:

http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.expertsrt.net
http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.expertsrt.com
http://web.archive.org/web/20071219224222/www.expertsrt.com/articles/index.shtml

if you don't get what you want saved before the site goes down.

Again, Thank You. It's been fun and a pleasure knowing you people, and I am glad I can still cross paths with most of you once in a while at other places.   : )

coral1
Governing Council Member

No Surrender!! No Retreat!!

[Huntress]

I really don't know what else to do at this point.  Since Cd& is MIA along with Matt and Nick....

I really had high hopes for this site.  :-(

[GrandSchtroumpf]

Yup, not much happening here anymore...

[Huntress]

I'm pretty much cutting myself off from all of the internet at the moment to take care of real life things.  I just can't waste time on virtuality anymore.  But, like I said, this was a good idea and I'm really going to miss it and all of you that hung in there with us.  You guys really are awesome.  And don't stop helping the ones who really need it.  It will keep your minds fresh and young.

[coral1]

Good Luck on your 'Real Life' experiment.    ; )

Take care of yourself, and I will see you when I see you.   oxoxox

[Huntress]

Thanks Craig.  You've always been a good friend.

[Esopo]

To all that are listening,

This project began with a good heart but all the best efforts were spoiled by lack of organization and a cohesive idea.

At the beginning of this we spent hundreds of man-hours arguing about what the forum should look like, while many of us could have spent those same hours building it quietly.

There’s plenty of us “members” that could front the $100 to pay for the current host, or offer another hosting solution (I run 3 servers that could serve the purpose), but after the initial couple of months it was apparent to me that this effort was wasted from the beginning.

I hope a day comes when we can be reunited to put together what we originally envisioned, but I personally am done seeking consensus organizing an online community with loud people that clearly have no idea how to build such a thing (one particular name comes to mind).

I have appreciated all of you and I wish you the best. Please keep my email in case our paths gravitate together in the future. (site -at- netbulge -dot-. Com)


Best regards,

Esopo / Jose.

PS: Don’t grieve this place silently. This country - this world - needs to start pointing fingers or we’ll always be lamenting what other people destroyed because we let them. We could have had a good thing here. I know I chipped in as much as I could.

[coral1]

Hi, Wildman !

I'm glad to get a chance to say 'catch you around', to you.
I think about you every time I boot to UBCD, and it saves my butt again.    : D

Swing by the Lounge and say HI to the Lizards when you get a free minute.    : )

[GrandSchtroumpf]

Hi all.  I share huntress's point of view.  I'm tired of virtuality.  Tired of computers all together.  I much prefer spending time with horses playing parelli games.

[coral1]

  : D    Then by all means, Go for it. Life is meant to be enjoyed.
If you ain't having fun, you ain't doing it right.     ; )

Thanks again for all the time and help you put in to ERT, and I am glad I got the chance to know you.

Later....

[CrYpTiC_MauleR]

Sorry for not being around. School and work is just too high of a priority at this time. I wish I was able to put more time, but can't no matter how much I want. I truly agree that ERT had a great run, but maybe its time to move on.

The costs, manpower, and traffic can not compete with the thousands of other tech sites on the web. I tried doing some updates a few months back, but my admin password for ERT was no longer valid. I don't know if it was changed, the host messed something up or what. If anyone can still access the admin page for Cpanel please PM me. I would like to make a backup of the site's files.

Please post your contact info at http://www.expertsrt.net/main/forum/topic,1493 so we can call keep in touch if and when ERT is taken offline. It was great working with each and every one of you on this site and thank you so much for your time, support, and friendship. Farewell ERT.

[coral1]

Hmmmm.... I can't post there.  Keep finding fubars from the upgrades the Host did.

coral47 <at> gmail <dot> com is a now my primary email.
And THE Lounge is a good place to look for me. 
Stop back in and say HI.     ; )

Best Wishes on your schooling. 

[GrandSchtroumpf]

Wow, i just realized i did not even write a proper post to this thread.  I read all the posts several times.  I share your feeling so much that I feel I could have written most of what's been said.

It's sad that ERT is dying, but I guess that's how it needs end.  I'm very happy to have met you here.  For me, ERT is a complete success.  I probably did not expect the same things from the site as some did.  I came here to discuss geeky topics with geeks from different horizons.  That's exactly what I found here.  I never liked the whole "experts" idea...  As a good geek, I never liked hierarchy.  I guess the initial idea was to help ignorant dummies.  The site ended up being some kind of discussion group, and that's exactly what I was looking for.

Thank you all for being who you are.  The site is dying because we moved on with our lives.  Some stopped participating gradually.  Some stopped because of school, some stopped to open a restaurant...  It's a nice death, a quiet and peaceful death.  If you love somebody, set them free.  I'm glad you have things that are more important to you than talking about computer problems.  Walk in the nature, ride your bicycle or your horse, play with a child or a dog.  That's what's important in life.

There is just one persone I'm worried about... it's Cd&.  The way he suddenly vanished... some important job he had to finish.  It's not like him to leave the domain name expire.  Cd&, wherever you are, thank you.  I appreciated your tender heart inside your "grumpy old man" manners.  I owe you all my knowledge in HTML/CSS... (directly or indirectly).

Ok, that's enough emotional talk.  Now, who has an idea for a thumb?  Is there a way we can save the articles and contact info using some tool that has a longer life expectancy than our own forum?  Yahoo group?  Google gizmo?  Facebook junk?  I'm a member on VGR's site http://www.europeanexperts.org/

[coral1]

When Huntress pops in, C_M needs his Powers turned back on so he can make a backup.
And most of the .COM and .NET stuff is saved in The WayBack Machine (links in my first post), anyway.

Anyone that can't get into C_Ms link, can post contact info here.

I still pop into European Experts once in a while. So I will probably see you there.
I am in and out of several sites, but mostly I haunt the Hardware TAs and The Lounge at Experts-Exchange.com

Later.    : )

[VGR]

Yo 8-(

I'm quite disappointed, not really surprised but a bit disappointed, by the final outcome of ERT. Too bad. I'm also still worried by the .com domain expiration that cut of the main site, and by the disappearance of Cd&. I'll miss you all. You will always find me willing to help "dummies" (as GS said ;-) on europeanexperts.org and I'll be contacted via edainworks.com.

I will try to get as much tuts & articles as I can and put them on my server(s).

Regards to all, au revoir les gens ;-)