Has everyone seen this yet?
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1070861/
Dave's Garden :(
I went and looked and can hardly believe it.
What a shame! We will just have to wait and see what happens.
Look here :)
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1070930/
I did see that....guess we'll have to sit tight and see what unfolds
It makes me feel better to here from Dave about what's going on. :)
Lord...I was afraid of this when the site was sold before. This really, really is bad news. Even with the new owner now talking with Dave about staying, I don't trust it. There IS no Dave's Garden without Dave. Not saying I wouldn't renew next time. I don't know if I would. I subscribe based on the whole concept, which includes Dave and the whole concept was put into place by him. If corporate outsiders "monkey" too much with it, will it then go south?
Who knows, maybe they will come in with new ideas and make Dave's even better. It's way to soon it get our feathers ruffled. In the end, there isn't much we can do.
If Dave says "relax" then I'm going to relax. Hopefully nothing will change (fingers firmly crossed).
Carla
I wouldn't exactly say do nothing. Show your support for Dave and his team. Maybe that will be enough. But if not, another site can be created. He did it before and he can do it again.
I agree with Ken's comments. Having read the relative forums' posts,...I understand the initial anxiety.....however, I consider Michael's
post/introduction/communication as a positive sign....I can't bring myself to believe that Michael would intentionally deceive us,...so I'll look forward to experiencing the same wonderful family-style interaction and hopefully,...some new features that would improve an already wonderful site....if that's possible!
If this and if that. Why not just wait until the dust settle before we call for a mutiny. Who knows, a few months from now DG may be better than ever. And even if Dave starts all over again, it may not be as good as the first one, everyone may not follow him, or at least not enough to make a go of it.
I have a brilliant idea, Dave could buy the site back, problem solved.
Josephine.
Well, I for one, LOVE this site, so I am going to expect the very best for Dave and our home here!
I was skeptical about all this and am glad I was. Judging by the con job already pulled by IB, I hate to think what their real plans are. I'm probably getting too old to go down that road again.
I now feel like I have been lied too by IB, through Dave. Dave's Garden may make it without him but it will be at a loss. IB did not handle this in the right way and only time will tell.
This message was edited Jan 31, 2010 8:16 AM
This message was edited Jan 31, 2010 8:18 AM
I too,...feel betrayed. I can't express my disappointment....at this moment
I understand.
So do we.
:(
I feel a bit left in a lurch, here. Maybe we all do, just a bit. It is the unknown that we are responding to. "Fear" of the unknown. We have all subscribed partly because we don't have to put up with advertisements and "pop-ups", and partly to access the infinite information that's here from people that have actually grown the plants, and their solutions. We stay because of the "community" and the many friends we have made. We just don't want those things to change. We'll just have to wait and see.
'night all.
Annette
Well, I am good for another year ... I just renewed my subscription last month ... was the subscriptions always 19.95 or did the new people jack the price up? I dont remember ... but it never mattered before.
Trish my heart goes out to you and Dave, I bet you do feel betrayed ... hey, but you guys are so young ... you will go on to bigger and better things. :)
no its been about 20.00...
The new owners say they want to earn our trust. They are already one notch down. They may know how to run a business but there manners leave a lot to desire. The way they have treated Dave rubs me the wrong way. It kind of like what happened to Tom Landry when the Cowboys was sold. I lost interest in the Cowboys and have not watched but a few games since. I am going to stay on Dave's for now but to thank that every time I log into Dave's it's generates $ for the new owners bothers me.
Before Dave raised the rates last time, he offered us the opportunity to resubscribe at the old rates first. I did a 2 years subscription at that time. So some that did that also, making it seem like it's higher now. I renewed in January before the announced change of ownership, so have time to see what is going on before it rolls around again. Their plans for this site have not been revealed yet.The trust is not there after the way this thing was done.
Well, I have stayed out of the fray but as always I don't know when to keep my mouth closed.
As I understand the DG history, Dave built this gardening empire and a few years ago sold out to a lucrative offer. I feel he was rewarded with financial gain which is the American way. That was probably around the time the subscription rates jumped. They kept Dave in his leadership capacity but as the site grew, that company received yet a better offer from this new company. As is the case with a new owner, the decision to retain employees is theirs for whatever reason. It is their choice as the business owners.
Of course whether we chose to stay or go is our choice. I for one have no issue at this time with the site, the new owners or Dave. I thank Dave for building this terrific resource and wish him only the best. I will take advantage of my membership until which time the subscription rate should climb to the point I no longer feel it justifies the benefits received. And, I will judge the new company only by how they treat me as their customer.
I don't feel this ship is sinking so this rat will not abandon it.
This message was edited Feb 6, 2010 10:06 PM
Very well said, Pod! I agree totally.
Here, you should read this if you haven't already
.
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1074451/
Linda ~ I've read that thread and others. Do you see this as the demise of DG?
I do NOT. I love DG and have no plans of leaving here.
I don't know. What IB's plans are for the site, I don't know. And those plans will determine its future...at least, until the next sale (assuming there might someday be another sale). I subscribed to DG after the GardenWeb debacle, mainly because I just needed a less problematic site at the time and found DG was much more than that. Yet GardenWeb is still there and there's still quite a few people on there. As long as DG people can accept some changes, it may be okay...or maybe not if the changes are not acceptable.
I do not see it as the demise of DG but who knows. I am paid until Sept and will stay longer as long as it is FUN. I have been a member of several Brug orgs and it got to the point it was no longer FUN. This new forum that is floating around is free. I do not need to be a paid member of Dave's to access the plant files, just these forums. If I can get all the forums I need for free, who knows. As people drift away, Dave's may not be the place it has been and only time will tell. I hope that Dave and family are able to spend more time in their garden.