Major Changes to TB

[Dave]

Hi everyone. Over the past three years, this community has grown larger than I would have ever imagined. As many of you know, my previous budgie community, Budgie Boards, barely ever made it off the ground. My other current forums have never reached TB's status either. TB is something I'm very proud of and I'm glad to have taken part since the very beginning.

Unfortunately, between school, outside life, and other things I won't go into right now, the time has come for me to step down as owner of TB. I will remain here as a regular member, but I probably won't post too often. TB has been sold to another web entrepreneur who will hopefully take good care of you all!

Over the next couple days, your new admin/owner, John (username john m (http://talkbudgies.com/member.php?u=7399)), will begin posting some of the changes he has in store for TB.

The staff are aware of these changes. As of right now, John has not said anything about staff changes or restructuring.

Stay tuned for any updates! As usual, if you have any questions, comments, or feedback, be sure to let us know.

[tstmard]

Oh. I'll be sad to not see you around.:( Here I was just getting comfortable with you and wasn't so scared of you. Well good luck with all that's going on in your life. Hope to see you around once in a while.

[trixa]

oh dave..:crying: we'll miss you, just want you to know your a great owner!
study hard dave!:) be sure to be online for atleast once a week..:(
i hope "john" is as friendly as you..:D
so thats why the other members havent got your reply about the birds next top model..:( we understand you dave, have a great day! HUGGS!!:crying:

[stacey101]

Oh Dave :crying:
you will be dearly missed! and i agree with Trixa , hopefully John will be just as nice as you! Study hard ! and come to see us with all .... YES all your spare time :XD:

[Jazz4Tj]

I'm pretty new to TB, but I wanted to say to you - you have provided a great community to us all Dave and I do hope you stick around as I was hoping to get to know you :) Best wishes to you for your future :)

If the new owner is anything like Dave I'm sure the transition will go smoothly :) Welcome to TB John :)

[trixa]

WELCOME TO TB JOHN!!:D:D
:party3: :party2:

[skthurley]

Thanks Dave. This is such a wonderful community. We appreciate all your hard work and effort that you put into it.

[softie]

This is going to be hard for me... :(

I've never met John before but I hope we will all adjust to the change..

One request before you go Dave... Make a farewell video on youtube? :(

[trixa]

yes please make a farewell video..:(

[Kerrcottage]

Dave, I'm relatively new here and wanted to let you know that this is the friendliest board I've ever been a part of. Thanks for creating such a wonderful environment for budgie lovers! Good luck on your other endeavors!

[stacey101]

Yes a fare well video , please ?

[ronsig]

I was looking at the calendar to check if it was April 1st.
It isn't;)

You just sold us:eek:
Will there be lay-offs? :eek:

Just kidding. I guess, you deserve a life outside of Talk Budgies. I hope we will see you around as a regular member. Maybe you can become "Member of the Month" some day:p

Sigrid

[trixa]

Maybe you can become "Member of the Month" some day:p

Sigrid

:laughing:

[Robin's Nest]

Dave, I know how busy you are and everything, and I sure understand needing to spend the time at school and all, but... well, I've expressed to you already how I feel. I agree with Softie; this is going to be quite an adjustment. :( I'm sure John will be wonderful, although let's face it, your shoes will not be easy to fill.;) But I look forward to meeting John and hearing all about his birds.:)

(I hope you got a pretty penny for the site so you can buy your birds some new toys or something fun!):D

[bugster23]

sorry to see you go Dave... TB wouldnt even exsist if you hadnt gone about the trouble investing into creating it..

so you will always hold a special place for all of us memebers who love TB... really hope to see you around the forums and that the new owner is half as nice and undertsaning as you are..

take care now..

[lorri]

Dave you have done wonders with this forum, If it wasn't for you to start this up we all won't be here now threading, posting, doing vids, pictures, chats, and etc....

You deserve a certificate stating you've done a fantastic job.

I've never really spoken to you but you always there when I needed stuff.

We all know that you've been busy with the outside world with schooling and work but It you will be missed by many of us.

I wish you ta ta not good bye cos you will be poppin in now and again.

Love Lorraine x

[BeckiC]

Awwww Dave I'll miss not having you in charge. You've done a great job, and this forum is amazing. Thanks so much for it all!
Welcome to John!

[louara]

Dave,I am so sad that you are stepping down as owner. You have made this site such an amazing place to hang out,that I cannot imagine anyone else filling your shoes. I hope that you can continue to contribute and help John with the transition. You will be missed.
Good luck in whatever the future holds for you as I know you will make it a success!

Welcome John-I look forward to meeting you:)

[kimhosken]

sorry you have to go before i got to know but studies must come first

[Rebeccaveggie]

Im so sorry to see you go. What a shock. This old place will never be the same. Welcome John.

[BUUZBEE]

Wow... I wasn't expecting to read this at all... I figured forum set up changes etc. I know you are, but feel like saying it anyway, you should be very proud of your acomplishments here. As Robin posted... I hope you got a VERY pretty penny in this deal!

Welcome John M!

[ozzie]

Wow, I feel like I just got hit by a baseball bat.......I wasn't prepared for this....I will miss you alot, Thank you so much for creating TB its an amazing place that I don't know what I would do without it.

On a brighter note: WELCOME TO THE FORUM JOHN! :party2::party2::party2:

[Shy Bird]

the new guy will have big shoes to fill.

[Chicklet]

im pretty new here so i don't really know you, but you definately should be proud of this awesome forum and comunity you've made :)
we'll miss you..:(

and a warm welcome to John M :D

[sschlitt]

This is very sad but I want to thank you for creating this. I feel like I have another family....out there...somewhere... hahaha. We will all miss you but we will trust that you have found the best replacement. You will always be a part of the flock.:wave1:

Goodbye

~Stephanie, Petey and Merlin

[Bethany]

I wasnt expecting this:(
You will be missed Dave:(

But Welcome to the forum John:)

[Alvindy]

If things don't change we die. That said, I appreciate the hard work that you've put into TB.
I knew nothing about budgies a short time ago and now I'm mashing bananas and feeding apples - thanks to TB.
Your guidance will be missed but I am sure that TB will carry on - as a testament to your vision.
Does John keep budgies?

[AngelWings]

Daveeeee! :crying2: i can't believe you're going to leave us :( i mean i have just gotten the courage to finally message you :XD: i was very scared of your seriousness for a looonnnggg time I'll miss the times when you announced something and i'd be the very first one to look all over for it :o Just letting you know, since you are leaving... expect to be stalked on youtube :D
I'll miss you! :( hopefully he won't be a serious scary person but a serious fun person like you :D

[huskymom]

sorry to see you go.... bwaaaaa!!!.... this will be so strange... but I´m sure you made sure John would take over nicely...

please don´t become a stranger.... pleeeeaaase..

you´ll be soooo missed... ((hugs))

[Kate C]

Well this is a shock. You will be sadly missed Dave. You should be extremely proud of your achievement with Talk Budgies. But your future is so important and you need to spend more time on your studies. Good luck in everything you do in the future you deserve it. And please call in regularly. Hopefully John will not make too many drastic changes, the forum runs pretty smootyly already. One of the few that I have been on with very little friction occuring.

Welcome John.

[clifff123]

Hey this is BS The staff are aware of these changes oh really, am I one of the staff, or is it I'm just not one of the Clicky members of the staff.
I don't know how any of the other staff members feel but I have put over two years in this forum and I feel its very unfair to DUMP this on us. If you were thinking about selling why didn't you approach me. All I got to say is this sucks, kick me as a mod or whatever I'm going to say what I feel. So now we have to deal with someone who know nothing about budgies. This will just about do it for me Guy, thanks for all the consideration you didn't give us.:mad: Just PM'd you and its not budgieFriendly

[softie]

Oh no :(

Cliff! Please come talk to me, I'm here! I think the entire staff is really upset about this change, as it's been brought upon us rather quickly without any warning...

:sad3:

[prettybird1212]

Sorry to see you go, Dave. Unfortunately, I have to agree with Cliff. It isn't very fair of you to just dump this on us and leave us with some person that most likely has no idea about budgies. However, I am willing to adapt and hopefully enjoy this "John" person.

Best of luck in your future endeavors! Please try to stay on the forums at least a couple times a month.

[aka.pody]

Hi Dave. You've held up quite a marvelous site here. It's unbelievable how popular it is.
You can be very proud of owning Talk Budgies.
You're young and I know that there's probably a lot going on in your life.
When it comes right down to it, you have to take care of #1 and that's yourself. Needless to say your schooling is very important.
It must have been overwhelming for you at times trying to juggle TB, school, and everything else.
I can be very proud to say that I am a member of Talk Budgies.
We certainly will miss you as our chief. I know that you left Talk Budgies in very good hands.

Don't be a stranger. ;)
-Arlene

p.s. A farewell video would be really nice. Maybe you can introduce your birds. :)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3450/3391009544_e72387fa7d_o.gif

[AngelWings]

Second post - yes i talk too much.. but...
I don't like this all being dumped on us and i kinda feel like you just sold us .. but i'll try my best to adapt as long as you promise to come keeping online and commenting as much as you can :p

[Robin's Nest]

It seems to me Dave has been pretty clear that he doesn't have enough time in his schedule for Talk Budgies. :(

On a different note, a couple of people have mentioned that John does not know anything about birds. This is not the way I understood it. Could you clear this up for us, Dave?

[Budgiekin]

I understand where Dave is coming from, however I have to say I am really disappointed that he will not be involved on an administrative level here any longer. It was not expected so I need some time to digest this news.

(Cliff, Please PM me.)

[Bethany]

I understand Dave and Cliff, but I am a little more on Cliffs side :o
'John' doesnt know anything about budgies from my (and others) understanding.
Wouldnt it be possible to have someone who knows something about budgies run the forum? Possibly a mod/admin who has been here a longgg time?
Anyways, I too will try to adapt to 'John' running the forum:(

EDIT: I do also realize its how he will run the forum, not if he has budgies...

[Leel]

ooh this is the change, whoa. Thanks for everything I hope the new owner is nice. miss ya.

[Tammy.w.]

sorry to see you go dave! you done a fantastic job and me and all the memers here are very gratefull! :D you will be missed

[Wonderbird]

Regardless of whether or not John knows anything about budgies is not important, IMHO. I know of a budgie site where there was an admin in the background working the site, and an admin in the foreground. The background admin knew nothing about budgies and we hardly heard from him. Perhaps John would be in the background managing things, and the other two (or more?) admins would manage the foreground. But TBH I really don't know what the admins other than Dave do.

Just my two seeds worth. ;)

[tstmard]

I agree it doesn't matter if he knows about budgies it's if he knows how to run a forum and listen to the community we have here.

[Robin's Nest]

Well, I was told that he had birds, so this doesn't make any sense to me. I'm confused. :(

[tstmard]

Well, I was told that he had birds, so this doesn't make any sense to me. I'm confused. :(

Yes if you were mislead then I can understand why you're asking. Just like I can understand Cliff being upset.:(

[trixa]

Hey this is BS oh really, am I one of the staff, or is it I'm just not one of the Clicky member of the staff.
I don't know about any of the other staff members feel but I have put over two years in this forum and I feel its very unfair to DUMP this on us. If you were thinking about selling why didn't you approach me. All I got to say is this sucks, kick me as a mod or whatever I'm going to say what I feel. So now we have to deal with someone who know nothing about budgies. This will just about do it for me Guy, thanks for all the consideration you didn't give us.:mad: Just PM'd you and its not budgieFriendly

oh no cliff:scared: gulp..
i know you will surely miss dave in the forums (ALL OF US ARE:( ), but i think we have to understand him as well,.. and since dave hasnt been on with us for a while, i think that he thinks we deserve someone more active and would have more time for us... i dunno,,:(
but he is still young and does have an outside life...:( im pretty sure he mustve have been pressured or something..:(

[Brown9944]

Dave! It's so sad to see you go :(
But I do understand that you do have a life outside TB, you need to focus on your furture yes?
I wish you all the best in that, and make sure that you visit LOTS :P.

Bye Dave :(

[Zeena]

awww i don't know what to say Dave, even though i've only been on TB for less than a year, i feel really wierd about the change. However i will not question your judgment as i know that you put TB and its members before any major changes like that :)
Good luck with everything and hope to keep seeing you around!
Welcome to TB John :)

[BuBu&Chik]

oh no! how shocking! i agree, i hope that he's as nice as you were! what kind of major changes is he making? oh no I think TB is already wonderful enough!

well i wish you the best of luck with the future. I really do hope that you do check with with TB every so often. :)

[enicol6]

I was not expecting this when I clicked on the thread. I can understand if you need to move on but I wish we had a bit more warning. Take it as a compliment that you are well respected and liked. Sometimes life changes our path, I am sad to see you go and grateful that you made this site in the first place. I don't know why I am so thrown but I just am. Good luck Dave.

Welcome John M.

[AliaAzure]

Sorry to see you go Dave. I understand school takes up a lot of time. I feel sorry for the staff that this had come up suddenly. I honestly hope John's big changes don't include a big ad bar at the top of TB. I've seen to many good places online go bad with the addition of glaring advertisements. *crosses fingers* Maybe we'll hear some encouraging news from John soon.

[Nika]

Best wishes on your new ventures. You will be missed.

I hope that whatever changes are made it won't affect how smoothly IMO this forum runs. Some bird forums I belong to load pages so slow, I often give up on visiting them. Never had problem with TB, so hopefully it will stay that way.

[legry]

:(

Dave, you have made such a great community here.
.

[Babybreau]

Dave,
This is a quite a shock and not what I expected! lol John M has some big shoes to fill! lol
t just won't be the same though. I completely understand understand your needing to make this change.
I want to take this time to wish you all the best of luck in your future endeavors - whatever they may be.

Please come back and visit!

Welcome John M! I look forward to the changes and to see how TB will be moving forward as well!

PS> It would be awfully nice if Dave or John would step in and answer some of these questions - both are mysteriously absent since dropping such HUGE news.

[absolutangel]

Oh come on guys, this is Dave's site and he doesn't have to consult members or give us notice if he wants to sell it (although I understand why the mods who this will impact more directly might be a bit upset) For all we know John might be very happy with the site as is, plan on running it in much the same way as Dave and we might not even notice the difference or have been aware of the change of ownership without Dave telling us. I don't see why John owning birds or not makes a difference, especially if he is going to largely be involved in the background admin. Why not wait and see how things go rather than lamenting this happening just yet.

I would like to say Thank You to Dave for all the hard work he has put in to make TB what it is, good luck with the studies and don't be a stranger.

[mskimber]

dave, good luck in everything life brings your way...you've accomplished quite a bit on this site and i hope studies and anything thingelse you do turns out as well. you will be missed.

welcome to TB john!

[Budgietom]

I am so sorry to this news :( Dave, I have known you for two years now. You have helped me when I needed it, and introduced me to Bruce Springsteen :D

I wish you good luck with your future endevours :)

But honestly, I am a little scared :( I am hoping that a new owner will be the ONLY change to this site :( I hope he won't implement any new changes :(

[naburu]

So where are Dave and John in all of this...? I wish they'd answer some of our questions. :mad::S

[trixa]

john made his first post in the introductions..:) he will annouce i think, starting tomorrow? aaannndd everyday starting that..:D

[fiuza78]

Well, first of all, welcome John. We know you'll do a terrific job, otherwise Dave wouldn't had picked you.

Second, Dave thank you for all the hard work you put into this, and I wish you good luck your studies and life. Be aware that, Talk Budgies as a family will always be proud of you.

Well, I gotta admit I am shocked. I really didn't expect that when I read the title of this thread. My first thought was also the feeling of being sold. whatever. The way you put it hurt us. I understand your side Dave, but I totally agree with Clifff's disagreement. He devoted a lot of time to help TB running smoothly, and some warnings would make it easier.

I'm also sad because probably someone from the forum could have been interested in buying it and you didn't give that chance to us.

Anyways, I still appreciate all your hard work.

@John: please don't flood us with ads, and don't dismiss the Admins.

[Pippin's mom]

I'm just floored!:( I don't even know what to say. I've been gone for a couple of days and came back to this. I'm just too upset to comment right now.

[nev90]

You've done a great job here and you will be missed by us all. Thank you for creating a great forum

[Babybreau]

I have another question...

Since TB has been sold, Dave, what will happen to Talk Cockatiels and Talk Parrotlets? I know neither of them have near the amount of posts or popularity that TB does - but what will happen to those sister sites also owned by you?

[Budgietom]

I'm just floored!:( I don't even know what to say. I've been gone for a couple of days and came back to this. I'm just too upset to comment right now.

I know how you feel :( I really wish you would have offered the forum to one of the mods/admin or a high poster like myself :(

I'm nervous for the changes this John is going to make :( I've spoken to a few members, and they've said if the forum is heading in the direction of others, then they'll leave :(

That is so sad :( I'd hate to see our TB family break up :(

[Budgietom]

I have another question...

Since TB has been sold, Dave, what will happen to Talk Cockatiels and Talk Parrotlets? I know neither of them have near the amount of posts or popularity that TB does - but what will happen to those sister sites also owned by you?

I believe he will continue with those, as they aren't big :) But our forum is too big for Dave to run and is easily the biggest he has :(

[john m]

Hi guys. I just want to clear up some issues.

First please don't be worried about the direction Talk Budgies will be heading in. I promise you will all like what I have in store. :D I've discussed with Dave and some of the staff and they let me know what you all want.

Next I understand if your upset over the sudden change, but please dont get mad at Dave. He'll still be playing a role in running the forums. To what extent I'm not sure. I'll let him tell you himself. I don't want to speak for him. Please keep a positive outlook for the next few days as I make my announcements. :)

I also wanna say that there won't be any staff changes. Staff are a huge part of a forum and changing them up would really disrupt the flow of everything here.

That should clear up a lot of the main issues. Let me know if there's anything else you are concerned with. I don't want anyone to get upset! I promise, in the end things won't be as bad as they may have seemed. All I ask for is the chance to prove myself. :) Please. :D

[Robin's Nest]

Thank you, John, for your message of encouragement. Since you asked, there is something I would like to know: your profile says you have no budgies but that you are a budgie enthusiast. That confuses me a little. Do you have plans to get birds, or have you ever had birds before? It is just that I am curious. Thank you. :)

[john m]

Thank you, John, for your message of encouragement. Since you asked, there is something I would like to know: your profile says you have no budgies but that you are a budgie enthusiast. That confuses me a little. Do you have plans to get birds, or have you ever had birds before? It is just that I am curious. Thank you. :)
I owned a budgie when I was younger (I'm 29 now) for a couple years. His name was Sam. Other than him, I haven't owned any budgies. I hope you don't hold this against me. :o

[Wonderbird]

John, thank you for your post. I am sure everything will be swell in the end. But I do hope that very soon you will take the time to begin a dialogue with us, with timely responses. We would like to get to know you better.

Like for example, what will your role be on the forums in addition to being the owner? Will you be actively participating on the front end or be running things solely from the back end? or both? And will we lose anything we already have or will the changes be in addition to what we have?

Thanks for listening.

[Kate C]

We certainly won't hold it against you John. But we may have to infect you with the disease.

Have you had any other types of Parrots?

[john m]

John, thank you for your post. I am sure everything will be swell in the end. But I do hope that very soon you will take the time to begin a dialogue with us, with timely responses. We would like to get to know you better.

Like for example, what will your role be on the forums in addition to being the owner? Will you be actively participating on the front end or be running things solely from the back end? or both? And will we lose anything we already have or will the changes be in addition to what we have?

Thanks for listening.
Just try to think of me as Dave with a name change, if that makes any sense. :P I won't be one of those phantom admins who you never see.

The changes will all be in addition. Nothing will be taken away from you, and nothing bad will come of this. Promise. :)

[Bethany]

Thanks for your post John:)
That clears up a bit:)

[Wonderbird]

Just try to think of me as Dave with a name change, if that makes any sense. :P I won't be one of those phantom admins who you never see.

The changes will all be in addition. Nothing will be taken away from you, and nothing bad will come of this. Promise. :)

Oh terrific! Thank you! :)

[tstmard]

But we may have to infect you with the disease.


LOL! I agree.

[chompie_puppy]

Welcome to Talk Budgies John! :D

Sorry, I haven't had a chance to greet you until now.

I'd just like to say that I'm looking forward to working with you. :) I'm sure you'll find Talk Budgies to be a very accomodating and friendly forum.

Sorry about the mix up with Cliff's comment. I hope you don't have any hard feelings towards him about it. This has just come as a very quick change to the forum and we are all a little suprised. I hope you understand. :)

[Kip.The.Great]

I'm sorry too here Dave is leaving. :( But i wish him luck in the future. :)
Welcome John. :D I hope you enjoy your time here. :)

[rachelle83]

Wow, just Wow! Go away for a few days and come back to something like this! What a shock! I'm looking forward to hearing all about you John and the things you have in store for us! We are so family oriented here on TB, I think this is just something everyone will have to take slowly. I'm sure you will do great!

Dave, you will be missed! You started a great forum that I can only describe as a close family! You should be very proud to have been the founder of this forum and I hope you do continue to make an appearance every now and again. Good Luck with all your future endeavors! Hope everything goes your way :D

[birdybuddy1]

Thanks so much for everything, Dave! We will all miss you and look forward to seeing you around. :)

[Cannuck]

Wow! I'm shocked. You will be missed Dave and I wish you the best of luck with your future. Do not be a stranger and visit often.
Welcome to John. Please bear with us all as we adjust to this news :)

[Speedy]

Budgies = Addictive

I am sure we will rub off on John.m. :XD:

[BUUZBEE]

I'm hoping things have settled down with the staff now :)

I'd like to add one thing about Johns having budgies.... IMO, if he has them or not doesn't affect this ability to run a forum. Dave seems to do just find with the P'let & 'tiel forums :)

I hope that everyone keeps a possitive attitude with the changes. Fact is, Dave is doing what he feels is best for the forum and for himself. We need to keep possitive, and active or things will go downhill fast.

[Dave]

I'm hoping things have settled down with the staff now :)

I'd like to add one thing about Johns having budgies.... IMO, if he has them or not doesn't affect this ability to run a forum. Dave seems to do just find with the P'let & 'tiel forums :)

I hope that everyone keeps a possitive attitude with the changes. Fact is, Dave is doing what he feels is best for the forum and for himself. We need to keep possitive, and active or things will go downhill fast.
Well said Anna. :)

[BUUZBEE]

thanks Dave :)

[Bethany]

Budgies = Addictive

I am sure we will rub off on John.m. :XD:

I totally agree with that;)

:XD:

John, Im sure in a matter of months you will have at least one budgie:P