Pirl - "...they work hard..." comment is funny.
Bummer - I've stayed on at DG until my subscription was to run out right after the holidays because I've learned a lot from some of the members. BUT - I just realized my "watched" threads aren't updating (as opposed to sparse posts this time of year) so I'm missing out on some conversations. I'm just too fed up with the mess to read through the pages of complaints and "fixes" to see if there's a remedy.

Cindy - considering how well they do at ignoring long time subscribers, they have to be exerting themselves to the nth degree. It's a pity for those who have been so loyal for so long. Even loyalty has its limits.

I cannot believe that it was "tested" before they threw it out to us. The ONLY reason I kept my paid membership was for the "Coffee.........." group and "Chair". Of course, I just re-upped in October.

I did get a response to my post on DG about my "watched" threads and another subscriber gave me a "work around". Not good enough when I'm paying a membership. I swear the "beta testing" was done live on the subscribers. (being sarcastic)

Anna, I haven't been to DG in forever so I don't know what it's like but I have to reiterate what Jean said a few pages earlier. You and your coffee and chair friends can have the same private conversations here on ATP via tree mail. Here they are truly private. On DG, anyone can pay the fee and read your private forums.

I don't own a Cubit but I'm on Cubit's many times a day and as far as navigation, it's super simple. You can have your own private Cubit as well. I'm sure there is someone that would help you set one up. Once you get past the learning curve, you'll be fine.

And the best news for ATP and Cubits - there's no fee.

Hooray and welcome to new members!

Nothing's happening to my watched threads on DG, so guess this is it. My subscription runs out in June, so lots of time for my friends to find me here

Sharon said:Welcome to all our new members. I know you'll enjoy your new gardening experience.

@pirl -- I really like your last two sentences!

I"m waiting for all the veggie gardeners to show up, LOL!

Hey AnnaZ!
You made some pretty compelling arguments over there. Too bad they seem to be going unheard. "left in disgust," LOL!

Pirl - do you mean they had 7,000 paid subscribers a few years ago? That is amazing - when did it change? I joined DG some years ago - and then kind of dropped out at life intervened. Then I started looking back in about the time the big storm about it being sold arose. I am not conversant with the years before it was sold the first time very much. Old history! But I did love it after I started back in reading the threads, looking up plants, companies, and products, etc. It helped me a bunch and I am sad to see so much turmoil. Maybe it will settle down again soon. In the meantime, it never hurts to have more than one arrow in the quiver - DG and ATP.

I think DG had almost 9,000 paying subscribers when I left in early 2010.

That's a huge drop in 5 or so years...says a lot in itself.

I was wrong. They had 7,230 on January 11th, 2010, the day I was told the new owners weren't bringing me along.

Dave

Not to get too far into personal or business matters. But was that the second time it was sold? Even though I posted to DG at the time, I did not follow any of that.

Yes, it was the 2nd time.

I sold it to a company in Boston who was wonderful. For 3 great years they let me run the site the way I wanted and gave me every kind of support you could imagine. I consider those 3 years to be the best years for DG, by far. When they sold it to the current owner, I was told that I was not going to be with the site moving forward. I never really understood why they didn't want me, given the success that the site enjoyed under my management, and I would have been happy to go along with the site and continue working on it as I always had been.

Well, obviously it was a huge mistake on their part. An awful lot of us left when Dave did. Honestly, I don't even recall clearly how it all transpired, but I exchanged personal emails with a few folks, Maybe including Dave and Trish (?)... Dave opened Cubits soon thereafter and we all joined...
The company sued Dave on a "non compete" clause and lost... Dave opened ATP... Funny, it's already kind of fuzzy in my brain but at the time I enjoyed being part of it. It was amazing to watch Dave transform ATP from a barely existant site to the beautiful and successful site it is today.

Oh yeah, and Trish was pregnant and had a baby during all that!

Karen

I too remember all of this well. Quite a storm to have weathered but look where we are now!!

Dutchlady1 said:I too remember all of this well. Quite a storm to have weathered but look where we are now!!

@vic - to me it's the responsiveness of Dave that's the best part of ATP. Anything else is just a bonus.

@Tallulah_B - give your friends your own "Refer a member" link to join ATP. You'll find it on your profile.

@Blakelyatstillwood - Dave is very modest. He made DG what it was at its best. Here are the number of subscribers for several years, taken from their weekly newsletter. Then they stopped posting the numbers.

kqcrna said:The company sued Dave on a "non compete" clause and lost...

An important point to note is that it was I who initially sued them but now we're getting into a discussion that doesn't need to be had. All that was settled a long time ago.

I don't follow the business end either , except when it comes to my garden , And the pets and older days the farm animals ,,
Well I guess ... Just in case you go there , that is claws and hoofs ...