ON EDIT: MY POST BELOW WAS A BIT PREMATURE. PLEASE TAKE WHAT I SAID MORE AS SOME FOOD FOR THOUGHT, NOT GOSPEL!!
THANKS!
Good morning, everyone. Please pardon my absence, but I've had a number of very busy weekends as of late. Go figure, right?
I will give all a quick high altitude view of the situation as it stands right now. It should answer a lot of questions for you guys.
1. The Garage Gazette domain name (garagegazette.com) is locked in until February 24th of 2025.
2. The Garage Gazette domain name is registered on GoDaddy.com, who also is most likely providing the hosting of this site.
3. Hosting is probably also paid for until February of 2025, but there is no guarantee of that.
4. Rusty is the only one that can access the account to pay it up further into the future or to authorize transfer of the domain and forum site to another owner.
5. We cannot salvage old content without that account access. Until the account can be transferred, Rusty is the only one that can access the server where this site resides.
6. There is a way that we can backup part of the forum, but it would be the text only. Without the associated database (directly accessible only on the server) we cannot just plug that data into a new system and expect it to run correctly.
7. Even if we can save text data, there is no way to save the associated photos in a manner where they would be tied to the correct threads, etc.
8. If Rusty has died and we can produce a death certificate, we MIGHT be able to take over the account from GoDaddy, but don't hold your breath!
So, we have two options:
A. Continue to attempt to make contact with Rusty or his family, then pursue taking over this account on GoDaddy.
B. Start from scratch - New forum, new name, everything. Every member would need to register for the new forum.
Both options have their own pros and cons and Uncle Buck and I have discussed some of them, but the situation at MG was far different and our hand was forced. Both options will require a fair bit of work on the backside, but retaining what has existed for the last 14 years is obviously the best option if we can make that happen.
Now, I want to be clear that I do not want to 'run' this forum. It is not my ideal home, as it were. I am willing to offer my technical help in whatever way that I can because I understand the value of a strong online community.
So, at this point I am asking that if anyone has any information about Rusty whether it be a legal name, email addresses, phone numbers, mailing address, other forums he is in, or just some tidbit you remember about his kid sister or brother, please share it with Uncle Buck. Maybe, just maybe, we can find some clue that will help us get in contact with him or his family.
Thank you all for taking the time to read this and for taking the time to offer any information you might have. Out of respect for Rusty and his family, please share anything you have privately with UB by way of Private Message.
If we cannot make contact with Rusty or his assigns by November this year, we will start the process of building a new forum from scratch with a target go live date of February 1st, 2025. That may sound like a long way off, but trust me, it is not. The actual building of the new site can be done in a weekend or so, but there are some decisions that will be necessary before then, thus discussions will start in November. Some options may be chosen by Uncle Buck, while he may prefer to leave others up to you, the members. In the event that GG goes dark before then, we do have a list of all of the members email addresses so that we will be able to contact all of you after the site goes dark and we will keep you all in the know.
Once again, thank you one and all.
