[Project-Buckfast]

Recently I have been thinking about P2PC. As you know, my original plan for this site was to merge it with UniteTheCows.com

We abandoned the idea and decided to try and grow the site and "Consortium" feel. Let's say I haven't done a great job at this. I've been struggling to make time for P2PC. I was blind to that fact, that attempting to grow 2 sites with mostly the same topic and keep them as individual as possible would be a LOT of work. Too much for the free time I have, or lack there of.

Anyway, to be honest with you all, I simply don't have the time to run 2 sites, no matter how much I want to.

I feel my only option is to merge the sites. Looking at traffic levels, software, potential and brand, the best route is to merge P2PC into UTC.

If you haven't been to UniteTheCows.com in a little while, drop by and check the site out. We are running the very latest version of vBulletin Publishing Suite. It is hot on the market right now and is packed full of awesome features. The software we are running here at P2PC relies on some modifications that are no longer available or cost money to upgrade. vBulletin is an all-in-one suite which eliminates most of big modifications we have come to take for granted and is a better long term solution.

I have been a long standing member of both UTC and P2PC and have at one point or another (over the last decade) been staff on both sites. Both sites mean a lot to me and have individual qualities that I would like to keep. Thats why we are bringing together everything that makes both sites great.

The plan for the merge process would be something like this:

Prepare UTC for the merge by renaming/restructuring all forums to match or somewhat match the layout of the forums here. I feel we are more organised and up to date here. Members of UTC are also members here, both sites have mostly the same userbase, this helps a lot as everyone will be familiar with the layout after the merge.

Import all data (posts,threads,blogs,gallery images,links,downloads,arcades etc) from P2PC into UTC. We are keeping everything and dropping it into UniteTheCows.com

Redirect all traffic from P2PC to UTC - This ensures we keep backlinks and our indexed pages in google. This is good for search engine optimisation. I carried out this process when I merged P2PForums.com into UTC. An example can be seen by visiting this link www.p2pforums.com/viewtopic.php?p=109526 it automatically takes you to the correct location of that topic on unitethecows.com - a neat setup which ensures we keep our traffic.

We are keeping the "Consortium feel". By this I mean the "Home Forum" item that shows in every members posts and Visiting Staff etc...

With the above complete, we simply need to clean up afterwards (pruning old users etc.) We also have plans for a custom style to bring us right up-to-date.

Most of the current staff here are on board. Think of this merge as moving home, to a new neighbourhood with the same folks

This will take at least a month to get setup. I'll be running dsome tests this weekend to ensure everything will go smoothly.

I encourage suggestions for our new endeavour. When this is all done we will be in a much better position to grow what we already have. I have some nice plans which I'll reveal a little later down the line.

~PB

[RacknRail]

Sorry to hear this.

[Dr. Avery]

To all of my fellow consortium dwellers:

As someone who has followed this community through merges and splits, and at least 3 different websites (not counting grand re-openings) over at least a decade, I would implore you to consider giving this reformation a chance.

I have said before that I think this is, from a logical perspective, the best chance to save both communities. In some ways this is a reconciliation of the fragments of what was once a single community.

Many of us were around for some bad stuff at UTC. More than once, Unite the Cows has served - ironically - to divide us. Most of the people involved in the situations I remember aren't around anymore. Of course, my perspective is limited (ahh, the blissful ignorance of being non-staff).

As has happened more than once in times of upheaval, economic or otherwise, our community is reinventing itself to survive. If the past simply can't be overcome, I respect that - but I hope to see you all when this move is done.

-al

[Roadblock]

If anyone is interested, here are my thoughts on the upcoming merger:

I totally understand everyone's reservations on this. For me personally, UTC holds many both good and bad memories, unfortunately the bad memories are the freshest. I was there as admin for the 'glory days' of UTC. I was there for the problems that led led to the merger with PCTechTalk. I was there for the split that led to P2PForums. I was there for the rebirth of UTC. I was there for the fiasco that led to the split that ultimately produced P2PC.

The bottom line, whether we like it or not, things change. We've had a great run here at P2PC. It's been my home for over 5 years. That's longer than my full time tenure at UTC 1, PCTT or UTC 2. The community has changed. We've seen many great people come and go. We've seen the evolution of the internet in general and P2P in particular. Things have definately changed over the years. If we don't adapt to the changes, we die.

I still believe in the consortium concept. I believe that is what has kept us going this long. It is way past time to band together, the enemy is strong and we must be united to have any chance of keeping things going.

Project-Buckfast is a great guy and he is doing what he thinks best for both communities. His heart is in the right place. He has my support and I will do everything I can to help him with the process. I don't have much left in the tank as it were, but I'll do what I can as long as I can. I hope this merger is just the thing we need to keep hope alive. If not, we can say that we have done everything we could to make it so.

Thanks to my friends from all over the globe who have made this such a wonderful learning experience for me.

[poisomike87]

I was an outsider to this forum; I joined after the splits and rebirths. I came as a kid looking for help with Ares. While hitting the “view new posts” link I discovered that you guys where really damn cool. This place had a cool feel to it and the exchange of knowledge was amazing. Everyone had something to bring to the table even if it was minimal at best. P2P tech has changed so much since then. And I am sure that it will continue to as well.
File sharing= the free exchange of knowledge. I think we would be doing a disservice to the File sharing community if we did not try to keep it going. That being said it will take some work, but I am willing to put forth the effort to keep the feel alive. I hate seeing good things go to waste.

Project-Buckfast is a great guy for helping keep this place going and I know he would not do anything without keeping the best in mind for both sites. Rasta, My hat is off to you for keeping this place going times are hard but you managed to keep the consortium up and running. And for doing that I am eternally grateful :cheer:

I look at this place like a library. Even if it may not get that many people checking out books the libraries can all be connected. And what happens if a person at another library wants a book that their local library does not have? They request it from us! There have been times that I have researched a question or problem only to find the damn answer at the consortium! How effing cool is that?
The new software looks amazing and I am sure that it will bring new life into the content that we have here already and it will allow new content to flourish.

I really do feel that this is a great idea and I look forwards to the move.



and my fav song o the month

[vernarial]

Sounds good. Let's do it!

[Wobbel]

Jeez, you just can't leave 'm alone for a while can you....

As you might have noticed i've been gone for a while (due to,uhm, things) But if still welcome, i'm back and curious to how this merge will work out.
Don't know in wich position i'll be back but i'm sure someone can tell me....

[Dr. Avery]

Holy moley - vern and wobbel in the same day! How's it going you guys?

[vampirechronicles]

vernarial, on Mar 4 2010, 09:58 PM, said:

Sounds good. Let's do it!

those are the words i always like to here *see you in 10 minutes*

Wobbel, on Mar 4 2010, 11:41 PM, said:

Don't know in wich position i'll be back but i'm sure someone can tell me....

dont worry i will help you remember just get ready to party *hard*

[vampirechronicles]

Project-Buckfast, on Mar 4 2010, 08:35 AM, said:

I encourage suggestions . When this is all done we will be in a much better position to grow . I have some nice plans which I'll reveal a little later down the line.

~PB

I like to change positions also. *any time any day*

as for the change thats cool, like i said more people da better

[Mazer]

I guess I'll come along and see what the "new" place is like.

[Lastat]

Don't really like the merge. I haven't been active in a long time so I know it doesn't matter what I think. The thought of going to another forum (merging) brings back bad memories of forums I was at before P2PC. I hope Project-Buckfast is correct and this all will work out for the good.

[JackSpratts]

you know, if you're really serious about starting fresh, a new name would be in order. utc, p2pc, napsterites etc are really products of their time, specifically the era during or immediately following the napster court actions, shutdown and rise of alternate platforms in response to those legal decisions. the fact is all these forums are struggling for relevance in a world that not only is no longer dominated by that fight but has for the most part forgotten it.

if i purchase a p2p domain i'll do so to continue it as is for the benefit of the leftover soldiers whose battles were critical to the success of the file-sharing clashes in the early ohs. nothing like having a favorite hangout always there to welcome you, which with the exception of the week in review is essentially what p2p-zone has become, and that's not such a bad thing. if i buy one however to make it relevant to a whole new group of users brought up on itunes, myspace, twitter, texting and facebook, i would immediately jettison the name and reinvent the site with new labels that reflect new paradigms. it's standard marketing. i really don't think you can accomplish one without the other.

resuscitating dying brands has proved nearly impossible for even the most powerful conglomerates, consumer product giants like proctor and gamble and general motors. invariably when a brand becomes moribund it is retired, killed off or in extremely rare cases licensed to a boutique marketer for a niche application. as the negative baggage continues to accumulate it eventually overwhelms whatever positives are held in the memories of a diminishing customer base, and like rinso white or oldsmobile, ultimately fails with the disappearance of those original product users.

the solution, a rename and relaunch, isn't exactly simple, but years of letdowns have convinced the best and brightest marketers that the alternative is almost always a quick route to disappointment and expensive failure.

it looks to me like something similar is afoot here. the utc brand presents no forward relevance that i can see. not even to me, and i've been stopping by since its inception years ago. it just seems...old, something time has passed by. it does however hold some interesting possibilities for the p2p nostalgia market. but you know, from what i've been reading around here, that doesn't seem to be the point of all this effort.

- js.

[Lion7718]

JackSpratts, on Mar 7 2010, 10:28 AM, said:

you know, if you're really serious about starting fresh, a new name would be in order

[vampirechronicles]

Lion7718, on Mar 7 2010, 10:52 AM, said:

JackSpratts, on Mar 7 2010, 10:28 AM, said:

you know, if you're really serious about starting fresh, a new name would be in order

yeah i am going to change my name maybe to trippinlow

[RacknRail]

If this was a democracy, I would also put my vote in for a name change. It would put a completely new face on a completely new forum.

[rastaX]

+1

I can't go over there without tripping all over the past, most of which I find unpleasant..........

[poisomike87]

the more I think about it a name change would be pretty damn cool

[Mazer]

A new brand is a fine idea. I wouldn't mind joining a brand new forum, distinct from both UTC and P2PC, and contributing to its post count. But I guess what I'm really opposed to is having my (or anyone else's) old posts retroactively re-branded. I mean there's change and then there's revisionism.

What can you do but depreciate the archive of old threads that still have the old brand associations? I understand that it's preferable (for many practical reasons) to preserve them by merging them into the new forum, but you can't merge the old identity into a new forum; this forum's personality is the result of posts that were written for P2PC and P2PC alone. Whether P2PC's threads are merged into UTC or both forums are merged under a new URL, I'd rather see these threads closed post-merger than be re-branded.

Well, I guess I can only make suggestions, and I won't storm off if they aren't heeded, but I still think there's a better solution and JackSpratts' suggestion is a giant leap in the right direction.

[Project-Buckfast]

I don't understand how a name change would help here. There's still posts from however many years ago by members that may trigger bad memories with some folks. The only way that goes away is by starting an entirely new site from the beginning. That means I've wasted a lot of time and money. It would also mean I'd have to spend more to get it going.

I'm not ruling anything out here. But I don't believe a name change will suffice for some folks here.

Say we did start fresh. What direction do we go that hasn't already been covered?

Any name ideas?