A Special Announcement from Andy, Brian, and Steve
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Just wanted to say thanks for all of your help!!!!
I have learn a lot because of this site!!!
Thanks for everything and Good Luck with everything you do,
Kerrie
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Mike - in all fairness though...he does have a point when he talks about "conflict of interest"...with Steve, Andy and Brian this was not really an issue and it is always nice to be able to "pick and choose" our products instead of having one single name drummed into the subconscious....(or whatever levels of consciousness is used by the relentless advertisers)...
**ASCII stupid question, get a stupid ANSI !!!** -
I just hopped over to http://www.simple-talk.com, after seeing in another post that Red Gate also owns that site. Today's featured article is about a guy who relays his experience in coming 'out' at work. Is this the future of SSC?
Tim Mitchell, Microsoft Data Platform MVP
Data Warehouse and ETL Consultant
TimMitchell.net | @Tim_Mitchell | Tyleris.com
ETL Best Practices -
I'm the editor of the Red Gate's Simple-Talk journal and, if you're interested, my take on the sale is posted here: http://www.simple-talk.com
However, to address a few concerns directly:
-- There will be no subscription charge
-- Steve will remain as chief editor of the site and will retain editorial independence
-- There will be no censoring of people's opinions (unless Steve feels a post is simply inappropriate)
From Red Gate's point of view, the purchase of SQL Server Central is a chance to do something amazing. It is already a fantastic site but, with Red Gate's backing, the opportunity is here to take it even further. Steve saw this opportunity too and I'm sure this is a large part of why the deal was done.
In any event, it is the community contributions that make this site what it is and the community will judge Red Gate based on its actions – on the way it hosts this great site from here in. If we do something that people don't like, I know we will hear that message loud and clear. That's the way it should and will be.
I'll be working as hard as I can to help Steve continue to grow this site and to develop it in the way the community wants.
Best,
Tony.
PS. Tim, I commissioned the being 'out' article for Simple-Talk. I have the editorial independence on Simple-Talk to publish this sort of piece. But Simple-Talk and SSC are two completely separate sites. This sort of thing is not the future of SSC unless Steve decides it is.
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Thanks for all the wonderful comments and congratulations.
As Tony mentioned that plan is that things will remain the same and I'll keep editorial independence of the site. We'll probably cross pollinate and talk a little, but we hope to have the same formula working here that's been going on for 5 years.
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<Retracted>
Bottom line is this is an exciting time for Steve, Andy and Brian. I'm happy for the guys and I hope that Steve is able to spend more of his time in the writing and editorial areas now that funding and revenue problems are someone else's problem! As long as Steve gets to maintain editorial and creative control here, as far as I'm concerned we're as good as gold.
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Congratulations. This site has been very helpful for a beginner like myself.
I'm guessing that FourDeuce doesn't mean anything but that they'll pick the best response to define it.
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I'm excited. I have very much enjoyed learning SQL Server through this site that Andy, Steve and Brian built and I look forward to continuing. I have also enjoyed being able to share a bit of my knowledge with others.
It is expensive to buy servers, software and bandwidth. Without advertisers and still wanting to maintain a much-needed free site, there wouldn't be any way for the bills to get paid. (Selling a couple of books doesn't cut it). Yes, the flash is annoying...Yes, I have cussed the page curl a couple of times, but I did discover SQL Litespeed(pre-Quest), SQLCompare, and sp_msforeachdb through this site and that has helped me become a more productive DBA.
This kind of site is definitely needed. I used to work for a company that wouldn't buy bookshelves because they expected you to know everything...I didn't even dare ask for membership to a web site. Thankfully I don't work there anymore.
Michelle -
That sounds like something I would do... but not Steve
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I surf through SSC almost daily from the earlier days it was launched. I just cannot remember what brought me to SSC at the time.
After these years, SSC has received wide acceptance in the SQL Server community, many thx to the three founders. However, I feel the future of SSC totally depends on its "independence" from Red-Gate. I mean if Red-Gate uses SSC as a platform to solely promote its products, then sooner or later, SSC will lose its hard-earned reputation in terms of openess and fairness. On the other hand, I see this is a great opportunity for SSC to grow with the resource support from Red-Gate, such as better hosting hard-ware, more incentives to attract authors and probably more resources in revamping SSC from a information-sharing website to a revenue-generating website.
Wish SSC all the best in future endeavor.
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I think it's probably best to wait a little bit and see how things settle out. If this site turns into just one big funnel for Red Gate sales pitches... I know I won't be the first or last to go someplace else. I don't doubt that Steve is going to do his best to keep it unbiased.
Oh and... I love ApexSQL Edit, keep up the good work.
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When I first saw the email I thought : "Oh no! SqlServerCentral is closing! ohh noooo!!! ". Then I read the entire editorial and I felt an incredible relief hearing that you boys will still be around for SQL beginners (like me)
Yuhuuuu!
Love and hugs,
July
Software Developer, Softvision LLc
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Congratulations and thanks for all you've done! The three of you have done very well. I understand that Steve is going to stay on and keep things pretty much the same. We use RedGate products here and I just got off the phone with our rep and he promised the site will not change. Have no fear - this site will continue to serve the SQLServer community fairly for a long time to come!!!!
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Good for you-all! And good for us-all. Thanks for communicating with us, the community, and thanks for the integrity and conscientiousness to pass along the site to folks who have, as you said, the same or bigger vision for the site. In a time when there are folks who find it easy to stuff their pockets and walk away, and when the buyers twist the purchase to stuff their pockets, it is encouraging to find two parties with the same mindset—to make something good last and grow better over a long, long time—which will benefit all the participants.
This is a wonderful opportunity for all of us! SUCCESS TO ALL!
My thanks to you, Andy, Brian, and Steve, for making SQL Server Central such a good place ... and remember, all, we really did it together.
Norm Johnson
Norm Johnson
"Keep smiling ... it gives your face something happy to do
... and it makes people wonder what you're up to!"
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Congrats Steve, Andy, and Brian!
Hopefully, Red-Gate will continue to maintain the high standards you have set for this site. But if the gentleman from ApexSQL is correct, it seems that Red-Gate is beginning to shut out competitors. My concern is: will they begin to censor threads? If someone suggests a solution that includes a non-Red-Gate product, will that post mysteriously vanish? There is a perceived conflict of interest with Red-Gate now owning this site. Hopefully Red-Gate will not use this site to cut out their competition - but again, if the ApexSQL person is telling the truth, then it's already happening.
I've been with this site for a while now and hope to continue here. It's up to Red-Gate now to prove that they can keep this site the independant resource that it has been.
-SQLBill
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