This "Open letter to Technote" was posted by me at Technotes forum January 16 - 2002 (about 21 o'clock GMT), and was deleted from the forum by admin at once. I posted it once again later the same night, and the next morning (today) it was deleted again, with no comment, as the usual way we've seen it lately.
They probably did not bother to read it, not to speak about reply to it. Well, that act really speak for itself!
When showing such arrogant way to behave, I found that I would post the letter here at SynthSone as well.
I guess there is no need to say that I'm very sorry about that Technote now seems to turn the back on us like this.
GJ

START QUOTE:


To the administrators at Technote.

For a while we have seen a Technote forum who has grown to be a great meeting place for Technics users as well as other keyboard-brands users.
Lot's of people have found the way to this Website to make use of the different services you have to offer. Many people also visit the forums, and some of us even use to write a word or more.

During the last month there most obviously have been something which cause this big changes that we now can see at the forum, and also the very, very strict kind of acting from the admin.
Even simple questions about this things has been deleted without any comments at all, and there are no kind of messages about why this happens, except from the new rules who have to be agreed every time to enter this furum.
Now I can see that the category where I was intended to post this "letter" is locked.

If it is something that I have done who cause this actions, I would like to know, because if so, it's me who should have been excluded from the forum, not any sort of 'collective punishment'.
I think it would have been better if you told us what's wrong, and then also what the actions would be if the exact happening or unwanted course of events didn't stop, before or instead of start acting like this. It's a kind of severe "we don't want to speak to you" thing.

In my opinion we need a place like this, where there is a business with a skillful crew of experts
who offer this great world wide service. When it also let the members/customers help each other to solve both small and big technical and musical problems, it's even better.
It is no problem to join or set up another Technics related forum or board elsewhere, but I think we should try to keep up this common surroundings that we have seen grow here lately instead of cut it down.

The fact that many of the members/users/customers "spreads the words" about Technote and the nice service offered here, most probably also have a positive effect. Because this 'adverts' might rise the number of visitors, would'nt it then again increase the amount customers for your business?

Please, let's speak out about what it was who cause this things happen, then reopen the forums who have a growing potential, and also make some "space under the roof" again.
It can't be that wrong if we happen to use a tiny bit of the forum to solve a "world problem" or two once in a while, eh?

Kind regards
GJ

End Quote.

I managed to see your post at Technotes before they deleted it. I thought you said it all very well. I would suspect they do read them before deleting them. Perhaps they will come to their senses when they notice no one is posting on the Forum.
This forum here should work fine without any worries of a repeat of what we are now experiencing at Technotes.

I see many have found their way over here already.

Marilyn

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Gunnar Jonny:
[B]This "Open letter to Technote" was posted by me at Technotes forum January 16 - 2002 (about 21 o'clock GMT), and was deleted from the forum by admin at once. I posted it once again later the same night, and the next morning (today) it was deleted again, with no comment, as the usual way we've seen it lately.
They probably did not bother to read it, not to speak about reply to it. Well, that act really speak for itself!
When showing such arrogant way to behave, I found that I would post the letter here at SynthSone as well.
I guess there is no need to say that I'm very sorry about that Technote now seems to turn the back on us like this.
GJ


[This message has been edited by Marilyn Boissoneault (edited 01-17-2002).]

GOOD ONE GUNNAR
Best Wishes.

The 'Jungle Telegraph'is a very strong tool, and that tool have been spoken for Technotes benefit for a long time. Now they've managed to turn it against themselves.
Now, when our blood is "heated up to the high level", we most not forget that Technote has been a great place, and that our goal is not to make any more damage, but get things sorted out so we could carry on the good things we was a part of, even if it look like that's never going to happen right at the moment.

Myself, I have tried to reach in to the Technote admin by use of the forum, because this is a common matter for all of us who where regulary users/members, instead of use a e-mail directly to Nik or Graham. But you have all seen what happened.

Please, don't make this to a war against Technote, but rather see it as we are no longer welcome to use the service as we was lucky to be a part of. They don't want let any of us know about the facts why they act like they do, and as already said, there most be a reason. Until we know more about the exact reason, and no users have got any personal message about it, there is nothing more we can do about it than look into ourselves and see if there was something illegal things we did. If it's so, then we have to be careful and not repeat it here at this forum so we have to go through it all again. Even if the "space under the roof" is quite high here at Nigel's forums, there is no need to jump higher than nessesary.

This is my final comment on this matters, unless there is coming any comments from Technote to be replied.
Let's look forward, enjoy and have fun with the music, and use this forum in a proper way so that Nigel don't have to step in and calm us down too often

Kind regards
GJ

I agree completely with what our super level-headed Musician Friend is saying. Gunnar always hits the nail right on the head. He must stay up nights reasoning things through.
Once again, I say don't burn your bridges. Not everyone is going to move over here. There are many we have not heard from. You just don't know when you will need to go to Technote to get a proper answer from some of the Guru's that will stay there. Remember older people don't like change. I am older (70) and I didn't want this change but once it seem to be the only recourse I went to work on it. In my humble opinion, (IMHO) I think we might be very fortunate to have the best of both worlds.
Once again I reiterate my thanks for this site to Nigel and also to Marilyn and Gunner for their help in getting us here. Thanks to all of you that have joined us here.
Like Frank Bez said in his post. Lets get back to the happy art of making music and let everything else stew in its own juices. Time can and does have a way of changing everything.
Best to all,
BEBOP

------------------
BEBOP
Bill Forrest in SAN JOSE, CALIF. USA
bforrest@ix.netcom.com ICQ # 562519
Homepage http://members.fortunecity.com/bebop1
Moderator SynthZone TECHNICS FORUM
http://www.synthzone.com/cgi-bin/forumdi...=1000&SUBMIT=Go


[This message has been edited by BEBOP (edited 01-17-2002).]

Hi Gunnar

Good comments regarding Technote letter, I myself was relatively new to their forum but found it all of great interest even the more technical queries and new that if I did have a problem with my KN someone would help me sort it out.

The only thing I feel guilty about was offering my music for Free to you all I did not see any harm in doing so and followed the trend but to many Free things maybe was not allowed.

Then Alec’s book “How do I do that” arrived and although he was not actually advertising the book it indirectly managed to get a mention in the forum maybe Technote were annoyed because they did not think of this extra revenue first..

So there we go I am sure we will all survive

Regards
Pete

Hi Peter.

I don't think it is the fact that some people swap songs who cause the "closedown" or new restrictions, but rather the fact that there was become far to much of it, and that there also was genuine copyrighted styles enclosed.
If we see it from the business part and also the common rules about copyrighted stuff, I have no problem to understand that some kind of reaction had to come.
But it is the way it happen who get the "blood heated", because it could have been done in a much better way.

Regarding to Alec's book, no it was not that, because if so, would Technote make the link for Keynote to help people find it? No, it's probably the massive swap of disks who caused it, but it might as well have been other things.

Kind regards
GJ

OK, In another post I said it might be my last on the subject, but i also said that I doubted it so, ... Right again, Gunnar .... it's HOW they handled it, with no forewarning, no response, nothing .. even if they have to maintain silence because of a pending law suit (not that I know of one), let us know that.. this morning (USA ET) there was a post asking what happened to all his prior posts ... Nik answered 'What were the posts .. we wouldn't delete anything pertinent, we're here to help' ..... I took the liberty of responding that I thought the person was referring to his posts questioning what was going on with the forum. An hour later the original post, Nik's response, and my response were gone..... case closed....
t.

Hi Gunnar

Thanks for your reply for those people who do not fully understand I would be interested to know about the common rules regarding copyrighted stuff/genuine copyrighted styles, etc I tend to create my own rhythms and sound setups but maybe I am missing something.
Regards
Pete

Hi Peter.

Regarding to the copyright etc., in example, if you use a style from retail/genuine disks, it is copyrighted. If you use the native styles from the keyboard it's public as far as I see it, unless there is any written notes about restrictions by use of the keyboard or to use it in public. (That would have been something)
If you make a style by yourself it's yours, and you can do as you like, get it copyrighted, or make it public by make it free for everybody to use without any restrictions.
Then again, the songs used have a composer / author, who most likely have the copyrights to the song, and it's not legal to spread round, just like we see regarding to lyrics, sheets and midi-files.
Lately there have been payed high attention to these matters, and in my country (Norway), we just have seen a massive attack against illegal stuff, both at websites and forums/groups.

Looking to my website i.e., you will not find any "genuine" stuff, other than converted styles from the internal (public) styles of different keyboards/brands. If I had used retaildisks who are addon tradeware, i.e. from Technotes webshop or elsewhere, I would probably been offweb long time ago, because then it's illegal according to the copyrights etc.

Everybody know that some of us might swap such disks among music friends once in a while, it's not any big secret at all, but then we better not announce it for free, just keep in touch by e-mail or snailmail, and keep the head low.

Hope this explained a little, and if I have wrote some wrong here, please jump in and correct or add what might be for more help at the topic.

Kind regards
GJ

I didn't realize there was any copyrighted material in those songs. I noticed quite a few using internal KN6000 songs. Also some using converted styles from other keyboards I guess I didn't notice any with Technotes styles...which I would certainly understand that they would be upset over that.

Marilyn


[QUOTE]Originally posted by Gunnar Jonny:
[B]Hi Peter.

I don't think it is the fact that some people swap songs who cause the "closedown" or new restrictions, but rather the fact that there was become far to much of it, and that there also was genuine copyrighted styles enclosed.

Marilyn

This is my final post about the last days events regarding Technote.
Here you can see the history of e-mail from Technote, my replies, and finally the last reply from Graham which I just recieved.

This tread/topic will be deleted by me within a few days, then I hope we do as Graham says here, look forward.

_______________________________________

Hello Gunnar - this is Graham from Technote,

Following recent events and messages on the forums, I just wanted to let you know our situation with regard to the Forum. Sadly, it was getting to the point where it was beginning to do our business more harm than good. I won't get into the details here but that's the fact of the matter. Rather than delete the Forum entirely, we decided to continue with a revised one which can still be used for the purpose that was originally intended i.e. to ask questions and discuss issues relating to your keyboard.

I'm sure you will understand that being a commercial business, closely linked with product manufacturers and music publishers, we have to take careful steps in order to protect our business interests - something which is obviously not a concern for Synthzone.com (which, by the way, I think is a superb website for general discussion).

Please be assured that we have not taken these steps lightly but have to look at the complete picture from a commercial business point of view. Thank you for listening Gunnar.

Kind regards,

Graham Tilney
Technote International Ltd

____________________________


Hello Graham.

Thank you so much for giving me this e-mail and information about the
things happening at Technotes forum.
I know you have much to do, but hopefully you will take the time to read
all of my mail.

I have all the time done all what I can to tell keyboardusers about your
site and forum, and when the site extended to also support other brands,
I aslo have done a lot of PR about that naround. This because I think Technote
is one of the best sites of this kind I've ever seen. Maybe by doing it, I also is
one of the reasons that things became as they did.

When see what happened now, I have no problem to tell you that this have
made me feel very, very bad. Much more than I even thought it could.
Also it have to be very hard for you to see the way people respond, and keep
on to try reach you, and that the conflict of opinion make unessesary words
ant terms be used in some of the posts.

Yes, I understand fully that some steps had to be taken to "clean up" this
things when we saw the diskswaps etc. who was taken place, but the hard
way this was done, and the fact that you did not make a post, i.e. like this
mail for me, to tell the members / users what we have done to make this
desicions, make the situation even much worse.

It would have been a very easy step to make a message like your mail at
the space where you told about the maintainace, and i.e. reorganize the forum
a less harder as we see now .Then, with a note about that the forum was going
to be closed if the users did not behave, would have been enough.
If so, I'm sure you could get the people with you instead of against you, and
those of us who could not accept the steps who had to be taken, could easily
been excluded, either by you, or rest of the users who would understand that
this was absolutely nessesary.

If you are willing to give it a little thought, and maybe concider to recieve some
suggestion about how it might be possible to make everyone smile again, I will
be very happy if I could be for any help .

Kind regards
Gunnar Jonny

___________________________________________

Graham,

Hopefully you've got my first reply to this mail.
Just a question.
Is it OK if I refer to your mail in a post at SZone, so
the people can see that there is responded to some
of us, it might help to stop the speculations?
If not, I will of course not do it.

Kind regards
Gunnar Jonny

_____________________________________

Hello Gunnar,

thanks very much for your reply. Please don't feel bad - the reasons for the change are not down to any individual and I appreciate your kind words about Technote which you have already written at synthzone.com

I have no problem with you referring to my email at synthzone but let's look to the future. What is done is done - I think Sythzone will be an excellent site where you can discuss things freely and likewise, if anyone wants to post a technical question at technote.com I'm sure they will get an answer.

With best regards,
Graham
Technote Int. Ltd.

_________________________________

That's it, as I said, this tread will be deleted within too long, and my eyes look forward.
GJ

Well written Gunnar. Says it all.

A quotation from The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam


The Moving Finger writes, and, having writ,
Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,
Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.

We can only go forward. Walter.

[This message has been edited by Walter McLaren (edited 01-18-2002).]

This is a most curious sequence of events that has led to an abandonment of the Technote website by some of it's most avid supporters. Go figure. In any case, this seems like a good place to share ideas, questions and experiences about Technics instruments, so I'll be checking in here from time to time.

Rob

There is no mistaking that Technote have made a grave error of judgment here by abandoning their once loyal followers without rhyme or reason
no explanation no nothing.
Graham's emails don't even go part way of an explanation
Johnnie