I had been a moderator over on the AGF for a long time, even back when we were the Taylor Guitar Forum. For a number of years after we became the "Acoustic Guitar Forum," out of respect for our roots we maintained a sub-forum we called the "Taylor Guitar Forum." It was the only sub-forum dedicated to a single manufacturer. There was nothing equivalent for Martin, Gibson, et al. After a while, the owner decided it was time to simply fold Taylor discussions in with "General Acoustic Guitar Discussion." This was fine with a lot of folks, but we had a good number of people, Josh included, who would rather keep the focus mainly on Taylors. So he decided to start this place. It wasn't out of anger or malice on anyone's part. In fact, Josh and I talked for a good while about structuring his own forum. He didn't exactly model his new forum after the AGF, but he certainly incorporated some of its best ideas. He went about setting this place up in all the right ways. Now, several years later, it's clear that first laying a strong, carefully considered foundation has made for solid, steady growth.
I later resigned my AGF duties, and stayed away for a while. I'm back over there occasionally now, and am pleased to see things running smoothly. It's still a great forum, though with over 100,000 members now, can't compete with close knit camaraderie felt here, especially among our regulars. That's to be expected, and is certainly no slam to either forum. I've only recently begun checking in here again, and I love the atmosphere, the information, inspiration, and the entertainment that is today's UTGF! (Good to see so many friends in both forums.)
Great job, Josh and company! You've created exactly the kind of community Josh first envisioned, a great place for Taylor guitar lovers to hang out together. I'm enjoying the conversation!
cotten
