[GJZH]

I personally would not change the name....I had a Yahoo board for the Tarlov cyst....Somone convinced me that the format for that board was difficult to use and that since the Tarlov cyst is rather rare I should tweak the name and switch to a different board too...Since I was paying monthly for the Yahoo board I dumped it....We were having a problem with people not posting much anyway..I switched to a different type board and changed the name to include spinal problems....I lost most of the membership and people are still not posting....The membership is growing slowly, but people still do not post....

I think people were very excited initially when they saw this board and thought it was the original Braintalk...As they slowly or quickly realized it was not, just another board that looks very much like BT....the excitement faded somewhat....but truthfully what is the big deal with using BT2 and using both boards?..Braintalk posters feel a kinship of some sort...There is no match or board like it on the Internet.. It is "magic"...I am certain you would all agree....There are many that would like to "clone" it...but they cannot..I cannot on my own boards and I am a very, very, nice person and intelligent too..(I know, I know...I should not be saying that about myself, but it is true and those that know me will tell you that about me and I agree.)...I do not know what the mix is on BT or why people feel so comfortable or at on home on BT, but it cannot be duplicated, so to close this board and to start another just because the original starts up again is silly...

It can be another safe haven for those to come to when BT is down again and it will be....How many times has it happened before?..I know people repeatedly e-mailed me asking me for the name of the board people went to when BT was down..People believed there was a board for us to go to when BT was down....So what is wrong with BT2...Some of you have stated publicly that you are more comfortable here anyway.....For some reason many of us tried to warn John and the moderators of the impending crash, but our threads were locked and we were threatened with banning if we brought it up again, so it was weird...People were hesitant to post at first, but little by little you are coming around and posting....Why? I think,because you need the comraderie of very old friendships. Many of you go back to the beginning of BT...I do not, but have made many friendships none-the-less....

Many, many of us use more than one board, don't we? I know I do...I have two boards of mine own and visit probably ten boards...I do not visit them every day as I do have a family and a life off of this computer, but I do visit about ten boards....

BT is not back up....I am not getting a message when I go to the address page...I do not read this board everyday to determine what is going on...so maybe I am not up to date on the new launching date, but this board should keep the name BT2....This was a nice gesture by John...He saw a need and he acted on it...We are familiar with the format....Why cause him more work and us too?...Let things be as they are....John has not gained anything from starting this board..... I do not think anyway...He has not gained instant wealth and fame.... Any number of us would have jumped on it if that were the case...The responsibility of running and maintaining a board, any board, but especially this board is monumental.

John has already been attacked publicly for starting the board....Some think he has alterior motives...and while some of us might have thought it, others did not hesitate to post their thoughts about his motives for the board publicly.....I do not know John... but, I certainly hope his act is sincere in just wanting to help people....There are many, many people that need this board....It is their lifeline to the outside world...There are many that are elderly, ill, need advice on surgery; pre/post-op, medicine, disability, etc., they might be suicidal, or something simple...We have all been there at one time or another..I know I have been...and I am thankful to John Lester for providing it....but am just as thankful now that John has put up this board as well....I say leave things as they are....You did a good thing....You meant no harm....No one would have ever found this place had you put up any other name....in all honesty....This can be home too...BT2! What's in a name?

[ConsiderThis]

Hi,
I think it's true that people tend to not come back when things change, even if they were asking for the change.

I saw it on other boards.

BT had a huge membership, partly because of huge publicity. Advertising pays.

But time does the same thing: more and more people come over time. So that's another reason to keep things the same -- so that those who do come don't get turned away by the change.