Thanks, Sposfan, for taking the time involved with presenting the transcript. Your dedication to this forum is much appreciated.

It's clear, Dayne, that you feel you were never given a fair chance by the majority of us. I can't change how you feel but I don't share your perception. I think that a tiny minority engaged in an all-out attack against you from Day 1. That was not fair but I have to believe that you are savvy enough to know that dealing with the public brings out all kinds. It is just as unfair of you to judge the entire group based on the ramblings of a very vocal minority. It appeared to me that the vast majority on this forum took a wait-and-see approach. There are lots of folks like me who frequent the forum yet post infrequently. As time went on and words were followed by more words, as opposed to product, folks naturally became impatient and distrustful. Yes, 9b and 9c became a reality and they were positively received. They also were very long overdue. The 5/24 announcement then confirmed the majority's increased sense of foreboding about the game we have come to enjoy so much. So, have the last few days been witness to angry outbursts directed at you? Clearly. I think it is also clear that 99% of those outbursts are born of a dedication to a great product, and a true sense that customer loyalty has not been rewarded but disregarded. I completely respect your right to see things differently, and to make whatever business decisions you truly feel are in IS's best interest, but portions of the chat left me with the sense that the PC decision was grounded in part on your reaction to forum vitriol.

While the chat can be difficult to follow at times, I think, Dayne, that you unequivocally stated that season disks and patches will continue to be produced. The door was even left open to making 9_ compatible with future OS's. Maybe we can appeal to each other's sense of fair play. If I can be so bold as to speak for most of us, backing up those commitments with product would go a long way to fostering a sense of trust and turning flat-out negative comments into constructive input. Both in the chat and liberally sprinkled among the hundreds of posts from the last few days are sincere offers from members of this community to take an active role in keeping the PC game viable. Reach out to those folks; there is some superb talent there. And to turn 180 degrees from the Chicken Little mindset, maybe the efforts of those folks can make this a win-win. If it's a labor of love for them, that's mighty low overhead for IS.

Give it some thought; keep the lines of communication open; deliver on your representations.

Dave