As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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We went to Legoland in CA last Feb and in order to participate in the Mindstorms program you had to register at the building in the morning for a session later in the day.
My DH is taking our DS to Legoland in FL in April and the Mindstorms is the one thing he wants to do the most. Does it work the same way, that you register early? I can't find any information on that anywhere.
That will be the plan then. On our trip in CA we lucked out because it showed the Mindstorms closed for the date we were there online. We happened to walk by the lady holding a clipboard and I asked if that was for the Mindstorms, it was. My DS was so excited, he didn't think he would get to do it.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
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The Mindstorm is in the large building where they build their cars to race each other. We went about mid-morning and signed him up for a group a bit later. Each group takes about an hour. So we got some lunch, and came back and relaxed in a chair while DS built his car and raced against the other kids. Mindstorm is a great introduction to the Robotics teams they have in elementary & middle schools. Hopefully your schools have that program too.
The class my daughter took used one of the robots to do "missions" -- rescue a figure from a platform, travel to a spot and pick up a rock, etc.
They use the same mission mats as the LegoLeague competitions.
The Mindstorm is in the large building where they build their cars to race each other. We went about mid-morning and signed him up for a group a bit later. Each group takes about an hour. So we got some lunch, and came back and relaxed in a chair while DS built his car and raced against the other kids. Mindstorm is a great introduction to the Robotics teams they have in elementary & middle schools. Hopefully your schools have that program too.
He loved the class in CA. We are homeschooling now so we don't have the robotics teams. In the tiny town we live in they wouldn't have them at the schools either. But we can definitely create our own fun stuff.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Carousel96
The class my daughter took used one of the robots to do "missions" -- rescue a figure from a platform, travel to a spot and pick up a rock, etc.
They use the same mission mats as the LegoLeague competitions.
I've heard in FL they have different classes, I will have to let my DH know to see what class he would want to do, and what time works for them.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
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Depending on how crowded the park is that day, you may not get a choice in the time of the class, and have to see where they have any slots open. I think they scheduled them every 2 hrs. As for the LegoLeague Robotics teams, you may want to check in a larger town near you. Our Science Center down in Ft. Walton Beach has a team and over in the neighboring county there's a 4H team. And they also compete against ours. It's a great program!
Depending on how crowded the park is that day, you may not get a choice in the time of the class, and have to see where they have any slots open. I think they scheduled them every 2 hrs. As for the LegoLeague Robotics teams, you may want to check in a larger town near you. Our Science Center down in Ft. Walton Beach has a team and over in the neighboring county there's a 4H team. And they also compete against ours. It's a great program!
Thanks for the info, I will let my DH know that it may be whichever class is available. I'm sure that will work fine. I'm giving my DH a rough touring plan (he likes having plans, hates making them) that he can easily alter to fit the class in at whatever time they get.
I will look into the LegoLeague teams. We are really isolated and the two neighboring towns are still very small and don't have a lot of things like that. Typically for these types of things we have to go to Albuquerque or Lubbock both of which are a 2 1/2 hour drive (one-way) for us. But I will look into it.