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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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I've never been a camcorder person and that's probably because my parents weren't so I just learned to always save my memories via camera. However, I'm beginning to regret not catching those crucial milestones of my daughter and now that she's almost 2 years old I think I want to buy one. I don't want a bulky camera, but I don't want one that's so small the picture quality is poor. I would like it to be compact enough that's it's easy to carry on vacation since I will also be carrying a DSLR around with me too, but I have no idea of what to look for. I definitely need
I was not much of a camcorder person either until the kids were born. We have owned three of four since then and always bought Sony. They seemed to have some of the best for our use and always worked well.
Your DSLR doesn't have a movie mode? Now that still cameras shoot video, and camcorders shoot stills, which would you rather have, a really good still camera with really good video capabilities, or a camcorder with really mediocre still capabilities?
If your DSLR doesn't have movie mode... I don't have experience with today's crop of camcorders. My most recent dedicated-purpose camcorder uses digital tape. I do have an HD camcorder in my pocket, though... Have you considered an iPhone 4? The nice thing about a cell phone is that you're more likely to have it on you when you need to take a quick photo or video. Considering the overall versatility, you get a lot of bang for the buck.
The built-in main camera (it has two) has a 5mp sensor. It turns out 720p HD video and pretty nice stills. It has touch-to-focus, a very bright LED "flash," geo-tagging... The stills mode even has HDR mode (high dynamic range - it takes three bracketed exposures and combines them so you get better shadow and highlight detail). Plus, you're web-connected, so you can share your stuff immediately. Overall, considering how little use a regular camcorder usually gets, and how it never seems to be around when you need it to catch the kids in action... iPhone gets my vote.
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Co-Author, PassPorter's Walt Disney World, PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line, and PassPorter's Disneyland and Southern California Attractions
If your DSLR doesn't have movie mode... I don't have experience with today's crop of camcorders. My most recent dedicated-purpose camcorder uses digital tape. I do have an HD camcorder in my pocket, though... Have you considered an iPhone 4? The nice thing about a cell phone is that you're more likely to have it on you when you need to take a quick photo or video. Considering the overall versatility, you get a lot of bang for the buck.
My DH bought me a Nikon D3000 last year and the only downfall of the camera is that it doesn't have movie mode...I know...it would have been the perfect solution. I never even considered the iPhone. I'm actually going to be able to upgrade my phone in May and that was what I had planned on upgrading too. Maybe this is just another reason to get it. Thanks for your help Dave!
Now, for those folks who don't have the iPhone, what do you use...just in case.