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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Disclaimer: I am kinda techno illiterate.. I do have a kindle fire & ocassionally use it for internet, I don't own a laptop ( all 3 of my kids do tho) & am still using a plain ole desktop.
I have a fairly basic cell phone ( Samsung Reality I think) I think it has internet capabilities but I have never used them as I had the cheapo plan from Verizon wireless... ($10 a month) . DH & my sons all had the unlimited plan for their internet but Verizon got rid of that in favor of family shared plan.. Everyone was up for upgrades & DH & DS1 went & got new phones today.. DH loves the droid & android OS while my kids all love their iphones.
Everyone knows what phones they want for upgrade except me!!! I wouldn't even upgrade my phone ( i use things until they're DEAD!) but it is showing some signs of wear... I would love to hear some recommendations on what kind of phone to get ..
I don't like the virtual keyboard & want a qwerty keyboard.. OS doesn't mean much to me .. I am also CHEAP so I will probably be getting one of the free phones from verizon wireless.
so.. any suggestions on a plain EASY TO USE phone with a regular keyboard (slide out etc). I will probably start using it for the internet as well since it's part of our family share plan...
DH & I just upgraded from a Samsung Fascinate to an iPhone. Personally, I like the iPhone much better. DD has a Samsung Brightside which has the slide out qwerty keyboard. It seems pretty easy to use. DH has another Samsung for work with the slide out qwerty and its awful. Don't know the name but he's constantly complaining about it. Good luck. It killed me to spend the money on the iPhone but I'm glad I did. The kids being able to Facetime my FIL during his last few days made it worth it and more
My recommendation is not to get an Iphone. The keyboard is on the screen and it's not the easiest to type on. I have an Iphone and will be getting rid of it as soon as I can as I'm not a fan, I keep loosing stuff for no reason. I am hoping to get one of the fancy new Samsungs. I would look on Verizons webpage and see what phones are offered with an actual keyboard (not as easy to find anymore) and what their prices are.
Go to the store and see what they have. Phones change so rapidly, by the time I was able to type out a recommendation, that phone would be obsolete!! Seriously, a few years ago we got new phones (new plan, new carrier), and within a month DD Lauren had lost hers. It was a fairly newer phone but when we went to get a replacement, they didn't have it anymore, it was too old!!
Good luck. I ended up with a phone I hate because I don't want nor do I need a 'smart' phone. We don't have internet on our phones (they have the capability, we just refuse to pay for the service). We call and text - and texting is fairly new to us, less than 2 years.
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My kids love their iPhones, but before they got those, my DD had a Blackberry which has a keyboard and she liked having that keyboard right on the phone (no need to flip it out). I don't know what phones still have that feature, but take a look and see if there are still some and if you'd prefer it on the phone to a slide-out of flip-out keyboard phone.
My phone has a slide-out keyboard but I'm not on the internet with it and just use it for texting. It's a LG something-or-other. (Pay as you go plan for me).
I have a friend who was in the same position. The last two phones she had she absolutely hated. Also, she has hand issues that makes typing difficult.
This last phone upgrade we got her the updated version of my Blackberry Torch. Yep, Blackberry. The Torch has both a full keyboard and a touch screen. She can use the keyboard fine and likes accessing Twitter and Facebook on her phone. And she doesn't complain, although she doesn't make full use of it. But then, neither do I.
The biggest thing is to play with all the phones you can. Handle them, open and close the keyboard, whatever you can. Don't rule out Bumbleberries. I have been happy with the two I've had.
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I have been a strong supporter of the iPhone. We switched service last year from AT&T to Sprint and I couldn't afford the iPhone, so I got an LG something or other. It was terrible. A few months later, I came off my parents plan (I know, how silly, I'm 34 and still on my parents plan) and went to AT&T and got another iPhone. Eventually, it got so bad that I couldn't stand it. I'd have to restart it a few times a day, the battery was terrible, but the worst part was I started having trouble seeing the screen. I got talked into an HTC Evo and I LOVE IT!!!! The only thing I dislik, is the keypad on the screen, but I know you can change them.
Just my opinion - I had a Blackberry and switched to an iPhone. Love it! Have apps for my regular mail, my work mail, weather, maps, google, and games - I play games with my kids, my friends, and my dad!
I just got the Samsung Galaxy S3 and I like it so far. I doubt you would since it doesn't have a slide out keyboard.
I did see a phone with the slideout keyboard right next to it at my Verizon store. I can't remember what the phone was though. I just know they are out there.
The Samsung Galaxy Stratosphere II has a slide out qwerty keyboard and is currently $49.99 when you upgrade your phone with Verizon. (Mine is due to be upgraded too!)
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Our last WDW trip as a family 
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