Welcome to Windows Phone Thoughts!

[Jason Dunn]

<p>With apologies to the <a href="http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/305250.html" target="_blank">Great Bard</a>, a site by any other name still smells as sweet, does it not? Welcome to Windows Phone Thoughts, the site with a new name, new logo, but all the same great content from Pocket PC Thoughts and Smartphone Thoughts!</p><p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com//wpt/auto/1258442613.usr1.png" style="border: 0;" /></p><p>Over the years as the Windows Mobile Professional and Windows Mobile Standard platforms have gotten closer and closer together, I've looked forward to merging Pocket PC Thoughts and Smartphone Thoughts into a single site. Many of you have no doubt noticed over the past year especially that the content on Smartphone Thoughts has been largely mirrored from Pocket PC Thoughts. So much of the news about the platform is the same, only the application development for each platform - and the hardware differences - kept them apart. I've wanted to merge these two sites together under a single site name - a site name that reflects the current Microsoft branding - for quite some time, and it's been painful to have my flagship site bear the name of a brand (Pocket PC) no longer in use...yet I held off merging the sites, waiting for the day when Microsoft finally had only one mobile brand. Well, the Windows Phone brand is about as close to that as I can get today, so I'm taking this opportunity.</p><p>I'm also going to commit to re-energizing my efforts in the Windows Phone realm - we're going to staff up here at the site (stay tuned for the public call for volunteers), focus on expanding our review team to review more phones, software, and accessories, and strive to be even better at publishing the latest Windows Phone-related news and commentary. I want Windows Phone Thoughts to be the first place that you'll come to for the latest and greatest news and views about Windows Phones and the Windows Mobile platform. Let's be honest - right now it's hard to be a Windows Mobile enthusiast, but I believe that the best is yet to come from Microsoft in this space and I want to continue to support their efforts here - and, of course, speak openly when I think they're screwing up.</p><p>It will be hard retiring the name Pocket PC Thoughts - a site that has existed for longer than any other online property I've ever created - but all the great content, and you, the great community behind it, will live on under a new name. The same goes for Smartphone Thoughts - I'll miss that eye-catching orange design, but that core of what made that site great was the community and the fantastic volunteer Contributing Editors that have poured their efforts into it over the years. All that will continue to exist as I move the content from the old forum locations into the new forums. I should also add that more than a few things will be a bit...broken over the next few days as we fix glitches here and there - some things can't be fully completed until after everything goes live.</p><p>I welcome you to Windows Phone Thoughts!</p>

[humayunl]

Could it be.. that I'm the first to reply?

In any case, this is a good move and big day Jason - and I look forward to the same great content and wealth of information from WindowsPhoneThoughts!

[taiter]

looking good, and i get to be number 2 on this monumentous :D :cool:

[gears]

Wow Jason, a big change but I guess it had to be don't sooner or later. Good luck with everything!

[Stinger]

I'm looking forward to the revamp. Pocket PC Thoughts has always been my favourite Microsoft phone website.

[Philip Colmer]

Congratulations on the revamp.

Is something happening to the forums in the meantime? This announcement is the only bit of news appearing on Windows Phone Thoughts and although the Pocket PC Thoughts forums seem to be there, I'm sure I posted a message yesterday to a forum that I cannot find today!

[aarcam]

Don’t care what you call it, just as long as you keep bringing the goods. Been lurking here for a while and will continue to do so. Best of luck.

[The Yaz]

... and then there were four...

Jason,

While it does make perfect sense to combine the sites, it still is bittersweet. My PocketPC (Audiovox Maestro) is on its last legs and I do not look forward to losing all of the content its carried for me over the years (Applications, games, .lit ebooks, etc.) and your closing of the PocketPCThoughts site just makes it more real.

Good luck with the new (old) site(s)!

Steve

[Jason Dunn]

Is something happening to the forums in the meantime? This announcement is the only bit of news appearing on Windows Phone Thoughts and although the Pocket PC Thoughts forums seem to be there

"I should also add that more than a few things will be a bit...broken over the next few days as we fix glitches here and there..."

Doing a site switch-over like this is no small matter - I have to move all the content from all the old forums, delete the old forums, etc. Things aren't going to look/work exactly right until all that happens.

I'm sure I posted a message yesterday to a forum that I cannot find today!

We didn't delete any content; we're moving it from one forum to another. Whatever you posted should still be there.

[Damion Chaplin]

I've been waiting for this for a long time, and the day is finally here! Congratulations, Jason. Dig the new logo, too. :cool:

[chrisspera]

Things are looking good. I like the new logo! I wish you nothing but continued success!!

[Pete Paxton]

I'm so excited about this! I love the look of the new site!

[Janak Parekh]

Congratulations! And, good luck, Jason. :) You know I'll be watching. ;)

--janak

[Jon Westfall]

Truly a momentous occasion. PPCT was the first site (and largely the only) that I ever got really active on, and I'll miss the name for just that reason. However WPT is a great progression and I'll be happy to continue my editing duties under the new name!

[Philip Colmer]

"I should also add that more than a few things will be a bit...broken over the next few days as we fix glitches here and there..."
:eek: Sorry for not reading your post more carefully ...

We didn't delete any content; we're moving it from one forum to another. Whatever you posted should still be there.
Yeah, I did find it. I was flummoxed by the fact that the "Pocket PC Talk" forum had been moved and most of the others hadn't so I incorrectly thought that the forum had just vanished rather than actually applying some brain matter and realising you were going to move them over to Windows Phone forums.

[Jason Dunn]

Yeah, I did find it. I was flummoxed by the fact that the "Pocket PC Talk" forum had been moved and most of the others hadn't...

Yeah, I'm sorry about that - I'm at the Mobius event right now and they have us busy 18 hours a day, so I've haven't been able to put in the work required to move all the forums over. :o

[Darius Wey]

Yeah, I did find it. I was flummoxed by the fact that the "Pocket PC Talk" forum had been moved and most of the others hadn't so I incorrectly thought that the forum had just vanished rather than actually applying some brain matter and realising you were going to move them over to Windows Phone forums.

You'll probably find a lot of Pocket PC Thoughts and Smartphone Thoughts remnants scattered across the sites over the next few days. We're hoping to give everything the Windows Phone Thoughts spit, polish, and shine by Sunday. :)

[omikr0n]

To be honest, I'm quite sad about this change. Microsoft seems to be neglecting smartphone (Standard) platform ever since releasing WM 6.1.
There are hints everywhere that Standard platform might be discontinued altogether. Merging of PPCT and SPT really seems only like a maneuver to get rid of SPT.
It's quite a pity watching my favourite platform to die.

[Jerry Raia]

Looks great Jason! :)

[Jason Dunn]

There are hints everywhere that Standard platform might be discontinued altogether. Merging of PPCT and SPT really seems only like a maneuver to get rid of SPT. It's quite a pity watching my favourite platform to die.

I know what you mean, but as someone who has long preferred Windows Mobile Standard to Windows Mobile Professional, I'll always try to keep covering the non-touch devices... :)

[Jerry Raia]

It is the end of an era sadly :(

[bleeman]

Congratulations on the new (old) site Jason and staff! It's funny, I've been away for quite awhile as I ended up with a work provided BlackBerry and passed my old HP5555 on to my wife who uses it as a gaming device.

I finally got fed up with the BlackBerry and the Sprint "NOT" Now network and moved back to WinMo and AT&T with a new HTC Tilt 2! I've had it since Sunday but this has been the first chance to get online and look around for a site and my first thought was to come back to the "Thoughts" sites. Lo and Behold, I find WindowsPhoneThoughts!

I like the new design and like the others I started out on PPCT and added in SmartPhone Thoughts when I bought my "Star Trek" phone so it's only fitting that I have a WindowsPhone to go with the new site.

Looking forward to participating here and getting "back in the groove"

Again congratulations!