ThinkPad Forums Get Together!

[nightninja96]

Hello, I was wondering if it is possible to host a get together for the thinkpad forum members!?

[axur-delmeria]

Hello, I was wondering if it is possible to host a get together for the thinkpad forum members!?

Problem is, members of this forum are scattered across the globe, and some of us might not have the time and/or resources to travel overseas.

[BillMorrow]

Hello, I was wondering if it is possible to host a get together for the thinkpad forum members!?

Problem is, members of this forum are scattered across the globe, and some of us might not have the time and/or resources to travel overseas.

there have been, on rare occasions, more or less local meet ups of forum members..
years ago..

in the NYC area and san jose area if my memory is working..

and to what end.. a good dinner party or a longer comparing of notes and antique thinkpads..
it might be a thing lenovo might want to sponsor if enough form members were to commit to attend..
but lenovo is unlikely to do so, especially if they continue their intense dislike of thinkpads.com and me after JPOESQ beat IBM & IBM's cease and desist lawyer letter to me in the late '90's..

but thinking about the idea it might just be a thing to do for those members who have the time and means to do so and simultaneously do some sort of interactive 'net show and tell..
but still, i don't think lenovo would even THINK (pun intended) about participating..
still thinking, such a meeet up might coincide with one of the big electronics shows in vegas..

[axur-delmeria]

but lenovo is unlikely to do so, especially if they continue their intense dislike of thinkpads.com and me after JPOESQ beat IBM & IBM's cease and desist lawyer letter to me in the late '90's..

That's the first time I've heard of this. Mind elaborating on the story? Or is there a forum thread about it?

[BillMorrow]

but lenovo is unlikely to do so, especially if they continue their intense dislike of thinkpads.com and me after JPOESQ beat IBM & IBM's cease and desist lawyer letter to me in the late '90's..

That's the first time I've heard of this. Mind elaborating on the story? Or is there a forum thread about it?

IBM sent a lawyer letter in the late '90's.. i'm sure i still have a scan of it someplace.. demanding that i turn over thinkpads.com to them.. a friend, JPOESQ, an intellectual properties lawyer in sacramento replied that their copyright for thinkpad did not cover thinkpads.com for a variety of reasons he explained in detail..
IBM left me alone but i have been sort of blackballed since..

there might be a thread someplace, not sure at this point..

i DID scan and post the letter online in the '90's which caused the lawyer, a senior associate, about 200 names down the list on the letterhead, who wrote the letter to "have a cow".. it might have been captured but that is about 20 years ago..

[Utwig]

We could also have one in Europe.

[axur-delmeria]

IBM sent a lawyer letter in the late '90's.. i'm sure i still have a scan of it someplace.. demanding that i turn over thinkpads.com to them.. a friend, JPOESQ, an intellectual properties lawyer in sacramento replied that their copyright for thinkpad did not cover thinkpads.com for a variety of reasons he explained in detail..
IBM left me alone but i have been sort of blackballed since..

there might be a thread someplace, not sure at this point..

i DID scan and post the letter online in the '90's which caused the lawyer, a senior associate, about 200 names down the list on the letterhead, who wrote the letter to "have a cow".. it might have been captured but that is about 20 years ago..

Glad that you won that, otherwise there wouldn't be a Thinkpad forum as good as this one.

Many thanks for keeping this forum up.

I wonder why I didn't find this site when I still had my first Thinkpad (760XD) back in the early 2000s. Then again I was a member of some Thinkpad mailing list back then.

[BillMorrow]

We could also have one in Europe.

doing something like this would require someone with the incentive to start small and build it up..
like a local meetup in a place close to a large population center..
i might be able to sort the member list by location BUT locations change and that question is a little nebulous, like your location now or your normal home location..
but it would be a place to start..
another thought is we just have never done a mass or directed emailing..

[skx]

We could also have one in Europe.

Yes, cheaper to charter a cargo plane to move all Thinkpads location of preference: Southern part of Spain. I am in if someone wants to organize it

[Thinkpad4by3]

I think an IRC chat thing would probably be a bit better than an in person meetup.

[axur-delmeria]

I think an IRC chat thing would probably be a bit better than an in person meetup.

Much easier, true.

But it's nice to see the faces behind the usernames, hear each other's voices.

We get to bring our beloved Thinkpads, brag about how they survived various incidents, attempt wacky stunts like skipping laptops over a lake.

[Thinkpad4by3]

Yes, maybe a skype call might be better or something like that. Faces and voices but no A31's with bad southbridges being used as skipping stones and frisbees. The problem is the fact of how big this forum is all over the world.

[RealBlackStuff]

Registered members: 57,884
Active members: not quite as many...

[skx]

We cannot share Belgian beers on IRC

[RealBlackStuff]

We cannot share Belgian beers on IRC

So what?
I never share my Guinness with anybody, but I happily drink mine in the company of others! Online or otherwise...

[nightninja96]

Ok, well I definitely have the incentive to organize this. All ideas are encouraged and appreciated. I really want this to become a reality, and I believe it can!

[nightninja96]

My first idea is to host this shindig at the IBM Museum in Endicott, NY. Endicott New York played an essential part in creating and continuing IBM.

[Cigarguy]

In the cigar and whisky community people get together to BS and make friends all the time. Met some fantastic people and friends this way. In the computer/IT industry....not so much. In my high school days (late 80s) there used to be an Amiga User Group that I meet with and enjoyed it very much. Go for it nightninja96 and I hope it works out for you.

[nightninja96]

Thanks CigarGuy, I appreciate it alot!

[olex126]

axur-delmeria said:

"We get to bring our beloved Thinkpads, brag about how they survived various incidents, attempt wacky stunts like skipping laptops over a lake."

Alas, my A31p sank when I tried skipping it over the lake.... along with all the gold bars too!!

Too bad, So sad!

Dave

[nightninja96]

axur-delmeria said:

"We get to bring our beloved Thinkpads, brag about how they survived various incidents, attempt wacky stunts like skipping laptops over a lake."

Alas, my A31p sank when I tried skipping it over the lake.... along with all the gold bars too!!

Too bad, So sad!

Dave

LOL, but in all seriousness, we should definitely bring our ThinkPads and brag about them, as you said!

[skx]

We cannot share Belgian beers on IRC

So what?
I never share my Guinness with anybody, but I happily drink mine in the company of others! Online or otherwise...

hehe

[nightninja96]

What kind of restaurant would we want, fancy, buffet, etc.?

[dorronto]

Interesting......

[Brad]

Well in the northeast at least there are quite a few forum members.
I hope to be available should a date be set.

Brad

[nightninja96]

Yeah, maybe this specific convention should be focused specifically on the North Eastern Thinkpaders of America.

[Saucey]

I'm sure at linux meets & programming events, there are quite a bit of ThinkPadders, maybe not ex-IBMers like here
I haven't went to a computer meet yet, was thinking of going to a 2600 meeting but a bit shy of being a noob there with no experience in programming or radios.
Whats the next big computer events going on? Meet up somewhere in Vegas when CES is going on?
I know there are head-fi meetups, not sure if there were some by geekhack or deskauthority.

but lenovo is unlikely to do so, especially if they continue their intense dislike of thinkpads.com and me after JPOESQ beat IBM & IBM's cease and desist lawyer letter to me in the late '90's..

I'm sure big IBM of the 80's would of done everything to destroy you.
Interesting story, I wonder if TPF was a sore thumb in IBM's eyes and didn't want IBMers from here.
Now I am wondering when Lenovo bought ThinkPad/ThinkCentre line from IBM if they talked about ThinkPads.com was a nuisance.

[BillMorrow]

**snippage here**

but lenovo is unlikely to do so, especially if they continue their intense dislike of thinkpads.com and me after JPOESQ beat IBM & IBM's cease and desist lawyer letter to me in the late '90's..

I'm sure big IBM of the 80's would of done everything to destroy you.
Interesting story, I wonder if TPF was a sore thumb in IBM's eyes and didn't want IBMers from here.
Now I am wondering when Lenovo bought ThinkPad/ThinkCentre line from IBM if they talked about ThinkPads.com was a nuisance.

well, they might have done just that surreptitiously but lost interest..
i DO know the dislike went on for years and while it did not intensify it remained until the sale and even after with some of the IBM'ers who remained with lenovo..

if the meetup is held in atlanta i might emerge from my cave and drive there just to frighten the women and children./.

[Utwig]

We could get some IRC or Riot server going. Or perhaps Discord (it does collect user data).

[skx]

I am idling already long time in ##ibmthinkpad on Freenode. There are many users over there, I assume many are as well member over here? Running a dedicated thinkpads.com irc server seems a bit overkill when Freenode, OFTC and others are easily available. Freenode also has interesing #coreboot channel, removing my bios is next on the do list