So in December 2006, ezboard Inc. wrote:

“Do I have to switch to this next version of software?
“No, not unless you want to. But we envisage that almost all ezboards will be switched over to this version at some point in time. We will keep server clusters running old software for some time…

“Do I have to move my board to yuku.com domain?
“No, you do not have move to yuku.com. If you’d prefer to stay on ezboard.com with your current ezboard software you can….

“Will my ezboard forum be switched over without my consent?
“No, boards will need to be switched by the admin. At this stage, they will not be switched over by our system if you do not initiate the switch.

“What will happen if I choose not to migrate my board?
“At this point in time, nothing. Your ezboard will continue to run as it always has. You have a minimum of 12 months* before you need to make a decision, and as stated above, some clusters of boards on the current software may be kept running.
“* written in December 2006 - these details will soon be updated…
“This page was last modified 10:41, 12 September 2007.”

So I’d guess that from that, you’d be pretty safe to assume that ezboard, Inc. would not migrate ezboards over to Yuku without the board “owner’s” consent and they would not need to make decision about switching until into 2008 as a minimum. Well, you might be safe to assume that if that were to have been a statement from a company other than ezboard, Inc. who - let’s face it - are not exactly accurate with their statements in my experience.

Strange then when on 5 September 2007 a user, “Wild Jazie” writes:

“I’ve heard some boards have been migrate to yuku without the ezop’s knowledge, is this true?
Becuz I don’t want my board moved until I absolutely have to… “

Surely not? Er … well … yes! On 6 September, an ezboard Customer Services Rep., ezDollar, writes:

“Regarding ezboards being migrated without request, it is my current understanding that this is true in some cases. We haven’t been given any further details on that subject.” [emphasis added]

Another user, kerryborn28, writes:

“We do NOT want our board moved without our permission. I thought that Mr. Labatt’s blog made it clear we would not be moved without us giving permission.”

Ah yes. Those would be the Labatt blogs on Yuku and ezboard that ezboard, Inc. have removed as part of their efforts to erase the past.

Along comes another user, David Pierce, who posts the question about backups which he then repeated on Yuku (before it was deleted).

In it, he states that:

“EZBoard had foolishly left their own backup system connected to the rest of EZBoard, making it a prime target for hackers”

ezDollar is quick to deny that, writing:

“Unless you are ezboard staff, a law-enforcement agent who worked on that case, or… the hacker… you cannot possibly know how the hacking was accomplished. Therefore, the above quoted statement is speculation and/or rumor and should not be stated as if it is a fact.”

Funny that, because he, along with many of us, recall Labatt saying that the claimed hacker had managed to hop over and delete the backups…

The regularly-touted line that “Yuku is still in beta” when anything goes wrong, is then used against them by “7dlh7″:

“If Yuku is not finalized yet, why are we being told INvoluntary migrations are in the works?”

Good point! ezboard can’t have it both ways.

And then, on 13 September 2007, a rapid “clarification” by ezDollar:

“I said that it was my understanding that a few boards had been migrated without the ezOps prior knowledge. That was true — that was my understanding, based on something I had seen posted elsewhere — but it was a misunderstanding on my part. Yuku staff has informed me that they are not migrating boards except at the request of the ezOp and that no one has been forced to migrate.

“It seems that there have been a couple of situations where a board was migrated as part of a developer’s test, because the developer thought the ezboard was abandoned, but the ezboard was not deleted and those situations were resolved postively. There have also been situations where there seemed to be conflicting and confusing requests from ezOps and admins of the same board so, if you are an admin or ezOp, please make sure everyone on your board’s staff is on the same page before you request a migration or ask to have one stopped.”

So it’s Yet Another Yuku Developer Cock-Up! Yeah, right…

Meanwhile over on Yuku, “gobonas99″ writes:

“So…if there are no mandatory migrations happening yet, then WHY is the ezboard that I frequent being FORCED to transition to “Yucki” this week - even though the Admins have NOT requested a transfer (and in fact submitted tickets to request the transfer be stopped) because the majority of our members do NOT want to move until we absolutely have to??”

“alison” lets it rip with:

“No ezboard has been migrated without the knowledge or agreement of the admins. The ezop of your board has agreed to migrate to yuku.

Edited to add: We’ve found a ticket from your admin asking to stop the migration. We can do that, of course - but perhaps your admin should talk to your ezop?”

ORLY? “rmangles” writes:

“I’m the ezOp of the board mentioned above.

ezBoard/Yuku began the migration process with no input from the ezOp or Admins of the board. When tickets were entered, there was no mention of stopping the process.

The migration itself is F***ed up and I’ve exchanged numerous emails about it.

No one has ever mentioned that the migration could be UNDONE.

How do I make it STOP, Alison???”

So who’s lying? You decide, dear reader. I know who I think it is..