Thank You ANDERTON!

Craig's a big reason I'm in this game at all.
 
Back when electronic music was an emerging and particularly arcane scene, Craig hooked up with others who were into it and started editing a magazine called Polyphony. It united the disparate enthusiasts around the world and for the first time there was a medium for sharing information about electronic music. I was a charter subscriber who devoured every issue. Modern-day vintage synth practitioners can still buy some of the surviving back issues. Kind of wish I'd saved mine.
 
 
Polyphony was mostly hardware-oriented, and mostly addressed DIY techniques and kit assembly. But in 1988 there appeared a review of a new MIDI sequencer called Cakewalk. I remember it as having Craig's byline, and although he did write most of the articles, he's never confirmed that he was the one who wrote that particular piece. He simply may not remember, given his prolific output over the years. But that half-page review changed my life.
 
I really wanted a software MIDI sequencer, but Cakewalk cost something like $300, a fortune to me at the time. All I could do was read and re-read the review and drool. Then a couple months later I went on a business trip to Los Angeles to train a customer to use a piece of software I'd written. The customer was a small (5 locations) chain of music stores called Guitar Center. The IT guy (they had just one IT person then) and I hit it off immediately, as he was the only person I'd ever met in person who, like me, was into both computers and music. He offered to get me anything I wanted at cost, and I could think of only one thing that I desperately wanted.
 
Next day I spent the entire return trip studying the manual, reading it twice through on the plane. After a quick stop to pick up a MIDI interface, I arrived at home mid-day when the wife was at work and the kids were in school. I almost didn't notice when they came home.
 
So yeh, I gotta add my thanks to these Craig accolades. 

+1
 
Craig was one of the few bright spots to the Gibson acquisition.  Losing Seth and Brandon after the Roland sale was huge but having someone like Craig with his background and experience stepping not only boosted our community, it got us thinking differently trying new ideas.  From the webinars he did to the tips on the forum, he really went above and beyond. 

Well, I had 2 heroes on this forum, people that would always surprise me with their expertise, attitude, being thoughtful, respectful and always ready to help. I wanted to be sort of like them. Yes, I'm talking Craig Anderton and Steve Cook.
Thank you Craig and Steve for all the time  and every effort of yours to make this community a better place!