100% agree H-B is an extremely valuable resource for the serious espresso fiend. I liken CG to coffee education through maybe High School. H-B continues through post graduate and oft times way beyond.

First ya gotta learn to walk. When you want to get serious and run with the big boys H-B leads the way. Definitely don't even think about dummying it down

Dan's work here is an achievement that would merit high praise for a full time job. It is almost inconceivable to me that he does it as a hobby after he finishes his day job.

The current level of equipment discussion is pitched directly at my own interests and budget. The Titan Grinder Project was responsible for my buying a Max Hybrid. But I have been a bit of a gadfly here in arguing that (above a rather low threshold) skill trumps equipment and that newbies should not be shamed into expensive hardware. I do this partly because it is true and partly to avoid scaring off novices with the idea this has to be a high-cost hobby.

I spend a lot less time at CG, where I mainly look at the regional forums to see if I have anything in the way of Southern California news to contribute. [A prospective shop owner just asked if it was true that people do not drink coffee here.]

As for alt.coffee, it makes me ill on the rare occasions I look at it. So, I have no problem with Dan keeping the arguments on his own site somewhere below a fever pitch.

I'm not sure that the comparison between the two sites isn't one of a general hospital and a specialty clinic. CG does the entire spectrum of coffee, and HB focuses (primarily) on espresso in its various forms.
General hospitals do a bit of heart work, but a cardio/thoracic specialty clinic is going to have nothing but.
And as for moderation, here I've been directed, assisted, edited and corrected. All by a kind word from your host, Dan. Never have I been treated like a bad person or a small child. All of his suggestions have been calm, patient, and friendly. As a matter of fact, through those interactions, if someone were to ask, I would say that I consider Dan Kehn a friend of mine.
This contrasts another site I (used to) frequent, one for the discussion of Formula One Motorsports. I have had a dozen or so posts edited or portions deleted (unintended double entendre, usually a product of a moderators prurient misunderstanding, or just completely not taking context into the equation), entire posts disappear for much the same, or unexplained reasons, and recently I've been banned. I'm supposing it was in response to a post I made suggesting that racism and name calling weren't proper activity on a public forum, but, as usual, the moderators there reacted in a kneejerk response, and I've not heard anything from them.
I've taken my home-barista-hood from buying bagged grocery store coffee and grinding it with my lil tiny Krups (22mm) burr grinder for my Krups Steamtoy, to my two Mazzer Majors and the Astoria two-group professional kit, and my skills have become commensurate to the kit along the way. While HB has taught me a lot, and in many cases far more than I could comprehend at first reading, seeing the scientists work was always comforting, even if I couldn't grasp it at first go. And scrolling down to the bottom for the conclusion was always an option! CG was there as well, and helped me on that journey, too. If I need to go to the hospital, I'm glad that it's there. If I need a cardiac specialist, I'm glad that that's there, too. There is no reason that one needs to go, or take a back seat, or 'live in the shadow', or be considered better than the other, 'cause they're both very different, even if they do appear, on the surface, to be similar sites competing with one another.
And Dan, don't ever change. I moderate a very small group of posters and I have to do some of the very same things that happen here. I use your guiding hand as a model for that site. Thanks for all of it!

jamhat wrote:HB also provides a sense of community (OK, maybe call it a "cyber community"). Where else can you go and find people who understand your passion about espresso? When I talk to friends and colleagues, in depth, about espresso or espresso machines, they can sometimes give me strange looks!

First hand experience about this: I'm in the market for a Quickmill (upgrade-itis, I know) and came across a post from AUSTINrob. Turns out he has what I want near my home and we'll be getting together so I can see how it pulls early in January before I make a purchase decision. How cool is that, when community extends offline as well?

Dan, you the MAN! Go Team H-B!

If you are in the Oakland CA ghetto area come on by for a cup! Sweet Maria's is around the corner (as is BB). Nice to see your face on CG as well.

I love this site. Makes me wish I was smarter but hey, I got all you brainy scientific types out there to lurk upon. If it wasn't for the spell checker I would be hosed though! Really, Dan puts a lot of effort behind the scenes as well. I know, I have got the ruler before and it is important to have someone sailing the ship or it invariably ends up on the rocks.
I really have enjoyed all the reviews, smack downs and inventor types as well. Even the website is attractive. Kinda like coffee ice cream and espresso. I know there is some friction behind the scenes but hey, life happens. Hope I am not beating a dead horse here (last post awhile ago) . I mean it has to be better than living next door to a punk club, right!? Bastards, they killed Kenny!

Be well all!

I come here for the detailed techinical content, and the people who populate this community. The combination of professionals, semi-pro's, and devoted amateurs is unbeatable. When I first got interested in 'serious' coffee about eight years ago, I gravitated to CG, and that's what drove me to buy the Silvia. When my Silvia started acting up yesterday, I pulled out the manual looking a wiring diagram, and found several printed articles on Silvia from Randy Glass's espressomyespresso.com website I printed back in 2001. The last year I've become re-invigorated towards coffee and have found this to be the place to come to educate myself and engage in discussions. I love technical details, and it's the labor of love that drives this site. Inventive people who ask why and put a thermometer in an E61 grouphead, or who look for a better way to measure brew temperature than threading a thermocouple on top of a puck. Reminds of a guy I saw racing an Alpha Romeo that had thermocouples on all the exhaust headers and digital displays on the dashboard.

I really have no criticism on the way the site is run or the content. Some of the threads (see leveling, tamping, etc.) bring out the passion of the converted in some, but you find that anywhere people are passionite about a subject.

Well Done.