Help me out here, I just want to get this straight.

Alpha testing begins soon, simultaneously while we continue to play 1.XX.

Our characters get a final save on November 1, 2012.

They shut the servers down on November 11 (not sure why the wait) and may bring them back for pointless 1.XX play/socializing (vote pending). (I vote no.)

Beta commences... when the servers shut down?

We get to play our old characters again... when?

It sounds like it will be months before we have ARR and can resume with our current characters.

I'm not complaining (well maybe a little). I do want them to get things right and have the time to do so.

I guess I didn't expect the game to be on hold for more than a few days, a month tops.

TL;DR Am I understanding this correctly? The game, for all intents and purposes, ends November 1 with no real estimate of when we will play ARR with our current characters?