Alright, I know exactly what the acse is, for I've read of GFrazier's post on Bnets D2 Forums, and all this shit may be correct, but damn confusing with all this "new" and "old" nomenclature.

v1.10 is released.
All your existing characters (characters created prior to the release date) will be considered, Non-Ladder characters.
Every new character you create are now considered, Ladder characters.
Ladder seasons will last about 6 months (but that time frame has not been determined and could be either longer or shorter).
During that season, only Ladder characters can play with Ladder characters, and visa-versa for Non-Ladder characters.
Both types of characters will be playing in v1.10, and hence both will be able to get all the new items, skill updates, etc. offered.
At the end of the season, all Ladder characters will now be considered Non-Ladder characters, and therefore, they will be able to play with the other Non-Ladder characters as well.
This cycle will start over again with Ladder and Non-Ladder characters until that season is over.
This will continue over and over again to keep, essentially, a virtual non-hacked community and then the present community separated.

Hope that is less confusing, but I doubt it is.