Thread Prefix Changes

[Brandon Rhea]

Hi everyone. As many people have increasingly noticed lately, there are very few open threads in the Story board. Many threads are set as either [INVITE] or [CLOSED], which forms cliques and keeps people within specific groups. The important issue in this is that it makes it more difficult for new members to get involved in the story. The things that the staff can do to help alleviate this are very limited, since much of it is an issue of collective mindsets, but we are taking steps to try and do what we can.

The first major thing we’ve now done is to change the thread prefixes. Until today, the standard thread prefixes for a RP in the Story board were as follows: [OPEN], [ASK], [INVITE], [CLOSED]. What we’ve done is we’ve removed the last two. Therefore, as of today, the only two standard thread prefixes available for general use are [OPEN] and [ASK]. [MAIN THREAD] is used for inter-faction battles and other major story-impacting events, while [LEGACIES] is for staff use in Legacies quests and storylines.

So what does this mean for you? Threads that have already started that have [CLOSED] or [INVITE] tags keep those tags, so nothing changes for threads that have already been posted. For future threads, you now have the option to have your thread be open to anyone, or to set it as [ASK]. The key there, though, is that people can ask you if they can be in that thread. It’s not like [CLOSED] where it essentially slams the door shut with a “NO ENTRY” sign. If you don’t want someone in your thread, you’re going to have to outright tell them that.

It’s our belief that the elimination of [INVITE] and [CLOSED], which were essentially the same thing, will lead to more open threads and more people RPing with each other than is happening now. We’ll continue to evaluate the progress of this change, but I can say with a lot of confidence that this is a step in the right direction.

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to let us know in a reply. Thanks!

 

[Horizon]

Nice, this is a good move in the right direction.

 

[Gaja]

I second that!

 

[Django]

Nice, this is a good move in the right direction.

Agreed. This is a great change.

 

[jpchewy01]

I like this decision.

 

[Black Noise]

Sounds good to me :CHappy

 

[BLADE]

If you don’t want someone in your thread, you’re going to have to outright tell them that.

As a Jew and a Catholic, I fully support the old "guilt 'em" strategy, but I would make a suggestion. In the case of ASK threads, the creator of those threads should have an open OOC thread for a sign-up where he/she could be petitioned for entry into said thread. A public redress system would address two problems:

1. Newbies being intimidated to PM/personally contact people by having it take place in a public environment, which would also limit how unwelcoming people could be simply in terms of tone.

2. It would also raise the standard of rejection --you'd have to have a good and justifiable reason to as why said person is being kept out-- and weaken the secrecy and alternate means of communication that are preconditions to the cliques that form.

 

[Brand]

As a Jew and a Catholic, I fully support the old "guilt 'em" strategy, but I would make a suggestion. In the case of ASK threads, the creator of those threads should have an open OOC thread for a sign-up where he/she could be petitioned for entry into said thread. A public redress system would address two problems:

1. Newbies being intimidated to PM/personally contact people by having it take place in a public environment, which would also limit how unwelcoming people could be simply in terms of tone.

2. It would also raise the standard of rejection --you'd have to have a good and justifiable reason to as why said person is being kept out-- and weaken the secrecy and alternate means of communication that are preconditions to the cliques that form.

That seems a little like overkill here. The staff isn't babying new people, it's further enabling them to interact with veteran and intermediate members.

Otherwise, I think this an extremely solid change.

 

[BLADE]

That's why it's a suggestion. There's no way to enforce it, but people should try to be public and upfront with their acceptance process, what their criteria are, etc.

 

[Ser Gregor]

I find myself agreeing with Prospero here. Having an OOC sign-up/general OOC thread for your ASK threads is a good idea, for the reasons he's put forth.

 

[Nightmare Moon]

I'm cool with this. I think more group participation is a good idea.

 

[Orphen]

Also, this closes off the idea of closed threads where someone does something on a grand scale on the sly. As much as that usually gets picked up, thats annoying. And cheap

Nice one.

Though if you don't make an ooc, don't worry, there's a chance pros will make it for you :)

 

[Cassanova]

As a new member to this community I am really happy this has happened. I did find myself staring at a lot of threads, feeling slightly disheartened that I couldn't participate in many of them. So from myself and all future newbies to the community, I thank you.

 

[Vencu]

This is a simple solution to a complicated problem, but I believe it will be quite effective. Kudos to whomever came up with the idea.

 

[Venom]

Im pretty glad to see this enacted, a great idea imo. Im also kind of a fan of prosp's idea.

 

[Icaro]

inb4 story forum all ask?

 

[Horizon]

inb4 story forum all ask?

Thought about that too, huh?

 

[Lavi]

inb4 story forum all ask?

All ASK is better than all CLOSED.

 

[BLADE]

All ASK is better than all CLOSED.

Only if it leads to the changes of habit that people are expecting/hoping for. If not, it's a semantic change.

 

[Padmé]

Also, this closes off the idea of closed threads where someone does something on a grand scale on the sly. As much as that usually gets picked up, thats annoying. And cheap

Nice one.

Though if you don't make an ooc, don't worry, there's a chance pros willakw it for you :)

Why did the aforementioned remind me of Fusion?
lol