Setting up a NEW home for the SC.com

[TheSIN]

My two cents:

I don't care if we go Jaxel's way or DFG's. TBH, I'd really rather have our own site and shit...but I can see where that would be an issue. If we do go Jaxel's route, I would definately be up to donating...and I think a sponsor thing like TZ has would be cool.

Count on it, if we go Jaxel's route, I'm willing to put up $50 a year...just make it quick whatever we do, I'm tired of this slow ass shit .

[Kuroi Kaze]

I like the independent forum idea.

I like that a vet is involved so the site won't alienate the people that have been around forever.

[SH]

Originally posted by DancingFighterG
I know that it's nice to have your own site and that's why I suggested that the site would have its frontpage (help from Jaxel and the community), forum within the NVGA with all the capibilities of the entire NVGA, the ability to extend the site with additional pages and attributes and more importantly all this with a national brand backing it up rather than a fan base site that get's looked at like any other site.

So in the end the site looks just like an independent site BUT with all the boards options and benefits of the NVGA board.

My concept is why re-invent the wheel if it's already in place. The domain name can be brought so that if you go to the site it can just link to just that specific forum and go from there.

As one of the admins of the site Jaxel and trusted other IT figures in the community can work together to get this done and extend of the site.

I decide who gets that type of access and with my dealing with most of you I know who would be responsible to handle such power.

In the end it's going to take a group effort and why not combine resources to make the best site possible instead of doing two seperate things. Control should not be the issue its rather what is best for the community; bringing two strong units together to achieve something greater or seek individually to achieve seperately.

I've been part of the SC community since SC2 so I have mad love for the community and with the NVGA resources at my hands the foundation is in place and ready to be used.

Selectively quoted to make sure people read this.

People keep preaching independence like it's the Revolutionary war against the oppressive British tea hippies. It's a forum to post about a game, not escaping slave herders in Little China.

We have a ready-to-go service being offered for free, and we could be up and running in a week. Take it.

If independence becomes an issue, we can move on to a sponsored site at a later date.

[Cabbie]

If there was a premium membership I would be willing to pay extra to help out. It also would be great if you guys can somehow get the old contents of GuardImpact.com forums and make it accessible as an archive feature for paying members.

[Starwinderbeta]

i like the name 8 Way Run

[Darkside989]

Not that I think my opinion is worth much, but I'm all for the creation of a new (and better-working) site for the SC Community. Of the two options that have been presented, I can see the benefits and detriments to both - it is certainly not an easy choice to make. However, I think ultimately whatever decision is reached should be made with the ultimate goal of furthering the SC community to new heights. I would love to see this community blossom and become huge in a way that befits our favorite fighting series. So let's all work together with our time, our input, and possibly even our money (you have my $$$ support, Jaxel!) to make this happen in the best way possible!

P.S.: A little off topic Jaxel, but it was nice playing against you online the other day - I got my ass handed to me for sure - but I was disappointed that you wouldn't play against me again after that. It would have been nice to learn more from your play.

[Darkside989]

Oh, and as far as names go:

8-Way Run (8WR)
Just Impact
Guard Impact
Soul Swords
Destined Battle
Edge Calibur

etc
etc
etc

They're all good!

[Kcowz]

Originally posted by SH
People keep preaching independence like it's the Revolutionary war against the oppressive British tea hippies. It's a forum to post about a game, not escaping slave herders in Little China.

We have a ready-to-go service being offered for free, and we could be up and running in a week. Take it.

If independence becomes an issue, we can move on to a sponsored site at a later date.

Really can't argue with that.

I'd be interested to hear (specifically) what people are actually worried might happen if the new SC.com isn't independently run.

[Kamikaze Gopher]

Originally posted by KowtowRobinson
Wonder why I can't view the rest of this post unless I quote it, hmm.......

Does anyone want to bring up any of WC Maxi's old posts? He wasn't always the most likeable guy either. Jaxel does a good job running his tournaments, his websites, and pretty much everything I've seen him do related to this and other communities. Yes he can be annoying, but I've got no doubts about his ability to run a project like this.

Very true. WCMaxi was not a very nice guy on the forums back in the day. But Id take an asshole who at least has a history of trying to do some decent good for the community then someone who has admitted trying to tank SC3 early (not that it necessarily needed it) to suit his own interests (Talim sucks? boo hoo), makes inflammatory comments on game balance based on the single player aspect (Asta 22B in TLoS? Broke?), and completely false statements about other game mechanics (CF system broke?). Thats just a smattering of the hysteria he pukes.

No thanks. I like DGFs idea better anyway.

[echeesekid]

but if we get a new site.. what will happen to my post count!!!??!
OH GAWD

btw im 4 dfgs idea

[awESOMe]

Oh, hum, cry more. Independent or not I'd much rather have DFG running the show than Jaxel. There is a difference between his douchebaggery and WCMaxi giving people a hard (but ultimately correct) time.

I wouldn't piss on an endeavor of Jaxel's were it on fire.

Why all the Jaxel hate? You're going to sit here and blame a guy for loving a game so much he actually happens to have strong opinions that differ from yours? It's not like he's some hack whining about gameplay, Jaxel (at least in SC2) is/was a premier player. Certainly, he's been wrong before. He's not God - he's very fallible. However, as I can personally attest to and the guys on the East Coast can REALLY attest, he's golden as far as events go.

He has the ability to separate personal feelings from business stuff. Plus, he was very recently man enough to make up a whole thread stating that HE WAS WRONG. How many people can do that?

SH - I think this is the first time in the six years I've known you that I happen to disagree with a position you've taken. However, getting the hell out of here and setting up shop in DFG's forum for the immediate future doesn't sound so bad.

[Jaxel]

Well this many people looking to donate... it looks like $$$ wont be an issue... And it looks like the majority of people would rather have their own website, than be part of another forum...

So we have a choice then... we can stick with VB, or we can do UBB... both support the donation/subscription feature, so that wont be an issue... What would people want to do?

I can probably get the new forum up and running within a week (after we decide what forum suite we want to use), though it wont have a new Soul Calibur 4 design until we can work something out. I just bought 8wayrun.com and DestinedBattle.com just in case.

[Aqua Snake]

I'll be willing to donate.

I'd love to see the revival of the GuardImpact.com site.

Doesn't matter to me, but DFG approach to me seems to be the safe route.

[SH]

Arch -- I don't know Jaxel personally and have no direct hate towards the man. I can only base my judgement on the lackluster personality displayed in his posting behavior here on the forum. What I have seen is not representative of an individual who should be put in charge of anything. And I'm making that clear in this thread; he's the wrong man for the job.

Given the debacle with forum ownership here, I would like to ensure that the next forum has either:

- an established leader with a 100% positive relationship with the community (Castel/TooHectic -- perhaps someone like Markman)
- or a multi-tiered leadership

We don't have an established leader to rally behind (unless someones flashes the Bat Signal to TooHectic), and I'm in favor of setting up a multi-tiered admin structure of at least 3 solid individuals to avoid continuity issues if certain individuals disappear. Having a minimum of 3 equal empowered admins is good in case one of them flips out (e.g. ChaCha) and needs to be removed.

Multi-tiered systems take time to implement effectively. Since the current forum is hurting the community daily due to poor performance, I still recommend DFG's no-cost 1-week turnaround forum as an acceptable near-term solution. It may also work out as the long-term solution, but as a stop-gap it's a gift from heaven. Anything is better than the lag we have right now.

In summary, I don't like the rush to Jaxel that we're seeing here. As seen in his latest post in the thread, he's pushing through based on a limited sample of community input with a cost-hungry plan despite plenty of vocal opposition.

That is not leadership behavior. That is typical Jaxel.

[Neoshinji]

Jaxel:
Once again I think you are jumping the gun to early.

Unfortunately, WC Maxi is out of the country and is unable to help out currently due to the fact he is just getting things together. His current lack of interest is justified. But mind you if he didn’t care about the community he wouldn’t have spent the time to bring back the forums.

WC Maxi was dedicated time and effort to build this community. I would hope that the community would be strong enough to plod through when things are inconvenient.

I honestly think the situation is the old “When the cat is out the mice come out to play” scenario.

Jaxel: it is becoming more and more apparent that you are not suited to be in any position of leadership. You make thread after thread about how the sky is falling. The funny thing about paranoid people is that they tend to be right eventually. Chances are this will be your last such thread.

Sit tight everyone… while I get a cup of coffee…

[Darkside989]

SH,

Thanks for bringing this up. I admit that I haven't been here long enough to really know anyone, so it's good if other members of the community speak up before we decide on a course of action. The admins of a community are incredibly important, and making sure that there is strong leadership in place before a move like this and going forward is crucial.

Having read through your posts, as well as many of the others in this thread, I think that we should go with DFG's proposal initially, and see where that takes us. If things go south, we can always adopt our own site and forums for the long-term future of the community.

Also, if you don't mind my asking, what happened with ChaCha? I had spoken to him via email a few times weeks before I registered here, and now I see that he's gone.

Originally posted by SH


We don't have an established leader to rally behind (unless someones flashes the Bat Signal to TooHectic)

Wouldn't it be a Nunchuck signal?

(a little levity goes a long way...)

Anyway, I agree that Jaxel should take a deep breath before he plunges. I also agree that he is evidently careening off into the deep end with only less than 48 hours discussion, which is... a stretch for a forum this size with a lag this big. As I said, I'm all for a temporary move to DFG's forum first. We can link the two domain names Jaxel registered to the forum, and there's that problem solved.

Neo: I think everybody knows the amazing amount of good WC Maxi has done this forum. I think every top-tier player is in his debt because he managed to make these forums run so smoothly we never noticed how good he was until he was gone.

But he IS gone, and I do think we need to do something about it. It would be ridiculous for us to ask him to hurry it along with his personal life just for our benefit. We're adults (most of us), we should be able to take care of this ourselves.

And when even HeartNana starts moaning about the state of the forums... Yeah, it's bad. It's really bad.

[Admiral_TvS]

Originally posted by Neoshinji
Jaxel:
Once again I think you are jumping the gun to early.

Sit tight everyone… while I get a cup of coffee…

What do you mean with he is jumping the gun too early? Obviously something must be done quickly. The condition of this forum in matters of speed is unacceptable and uninviting.

I am sick of sitting tight. I don't care who does something, as long as somebody does something. Sometimes the best leaders have the biggest character flaws . . . look at Bill Clinton.

[Alex.J]

Why all the Jaxel hate? You're going to sit here and blame a guy for loving a game

Yeah he definitely loved SC3, just check my sig lol

First off, SH for president. Everything this man says I agree with, which I thought would be impossible. The DFG plan is too good to be true and maybe thats why people don't like it? Sure he would be hosting it but like he said it would be its own place.

As for Neoshinji's comment about WCMaxi. He did have much love for SC2 and the community that is evident. But he has a least 4 years to update the code right? Somewhere along the line he lost interest and it's time someone else took control. I am not posting to badmouth him but theres no point in keeping a leader who basically retired years ago. I know people like Heartnana and Neoshinji knew that this place would get super laggy. There was plenty of time for action in this forum. Hell, information like this should be brought up to the community. Did you guys really wanted the forums to become this laggy and to lose potential players?

[djWHEAT]

I'm new here, but I think my opinion might be valid.

I've found the resources here to be exceptionally great. Although I've only posted a minor bit, it's been my pleasure to soak up some of the knowledge that exists on these forums and in the community. Some of you I've even had the chance to play online.

When I first came onto the forums, there was definitely a speed issue... I thought it was probably because of the popularity of SC4's release. But after a good 10 days it hasn't subsided, and after reading some threads on whether the site could ever get better... I think you guys are on the right track here.

I feel like I would be motivated to be MORE active if I didn't have to wait an additional 40 seconds to post a reply. Additionally, I'm a fairly patient person, so I can deal with those things, but I'm sure it's a major turn off to a lot of new people coming to the site. I've sent many players here and nearly all of them commented on the speed.

I'm sure that dead horse needs to be beaten no more...

SO ABOUT FORUMS/COMMUNITIES:

I used to host a daily online video game show called Epileptic Gaming, and when I stopped doing the show to join CGS, I did not want to see the community just shrivel up and die. So we created a vBulletin community at:

http://www.eg-forums.com/

It's about twice the size of the CaliburForums and it runs FANTASTIC. Those who point out it's very customizable features are absolutely correct. It has a more social networking type feel that makes PM's easy, writing on walls. People can create their own profiles, post blogs that appear on the front page. I think it could be used as a good example as to how this community could really thrive. Here are some examples:

Front Page Blog Posts:
http://www.eg-forums.com/
On the front page we display user blogs. So when people come they immediately have something to read/discuss. It also contains links to the most popular threads, blogs, etc. You can customize the top bar to be any number of things for easy navigation.

Profile Pages:
http://www.eg-forums.com/member.php?u=7
These give users a more personal feel, and you can suppliment this page with all sorts of information pertinent to their SC - Game. This includes videos, pictures, playing times, characters used, tournaments won, etc.

Forum:
http://www.eg-forums.com/forum.php
Obviously a major part of the community, and vB has a great system.

Again, I know I'm a new guy here, but I hope I can make some suggestions that will assist you in creating a great community because I believe SC deserves it.

I also would gladly pony up the contact of the individual who worked on the EG-FORUMS.COM site if you have questions, need assistance, or setup help. Some of the features he hard coded and could probably just be passed along.

Good luck, I look forward to seeing where this goes!

[Kid D. Zaster]

First, Alex. No SH for president. I will not elaborate.
Giradot of America for President.
And you took that line out of context, or just chose to not understand it on purpose for funnies.

Knowing you ;p it was the latter.

Next, SH:
LOL A Leader with 100% positive relationships? This isn't fairytale land with Prince Charming, and no one on this planet has a 100% approval rating in anything. Just because you approve and your friends, the current admins, approve doesnt mean they have 100% positive relationships with everyone.

What a strange thing to say.

Finally, Jaxel:
This guy hated SCIII so god damn much, it poured out of his every pore. But even with all that hate, he held not only monthly events with the highest quality videos currently available, but twice-a-year Majors.
- His hospitality is second to none. For christsake he was housing, feeding, and shooting-the-shit with 30+ people in a game he didnt even want to play
- His ability to host large events and accommodate player's wishes are second to none, which has been proved time and time again.
- His ability to run a site relatively hasslefree was proven with his CrookedJester website.

So... Lets see the score
Jaxel:
Cons
- Has strong opinions and expresses them harshly
- Didn't like SCIII, and made sure you knew it
Pros
+ Effective at running sites... wasn't he brought in at first to save this site?
+ Is able to admit he made a mistake in judgement.This is rare in internet admins.
+ Can run tournaments extremely well and is hospitable to players no matter what his opinion is.

Rest of SC Admins:
Cons
- Will never admit a mistake. Where did my SCII boards go?
- Don't feel like fixing what's broken. Why's my site so slow?
Pros
+ They are cool people. I like chillin' with them.
+ They all from Chitown or friends from chitown... wait, wrong section.

Lets go to the new site.

[Neoshinji]

Kid-I agree with you for the most part. But I still just see Jaxel as an effective tool or resource. As far as being a leader... meh.

It is hard to keep everyone happy especially if the active Admins have limited amount of control over the site.

I do like DFG idea though as far a new place to set up shop.

As far as the Bill Clinton reference... umm... not sure if you realize this but a lot the policies that we benefited from were originally implemented by Bill Clinton during his presidency. Not only that but our economy was in much better shape back then haha. Not too sure what you can say about the Bush Administration beyond.... "USA! USA! USA!"

lulz

[Kcowz]

Originally posted by Neoshinji
As far as the Bill Clinton reference... umm... not sure if you realize this but a lot the policies that we benefited from were originally implemented by Bill Clinton during his presidency. Not only that but our economy was in much better shape back then haha. Not too sure what you can say about the Bush Administration beyond.... "USA! USA! USA!"

That's the point he was making. As a president he was good (depending on which half of this country you talk to).

But you have to admit he made some bad choices in his personal life.

I personally couldn't care less what a president does with an intern in the oval office but I think that's the point Admiral_TvS was trying to make.

[Jaxel]

Right now I am re-indexing the entire forum... maybe that will speed things up.