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Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Ebb and Flow
It's been a turbulent and busy couple of weeks at OtakuBoards for both good and bad reasons. At this point I like to think that the net result is positive; we've caught up on more than a year of technological development and we are now finally taking advantage of new features that make the site a lot more useable (I'm relieved that many of the new features make moderation easier, in particular).
As far as the negatives, I suppose they weren't really different to anything that can occasionally happen in an online community. I guess the thing that disappoints me is that at OB, small things (which are largely inconsequential to the site) have a way of becoming major public events. I really should take responsibility for that I suppose; afterall, these sorts of things should probably be eliminated before they have the chance to derail everything. But you know, I can only be in so many places at once and as important as OB is to me, it is not always my first priority.
Still, on balance the site has benefited from all the changes that have been happening recently.
The big question now is when to "re-launch" OB. For a long time I was of the opinion that the site should be launched/re-launched when the new version arrives. A new look combined with some massive changes (to both function and overall "culture") would probably go well with some sort of promotion. On the other hand, I don't know when the new site will be ready...and moving over to that format won't be easy for a variety of reasons. It will require a lot of hands-on time from me, especially.
It's funny that some people are more concerned with visitor statistics than I am. I don't think OB could possibly be more personal to anyone than it is to me - and yet, I don't worry about day-to-day stats. This is probably because I have an idea of where the site is going and how it will get there. And obviously, the average person isn't aware of that.
I think the key to understanding my position of OB is to understand than right now, I think the site is incomplete. It's moving closer to completion but there are many fundamental things that need to be fixed or changed or added.
So at this stage in its lifespan, I don't really feel that there is much concern or focus on growth. The site is open and it welcomes new members but I don't think anyone - least of all myself - is focusing on massively boosting the community. That push will probably come when the new version arrives and it will also probably be the first time OtakuBoards is actively promoted outside our direct community (or even our extended community, really).
What really interests me at the moment is actually everything that's going on with theOtaku.com. Adam informed me that we're about to do something really cool - and unprecedented - on the site. I don't want to reveal what that is here but I think fans will be pleased. Also Adam is going to be investing a lot more time in the new version, which will be great. I'm really excited about that - there are some mid-stream changes coming through which should really benefit the site.
And in non-site talk...I'm suffering from a nasty infected throat this week! It's difficult to talk. I seem to be prone to this more than anything else...it's not nice at all. It hasn't been too bad though, it's given me the opportunity to sit down and work on some things in silence.
Crystia: Thanks much - those are some very cool features indeed.
I definitely want to do something new RPG-wise, but it's hard to find the time. Moreover though, putting together a good concept is difficult. I have a few ideas with some different RPGs (including a new Kill Adam - but I don't want to do anything with that until Volume 2 is finished...and who knows how long that will take!)
Desbreko: Yeah we had some fun times in QKT. Ahh, when life was simple and fun!
I'm not sure what's happening with guilds and such. My sister and I are still wanting to start a new one but she keeps spending the money I give her, haha. Oh well. We'll see. Right now I'm just happy to actually be playing again.
SunfallE: I think the read receipt thing is like the biggest relief I've had in a while, lol. It may be simple, but was it ever long overdue! I'm glad it's there now. Phew.
Aaryanna: Haha, thanks. Drama comes and goes...I think it's amazing when you identify the source of the problem and remove it, everything calms down dramatically. Funny, that.
Anyway, I wouldn't worry about anything, the main thing is that everyone just get on with life and enjoy the boards. Luckily most people seem happy to do that.
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