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Tuesday, December 9, 2003
Version 7 & A Few Questions...
As many of you know, work has now begun on the next version of the boards. We finally have our hands on very-near-final vB3 and we can actually start to apply our unique design to it.
Today was really "Day 1" of development. It was the first time that we began making some fundamental physical changes to the layout of the software. And I think it's definitely fair to say that, compared to previous versions, Version 7 is a massive undertaking. When I actually sit there and consider all of the areas of the site that need to be edited...I feel incredibly overwhelmed. It's a very large-scale job. I would even go as far as saying that OtakuBoards will be a bigger project than myOtaku.com itself -- at least in terms of the physical time that will need to be invested in it.
So far, even at this early stage, we've had some successes. Things are working out. I know that there will be further obstacles -- difficult ones -- but I'm confident that we'll get there. I'm confident because we have Justin Blessing doing our programming. Justin (for the two of you who don't know), was the guy who used to run theOtaku.com's Xbox site. And before that, he ran Absolute Sega. Even back then, at a very young age, he was a fantastic programmer. I remember commenting to him a long time ago, when I first met him, that his work was very impressive. So all OB fans should thank their lucky stars that we have Justin on board for this project -- he is truly what will make it a success. Without him, there would be no talk of a Version 7.
And on that point, I'm even wondering whether or not I should be calling it "Version 7" in the first place. I say that because, the more I look at what we're doing and what we are planning, the more I feel that this isn't "just another version". It is really something else entirely. It's really like a big catalyst for the site. It is a complete reinterpretation of what OtakuBoards is; a very critical examination of how we can rebuild what we have now, from the ground up.
In that sense, it's kind of scary. I know that when the boards relaunch in their new form, some people will not like what they see. At least, they will feel uncomfortable with the changes for a while.
I say this because even the removal of Newbie Lounge -- a pretty pointless and inconsequential forum -- made some people uncomfortable for a while too. If that made them uncomfy, then Version 7 is going to give them multiple heart attacks. lol
Having said that, I would only ask OB fans to consider what I have done with the boards since v2. I'd ask you to consider how they've evolved and how my own ideas have shaped things. If you feel that things have progressed well from version to version, then hopefully you feel that I haven't given you reason to doubt me. I hope that this will allow everyone to be confident about the next version. Not to mention the fact that it will have a beta test group and that it will be examined by people who I consider to be great designers. So in many ways, it's a far more thorough process.
I'd like to provide little progress reports on the new version now and then, if you guys are interested. At this early stage, I don't want to over-hype it...because I could definitely say a lot more about it than I've been doing so far. But at the same time, I do think that most people -- even people who are expecting big changes -- will be surprised at just how big the changes are.
As the title of my post suggests, I also want to answer a couple of questions in this post, from my Guest Book.
Sixthcrusifix: Popularity is simply determined by the number of unique visitors that your page receives. You can find this number on your main status page, when you visit your backroom.
Ben: Thanks for the compliment. Finding good pictures for RPGs is really hard; I do it because, if possible, I'd rather show a picture than use a description. It just gives a better sense of what I'm thinking of in my own mind, really.
In terms of where I get the pictures, there are a few places. One of them is AnimeShrine.com. They have a wonderful gallery with a huge selection of art.
The second place is RPGamer.com. They have massive stocks of promotional art for a huge variety of RPGs. It's a wonderful place to go, if you're looking for character ideas in RPGs. You'll find a lot of different themes and styles.
I do sometimes draw my own characters...but that is rare, because it takes me a long time to do. Regarding your site...I do visit it sometimes, but I don't comment. I rarely comment in people's blogs, really. I only comment if it's an issue/subject that I really have a specific opinion on. But I definitely contribute to your visitor numbers. So don't feel too unnoticed. ^_^
Circeus: I'll have a look at your account. Hopefully it's a minor issue that I can fix. I sure hope that the next version of the boards doesn't encounter this problem. Since it's on all-new software, it hopefully will be a lot better in this regard. It certainly seems to be significantly more advanced, from what I've seen of it, anyway.
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