unforum

[BrianEnigma]

"Jumped the Shark" thread and ongoing IRC debates

[lhall]

I think this is a big, and great, step in the right direction.

[jojojojo]

Re: "Jumped the Shark" thread and ongoing IRC deba

[duckiemonster]

A noble attempt, Bri. Good luck.

I think I said everything that I wanted to say last night. Looks like it was ignored by all present, but I'd urge everyone who is intending on posting in this thread to take a look at the chat logs from about 4.30pm to about 9pm yesterday. You can find them here.

A lot of your points refer to 'new players'. Perhaps new players need to be made aware that we're pretty much in endgame here, so they're going to have to sit it out (more or less) until the start of season 2.

The shark thread is not about #syzygy or UnFiction,it's about the game. Remember, that thing that we're here to play?

[colin]

[Muffin]

[Mikeyj]

[myf]

[UKver2.0]

[poozle]

I just read the first hour or so of the logs and as well as my head hurting a LOT from all the text I thought one thing, both sides raise perfectly good points.

I can't say I have any idea whats going on in the past few weeks because every time I've been in IRC recently its either been normal conversation or complete silence, no problems though.

I can't take any sides in this because I really don't have major opinions on the things being expressed here and I think that both sides have overreacted over the things being said.

[colin]

[doublecross]

I've just read the chat logs and I agree with the comments from Muffin onwards. There have been overreactions on both sides, and I caution both sides from thinking they speak for more people than they actually do. Also: disagreeing with someone is not censoring them. Only actually editing posts and banning people is censoring them, and this has only happened in one recent case (IIRC).

Longstanding players can seem intimidating to new ones (or even not so new, but irregular ones), especially when a vernacular has grown up around a game, but that is chiefly a feature of a game having gone on for a relatively long time. However I haven't found any longstanding players unfriendly if spoken to, and I certainly don't think it is too late for new players to join season one.

[Duckie|werk]

If anyone would like to tell me exactly *how* I've intimidated them and where it is that I've gone wrong please feel free. I'll read 'em all.

I'm sure this will also apply to the others on UKver2.0's list of 'bad uns'.

My PM box is entirely at your disposal, unless something rather untoward should happen to my account here. After that point, it's duckiemonster[splat]gmail.com.

[myf]

*Long post alert* My opinions, as a not-particularly-newbie-not-core-of-the-community person:

Re: Intimidating persons - I have never found any particular person intimidating (indeed, when I've ventured into the real world and actually met people, they seem perfectly nice), it's rather a group of people en masse can seem a little.........unnerving.

I'm not a big fan of IRC - I find it all too bewildering with 10 different conversations whizzing past me at once - but on the occasions I have ventured into chat, I tend to sit there feeling slightly, well, odd one out, and as if I have nothing to add so I might as well stay quiet. I don't think this is unique to #syzygy - I feel this will happen with any established group where other people might amble along every so often. Cliques form (intentionally or not), and "outsiders" can feel threatened or unwelcome when trying to join them.

As for a solution? I'm not sure there is one really, but a little encouragement, friendliness and patience towards newbies/infrequent visitors would probably go a long way. Taking the time to explain some of the jargon, or providing an easy way to find out what people are on about, might help.

Anyway, all this may just be a manifestation of my tendencies towards social awkwardness.

Re: mysterious entities (elephants, bananas, RSM, and trouts to a lesser extent) and understanding - I appreciate that others might find them endearing/amusing/part of the experience/whatever, but I'm not a big fan of these terms. I think they are horribly overused, and often in the wrong context - as has been pointed out, they often appear to be employed as a way of saying "I think this line is a dead-end, so we should all stop discussing it", which I for one would find very off-putting.

Solution? Again, tricky. Consider whether they're used in the right context. If your entire response to something is simply going to be "banana" (or similar), is it really worth bothering? Give a bit of an explanation - I'd take it as much politer to be told "not sure about that idea", or "nice thought, but don't think so because...". Lay off the terms a bit - give them a bit of a holiday.

So, that's my contribution.

And none of this post is aimed at anyone in particular.

[Mico]