James

[color=#707875]Heh, Taylor, you're acting like this is something new and unexpected. ~_^ Lots of smaller sites do this. I can probably name five off the top of my head who closely mimmick OtakuBoards. It doesn't worry me though. Some of these site owners have talked to me on AIM and said stuff like "do you mind if I use your rules?" and so on. Mostly I don't care, because each site is free to do what they want. Of course, I can't say that I [i]like[/i] it when people mimmick OB and claim that they're doing something original. But, I don't need to tell you about that -- I think most people can judge for themselves. But, of course, being unoriginal often won't lead you to success. ~_^ Good luck to 'em, I say.[/color]

[color=#707875]Another thread like this? Logan, Raiha and PT. I'm warning you -- keep to constructive criticism. I'm going to have to block all three of you from this entire forum if you can't remember that. If you're only going to sit here and bash Taylor and his poems, you shouldn't be posting here. As far as the poem goes...I think it makes sense, it's just a bit too rough. So, it needs some work. You could post another draft in this thread (rather than creating multiple threads). [/color]

[color=#707875]Raiha, Taylor's apologized. Let's do the adult thing and leave the situation behind. There's no need to flog a dead horse.[/color]

[color=#707875]Aha! I love the sound of the tape. lol Ever been to the American site? It plays that noise in the background. I even have a copy of the tape on my computer. Whee.[/color]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Anna [/i] [B]:rotflmao: Oh my dear James, that was the intent! Just some smart-alecky-ness for the heart; I need to get it out every now and then. :whoops: lol [/B][/QUOTE] [color=#707875]Oh, phew. You scared me for a moment there, Anna. ~_^ It's strange that I noticed your post more than when another member posts something similar. Maybe I just hold you in higher regard than I think. ~_^[/color]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Anna [/i] [B] Oh yeah, and I like James. no wait, j/k. lol. [/B][/QUOTE] [color=#707875]Wow, that was really surprising and scary. I don't even know you, but I always thought you were nice. Phew! Hehe. :wigout: :eek: Anyway, nobody on the boards has "changed" me. I think there are few people in my life who have actually changed who I am...probably none, come to think of it. I don't know if you can change someone in that sense. But, there are definitely people on here who I respect and who have influenced me in a positive way. I don't think I even need to list them, because the list would probably be too long...and I'd say that they all know who they are anyway.[/color]

[color=#707875]I have to agree with Semjaza basically. His reasons are the same as mine, when it comes to Signs. It wasn't a [i]terrible[/i] movie or anything close. But it definitely wasn't what people made out early on. [/color]

[color=#707875]... Taylor, do [i]not[/i] tell people to "shut the hell up". You were incredibly rude to Raiha. I don't want to see that happening again. Secondly, I'm starting to wonder why I defended you in Otaku Lounge. This thread demonstrates that you've got a short fuse with some people. You complained to me about PoisonTongue, yet you are the one who fuelled the fire here. Don't do it. PT...you've got to remember that many members who write these poems are kids. Try to be a bit more leniant and constructive. If a poem is terrible, it's probably better not to say that...it's better to say how it could be improved. I don't think you're entirely at fault, but some diplomacy wouldn't go astray. And Logan. I don't want to see you being so rude ever again. You don't just post and say something simple like "That poem is horrible". It's a nasty thing to do and [i]I[/i] consider it to be spam. You should not attack others for spamming when you yourself aren't entirely in the clear. Please bear that in mind. Phew. Okay. Now, this thread can continue if you guys can be civil. If not, I won't hesitate to take action.[/color]

[color=#707875]Let's bear in mind that Spikey [i]is[/i] ten years old himself. I doubt that he's getting into anything particularly in-depth with what he writes. His writing has improved greatly since first joining OB. So I'm impressed.[/color]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Renegade V2 [/i] [B]Once again, not because it was against the rules, because it was utter garbage.[/b][/quote] [color=#707875]Regardless, there's no need to be blatantly rude.[/color][quote][b] He asked "why do you hate me?", and I told him. It's obviously a plee for attention/pity. He boots may be sinking (whatever the hell that means) but I'm not providing him with a floatie. [/B][/QUOTE] [color=#707875]lol...sinking the boots means that you're kicking him while he's down. Whether he's seeking attention or not doesn't matter. I'm sure he (and the rest of us) don't need you sticking your rude nose in. lol Why do I have the funny feeling that you're an ex-member? Oh well. Either way, you're not going to be around very long.[/color]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Renegade V2 [/i] [B]Yes, I hate you. You post the stupidest **** ever, and no, I'm not talking about SPAM. What you post usualy is stupid...like that Micheal Jackson thing you posted. That shows ignorance... [/B][/QUOTE] [color=#707875]Renegade...if someone posts "stupid" topics, it's something that Moderators can deal with. It's their job. I'm not accusing you of playing mod, but I don't think it's necessary to sink the boots in when Taylor is already down. I mean, if you can't say something constructive, then there's no point posting. If you're going to say that Taylor posts stupid things, you can at least encourage him to post more relevant threads or something. You don't need to be outright rude. EDIT: I'm going to close this now. I think Taylor has been answered here.[/color]

[color=#707875]Interesting poll. [b]Games Make You Dumb:[/b] This is a very sweeping statement. It depends exactly what you mean by "dumb". I don't consider intelligence to be the same as education. If you're missing out on schooling or homework because of games, then yes, you're missing your education. But if you're not an intelligent person in the beginning...there isn't much hope for you anyway. lol [b]Games Isolate You:[/b] Well, for people who are playing them obsessively by themselves...maybe that's the case. I play video games, but they are not something that isolate me from the rest of the world. In fact, I often like to play four player games where everyone is using the one TV. I would say that I prefer these games to Internet games, because I like the social aspect. [b]Games Addict You:[/b] Yes, I guess that's true for some. I play games a lot less now than I used to, though. So, they haven't addicted me. Although I guess a really great game does addict me to an extent, for a certain period of time. [b]Games Screw Up Your Body:[/b] Well, the example mentioned in the first post is obviously very extreme. The only way I can see gaming affecting my body is if I do nothing but play games...and if games actually cause me to be less physically active. [b]Games Cause Violence:[/b] No. There isn't a single research document that conclusively proves this point. It is a point largely whipped up into a frenzy by mainstream media, who themselves are quite happy to scapegoat without any real information or evidence. If a game influences you to be violent, then you must have in-set mental problems in the first place. If a game doesn't influence you, a violent book, movie or music track will. The whole idea that games cause someone to be violent is ridiculous. If you have violent tendencies in the beginning, almost anything will influence your behavior. You'll go looking for something to feed that; games won't suddenly push you over the edge. I'm mentally healthy and while I have played many violent games, I've always hated real life violence. There is a massive difference for me, even on a subconscious level. [b]Games Make You Smart:[/b] Once again, "smart" is a word that is too general. Yes, games can improve certain aspects of your education. Your literacy, or your world knowledge as examples. I know that I've learned some historical facts from games...and I've even learned specific terms and so on. So yes, games can help your education in some respects. [b]Games Improve Literacy:[/b] As has been said, it depends on the game. A text heavy game can definitely improve your literacy. [b]Games Are Social:[/b] Depending on the game, yes. Four player party games are a great example of a social game. [b]Games Relieve Stress:[/b] Absolutely. My dad plays racing games after a hard day at work. And I know that they relax him. A game like Mario never fails to relax me, too. So yeah, games can definitely be relaxing. [b]Games Heal the Body:[/b] Well, there are recent reports that do suggest this. There are reports that talk about eye movement and image processing being much quicker in a person who regularly plays games. This can translate to better reaction times when driving a car and so on. People who play very fast, high-action games, are also more likely to have quicker reflects and responses to real-world situations. And if you really want to get technical, you could say that Dance Dance Revolution helps to keep you fit. But I guess you'd have to play it a lot. lol[/color]

[color=#707875]Regardless, OtakuBoards should be a place where others are welcomed. So I agree with Taylor on that point. However, I do also agree with Logan here. Taylor, I don't think you should worry too much about people on the Internet. I know there are people on here who probably don't like me, but I also know that these people don't [i]know[/i] me. So why lose sleep over it? It's really not worthwhile. [/color]

[color=#707875]Taylor, let me tell you that you're a darn sight better than many newbies who join OB. There are newbies who refuse to listen...who refuse to improve their posts when asked. Sure, you've made mistakes. But so have many of us (even the most longterm and popular members, including myself). That's granted. The question is really whether or not you aim to improve. And I know that you do. You asked me about whether or not to create a certain thread via PM...and it's good that you asked. It's not a requirement, but it's great that you put in the effort to do that. I don't know who "hates" you, but I'm sure that if they say it, they're only basing it on something very frivolous. I personally don't "hate" anyone on the Internet...it's a very strong word, and I would rarely ever use it. There are people who annoy me or get on my nerves, but that's about it. I can't actually say that I look at someone's posts and say "I really hate that guy". It's just not who I am. So, in my opinion, you're doing pretty well. Don't let people get to you. You're someone who genuinely tries to do the right thing...I can see that for sure. So you're okay in my book. ^_^[/color]

[color=#707875]Actually, the opening to The Ring's DVD menu scares me more than the actual movie. lol I must admit, The Ring had no effect on me when I saw it the second time. It's really a movie that you have to see once...and in the cinema. If you don't watch it in the cinema, you'll never really get the full impact. It's hard to say that Ring/The Ring is actually 'scary' for me. I mean, I use that word...but it's not really right. It's unnerving. It's a movie that made my skin crawl. So it's like Silent Hill in that regard. But it's definitely not something that actually "scares" me, or gives me nightmares. The same can be said for most movies. There are few that I actually find really terrifying. I mostly enjoy horror movies simply because I like to watch them for the first time...and be surprised by what they offer. The Ring is a movie that will scare you if you don't know what to expect. Or at least, it'll surprise you. I actually liked Ring 2 more than Ring. It was just more in-depth. A lot of reviewers said that it was trying to do too much at once. But most of those movie critics are incredibly cynical -- they will criticize a movie into the ground and won't just sit and enjoy what it offers. I think it's possible to overanalyze a movie sometimes. lol Signs is interesting. I didn't find it scary at all. In fact, I hated the ending. Here they are...the world being invaded by aliens...and the story revolves around a guy who finds his faith again. To me, that just seems very jarring. It's almost like they totally ignore that an [i]alien invasion[/i] is occuring toward the end of the movie. I just felt very underwhelmed. And I didn't really find it scary in any sense. Having said all of the above, Ring/The Ring are movies that left me the most "unnerved" for the longest time. I think I was feeling weird for a few days after seeing them. lol Has anyone seen Jeepers Creepers? If you want a funny horror movie, look no further. ~_^[/color]

[color=#707875]And, let's face it, a lot of these anime-styled characters look extremely similar by default. There are a million characters who remind me of Cloud and another million who remind me of Sephiroth. lol So, it's not a conspiracy...I think it partly comes down to a lack of imagination. But it also comes down to a particular visual style that is being employed. [/color]

[color=#707875]Hm...it's funny; I know that there are names I've heard that I've really loved. But for some reason I can't think of them off the top of my head. o_O In any case, I can think of people that I know with semi-weird names. Clank isn't so far-fetched. ~_^ For instance, a friend at school is called "Beam". Her name is actually shorter for something much longer...as she's from The Phillippines. But we've only ever heard her real first name once. lol Everyone just calls her "Beam". It's cool; it suits her. Hehe And then there's my mother's friend, who called her daughter "Nova". That was kinda weird, but it's a name that grew on me when I kept using it. So I kinda like it. But yeah, I can't really think of names that I love off the top of my head. It's weird, because I know that there are some names that I really like. o_O[/color]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Semjaza Azazel [/i] [B] Otherwise, I specifically remember him making a taxi company and a love hotel company (as in those pay by the hour types for you know what heh). There was also some rice thing around that time, which didn't do so well. [/B][/QUOTE] [color=#707875]Correct. I was a bit late with that one. ^_^; [/color]

[color=#707875]Exactly, you hit the nail on the head. That's one major aspect that we're planning. Adam and I both want to bring theOtaku/OB together a lot more in the future. myOtaku.com is a first step to that. Once it's all established and so on, we'll get v7 out the door...and v7 will connect to it in several ways. For one thing, I'm considering a very minimal profile for OB, with the ability for members to link directly to their myOtaku profile. It's even possible that people can input their sign-up details for myOtaku into their OB account...so that their profile links automatically. That way you can't "officially" link to someone else's profile. We've got a few ideas in the works there.[/color]

[color=#707875]This is a feature that we might incorporate into myOtaku.com. For v7, we are planning to connect your OB profile to your myOtaku profile (another good reason to register at myOtaku.com ~_^). So, a playlist is something we'll look at.[/color]

[color=#707875]I have to agree with Harlequin. I've removed the other thread related to this RPG. There have been a few "party" RPGs like this lately...and they're becoming a problem. This is mostly because they [i]do[/i] attract people who just want to boost their post count. There's no quality and they generally aren't something that people are interested in reading. More often than not, people post a line or two and that's it. On this occasion, I think we're going to have to draw a line in the sand, so to speak. Besides, you're likely to encourage more sign ups if you have an actual plot and structure to what you're doing.[/color]

[color=#707875]Don't worry about us here. We'll all be okay. ^_^ The main thing is to get you feeling better; to give you the support you need. I know that everyone here is behind you 100%. We just want you to feel better...and to recover from your ordeal. When you return, we'll welcome you again with open arms. You're always welcome here. [/color]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by MillieFan [/i] [B]Then my question is: if Ikeda was not good at romance, even simple boy-girl romance, then how could he have written in anywhere from 1 to 6 same-sex romances? If someone isn't good at writing romance, odds are they aren't going to be any better writing yaoi romance than straight. [/B][/QUOTE] [color=#707875]Nobody here is saying that he is writing yaoi romances. Once again, it comes down to the whole idea of fan stories taking the anime and producing something new from it. I don't doubt that there are people who also write about invalid/unfeasable opposite sex relationships between anime characters, too.[/color]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by MillieFan [/i] [B] My main beef is with the authors that attempt to twist the original work to back up their claims. There are several sites that argue, for example, that the writers of Gundam Wing intended a relationship between Heero and Duo. [/quote][/b] [color=#707875]I'd still have to ask you why it even matters. Who cares, really? Is it so bad if there [i]were[/i] an intended relationship? I mean, surely the original writers will have an answer to this question. If the writer says something akin to "I'll let you decide", then it should be a non-issue.[/color][quote][b] As a matter of fact, there was a person posting on this board itself in one of the threads like this (maybe even this one itself) arguing that the writers of Trigun implied the Vash/Wolfwood pairing and that the writers of Ruruoni Kenshin implied the Kenshin/Sanosuke pairing.[/quote][/b] [color=#707875]Once again...so? People make a lot of claims about video games and anime (particularly when it comes to character pairing), but I still don't see that it matters. You know that people like to gossip about these things...and if they're going to analyze something like anime, a lot of people are bound to get it wrong anyway. It shouldn't affect your enjoyment or perception of the series. And you shouldn't worry what others think. If people are going to base their assumptions on discussions like that, then they clearly aren't looking at the situation very hard.[/color][quote][b] However, one of my other main complaints is not so much written fanfiction, but high technical quality fanart. Fanart usually doesn't carry disclaimers (where would you put it after all?), and some of the Kenshin/Sano, Heero/Duo, and Vash/Wolfwood pics out there could easily pass for series screenshots-and do just that.[/quote][/b] [color=#707875]I don't know...I still don't see a problem. I could probably find pictures of The Simpsons or something that looks like a screenshot, but it's actually a doctored image that contains something sexually explicit. But if it's sexually explicit, most people with reasonable intelligence know that it's not legitimate.[/color][quote][b] Maybe you haven't had the experience of someone telling you your favorite anime was porno. Maybe you haven't gotten into a discussion of homosexuality when you asked someone about another anime. I hope this never happens to you, but both have to me, because I have a friend who judges anime on the basis of artwork allegedly from it. [/B][/QUOTE] [color=#707875]Well, I don't know. If people are going to judge anime based on something like that, then they're not using their brain in my view. And surely all you have to do is explain it to them. I don't think other people's perceptions should matter. My dad doesn't appreciate anime, but I don't care. My mother and I watch it occasionally...and she appreciates it. And that's fine. I don't need anyone's validation or approval to enjoy an anime. Besides, this all seems to revolve around homosexuality. What happens when someone implies a relationship between characters of the opposite sex (where one does not really exist)? Are you just as outraged? I hope so, because it seems like you're more offended by the homosexuality than the factual aspect. I could be wrong about that, though. I understand that it's annoying to have something misinterpreted (with an anime/game that you enjoy), but it doesn't mean that same sex fan stories are bad or problematic. They're no different to other fan stories, which might be just as inaccurate in other ways. They shouldn't be singled out.[/color]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Randleman [/i] [B][color=crimson]What's wrong with the banner? "Fap" isn't an innapropriate word. The image isn't gross/disturbing/pornographic in any way, so why would James find it interesting? (unless James is the "Fap" guy)[/color] [/B][/QUOTE] [color=#707875]Don't play semantics. You know why it's inappropriate (not to mention the complaints I've had about it). Moreover, you also know that you've been doing pretty well. You were banned and came back, but I let you stay. Then you continued to break the rules, regardless of my warnings. I'm sorry, but you are definitely not in a position to complain. lol[/color]