James

[quote name='Copycatalyst']It instates in the rules that one cannot post "I'm back threads." Thus why is this thread still open?[/QUOTE] [color=#606060]There is nothing about these threads [url="http://www.otakuboards.com/rules.php?"]here[/url]. We tend to discourage too many of these threads but they aren't outright against the rules. Don't forget the announcement a while ago, which stated that our site rules had been updated/simplified. Posting these types of threads isn't against the rules, but obviously if half of Otaku Lounge is covered in them they will be deleted. It's all swings and round-a-bouts, really. ~_^[/color]

[color=#606060]If this is your girlfriend's friend (and if she is aware of what he is doing), I think it is ultimately her responsibility to tell him to knock it off. If I've misunderstood anything there, let me know. :catgirl: In my relationship...if a friend of mine had some kind of objection to it and was causing problems, I would confront that person and tell them that if they're a true friend they wouldn't be trying to derail my relationship - which is ultimately no business of theirs. And if that person continued to make my life a misery, they simply wouldn't be my friend anymore. I wouldn't be talking to them. As far as the whole honor/pride thing goes...I don't think anyone is suggesting that you shouldn't be proud of yourself or your heritage. Of course you should. Having said that, I think you have to be realistic about the situation - you have to be the responsible, adult person in this conflict. If the guy in question is not doing anything violent - if he's just talking crap behind your back - he is best ignored. If he's trying to damage your relationship or get your attention, [i]don't let him[/i]. If he's really making some serious threats or whatever, then definitely, I'd start talking to various adults around you (whether that involves police, parents or whoever else). As I said though, if he's your girlfriend's friend, I really think it's more her responsibility than yours - she should be going to this guy and telling him to knock it off. He needs to understand that he will lose her friendship if he doesn't stop acting like an idiot. And if she feels too threatened by that or whatever, then definitely, I'd look at the other options mentioned above. I wouldn't even be thinking of getting into a fight at this stage, no matter who starts it - from what has been said here it doesn't seem to have gotten to that level. Getting your back up to this extent is only putting you exactly where this other guy wants you anyway. Better to cool off and think about things in a mature way - don't let this guy's petty stunts win out.[/color]

[quote name='Desbreko'][color=#4B0082]Huzzah! Quick reply is back in working order, and is now also using AJAX to post the reply without having to reload the entire thread. And to go along with it, quick edit is also working now, which lets you edit posts without having to load any new pages. Now shower me with praise, for I am so great and stuff. :bow:[/color][/QUOTE] [color=#606060]I think a lot of people who aren't familiar with the AJAX system will be really impressed with how it all works. This is especially true for people on slower connections. When we were talking about avatar sizes and such, I was conscious of the fact that narrowband users would have to continuously reload pages (to edit and to post responses) and that might cause some issues. This new way of only loading the relevant areas of the page without reloading the entire thing will mean that we [i]can[/i] make more use of bigger images without impacting on slower users too much. [/color]

[quote name='Sara'][color=#db2007]Oh my goodness, it's really and truly gone? I am so happy.[/color][/QUOTE] [color=#606060]It certainly is. I think I can almost feel everyone sighing around the globe, lol. There are a large number of improvements but one of the issues is that some new features have no graphics. I've just uploaded a graphic for "View Post" when a post is quoted - since this is a very obvious graphic that will be visible all the time I felt it was important to get that one going first. I've got more images to add but that shouldn't take too long. We're also finally going to be able to send welcome PMs to new members, which will help things a great deal. [/color]

[quote name='Shy'][size=1]Indeed! Isn't Ajeh's user name a throwback to the old trend of adding '-Eh' at the end of everyone's user name? I know James was 'Jeh,' and Break was 'Weh.' Someone tried to call me 'Sheh,' but it never really stuck. -Sheh[/size][/QUOTE] [color=#606060]Yeah, I can tell you where that came from. It came from a conversation between Russell (Break) and I. We used to chat really regularly and Russell was talking about something one day...I forget what it was, but basically he was trying to potray himself as being really tough. So I started calling him Wussell as a joke, lol. And from there, we shortened it to Weh. I think one of his usernames on AIM was "Slipweh" (instead of Slipknot). And yeah, it sort of grew from there... I miss some of those members. I haven't spoken to Weh for ages. Maybe I should write an Otakupedia entry about him if I can remember enough. He had a few other weird nicknames too (like Chocobeek, Beek and Beek-Weh).[/color]

[color=#606060]I'm not terribly happy with how this came out but I found it difficult to follow on from the previous image. I tried to incorporate Darren's linework into my own picture originally but I wasn't happy with how that looked. In any case, I figured this would still be an interesting image. Big OB Evolution preview in here, haha. :catgirl: [center][URL=http://img105.imageshack.us/my.php?image=evolutionpq8.jpg][IMG]http://img105.imageshack.us/img105/9160/evolutionpq8.th.jpg[/IMG][/URL][/center] Link: [url]http://img105.imageshack.us/img105/9160/evolutionpq8.jpg[/url] I think Pepper would make a good mascot.[/color]

[color=#606060]Thanks for the compliment - OB is in the early stages of a revolution, methinks. ~_^ A lot is changing and a lot will be changed. I'm preparing the site for new growth in the future. New design is coming through, a different approach to rules/members, major software upgrades and a new version that will take advantage of all of the above and be new from scratch. Hope you enjoy the place, Fish. :catgirl: [/color]

[color=#606060]As Tony said, there are a ton of new things that we're having to deal with because we've been so long without a software update. At the moment the main thing is just to ensure that we get all the new basics functioning properly and then we'll start working on the other bits and pieces. The main thing I'm happy about is that damn message receipt thing on PMs. I can't tell you how much that was bugging me for years, lol. I'm glad it's now gone. [/color]

[color=#606060]There are still quite a few things that need attention but most of the issues have been sorted out now. My announcement pretty much explains why we've had some problems with this upgrade - it was a bit painful but probably necessary. Once the kinks are ironed out we'll be looking at various other options before OBE arrives. Thanks much to Alan and Desbreko for continuing to work on the issues. Hopefully we'll have Quick Reply back soon![/color]

[color=#606060]I'm sorry for the errors people are experiencing right now. Unfortunately due to the highly-customised nature of OB, the latest edition of vB is causing some problems with some of our data. At the moment it's no threat to any content on OB but it's causing style/template errors in a few places. Alan and Desbreko are working to fix this so that everything works properly. Hopefully that'll be finalized soon, but I am more interested in it being correct than rushing either of 'em. At this stage I think OB is still useable enough not to have to close the site, so I'm going to leave it open for the time being. Just make sure to check the announcements for any further updates.[/color]

[color=#606060]I'm not quite sure what to do now...whether I should follow on from your image or the previous one. I will wait to see what Retri says about how he'd like us to proceed before I work on something new.[/color]

[color=#606060]I started working on my image but I will wait until your final version is up. Having a higher quality version without artifacts will help with blending [i]a lot[/i]. It may be worth uploading your original file too just in case (i.e. your PSD).[/color]

[color=#606060]It might also be an option to upload a PSD format of the image for the next user (if you use Photoshop or PSP you can do this). OB supports PSD format I believe. This will allow accurate colour matching without too much trouble I should think (and if necessary someone can jump in and optimize your original layered file if you don't want to or can't).[/color]

[color=#606060]I actually think we might be upgrading our vB before the new version launches. I've been talking to Alan about that recently - I'll have to see where we are with it.[/color]

[color=#606060]I will put my submission up during the weekend I think - I'll have time over the next couple of days to start working on it.[/color]

[color=#606060]Your scan looks fine, although the one you've put in this thread has a resolution of 463x600 pixels. So I'm not sure where 1450 pixels X 1879 pixels comes from (unless the version in this thread has been shrunk from the first version you scanned, which I just assume). Still, the actual image quality seems okay on this screen (though I'm not at home right now and the screen I'm on isn't as good), but I definitely don't notice any stand-out issues with the scan. So yeah, I don't really know, if you submitted the version that you put in this thread it may indeed not have been big enough. Either that or they are only looking for clear character images so that people can crop them and stuff. Who knows. Either way I think your thread idea is a good one.[/color]

[color=#606060]I think the issue here is a commercial one. If you use these scanned images in a commercial venture (and if you claim the source images as your own), the ground becomes legally shaky. But for the purposes of people making banners and wallpapers? I don't see an issue. So as I mentioned in your Otaku Lounge thread, feel free to create a thread for scans in the Art Studio forum.[/color]

[color=#606060]I can't really comment on what MiniTokyo said; I'm not familiar with their site so I don't know what their rules are. It seems that they want very clear images for people to use in their own graphics which seems reasonable I suppose - it just depends how clear they make this to members. Anyway, if you want to start a thread to share scans you are welcome to do so. Such a thread would probably belong in our Art Studio forum. I'd just ask people to host their scans at a place like ImageShack and to put thumbnails on OB. This way we don't stretch the forum width and we also ensure that we aren't using up massive amounts of bandwidth (since scans tend to be on the larger side of the spectrum). If the thread is full of thumbnails like the one you've provided I have no problem with it. I think scans would be very helpful for the various artists on OB who want to contribute graphics to the Graphic Worm and other projects.[/color]

[color=#606060]For me the best kind of RPG is one that is very much in the hands of each writer but where there is a general understanding of where the plot will go (I do [i]really[/i] prefer the term "dynamic stories" - RPG is an old-fashioned term that covers something we used to do but don't anymore). What I mean is, a lot of RPGs are written where players are in their own vaccuum. Their characters interact now and then but for the most part, everyone is almost writing a different story. My favourite RPGs - and my ideal RPG - are the ones where each person contributes equally (where each person is capable of surprising the others with new revelations and so on), but where everyone is "on the same page" - not in a particularly obvious way, but in generally understanding the RPG's universe and building off each other's posts. What I really love is when I post something and someone takes an element of my post and expands on it in their own way - it might be something I hadn't even thought of. It makes you feel like your posts are all really tied together; that you are [i]truly[/i] in the same world. Few RPGs seem to achieve this in a significant way. In terms of an ending...I think that an ending should happen naturally. By this I mean, you may all have a very vague idea of how the story may end, but it's about the journey and not the destination. The [i]way[/i] the story ends and what leads up to that point can be a total mystery - it's more fun that way. And that's the whole point of building a dynamic story in the first place, I guess. Also I think it's good to end an RPG at the right time, rather than just continually posting without any point. I mean, it's better to end an RPG when it's still fun and where you can tie up most of the story (or the key points) and then still have some leftover material for the future. I like that idea. It means you have a cohesive story that anyone can read but it also means that you have a lot of material to build on in the future. As far as my ideal RPG goes, I suppose what I've said above are elements of what I'd ideally want to see. In terms of setting? I don't really know. I have to say that my tastes as far as setting and characters change constantly. But for me the perfect RPG is more about those elements I described above - the things that make the universe feel cohesive, where everyone is incredibly absorbed in each other's characters. I think that when you are eager to read posts by other participants, you know you have a really fun RPG. If reading other posts is a chore or annoying...then that's probably a sign the RPG is less than ideal. At the moment I have some RPG ideas that I really want to make happen but they are hard to convey - I feel I'd almost need images to do this. If these ideas could "work", I think they would end up being my favourite RPGs. I've shared a lot of ideas with Shy and Sandy lately and some of those ideas would make brilliant RPGs if done properly. I think Hybrid Vigor could have been my own personal "ultimate" RPG but it wasn't quite planned properly. It didn't need an Underground thread as such - it should have done without Revelations/Artifacts and so on, that stuff just convoluted the whole experience. I don't know if I'd do another attempt at it, but the entire concept was one of my favourites back when Rico was involved. [b]Edit:[/b] Recently I saw Fantastic Four and I started thinking about my own type of superhero RPG where the superheroes would basically come to work at an office - it would be a corporation/company that would hire and fire superheroes. They'd have advertising deals and things like that. It would be like a superhero in the real world type of situation. Unfortunately this idea has been used before in various ways - though none I've personally liked. [/color]

[color=#606060][font=franklin gothic medium] [b]THE SEARCH FOR MOTHER[/b] Havoc, Zero and Proteus walked out of the club looking no different to the civilians around them. They had arrived at the club in the early evening and it was now dark. Clockwork South was bathed in cool blue neon as far as the eye could see and the crowds were swelling outside the popular night spots. Zero looked around and breathed in the night air. He raised his wrist to his mouth and spoke quietly. ?Warlock, can you hear me? It?s Zero.? Zero was an older model reploid. And as impressive as he was, his technological capabilities didn?t match other newer Hunters. Unlike Proteus, Havoc and others, Zero had to speak into a wrist-mounted radio emitter to communicate with other Hunters. Proteus heard the speaker crackle to life. ?I?m here. You guys took long enough! I was getting odd stares all night; only just found a good spot to hide the [i]Impact[/i]. It?s in a parking structure a few kilometres east of your position. I?ll send you the GPS coordinates. You better get here fast; loss of protoneurone isn?t Iota?s only problem! There seems to be a software malfunction as well. Hurry, guys!? Havoc looked at his feet. ?Poor Iota?? Zero nodded and pointed eastward. ?We?d better go, we don?t have much time. I?m sure Iota will be okay.? The trio began walking away from Xanadu. Despite the crowds and their noise, Proteus felt oddly at peace. All was quiet in his mind ? it was a similar kind of freedom that he?d felt in Xen, although here it was somehow different. There was warmness here. Proteus knew that this was what it felt like to be home. Proteus?s thoughts were interrupted by a strange sinking feeling. He could hear buzzing ? like radio static ? in his ears. And as he walked, he could see faint images snapping in and out of view right in front of him. The images were all different and they were difficult to make out. Some looked like the interior of a stark white room and in others, Proteus was sure he could see the face of a beautiful young woman with thin-rimmed glasses smiling down at him. And then he heard yelling and crying, followed by quiet breathing. Proteus stopped in the middle of the street and held his forehead. ?Proteus, what?s wrong?? asked Havoc. He put his hand on Proteus?s shoulder. ?Are you all right?? Proteus paused and nodded slowly. ?Yes?but I don?t think I can come with you.? Havoc and Zero looked at each other. ?What are you talking about?? said Zero, apparently taken aback by Proteus?s sudden change of heart. ?It?s hard to explain,? began Proteus slowly. ?Several years ago I was involved in a Hunters mission in support of the ALED. Flash was there. It was one of the last times I saw him alive?? Havoc looked away. The memory of Flash was still raw in his mind, as much as he tried to deny it. ?During that mission I heard voices; they were strangely familiar to me,? continued Proteus. ?A machine can?t have a mental illness, surely. Can it?? Zero shook his head. ?No. Did you hear voices again just now?? ?Yes,? said Proteus. ?This time I saw images too. I think there is a reason for all this. At the time I dismissed the experience, but I have given it a lot of thought over the last couple of years. And after my abduction at Red Alert, it all somehow started to make sense.? Havoc cocked his head. ?What's making sense?? Proteus paused before continuing. ?I discovered my original purpose. I was built by Lucia Karman, an ex-Hunters employee. She?? He couldn?t bring himself to say it. ?She was a traitor. She built me to infiltrate Hunter HQ?to sabotage it. I was to be activated remotely by her. But Flash found me and he activated me himself...somehow her plan didn?t work. I don?t know what went wrong.? Havoc took a step back and glared at Proteus. ?What are you saying? Is there more we need to know?? He looked threatened, as though Proteus would fire his buster at them at any moment. Zero put his hand up, ?Havoc, no, I don?t think we have to worry about that.? Proteus smiled at Havoc awkwardly. ?No, I am not under her control and I never was. But the software that was designed to control me is still present. And I think it is malfunctioning?I am not worried about committing treason. I am worried for my sanity ? if this software error gets worse, it may not be reversible. Nobody knows what?s inside me, including myself.? Havoc stepped closer to Proteus and lowered his head. ?I?m sorry, I didn?t mean to imply?? ?It?s okay,? said Proteus quietly, ?you have the best interests of the Hunters in mind. That?s what your purpose is. And that?s the reason why I need to find out what this software is and find a way to delete it safely ? I don?t want the Hunters to be at further risk. What happened to Flash?I don?t want it to happen to anyone else I care about.? The crowds of people around them were deafening but the three Hunters stood silent for several moments. Zero looked up and smiled warmly. ?Thank you for your honesty, Proteus. We will be okay without you for now. Just?be careful out there on your own. I want to hear from you regularly, you hear?? Proteus grinned and nodded to the others. ?Thank you. I will be with you again soon, I promise.? And with that, Proteus walked off in the opposite direction to his comrades. As he walked away, he had one location in mind: [i]The Golden Mile[/i]. [b]THE GOLDEN MILE[/b] The entire street appeared as though it had been frozen in time. What were once shiny new cafes and boutiques lay before Proteus now as desolate husks. Remnants of chairs and tables littered the street; Proteus tried to imagine what the patrons were doing before the missile struck. It was difficult to imagine something as obtuse as death and it was even odder to think that this street had, at one point, been teeming with life. Looming before Proteus was, by far, the largest building in the street. It was more damaged than any of the others to the point where the average person would not have identified it as being anything unique. Proteus knew of the building?s past largely due to his own research. This building ? this unremarkable, blacked-out, crumbling façade ? was, at one time, a laboratory. In its day, it was known simply as Angel Square. Despite its current state of depression, it was once a building that housed some of the world?s most promising robotics research. It was here that Dr. Light spent the majority of his twilight years studying robotics for medicine. It was in this facility that protoneurone was invented and it would have been the place where the first protoneurone treatment for humans could have been unveiled had the building not fallen victim to a devastating missile attack. Angel Square sat in the direct center of The Golden Mile ? a long, winding street that had become famous for many reasons (with plenty of dubious reasons among them). Angel Square was perhaps the most famous building on the mile because it was a place where many of the greatest researchers of the period strived to work ? Dr. Light was the chief patron of the organisation. He had taken over stewardship of the facility after his tenure at the Maverick Hunter Headquarters. It was, as he had famously said, his way of giving back to a community that had given him so much. Proteus thought this was strange, given that William Light had devoted his entire life to science; the community, he thought, had not given very much back to Dr. Light at all ? with the exception of several honorary titles. Angel Square?s entrance was far from secure; there was no front door at all. In fact, much of the building?s walls had large pieces missing as a result of the missile attack. As Proteus entered the lobby he wondered how anyone could have survived the blast. Many of the offices had been completely crushed by imploding ceilings and enormous piles of debris lay everywhere. The air was thick and musty ? probably full of building fibres. Proteus engaged his night-vision and took another glance around. There were few signs left. The reception desk had a small plaque behind it with various directions: LEVEL 1 ? OPERATION THEATRES LEVEL 2 ? VIRAL RESEARCH LEVEL 3 ? CRYOGENICS LEVEL 4 ? STEM CELL LABORATORY LEVEL 5 ? ROBOTICS AND CYBERNETICS LABORATORY LEVEL 6 ? PROTONEURONE RESEARCH CENTER Half of the sign was missing. There were apparently more than a dozen levels in the building. Proteus found it notable that much of the laboratory resembled a regular hospital; with some exceptions, there was nothing especially unusual or grand about Angel Square. Proteus took an interest in Angel Square for one reason only: this is where he had been born. At least, it was within this facility that Dr. Karman had conceived some of her most controversial designs ? Active Cellular Modulation was revolutionary and had tremendous positive applications, but it was ultimately overshadowed by the horror of her obsession with cybernetic technology. It seemed ironic to Proteus that he had quite literally been born in a hospital, where most reploids are birthed in some kind of manufacturing center. Ultimately it was here, in this place, where he hoped he might learn something more about Dr. Karman. In the recesses of his mind, Proteus was curious about his birth ? and he did think of himself as having been born, rather than being ?activated? ? but his primary interest was tactical: what could he learn here that might give him an advantage over Red Alert? Proteus knew that the organization was based entirely around Dr. Karman?s motivations and those motivations grew from a singular event ? the missile strike that decimated Angel Square and all of her life?s work. Proteus was looking for files, transcripts, video?anything that could fill in the sizeable gaps in Dr. Karman?s history. The center of the building had collapsed inwards and was exposed. Proteus looked up and saw clouds drifting lazily overhead. From his position he could see all of the floors clearly. He was most interested in the Robotics and Cybernetics Laboratory: this was where Dr. Karman had spent the majority of her time while at the institution. The soles of Proteus? boots began to glow a vivid blue as he rose into the air and hovered upward towards the sixth floor. As he ascended in silence, it was as though he were on his way to heaven; that he was actually enveloped by the gaping wound of a war-torn building made the situation ironic, but Proteus preferred to ignore the logical side of his mind for once. As he approached the entrance to level six, he expected something grander than what he ultimately saw. The sixth level was as plain ? if not more so ? than the rest of the facility. It was utilitarian in nature, with the odd flourish here and there (mostly evident were several paintings depicting forests and lakes; places that had once been part of Novus Concordia before the city expanded). The sixth floor had suffered a large amount of damage from the missile blast. Desks were thrown across the room (many in pieces) and there was paperwork everywhere. It would be difficult to find anything of value in the room but Proteus knew he had to persevere. Before he could further contemplate the scale of the mess, however, Proteus noticed a large stack of newspaper sitting against the far wall. The newspapers appeared to be in order as though they had been deliberately stored for a period of time. Proteus navigated through the debris and began flicking through the newspapers. Several headlines were highlighted: [b]SECOND MISSILE ROCKS THE GOLDEN MILE[/b] [b]YOUNG BOY KILLED IN TRAGIC ATTACK[/b] [b]CONTROVERSIAL SCIENTIST DISAPPEARS AFTER LOSS OF SON[/b] [b]YEARS OF RESEARCH LOST[/b] Proteus paused as he considered the articles. He returned to the very first headline: ?Second Missile Rocks The Golden Mile?. ?Second missile?? said Proteus aloud. He had always thought that there had been only one missile attack here and that it had been Warlock?s fault. Had he just assumed the existence of only one incident? Proteus could not remember ever being told anything to the contrary, although Dr. Karman had always referred to ?the missile attack? ? although there hadn?t been mention of a second attack, there had also never been confirmation of only [i]one[/i]. As he read through the various articles he saw no mention of Warlock?s name. This seemed strange as everyone had always told him that Warlock was not only the culprit but that this was a highly-publicised fact. If there had been a second missile strike, thought Proteus, it was feasible that the latter strike had nothing to do with Warlock at all. And for that matter, did it have anything to do with the Maverick Hunters? It was entirely possible that Dr. Karman?s rage was completely misdirected. Nevertheless, these articles did not answer Proteus?s most burning question ? what was the strange software inside his mind and why did it malfunction? Flash had died more than a year ago and he was the only one who saw Proteus in stasis prior to activation. Only he could really tell Proteus what happened upon activation ? had he noticed a problem and disabled the software? Had he run a pre-activation diagnostic just to be safe? Perhaps he?d started Proteus?s BIOS in Safe Mode, which prevented Dr. Karman?s software from initializing. In any event, Proteus had nobody to turn to. Who could he turn to for information? Where could he go for documents? ?I must keep going,? said Proteus aloud. He continued to search through the dusty laboratory for answers; he needed a lucky break.[/color][/font]

[QUOTE=Solo Tremaine][color=#503f86][b]Method 18: Pretend To Hate It[/b] Find something about the 'Boards that you don't like and make that the crux of your apparent OB hatred, taking time to complain about anything else that happens to irk you along the way. Insults should be thinly-veiled (unless directed at the less popular members) to avoid being banned. This way you can just about escape warning-free. It helps to throw in crude jokes or the odd swear word. Pretend to be better/cooler/know more than everyone else, so every post is apparently a waste of your time. Woe betide anyone who should criticize you. Through your stinging commentaries on various members, thread topics and site designs; your sarcastic, semi-insulting comments will glean you a charm amongst the OB populace, and while you have a cantakerous, argumentative and rude outer facade, inside you will be standing proudly on your OB podium with a smile on your face and a tear in your eye. Weaknesses: Don't expect to get modded if you start like this from the off. And make sure to hide those early posts wherein you were a lowly, unconfident newbie with a font two sizes too big for your words, asking sheepishly 'Can I post my wallpaper here?', otherwise your big 'bad-boy' image is shattered forever. And of course, you leave yourself open to the one fatal flaw in the 'Pretend To Hate It' method; the simple question: If you dislike the site so much, why are you here? And then you may just have to admit that, actually, you really do love it here and cry every time you get torn away from the screen to go to bed. This method can sometimes be confused with Method 1, but while those using that method can just be jerks, people who Pretend To Hate It are not always necessarily jerks. [/color][/QUOTE] [color=#808080]This is probably one of the best posts I've ever read on OtakuBoards. Thanks, Solo. [/color]

[QUOTE=Retribution]In the end, The Boss contests that the ad hoc group had definite impact ? two members from the merged organizations became moderators as a direct result of his and other?s actions. It has neither been confirmed nor denied this was the case. [/QUOTE] [color=#808080]Which members became Moderators as a direct result of these actions? It's news to me and I'm the one who authorizes all new staff appointments. That part might be best left out, because I don't think it's accurate. lol MAMA proved itself to be not only obnoxious, but incoherent - in the end nobody really knew what they were fighting against or aguing for. One of the main complaints was that a couple of Mods became staff "too quickly". Apart from the fact that most people felt this was an unfair attack on perfectly good members, I pointed out that we've had a history of members becoming Mods relatively quickly - quite a few members, dating back several years, had become Moderators not long after registering. So ultimately I think MAMA probably ended up just embarassing itself and demonstrating that MAMA itself was the problem, not those who the group was intending to target. I can't speak much for Viva Otaku because they didn't really seem to do anything that I can remember.[/color]

[QUOTE=AJeh][size=1]That video used to scare me :( I think I only ever saw it right to the end once, and that was because me and my cousin forced ourselves to lol.[/size][/QUOTE] [color=#808080]It's kinda like Rubber Johnny in that at first glance you sort of view it as being creepy/scary. Both videos, though, actually have lots of humorous overtones to them. I like that Aphex Twin is made out to be so attractive that women immediately want to be around him (even though this is obviously not the case - although maybe his dance moves are enough to do it). Did you send up seeing the Bjork video? I'm using shots from that in my avatar/banner. It's definitely one of my favourite music videos. I think it shows that Chris Cunningham can be incredibly varied in his work - it's nothing like Windowlicker but it carries a few similar visual cues.[/color]

[color=#808080]I wouldn't ever outright dismiss someone's opinion when it comes to this stuff, but yeah, I think there's a danger when you try to cater to lots of tastes at once. You ultimately have to just do what you feel works best, otherwise the design becomes really diluted because there are too many cooks in the kitchen. ~_^ But yeah, I know it isn't ideal to have the skins evolve over a period of weeks (I would love to just have them all finished right now), but it's all my time will allow. It's better than going for ages without any updates though! I think it also shows that the V7 layout still holds up relatively well despite its age - it really just needs a few good new coats of paint. I did open up skin design to staff a while ago but as yet nobody's submitted anything. I'm thinking about opening this process up to the members soon, which might help move things along. On the other hand, any totally new skins may only last a few months depending on how OBE development goes. The Kuja: I actually forget the name of our new font - so far I suppose you could call it the "official" font. I'm not entirely sure about that though, we'll see how it goes. I'm not at home at the moment so I can't check the name. The only thing that's certain is that I'm not using Century Gothic for our logo anymore. Edit: Geisha is the least finished. It actually requires some coding updates too I think (both skins do, but Geisha moreso). You can look forward to further additions/changes coming shortly.[/color]

[color=#808080]Ultimately no matter what I do, someone won't like it. If I try to make OB design a democratic process we'll end up with something terrible because I will be trying to please everyone. Having said that, I'm updating the skins piece by piece. This is just because I'm on such limited time at the moment. I figured it was better this way than to just never get anything done. So yeah, there will be further changes/updates to both skins. As a designer, I will be trying to improve the look/feel/consistency of the two skins as much as I can (without being able to completely redevelop things in the way I'd like). I'll be relying on Desbreko a bit for this probably - a few colour values and stuff need to be changed in the templates potentially. So it may take a little while because it'll be a back-and-forth, but yeah... So the short answer is, I won't be taking any public requests on design (unless something is actually not functioning). Having said that, things aren't finished and are still being updated. Please be patient.[/color]