ID Lines

It's become an increasing debate - ID Lines. What should and should not be there?

Shadow Academy Courses and Medals have always graced the tail end of the ID Line. Some members have bloated this section to exceed the beginning section of rank, name, order, position, house and clan. Oh yeah - and ACC rank.

Quite a few people - even thouse who admit that they went for every SA course to puposely bloat their ID line to look more impressive than they were - think that the SA course abbreviations need to go. Others still think that medals are pretty pointless there too.

I agree. Your most important information are the first two pieces. Rank and Name. Courses are rather pointless to brag about since a lot of the old ones were nothing more than a copy-paste form with rather simple notes. I don't know if abbreviations are removed if the course is removed automatically, but I'm thinking of people who have their ID lines pasted in places that aren't updated with the DJB site leave in as many as they can.

I did like the idea of a title based on how many you've done - something similar to the ACC ranks would be good. [SA: Scholar] or the like would be better than the alphabet soup people throw on their lines.

I also think that your dossier number should appear in there somewhere. I mean - it's how you get to the important info of medals, history and other junk but it's not on the most widely used method of identification?

Forums

Almost as an afterthought, but in relation to the last post, I've decided to lay off quite a bit on the Forums. I am probably one of the most active moderators - viciously destroying spam, merging posts and closing threads. They've been quiet lately... a little too quiet. Trust me - no one likes the stupid threads where every post is a few letters, but even those are somewhat welcome compared to this current deserted wasteland of a message board.

Perhaps I was a little harsh on the spammers - then again, they've learned a lesson, right? Posting on the forums does not have to be the work of great writers. Each post doesn't need to be super long or the best writing ever, but they need to be more than some pointless statement. If you agree or disagree with something in a thread, DISCUSS IT. Don't just say "yeah me too" - elaborate. It won't kill you to take the extra minute to explain why.

Quick Comment on Comments

You'll notice I do not allow comments on this blog. There's a couple reasons for it.

1. I'd rather not moderate people in yet another online space.

2. I really don't care what random crap most people have to say about my opinions.

If you'd like to make a comment, e-mail it to me. My address is on the DJB site. I'm dossier #5. Or you can catch me on IRC every now and then. DP_Kaine in a couple channels (#DB, #Naga_Sadow) . I'll address your concerns in private, and possibly publish the results if it's worth it.

Summary of April

I do not look for fault in the Brotherhood. I merely observe what the Council is doing and offer my advice (or just broadcast my opinion if they won’t listen to my advice). This installment has some praise and some badgering. Don’t take this stuff personally, because I do not make these statements on a personal level. I’m only commenting on what they do not who they are.

Herald
Of course I start here – Some things are hard to let go. Muz released a report after a few weeks of silence – though not on his blog. He’s been keeping up a semi-regular schedule on that and, as I commented there, as long as he’s saying something to keep that (the blog) alive, reports aren’t as vital.

In his latest report he showed off the new custom robe options, or at least how the works in progress are going. Nice stuff really, though a lot of Asian influence in them all. I suppose that’s bound to happen with only a couple people working on them, and it’s not like I really have a suggestion for a different look at this time. Maybe in a week or two I can think of other options. Still, great work. I look forward to those becoming available.

He also addressed two new lightsaber options. I am not keen on this ultraviolet option. It’s something I never allowed and it seems like it was a decision based on caving in to constant badgering over a feature that some people thought would be cool. No offense but it sounds like a certain DC member’s kind of dork-geek-ness. Seriously, this may or may not be of Muz’s own concept, but I don’t believe it is, and just do not approve of it. There was a very simple rule I put into the Custom Lightsaber Guide for blades: If it isn’t in a Star Wars film, you can’t have it. I though black blades were stupid and this is no different. Now I have talked to Muz about it, and I can understand his position. Plus – he tells me it was in a book or a comic somewhere. I’m still not entirely OK with it, but hey – it’s his call.

As for multiphase sabers, we’ve had that all along. My original custom saber has a knob on it that is for the blade length adjustment – just like Darth Vader’s. That tidbit came to me from one of the SW encyclopedias or tech guides or something of that sort about 10 years ago – which, by the way, is how long ago I made that original lightsaber of mine. That book is where I got the idea, and as far as I’m concerned it’s an option that’s always been there. If people had asked about it I’m sure it would have come out sooner. Still – it’s good that Muz has made an official recognition of it.

I don’t want to sound like I’m pissed at Muz. I’m not. I am just very critical of how the Herald’s office operates. Perhaps I’m biased. I didn’t really want to stop being Herald, but it was unavoidable. As I have often said in public and private Muz is doing quite well, with ideas that are making a real difference. I know some think I should go easy on him, and to that I say ‘I am’. Even he says I’m a tough act to follow – disregarding Cyris’ very short stint in the position. He asks me for advice and I appreciate that.

The double sabers (aka staff sabers) are a decent addition. I like that he lowered the requirements a little, especially since there are “common” options and customs are still up where they should be. I suppose that was really the whole restriction with them to begin with – there were no “basic” double lightsabers, so there was no way anyone could have anything but a custom one.

P:GM
I read Pyr’s post a few weeks ago and then went through his blog. I have to say – as far as a Praetor is concerned, Pyr is doing serious double duty. He’s working like he’s DC, and that only makes the GM look better. Though Jac does write reports and generally chats with the membership, Pyr is picking up the slack, filling in the gaps of the communication, and it’s working out great.

I can understand where he’s coming from with his annoyance at people not knowing about the Alacrity projects. How many times did I post “read the guide!” in my many years? I lost count after 100. Truth is laziness seems to be creeping into a major part of the DJB. I’m not sure if it’s because most of us are on the verge of summer, or that we’re all pretty much set in our ways. Whatever the reason is it really needs to stop. Read the guides.

CM
The CM has come under fire lately over the complexity of the ACC. The ACC was created in part by my former apprentice, Cyris Oscura, but not since his reign as CM have I understood how things really work. The inclusion of much-needed lightsaber style information and points system only compounds the overwhelming amount of information available on the ACC system. Sometimes it takes the view of those who are far removed from the process to point this out, as Dalthid has conceded.

Granted, as pointed out on the forums, it may be just attributed to laziness. Sure – I like a quick reference chart as much as the next guy – but if you don’t know the data surrounding that chart, it’s still useless. I think both sides need some sort of agreement: The ACC needs an “Essential Guide” streamlined down to only the most important aspects, but referencing the larger text. The members need to read this stuff - Myself included.

Family Feud
A spark has been made recently regarding the MAA’s restrictions on Families. Let me say this – they were a dumb idea 5 years ago and they are still kind of stupid. Consider yourselves lucky that the rules are not as strict as they could be.
As an element of fiction, they’re fine to a degree. I think people take it a bit too far though. I mean – as Jac even said – what are the chances that an entire family joins the DJB? The Dark Jedi are usually the banished member of an otherwise normal family. It’s about as bad as all the people whose histories show that their entire family was killed… sheesh let’s be a little more original, ok? At least my character really doesn’t have a family, unless you count his previous incarnation’s family.

Jac’s Blog
Every now and then I’m wrong. I admit it. I thought that the idea of Jac’s blog was silly. Even with the overwhelming vote against me, I wasn’t convinced that it was worthwhile. Then again – I think what I’m writing now is rather pointless. I mean, who is really reading this? Muz, Kat, Xia Long, Mike Halcyon… That’s probably it.

Anyhow Jac’s mind diarrhea is rather entertaining.

Dark Voice Tribune
Seeing as how I don’t really want to stop being involved in the DJB, people told me I should apply for the Tribune spot. I didn’t – and I’ll tell you why:

The Dark Voice has already failed under my care two times.

The first time it fell apart because people just stopped submitting things. The second time, the people I had helping me just… stopped. This second problem happened to me on a lot of projects: Project Epiderm, Project Archon, a new lightsaber building tool interface, GOA Reform, SWGN, Warbanner conceptualization, Etc…

Still I may want to take part in the DV, even if it's just as a contributor.

The Final Word
One thing that really pissed me off this month was the lack of effort. Some was on my part, most as on the part of the DJB as a whole. Did you know I had a competition running all through April? I didn’t advertise it. I threw it in there on the competition page for everyone to see. This was a test to see if people would even see, let alone attempt, my competitions.
One person did – and they’re going to get a big fat Diamond Crescent for it.