Share your thoughts on some potential new projects!

[Tzagnos Zorba]

biglanky14

Forum Titles
Art/Writing/Whatever Directory and Contract System
Forum Wars
Let us know what you think!

Forum Titles ... really? Like that' really means anything? I can see where it would appeal to some people but personaly I've Never liked forum titles espeically when they're meaningless. If you'r a dev, and admin, or a mod - yea you need those forum titles - all other users should just be equal

User shop directories... I could see where this would be useful and a possible gold sink but it sounds like a LOT of work for something that would benefit a few shops and really make things a lot harder for other users trying to start a shop

Forum Wars???? Oh get real. Why? Why for pitty sake would you want to do that? We already have that for most of our events - and now you just want people to spam threads to take sides for no particular reason at all??? UGH!

[CumbrianRedFox]

I like the idea of the titles and the contracts, but I'm not sure about the voting thing. Maybe I'd have to have a go at it first

[Miss May Bea]

I absolutely love the personal contract system! It would make things so much safer and easier to navigate.

However, the forum titles I don't like. There's enough Gaia personalization as it is. If the feature was to be used, I'd probably want it disabled. It seems very silly. We've got profiles, avi's, signatures, comments, and so on for that sort of thing. People will just use it as another way to compete with one another. Which is exhausting >_<

[Adalmina]

The Contract is an awesome idea! Titles I might use but not really my thing and forum wars is something I would never participate.

[rinlee]

Like the contracts.

Don't see a point for the rest.

How about an MLP Hot Topic forum? Us bronies need a home too...

[Goldine]

I think forum titles would be more meaningful and fun in guilds, but the mix-match style is a great idea!

biglanky14

I run a similar service called the Minishops & Resources Center. May I add contract-holder to my service without breaking the "no banking" rule so long as I don't give interest or anything "bank-like"?

Forum wars = NO.

[Darkaznstargoddess]

biglanky14

Let me take some time to look at your proposals.

I'm okay with more forum achievement titles, since Gaia is in heart a forum based site. 3nodding Sounds okay to me. I'm just sure-whatever about it.

In terms of Forum wars, I'll just say I will pass on this one.

Art/Writing/Whatever Directory and Contract System
But Lanky, you've caught my attention there because I guess this one might impact me. As an huge consumer of art [Art whore], I would say in theory this is a good idea to avoid artists running off with gold before work is done and of course easier for mods to handle disputes but to be honest, I've never had that issue before. And I doubt I will be using this. I though art thief, tracing occurred more often than dishonest artists?

For some of these reasons, I do not want to use this feature

• Since these days a lot of artists prefer to pick the offers/order they want to draw. Some prefer character over offer or the opposite.
  
• Art shops and such are literally another place where different users congregate and build a sense of community/built friendships. I like being able to chat with other users in a store.
  
• A lot of artists do not like having deadlines to get art done by. Life happens and such..
  

And to be fair Lanky, I think you should post this proposal about the contract system in the mini shops/art forums/ etc to the users that will be most likely impacted by something like this. To see what they think rather than just the site feedback forum.

One last thought, this reminds me of the outfit selling feature on the marketplace. I honestly don't use that.
Thank you for your time Lanky and I sincerely hope you ask the users that constantly patron the mini-shops for their feedback.

[BuckyKattLove]

Honestly, none of this looks like anything I would use (especially the forum wars).

[The Siren X]

All I can really say is I love gaia online. I would love to see some new shops but I am still getting use to using gaia online and stuff. I am curious though is there a way to create your own clothing designs?

[kitty868theonly]

biglanky14

wahmbulance LONG POST ALERT! LONG POST ALERT! wahmbulance

The only reason this post is long is because when I give feedback, I want to make sure that I am as thorough as possible about these potential projects. To try to see both the cons and pros of them. Hopefully I am being detailed enough, and I apologize to those that don't like long posts. This is my opinion/post, you can always create your own to state your own thoughts. Please, don't be discouraged to write your own thoughts due to my own long post. 3nodding

Forum Titles YOU DID THIS! (Achievement's > Titles)

I actually like this idea. For some reason, others look at it as some 'elite' thing when it's not. It's no different then those that have job titles; janitor, manager, judge etc. It's not elite if that is really your title and/or what you do (on Gaia in this case). So, I see this as the same thing. If someone has the title 'Crazy Fisherman', I expect them to know what they are doing concerning fishing on Gaia. Therefore, if they are okay with it, I could PM them for advice if the available guides around are not enough or the forums don't give me enough information that I need (it also gives me an idea of a potential competitor). It also gives me an idea what they do most of the time on Gaia. I can see this going well for [certain] forums, such as:

➢ Question & Assistance Forum: I hang out in this forum a lot. I like this forum because the answers to questions are/have to be based on facts and not really opinions (such as, "Is this against ToS?" etc). I would love for those that help out a lot get their own title of 'Q&A Assistance' etc. That way, if people have questions, and they see me lurking around, they could PM me if they like (besides mods etc) to answer their questions as best as I can.

➢ Services Forum: If a bumper had a title, such as, bumper, I would know they are a bumper etc. I can see the same for 'Artist' and 'Writer' etc.

Based on what you written above, the forum title might be very broad, with possibly just the title 'Forum Master'. If it has to be broad, I wouldn't mind at all, but I do prefer for it to be expanded a little. You can even leave it as 'Forum Master', but when a person puts their mouse over the achievement, it explain which forum is their 'home' (calculated by how many posts they have in that forum over others- not counting posts from event forums.)

I would like to add that there are users that want to use achievement points to buy things. It was mentioned, long ago, that achievement points may or might be used to spend them on stuff (the poster was a mod or higher(?) originally)...I am one of those users that is still waiting for that. However, there were others that were concerned about spending their achievement points and losing the icon/'reward' etc that came with it. If the idea is ever implemented to spend points, I can see that happening with these new forum titles. As long they can be achieved again, and based on how you achieve them in the first place...it should be possible. If 'Crazy Fisherman' for instance is earned after catching 100 of each Hellfish (or something) and they earn 1k points, but spend the points on a award of some sort, they should have the option to go for that title again; both points and title if they like. Some ideas on what achievement points can be spent on (a few have been mentioned here or there):

❋ Alchemy Components: Do I need to say more? [EDIT: Due to the recent changes to the cache (and hopefully the case too in the future), this one is not really needed anymore.]
❋ Wing Stickers: Maybe after collecting a certain amount of points, they can be traded for stickers?
❋ Tickets: Some of those items in Prize and Joy cost a lot of tickets, anything to help 'speed up' the process would be nice.
❋ New Items/Rewards: If you, er, the artists decide to include new items to buy with points, that would be fine too (although, like puzzles, word bump, pinball etc. the items are no longer wanted after a certain amount of time- so it needs to be updated every once in awhile)

They could be used for other things, but these are what I have in mind. Other titles should/could include: Puzzles (Puzzle Master?), Word Bumper, Titles/Blackjack (or Ticket Collector), Bug/Flower/Trash Collector, zOMG!, and Alchemy (I guess, though I do agree that it needs work).

The only 'con' or negative rather, that I see with this idea is if it repeats that mess from a few years(?) ago with the messaging thing. Remember 'Princess' and all of those other 'titles'? Those were, the way they were written, insults to one another (basically flaming, I didn't understand that at the time, as flaming is against ToS so....?). Even though it was limited to friends, if I remember correctly, it was still offensive to some (I guess many since it no longer exists). I don't even allow my friends to call me any derogatory words, and that includes the so called word that is 'positive', the 'N' word- same skin/race or not, I don't tolerate that nonsense. So, when creating this and you include certain nouns/adjectives etc., make sure that the words combined to create the title doesn't make something offensive or borderline flaming (even if it refers to themselves). You don't want to create more work for yourselves.

Overall, I see 'Forum Titles' as a extended thing of signatures, and a short thing about themselves that is most likely written in their profile. This idea is neat, but it is not needed. This should probably be done after others, features already on Gaia, have been updated and/or fixed.

Art/Writing/Whatever Directory and Contract System

I really, really, REALLY like this idea. I have created a thread about hiring a bumper to bump a thread for me. But I was concerned about me not being able to come online to pay them since I am so busy, if this system was in place, I wouldn't have to worry about that. I could put the amount of gold they need in the contract (that we agreed on), and when the job is done (a date we agree on as well), the gold will be transferred to them automatically. He/she doesn't have to worry about not getting paid, and I don't have to worry about not being online in time to pay them and/or getting reported for 'scamming' (when that isn't the case). This can have other uses as well, such as:

➢ 'Bank': I don't mean a user-run bank, but one thing that some users have requested is a system to hold your gold without trading it to another account/mule and/or keeping tabs on it by writing it down- a bank (without interest). This, although not a banking system, is enough for me/those users that want it. I could start a contract with my mule, add in the details of what it is for (quest money for [insert item here] for example), and let it sit there until I get the amount I need. I see that there is a 'Change' button there, so if I want to add more gold to the contract (as needed), I can at any time. At this time, I keep up with how much I have for a quest by writing it down.

➢ 'Loan': I truthfully don't know who would do this (or even why), but those that want to borrow gold/items and give it 0 platinum back over time could do so. It'll be similar to what I wrote about the bank idea/example.

➢ Paying off a Item: It's rare that I see this, but for those that sell an item for 'cheap' now, but wait for the full payment over a matter of days to pay an item off. Er, a horrible example is: The contract contains a Ancient Katana and I put in 500k for it, the other person is giving me a month to pay the full amount for the item or the contract becomes null and void. I guess this is for people that don't mind waiting for a payment on an item.

The directory is also a good idea. However, they both have a few issues that should be addressed before being implemented (if ever).

✘ Changing the Trade: This problem has been brought up numerous times about someone changing the trade, with our current trading system, and the other user of that trade doesn't get a notification about it. When the trade is complete, the other user doesn't know that they were given less gold/items then what they agreed on (it's worse if the other user that scammed them deleted their post/s) and there is no proof of the agreement etc. While this contract system will take care of the dispute part, it might still be a problem if the trade is changed- whether for honest or dishonest purposes, it's a problem if the users are not notified about the changes. So, I propose that if changes have to be made on the contract- it can't be changed unless BOTH SIDES agree to the change. A notification/PM could be automatically sent about the changes the other party wants to make and they can re-agree to the contract. If this is not possible, then the 'Change' button should only allow the user(s) to ADD to the contract, but not take anything away from it. If there is a mistake, then they should be able to cancel the contract, meaning everything within it is gone, and start over with another new contract.

✘ Canceling It: I noticed that there is no 'cancel' button on the mock-up. I think it's a good idea...but bad too if the art/gold was given, but the other party didn't receive whatever they agreed on. Then again, there is the dispute button. I think a cancel button should be given in the beginning of the contract (just in case a mistake was made) for a certain time-frame (2/3 days?) and towards the end date of the contract (just in case the other party can't provide the art/gold- not so if the other party already provided the art/service). Unless deleting their post would cancel the contract (the mock-up is not really clear how a contract is made between users)? If that is the case, then maybe deleting posts within those threads should not be allowed.

✘ Open Shop is really Closed [DIRECTORY]: Another issue that has been brought up many times is that shops that are listed as open have full slots (gold wise), but their 'real commissions' slots are open...and that is why the shop is open. For the directory, since it's connected to the contract system which only allows GOLD AND/OR ITEMS to be traded on Gaia within it (and not real money), it should be explained clearly that shops listed in the directory, or that are added to the directory, have to only sell their services (writing, drawing, bumping etc) for gold/items. If all their gold slots are full, then their shop should be labeled as full and/or closed. Otherwise, it's offsite advertising and...stupid to have it open when there are only commission slots open (and it's no good for the contract system at all- so what's the point?)

✘ Rating System: A few users mentioned it being like E-Bay...I have no idea how that works, but based on what I read- the contractee will be able to rate the buyer after they bought something from the other. As long as they explain why they made the rating (positive or negative), it should be fine. Otherwise, it'll be a repeat of the <3 & </3 system (anonymous rating)...and I noticed in the mock-up that the <3 & </3 buttons are not there...does the contract system take over it instead? I also wonder what rating everyone starts with. Is it 100% and it decreases based on their ratings after completing contracts? Or does it start from 0% and it goes up after completing contracts with positive ratings? I hope it starts from 100%, otherwise those with 'not famous' art will be overlooked- directory or not. Another thing someone mentioned earlier, is people increasing their rating and/or doing fake contracts to keep their rating high. I don't want it to go by IP address for various reasons or not being able to trade with a mule (like my purpose would be for 'saving'), but maybe there could be a contract history to view, that way users can see if there are any fake contracts and such. If there are any fake contracts, it should give people the option to report it (it's no different then scamming).

✘ # of Contracts: I want to be able to see the history of a person contracts, that way I can tell if that person is honest or not (tell from fake contracts and real etc.)

✘ Completion Date: I really love this part of the contract idea. I know for me, I don't mind giving someone a year to complete a picture/writing etc (and if they need longer then a year, then I want my gold back). I understand that some people don't like deadlines and such due to life etc., but I'm the type that likes deadlines. Seriously, some threads I have entered have full slots and they haven't completed any of the requests within a year+ - wasting the buyers and the sellers time. I like things with a deadline, it almost guarantees that it'll be done within that time-frame. If the other can't meet the deadline, then he/she should not agree to the contract at all (plus they have the regular trading system to use still). The only bad thing I can see with this is if the other party completed the goal/art/writing etc. before the deadline. If something is completed before the deadline, there should be a button to press, maybe it could read, 'Complete Contract NOW'. That way the person can get paid right then and there and move on. And the dates themselves...the lowest I think someone should be able to pick is a day, while the longest should be a year (will a calendar pop up for someone to pick a date? That would be fine too).

And that is all I can think of concerning the contract and directory system. Overall, it's the best idea of the 3, it just need to have it's kinks worked out before being created. If only one of these ideas can to be created, I prefer this one over the others.

Forum Wars

No..just...no. I can't even think of anything good this would be used for. Yes, it can be used as a 'pick your side' about some argument, but the issue is what is the argument about? There will be the legit ones (like in your example) and the really bad ones (This girl [insert picture] from [insert username from Gaia here] is really ugly- who agrees!?). Just...no! If people want to argue/debate about something, they can just fine with posts. There doesn't need to be a giant sign about it and points. There is already the <3 & </3 system and tipping to let them know if many agree with them or not. This idea would lead to flaming wars quite quickly, so Gaia... why you create more work for yourself!? emo Seriously, just...no.

This my overall opinion for all 3 potential projects. If I have anything to add, I will edit this post to include it. Thanks for reading! 3nodding

Last edited: 11/02/2012

[K4M]

I like the contract system alot

[LabTech David]

I love all the ideas, they are really cool. smile

[Xrandom_dreamX]

who cares

[Satanic PandaCakes]

All of that sounds awesome!

[Silver Freak]

Art/Writing/Whatever Directory and Contract System
I think and official agreement thing would be nice.
As for it being a more "formal" way, to me it seems like a more complicated way.
I have an art shop and don't really see the need for a change since everything already goes very smoothly.

The one thing I would like to see is to still receive the gold after I have finished the art, even if the person leaves gaia.
Yes I have had people leave gaia before they even receive the art. So im finished with it and I don't get paid.

All in all I most likely wont be using this feature if it comes out.

Forum Wars
Seems like an opportunity for spam and trolling.

Forum Titles
Don't really care for it.