Well, here I am presenting the results of that post on OtakuBoards in support of MyOtaku users located here. Since there are a lot of things to cover, this post may be a little long.
New Members
A major issue that’s been brought up is that MyOtaku no longer receives new members, so new members aren’t able to enjoy a restrictionless and more customizable blog. It’s been determined that it is utterly impossible for new members to join MyOtaku because making MyOtaku accessible to new members would result in busting up a bunch of the current MyOtaku members’ sites. Also, some of the moderators are hoping that MyOtaku will just fade away, so that TheOtaku can act as a “one-stop shop.” However, new members can still see updates that the members they’ve subscribed to put up on MyOtaku, and can comment on MyOtaku blogs.
Customization Options
As for the matter of MyOtaku’s superior customization options, such options created problems for TheOtaku/MyOtaku staff because when upgrades were made, sites would get frozen/broken due to their customizations. In order to avoid such problems the staff have decided that the restrictions placed on Worlds are necessary. However, the limits on pictures, videos, and such in Worlds are being decreased, and the ideas of adding different themes/styles to and more control over the number of displayed post in Worlds are being considered by the staff.
Major Upgrades for MyOtaku
Also, the coding that MyOtaku runs on (HTML) is more difficult to add upgrades to in general, and whole areas of the website need to be changed even when dealing with minor upgrades. So MyOtaku definitely won’t be seeing any major upgrades, such as new members, the comment/reply management system, and guestbook and site layout changes (so that sites look “normal” when using Firefox or a newer version of InternetExplorer). Therefore, major upgrades are pretty much out of the question because the staff would rather focus on TheOtaku, which has more of a future, is easier to upgrade, and has more of a population.
MyOtaku's Comment/Reply Management System
The reason that the moderators gave for removing the comment/reply system on MyOtaku is that removing it would draw some members to TheOtaku (aiding in the creation of a “one-stop shop”) and the members on MyOtaku won’t really need the system, since MyOtaku will gradually become inactive and the important comments/replies are on TheOtaku. I still think that taking away the comment/reply system on MyOtaku, then saying that it won’t be given back due to the amount of effort it would take is rather lousy of the staff. Perhaps pointing this out further to the staff and illustrating that a significantly large enough group would like to have some major upgrades or just the comment/reply system back (since some of the moderators would demand numbers showing the support of MyOtaku) would get more effort out of the staff. There’s a petition going around, where you can voice your concerns for MyOtaku here.
TheOtaku's Update System
Another major issue (that’s the major issue for me) is the current update system on TheOtaku in comparison to the old update system still used on MyOtaku. The current update system doesn’t show when a member who you’re subscribed to last updated something, and if you’re subscribed to a lot of members, you can miss updates due to the limit on the number of updates shown in the list. I addressed Adam on this problem the summer of 2008, and there’s still been minimal progress. However, that summer Adam had just put up VersionVibrant and was still working out major bugs, so I think it’s understandable that he couldn’t get to it. The summer of 2009, when I raised the issue again with my post on OB, Adam was busy with some sort of game that he was making; everybody’s been kept in the dark about it, since it’s a personal project of Adam’s. Also, a whole new upgrade system, like the one that we want (one that shows when a use last updated, the most recent updates, and the areas in which they updated), would be really difficult to create, and will definitely take a long time to set up. Since the staff still treat the users who want such an update system as an unreasonable and inflexible minority, I’ll probably bring up the issue again next summer to remind them, though! XD
Premium Membership and Advertisements
MyOtaku members and other older members have also been a little concerned about where the Premium Membership stuff may be going in terms of the way that the staff treats members and the way that TheOtaku may be oriented. Well, the moderators made it quite obvious that they despise DeviantArt, so it’s highly unlikely that the staff will start to prefer Premium members and make the website become profit-oriented. Also, due to TheOtaku’s rise in popularity over the recent years, the increase in advertisements and the offering of Premium Memberships has become somewhat of a necessity to help pay for running TheOtaku. Just to help out with the website for generous members who don’t want the Premium Membership I think a donation system should be set up, as well. ^.^
Comment Boxes and Minor Upgrades
For some minor upgrades for TheOtaku/MyOtaku members may have to submit their own coding to improve the websites, like with the comment box on MyOtaku. However, some of the moderators recognize that expecting other members to do their jobs is inpractical, so some of them are trying to figure out a way to make the comment box on TheOtaku a little easier to use (feel free to help them out, though, because I haven’t seen any results yet). Other moderators have again put stress on the fact that not all of TheOtaku’s members care about a better comment box and wordpad/notepad can always be used to get around the problem (despite the inconvenience), so any voices in favour of a better comment box would also help.
Cosplay and Security/Privacy
Some of the older users left TheOtaku/MyOtaku, when VersionVibrant went up and the cosplay section was removed. Well, the cosplay section will be brought back eventually, and that’s guaranteed, since it’s mentioned in the FAQ section of TheOtaku. There’s a World that currently supports cosplay, as well, here. Also, some members were wondering if MyOtaku could get a better security/privacy system on their blogs to prevent certain people (parents and ex-boyfriends) from reading their posts; it’s not likely that MyOtaku will get such a feature, but this feature can be found available forTheOtaku’s Worlds.
Welcome to TheOtaku/MyOtaku Jedi Knight System for New Members
Something that I’d like to bring back, which MyOtaku members can really help out with, is the old way of helping new members get used to TheOtaku/MyOtaku by teaching new members the ways of TheOtaku/MyOtaku and based on the Jedi Knight classification system. < That probably sounds very confusing, but if anybody remembers ths sort of welcome system, feel free to share your memories and try to reinstate the system because it really helped out a lot of members! ^.~ Also, it might make the moderators see the older users and MyOtaku users more positively, since they seem to think that we’re all too nostalgic.
Summations
Overall, the moderators stressed that they’ll be focusing on getting upgrades for TheOtaku, and some of these upgrades can include the things that older users want, but it’s highly unlikely that MyOtaku will be receiving any upgrades. If you want to make your opinions heard on the matter, though, contact Adam, post a thread on OB here, write an article/fanword, and/or sign this petition. SunfallE was considering posting a list of the upgrades that the staff are planning, as well; I don’t know whether or not it’s been posted yet, or still being considered. ^.^;
When you go to make your opinions heard, you should probably put any ideas or suggestions in list form before trying to explain your reasoning, since the staff/moderators appreciate lists more. Also, the moderators have a tendency to remind MyOtaku members that they’re being generous enough as it is for just allowing MyOtaku to remain; I never know whether or not to consider this as a threat or simply a representation of the staff’s generosity, and usually I just show gratitude for this. Another thing to keep in mind if you share your opinions on OB is that it’s probably best to reply to any other replies unspecifically first, then address a few replies more specifically; by replying to each individual comment, people became confused with me, and it takes more time to explain every little detail.
Lastly, I’d like to thank those who have already stepped forward to support MyOtaku, especially while I was on OB (I think your support helped get all of the moderators off my back)! *^.^* Keep fighting MyOtakuites and veterans of TheOtaku/MyOtaku, because we’re not as unimportant as the nostalgic oldies that some of the staff seem to take us for! XD
^ club created by darkeangel
