Do you think the forum needs to change?

[Dizzy]

I'll see if I can do something about all the navbar clutter. I agree it looks pretty outdated.

I don't find it very fair to force people to participate in the community just to get privileges that everyone should already have. I understand that a lot of people want a bigger community. But not everyone wants to be a part of something. This is honestly the best palce for pretty much anything mugen related. If I wasn't as open-minded as I am, I wouldn't come here again, and just look somewhere else.

Don't force people into doing things, just coerce them into joining. It's fair, and would probably work a lot better

I wish we could lift all the restrictions on the downloads, I really do, sadly our servers are not powerful enough currently, and we don't have enough money to purchase more servers or upgrade the current ones further (if that's even possible). Sadly MUGEN is not mainstream enough for the ads to generate a lot of income, so we do what we can. Besides stimulating the activity a bit is beneficial to everyone in the long run. Having a lively site is the reason why people keep coming, why more content is preserved and available for download, why creators get more feedback to keep their motivation going, etc... As I said MUGEN isn't really mainstream so it's very hard to maintain a virtuous cycle of activity.

But our goal has always been to make MUGEN more mainstream, so if we somewhat succeed, we will be able to upgrade the servers much further and lift all the restrictions.

[Kotala]

I'll see if I can do something about all the navbar clutter. I agree it looks pretty outdated.



I wish we could lift all the restrictions on the downloads, I really do, sadly our servers are not powerful enough currently, and we don't have enough money to purchase more servers or upgrade the current ones further (if that's even possible). Sadly MUGEN is not mainstream enough for the ads to generate a lot of income, so we do what we can. Besides stimulating the activity a bit is beneficial to everyone in the long run. Having a lively site is the reason why people keep coming, why more content is preserved and available for download, why creators get more feedback to keep their motivation going, etc... As I said MUGEN isn't really mainstream so it's very hard to maintain a virtuous cycle of activity.

But our goal has always been to make MUGEN more mainstream, so if we somewhat succeed, we will be able to upgrade the servers much further and lift all the restrictions.

Thank you for the explanation. I've been around and never reaally got why they were there in the first place. I appreciate it.

Oh and one more thing. I feel like the downloads section isn't very nice. First time going there I was very confused and didn't really understand where to go to find certain things I was looking for. It could be more organized. Otherwise the site is pretty good.

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I think you got it wrong, you come to someones place and are now demanding privileges.

When you invite someone to your house for the first time, would you let them walk all over the place?
Most probably not, that person should either have earned your trust and respect or has some kind of rights to do so in the first place.

The best thing you can do is follow a few simple rules or have less privileges, it's that simple.

If you think otherwise, you can tell



I agree with the layout being too crowded

I'm saying this because it could deterr people from using the site entirely. Which it already has. The site is blacklisted on other mugen sites because of the way certain things work. And yes you do limit what a certain person can do, but I feel there's just too many restrictions. I was hardly demanding, I was making an honest suggestion to help the site. No need to be passive-aggressive.

[hegalica]

Sorry if I sounded passive-agressive to you, that was not my intention.
I was simply stating why such restrictions should exist, because you sounded like you were complaining for them to exist.
Likewise I am open for any suggestions and debate, that is why I said you should say something if you disagree.

Again I like to apologize for the misunderstanding.

[Dizzy]

Thank you for the explanation. I've been around and never reaally got why they were there in the first place. I appreciate it.

Oh and one more thing. I feel like the downloads section isn't very nice. First time going there I was very confused and didn't really understand where to go to find certain things I was looking for. It could be more organized. Otherwise the site is pretty good.

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I'm saying this because it could deterr people from using the site entirely. Which it already has. The site is blacklisted on other mugen sites because of the way certain things work. And yes you do limit what a certain person can do, but I feel there's just too many restrictions. I was hardly demanding, I was making an honest suggestion to help the site. No need to be passive-aggressive.

Please refrain from posting here if you don't have anything constructive to say.

First you need to elaborate on what exactly is wrong, "too many restrictions" and "I can't find certain things" is hardly accurate enough. I don't have a crystal ball to figure out what you're talking about. Secondly, make some specific and constructive suggestions, don't post just to vent your frustration. Third, you're dangerously shifting toward off topic politician speech, be wary, I have little patience towards little politicians.

[Someone92]

The enforcement of more detailed file descriptions, especially for characters.
Like, where have you found the character, and if you have edited it, what have you changed, general description / playstyle of the character, which characters work well with it and etc.

Another, more ambitious idea to clean up the uploads is an optional field "I've edited the following character from mugenarchive" when you upload a character; then the forum software could automatically create a tree structure of characters.

[Dizzy]

The enforcement of more detailed file descriptions, especially for characters.
Like, where have you found the character, and if you have edited it, what have you changed, general description / playstyle of the character, which characters work well with it and etc.

Another, more ambitious idea to clean up the uploads is an optional field "I've edited the following character from mugenarchive" when you upload a character; then the forum software could automatically create a tree structure of characters.

We already struggle to enforce rules as simple as not posting duplicates or repacks, posting in the correct category, etc... What exactly would you do to enforce more restrictive rules?

[DarkKnightDetective]

I saw an argument going the wrong way on a file earlier today and thought that maybe having a Report button for comments would be interesting. We already have it for posts and uploads, but not for comments on files. Just in case things get off hand.

[Someone92]

We already struggle to enforce rules as simple as not posting duplicates or repacks, posting in the correct category, etc... What exactly would you do to enforce more restrictive rules?

Personally, I would just delete uploads that do not meet the requirements.

As I assume you fear that would deter too many people from expanding the archive I suggest the following:

- At the Upload page, add the column "Source" (e.g. below Author); add the name of the website you downloaded it from or a direct link to it; if it's an edit for an already character that was already uploaded to the archive, add link to said archive upload
- A second column for something I have forgotten right now (will add later if I remember it)
- Description has to be green-lighted by mods; mods can select between a few pre-defined reasons why they do not green-light a description; said reason is then displayed publicly underneath the description in the download section
- Users can only gain points for rang upgrades if all points above are meet

.

- Other users can suggest a description for already uploaded characters; said descriptions will be shown below the description by the original uploader; either mods or voting by other users (depending on how confident you guys are to prevent the creation of sock puppet accounts) decide which will be shown at the top, and which can only be seen if you expand said category.

You can gain points for said description for you rank upgrade; another title specifically for this might also be a good idea.

[AugresiV]

Personally, I would just delete uploads that do not meet the requirements.

As I assume you fear that would deter too many people from expanding the archive I suggest the following:

- At the Upload page, add the column "Source" (e.g. below Author); add the name of the website you downloaded it from or a direct link to it; if it's an edit for an already character that was already uploaded to the archive, add link to said archive upload
- A second column for something I have forgotten right now (will add later if I remember it)
- Description has to be green-lighted by mods; mods can select between a few pre-defined reasons why they do not green-light a description; said reason is then displayed publicly underneath the description in the download section
- Users can only gain points for rang upgrades if all points above are meet

.

- Other users can suggest a description for already uploaded characters; said descriptions will be shown below the description by the original uploader; either mods or voting by other users (depending on how confident you guys are to prevent the creation of sock puppet accounts) decide which will be shown at the top, and which can only be seen if you expand said category.

You can gain points for said description for you rank upgrade; another title specifically for this might also be a good idea.

This post, as well as the entire subject, speaks to me. When I upload a file, especially a character, I try to be as detailed and specific as possible: changelogs; update logs; editor's notes (if applicable); personal notes; current version references so it's easier for mods and admins to merge files or for others to look at older versions of uploads and compare. More often than not: within those logs are also websites of the authors, patch or otherwise. Videos, especially if it's a patch (voice, AI) and recently putting one or 2 more images. I try to be as thorough as possible, but for me that's just personal preference. There are some things I miss adding that others will add, such as if a character has their own lifebar and the source website (if the site is still up). Hell, I still misplace files and @kater15, @Juu-bei7 or @Jansen121 gotta remerge, update or replace them into their proper categories; they, along with the rest of the staff, also have to keep working to keep worse offenders and rule-breakers from running amuck and bringing the site down. This isn't a small site and with larger numbers come more headaches and drama.

I can't speak on how upload rules should be enforced or reinforced, and I don't feel like I really have the right to tell anyone -how- an upload should be. All I can do is my part, and honestly, I do what I do because I enjoy it and I like contributing to the site.

[hegalica]

Now you mention it, a way to see a tree of child-parent posts for edited works sounds kind of cool.
Then again, that sounds like a lot of work.
All uploads need to be reorganized for that purpose and future posts will need to maintain it.
But most uploads don't even have a proper description....

[Someone92]

Yeah, demanding a higher standard for uploads is a harsh step, but if nothing is done more and more people will clutter the site up with their uploads and this turn will eventually turn into a dumpster instead of an archive.