RIP General

[shusuke]

Losing one of your actual possessions and losing -one other -method of chat are nothing alike. As I said before, other players got on well without it, so can you. I never used it other then to nose at peoples argues, since people were always having inappropriate debates over it.

If there was a warning, people still would have moaned. It's like when the server is about to go down and they warn us, then when people come back they start saying "What was that did anyone else crash?" or "The server just died!" Not everyone would react the way you would.

The actions may be different but the emotional backlash is similar: No warning. No choice in the matter. No consideration to how one felt. No sympathy to their plight. No recognition to their feelings. No chance to truly take it back.

I haven't bothered with this game in months and seeing at how things have been over that time I have no intention to do so. Only reason I'm really posting at all is because I feel bad for the people that can't live without General Chat.

The goal of a role-playing community is to get more players and maintain a decent amount of activity, not chase it away with something as ridiculous as this. And this will chase people away.

I'm full well expecting a good amount of people to say 'suck it up' to those people. That's not fair to anyone on here, in my opinion. They already 'suck up' and deal with a lot of stuff. The least one could do is ask their opinion about an important part of a game they play before it being removed.

[Killian]

I was there when you were having that conversation, he said at least 10% then 1%. You could easily organize some from of protest using the threads in the forum, ask everyone to be at NZ on a certain day at a certain time to tell the mods you want general back. If it's enough people maybe they will bring it back. People organize Flash Mobs on facebook believe it or not.

Most of you seem to act like you cannot continue playing without general when a lot of the players that cannot use general because they don't speak English already do. RUS people have big role plays going on all the time. It is at the end of the day, just another way of talking. Don't see why all the people that talk in general don't just all be in the same place and use local.

[shusuke]

What I don't get is for those who could care less about General being gone...why does it seem like such an issue for it to be put back? As a member of the community they have every right to be angry and due to the nature of how this came about have even more right to demand that the function be put back in place.

Everyone's all about "community, community" but yet you don't offer an ounce of compassion for those that are hurting, simply a solution in what looks like almost a monotonous drawl, coming from some people. I simply do not understand it.

[_-Phantomwolf-_]

Everyone has a right to their opinion, and everyone has the right to state their opinion. Freedom of speech. Red and his friends shouldn't insult us for stating our opinions. I did not insult the mods. I told them to listen to the community, which they are clearly NOT doing. In fact, Raz even said this earlier in game:

Me: You just throw out our opinions like they don't even matter.
Raz: Well, at the moment, they don't.
Me: So the opinion of the community doesn't matter at all to you?
Raz: No. Bring me the entire community. Let me hear them all say that this is a bad idea. (Or something like that)
Someone else: That's impossible, Raz, and you know it.

Many dont believe what one says on fh without a screenshot, I'm afraid.
I've many people I know who say otherwise, Mello. You sat with us, who were all having a good time with no complaints and started in; the mods need to step down, they don't do their job, the mods don't moderate. Yes, I know you have a voice to be heard and a point to be seen, but can't there be a way to voice your concerns without instantly provoking? Like it or not, that's all you did..you didn't get your point across, and if anything, only hurt your chances of being listened to. If you want to have your case heard, make it calm and respectful. Even if you felt that no respect was shown towards you, that doesn't mean a fight will solve everything. "Just give general back and all will be well." No, it won't at this point. This has gone past the simple fact that general is gone. Things won't be magically fixed because people whine about it until it comes back..no, I'm not saying people who've posted with valid points are whining, but what's happened is this: you've been insulted, so now you're going around throwing more fuel on the fire. There are ways to protest without it ending with a fight. Freedom of speech and PEACEFUL protest. What you're doing isn't protesting, it's crying. I'm sorry if people don't agree, but this is what I've gotten from what I saw. Sit there on your gen char, just as we do our anonymous chars, but there's no need to go provoking. I'm not saying you're wrong, just that it seems like the wrong way to go about things. I you feel the mods should do more, tell them so, but I don't think it helps to talk about them as if they aren't sitting right in front of you and expect to get a good reaction..it just doesn't work that way.

[Wolfish Grin]

Well this situation turned into a pile of crap in a matter of moments.

First of all, let's get some things straight.

'Opinion: Noun.
1. A view or judgment formed about something, not necessarily based on fact or knowledge.
2. The beliefs or views of a large number or majority of people about a particular thing.

Fact: Noun.
1. A thing that is indisputably the case.
2. Information used as evidence or as part of a report or news article.'

As defined by Google's dictionary resources, these two words are not the same. And you could say that's a fact.
Now let's make sure we all know the difference between them and try not to pass off one for the other.

-
If I'm honest, I'm still ticked off about general being removed. But what I'm getting increasingly more ticked off about is the way the situation is being handled by both sides. Yes, I would like general back a lot, but now that I think about it, I would like our community back even more.

The way everyone is addressing this issue is really making me sick; name calling, cussing, insulting, accusing, etc., or banning and kicking, is by no means any way to get your point across, but it is understandable that the mods and admins have banned and kicked users if they have broken the game rules. But, as I was not present at the said arguements/protests in game at the moment, I have no knowing of who to believe and how much of it.

I think a lot of valid points and statements have been made, and a lot of heavily biased or untrue statements/points as well. As I've seen many people say along these lines:

Most of the posts here want General back, and there are LOTS of groups in Fluorite wanting it back...

While in truth I've seen quite a few people who are okay with the change, or are alright sitting it out for now. And to prove my point further:

I know I already posted and might be inviting disaster by posting this reply, but has ANYONE checked the statistics!?
You all are shouting that some 99% of the community want general back.
I will look at the number of replies here and subtract 19 from that number, for replies of the same members and for replies of the people who want general to remain gone.
So 169-19=160, right? So around 160 members (that we are aware of) disagree or are not very happy with general being gone.
Now look at the statistics page...
Total Members: 194974

Lets take 194974 and compare it to 160...

Equation time!

194974 = 160
 100%      X%

So, 100 x 160= 16000
Now, 16000/194974 = 0.082% <-- That's the percentage of people who have DECLARED their insatisfaction with general being gone.

100% - 0.082% = 99.918% <-- Percentage of people who either: Didn't see the change (weren't active), want general gone, are able to adapt or don't mind.

Thank you, Thantos, someone finally took the initiative to work out some numbers! ^^ However on the other hand, there are a few things I'd also like to point out: "So 169-19=160, right?" is actually off by 10, and the correct number would be... 150. Also, "Total Members: 194974," there are plenty of double, triple, etc. accounts by the same person. And "100% - 0.082% = 99.918% <-- Percentage of people who either: Didn't see the change (weren't active)..." there are plenty of people who no longer play, or as you said, are no longer active. So unfortunately, there's a lot to account for and there isn't really a way to have exact numbers unless you have statistics for active members.

The best way of calculating that number would be by adding a poll for all active users to participate in. And for that to work, you'll have to make sure that everyone can see it- the best place would probably be here in the News/Updates section. BUT, what about those users who do not check the forum regularly or at all? Maybe they've come in once or twice since general's been down, but if you add the poll now, where will they be? How are you going to get them to vote so that it will be fair? I do not like the idea of the servers being closed for a week or so that all users can be informed, but if that means everyone gets a fair change at voting, then how else can we find what the majority thinks, and the best solution? I'm up for better suggestions, but at the rate that this seems to be getting handled (and I don't think it's being addressed very well at the moment...), something should be done soon and for everyone.

And yeah, it looks like I've contradicted my own opinion of wanting general back in my post, but you know what? It's just one opinion against the majority- and what the community wants is most important. Should general be brought back, or should it stay removed? I don't know, we'll have to see. But it's definitely not fair to have either side silenced or ignored. If what I'm saying ends up keeping general removed because most of the users want it that way, then so be it. The staff has to make these kind of sacrifices, so we should understand their position by being open to having our own opinions sacrificed as well. I was strongly against the idea of general being permanently removed when this first happened, and I still am. But I'm even more against sitting around and insulting or accusing people, or being unfair for all of FH. We all have to understand each other, and I stand by what I've said before- unfortunately, I think both sides of this argument are guilty of not being open and understanding to the other side's problems and opinions.

How about instead of fighting among ourselves, we all sit down and try to find the best solution? I'm tired of people arguing, of people spreading rumors, and people insulting and accusing everyone. As I've learned from many years being on the internet, no one gives a rats butt about your opinion if you're only going to insult or disregard theirs.

Thank you for reading,~ and have a nice day wherever and whoever you are.
-Wolfy/Grinny

[Karakuri]

I agree. A lot of people are whining and picking fights. This is just going to make things worse. Why can't you fight for General the /mature/ way? I'm sorry, Mello, but you were kind of going too far last night. Fighting won't solve the issue. The best we can do is show the mods we don't like it in a /polite/ and non-threatening manner. Because at the end of the day? Fights get solved when people reach an agreement. Not when someone beats someone down into getting their way. That continues the negative feeling.

[Jango_Fett]

I was on a 3 week vacation and away from FH for awhile, and i come ack to genny chat, this was before it was shut down, and i was like, 'YAY! its GENNY! i missed talking to my friends o here!" then a about a week later, i dont see any posts on Genny,and im posting and posting, trying to see if people would respond, and i went to SB to see if it was just a dead-spot i was in, but, eveyone was advertising in local,and movies, i didt know wat was oging on and then these people show up at N/z and says in a movie clip, "Make a geen char and name it general chat to ring back general chat!' i did belibe! this person said that genny was gone, so i ignored it was making a plan to see if genny was demoted to a more local level. turns out, i didt need to, the next day i posted a video askin wat had happened to general chat, and someone said that it was on the forums, and another siad it was shut down by the MODs, and only NOW do i look at the forum psot,now i UNDERSTAND your reasons t sut it down, but, as surga said, may not have been a great idea, now dont go banning me or saying im a rebel, but the other day, these people had BOMBARDED SB and saying in their videos to make a green carre and protest at SB and then about 35 minutes after it started, a red writing came on our chats by 'MOD 646355' or something like that, and i scared the heck out of me and my friends, and then it hit me, those people were telling the truth, general chat was gone, my fave place to hang out and talk with my friends was gone, and al the maps i have r the public ones so i cant just GO to a private one and chat there, and now i cant find my friends since genny is gone, i can only find the ones i RP with, so all im saying is, u got rid of 1 kind of troll and spam, while making room for ANOTHEr. Thank You for your Time at reading my post.   ~ WarriorKitten/color]

[Dire Night Wolf]

Thank you, Thantos, someone finally took the initiative to work out some numbers! ^^ However on the other hand, there are a few things I'd also like to point out: "So 169-19=160, right?" is actually off by 10, and the correct number would be... 150. Also, "Total Members: 194974," there are plenty of double, triple, etc. accounts by the same person. And "100% - 0.082% = 99.918% <-- Percentage of people who either: Didn't see the change (weren't active)..." there are plenty of people who no longer play, or as you said, are no longer active. So unfortunately, there's a lot to account for and there isn't really a way to have exact numbers unless you have statistics for active members.

The best way of calculating that number would be by adding a poll for all active users to participate in. And for that to work, you'll have to make sure that everyone can see it- the best place would probably be here in the News/Updates section. BUT, what about those users who do not check the forum regularly or at all? Maybe they've come in once or twice since general's been down, but if you add the poll now, where will they be? How are you going to get them to vote so that it will be fair? I do not like the idea of the servers being closed for a week or so that all users can be informed, but if that means everyone gets a fair change at voting, then how else can we find what the majority thinks, and the best solution? I'm up for better suggestions, but at the rate that this seems to be getting handled (and I don't think it's being addressed very well at the moment...), something should be done soon and for everyone.

XD How did I NOT see that... Seems my last math exam drained my brain. But yes, you are right polls are best, however there already is one, but it's not getting a lot of views, barely any people voted, sad really. I do agree with you that everyone should get a chance to vote on this.

Edit: Link to poll http://www.feral-heart.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=2&jfile=index.php&topic=36252.0

[Meadowstar01]

Everyone has a right to their opinion, and everyone has the right to state their opinion. Freedom of speech. Red and his friends shouldn't insult us for stating our opinions. I did not insult the mods. I told them to listen to the community, which they are clearly NOT doing. In fact, Raz even said this earlier in game:

Me: You just throw out our opinions like they don't even matter.
Raz: Well, at the moment, they don't.
Me: So the opinion of the community doesn't matter at all to you?
Raz: No. Bring me the entire community. Let me hear them all say that this is a bad idea. (Or something like that)
Someone else: That's impossible, Raz, and you know it.

It might also depend on how you said it. Like if you said it to them quite rudely, then don't expect them to be nice to you in return.

Anyhow,

But basically saying that the community's opinions for a game don't matter, is basically like saying that you don't care about the community. Hello? Without a community, there wouldn't be such thing as Feral Heart in the first place.

EDIT: Looking back at this post, I really shouldn't jump to conclusions right away. There's no screenshot (or any proof for that matter) that this actually happened.

[YouheiSunohara24]

I actually wasn't rude at first. I was peaceful in the beginning, and calm. It was when the moderators began lashing at ME that got me ticked off, and it turned into a more heated arguement.