While preparing edited chatlogs for The Meeting Place's website, I detected what could be notes of warning in recent discussions.

The first is from Saturday's Watcher's Sanctuary discussions with Reteltee (the original chatlog is on UO at http://www.uruobsession.com/forum/index.php?s=452967d9de8b71dd9e7d527fe3680a43&act=ST&f=56&t=31605&st=30).

Quote:

Reteltee: I think we have a great community of Explorers, and I have immense respect for the community. But, like in any community, there are those who contribute little else besides negative, destructive ideas, comments, and energy. The difficulty isn't in dealing with those people. The difficulty is that they are often the LOUDEST. And therefore are the most visible to the DRC

Relayer Corps: are you saying the rest of us need to be louder?

Reteltee: Not necesarily Relayer. It's just that...think of it like this. When people think of a group or community, they often tend to take the loudest, most obvious, and vocal members of said community to be the leadership. [...]

Warren Weisstieg: And they assume

Reteltee: Exaclty Warren, they assume that what those perceived-to-be-leaders present as their ideas are representative of their community. The DRC pays attention to the things that happen, both IC and in the forums. And of course the communique that goes directly to them. And lately, they have seen a lot of negativity....making it harder for them to trust the community. Right or wrong, I know that's how they feel

[...]

The DRC hold the cards; that's simply the truth of it. If we are to prove to them our capability of taking a hand or two, then we have to rise above politics, rivalries, and underhandedness. Which is why I always come back to community, communication, and collaboration. These are the things that will save this Cavern from again succumbing to the frailities of human, and D'ni, nature.

That doesn't mean we have to sit around singing Kum By Yah. Disagreement is necessary, and healthy. But only if we EXPRESS that disagreement in healthy ways

The second is from the discussion earlier today between Dr Watson and various explorers (see http://www.mystonline.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=205384#205384
for the original source of the chatlogs).

Quote:

Skotte: Some have suggested the new guilds may be a vehicle for change. strength. Others have suggested the new guilds are DRC hubris. What do you think of the matter, Mr Watson?

Dr. Watson: Guilds are fine, in and of themselves. They provided D'ni with stability to last for nearly 10,000 years here in the Cavern... And who knows how many thousands of years before that. It all just depends on the people involved. (sorry, just choosing my words carefully.)

Worth discussing or thinking about?

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Resources for open-source Uru: OpenUru; rel.to
Cross-world story and project planning: Devokan forums

This is very much worth thinking about, and some of us have been thinking about it for years. Various people and groups have worked at being positive forces in the Cavern, but it's very easy for voices of reason and patience to be overwhelmed by others who make more noise.

The situation is a lot like making sand sculpture on the beach. Most people respect the process, but it only takes one destructive person to knock over in seconds what took a day to build.

Building things is hard work. It takes time, patience and skills that our society rarely encourages. Many of us have, in our own quiet ways, tried to encourage growth of skills.

In a way, Watson is being two-faced here. What have the DRC been advertising? "Destruction is coming." "Deception." We have little information to make good choices of guidance. Hints, innuendo, fragmented chatlogs. We'e not been given much glue to stick things together with, and we have been told that whatever guild-glue we might come up with is subject to being replaced by other plans eventually. None of this encourages behavior that's conducive to long-term growth-with-stability.

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Want to learn more about the D'ni? Look here: http://www.dpwr.net/

It is not a simple case of who is loudest, or forum trolls. If it were the issue would be rather minor.

<OOC Moment>
Even the average Explorer acts like a rude person when ever a character shows up. Cyan is sticking with it UrU idea. Problem is the "u" many people are choosing to be is that of a tourist trying to provoke the guards at buckingham palace. People were getting frustrated about only a "few elite" getting to interact with the DRC, so now they are showing up in high traffic areas. Only thing is they are getting mobbed, saw one guy go nose to nose with Cate just to get a close up KI photo.
</OOC Moment>


There are several places where it would be safe to say we might expect several of the DRC to show either at the tail end of this week or during the next. At these meetings the explorers will have to do better, worst case it will flip back to a almost invite only setting where the DRC seeks people out when they have something specific in mind.

I love that by dumb luck I was in the right place and at the right time to see four different DRC members but they are not that important to what I want to do just now. And I think that is part of the catch, if you are busy in Uru, involved in your own projects or in a group project like the guilds you are behaving very differently "usually" then the average Explorer.

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Waymet

I think the problem is a lack of structure. You can't show up and expect that everyone will behave in such a manner that is conducive to a meeting. Especially if people have been anticipating the event for over a month.

I think the DRC needs to put into place some measure of control of these meetings. For instance, not standing near a link-in point. As soon as they linked in, if they immediately moved to the auditorium (in the hoods) or somewhere similarly distant from the link-in point, this would alleviate a lot of the frustration Explorers experience.

Also, all meetings should be moderated. When a dignitary addresses a crowd, it is either a speech (no questions) or the questions are fielded by a moderator. It only makes sense to use one when more than 10 or so people have gathered to get information. That, or the DRC representative just needs to give a prepared speech and then leave.

I could give many other suggestions that would improve these events, but the overall conclusion is still the same. A lack of structure is to blame. Until that problem is addressed, we will continue to have these problems.

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KI #6725475

Common courtesy needs no rules and there will always be those that disregard them no matter what. I agree that once you are engaged in a project the surrounding chaos becomes mute. Hopefully once we get beyond these baby steps in establishing our own structure- the eager participants will be the only ones listening.

ok How and where do we start with this structuring
of the guilds? we should do this in steps also.

step 1 get a message out to all ( wording it will take some skil )l
get the word out to all to pick a guild to join.
(But what of those whos abilities and skills are in a differant line of work
which there are NO guild pubs set up for them yet? )

step 2 have a first offical guild meeting take names etc.
Then we wait for Reteltee to come around to each guild to give
a history lesson and to give us some structering so that we make make some rules for the guild. (at some point a guild master has to be appointed)
the guild master can lead for say 6 months and then let someone eles take over.

step 3 Cyan will have to intevean and give the guilds some tools
etc. so that the guilds can advance.

I suggest that cyan place afew more pubs in game for the other guilds.
Should we even have lesser guilds? I say all guilds are the same.
each one is as important as the next guild.
Think of it as life in an eco system (rain forest) take out say the bees
and you have just killed off the rain forest. even the tiniest things
have their place in the 'whole'.

_________________
--=VoiZod=-- MO:UL is:
MOUL - KI - 07289007, MOULa - KI - 00815646,
UURU - KI - D'mala 00943458, TMP - KI 131549,
URU - KI - Atrus 03668735, Katran 00982487,
URUb - KI - 00356281

Um VoiZod.........


Most of us are hovering around step two already.

For the last month the Pre-Group supporting the Maintainers Guild has been taking names of interested parties, picking Reteltee's brain in a friendly way, and working on defining the structure we want to work in. It's still all subject to change but we have two or three projects almost ready to start, and some firm ideas on what we want to do.

Step three is the next big bomb shell that will change the entire game plan, but you are mistaken in one thing. It will not be Cyan but the DRC releasing tools why else would Laxman be so busy. Once all four Supporter groups for the new Guilds are at the same stage then expext the bomb shell to drop.

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Waymet

Dot, very timely. After last night's meeting in the GoW pub, one could easily despair.

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Play nice Shorahmin, play nice...