route_29 | A NEW RULE APPEARS

Hey, Route!

Yes, more new stuff. Everything chaaanges, chaaaanges, it's evolutionary~

1) New apps rule!:
In the interest of clarity and app processing speed, we now ask that potential applicants post their application in comments rather than linking. If the app contains explicit references to 'hard' spoilers (think big reveals, like 'Dumbledore dies', I SEE DEAD PEOPLE, I am your father etc), players should put the application in their own journal or their character's journal and link it, making sure to mention the presence of spoilers within.

We've always gotten linked apps (goodness knows I'm guilty of linking an app or five that was spoiler-free!), but having them all on the page means the mods don't have to open a million tabs while processing, and spoiler links keep fellow players from stumbling onto things that might ruin a canon for them.

This is a rule; as of today (the 11th of October), if your app is linked but not marked for spoilers, it will not be processed that week. We trust all our players will read and abide by the rules list, which has not changed besides this.

2) Polling about the passwords:
RELAX, we're not changing anything concerning passwords...yet. But we're thinking it's about time this thing got an overhaul, don't you think?

Our proposed fix: What we'd like to do is remove the passwords altogether and replace them with something of a task system: on the rules and FAQ pages, tasks such as 'explain in one sentence how your character feels about strawberries in their personality section' or 'include a link to your favorite youtube video in the canon links section'.

The goal here is to make sure people have at least given a cursory visit to both pages. These tasks would change arbitrarily and be located arbitrarily within the FAQ and rules. Yes, these would be more work for you, and for us, but the current password system feels outdated and obvious.

Your turn: How do you feel, Route? Hate this idea? Love passwords? Have a better idea? Let us know!

[Poll #1785767]

If you have grievances, comments, suggestions or ideas concerning either the new app rule or the password system, you can: PM the mod account, PM any of us individually, catch us on AIM, or post (anonymously or not) to our (screened) Suggestions post.

Looking forward to hear from you!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I'm doing this in two parts to break up the pile of words somewhat. And I apologize in advance if this is too personal to be relevant.

Is posting apps really that much of an inconvenience? For some people, the answer is an emphatic yes

Posting apps can be a huge inconvenience for people who are anxious about any number of things, from having HTML perfect to flailing over the right amount of text to put in at a time, to the simple aesthetics of how a few lines of text with a link look compare to a long line of comments or the relative privacy of being a link away rather than out in the open for everyone to see at any time. While this might sound silly or trite, these are things I can worry about, and I know there's another Route player with an anxiety disorder as well in my circle of friends, so that means possibly many others I'm not aware of.

It may not seem like a big deal to you to have to edit or repost something to get coding right, but to some people it is a huge thing and linking to be certain they have everything right can reduce player nerves.

In addition, I feel awkward and like I'm intimidating possible castmates if I post something in comments that takes more than 3 parts, regardless of how long others around me on the comment page are. I don't think I'm alone in this.

There's also the matter of routine. Again, from my own perspective, not having to change the way things are done for what doesn't seem like a very important reason is comforting and makes me enjoy knowing that I can do things the way I have done them for a while now in LJRP. Changing that routine is upsetting in any part of life, especially in a hobby where I try to feel as safe as possible.

And as said elsewhere, linking takes up a single comment whereas posting eats away at comments and makes it more likely that the 5000 comment captcha limit will be hit in the middle of a cycle or that there will be an intimidatingly large number of pages for new players to see.

I realize that approaching this from the perspective of a constantly-nervous player may not make sense in the minds of someone who has never had to cope with anxiety, if I'm correct in thinking you don't (and I apologize if that's a wrong guess), but it's a perspective that I felt needed to be brought up. Player comfort, especially when trying to join a game, is a big thing to me.

We definitely understand that anxiety issues can be crippling, and if the new app system causes anyone undue stress, they have our sincerest apologies. You would be correct in assuming that I, Ara, do not deal with anxiety, and with that in mind, you can feel free to take or leave the solutions I offer:

In regards to satisfactory HTML, as I outlined above to Yosuke-mun; potential applicants can use their own personal journal to post the app in split comments, tampering with the html and contents until everything is to their liking, and then posting the application in the actual Route post. Of course, all applications should ideally be polished before getting submitted, but this allows for the most tweaking.

In regards to privacy: while an app is public whether on a journal or in comments to an app post, we understand that the seeming 'obstacle' that a link creates can be reassuring. In that case, we can't offer an immediate solution, as we keep our apps public for the benefit of new appers. However, we'd be more than happy to screen the application of anyone that asks, after the final verdict. That way, the applicant could have the freedom of keeping the app as a post in their journal, removing it entirely and having it be invisible, or only keeping relevant parts in their journal for fellow players' reference.

I won't touch on app length, since I'm afraid I don't understand the problem; the app is the same length whether it is in a journal or in comments, isn't it? Castmates also may feel more encouraged, rather than intimidated, by a longer app. Those feelings are very subjective though, and not something I feel qualified to comment on with any accuracy.

We do understand that changings things like this stirs things up; however we hope that in time, this will become normal and routine. This was actually the option we felt would be the least fuss for everyone, as opposed to say, switching entirely to emailed apps. As for eating up comments--if captcha comes on sooner than usual, we'll be sure to make a new app post as soon as possible.

You're definitely not wrong to bring up this issue, and we really appreciate that you feel safe enough to bring it to us. We'll get a feel for how the new system fares over the next few app cycles and if problems arise we'll definitely take this into consideration. I hope that some of the solution ideas I outlined can be of some help, and if all else fails, we'll be more than happy to work with you and any other anxious applicants on a suitable compromise. And, on a more personal note, I'm sorry if any of this came off as dismissive--as mods, we're here to help, not hinder.

Thanks for giving your input!

A NEW RULE APPEARS

Part 2: Linking vs Posting

Re: Part 2: Linking vs Posting