[This post was mostly drafted while the competition was still running.]
I like the idea behind this thread's title. A better version might have been: Been There, Said That, Sought The T-Shirt.
Illusion, I'd be interested to know how the idea for the competition came about. In the past, you've raised
concerns about unofficial Knightmare T-shirts, so should we take it that the TShirts365 ones have official endorsement?
I have mixed feelings about the competition. First, the positives. Many would say that we live in a world where courtesy is all too rare; so to see a thread with person after person saying 'Yes please' is strangely, well, pleasing. In addition, I think it's marvellous how the competition elicited posts from long-standing members who'd never made one before, such as Medusa (who has been a member since the very first month of this forum's life) and Ungaro, who then introduced him/herself in the Knewbie Welcome section (hello, if you're reading). And the setting of a new 'Most Online' record was impressive. If only there were a screen grab of it.
Now for the cynicism. To be frank, I found it frustrating to see dozens and dozens of Knightmare fans riding out of the mist, posting two words in the hope of getting something for nothing, and then disappearing again. (Obviously, that doesn't apply to all of the entrants, and likewise, nor does the following sentence.) While the competition was open, I thought to myself:
if one of these people wins one of the T-shirts, then wears it in public, they are proclaiming their enthusiasm for Knightmare to all, and yet they have no desire to participate anew in Knightmare's main forum, the place that made their T-shirt-wearing possible: that, to me, is bitterly ironic. Having said that, it's any member's right to post as seldom as they wish. And although basing the competition purely on luck made it fair, I'm delighted on a personal level that two of the T-shirts were won by members whose commitment and productivity in this community have been significant and long-term.
These are just my opinions, and I'm not looking for a conflict. Perhaps in some of the above, I speak for others too; perhaps not.
At the risk of sounding like an arrogant so-and-so, I am one of the few to have posted in every full month for which I've been a member of this forum. This does not give me any seniority or superiority, but it does hopefully reinforce what I have said in this post. I feel an ongoing drive, not yet submerged by other factors in my life, to 'give something back' to Knightmare and its fan community.
Mashibinbin wrote:Let's try and make this a chance to revitalise both chat and the forums[,] which have[,] for quite a while[,] not been as active as they once were.
Thankyou.
Sadly, since saying that over a month ago, you haven't posted further.
However, if you do decide to lead by example, rest assured that you will have my support. My '
Operation VIM' post was along similar lines, in fact; though with the forum having just gone a record 5 days without any new posts, it seems overly optimistic now. Time will tell, as they say.