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Now that the first version of the list is done, we plan to refine our system and produce a version 2 that is hopefully more responsive to what Firaxis can use--which, according to Brian Reynolds, is not just "Put cool thing X in the game" but "Put cool thing X in the game, which will affect Y by giving it +1 in battle." In other words, we need to not only generate ideas but try to provide specific ways to implement them in the game.
But before all of that, we need Thread Managers (TMs). The list so far looks like this (if I'm missing somebody, please let me know):
CIVILIZATIONS: LordStone1 (on vacation to August 1)
CITIES/CITY IMPROVEMENTS: CyberShy/VictorG. (co-hosts?)
COMBAT: ??????
CUSTOMIZATION: mindlace
DIPLOMACY: Jeje2
GRAPHICS AND INTERFACE: evil conquerer/Frank Moore (on vacation to July 27)
MAP/TERRAIN/TERRAFORMING: ??????
MULTIPLAYER: ?????
MISCELLANEOUS: ?????
RADICAL IDEAS: korn469
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT/ECONOMICS/TRADE: Harel/don Don (co-hosts?)
SOCIAL ENGINEERING: Bell
TECHNOLOGY: Snowfire
UNITS: JT3
WONDERS: EnochF
These topic might or might not be included:
RELGION: Stefu (maybe you want Miscellaneous?)
SPACE EXPLOITATION: Smilo (mabye you also want Miscellaneous?)
MOVEMENT, SUPPLY, ETC.: don Don (perhaps you could co-host the Resource Management thread?)
If you are thinking about joining the team, here are some things to consider:
WHAT IS A THREAD MANAGER (a "TM")?
A Thread Manager is somebody who has volunteered and been given the responsiblity of helping make the Wish List of ideas for FIRAXIS as they create Civilization 3. He or she will 'manage' a thread on a given topic--COMBAT, for example--by starting an official thread for that topic and helping the coversation along. But not just anybody can start a thread in the List forum and become a Thread Manager. The General forum is where people should feel free to start their own threads. But this List forum will be run by Thread Managers. We have chosen to do things this way so people know exactly where to post ideas they want considered for the Wish List. It's not that ideas on the General forum will be ignored, though they will likely be overlooked. There is no easier way to ensure those ideas are included in the list than by posting them in the offcial TOPIC threads here.
WHAT DOES A THREAD MANAGER DO?
One of the most important duties for the TM is to summarize all these ideas and put them in the Wish List forum for people to see how far we've come on the list. But that's only part of the job. Since Octopus has already said this so well, I'll just quote him:
As you can see, it can be a lot of fun being a TM, but it takes time, effort and understanding to do it properly.
BUT DOESN'T THAT GIVE THE THREAD MANAGER TOO MUCH POWER TO EDIT IDEAS?
Again, I quote Octopus:
HOW LONG DOES ALL THIS WORK NORMALLY TAKE?
In my experience, a good Thread Manager interacts with his/her thread and the site in general for 30 minutes to an hour/day. If the thread is running smoothly, that time can go down. If the thread needs particular attention, that time can go up. But there is no way to know unless you are checking the thread on a daily basis. So it takes time.
Next, the writing of a summary takes anywhere from an hour to 4 hours, depending on the number of posts in the thread, the complexity of the discussion, how fast you type, etc. Some Thread Manager have reported working 6 hours on one summary, but that is at the extreme.
So, you should expect at least 30 minutes to an hour for daily interaction and another hour to 5 or 6 hours for summaries, which should be written every week or so, again depending on the activity in the thread.
This means approximately 10 hours per week--but it all depends on the particular thread and how involved you are on a daily basis. The best Thread Managers, however, are normally involved to that degree.
CAN I BECOME A THREAD MANAGER?
As you saw above, some topics are still open and you should contact me if you are interested in becoming a TM. And these things change from time to time. For example, we might decide that a new thread should be started because a new topic is so popular. Or a Thread Manager might become too busy to continue and wants a replacement. The best thing to do is to watch the forum carefully, let me know that you'd like to help, and wait for an opportunity. In any case, the most important thing is posting your ideas. Without ideas, we have no list.
IS THIS A PAID POSITION?
No.
This is purely volunteer work for the love of developing an awesome Civilization 3 game. Firaxis might 'thank' you in some way later on, but they are in no way obligated to do so. Listening to our feedback should be considered payment enough. Also, taking such an active role in Civ. 3's development is a rare and rewarding experience in and of itself.
__________
If anything is unclear, or if you have comments or concerns, please post them here so we can all share in the discussion. And whether you become a Thread Manager or not, please help in the most important way possible:
Post your ideas in the List threads so we can help make Civilization 3 a game that amazes us all.
<font size=1 face=Arial color=444444>[This message has been edited by yin26 (edited July 17, 1999).]</font>
But before all of that, we need Thread Managers (TMs). The list so far looks like this (if I'm missing somebody, please let me know):
CIVILIZATIONS: LordStone1 (on vacation to August 1)
CITIES/CITY IMPROVEMENTS: CyberShy/VictorG. (co-hosts?)
COMBAT: ??????
CUSTOMIZATION: mindlace
DIPLOMACY: Jeje2
GRAPHICS AND INTERFACE: evil conquerer/Frank Moore (on vacation to July 27)
MAP/TERRAIN/TERRAFORMING: ??????
MULTIPLAYER: ?????
MISCELLANEOUS: ?????
RADICAL IDEAS: korn469
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT/ECONOMICS/TRADE: Harel/don Don (co-hosts?)
SOCIAL ENGINEERING: Bell
TECHNOLOGY: Snowfire
UNITS: JT3
WONDERS: EnochF
These topic might or might not be included:
RELGION: Stefu (maybe you want Miscellaneous?)
SPACE EXPLOITATION: Smilo (mabye you also want Miscellaneous?)
MOVEMENT, SUPPLY, ETC.: don Don (perhaps you could co-host the Resource Management thread?)
If you are thinking about joining the team, here are some things to consider:
WHAT IS A THREAD MANAGER (a "TM")?
A Thread Manager is somebody who has volunteered and been given the responsiblity of helping make the Wish List of ideas for FIRAXIS as they create Civilization 3. He or she will 'manage' a thread on a given topic--COMBAT, for example--by starting an official thread for that topic and helping the coversation along. But not just anybody can start a thread in the List forum and become a Thread Manager. The General forum is where people should feel free to start their own threads. But this List forum will be run by Thread Managers. We have chosen to do things this way so people know exactly where to post ideas they want considered for the Wish List. It's not that ideas on the General forum will be ignored, though they will likely be overlooked. There is no easier way to ensure those ideas are included in the list than by posting them in the offcial TOPIC threads here.
WHAT DOES A THREAD MANAGER DO?
One of the most important duties for the TM is to summarize all these ideas and put them in the Wish List forum for people to see how far we've come on the list. But that's only part of the job. Since Octopus has already said this so well, I'll just quote him:
Summarizing is a huge and difficult part of the job. The difficulty isn't just reading the posts, but trying to be fair and balanced, and trying to give concise explanations of sometimes complicated ideas. Many of us can be pretty long winded, but the summaries, for the most part, need to be made up of several line "bullet point" items. Obviously, the busier the thread, the harder the summary. The other job of a Thread Manager is fostering and "guiding" discussions, but if a thread is doing okay on its own, this is unnecessary. If your thread is going fine, then all there is to do is summarize. If your thread is stagnating or getting too focussed in on a single issue, or degenerating into an argument or a flame war, you need to step in. Being a Thread Manager is not an easy job, so don't enter into it lightly. It can be fun and rewarding, too, though.
BUT DOESN'T THAT GIVE THE THREAD MANAGER TOO MUCH POWER TO EDIT IDEAS?
Again, I quote Octopus:
Editing implies the capability or the authority to change things, which the Thread Managers shouldn't (and don't) really have...the job mostly involves keeping the discussion on track and producing summaries to make discussion easier.
In my experience, a good Thread Manager interacts with his/her thread and the site in general for 30 minutes to an hour/day. If the thread is running smoothly, that time can go down. If the thread needs particular attention, that time can go up. But there is no way to know unless you are checking the thread on a daily basis. So it takes time.
Next, the writing of a summary takes anywhere from an hour to 4 hours, depending on the number of posts in the thread, the complexity of the discussion, how fast you type, etc. Some Thread Manager have reported working 6 hours on one summary, but that is at the extreme.
So, you should expect at least 30 minutes to an hour for daily interaction and another hour to 5 or 6 hours for summaries, which should be written every week or so, again depending on the activity in the thread.
This means approximately 10 hours per week--but it all depends on the particular thread and how involved you are on a daily basis. The best Thread Managers, however, are normally involved to that degree.
CAN I BECOME A THREAD MANAGER?
As you saw above, some topics are still open and you should contact me if you are interested in becoming a TM. And these things change from time to time. For example, we might decide that a new thread should be started because a new topic is so popular. Or a Thread Manager might become too busy to continue and wants a replacement. The best thing to do is to watch the forum carefully, let me know that you'd like to help, and wait for an opportunity. In any case, the most important thing is posting your ideas. Without ideas, we have no list.
IS THIS A PAID POSITION?
No.
This is purely volunteer work for the love of developing an awesome Civilization 3 game. Firaxis might 'thank' you in some way later on, but they are in no way obligated to do so. Listening to our feedback should be considered payment enough. Also, taking such an active role in Civ. 3's development is a rare and rewarding experience in and of itself.__________
If anything is unclear, or if you have comments or concerns, please post them here so we can all share in the discussion. And whether you become a Thread Manager or not, please help in the most important way possible:
Post your ideas in the List threads so we can help make Civilization 3 a game that amazes us all.
<font size=1 face=Arial color=444444>[This message has been edited by yin26 (edited July 17, 1999).]</font>
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