Important: What do YOU think of the 44s?

[lopan]

hey guys,

So we've just gone through a massive change and introduced version 3.0. What do you think so far?

Also, we would very much like to hear your personal opinion on the Fighting 44s. Why do you like us? Why do you hate us? Are you indifferent? What can we improve? What would you like to see? what do you find redundant?

Let us know! And thanks for your participation!

[atlasien]

I like the forum but think it needs more traffic and more juice. Here are my newcomer's presumptuous suggestions.

1. Start a question of the day. Establish a group of people that commit to posting one good question (no yes/no answers) every day on 1-5 boards.
2. Post more links to other sites, encourage people to use the links to leave intelligent comments on those sites and then link back to this forum in a polite nonspamming way.
3. Ban people who leave more than 3 incredibly stupid, thread-killing posts in a row or at least give them a warning.

[lopan]

Those are fantastic suggestions, Atlasien. The difficulty is in getting a consistent presence here, and it seems like a lot of our traffic dropped off after our transition to v.3.0.

If you're thinking of banning people after just leaving 3 incredibly dumb posts, you really haven't been here for long! We had a number of "crazies" back in the day that we just let say whatever they wanted, with little moderation. Eventually we started cracking down, but we still don't ban as many people as we should.

Question -- when you visit, do you hit the Forum first, or the front page blog?

[atlasien]

The Forum... I get the front page blog feed in Google Reader now.

[silkie]

Definitely the forum first before blog (not much of a blog reader...).
I will leave my feedback on V3.0 soon.

[LaiSteve66]

Enable the quick reply box at the bottom.

[Makulita]

It kinda makes me feel out like I'm chillin' at my auntie's house, on the banig.

And I come here... mostly because YellowWorld frowns upon excessive swearing. But also because here doesn't feel so... apologisty.

Also, I do a quickie glance to see if there's a new blog post before moving onto the forums.

[lopan]

Enable the quick reply box at the bottom.
Actually, the quick reply is enabled. See the icon on the far right of your post, with a downward pointing arrow? click that. it enables "Quick reply".

It's a security feature to make sure the forum doesn't get spammed by bots.

[lopan]

Thanks for everyone's responses so far.

The aim, of course, is to figure out what brings people to the site, and then to focus on building those things. We want as many people visiting as possible; going through our blog entries (which is our main focus now), and our discussion forum. Of course, any help you can give us by referring your friends (and others from other forums!) would help a bunch!

[Dialectic]

I didn't know about that quick reply arrow! Sweet! Should probably make that clearer somehow. Thanks for your responses, guys!

[Dialectic]

Oh and when we say "blog," we don't mean like a blog about daily events in our lives or musings on whatever (although I suppose it could happen if they're good musings). We're just referring to software and format; now that we have that, a lot of what we might normally post in the forum will now go on the frontpage in the hopes of attracting and retaining more readers!

[LaiSteve66]

It's a security feature to make sure the forum doesn't get spammed by bots.

Oh okay. Makes sense.

[Vetrean]

If it was possible to make the button somewhere more conspicuous than a small arrow at a small corner in a post, that'd be nice.

I usually check the blog first, 'cuz, well, it's the front page.

In all honesty, I can't say whether I like or dislike this place. It makes me feel kind of uncomfortable, in all reality, though not in a bad way. More like a 'cowed' or '...please don't be so angry' kind of way.

Not that people here are angry much, just that they seem very aggressive. :\

I agree with the question of the day thing, incidentally.

Also, while I understand the reasons behind the 'never to be discussed' topics, I think it does limit what the forum can do(although in all reality, it isn't much, if at all) to convince people that it does exist. It's not really a big deal though, and it doesn't particularly matter to me either way.

[Hater Depot]

I think the redesign looks good, but would be better with the old red and black color scheme.

Also, since the topic of language retention recently came up, what about a sub-forum dedicated to languages? Or even some non-English subforums.

[Dialectic]

Languages is a good one! I'll probably add that tomorrow.

Red/black was fun, but too aggressive and harsh, especially in v1.0 when we had all that yellow. v2.0 was more balanced with white and grey, but we have decided to enjoy this mellow tan/ light blue.

[maogirl]

dude, you need more chicks on this forum. don't your girlfriends have hot chick friends?

but seriously, you do need a core group of likeable people who post regularly and can create and sustain the feel of the forum that you want to have. (yes, i know i'm not one of them as i'm an asshole. :-P)

and you need more hot chicks.

[lopan]

but seriously, you do need a core group of likeable people who post regularly and can create and sustain the feel of the forum that you want to have.

Much easier said than done.

[Tyger Durden]

what happened to that "Roll Call" thingy from the old forum, the feature that listed who visited/log-on in the past 24 hours?

Um, i thought is was fun to get on the "Roll Call" if when you had nothing to say, but was still in the cyber-neighborhood.

oh well, just wondering.

[howstrange]

the "Latest from the Forums" list on the main page doesn't function like the old version. There is either a delay in its update, or it only lists the latest generated topic, but not the replies. I think this makes the forums look rather dead and may turn off the old posters who are used to gauging thread activity by that menu list.

just my .03

[Dialectic]

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. Yeah I miss the roll call, too. Lopes?

I didn't realize the frontpage update thing didn't work the same way. Again, Lopes?

Ah it's good to delegate.

[lopan]

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. Yeah I miss the roll call, too. Lopes?

I didn't realize the frontpage update thing didn't work the same way. Again, Lopes?

Ah it's good to delegate.

Delegate? Alright, it's my area of expertise; I'll handle it. Actually, i just found a php script that will do the job. You'd think that these VB fuckers would have more explicit documentation for this stuff, but it's practically needle in haystack type searching. Anyhow, the new "recent posts" function will be up and going in a few days. Woot!

Now -- D, when are you going to start writing actual posts for the front page? or at least rehash your old Integral or Letters from Kunlun stuff? Ah, it's good to delegate.

[lopan]

Done! Everyone, check out the new and improved "Recent Posts" on our frontpage!

EDIT: sorry guys. there are some bugs. We're back on the old version again.

[Dialectic]

Delegate? Alright, it's my area of expertise; I'll handle it. Actually, i just found a php script that will do the job. You'd think that these VB fuckers would have more explicit documentation for this stuff, but it's practically needle in haystack type searching. Anyhow, the new "recent posts" function will be up and going in a few days. Woot!

Now -- D, when are you going to start writing actual posts for the front page? or at least rehash your old Integral or Letters from Kunlun stuff? Ah, it's good to delegate.

Ha! It's a good thing we didn't put up just a Features section on top!

(Also, looking through Integral and Kunlun again, there's actually not a lot I can re-use/mine. They're either really contextual, or they're written in our old aggressive style. We've come a long way!)

[lopan]

Done! Everyone, check out the new and improved "Recent Posts" on our frontpage!

EDIT: sorry guys. there are some bugs. We're back on the old version again.

OK! This is the real deal now. I've finally got the "Recent Posts' feature to work on our homepage. Now it will list all the most recent posts made on our forum (instead of just the most recent threads). Check it out!

[howstrange]

right on, works great!

[Lum]

I like it when forums have an "all posts sorted by date" section linked to the frontpage. Maybe the heading "recent posts from the forum" can link to one. Just a suggestion.

[santoki]

I usually use the front page and then go to the forum.

I like the idea of having other languages available in this forum. For me this forum is a tad too focused on Asian Americans. (don't get me wrong Wuwei...)

[Hater Depot]

Now that the languages forum is there, just start a thread, eh.

[lopan]

I like it when forums have an "all posts sorted by date" section linked to the frontpage. Maybe the heading "recent posts from the forum" can link to one. Just a suggestion.

Have you seen the "Recent posts from our forum" on our homepage? or are you talking about an additional feature that constantly aggregates all posts?

I like the idea of having other languages available in this forum. For me this forum is a tad too focused on Asian Americans. (don't get me wrong Wuwei...)

Do you mean you'd like to see specific forums on "Korea", "Taiwan", "China", etc?

[santoki]

Actually I thought about having a subforum in German, French or any other language. But why not Korean, Japanese etc. Sure, sounds like a good idea, too.
Does this forumsoftware support UTF8?

[Kuroyama]

こら！きちらでも日本語使わないと？朝でも、夜でも、仕事でも、遊びでも、日本語た！にがてってはないんで すが、私は黒人だ！皆が忘れちゃう！たまに、英語でもok?

[Kuroyama]

Yep, Japanese text works.

[Lum]

Have you seen the "Recent posts from our forum" on our homepage? or are you talking about an additional feature that constantly aggregates all posts?

It was an additional feature, but ah I just checked around and nobody seems to do this anymore. It was great because I could find older threads quickly and at times when I couldn't remember the categories. But now I'm guessing it taxes the server. No big.

More hot chicks.

[Tyger Durden]

hey guys,

So we've just gone through a massive change and introduced version 3.0. What do you think so far?

Also, we would very much like to hear your personal opinion on the Fighting 44s. Why do you like us? Why do you hate us? Are you indifferent? What can we improve? What would you like to see? what do you find redundant?

Let us know! And thanks for your participation!


You want my honest opinion of this place? Can you handle it?

Here goes -- you guys are (were) a Cult of Personality developed around the personages of Dialectic and yourself, Lopan. You two developed a small group of Cult Members here in a weird dynamic of Loneliness, Megalomania and Narcissism and gave them kool-aid and pinned special ribbons on their chest if they danced to your tune and peeled your grapes. Face it -- every Webmaster(s) loves playing God sooner or later.

To play God(s), you guys used an esoteric pseudo-religion called Integral Operating Science (or a similar branch of Integral Theory), and crowned yourself with the highest titles or highest "color" ranking as Priests of the New Faith, but acted like the lowest (childish) levels in Reality. If no one truly "got it" (the answers to all their questions), it was because they weren't good enough or smart enough and the carrot/brass ring was kept dangling in front of their noses. Ultimately, people gave up on this game except for the typical "true followers" and necessary White, Black, ____ Tokens or, in reality, a small group of people who placated the loneliness, appealed to the megalomania and fed the narcissism of either or both of you.

It appeals (or appealed) to financially secure people who are afraid to walk the streets outside their own residence and meet the People of Color they so nobly defend from the safety of their Internet connection. It also appealed to people who have never been to America and have only seen it through Hollywood's stereotypes, bad movies and outdated "Fight the Power" and "Kill Whitey" images from the 1960s and 1970s. This place was their way of "slumming" without truly getting their hands dirty. They were like hypocritical misanthropes stuck in a time machine, criticizing so-called "Imperial America" while sipping cafe lattes made with coffee beans picked by Juan Valdez in Columbia for 25 cents a day, wrapped comfortably in designer clothes made in Indonesian sweat shops and posting from the latest and hippest Apple laptop. The battle against "White Privilege" was fought by "Self-entitled Minorities" and who knows who really won in the end. Seemed like two sides of the same coin to me.

The Trolls were very interesting, but were never given a chance to speak out (just for entertainment purposes and lulz) and quickly banned just so your fancy hall monitors (Mods) could prove what a great job they were doing in protecting your elementary school grounds from the evil-doers of Mordor. In hindsight, all you had to do was give the Trolls "bad guy" titles under/over their Avatars, debate them fair-and-square and let them speak out until they moved on after defeat. That would be truly earning a "Blackbelt" around here, not earning it from the back of a comic book or because they were the Teacher's Pet like what occurred in your present/prior system.

Overall, this place was a weird mixture of George Orwell's Animal Farm, Lord of the Flies, a Quentin Tarantino remake of a 1970s exploitation movie and bad Japanese Anime -- the result producing a Mickey Maus Club for both the sadistic and masochistic alike, an Aum Shrinkyo-type Cult armed with laughing gas. Interesting concept and intent, but, after the dust settled, it was style over substance and a very elaborate post-modernist charade that burned brightly for a short time and then flamed out during the heydays of Internet Forums a couple of years ago.

Did you guys do any good here? Did people reach your higher levels of "Integral" thought? Well, it's like asking a suicide bomber if he made it to Heaven to hang out with Celestial Virgins -- when the myth/religion was a dubious creation in the first place, we'll never know who "made it", will we? Meanwhile, for all others that were striving to reach your lofty levels of pure innocence and wisdom back in the glory days of this place, I'm sure 30 pieces of silver can now buy a diploma or, rather, a "heavenly scroll" (a la Kung Fu Panda) of achievement from you guys.

No, I don't think you can handle the truth.
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.
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[Dialectic]

Uh, we retired this site over a year ago. But thanks for the comments, I'll be sure to analyze them when I'm bored.

You bring the sarin, I'll bring the followers!

[Makulita]

... Fuck if I know if my thought process is in a higher form of Integral Theory but I came away with a well sharpened pen knife that I now keep in my fantastic 40% off Sale!-Betsey Johnson bag to shank those who disrupt my Jeff Bridges-style zen.

You know what that means sans pop culture reference? 44s gave me a place to unload all that pent-up 5'2" Asian girl rage with little to no consequences and a way to articulate my anger so I could let it go easier and move along with my life.

:3 Hi Dialectic, hi Lopes~! I totally came here because I was giving tls the title, "44 Sister" on this awesome handmedown Blackberry.

<3 If it wasn't for you guys I'd still be a blithering asshole with incoherent fury.

[Scowl]

Hey Maku! Yeah, I still check these forums from time to time. Apparently, people are still posting years after its retirement. Whatcha been up to?

[t-tocs]

Let's resurrect the 44. How about it?

[Dialectic]

Just signing in to say what's up! Maku, glad to hear from ya :)

I still check in from time to time.

T-tocs, I don't think a resurrection is happening any time soon, and there are now a ton of AA sites out there posting much more regularly than we ever did. But the forum is still open for whoever wants to post!

[King4aDay]

I wonder if Mac ever got that scooter she was always talking about?

[Dialectic]

She wanted a scooter? I don't remember that. Maku, let us know!

[King4aDay]

Yes, I think she had a thing for that Kymko People scoot.

http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/photos/2006models/2006-KYMCO-People150a.jpg

[minbo]

I check in from time to time also. Hard to remember the password after a while!