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budweiser // User Search
budweiser // User Search
Jul 18, 2001, 5:23pm
Cit Number #321657
[View Quote]"goober king" <rar1 at acsu.buffalo.edu> wrote in message
news:3B550144.1562FDAC at acsu.buffalo.edu...
> To Whom It May Concern...
>
> There was a time in AW when COF actually had a presence in the AW
Community. There
> was a time in AW when the concerns of the AW populace were actually
considered before
> a decision was made. There was a time in AW when people would meet in a
little world
> called The Transcend, and eagerly listen to COF's biggest announcements
and plans for
> the future. There was a time when, rather than see a product that was full
of
> potential get tossed aside like so much garbage, COF took it upon
themselves to keep
> it alive, doing it "for the community".
> That was then; this is now. All the broken promises, unheard pleas, and
unanswered
> concerns lie plain for all to see like an open book. Citizenships that
were
> guaranteed to be free, abruptly changed to a paid system and unwittingly
creating a
> caste system of haves and have-nots that would forever divide the
community. Worlds
> like COFMeta, Atlantis, and WildAW, the "babies" of AWCI employees, now
stand nearly
> deserted and devoid of life due to neglect. World prices skyrocket out of
control
> without any prior warning or notification as the AW citizen base, mostly
teenagers,
> scramble to find enough money for their dream world. Features appear in
the software
> that only a marketing executive could love, as citizens' ideas go
completely and
> blatantly ignored. Organizations that once thrived on AWCI support (AWHS,
AWEC, et
> al) now stand in a state of dormancy, waiting for someone to help bring
them to their
> former glory. Textures get changed without any notification whatsoever,
forever
> changing, and in some cases, ruining the AW landscape.
> And all this because of money; a simple, desperate, constant search for
money. While
> you were busy building virtual malls that no one would visit, you
succeeding in
> disenfranchising the AW populace by raising world prices and changing
textures
> without any input from your supposed "cherished" user base. While you were
busy
> shaking hands with Juno and making their world, a man by the name of
Cybernome left
> his post as caretaker of COFMeta (a world that *you*, AWCI, are supposed
to be taking
> care of) because of the stress of dealing with the AWCI management,
causing it to
> regress back to an empty, lonely world. While you were busy making
Universes that
> soon flopped, your stock did a reverse split and you actually had to buy
some of your
> own stock back! And while you were busy changing names and appointing
Board members,
> your own employees go as unnoticed and ignored as the citizens they spend
their daily
> lives helping and serving.
> There's a reason this letter starts with the greeting "To Whom It May
Concern". It's
> a greeting that asks a simple question: Does this concern you? Do these
things that
> have occurred over the years bother you? Do you think something should be
done about
> them? If so, then why haven't you? The events that are described here, as
well as
> many others, are all well documented, so it's not as if you didn't know
about them.
> You are all perfectly aware of this buzzing community of people that has
"suddenly"
> sprung up around your little piece of software, yet you chose not to
address it.
> Instead of seeking to help nurture and grow this throng of loyal followers
who have
> been with you since the beginning, you wish to try and lure in companies
and
> businesses who might initially fall for the "revolutionary
> e-commerce/education/modeling/simulation/whatever software" routine, but
soon
> discover it's nothing more than an elaborate chat room.
> If it's money you're after, why not look at what has and has not worked in
your
> storied history so far. Virtual malls have proven to be completely
ineffective, with
> at mart standing empty, except for the occasional tourist lured away from
AWGate. Your
> precious Education universe, as well as worlds created for universities
and colleges,
> lie empty and dead, never to be visited again. Even your most recent
projects, like
> Nettazi, fail to draw in even a hint of revenue. On the other hand,
mainstays like AW
> and AWTeen continue to draw in hundreds of users on a daily basis.
Volunteers like
> Alphabit Phalpha, Brant, Bille, and countless others provide events and
community
> services that keep people coming back. Even employees like Facter, Flagg,
and Roland
> do all that they can to help make the community a better place, even if
it's on their
> own time! And all of these things work for one simple reason: it's for the
community!
> The community can make AW work!
> All it takes is turning around and looking at who's behind you. Will Juno
care about
> AW's community and development? Will Nettaxi? Will NASA or the Univesity
of Santa
> Cruz or PCDJ.com or some other corporate sponsor down the road? When all
is said and
> done, when all the deals have past and all the money has been squandered,
we will
> still be here, supporting everything you do. Why? Simply because we have
taken the
> time to invest in your product to its fullest. We are the ones who have
committed to
> making AW the greatest place for people to come and, ultimately, spend
their
> hard-earned money. We are the ones who have succeeded in keeping this
company afloat,
> despite all the hardships and bad decisions. And we are the ones who can
help you
> bring AW into the forefront, where it belongs; where it *needs* to be.
> But in order to do that, our voices need to be heard. We need to work
together if
> you ever want to see this program break out of this cycle of stagnation.
Your
> concerns must become our concerns, and our concerns must become your
concerns. Only
> then, will AWCI begin to see true success, and AW will launch into the
stratosphere.
> Still, the question remains: Are these your concerns? Do the ideas
expressed in this
> letter, and echoed by hundreds of users before us, even register with you?
Because if
> they don't, you've essentially told every single person who's ever bought
a
> citizenship or a world or a t-shirt or a CD, who's ever started a
community
> organization or a business in AW, that it was all for nothing. You might
as well tell
> everyone to send you a check for $20 in the mail every year and never even
come to AW
> at all.
> The community can help you, if you are willing to let it. Let us be heard,
and
> together we can bring AW out of the darkness and into the spotlight where
it belongs.
> Because *that* should be everyone's primary concern.
>
> Most Sincerely,
> Bob Rodehorst
> "Goober King" (#103935)
>
> ---------------------------------------------
> This is the letter I plan on sending to every single person on the AWCI
roster.
> Whether you like me or not is irrelevant. Whether you believe AWCI has a
right to
> ignore us or not is irrelevant. Whether you think this letter has a
snowball's chance
> in hell of making anything happen or not is irrelevant. The only thing
that matters
> is, if you agree with the statements written above, please show your
support by
> replying to this message with your cit name and number. If you want, you
can add
> extra weight to your "signature" by adding your real name, to demonstrate
that you
> are a real person and not just some random number. In either case, the
more people
> who sign it, the better chance of us actually being considered.
> So please, let's drop all of our petty squabbles just this once, and show
AWCI that
> we can actually stand united as one for the common good. Because if we
can't, then we
> are no better than the company we complain about. I still have some faith
in my
> fellow community members. Don't destroy it.
>
> --
> Goober King
> Proof that Goobers ARE as dumb as they look.
> rar1 at acsu.buffalo.edu
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