PC: Moving Forward

[Gabri]

You have to understand where people are coming from though, they've just found out things which have caused them to have big trust issues with the people who run and are associated with this site, You can't blame anyone for not having an ounce of trust left for anyone left with power at the moment, as innocent and trustworthy as many of them are, Trust is lost and respect is lost but it is also re-earned. I do agree that changes won't come immediately but you have to know people are going to be skeptical every single step of the way.

I know. Still, if one hopes to see work done that will regain their trust, it better be something done properly, and not rushed things done in the spur or the heat of the moment just to appease the public for a while. And it's better to let that take its time.

 

[The Undisputed Era]

I know. Still, if one hopes to see work done that will regain their trust, it better be something done properly, and not rushed things done in the spur or the heat of the moment just to appease the public for a while. And it's better to let that take its time.

I don't envy the situation any of the remaining staff are in because there seems to be anger and pitchforks coming from all sides and appeasing to some will cause more anger in some and so on, finding a grace spot where everyone will seemingly be less mad is going to be potentially tough, I whole heartily agree that time is the biggest factor in all of this, lots and lots of time. For anyone who is on the fence about everything, it'll be best to watch and judge over a long period of time instead of looking to the shorter period and saying nothing has changed.

 

[bobandbill]

Just to clarify things, a lot of the things you may have heard about Steve's handling of financials are a result of a lack of transparency. Being something that ultimately drove PC to the state that it was, it's imperative that we change how things work. In fact, every admin other than Steve was unsure about where the money was going, any issues with financials, and whatnot, and it led to internal turmoil. No, I did not have access to money, and, I did not have access to financial information so I wouldn't even know the condition of PC itself.

To other people, for what it's worth I can attest to this. Finances was a black box to even other admins like myself.

 

[Star-Lord]

Hmmmm.

I very much admit that I'm sort of outside the general "community" that is here on this website. Admittedly, a lot of my association to people on this website were through alternative forums or other avenues of internet socialization. That being said, I am very proud to consider myself friends (or at the very least acquaintances), with some people who have or have in the past had a very considerable role in the running and execution of this website. While some of them are no longer staff due to what happened, I can very honestly say that everybody I know involved in the running of this website absolutely had or currently has only good intentions for this website. I would like to think that those people respect my opinion because I have a pretty good head on my shoulders. That being said, I'll give my rundown and my honest thoughts.

I spent a considerable few days thinking about this situation as a whole. Many people here who haven't spoke to me may find it inappropriate that I'm speaking on this. I respect that, and you're welcome to disregard my post. It's difficult to address this topic in particular because I'm in the middle in the complete perspective of individuals that frequent this website. A lot of people have very fond memories of this website. I completely and totally understand that, because I too had a lot of wonderful experiences on the internet when I went through my adolescence. Honestly, there's going to be at least one formative memory for your entire life that happens in your adolescence. Many people on Pokecommunity were very fortunate to have multiple formative experiences on this website that helped themselves develop into who they are today. I totally sympathize with the current staff who want to keep those memories alive and help other people experience them.

At the same time, I absolutely respect the feelings of those who are hurt by what happened. As an outside party, I have to be very honest and say that there hasn't been any sort of official accountability by those who were "accused" (and I implore you to NOT debate me whether those accused are guilty or not. I'm not interested in any sort of real level.) I don't expect Steve to make any sort of official statement because there's no real benefit in him doing so, especially since he's stepped down. I think if you want a real shot at this website flourishing, and potentially attracting those who may have defected, then Jake needs to make a formal public statement. I find no real benefit in speaking on my personal opinion, but I can attest to that people have confided in me in saying that they find him unnecessarily combative and difficult to work with. With the complications that have arisen, I honest to god feel that he needs to face the writing on the wall and speak with the people he's personally alienated. Whether you decide to do so is entirely up to yourselves. (Hint: Saying that all the administration staff have the best intentions and will cut him out if he ever threatens the integrity of the website won't cut it. You guys are going to need him to very honestly lay his cards on the table and have an actual real discussion with those who feel betrayed by him. Whether you wish to do so publicly or not is up to you.)

I also have to kind it find of puzzling that so many people on this website speak on this importance of an overall community, but are entirely willing to start accusing and throwing other people under the bus. There's been two "conspiracies" in this thread that have been thrown out, both of which I find entirely baseless and fundamentally stupid on a very honest level. I very much doubt there was some sort of financial conspiracy, nor do I think that people intended to publicly undermine and throw over the entire website. I feel like i can say this because I have friends who exist on both "sides" of the spectrum over what's happened. While opinionated these people may be, they aren't bad people with insidious intentions that acted in a way to destroy the integrity and foundation of this website. They merely feel like they're doing is the right thing, no matter which direction that took them in the overall bigger picture of what happened.

I mean, at this point my cards and thoughts are on the table. Do I think that this community can bounce back? Probably. I mean, without being too topical, there are people in pretty prominent positions who are doing well for themselves who have been involved in scandals that are much worse. That being said, I think it's going to be a pretty windy road and there's going to be more work involved than some people think. I can't realistically see you guys getting anywhere without a formal public address on what happened, but that's up to you. I know that despite any opinions on the individuals in the current administration staff, that each of them have the best intentions for the site as a whole.

Anyway, that's my $0.02. Best of luck!

 

[Treecko]

I'm glad to see thing have been resolved around here. I was worried one of my favorite communities was gonna be gone for good. This has, however, brought me back to a community I loved and reconnect with old friends so there's been positives to it. It makes me want to devote more time here cause in that moment of uncertainty, I was scared of losing old friends. Even though I'm not here as much as I used to be, I'm glad I can still come back here and be a part of this community again. <3

 

[Keiran]

I applaud Jake and Steve for making the right choice, however I wish it was made when first given the ultimatum and not a response to the community actually fracturing. The community as a whole should always be served first. It's also disappointing to see so many staff "leave" PC and then quickly return. I do not mean to insult anyone by stating that, and I don't think anybody made the wrong choice - I just hope to see people who choose to hold positions of LEADERSHIP (not power) have more conviction in their choices - going from never wanting to be associated with PC out of fear, to regretting having deleted your account within 3 days is not a good look. Jakes actions over the past week have been a good example of such conviction and sticking to what you believe in, hopefully that inspires those that ran and came back so that feeding off of fear and drama does not fuel their future decisions.

 

[I-Like-Shiny-Pichu]

When your community starts hemorrhaging users so you have to put out a noncommittal PR spin statement to tell the children and gullible adults what to believe.

Don't get me wrong, I'm in the party that didn't give 2 s**ts about what happened, but I'm amazed how many people are just lapping this up as if it means anything. Show, don't tell guys. There's still a large portion of the community that have seen enough politicians pull the same stuff to see through this.

 

[Taemin]

I'm glad to see thing have been resolved around here. I was worried one of my favorite communities was gonna be gone for good. This has, however, brought me back to a community I loved and reconnect with old friends so there's been positives to it. It makes me want to devote more time here cause in that moment of uncertainty, I was scared of losing old friends. Even though I'm not here as much as I used to be, I'm glad I can still come back here and be a part of this community again. <3

We have similar thoughts on the matter. It's made me want to come back around, too. Not leave. It's done the opposite for me as it has for some people, it seems. Just made me realize I didn't want to lose the forums / community.

When your community starts hemorrhaging users so you have to put out a noncommittal PR spin statement to tell the children and gullible adults what to believe.

Don't get me wrong, I'm in the party that didn't give 2 s**ts about what happened, but I'm amazed how many people are just lapping this up as if it means anything. Show, don't tell guys. There's still a large portion of the community that have seen enough politicians pull the same stuff to see through this.

At the same time, they have to talk about it to an extent, because some people reacted really poorly to this whole thing, and rioted. So of course they'd have to be showy to get people's attention that they're trying to resolve things. Something people complain about is the staff hiding so many things behind the scenes - which, from a workplace standpoint is normal, things are hidden, but here I think they're trying to work on being on more open. I'm sure we'll see actions more than words in the end, and outside of this thread!

 

[I-Like-Shiny-Pichu]

At the same time, they have to talk about it to an extent, because some people reacted really poorly to this whole thing, and rioted. So of course they'd have to be showy to get people's attention that they're trying to resolve things. Something people complain about is the staff hiding so many things behind the scenes - which, from a workplace standpoint is normal, things are hidden, but here I think they're trying to work on being on more open. I'm sure we'll see actions more than words in the end, and outside of this thread!

I mean sure, but if they wanted to pull this kind of PR stunt then as soon as everything kicked off Rukario should have "stepped down", and used a sock account to continue running things from behind the scenes. Right now nothing has happened, it's a lot of buzzwords written to make people think things are going to happen without actually having to commit to it. Standard business PR damage control techniques, not even hard to see through if you've worked in any industry that has PR.

Don't get me wrong, I don't want PC to die, I'd just rather see some action along with a statement and the community to man up and stick by their decisions rather than coming back like lost puppies because the big boys said the bad man is gone now (please note: I disagree strongly with this sentiment).

 

[EC]

You don't want the site to die, yet you are advertising an alternative in a massive 600 by 218 pixel image in your signature.

 

[I-Like-Shiny-Pichu]

Am I wrong in thinking that PC is a Pokémon Forum? My bad, seems odd that they'd shift their primary focus of Rom Hacks to a mere subforum. But that's none of my business

 

[EC]

ROM hacks have always been a "mere subforum".

 

[I-Like-Shiny-Pichu]

Been here 8 years brah, I know that. Proves that they aren't the focus of the site.

 

[EC]

Who said they were? That seems to be the story you're telling just to feel better about hawking a 10 member forum in your signature.

 

[m.vit]

You don't want the site to die, yet you are advertising an alternative in a massive 600 by 218 pixel image in your signature.

Am I wrong in thinking that PC is a Pokémon Forum? My bad, seems odd that they'd shift their primary focus of Rom Hacks to a mere subforum. But that's none of my business

In all fairness, 600x218 is excessive, try something around 320x40 and a contrasting color.

 

[I-Like-Shiny-Pichu]

Who said they were? That seems to be the story you're telling just to feel better about hawking a 10 member forum in your signature.

Oh I have no remorse :L

My point was, it's not offering an alternative, it's got a different focus. Also can you be in charge of my paycheck from now on, I'm a fan of your counting skills ;)

 

[User19sq]

I'm honestly just glad that they've managed to properly staff this place so soon. Coulda been worse. XDDDDDD

 

[DizzyEgg]

Who said they were? That seems to be the story you're telling just to feel better about hawking a 10 member forum in your signature.

Well it is a romhacking forum, its userbase is going to be significantly smaller.

 

[PastelPhoenix]

If I'm being honest, even beyond the recent scandal I still have a problem with the current advertisement styles. Using this site feels like I have adware installed. I could put up with it for the people here, but after the hemorrhaging of users I don't think I even want to continue. It's impossible to even read this announcement with a dark theme since random words are converted into popup ad links that are too dark to even read.

 

[Gabri]

I mean sure, but if they wanted to pull this kind of PR stunt then as soon as everything kicked off Rukario should have "stepped down", and used a sock account to continue running things from behind the scenes. Right now nothing has happened, it's a lot of buzzwords written to make people think things are going to happen without actually having to commit to it. Standard business PR damage control techniques, not even hard to see through if you've worked in any industry that has PR.

Don't get me wrong, I don't want PC to die, I'd just rather see some action along with a statement and the community to man up and stick by their decisions rather than coming back like lost puppies because the big boys said the bad man is gone now (please note: I disagree strongly with this sentiment).

What the hell did you want to have happened? If things are to be done, they have to be done properly with time on a situation like this. Did you want a 100k word, 356 page pdf file on immediate actions thought on the spot without any planning, with emotions still running wild? And server ownership changes don't take a day. Financial account ownership changes don't take a day. Diving and understanding into the financial situation and compiling data doesn't take a day. It won't take a week. We'll be lucky if a month is enough. Particularly when it spans and involves people from different countries.

You make it sound like the new team is just doing this to appease while the status quo will remain, as if this were some big conglomerate business company.