My offer to the UO Community

[JC the Builder]

After extensive discussions and comparing notes with the Stratics staff it has been concluded that the best course of action at this very moment is to direct you (the UO community) to pour your efforts into the ongoing fundraiser. This will be a vital part of ensuring Stratics remains online and the same as all we have always known it.

The person who ultimately becomes owner of the website may not even be decided until some time after the auction ends. But the most important thing right now is to raise as much money as possible so myself, the Stratics Staff, and our other UO community investors can prevent the site from being sold off to an unknown 3rd party. The importance of raising these funds can not be understated. Ensuring the survival of Stratics is larger than any one person at this point.

I request that this topic be locked and sticked for the time being so that all efforts may be focused on the fundraiser itself, which will be ramping up in intensity.

--------------OLD POSTING BELOW ---------------------

Hello everyone,

To put it plainly I would be willing to take ownership and pilot the Stratics ship. I was willing to do it last time but no one told me the site was for sale. Which is also what happened this time. So let me spell it out for everyone and if you agree I should own Stratics you can work towards making it happen.

Stratics used to be a really great place to go for game information, news, forums, chat rooms and more. I remember when I first started UO I made a notebook with monster information by hand and copied down all the relevant creature statistics I saw in game regularly. Some of you may remember the original monsters database had a dangerousness rating scale from 1-10. The most dangerous were rated higher using between 1 and 3 X's I think.

But this is no longer the case. Over the years Stratics has lost all its other game sites. The forum has been wiped two maybe even three times. I don't even know exactly how many times it has changed ownership. The technology running the site is fragmented and broken. The close relationship with the UO team seems to be in poor shape. The finances are are in the toilet. It is a big list of problems.

What will I do if I become owner of Stratics? I'll fix it. I don't have everything etched in stone. But some of my current ideas are:

- All current and former staff will be invited to participate. Anyone causing drama will be removed.
- I will handle the technical side of Stratics. The current staff are free to continue managing the forums/news/content however they see fit
- Instead of building a wiki I would work with staff to just use UOGuide, which could be natively embedded into Stratics because they would be on the same server
- I would have someone design a new forum and site skin to resemble more the original Stratics site
- UO Developer relations need to be worked on

On the larger scale I have been working on a game website project that I would use the main Stratics website for. It would be "The New Stratics". But UO Stratics will be its own separate place. It won't see big changes unless the community is in favor of it. However I think the staff and UO community will really like it. Also no one will know the details of this project until it is launched. I am personally coding it over the next few months. I have spent several thousand dollars of my own money on this already.

Am I qualified to run Stratics? You decide:

- My first real UO website was UORares.com which I coded a item submission form so anyone could submit rares on the website. This was before Wiki technology came along.
- I built the website for hot-guild.com which has a lot of custom coding, such as pulling news articles to the front page. A long time ago I coded a system to build your own forum avatar like a UO paperdoll. Also I have coded forum systems to add a lottery, a PVP ladder tracker, and more.
- I coded an entire member management system for HOT Guild. This kept track of hundreds of player characters and each day took the data from MyUO and tracked changes.
- I built UOGuide from scratch including the custom styling, a UO event calendar, integrated the wiki and forum, and more.

I played UO from 1999 to about 2009. I stopped mainly due to crippling carpel tunnel in both arms. I only got treated for it earlier this year so I have been sidelined for a long time.

I was there before Trammel. I was in the top Atlantic Shadowlords faction. I was in the top house placing guild. I was/am in one of the top all time PVP HOT Guild. I created and managed the top UO PVP forum UO Atlantic and The Atlantic Tradeboard. I still manage (what I consider) the best information website UOGuide.

If you think I should be the next owner of Stratics then you should voice your support. I made an offer and it has been rejected. The auction can be ended and I already given details to the relevant parties on how to do it.

Have a Nice Day.

 

[DJAd]

I made an offer and it has been rejected. The auction can be ended and I already given details to the relevant parties on how to do it.

Was the offer more than the current bid though? Also it still has a good amount of time left to roll on the auction so maybe approach them again near the end.

I think you do a massive amount for the UO community and UOGiude is a fantastic (if not the best) resource for UO out there in my opinion. Also I like the hot boards and the whole "anything goes" attitude over there.

Good luck!

 

[old gypsy]

I recognize and appreciate the valuable and very impressive contributions the OP has made to the UO community over the years. But rather than compete for the ownership of Stratics, I'd love to see the staff and the OP join hands instead and ensure the present campaign's success.

 

[JC the Builder]

Was the offer more than the current bid though? Also it still has a good amount of time left to roll on the auction so maybe approach them again near the end.

It was and it was described as fair.

The problem with waiting until the end of the auction is if someone else bids more than I or anyone here is willing to pay then it is too late. They will win and own Stratics.

 

[JC the Builder]

But rather than compete for the ownership of Stratics, I'd love to see the staff and the OP join hands instead and ensure the present campaign's success.

Who is going to own Stratics if that campaign is a success? That has not been detailed.

Also I have had some communication with the Stratics staff and offered to work more closely with them.

 

[Poo]

interesting!

 

[Kei]

What kind of support are you looking for? Donation?

 

[old gypsy]

Who is going to own Stratics if that campaign is a success? That has not been detailed.

Also I have had some communication with the Stratics staff and offered to work more closely with them.

Naturally I don't have any knowledge of what goes on behind the scenes, other than the information we have been provided to date, so I can't answer that question definitively; but I believe they said they have established an LLC and made it clear that any profit will not go to any of them, nor to the board of directors, but will be fully invested into the management and improvement of the site itself. I personally trust their vision and intentions.

Hopefully, your offer to work with the staff can be a beginning of a truly beneficial relationship that will help keep Stratics vital and alive for many more years!

 

[JC the Builder]

What kind of support are you looking for? Donation?

I don't need any donations. If all you can do is post a reply here and say "I want JC to be in charge of Stratics" that is good enough.

But there are obviously other people with more influence that can do something. Maybe your posting here will encourage them to side with me as well.

 

[Kei]

Well, UOguide is my most used resource. Naturally you have my support JC.

 

[Capt. Lucky]

- All current and former staff will be invited to participate. Anyone causing drama will be removed.

Everyone seems to have an axe to grind

 

[JC the Builder]

I believe they said they have established an LLC and made it clear that any profit will not go to any of them, nor to the board of directors, but will be fully invested into the management and improvement of the site itself. I personally trust their vision and intentions.

There is no doubt a lot of good people working and having worked at Stratics. And they have good intentions and ideals. But can they be executed? Look at where Stratics is right now.

I posted my record and you can ask anyone involved with those how it went.

But to put it bluntly: you cannot run a website by committee. You need someone in charge who can make the final decision. All that stuff I posted should assure you if I was the person making decisions at Stratics they will be the right ones.

 

[Dixie chessy/legends]

i didnt know you did uo rares......man i loved that site! i use to get on there and day dream =) ty for that! in my very young days of uo i didnt know about rares, nor did i really care.....making 10k a day at the Brig camp was a big deal to me......when i found uorares i set my goals higher lol

 

[old gypsy]

There is no doubt a lot of good people working and having worked at Stratics. And they have good intentions and ideals. But can they be executed? Look at where Stratics is right now.

I posted my record and you can ask anyone involved with those how it went.

But to put it bluntly: you cannot run a website by committee. You need someone in charge who can make the final decision. All that stuff I posted should assure you if I was the person making decisions at Stratics they will be the right ones.

Your record is unquestionably impressive. No one can deny that. However, I tend to disagree with the premise that a website cannot be run by a good committee. With a competent board of directors in place, it's likely that Stratics' life expectancy would go up (just my opinion), whereas, if owned solely by one individual, if an unfortunate and unexpected life event such as illness or accident should occur, I think Stratics would either end... or end up on the auction block again.

 

[JC the Builder]

Your record is unquestionably impressive. No one can deny that. However, I tend to disagree with the premise that a website cannot be run by a good committee. With a competent board of directors in place, it's likely that Stratics' life expectancy would go up (just my opinion)

UOGuide - one owner no committee
Stratics - 4-5 owners, multiple committees

You judge how each site has performed.

*Added*

To clarify: UO Stratics will run the same as it always been with a staff that decides things, including this forum. But for the technical direction and non-UO related parts of Stratics that will be where I have final say on things.

 

[Fruitloops]

I couldn't support you JC, I'll explain why.
You have to understand I'm one of those people who believes actions mean more than words, and because of that I have to say:

Examples of your work managing a largish community do not back what you are saying. Lets look at the at the community you currently run.

They are a haven for RMT which will harm your ability to gain the Dev's Trust, not to mention a large portion of the communities trust. The first page of your Trade Boards are 90% RMT
They are poorly maintained, the forum software hasn't been upgraded in 8 years based on the copyright info from it's creators, not due to expense either since you're using free software.
When you were asked to remove Leaked info from BS's ToL Focus Group, you refused, and you think you can gain the Dev's Trust.
Your existing community there displays quite the distaste for Stratics, could you be trusted if they migrated here to curb their expression of it. If you respect the property enough to consider purchasing it, why would you continually let it be bad mouthed there to begin with?

You can say what you want, and you may have the intention to follow through on what you have said, but..... your past track record does not support your ability to do so.

 

[Lythos-]

We're faced with a bunch of volunteers that have never done a board before trying to own/run stratics. That has disaster written all over it.

JC has done a rather impressive job FOR THE COMMUNITY with UOguide over the years with no recognition.

I support JC.

 

[cazador]

Link is by far "THE BEST" candidate for the job hands down! With him at the helm I have zero doubt that stratics will once again become the main hub of information for all things UO. I don't know if you can post specifics but if it comes down to monetary bidding I would gladly donate to secure the main outlet of the UO community stays in good hands for a good while.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[old gypsy]

UOGuide - one owner no committee
Stratics - 4-5 owners, multiple committees

You judge how each site has performed.

It's not my place to judge. The wider UO community will have to make a choice as to which direction in which they wish to go. I've made my choice, and offered my reasons for supporting our staff and the current campaign. I'll leave it there, with the old saying, "A house divided cannot stand."

Edit: The community has already offered a lot of support to the campaign. I am hoping this turn of events doesn't undermine the staff's work and planning and further divide the UO community.

 

[Lythos-]

They are a haven for RMT which will harm your ability to gain the Dev's Trust, not to mention a large portion of the communities trust. The first page of your Trade Boards are 90% RMT


Your existing community there displays quite the distaste for Stratics, could you be trusted if they migrated here to curb their expression of it. If you respect the property enough to consider purchasing it, why would you continually let it be bad mouthed there to begin with?

RMT is going to happen no matter how you look at it. If you look closely at the poster names you'll see some of the more "outstanding" stratics posters are the very ones advertising.

His forum members are the ones that have been completely shunned from here. The ones that try to balance pvp but were met with complete backlash from tram players. I like stratics, not the members but stratics.

 

[JC the Builder]

They are a haven for RMT which will harm your ability to gain the Dev's Trust, not to mention a large portion of the communities trust. The first page of your Trade Boards are 90% RMT

I am not going to bring RMT to UO Stratics. This is also the same policy on UOGuide. Official fan sites are no longer allowed to participate in RMT and I respect that.

However the Atlantic Tradeboard is not an official fan site so it has no such obligation. Furthermore RMT is not against the UO Terms of Service. At such a time it becomes so it will be banned from that forum.

They are poorly maintained, the forum software hasn't been upgraded in 8 years based on the copyright info from it's creators, not due to expense either since you're using free software.

How is not being updated equal to being poorly maintained? It still runs. None of the features are broken. It loads lightning fast.

When you were asked to remove Leaked info from BS's ToL Focus Group, you refused, and you think you can gain the Dev's Trust.

I don't recall ever being asked to do this. I have gone weeks and sometimes months without looking at that forum over the past 5 years. When I was back briefly last year a developer says they tried to get in touch with me for a long time. I don't know how it is they are trying to contact me but they have my email. I haven't spoken directly to a UO developer in over 1 year now.

Your existing community there displays quite the distaste for Stratics, could you be trusted if they migrated here to curb their expression of it. If you respect the property enough to consider purchasing it, why would you continually let it be bad mouthed there to begin with?

I would not be a moderator on these forums. You need to take it up with the forum moderators.


I know some people have been concerned over the UO Atlantic forum for some time. Let me tell you what is and has been posted there over the last several years is not acceptable to me. The reason it has been allowed is because the forum has been without a moderator for at least 3 years. When you take this into consideration I think it is quite amazing it isn't any worse.

 

[Merlin]

I'm currently supporting the moderators who want to buy the website, however, even if JC the Builder doesn't become owner, I would hope that he may work with the moderator group to make the site better, including integration with UO Guide and assisting with the Wiki

 

[Poo]

what is the lesser of 2 evils.....

having Stratics run by a staff that only really has a year under their belts OR having Stratics run by a fella who has run a 2nd to none UO info site but has come and gone over time and may not be able to establish a good working relationship with Broadsword.

from the handful of people ive been chatting with this morning this seems to be the dilemma.

plus side, JC dosnt want any cash from us slaves in the galley manning the ores.

committee or a president......

far too much to think about on a saturday morning.

but i will say this, congratulations to JC for throwing his hat into the ring!
takes balls to put yourself out there and open to criticism from the anonymous people on the internet.
and a little competition is never a bad thing.
now that i think about it im actually a LOT happier about this possible transition now that i know there is more then one person stepping forward who is in the know and has the means.

 

[Vor]

I'd vote for JC. But then it's not a vote.. so I suppose that doesn't mean much.

 

[DJAd]

committee or a president......

So who is on this "committee" then? Maybe I missed a post about it.

 

[Poo]

So who is on this "committee" then? Maybe I missed a post about it.

the staff consortium.

 

[DJAd]

the staff consortium.

Yeah man I know that buy which ones I mean, sorry I should of been a bit more clearer.

Also I just noticed that the [BCOLOR=rgb(204, 205, 205)]auction for the website[/BCOLOR] ends in 14 days but the fundraiser thing ends in 16 days. How is that going to work?!

EDIT - These members? Notable Members | Stratics

 

[JC the Builder]

what is the lesser of 2 evils.....

having Stratics run by a staff that only really has a year under their belts OR having Stratics run by a fella who has run a 2nd to none UO info site but has come and gone over time and may not be able to establish a good working relationship with Broadsword.

To be clear: I won't be directly running UO Stratics. The existing and any former staff who may want to return will be. I have no intention of interfering unless it becomes nessesary. I am not going to moderate this forum.

I will work with the staff to bring UO Stratics back to what it once was, but all the content and forum is left up to them.

It is my hope also with my ownership of Stratics that The UO Developers will recognize a stable UO Stratics site and open up once again. This relationship will also be under the control of UO Stratics staff, not myself.

 

[BeaIank]

I approve of this.

 

[JC the Builder]

I'd vote for JC. But then it's not a vote.. so I suppose that doesn't mean much.

Your reply to this topic means a lot more than you give credit for. Thank you for the support.

 

[FrejaSP]

I feel the staff we have now, had worked hard to make the forum improve and I feel they are doing a great job and they have my support.
I love UO Guide, I don't know the rares forum as rares never did mean much to me.
I do not know you well enough to know how you will handle this forum. We do have a lot different playstyles here and players can be very vocal. The staff we have now, are doing well without a lot of banding and locked threads.
If you had stepped up before our staff decided to try to save our forum, you would had my full support, but now I want to give the staff a chance.

 

[JC the Builder]

If you had stepped up before our staff decided to try to save our forum, you would had my full support, but now I want to give the staff a chance.

I just found out Stratics was for sale 2 days ago. At least I found out now rather than later.

 

[FrejaSP]

To be clear: I won't be directly running UO Stratics. The existing and any former staff who may want to return will be. I have no intention of interfering unless it becomes nessesary. I am not going to moderate this forum.

Oh I did see this when I made my reply.

I just found out Stratics was for sale 2 days ago. At least I found out now rather than later.

I'm glad you made the this thread, yes you will have my support if the staff can't raise the money.

 

[Merus]

This would get my vote.

 

[DJAd]

This would get my vote.

UOguide wiki with Stratics as the forums sounds like a winning combination in my opinion.

+1

 

[TheScoundrelRico]

I will work with the staff to bring UO Stratics back to what it once was, but all the content and forum is left up to them.

So how do you see Stratics as it once was? And how specifically will you do that? This statement is a lot like "Make American Great Again"...la

 

[Lady CaT]

JC,

What would happen to uoguide if you were to own stratics? Cause honestly I'd rather have uoguide as a resource.

 

[JC the Builder]

So how do you see Stratics as it once was? And how specifically will you do that? This statement is a lot like "Make American Great Again"...la

All Stratics content will be gone over and placed back on the site for users to enjoy. It was posted several times after the most recent sale that there is a "lot of stuff" they were working to get back online. There is even mention of this hidden content in the auction description.

The most plainly absent are all the other game portals that are now offline. I think I heard once that WOW Stratics used to be popular with a lot of guides. That is all offline now. I want to put it back online even if no one will be using it. There is no reason for it to be offline.

 

[Piotr]

Also I just noticed that the [BCOLOR=rgb(204, 205, 205)]auction for the website[/BCOLOR] ends in 14 days but the fundraiser thing ends in 16 days. How is that going to work?!

I'd like to know that too...

 

[OREOGL]

My support remains with the staff.

I'd only support JC as owner if the prior fell through.

 

[JC the Builder]

JC,

What would happen to uoguide if you were to own stratics? Cause honestly I'd rather have uoguide as a resource.

I am not sure.

One possible solution is the main Stratics website will just be UOGuide. It would have two different domain names but be the same website. I would discuss this with UO Stratics staff.

Keep in mind UO Stratics staff was already going to build a wiki. It does not make sense to start from scratch when UOGuide is just sitting there.

 

[old gypsy]

In view of all the work and planning our staff has already done in an effort to save the site on behalf of the community, and considering how much support the campaign has received to date, I don't feel it's right to try to derail them,.

At this juncture in time, anyone who wants to bid on their own should do just that, and not risk turning this into a popularity contest here.

 

[Piotr]

All Stratics content will be gone over and placed back on the site for users to enjoy. It was posted several times after the most recent sale that there is a "lot of stuff" they were working to get back online

If you by this mean, that the good old UO Stratics will be restored to its former glory and brought up to date, you've got my vote too!

 

[Oscar the Grouch]

We have all been in this community for a very long time and that leaves a lot of chances to make mistakes. The staff currently running a fundraiser to purchase Stratics certainly has had its challenges and made decisions or have been part of decisions not everyone in the community has agreed with. I am part of that staff, here is the link to my profile on the campaign. I have been quiet thus far, I generally just work in the background and occasionally pop my head out. When I saw JC's post, and yes I have been reading all posts related to this topic, I saw the first real chance to fully fracture the community. Mind you it isn't JC that would enhance the fracture but the responses that ensue. That fracture is the farthest thing from what I would want. I think JC has his share of challenges just as the Stratics staff does. I also think JC has just as much of a right to make a bid for Stratics as any other community member does.

When I first found out Stratics was for sale my immediate reaction was to start looking at my 2016 budget to make the purchase myself. Had I been successful in this my goal and hope would have been to bring our fractured community together. I would have sought to work closely with JC (UOGuide), UOForums, former staff and anyone else who still cared about the community to make us whole again. This post from JC proves one thing if nothing else, he still cares about the community. He has his challenges just like the Stratics staff but he cares.

I am not a fortune teller, I don't know what path will have the best chance of success. What I do know is we are better off with a path that is directed by the community (a board or individual). It is my opinion that despite their faults the Stratics Staff and JC have shown they care about the community and have some (or more) understanding of it. Lets not be fractured. Lets figure out how to work together. If the Stratics staff can pull this off and listen to the community needs ultimately bringing it closer together that is a win. If JC can work through any issues he has and takes ownership and unifies the community then that is a win. If an outsider purchases Stratics and ends up putting the proverbial nail in the coffin, that is so NOT a win.

Simply put my support is in bringing this community back together. Every poster here ultimately cares even if some of us do not agree with the way they go about it. I have been part of UO longer than I have been married, longer than I've had children. You, the community means a lot to me. Lets figure out a way to ensure our future.

 

[JC the Builder]

In view of all the work and planning our staff has already done in an effort to save the site on behalf of the community, and considering how much support the campaign has received to date, I don't feel it's right to try to derail them

I think there is a real danger of an unknown party outbidding everyone. $10,000 or $20,000 might seem like a lot of money but it isn't. Some investor will see "20 year old website x visitors a month" and could easily drop $50,000 or something. Then they will gut the place and you will all be sleeping on the couch of the UOGuide forums.

The only way to prevent this is to work something out with Ron.

 

[Deraj]

Hello everyone,

To put it plainly I would be willing to take ownership and pilot the Stratics ship. I was willing to do it last time but no one told me the site was for sale. Which is also what happened this time. So let me spell it out for everyone and if you agree I should own Stratics you can work towards making it happen.

Stratics used to be a really great place to go for game information, news, forums, chat rooms and more. I remember when I first started UO I made a notebook with monster information by hand and copied down all the relevant creature statistics I saw in game regularly. Some of you may remember the original monsters database had a dangerousness rating scale from 1-10. The most dangerous were rated higher using between 1 and 3 X's I think.

But this is no longer the case. Over the years Stratics has lost all its other game sites. The forum has been wiped two maybe even three times. I don't even know exactly how many times it has changed ownership. The technology running the site is fragmented and broken. The close relationship with the UO team seems to be in poor shape. The finances are are in the toilet. It is a big list of problems.

What will I do if I become owner of Stratics? I'll fix it. I don't have everything etched in stone. But some of my current ideas are:

- All current and former staff will be invited to participate. Anyone causing drama will be removed.
- I will handle the technical side of Stratics. The current staff are free to continue managing the forums/news/content however they see fit
- Instead of building a wiki I would work with staff to just use UOGuide, which could be natively embedded into Stratics because they would be on the same server
- I would have someone design a new forum and site skin to resemble more the original Stratics site
- UO Developer relations need to be worked on

On the larger scale I have been working on a game website project that I would use the main Stratics website for. It would be "The New Stratics". But UO Stratics will be its own separate place. It won't see big changes unless the community is in favor of it. However I think the staff and UO community will really like it. Also no one will know the details of this project until it is launched. I am personally coding it over the next few months. I have spent several thousand dollars of my own money on this already.

Am I qualified to run Stratics? You decide:

- My first real UO website was UORares.com which I coded a item submission form so anyone could submit rares on the website. This was before Wiki technology came along.
- I built the website for hot-guild.com which has a lot of custom coding, such as pulling news articles to the front page. A long time ago I coded a system to build your own forum avatar like a UO paperdoll. Also I have coded forum systems to add a lottery, a PVP ladder tracker, and more.
- I coded an entire member management system for HOT Guild. This kept track of hundreds of player characters and each day took the data from MyUO and tracked changes.
- I built UOGuide from scratch including the custom styling, a UO event calendar, integrated the wiki and forum, and more.

I played UO from 1999 to about 2009. I stopped mainly due to crippling carpel tunnel in both arms. I only got treated for it earlier this year so I have been sidelined for a long time.

I was there before Trammel. I was in the top Atlantic Shadowlords faction. I was in the top house placing guild. I was/am in one of the top all time PVP HOT Guild. I created and managed the top UO PVP forum UO Atlantic and The Atlantic Tradeboard. I still manage (what I consider) the best information website UOGuide.

If you think I should be the next owner of Stratics then you should voice your support. I made an offer and it has been rejected. The auction can be ended and I already given details to the relevant parties on how to do it.

Have a Nice Day.

I like your ideas and you have my support.

 

[DJAd]

Keep in mind UO Stratics staff was already going to build a wiki. It does not make sense to start from scratch when UOGuide is just sitting there.

I never understood why they were going to do this. Also the official UO.com wiki is pretty horrible to use compared to UOGuide.

 

[Uvtha]

Hello everyone,

To put it plainly I would be willing to take ownership and pilot the Stratics ship. I was willing to do it last time but no one told me the site was for sale. Which is also what happened this time. So let me spell it out for everyone and if you agree I should own Stratics you can work towards making it happen.

Stratics used to be a really great place to go for game information, news, forums, chat rooms and more. I remember when I first started UO I made a notebook with monster information by hand and copied down all the relevant creature statistics I saw in game regularly. Some of you may remember the original monsters database had a dangerousness rating scale from 1-10. The most dangerous were rated higher using between 1 and 3 X's I think.

But this is no longer the case. Over the years Stratics has lost all its other game sites. The forum has been wiped two maybe even three times. I don't even know exactly how many times it has changed ownership. The technology running the site is fragmented and broken. The close relationship with the UO team seems to be in poor shape. The finances are are in the toilet. It is a big list of problems.

What will I do if I become owner of Stratics? I'll fix it. I don't have everything etched in stone. But some of my current ideas are:

- All current and former staff will be invited to participate. Anyone causing drama will be removed.
- I will handle the technical side of Stratics. The current staff are free to continue managing the forums/news/content however they see fit
- Instead of building a wiki I would work with staff to just use UOGuide, which could be natively embedded into Stratics because they would be on the same server
- I would have someone design a new forum and site skin to resemble more the original Stratics site
- UO Developer relations need to be worked on

On the larger scale I have been working on a game website project that I would use the main Stratics website for. It would be "The New Stratics". But UO Stratics will be its own separate place. It won't see big changes unless the community is in favor of it. However I think the staff and UO community will really like it. Also no one will know the details of this project until it is launched. I am personally coding it over the next few months. I have spent several thousand dollars of my own money on this already.

Am I qualified to run Stratics? You decide:

- My first real UO website was UORares.com which I coded a item submission form so anyone could submit rares on the website. This was before Wiki technology came along.
- I built the website for hot-guild.com which has a lot of custom coding, such as pulling news articles to the front page. A long time ago I coded a system to build your own forum avatar like a UO paperdoll. Also I have coded forum systems to add a lottery, a PVP ladder tracker, and more.
- I coded an entire member management system for HOT Guild. This kept track of hundreds of player characters and each day took the data from MyUO and tracked changes.
- I built UOGuide from scratch including the custom styling, a UO event calendar, integrated the wiki and forum, and more.

I played UO from 1999 to about 2009. I stopped mainly due to crippling carpel tunnel in both arms. I only got treated for it earlier this year so I have been sidelined for a long time.

I was there before Trammel. I was in the top Atlantic Shadowlords faction. I was in the top house placing guild. I was/am in one of the top all time PVP HOT Guild. I created and managed the top UO PVP forum UO Atlantic and The Atlantic Tradeboard. I still manage (what I consider) the best information website UOGuide.

If you think I should be the next owner of Stratics then you should voice your support. I made an offer and it has been rejected. The auction can be ended and I already given details to the relevant parties on how to do it.

Have a Nice Day.

UOguide even with after lack of updates has been my go-to site for many years, merging it with statics would be a good idea in my eyes, and everything else sounds just fine to me. So you have my support.

In all honesty, I don't care either way, but I really doubt the current staff will get 10k together within 2 weeks, and if you have cash in hand ready to make a purchase then for the sake of pragmatism (keeping UO in the community) I support you buying it.

I would add that, and this is in no means a bash to the current staff with the indigogo campaign, I would rather the people that own the site be different than those who operate it day to day. It just seems safer to me.

 

[Uriah Heep]

@JC the Builder Go for it. I have no spare cash laying around to aid the endeavor, but I do admire and appreciate the functionality of UOGuide. Stratics used to be THE place, but it became (for some reason) a scattered mishmash of info that is seriously hard to find. And that isn't a knock on anyone who volunteered their time working on it, it just is what it is. I think everyone should back you on this, as my Granddad used to say; "Better to dance with the devil you know..." Your organizational skills are a proven plus.

 

[JC the Builder]

Lots of words

I understand what you are saying. This should be a private process. Unfortunately it is a public auction.

I should make clear to everyone that I am not and have never been a Stratics staff member. I am not included in any Stratics communications. I am completely in the dark on what is happening with your current efforts.

So I can only make decisions based on what I know. In about 14 days the auction will end and the outcome is uncertain to who will end up owner. The best course of action is to cancel the auction before that happens, thus this topic I have created.