I've been around the NWN community for a few years now, and over time I have come to regard several persons here as friends, just as if they were RL friends that I have met in person. :)
As an example I'd like to mention Ghostdreamer (allthough who isn't a friend of him!), who I have also chatted with on Yahoo and learned about his family and job. Most of my NWN friends I don't even know the real names of - just their nickname - but you can still tell a lot about their personality from the way they behave on the forums. Sure, they might be very different in real life, but it is how you carry yourself here that matters here! :D
Sometimes NWN friends just disappear, though. :(
That is sad when they go without saying goodbye, because you worry that something may have happened to them. Did they get hit by a car or something? You can only hope that they'll show up again one day, and that it will turn out they just got swamped with RL difficulties.
When Lilac Soul went away, he made a goodbye-post first where he explained why he would be too busy in the future to hang around here anymore. That was okay, because you got a chance to wave goodbye and say you hope he'll return some day. :)
Two years ago, a member of my guild went and died unexpectedly. We noticed that he suddenly stopped posting anything anywhere, but nobody knew his real name or address so there was no way of finding out what had happened. Then, two months later, we got an e-mail from a family member who explained that he had suffered a stroke and died a couple of weeks later in hospital. I went and looked at his contributions on the Vault and felt very sad thinking of how they would never be updated or added to again. :-\ Then I wondered about my own reaction at the news of the death of a person I never met and didn't even know the real name of!
The other day another friend made a post in a private forum, explaining how his cancer had returned again and that he would not be able to be on the forums for a long while. That nearly made me cry, because he sounded so brave and I knew that this was the third time it returned. Was this going to be the last post ever from him? Luckily he returned the day after and explained that the prognosis isn't so bad after all, because the doctors recons there's a 90% chance of stopping it on the first attempt. Whev! :)
And again I wonder at my own reaction on hearing sad news about someone I've never even met in person.
Well. that's what I had on my chest today!
Cheers! :)
It's a funny world we live in where technology like instant messengers and Skype allow us to get to know people without ever meeting them in person. I mean, I've never met any of my Ossian mates (or any of you, for that matter! ::) ), but I've "known" them--or, at least some of them--for almost 3 years now!
Sometimes I think it would be the coolest thing in the world to organize a "NWN community get-together" so people could finally meet in person...
It's kinda funny you said that Hugie. I was in Boston last summer in July. I was going to try to contact you on the forums when I got there, but the day I did, I found out my stepfather passed away from cancer earlier that day. Needless to say, I wasn't in the hanging out mood. Instead, I had a couple in his honor at the Bell in Hand.
There's definately some people I have met in the community that I wouldn't mind meeting IRL. I've never met any of my NWN mates. Even the ones who live near me, and there's more than a few. It would be a novel idea to have a gathering, but would take some work, considering a lot of us live in Europe and most of the rest in the states, with a few scattered across Asia and Australia.
Speaking of which, if any of you are ever in the SF Bay Area, drop me a PM either here or on the Bioware boards, same user name on both. I've lived here all my life and I don't mind being a tour guide, especially if you're into wine. ;D I love wine country.
Yeah, that would be fairly awesome. Some kind of NWN convention... :)
Honestly, I feel quite a close kinship with a lot of people I've gotten to know in the community. There's such a positive atmosphere here, and people are often willing to be really helpful in sharing their expertise. It's amazing how far the bonds of friendship can stretch with the modern tools of communication. :)
Quote from: Tybae on January 24, 2008, 02:14:03 AM
It's kinda funny you said that Hugie. I was in Boston last summer in July. I was going to try to contact you on the forums when I got there, but the day I did, I found out my stepfather passed away from cancer earlier that day. Needless to say, I wasn't in the hanging out mood. Instead, I had a couple in his honor at the Bell in Hand.
There's definately some people I have met in the community that I wouldn't mind meeting IRL. I've never met any of my NWN mates. Even the ones who live near me, and there's more than a few. It would be a novel idea to have a gathering, but would take some work, considering a lot of us live in Europe and most of the rest in the states, with a few scattered across Asia and Australia.
Speaking of which, if any of you are ever in the SF Bay Area, drop me a PM either here or on the Bioware boards, same user name on both. I've lived here all my life and I don't mind being a tour guide, especially if you're into wine. ;D I love wine country.
Heh, not sure if college will involve a trip to sunny cali any time soon, but if it does, I will do! ;D
Similarly, if anyone happens to be in Cambridge, drop me a line...I'd be happy to give a campus tour! ;)
Quote from: Alex Hugon on January 24, 2008, 03:04:02 AM
Heh, not sure if college will involve a trip to sunny cali any time soon, but if it does, I will do! ;D
What, Stanford not good enough for you? lol :D
QuoteSimilarly, if anyone happens to be in Cambridge, drop me a line...I'd be happy to give a campus tour! ;)
Some friends and I are planning a trip to the east coast later in the summer. One reason is to see 1 last game at the old Yankee Stadium then to go to Boston to see a game at Fenway, even though I am a Yankee fan, shhhh, don't tell. ;) I'll let you know if we're going to spend any significant time in the Boston area. I have a couple of friends there that work at our Boston shop, so we may, but everything is still up in the air.
Quote from: Tybae on January 24, 2008, 04:00:11 AM
Quote from: Alex Hugon on January 24, 2008, 03:04:02 AM
Heh, not sure if college will involve a trip to sunny cali any time soon, but if it does, I will do! ;D
What, Stanford not good enough for you? lol :D
Heh, I wish! 'Twas my first choice! :'( ;)
QuoteQuoteSimilarly, if anyone happens to be in Cambridge, drop me a line...I'd be happy to give a campus tour! ;)
Some friends and I are planning a trip to the east coast later in the summer. One reason is to see 1 last game at the old Yankee Stadium then to go to Boston to see a game at Fenway, even though I am a Yankee fan, shhhh, don't tell. ;) I'll let you know if we're going to spend any significant time in the Boston area. I have a couple of friends there that work at our Boston shop, so we may, but everything is still up in the air.
UH oh. A YANKEES fan?!?! We are no longer on speaking terms. ;D
Quote from: Alex Hugon on January 24, 2008, 02:31:50 PM
Heh, I wish! 'Twas my first choice! :'( ;)
It's probably good you didn't. Good luck in finding an affordable place to live around there and be in a good neighborhood. It's kinda funny when one of the most renowned universities in the country is 5 minutes away from one of the worst neighborhoods in the Bay Area.
QuoteUH oh. A YANKEES fan?!?! We are no longer on speaking terms. ;D
Man, I get that a lot. I haven't figured out why. ;) Good thing we don't actually speak on the forums. Are we still on typing terms? :D lol.
On the subject of disappearing community 'pals', I was sad when equix left. Also, after furnaski's rig caved on him, I never saw him again. Anyone else seen him?
I also consider that the nwn community are some of my best friends even though I've never met any. I think that the fact that we all have something in common is a major factor. Another factor is the fact that we don't know each other well enough to irritate each other with bad habits. ::) However, if anyone is in the Colorado Springs area, let me know.
In all seriousness The nwn community has been great. names like nereng, tybae, six thrice, and axe murderer have helped me tremendously. I wouldn't have been able to write a module without them. I wish everyone in the community only the best.
Glad I could help. I didn't expect to be in that list of names. Most of the advice I give is from a players perspective. I have never made a mod that I would actually release to the public yet, but I aspire to as I am still getting the hang of it. I have about 5 really bad modules that I am learning how not to make modules with, though. If I keep on par with those 5, I'd win the Golden Dragon for best game breaking bug. ;D Maybe not a Golden Dragon, maybe a tin foil wrapped Kobald award, or maybe a Saran Wrapped Giant Rat award...the possibilities are endless. :D
With my job, I'll probably go to Denver twice a year, but it's always for work and an arrive early Monday and leave in the middle of the day Thursday thing. No real time outside of the good old job. Besides, I live close to Raider Nation. If I was caught in Denver for any reason other than work, I'd have to beat myself up. :D
I'm glad I'm on your list, too! :) I have downloaded your module, actually, but still haven't had time to try it out. :(
I have seen many suggestions for NWN meet-ups in my time, but none of them came to anything as far as I know. Best one was a suggestion in Off Topic to have a meet-up on Chris Priestly's lawn last summer! The consensus was that Chris would be obligated to supply the beer and burgers. :D
At my guild, we met each other virtually for a while in a NWN module we made for that purpose. It was just a meeting room with a listener (so we could keep a record of the discussions), but it also had a door that we could connect to any interesting new modules that had appeared on the Vault. So when the meeting was over, those who wanted to could join up and try out the new module. We found that having the meeting at 4pm GMT on saturdays meant that most members could join in the meetings. (If anyone wants to run with this, feel free!)
Cheers!
Hi nereng, you really have helped me with scripting a few times. I'm not a master, but I don't suck anymore. ::) As far as playing the module, I understand. I've gotten to the point where I only work on mine and never really play anyone elses. That's why I haven't asked to be a member on theses boards. I hope you do get a chance to play one of these days, especially if you need a chuckle.
Quote from: BenWH on January 24, 2008, 04:55:27 PMOn the subject of disappearing community 'pals', I was sad when equix left. Also, after furnaski's rig caved on him, I never saw him again. Anyone else seen him?
Sorry, no, I never knew him. But on the same subject: has anyone heard from Murdane/Riona in the last six months? My last contact with her was last July about joining us here in the AME. Right after that she vanished from the Bioware boards, and I haven't seen or heard from her anywhere since. I was a little worried about how abruptly she disappeared (I guess I still am), and I hope she's OK.
I too noticed that Murdane/Riona disappeared...I feel like I sent her an email at one point, and that she responded that she didn't have time for NWN stuff anymore. But this was quite some time ago, around the time you're talking about, Andarian (though perhaps it was after she agreed to sign up for AME).
As did I. I haven't seen/heard from her in months. She'll show up eventually.
QuoteIn all seriousness The nwn community has been great. names like nereng, tybae, six thrice, and axe murderer have helped me tremendously.
*Feels all warm inside* Certainly didn't expect to see my name there, so thanks for making my day :D Glad I could be of whatever help I was.
Know what it's like to get so stuck into making stuff that ya never play anything very often. Guess I'd better change my ways somewhat and make time for AME, though :P Hell, I get so sidetracked with mini projects all the time, I have to drop one or two for every module I play these days.
Talking about friends I want to share this movie with all of you, lucky because I live in a little country where sometimes NWN firiends can meet and enjoy like children,
http://nwvault.ign.com/View.php?view=NWN2Movies.Detail&id=126
that's the good thing
Quote from: Tybae on January 25, 2008, 06:18:53 PM
As did I. I haven't seen/heard from her in months. She'll show up eventually.
Yes...so did caserbear...it seems like his have some RL issue and he no longer show up anymore...
hrm....another question: have you heard from QSW lately? It seems like she does not appear since last year...
QSW is taking a break for a bit for RL, but hopes to be back in the spring...
That's why I haven't seen QSW around. She was very busy with NWN type stuff. AME, Reviewers guild, etc. She probably needed the break.
QSW helped me out with an issue on my module back in December. Other than that, I don't know.
Had a chat with QSW last night. She is well, enjoying real life, resting and relaxing. She'll likely be back at some point, flapping her silver wings in the air :)
QSW still pops in at the reviewers guild, she critiqued my review on "A Secret in Stone" just a couple days ago, (very helpful critique, I might add).
QSW did a lot to make me feel welcome and comfortable being a newbie at the NRG.
I really hope things go well for her, her pen is surely missed.