Community Voices--Part 2

Here's the remainder of the contributions I received for this little project.

And if you sent me your contribution on Sunday, well I'm sorry to say I didn't get it. Chalk it up to vagueries of the universe and the way it seems to find chinks in your armor.


Part 2--



Link5935

Well, I have only been here since February, but my stay here so far has been extremely enjoyable. I have met some very interesting individuals, such as MAW, he is a rather mature person, who admittedly, makes me a bit angry sometimes when he points out my mistakes. He is correct most of the time however, and the advice helps me better myself I suppose. He is a person who I thought was a mod when I first got here, and he pretty much is... He has done several great things with the community, such as the doughnut revolution, where everyone changed their avatar to something having to do with doughnuts. Many people jumped on how great the idea was, and made events of their own such as the pirate avatars a while back. Another interesting person I have met here is sheighton, he has greatly helped my understanding of computer knowledge and was very patient with me when I asked many questions ,which seem to be rather dumb questions to ask to me now quite frankly. And you cannot forget the one who asked me to write this particular collection of words, Mr. Vastori, who seems to care about this community a lot considering he is putting the effort to make this “blog”, I think he called it. That word, blog, always hated it for some reason.... However, getting back on topic, there is one more individual I would like to speak about, and his name is swisskdl, I am not quite sure what his name means, but I consider him a friend, I am not sure if the friendship is mutual, but he has been very kind to me and we helped each other out with information on building our own custom computers . Now for a bit about me, I played WoW for about a year, and I got tired of the drama everywhere and left the game for good in February. Shortly after I quit I joined the LOTRO forums and said hello to everyone. This community is kind overall, well moderated, and helpful, if you read the FAQ that is!

LadyMist

As a whole the lotr community has been one of the more mature forum communities I have had the pleasure of being a part of.

For a community to keep a sizable amount of loyal posters over the course of years in itself has to say something about how much we interact with each other. We were diverse in our questions as we were in our views of game and non game related things yet we still mesh well with each other.

A new start is upon us and all old threads the good, the bad, and the ugly will be forever wiped, but our memories of camaraderie, debates and willingness to pass info will forever be etched in the memories of all the ole time posters.

Hxlgg

Community Life
The World of MEO and LOTRO

There are certain people who you remember for your entire life. Those people who have simply make an impression on you; those who changed your life in a positive or negative way or those who you just seemed to connect with instantly. These types of people don’t come around as often as desired, but when they do, it always turns out to be a great experience. If you’ve ever gotten the chance to encounter one of these individuals, feel honored. Feel special, if you will. Hold on to this person and open yourself to them. This is the type of experience I have had with the Middle-earth online forums.
Back in 2004, when I joined the MEO forums, there was an abundance of posting from characters that will forever remain in my memory. No, I will not get into how my life has been changed forever by these people or how I have been touched by them, mainly because that last remark would earn a few giggles, guffaws and smart remarks in volley. I will speak in truth though: many people that I have met on these forums have made an impact on how I think, how I act and my outlook on the world. Yes, they have changed me and that is something I am rather happy with and would love to thank them personally (which will happen this summer, an opportunity I will savor).
This community, that was formed long before I entered their midst, has a very tight bond and a rich history. Dated back in the late 90s, these forums have kept together for more than six years, following a game that was hardly in existence. They continued to follow it not because of the game, but because of the friends they made along the way. Friendships were formed long before concrete information of the game was cemented and they still last to this day.
Besides the friendships themselves, these members, these people, have made great contributions to the forums themselves. The forums have gone through many changes over the years this game has been in production. From Sierra to Vivendi to Turbine, the forums have had their share of make-overs and string of members.
Those who have followed this game for quite some time know of what I speak, and I haven’t even been along that long. Those people will almost be sure to tell you that it is not the developers that make a game. Sure, they physically make the game, but in the end, there would not be a game without the community. Without the people who stick with the game through the rough times. Without the people who, no matter what will stick around. Stick around for the game? No. Stick around for the rest of the community. Stick around for their friends. Stick around for the people who would stick around for them. That is why they, we, stay.
It really harms a community when part of it is taken away. There is always this gaping hole that will never be filled. On the MEO boards, in my time at least, this has happened twice. Well, twice in the sense that it was more noticeable when it occurred – being the splitting of the servers and the banning of a more notable member.
Nonetheless, the community has persevered and stuck though the tough times. We have fought back the hoards of trolls, slaughtered the ignorant masses and weeded out many of the rotten seeds, in the end, forming an exemplary community, standing high above all others.

I would like to take a moment and point out several members, group and threads in this community that have really stood out:
Community Members:
Light of Arnor (leader in discussions all around the boards), Bart (general leader and all around nice guy), Ara (palindrome extraordinaire), Arbalister (intelligent and revered), tgyg (originator or the Forum Round-ups), MAWorking (most active member on the forums, denouncer of false truths and creator of spam boards), Sauveteur (fantastic and devoted member of the community spending her time getting to know everyone), Morthoron (The Dark Elf with bated breath), Lotheani (lover of Canadians and renowned member of the EoI), Gilenath (humorous, solid fellow devoted to the community and Loth’s punching bag), Alfwine (cunning linguist and good friend), Morfang (HOTTIE!!), Real Deal (owner of the noob check-in desk), sssuuu (leader of latter day’s community building), DarhilofAnfalas (bard extraordinaire), Ish (writer of the Off-Topic drama The OT), Tav’Roon (the denim king and teller of stories), INSENSIBLE (great photographer), Stacey Undomiel (gamer until the end), Hammman (most insignificant poster), Amon Ereb (all around dork), …and countless others. There are really too many fantastic members who have many a great contribution to this forum whether they are from helping the newer members, showing ideal taste in all areas of the forum or helping out with community building. There are several groups that have sprung up along the way as well, including the Mahanaxar and the Atanatári. Both have been more than helpful to the community.
Fansite owners: ep (Arda Post – and prolific member of the community), TucksMa (Ogaming) and the whole crew at (MEO)LOTROSource (Earane, Methost, Thrindil, Polleke, odinseye, Giladain, Dath KahRek, Golgine, Furin, Calagorn and Feathalion)
Our Fearless Moderators and Developers: (most notably) Keeper, Sharked, Floon Beetle, Akiva and Patience. All have been kind to us, helped us when we needed it and listened to us (most of the time).
Long Standing Kinships (not guilds!): The Elves of Imladris (Thingol), Followers of Light (Hallatur), Rangers of Forochel (INSENSIBLE), Rangers of Tharbad (Tar-Amandil), Iron Guard (Klathorn), Rangers of Anadûnê (Real Deal), Soul Assassins (Amon Ereb) and many more.

So, in the end, thank you MEO community, from me. Thanks for all the great times and I look forward to many more (in fact, I demand it). You are all fantastic and I can’t wait to talk to ya (probably in a couple minutes – you know the chatting whore I am :P). Y’all are teh r0xx0r!!!11!