The Hexagon Sun [Manu Interview]

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The Hexagon Sun [Manu Interview]; Community Thoughts
Topic Started: Jun 8 2013, 05:32 PM (18,876 Views)
UmbreonShadow	Jun 8 2013, 05:32 PM Post #1
Posts: 72 Group: Junior Members Member #302 Joined: May 12, 2013 Country Canada Sex Male Age 100	The Hexagon Sun was originally established from ZTV and Northern Skies back in the Spring of 2012 and then to Gaia in the Summer of 2012. The blog is made for the analysis and discussion on community matters. It's original intent was to critique and explain the events occurring in the community that may or is it causing parasitic strain in the community. It is also analyzed in the classic community sense. I will be posting some raw, classic works from the past and perhaps eventually I may start posting new content. The Forgotten Establishments Authors Note: This post was made during a time of distraught between two forums and when many designers began to walk away from Northern Skies among the download controversy. This is my opinion about the " download community " and older forums that stressed less of the entire " download " nature of the community. This blog post was made back in April of 2012 on Northern Skies and Zoo Tycoon Volcano In this day and age in the so called " community " ,many forums have been forgotten. Forums that modern community members don't even know about or would disregard as outdated. Even forums that poured the concrete for the foundation of the community and the designing breakthroughs. It is an unfortunate truth that goes by everyday. With today's forums, only a few stand alive, Northern Skies being the most active. But the question is, how did they get to that status? They could not have done it by themselves without the ideas and people branching off of several forums that were once popular themselves, including ones that bear on. What is saddening, is that these former forums are not talked about or even brought up to the table, as partners, friends or even a given a thank you! But instead people just migrate to what appeals to them the most, and that is what is of stressed high demand: Downloads. But was this community founded on the ideas of " Downloads " ?, clearly if it was we would be called the " Download Community " (which we could say that is the case today) rather then the " Zoo Tycoon Community ". And the truth is, it's not. But why? Forums in the past found it unappealing that the main focus of the community revolved around " Downloads " and the game itself because they knew it would become boring and repetitive after a while, so they experimented with other methods to socialize and expand cultural and educative awareness due to the high rate of international members joining into the community. But it wasn't because of the " Downloads ", it was because they wanted to have fun! I usually like to use Zoo Tek Phoenix as a prime example of originality of the community. Not only did they supplied downloads and great designing tutorials to help inspire curious newcomer designers but they also knew that in order to continue to be popular and diverse, they needed more diverse sections for everybody to enjoy. Zoo Tek Phoenix was one of the first forums to host a arcade for gaming, the first site to have a special forum where staff from other forums can come to discuss inter site issues and to have an Ambassador Program themselves and for staff to discuss forum news going on in the community. They also wanted to expand the knowledge of animals and there habits to a younger audience that may not even get to learn at a first hand by having there own zoologist Professor Paul and his Nature Encyclopedia!. They also encourage creativity and culture diversity by having special seasonal events based on different cultures, the list can go on on how superior there system of fun is compared to ours. But sadly, they are not the most popular forum (activity wise), but they are a pure legend and a prime example of a real element of the community, along with many of the forums you see listed on the top of each page you go to on ZTV that have given there time and effort to make this community what it was.* Unfortunately that spirit is diminishing with the inflation of downloads and lack of community spirit coming from some forums. We should reflect on these legends. * ZTV back in 2011 to 2012 had established many affiliations in attempt to unite the community. Edited by UmbreonShadow, Aug 27 2013, 03:39 PM.

Replies:
Zooa Kai	Jul 20 2013, 09:07 PM Post #61
<3xx~I <3 me infinitely the most <3 ~xx<3 Posts: 31 Group: Novices Member #624 Joined: Jul 17, 2013 Country Canada Sex Male Real Name Irrelevant	Having been heavily involved in many of these conflicts, on both sides as you can see from the interview, I'm glad we're at a time of relative peace now. As much as I relished the conflict, a way to keep busy and feel important, I also recognize the negative impact it has on those involved as well.



davidy12	Jul 20 2013, 11:30 PM Post #62
Posts: 1,752 Group: Trainees Member #97 Joined: Mar 7, 2013 Country United States Sex Male Real Name David Age 17	I agree Zooa. I hope we can all just continue enjoying these interviews.



TheBlackGuppy	Jul 21 2013, 09:20 PM Post #63
The Pedantic Pianist Posts: 24 Group: Novices Member #509 Joined: Jun 24, 2013 Age 15	How very interesting. As some of you may know, I was active for a short while on Environ as part of the staff, but at the time there were a number of factors limiting my understanding of the status of the community as a whole, my youth and my membership solely on Environ being chief among them. As such I have next to no knowledge about these old happenings, so it is refreshing to see exactly what conspired (although to be honest I didn't work my way through the entirety of all of the interviews - maybe later). I also find it fascinating that so many veterans are revisiting the community. As I mentioned previously, I was very young when I first joined Environ, and even now I am still not at the age most of the veterans were when these events happened. You'd think that as someone with fewer responsibilities in life I'd be more active, but my interest in the game and the community as a whole has decreased dramatically, so this is why I am interested that many adults with much busier lives are taking the time to recall all this history. I suppose the intimate ties others have with the community are enough to cause them to resurface. I myself could never fully comprehend this level of dedication. I cannot help but think that I caused part of Environ's downfall, however. My promotion to moderator seemed to cause some amount of unrest; I couldn't see it directly for myself, seeing as I had no connections to anyone that was active outside Environ, but I could feel some of the repercussions and discontent among members. Was my presence in KM's steely arsenal of staff perceived as a weakness that could be exploited? When things got ugly, I certainly was of little help, being the clueless little child I was (am?). I do not think I was a main factor in the wars, but I do believe I contributed slightly to the chaos, albeit unknowingly. If anyone could shed some light, please do so. Without opinions from multiple points of view, I feel I cannot construct a clear picture. Edited by TheBlackGuppy, Jul 21 2013, 10:09 PM.



davidy12	Jul 21 2013, 10:53 PM Post #64
Posts: 1,752 Group: Trainees Member #97 Joined: Mar 7, 2013 Country United States Sex Male Real Name David Age 17	It's not your fault Black Guppy, Blaming yourself won't help anything, I did the same when I felt as if I was responsible for CTF2 not airing. Though I still miss Environ, She was a great site though like all great empires eventually their reign comes to an end sadly. I still think about the fun time I had there every day. Edited by davidy12, Jul 21 2013, 11:02 PM.



UmbreonShadow	Jul 21 2013, 11:45 PM Post #65
Posts: 72 Group: Junior Members Member #302 Joined: May 12, 2013 Country Canada Sex Male Age 100	Now to shed some light.. Brach Interview - July 21, 2013 Brach is a community veteran and an innovative designer. He helped to create some of the most exciting stories and images to recreate his imagination. With the help of his friends and associates, he took on years of experience and training to be where he is now. He is a former member of the ZooTycoonVolcano administration as well as Caldera Unlimited before it's closure. He also has upcoming projects. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. What brought you to the ZT2 Community? What was your first forum? Back in about mid 2007 I was hunting for Downloads to use in the game when I stumbled upon Zoomania. That's what became my home of sorts up until September 17th When I found and registered at ZTV (At a time when it looked so very prime and bustling full of people. I'll mention more of this later.) I left with BL (Black Lemur) to start Caldera Unlimited which is another story of itself. 2. You were quite the designer back in the day, what sort of projects did you do before? Well. I never really released much on account of how nothing I make is good enough for myself haha. And admirable trait in a film maker but not for a designer. Things I made that were then released had to be things like the Gemsbok remake, Velociraptor remake. 3. You were deeply involved with Caldera and ZooTycoonVolcano, what was your job and what did you do? Well on ZTV I started as a Download manager. From there i went to VIP. Then Moderator. Around 2011 I became an Administrator and held the rank up till 2012 when I "quit". Meanwhile I had also branched out and started Caldera Unlimited with Black Lemur. I still consider CU to be the original predecessor to EV, Tesara, Gaia and now Round Table. 4. When drama occurred around ZTV and CU in 2008/2009, what did you do? Your name was brought up a lot. Well though I started CU in January with BL it only took the 3rd Admin a month to get rid of me. Mainly because I had other things than internet game forums to worry about. VGnome was quite the ironfisted Admin. If you weren't constantly active then you were demoted. With ZTV I was more in a supporting role as I didn't have as much power to throw around as FP or Zooa did. 5. You kept below the drama for some bit, refraining from a lot of activity in those grey areas. Why? Well honestly that's the best place to remain in complicated situations. I had allies in both camps usually and you can't take a side and not expect problems. I always found it easier to remain relatively neutral so that you can be the middle guy. Person in the middle who can't be blamed for either's mis-deeds. 6. You brought up before about a project you were doing that is in a way a complete remake of an earlier project? Maybe you could elaborate a bit on this. Oh yeah. Well back in 2009 I started Creatures Time Forgot. It was a Show and Tell series that sort of broke ground and set a trend for being the first to use images enhanced in photoshop. It went for 2 years and made it to the end of the show which a lot of S&T's don't often do. What follows next is a cluster of failure involving an attempt for a second season and a mid show prequel. I discovered however an interest in graphic novels and realized how compatable the story of CTF and the format are. I decided that CTF didn't have to end here. The story starts from the begining again as a reboot of almost everything. Part of the plans for reboot involve making the story better. The story for CTF held together but it was made up on the spot until the 4th episode. The characters are more than vessels to get you to the next set peice to be destroyed this time around. The Animals are more accurate, Such as the 3D models for the Theropods such as Giganotosaurus, modeled by my friend TyrantTR with help on the coloration by Incinerox. They deserve a lot of credit for the quality of the theropods. There is no set due date however it's coming together pretty quickly. Posted below are links to previews of what is to come in CTF. The story is going to likely have it's own web page to read the different chapters that are posted much like the stories Crossed and Boxer Hockey. I should also make honorable mention of the people helping me work on this in Ressurex(The group that is working on it with me). I know them by their full names but your readers would probably recognize them as Eco, Mr. Fredricson, Lookout21, Admiral along with assistance from TyrantTR and Incinerox. -Images Removed By Request- 7. Where do you want to go beyond the community? Well, I have an idea where I want to go in life. I want to get into the entertainment industry as a film maker. I'm going to a community college's fall semester and planning to move out and live with a couple friends next spring, maybe take a year off, and find a job somewhere that compliments my interest in film and animation if I can't make anything happen from CTF. Put roughly, I want to rub shoulders with those snotty producers who wear jeans with their dress jacket. Edited by UmbreonShadow, Jul 22 2013, 10:31 PM.



davidy12	Jul 21 2013, 11:53 PM Post #66
Posts: 1,752 Group: Trainees Member #97 Joined: Mar 7, 2013 Country United States Sex Male Real Name David Age 17	Oh my F**NG God!!!! It's CTF's Return At Last!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Braq, I knew it'd be good but this is epic. I want to get your autograph badly. Braq, know this none of us will ever forget your momentous achievement. I, with PMP, along with many others will continue your legacy of making edited pics. Umbreon: Thank you so much. Edited by davidy12**, Jul 22 2013, 12:30 AM.



Grumkrieg	Jul 22 2013, 12:40 AM Post #67
Posts: 38 Group: Novices Member #308 Joined: May 13, 2013 Sex Male Real Name Patrick Age 15	Awww, I was mentioned!



UmbreonShadow	Jul 29 2013, 04:21 PM Post #68
Posts: 72 Group: Junior Members Member #302 Joined: May 12, 2013 Country Canada Sex Male Age 100	Ravensaurs-Rex Interview - July 29, 2013 Raven isint someone you will find lurking around the community anymore, and not a lot of the newer members of the community will know who he is, but the older ones might. He was a staff member on ZooTycoonVolcano during 2007 to 2008 and left ZTV and the community altogether after ZTV's downfall in 2009. 1. What brought you to the ZT2 Community and what was your first forum there? And what was it like to you? Honestly I was drawn there for the download section like 90% of everyone else. But on a whim I spoke out and began to make friends. It was my very first forum on the internet that I became active in, until that point I mostly ghosted about. 2. As drama and conflict begun to stir up among staff and members at ZTV, what did you do? What were your thoughts? I tried to keep it together as best I could, though a mod can't do a whole lot when admins start to play poker. In general my job seemed to be trying to keep the members from panicking too much and attempting to keep the background fights to a dull roar. However, they were going on long before I even came to the site and long before I was ever a mod so I have no idea if my efforts kept things muted in the least. My thoughts on the matter is that it was silly. Like almost all of the drama on the internet it was created for pointless reasons so many and so vast a sane person can't even begin to fathom them and used to a senseless end that only hurt others. 3. It seemed like your left the ZT2 Community after ZTV's downfall in 2009, why did you decide to leave? For the longest time it was a place of friends, they started to slowly fade away due to the changing times, drama or getting sucked into the staff wars and becoming different people. At one point it just no longer felt like home any more and I left. It hurt, so many years, memories and friends were there and while I do regret leaving and not trying to rebuild for the twentieth time I have been happier since that weight has been lifted from my shoulders. Though the thought of what happened to the site does cross my mind now and again. 4. The community since then has drastically evolved. Although staff and forum wars still occurred, we had forums after ZTV's downfall such as Environ, Tesara, Northern Skies, and the alike go through similar situations where it would eventually meet its own version of a downfall. Are you surprised by this? Not really. When any large community breaks apart there will always be those who don't want to give up these familiar faces and create similar communities for themselves to go run off to. I am a part of one of these, though it has more or less died off in later years with only four people active on it. And of course people are people. they repeat the same mistakes over and over again regardless how much life teaches them otherwise. In the short of it, places like these rise and fall all the time on the internet and it shouldn't be a shock to anyone that they do. 5. As of now, two top tier forums are thriving, Gaia and The Round Table. Which I might add, are modernized forums with really cool features. Also, the drama from the past has begun to strain away from the newer crowd, how do you feel about that? This is hard for me to say with any certainty. I never found my way to those forums and don't know the people there. To make any guesses of how they are affected by the past would be pretty ignorant of myself. But, I will say that old scars run deep and at times they itch and flare up without warning. As to how I feel, it's hard to hear that something we did ages ago come back to bite the newer generation of ZTV survivors in the rear and I feel some responsibility and guilt for it even if ultimately my actions were a very tiny part of the overall problem. 6. After you left the community, what did you do? I mostly bummed around from site to site, looking for someplace I could call home again. One of the former ZTV members and a good friend named Syanide picked me up and showed me a little site tucked away where a small group managed to carve out something. Though the group continued to shrink over the years, the four of us that are still in contact feel a deep history with each other. 7. What is your belief and philosophy of the ZT2 Community at the time you were in it, an if you still have a general idea of of it now as of recent. I honestly couldn't tell you. Everything was so stretched in so many directions that at times just getting through a day without something blowing up was the best feeling you could manage. As for the current, beyond my little section of old friends I have no idea how the recent compares. 8. Where do you want to go in the future? The future is always shrouded. Perhaps one day everything will finally fall apart for good or we will all be collected into some sort of ZTV survivor golden age. But more likely everything has found a natural holding point and will stay in place for some time or at least until some outside force tips the balance. What I want I guess is to just hold together as well as we can, keep the few contacts I still have to the old days and I guess end up that old man in a rocking chair grumbling at the 'young punks' who have taken over. Doesn't sound like much, but it's good enough for me. Sorry, I have a bad habit of waxing poetic nonsense at times and talks of ZTV, the past, old friends and old grudges, it digs deep. Edited by UmbreonShadow, Jul 30 2013, 02:31 AM.



Azrael	Jul 29 2013, 04:41 PM Post #69
Posts: 7,533 Group: Reindeer Trainers Member #148 Joined: Mar 16, 2013 Country United States Sex Female Real Name Kayla	Oh look, I was mentioned by my old name Syanide. Ravensaurus Rex still frequents the said place "carved away", he just has nothing to do with ZT2 anymore, he's basically a professional RPer.



Murdock129	Jul 29 2013, 05:09 PM Post #70
Posts: 2,756 Group: Experienced Members Member #224 Joined: Apr 18, 2013 Sex Male Real Name James Cooke Age 24	Ah Raven, it's been so long since he was in the ZT2 community. I still get really nostalgic thinking of those old days in our little group at Kayla's old c-box and site Enjoyed reading that a lot



Ravensaurus-Rex	Jul 29 2013, 08:39 PM Post #71
The Oddity Posts: 49 Group: Novices Member #697 Joined: Jul 29, 2013 Country United States Real Name Korras Age 23	Old bugger coming through! Thank you for the link US, it proved vastly enlightening in ways I did not completely expect but I should have. It is nice to see that some of the old gang have not changed that much and I was quite happy to contribute to this blog here you are running. But I think there are one or two things I should clear up. I never picked any side in the wars, I tried to remain neutral as best I could, I had friends on every side in every nook and cranny of ZTV. It was something I had questioned for a while, but now it is quite clear that was the right choice. I have read the testimonies here and feel those old scars itching something nasty, there were no 'good' sides in those fights, those petty spats in the alleyways. I was ignorant to a lot of this, that I freely admit, but I did know the over all events. What I saw were people being hurt and torn up by the fights, twisted into something mean and spiteful. There was no 'justice' those many years ago, there were no 'rebels with a cause' there was no 'needed change' there was just spite verses spite and that is the truth of it. It was like being a medic in the field, trying to keep his people together when everyone gets shelled and when he asks who is doing it his officers can only shrug because ultimately there is no difference between 'our' shells and those of the enemy, both hit plenty they had no right to. That is a complete and bitter over-dramatization of course. I feel extremely dirty and silly for typing it, but it does sort of set the mood. Sorry if that was a bit too nuts, I guess some things don't heal as well as I thought they did. It just irks me to see either side or any side for that matter boasting about their deeds when I was bloody there cleaning up the confused and shattered people their actions left behind. I better stop myself before I go off again. Thank you US this was some amazing insight to some very old questions. And yes I created an account just for this and this alone, perhaps I'll stick around and see what the newer generations have built on the relics of the past.



Harlequinz eg0	Aug 20 2013, 04:17 AM Post #72
Posts: 149 Group: Junior Members Member #569 Joined: Jul 7, 2013 Country Canada Sex Male Real Name Jesse Age 21	i like these interviews amp, good collection of differing opinions on community history



UmbreonShadow	Aug 20 2013, 02:36 PM Post #73
Posts: 72 Group: Junior Members Member #302 Joined: May 12, 2013 Country Canada Sex Male Age 100	Harlequinz eg0 Aug 20 2013, 04:17 AM i like these interviews amp, good collection of differing opinions on community history Thanks man. I kind of took a break due to real life matters but a few interviews and segments are being cooked up soon.



Jules	Aug 21 2013, 08:00 AM Post #74
Mihi est imperare orbi universo Posts: 6,767 Group: Admins Member #16 Joined: Mar 3, 2013 Country France Sex Male Real Name 19 Age Julien	I really love this stuff It gives good insight to community politics, and, to community n00bs like me, some lessons about community history.



UmbreonShadow	Aug 27 2013, 03:38 PM Post #75
Posts: 72 Group: Junior Members Member #302 Joined: May 12, 2013 Country Canada Sex Male Age 100	Manu Interview - August 27, 2013 Manu, also known on other forums as GrimpyNZ, or Piopio. Manu was a long time serving member on several forums including ZTV, Environ, Tesara, and others. He engaged in several projects with other popular designers and techs and worked on with staff with several forums. His time and effort put into keeping order and forums fun has given him a status of a veteran. He has since left the community for the most part and begun working on other projects in various other communities, as well as studying, but still kept in contact with a few friends. 1. What brought you into the community? What was your first forum? Like most, it was downloads that brought me into the 'proper' community. I say proper because my first was the official forum, but that wasn't really part of the community. ZTV was the first I participated in, but ZA was probably the first I got downloads from. 2. What area were you most interested in the community? I've got my least favourites, but not areas that I was most interested in per se. If I had to choose, maybe the modding scene when I was still playing ZT2? 3. You were a administrator at Zoo Tycoon Volcano for a good couple of years, what sort of tasks were you in charge of and what did you do? 4. You left ZTV during a lot of the drama, why did you leave? Heh. Most of the time it was either fixing damage done during attacks or trying to improve the site. I'll merge this with number four, since that's why I left (among other reasons). Certain people on the staff (who I am led to believe are now high ranking officials, god only knows why) would constantly and relentlessly shoot down each and every single proposal which I put before staff with the sole aim of destroying my credibility within the staff. This was usually done with the use of pathetic images that in reality had no relevance to the topic whatsoever. In doing so, they devolved the ZTV staff room to a point where it no longer possible to properly run a site of ZTV's former calibre. They used the excuse that it was a forum for a child's game, while at the same time instigating policies of guerrilla warfare against 'competing' sites and using political terminology and analogies for the situations. These people are the sole reason that the former pinnacle of the community has now devolved into a festering cess-pool of immaturity and bullshittery. After the first incident where ZTV had to be rebuilt from the ground up, I promised that I would be at ZTV "until the very end". Well, I was. The current ZTV is an insult to the spirit of its predecessors. 5. You were staff on several other forums, what made you want to engage in other forum business and how did you manage to get to that level? It was through MMM, actually. The staff I worked with on that team knew my ability at the time of testing downloads, and so appointed me to DL manager. From there, I just rose through the ranks, with some hits along the way (Losing a staff room elections because someone decided to rig it...). As for the second site chain (From Environ), I was originally a VIP when a spam attack happened, and it was just myself, two other VIP and an admin online. The Admin (I think it was Murdock) promoted us to mods to help clean up, and then decided to keep me on, where I consistently showed my merit and was eventually promoted. This was, of course, at a time when you were promoted due to merit and not because you're friends with the admin, as is the case with certain staff members at a certain modern site. 6. On Northern Skies, you had a place in the growing criticism among others, what sort of critiques did you give? I can't remember. From what I do remember, I was critical of their closure of topics that were perfectly civil for their slightly risque nature (eg. Religion). 7. Where do you want to go beyond the community? I already am beyond the community. I've got a fairly large modding project established for Civ, and am finishing up my final year of High School. Looking to enter a Political Sciences degree next year, potentially honours in International Relations and the like. Edited by UmbreonShadow, Aug 27 2013, 10:58 PM.



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