Welcome home, Arie.

Miranda and Alex put this together for you.
It's just a few things that have come to our attention in the last few days.

Alex says it's a treatise. I had to google that one.
We're both very intent on helping with any of these changes. Please let us know if you ever need anything!

neomail miranda • neomail alex

Influx of members :
What's happening and why it needs to stop

What's happening : Many new members are being accepted into Cardboard. Few meet the literacy requirements. Less abide by the rules.
This week alone Miranda has received multiple interview requests from members who had already been accepted. Only one thing could have happened : they asked for multiple interviews. In addition, many new members were "promising" invites to friends and people in the GC board early this week.

Why it needs to stop : There seems to be a group of newer members who contribute little to conversations outside of their own, do not comply with the literacy standards, and have formed a group within Cardboard that divides its members and separates us as a community.
We're coming home from a hard days' work to new faces, rather than familiar ones and our sense of community is quickly fading.

How do we fix it:
Member Cap. A member cap might be a good idea until we can get a handle on things, become more acquainted, ect.
More joining requirements. As the exclusive board game guild that we are, many who come across us are eager to join, and up until this point, we have been very lenient as to who makes the cut. Site requirements (account age, avatars, pets) are a thing of the past. But those who wish to be a part of the Cardboard family need to meet personality requirements, and there's no doubt about it. Having established members recommend would-be members to EGs might solidify invitations, as well as encourage those interested in joining the family to chat on the boards before becoming omitted, rather than simply clicking send on their neomail application.
Chatting; no longer an option. Often, would-be-members come to the board to chat, hoping for an application. Many feel entitled to one after a short amount of time and a lot of pressure is put on EGs to fulfill these requests. Chatting as a known means for an invite seems to be creating a bit of a stir.

Board making requirements

New members should not be allowed to make boards so hastily. We end up with messy (or multiple) boards that do not sit well in the public eye. In (our) opinion, members should be required to have a rank of at least Finger Food in order to make boards and represent the guild.

Ewesletter

I'm plotting a news letter for Cardboard. An "Ewesletter" to be more specific.
I, Miranda, can host, run, and have full control over this page. It will be updated weekly, with some features lasting up to a month. It will be out of your hair, I promise.
The image at your left is. Okay I don't really know what it is. I began some kind of a layout, but quickly realized I had little means to codes it and nearly no direction in which to take it. I come to you with not only a request for approval, but also a request for coding help and layout suggestion.

In addition, we've come up with the following sections for the Ewesletter:
Guild News : Updates in a blog-like section (either submitted by members or written by an editor) about upcoming events to give the members a heads up as to what is going on in their community.
Multi-Media Reviews : Latest review on "front page" with an option to view older reviews in categories or by author. Books, video games, mooooovies, T.V. shows, board games, and even recipes.
Live Discussion" : I'm thinking a skinny box, almost like a chat window at the bottom of the page (on the right, maybe scrolling with you) that has an icon or something, the person's name and what they said. This would be updated with quotes directly from members (submitted by them) about what's happening in CCFS or around Cardboard at the time.
Monthly Contest : Game design or writing contests, they will vary from month to month. Winners get featured in addition to a token grand prize? Possible.
Weekly Trivia, Riddle, or Poll : Updated weekly. Correct answers may result in prizes. Not sure how we can abide by TOS and do that. Working on it. I'm thinking a small box on the left-hand-side with room for the question and a "submit answer" link.
Ask Column : Might not be an immediate feature, because ewesletter would need time to catch on. Questions asked by members and answered by editors or "special guests".

OVERALL : I like the thick, black "header" that scrolls with the page. It would be useful for navigation/viewing archives. I'm decently sufficient with HTML/CSS, but I currently have no direction with this project. I don't know where to start. I don't know how to get it organized. Thoughts?