[TrekRPGNet] Your input requested

[Don Mappin]

I've received some e-mails recently asking about the re-launch of the site. I've put it on hold internally for a number of reasons. I'm now going to outline those reasons and give you some insight into my thinking (or lack thereof).

Originally TrekRPGNet was going to merge with the Decipher RPG & Miniatures Studio to form a single, comprehensive web site to cover both the Star Trek and Lord of the Rings RPGs. The recent closure of the RPG studio in LA has put these plans to an abrupt halt. (As well as the dismissal of all of my business contacts.) Prior to this, I prepared by working with Owen Oulton to transfer all the non-Decipher content to his site, Memory Icon. Owen continues to do a fine job in maintaining the Star Trek RPG legacy that began here in 1998 (?) at TrekRPGNet.

Now the question that preoccupies me is what exactly to *do* with the TrekRPGNet site? To be honest, my energy to continue these efforts, supporting an RPG that even the company seems reticent to support, doesn't strike me as the best option at this time. Don't misunderstand my love of Star Trek role-playing; I wouldn't have been doing this for six years at my own expense if I didn't enjoy it in some large part.

But it's no secret that Trek's popularity is waning, even before the closure of the RPG studio. This is a good time for me, IMO, to take stock of the situation and ask myself if its time to let the site go.

Running this site has taken a lot of time, energy, and money. To date, a conservative sum of $8,000 out of my pocket, just in hosting fees, as an example. I've never asked for handouts and nor do I intend to. However, as businessman during my day job I have to consider that, at some point, TrekRPGNet needs to be self-sufficient.

To that end I've played around with some ideas on how to fund the site or provide a membership program. Something cheap, like $1 a month, for a 60-day exclusive content window, membership perks, etc. Also opening up the site for advertising as well. Unfortunately, because of the situations cited above, this may be too little too late. Is there enough community energy to support such a transition? Maybe, maybe not.

A larger problem is the site being derivative of, and dependent upon, a property owned by another entity. I could easily write a few sourcebooks in the same vein as my good friend Steve Long, but I can't legally charge for them. Plus, with the future of the Decipher RPG still up in the air, it makes it difficult trying to hit a moving target.

So, is it time to move on?

Right now I'm on the fence and, admittedly, a bit blue about the whole Decipher situation. However a decision needs to be made, if not out of a sense of closure then at least to not keep stringing you fine folks along. Yes, in the end, I'm still thinking about all of you and the "right thing" to do which is why I pose the question to you all, from here where do we go?

Yours,
Don Mappin

[Lt Cmdr Matt]

It seems as though the webmastering is starting to take a toll on you, and quite honestly when was the last time you have posted to the site with a new creation of some sort, or a recap of how your game is doing?

Maybe instead of killing the site, think about handing over the reigns to someone else as webmaster.

[D.S.McBride]

It's going to take me a while to cogitate on the situation; there are a number of ideas that could be bandied around here, but whether they're any good or not will take a bit of thinking about. Thus, this will likely not be my last post in this thread - just "off the top of my head" stuff that might be applicable and sensible.

Don, your situation sounds very similar to a good friend of mine - my sensei, actually - who was stuck in a horrible rut with his club in Toronto a few years back. Much in line with your ruminations, he was questioning not whether he enjoyed teaching (just as you obviously enjoy playing the games and providing a forum for like-minded individuals to come together); rather, the issue became this: Is there a future in what I'm doing here? The club membership had been decimated after his friend and business partner died on the dojo floor of a heart attack several years earlier; all attempts at increasing the club population had been unsuccessful (much as the so-and-so Decipher promises have not panned out); and his family situation was suffering in consequence. Ultimately, he decided no, it's not worth it: Thus, the club closed, he moved out to Westbank, B.C., and his life has improved a thousand percent as a result.

This is not to indicate that calling it quits is automatically the best choice here; merely that I definitely wouldn't blame you for folding the tent after the enormous time, effort, money and love that was poured into the Decipher pit with no real measurable return. However, would you prefer to close up shop, or is a sort of a-change-is-as-good-as-a-rest situation? Would an interim Webmaster taking the reins for a while be a possibility?

With regard to pay-for-play on this site to help abrade the costs, my belief is that the Internet is, has and always should be a free forum for the free exchange of ideas, insights and opinions. I was disgusted when the Star Wars site started up that stupid Hyperspace section for paying customers. Nevertheless, my loyalty and affection toward this site is such that I feel that it should be the exception to the rule: I would gladly forward a nominal monthly sum to help out here. My distaste is with the funds going into some overfunded corporate jerk's pocket, not to someone who is providing a service for a community.

With regard to Trek's current doldrums...well, it happens. The sun'll rise again, given enough time - even Star Wars was little more than a "whatever-happened-to...?" with the general population before Lucas started making noises about the Menace. Trek's current problems, I think, can be traced more to a creatively bankrupt team than a problem with the concept.

What might be useful on this sticky is a poll of sorts; a "Would you be willing to financially help out with this site?" sort of thing. Also, hosting guest editorials or discussions by or with ex-LUG/Decipher staff would certainly kindle my interest.

As I indicated earlier, I certainly wouldn't diss you for calling it quits after the extraordinarily disappointing last three years, but rest assured that you've got a solid crowd of people behind you, cheering you on, and willing to lend a hand (of varying sizes, it's true) to help out where possible.

[Capt Daniel Hunter]

I don't think there's much I can add that the guys above have said, but I don;t think there's any question that you should do what's right for you, wherever that decision may take you. Perhaps, as Matt has suggested, it would be a good idea to find a team who are willing to take over the site, even temporarily.

That said, I don't think any of us would be happy to see you go. This is your site, and I really don't think it would be the same without you around.

One last thought regarding monthly subscriptions. I suspect you'd see a member drop-off, though that in itself might not be a bad thing. Less members means a chaper site. Though if you were to charge a subscripton fee, you would almost be tied into making sure there was material available on the site, since I'm not sure how many people would be willing to pay to support the site as it stands. Of course, I doubt I'm telling you anything you haven't already thought of.

[ImperialOne]

Don:
You obviously need to decide what is best for you. Trek and gaming, whether its FASA, ICON or CODA will continue as long as those who want to play carry on. That being said, if webmastering is too much, it may be possible to convert a good deal of this to a free Yahoo Group account where people can still post (withless moderation) and where files can be uploaded.
On the other hand, if you should desire to maintain this site and need contributions, I will not hesitate to help. TrekRPGNet has been the one best place for my Star Trek fix (not just gaming). I would definitely miss it.

Best Regards,
Charles

[REG]

Wow. $8,000. That could have gone into your child's trust and/or college fund. If I haven't thank you for the sacrifice you made to maintain this web site and messageboards, I thank you now.

Do what you gotta do for you and your family. If you can find a generous partner willing to be a co-webmaster and alleviate half the burden to maintain the site, do it. If you can find a volunteer editing staff to accept new submission for you and your co-webmaster to post up, do it.

If the company is not willing to support the game, then let the community.

[Ineti]

Having been a member here for over two years, I have to say that the advice, inspiration, and knowledge I've picked up from this board has been incalculable. This site is my #1 stop shop for Star Trek and LOTR gaming advice and brainstorming.

As such, I'd very much hate to see it go, and would likely do everything I could to keep it up and running. I'd gladly pay an annual membership fee to see the site remain the premier site for Trek and LOTR RPGing. I spend at least 3 hours a week browsing and posting to this board, sometimes much more, so it would definitely be worth the money, for me at least.

I'd love to see the site outside the forums come together again as well. Reopening the ability to host and post RPG-related submissions would be very important to me, and I'd even volunteer to be part of making sure the submissions received maintained the level of quality we discerning gamers expect and deserve. This site could easily become the one-stop shop for free downloadable RPG material for both Trek and LOTR (unless there are legal issues I'm not aware of).

Don, if you choose to step down as webmaster, it will be with bittersweet farewells from me. I hope you'll keep the site going, or at worst, turn it over to a new webmaster so that the community you've created could go on.

[Don Mappin]

Sorry I wasn't clear earlier; the subscription idea would be in addition to, not in lieu of, free access. For example, a "premium membership" that got you certain perks and exclusive content before others see it. I wouldn't go pay only.

The site, if it continued, would always be free in some capacity.

Originally posted by Capt Daniel Hunter
Perhaps, as Matt has suggested, it would be a good idea to find a team who are willing to take over the site, even temporarily.

Unfortunately this doesn't address the issues of cost and making the site self-sufficient. For example, I'd like the site to pay for itself and maybe have something to give to volunteer content editors.

Keep the ideas coming....

[Cut]

Hey Don.

I would miss this site very much. I guess that your site (incl. the forums) is the one site in the www where I spent most of my online time. I'd hate to see it go.

But I can understand the problems you are facing.
How would a membership system work; I mean especialy for those of us that don't live in the US?

I was here very soon after the launch of the site in 1998. I was cut off the internet for the better part of two nearly three years and when I returned here I was amazed to see that the site was still there, very much alive.

Most has been said above, so I'll just leave it at this. Do what feels to be the right thing for YOU to do...

I hope there will be a future for this community...

Best wishes, Nico

[Capt Daniel Hunter]

Originally posted by Don Mappin
Sorry I wasn't clear earlier; the subscription idea would be in addition to, not in lieu of, free access. For example, a "premium membership" that got you certain perks and exclusive content before others see it. I wouldn't go pay only.

In which case, I think that's a good idea. I certainly don't think you should be $8000 out of pocket.

[Dan Stack]

I know ENWorld does stuff for premium members like allowing searching of forums and other minor "perks".

I think advertising would be appropriate as well, as long as it were gaming or Trek/LotR/sf related.

Two requests though...
1) Please no internet dating ads.
2) I don't ever want to see another "Shattered Universe" ad

[Ergi]

I would neither mind a small fee nor unobtrusive adds (like for example a fixed add-bar on the right-hand side or something like that). Maybe premium members could even have the old member status scale (I'd pay a few bucks for some nice rank pips in my profile ) But I wouldn't call it premium membership, I'd rather select a title that conveys our voluntary support for the site. This brings up the question how many active members this site really has. I suppose 50 to 100. Maybe we should make a census to answer that question.
May I ask how many hits this site has each month? I come here pretty often, so I might be overestimating the total number. Anyway, this site could still be interesting for internet-retailers.
A fourth option would be to make the site add-supported for the general public and add-free for the premium members.

Whatever your final decision will be Don, we will all be able to understand it.

[Tobian]

Don, what exactly have you heard or not with regards to your previous deal with Decipher. is it possible you could rebroker a new deal with them? I suspect that the answer is 'nothing' but I was just curious as to what they had said to you (non disclusure agreements notwithstanding).

for myself I've been coming to this site now for ages and it is probably THE most premier site with regards to Startrek gaming, and it would be a terrible shame if it had to go.

I'm faced with a similar situation with the small gaming comunity website I run - the ammount of effort I have to put in to keeping it going far exceeds the output - and it's a constant struggle to decide - 'is it all worth it, can I keep this all going and am I just kidding myself?' - for the answer, well, i don't know myself. That said i have noticed that interest in Trek isn't really that much on the wane, there's still plenty of people who have a keen interest and love of it, so for what it's worth - yes keep it going but take some of the weight off your shoulders!

Targeted advertising is one way to go - it's just weather or not it's worth the hastle!

[Balok]

I would miss the site. It's one of the few I visit regularly. However, if it's draining money and not returning at least fun, then you must make some kind of change.

I'd pay a reasonable fee for access to the site. What's reasonable? Well, that depends on what the site consists of. If the content sharing areas came back up, that would be worth more to me than just the forums.

While I might be inclined to wait until March, and see what Decipher actually says about the future of their games -- I am not sanguine about the future of Trek, at least as a Decipher creation. I do feel that the player interest in the game remains high, despite this fact.

Whatever you decide to do, best of luck to you.

[D.S.McBride]

Originally posted by Don Mappin
...the subscription idea would be in addition to, not in lieu of, free access. For example, a "premium membership" that got you certain perks and exclusive content before others see it.

This is what I figured was meant, and in the case of this particular site, it's something I would be happy to forward. With regard to possible methods of payment that one or two people have brought up, PayPal provides a secure service for transactions, through a number of means. Credit card, bank withdrawls, and so on.

The general tone that the respondees have given so far is pretty heavily positive; I don't think there's too much question about whether there's enough support to keep the site going. At this point, there are two major questions that I can think of:

1. What's a fair cost for the premier membership? (In best Lucas tradition, instead of Hyperspace we'll call it Warp Drive )

2. What sort of perks would be offered? I know it's way too early for definitive statements of this kind to be made, but perhaps we can start batting some suggestions back and forth.

That's all for now - gotta go. Back later.