Project : AO Universe!

[Windguaerd]

Thanks to the great AO Community, this project is now a REALITY!

Like any other gaming community we need volunteers. There are many exciting things planned, and we want the community to be a part of it! We are looking for dedicated, committed, creative people to join us to fill out various positions. If you're interested in helping a fansite by players and for players then read on to find out how to submit your application. All we ask is a bit of your time and dedication to the site. Become a volunteer today!

The following positions need to be filled as of right now:

Assistant Site Manager: Due to the positive response to this position, we no longer need further applications.

Programmers/Coders: Due to the positive response to this position, we no longer need further applications.

Universe Researchers: Lead Researcher are responsible for pouring over the existing content on the site and making sure it is up-to-date and current/correct. If it is not, they correct it and submit it to the Site Manager or Assistant Site Manager for submission. They are also welcome to submit their own guides/databases if they so wish.

Roleplay/Social Reporters: If you're the social/roleplay type of player who likes to run fun events or parties then we want you as well. We will also allow you to post at our front page with announcements of social/roleplaying events.

AO News Reporters: If you are good at finding everything news, in relation to Anarchy Online (Atlantean and Rimor Servers), be it from player-run forums or official forums, patch news, updates, downtimes or official Funcom posts, then we could use your talent.

Columnists: Consists of writing articles related to Anarchy Online or general MMOG topics. Must have excellent writing skills in the English language and a good sense of what topic might be of interest for our readers, no experience with html required. If interested, send a letter of interest including a sample of your writing to Windguaerd.

Artists or Graphics Designers: Are you able to make wallpapers, launcher skins, web graphics for our site or just have artistic talent you want to share with the AOU Community? then we'll be happy to feature your work.

Forum Moderators: Due to the positive response to this position, we no longer need further applications.

All positions require basic english writing skills as a must, no forum moderation is required unless otherwise indicated. Please apply with at the site ("Contact Us" page), and be sure to include which position you are interested in.

All Universe team positions are on a volunteer basis. Some Team members are given an @ao-universe.com email address for use with site business.

What started as a hopeful project is now a reality.

We thank you in advance for your interest in joining AO Universe!!

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Original Post below

WTH is AO Universe you say?

A fansite by players, for players. From roleplayers to casual and powerplayers.

What the site will have:

RP content, including stories from players, revisiting past events which shaped AO's storyline, past and current details on official storyline content, RP related news from the roleplaying community (including org advertising). Also feature links to the official forums (related to RP only).

Knowledge content. I'm currently getting the permission from several smaller sites to allow AOU to repoduce their gameplay guides (including maps), so far everyone I have managed to contact have given their ok (each guide will have the proper credits to the original people/sites who hosted it). I expect for this site to host more guides than any other fansite that currently exists (including the larger gaming network sites). This will be useful to all types of players.

Powerplaying content, this includes annoucements of raids (regardless of server, faction) by players, listing of raiding bots (and what is required to join them), basic rules of raiding and steady support for the powerplayers. This will include of course the many wars that are fought over Notum Bases (we will try to cover news of battles as well).

Additional content/downloads. Hosting overall utilities used by the community, like Clicksaver, AOShopAgent, AOScripter, Launcher Skins, Wallpapers, etc.

Also a set of forums for all types of players to interact, exchange information, share AO stories, and more.

What the site will NOT have:

Advertising and annoying popups (at least not the popups we all hate). Pushing other MMO's at our front page (which is what most gaming networks are doing). News related to the Test Server (AO's Community Corner covers that just fine for the playerbase). Client downloads (sorry, bandwith would get too crazy). Idiots in suits who have no idea what an MMORPG or even a console controller looks like trying to 'guide' AO Universe's development.

So what is this?

FOR PLAYERS, BY PLAYERS.

Those who want to become staffers/volunteers do so on their own accord, no pay, only gratification will be...you did it for the community, the friends you play with, and the love for the game.

Here is the catch!

I expect to have high online traffic going to this site, so I'm hoping an individual or a company may consider hosting the site for either free, or by possibly having their company's banner (advertising) visible at the site (no popups!). I'm willing to compromise within reason.

Anarchy Arcanum (which has been dead for over a year) used to be hosted graciously by DataGuard, a nice company in Norway which I'm trying to contact and work out a similar deal. But I'll grab the first good offer to host the site that presents itself.

I'm already working on over 50 guides, a basic layout (I'm no graphics designer, so the start will not present a 'pretty eye candy' site, but a practical and useful one...eye candy can be developed later on).

In other words...this site CAN happen, if a few players get involved, and with the grace of god (and I ain't religious mind you) a good gracious host to give us a nice start.

It's up to the Community, you can make this happen.

[Chadwill]

bump ..for a great idea

[Funkula]

bump.. since ive been trying to find a good community based ao fan site..

[Fellwind]

www.domainavenue.com

They provide hosting with the registered domain and have no bandwidth limits that I remember when I was hosted there. Disk space gets kinda spendy though with them.


Just a suggestion if a corp sponsor doesn't come through for you.

[Windguaerd]

If I cannot find a company, due to my own financial limits I would then have to look for donations to get the domain and site hosted.

An option I guess.

[Mummu]

good idea. maybe you wanna have a look at: http://aowiki.net/Main_Page
all there, only needs more people to add content.

[Trgeorge]

You gave up on AO Vault Wind?

If you need some help with guides, you can contact me.

[Kzak]

Bump for a good initiative.

[Windguaerd]

You gave up on AO Vault Wind?

Let's say that at this time...only me and the AOV board moderator are the only ones playing AO...it has been like that for months.

[Windguaerd]

Someone contacted me, may have a host soon.

However that is not a sure thing right now, so if anyone want to host it, or knows of a company that may consider hosting it, please PM me or post here.

[Windguaerd]

A company has made a generous offer to host AO Universe free of charge (including the domain name). The final details are being finalized and it all looks quite good for this project.

What gets me, is that the owner of the company...PLAYS AO!

If all goes as planned, in a week AOU will go live.

My first focus will be guides, as many as possible, user friendly (easy to understand) and as detailed as possible so that even a noob/froob can understand them.

Everything listed in the first post will be added as soon as I can do them. Right now I'm working on this large project alone, however I will be looking for volunteers to cover the many aspects of the AO Community (roleplay, social, casual, powerplay).

I may need a graphic designer to do AOU's logo, in-character advertising to promote AOU/guilds/places in-game, etc.

But I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

Meanwhile...looks like it's a GO!

[Viredan]

bump for more pretty things to stare at while waiting for eel to spawn

[Windguaerd]

GOOD NEWS!

The deal has been finalized, and AO Universe is now a reality!

I've spent most of my day creating the layout and the graphics (probably would have taken a graphics designer 1 hr what took me all day) so that the start doesn't look like a rough draft.

I'm currently trying to contact Cybershead who had a great tradeskills site before some lowlife hacked it. His knowledge of the game was extensive when it came to item creation (and quests).

Other people I'm trying to contact are either Ellusion, Twicer or Crowy from Anarchy Arcanum who I can't reach through their AA email addresses, if anyone know how to get in touch with whomever was in charge of the site please PM me.

More to come as the project develops.

[Windguaerd]

Credit where credit is due!

AO Universe is a reality thanks to....Xitami!

It is thanks to his generous company that AOU will be available to the community. So feel free to thank him (careful...he has a corporation...maybe he is omni?)

Thanks a lot bud!

[Xitami]

Credit where credit is due!

AO Universe is a reality thanks to....Xitami!

It is thanks to his generous company that AOU will be available to the community. So feel free to thank him (careful...he has a corporation...maybe he is omni?)

Thanks a lot bud!

*whistles innocently* oh, don't mind me, I'm just here to reap a hefty profit from unsuspecting victi... ehrr... loyal.. customers...

(ooc-ish, I've actually got omni and clan chars depends on my mood really which ones I end up playing)

[Ukblizzard]

Hiya,

I was only mentioning to Khuri the other day that I was looking for a new project to sink my teeth into. Website design is a hobby, and something which I am far from saying I know everything on but if you would like to look at our last project then you can go to www.omni-tek.org

Edit: and I had also started a while back to work on a layout for a similar idea for a site but didnt really get anywhere because I started work on another site (click) it is just purely an idea though and not even checked for errors and had pictures of me in it.... Anyways, I will bring this post to her attention tomorrow and well i suppose I can only speak for myself right now but I would be happy to help if you can use my skills

- Katelin

[Hildegaard]

My first reaction was, "OMG, that already exists!"

Then I stopped and thought a bit, and no, it really doesn't.

Anarchy Arcanum was a great site 2 years ago, and it's still absolutely invaluable as a reference. I use it at least twice a week.

But it hasn't been updated in what, a year?

Tir School of Engineering, (in spite of being run by rebel scum), was a good start on a site, and does well on the things it does cover, but it's far from comprehensive. I get the impression that the author of this site has lost his enthusiasm for AO as well.

Herodotus' sites are wonderful, as far as they go, but he doesn't seem too active in the game anymore, either.

AO Pocket is great, for what it covers, but again, the author admits he hasn't played AO for a year or more.

So I would say AOU is a good idea, and I wish you luck with it

If you're set up to allow it, I might even write a guide or two myself.

[Trgeorge]

Wind, since you're trying to contact owners of some inactive sites, do you think you could try your luck with Krystinova (sp?) and resurect Faunlore in it's original state? I know it's outdated by now, but it was unique in information it offered. Provided Xitami can spare enough server space without jeoperdizing his buisness, of course.

[Windguaerd]

Trust me when I say AOU can take the bandwith if every single AO player checked the site simultaniously =P

Ukblizzard, I'd love to have a graphics designer, I've been doing web design on my own for myself and friends for years, but I've always done things through tricks I've learned (rarely checked a book or even a site about html coding).

All the graphics at AOU right now were designed by me, layout was based on gaming networks's layout who were practical (minus annoying unwanted popup and ads everywhere).

I welcome ideas and suggestion to improve AOU and get it to be the #1 source for AO Players.

And btw, I added the CoT and OT websites links to AOU under "Roleplaying" =D

Hildegaard....you read my mind. My main inspiration was Cybershead with his tradeskills site (which was unfortunaly hacked by an ass), then Anarchy Arcanum, Herodotus' sites and other fansites. As for guides, YES YES YES!

As soon as I finish to convert the guides content I already have stored for AOU, I will release a list of guides needed.

Last time I had contact with Krystinova she gave me and Silirrion permission to publish the content of the former Faunalore. At the time we were working at AO Vault, so now I will check if the permission will extend to AO Universe as well.

Check AO Universe today for the lastest updates =D

[Khuri]

Well, now that Ukblizzard pushed me on this thread as well (i got that message when i got home from work - Thanks Kate ), i gotta type something i guess
Like Kate said, we did talk about projects stuff. Surely, i should get my own AO-website a bit further *cough*, but like it is, somehow you often end up doing other stuff in prior then that is not your own.
Anyway, i'm not the mind on the actual design (colors 'n stuff), but more on the programming, and i like to work with Kate there (she's covering the above mentioned parts, as well as loads of typing stuff very well), i likely offer my help on programming if you need some (you mentioned "using tricks" always). A quick look at the main sourcecode of the frontpage of your site showed some "errors" already (yes yes, i'll go shush)

If you want to see some AO-related website stuff to know what i (and Uk) waste my time with, feel free to visit the already known Omni-Tek website, as well as http://omnipol.sytes.net and www.khuris.fieses.net (aka AORP)