www.neverwinternights.info - NWN Community Site!

[Legacy_OldTimeRadio]

               Just stumbled on this thread.  I just wanted to thank you folks for doing this- it's an idea which is long overdue, IMO.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_IronRook]

               This is a good idea ...Im not a genius by any stretch of the imagination , but if there is something small for me to do let me know.

My emails
   
ironrook@live.com
 
snowblizzardest.2009@gmail.com
               
               

               

                     Modifié par IronRook, 16 juillet 2011 - 05:45 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_Birdman076]

               Updates, rebuilt the menus and the rest of the page, what a pain to line everything up lol. But I got it modular now so each section is independant as far as the news, announcements, etc. Gonna make the image to the left of the menu change on page load as there were 12 available and I got all 12 so might as well use them. Then ill work on the mouse over menus. Some things will have to change obviously like the account login, guilds/registry, etc, in changing though the fonts will have to change for all as I don't have the fonts they used '>. In any event i'll continue messing around with it unless I hear otherwise.


               
               

               
            

[Legacy_HipMaestro]

               Birdman, where exactly has the boilerplate you are working on been loaded?  You have a server reserved?  I can't find it anywhere so may have missed the link somehow. '>

Also, IMHO, since the community is the sole designer of this new homepage, neither Bioware nor Atari should be advertised nor associated since they do not underwrite the content in any way shape or form.  If new players haven't figured it out yet, they should be notified in no uncertain terms that the survival of the knowledge base is a product of the efforts of an undying and enthusiastic NWN community and nothing but that community.

It would be as if they have become an integral part of the momentum of the game they just purchased.  But this is just one opinion, naturally.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Birdman076]

               I haven't loaded the page anywhere, I was/am waiting on a response from AD as he is hosting the neverwinternights.info page.

IMHO Bioware and Atari shouldn't be linked to anything but should be there because after all they did make and back the game. The bioware links at the top of the page obviously need to be changed to perhaps "NWN Info", or just "Info" or "Information", Bioware Games should be something like "Premium Modules", "Modules", etc. Support should stay and be a support/help section with FAQs, fixes, and what not. Biozone should become something like "Custom Content", "CC Zone", etc. Forums obviously remains forums if there will be any.

As far as the side menu, about the only one that needs to change is the "My Account" tab, unless of course there will be forums in which case that can be linked to the forum account login page. And maybe change support if support is to be kept on the top bar.
               
               

               

                     Modifié par Birdman076, 19 juillet 2011 - 12:08 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_WebShaman]

               Go, go, GOOOO!
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_HipMaestro]

               

Birdman076 wrote...
I haven't loaded the page anywhere, I was/am waiting on a response from AD as he is hosting the neverwinternights.info page.

IMHO Bioware and Atari shouldn't be linked to anything but should be there because after all they did make and back the game. The bioware links at the top of the page obviously need to be changed to perhaps "NWN Info", or just "Info" or "Information", Bioware Games should be something like "Premium Modules", "Modules", etc. Support should stay and be a support/help section with FAQs, fixes, and what not. Biozone should become something like "Custom Content", "CC Zone", etc. Forums obviously remains forums if there will be any.

As far as the side menu, about the only one that needs to change is the "My Account" tab, unless of course there will be forums in which case that can be linked to the forum account login page. And maybe change support if support is to be kept on the top bar.

Maybe a temporary free site (usually contain annoying ads and pop-ups) so that the community can see it in action until a permanent residence is arranged?  The sooner you can integrate any input, the more tlikely you will get flooded with comments and criticism to refine it.

As far as your perspective on why Bioware/Atari would be included, I agree they were the owners of the intellectual property on the Internet at one time, but they have chosen to relinquish that support.  Perhaps a statement at the top like "The new fan-based source of everything having to do with Neverwinter Nights, the eternal AD&D game by Atari designed by Bioware." with the names "Atari" and "Bioware" inserted into the statement as the logo images.  This is a new era where the fan community is the sole driver of the NWN bus!  (Actually, and TBH, the grudge-holding, resentful side of my psyche would even prefer something like the 2 logos in the upper RH corner with one of those animated hands waving goodbye towards them, but I'll save that for my own editorial web site devoted to documenting the REAL story on the "pulled plug" event. *lol*)

The rest of your suggestions about how to handle linking to other aspects of the game seem well-thought and effective.  Keep some sort of journal text file that is posted until it has become an official site which documents as specifically as possible each step in the evolution of the pages, each change that has been implemented.  Perhaps you are familiar with Change Control already, though, and already maintaining one?  Make it public on the temp site for all to review as they become involved.  (Just a suggestion from previous experience with same.)
               
               

               

                     Modifié par HipMaestro, 19 juillet 2011 - 01:54 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_Akiwak]

               I love your ideas guys!

I run a little fan blog about nwn1/2 in Italian (Italian PW index and general information about the italian community) and yes, we really all need to keep the community united, we are few!  '>

For me, the best thing to do is to create a site with base informations about the game AND an advanced section with the best CC, news about contents/autors/etc!

(Sorry for my bad English :\\ )
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Akiwak]

                I love your ideas guys!
I run a little fan blog about nwn1/2 in Italian (Italian PW index and general information about the italian community) and yes, we really all need to keep the community united, we are few!  '>
For me, the best thing to do is to create a site with base informations about the game AND an advanced section with the best CC, news about contents/autors/etc!
(Sorry for my bad English :\\ )
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Birdman076]

               

HipMaestro wrote...

Birdman076 wrote...
I haven't loaded the page anywhere, I was/am waiting on a response from AD as he is hosting the neverwinternights.info page.

IMHO Bioware and Atari shouldn't be linked to anything but should be there because after all they did make and back the game. The bioware links at the top of the page obviously need to be changed to perhaps "NWN Info", or just "Info" or "Information", Bioware Games should be something like "Premium Modules", "Modules", etc. Support should stay and be a support/help section with FAQs, fixes, and what not. Biozone should become something like "Custom Content", "CC Zone", etc. Forums obviously remains forums if there will be any.

As far as the side menu, about the only one that needs to change is the "My Account" tab, unless of course there will be forums in which case that can be linked to the forum account login page. And maybe change support if support is to be kept on the top bar.

Maybe a temporary free site (usually contain annoying ads and pop-ups) so that the community can see it in action until a permanent residence is arranged?  The sooner you can integrate any input, the more tlikely you will get flooded with comments and criticism to refine it.

As far as your perspective on why Bioware/Atari would be included, I agree they were the owners of the intellectual property on the Internet at one time, but they have chosen to relinquish that support.  Perhaps a statement at the top like "The new fan-based source of everything having to do with Neverwinter Nights, the eternal AD&D game by Atari designed by Bioware." with the names "Atari" and "Bioware" inserted into the statement as the logo images.  This is a new era where the fan community is the sole driver of the NWN bus!  (Actually, and TBH, the grudge-holding, resentful side of my psyche would even prefer something like the 2 logos in the upper RH corner with one of those animated hands waving goodbye towards them, but I'll save that for my own editorial web site devoted to documenting the REAL story on the "pulled plug" event. *lol*)

The rest of your suggestions about how to handle linking to other aspects of the game seem well-thought and effective.  Keep some sort of journal text file that is posted until it has become an official site which documents as specifically as possible each step in the evolution of the pages, each change that has been implemented.  Perhaps you are familiar with Change Control already, though, and already maintaining one?  Make it public on the temp site for all to review as they become involved.  (Just a suggestion from previous experience with same.)

I'm just waiting for AD to post up, he's the one in control of neverwinternights.info and has done an awesome job of laying out a design there already. I mearly did this as an option and throw back for nostalgia purposes and partly because I could. I mean the community has been great and we have so many talented people with custom content, scripting, etc. The least I could do is use my meager skills with web design to bring back the site from the dead.
 
I hold no grudge or ill will towards Bioware at all, they kept the old forums up way past thier prime and they even moved everything here, again well past its prime. About the only thing I could be peeved about is the handling of the hacked forums and not doing anything as near (as I can tell) about restoring information to customers (cdkeys mainly) which has put another nail in the coffin of NWN. Maybe i've been out of touch to long but really that is the only thing I see or have been witness to and even that is a double edged sword. Its no ones responsibility but your own to store your information, cdkeys included. I have 6 copies of NWN in my possession belonging to my father, my two sons, my wifes father, my nephew, and myself and I have all the manuals and cdkeys stored. I guess I just care about my stuff a bit more then most lol.

Back on topic, I won't post the page up to a temp site because it would be redundant to host it, pull it down and rehost it on the neverwinternights.info site. Whether or not it is used will be decided by those who admin that site, I didn't pay for it therefore I don't make those choices I will just make this source available should someone deem it useful for the community. My suggestion would be to put together a design team. So until AD posts, it is what it is.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Ranger Solo]

               WOW!!

This is great. Can a section for Mac and Linux users be added? I'm sure those info and patch info would be a value?
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_The Amethyst Dragon]

               Birdman076:

Nice work on reconstructing the old site.  It can take some time to gather those old images and piece things back together.  For the moment, I'm going to run with the current layout (I dropped the graphic menu options in favor of text...easier to maintain and adjust later).  I think once we get real information onto the site, we can look back on layout again.

I'm back from vacation, so I'm getting back to work on this and other projects.

Time for some content!  You can just email me at builder@neverwinternights.info. So, here's what I'm looking for from others right away:

1. An introduction to NWN for prospective players for the main entry page.  Something descriptive that will get their attention and give them a hint of what they can get with the game.

2. Good quality screenshots (at least 800x600 pixels in size) for the main entry page.  If possible, I think we should have pictures from the original campaigns (NWN, SoU, and HotU), plus images from other single player modules and from multiplayer/PW modules.

'> - The Amethyst Dragon
               
               

               

                     Modifié par The Amethyst Dragon, 31 août 2011 - 09:38 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_SuperFly_2000]

               We might be looking at two different sites here....one more advanced....and one more like the old one and simpler....but then again...I'm not sure...if AD gets most of the info from the old site on his one...his might do the trick...
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_The Amethyst Dragon]

               Still working on pulling in more content, even as I make progress on my own projects.  Tonight I added information from the old BioWare character creation guide and information on custom portraits to the player section.  I'm dipping into the wayback machine version of the old site, linking a few things to specific spots on the Vault and NWNWiki, and generally trying to include useful information (or links to useful information) without being overwhelming.

Now would be a good time for emailing some of your in-game screenshots, folks. '>  The front page is looking barren as I fill in other pages.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_zDark Shadowz]

               If you only want "understanding of the original game", attach the original pdf manuals to it. >.<
No such thing as too much information unless it's the wrong information, or repetitive information.