Website / Manual

[Doug]

Hello again --

I'd like to say that I'mm impressed with your work with Exult and wanted to offer my skills as a web / graphics designer for your website and for any documentation that would go with the release of Version 1.0.

Let me know if you are interested.

D.

[artaxerxes]

If I may say so, what you said is like being invited at some friends and tell the person who prepared the meal that you want the meal to be thrown in the garbage and you will cook from scratch instead.


Now, that's for a compliment.



Artaxerxes

[Skutarth]

Actually, I don't think the site needs any work on it. It has all they need at the moment, and it's the program we're worried about, not the website, right?

[Dominus]

Ah, don't be harsh.
Doug: the offer is appreciated. but I think (I'm not speaking for everybody of the team) we like it simple. No flashy animations, no need for flash, standard compliant. Most people do probably appreciate the simpleness and fast loading of our pages.

[nadir]

There are lots of other (unmentioned) Ultima-based projects which seem to have spent all of their effort in building their website, but haven't actually produced anything useful otherwise

[drcode]

And some of those even got lead stories on Slashdot, which just rejected my Exult submission yesterday (#*$#@!!).

[SB-X]

So much for being a karma-whore. :\

[Doug]

Ok...

I agree that the web site is clean and works well -- no complaints there. I'm thinking more for when the final release is finished, and what goes through the mind of someone that is an "ordinary user."

What I would like to float out there to everyone is the possibility of two websites. Keep this website for the developer community. Keep if text intensive, fast loading, easy to update. But then also has a website for the end-user. One that wouldn't inundate them with release schedules, bug tracking, and lengthy FAQ's and inner workings of the Exult program. Companion that end-user site with a polished PDF or HTML manual and reworked FAQ and you would have a web site that would be easily accessible to any user and maximize the Exult product's exposure to the world. Make that site and it's materials seem like a natural extension of the Ultima VII game.

As someone mentioned earlier, my original request as likened to being "invited at some friends and tell the person who prepared the meal that you want the meal to be thrown in the garbage and you will cook from scratch instead." I can understand how my interest could invoke that response, but I would like to emphasize that I'm not suggesting that the site be replaced, but simply companioned. Marketing to the end-user is always much different than marketing to a developer community. You have a great product, and now is the time to think about how you want to present it to the world and to "joe user". Exult has the capability of being something really big -- it already is -- but the end user needs to see it represented and marketed for the great product it is.

Even if the group would rather not pursue this, I am still very interested in Exult, and would like to help out the group where I can. While I'm not a programmer, I would think that my skills could benefit the group in other ways.

Please let me know what you think.

D.

[drcode]

Actually, I didn't interpret your request that way at all, but thought that your offer was very nice. The reason I didn't respond is because I don't maintain the web site at all any more. (And if you want to talk about bad websites, you should have seen the one I did:-)).

[Dominus]

hm, sorry, but I still don't see the need for it.
Exult isn't an extension of U7 and there are many websites that cover stuff that is related to the actual game much better and intense. Our goal is to provide Exult a way to play the game and in the future to develop more games in the U7 style. We don't need to advertise or attract a huge crowd to it (regardless of Jeff, trying to be a karma whore ). Our goals for the website are just those you yourself mentioned: to provide the engine, the docs, faq, other information and this forum. Anything else would be overkill IMO.

On the other hand, whenever we, or someone else decides to do a game with Exult Studio OR when Exult Studio is at a stage where we would like to attract possible game developers we might very well be in need of someone of your talents.

[corbomite]

Doug: there is one current need for artists - who are interested in creating additional art for the BG paperdolls.

[Doug]

Unfortunately, I'm not an illustrator If I had to classify myself, I would be a web/marketing director. My last few projects have been creating e-learning for companies using Flash and HTML, and creating content, style guides, and specifications based on auidences and corporate goals (and other meaningless corporate nonsense...hehe). Like I said, I would love to help and if the group can think of a way to use these skills, I would be glad to lend a hand.