Tuesday, 08/20/2002 Entry: "My Third Week in Cyberdom went like this..."

Lots of interesting tales to tell. First is about location:

I had moved out of the Star Trek neighborhood to a Voyager block in UFOs. Within a day or two I was a Block deputy. Now, each colony, neighborhood, block, and resident each have a little message board to maintain. In my second week, I decided to go into our block's configuration just to view the info and see what is made available to users to customize a board - maybe get some ideas for mine? I was surprised to discover that of all the websites on Voyager on the Internet, they were hotlinking to one of MY images!

Now I know the odds of this happening are extremely remote, but there it was. The Block Leader had been leeching off a future resident's website. I promptly left a msg in his inbox - a very restrained message I'm proud to say - and exchanged the link from my image to the one in his inbox (of the crew. It looked better anyway and it was hotlinked to a large, commercial site). He was confused and didn't reply for three days. The neighborhood deputy I took this up with - because the two were friends and I didn't want this blown out into anything public - was entirely clueless and had to be explained like a child the implications of bandwidth theft. Apparently the Block Leader knew even less.

The sad thing was how the blame was shoved to a previous BL. "It was up before I came here," he said. Well, the config clearly states: "This is YOUR Board," and rightfully so. The moment you take over that block, you are responsible for the configuration details. If you want to keep the config, square it with the last guy. If you like what's up, the right thing to do is host the graphics yourself after asking permission. All this went over both their heads. And they're adults? Aw man. Talk about issues...

This was of course interfering with my good standing. I was closing in on 500 experience points, and up to take over the block. I suppose in hindsight I should have kept quiet for three more days, but you know me. Oh. Oh that's right, you don't know me. Well IMHO, it's always the principle of the thing.

Two days later, during our Open House (I'll write about that another time), an official announced my advancement. I am now Block Leader, but of an infinitesimal (sp?) Star Trek block. I had to move, leaving about 4 recruits behind. Chewed up and spat out. Maybe I'll put feelers out to return to that Voyager block when whatsisname resigns. Till then, I will set an example and run the block with distinction, maybe have my friends relocate to me. There's employment opportunity if they do.