NationStates Jolt Archive

http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=352036&page=1&pp=15

Do you think it would be possible to purge this thread of all its stupidity and spam. It's a good idea, full of good suggestions, but it has fallen apart. Kinda like a good actress who now has a coke problem.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/frisbeeteria/split_sm.jpg then http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/frisbeeteria/merged_sm.jpg



with this topic by Frisbeeteria

------------------------------------------------------

This needs to be stickied.

Either sticky, or I will bump it daily...this REALLY (woops! capitals!!) rocks!

Thank you for the feedback, guys. Just putting this back on the board.

Anyone have any other suggestions, don't be afraid to write them up, and I'll add them to the main post.

Suggestions, but not neccessities

For important roleplays, or RP's that you plan on putting more work into than others, make a creative title. For example, the third APTO conference was titled "Third Time's A Charm."

Character development. Even if your RP centers around the "NationA-NationB War," it's best to develop a few characters, that is, center some of the RP around a group of people rather than concentrating only on the interantional front. RP's need dialogue; it's a good idea to include a dialogue or two in your longer posts. Include flaws in your characters. They make the story much more interesting.

For longevity, you can even create obstacles for your side of the RP -- remember, it's not about winning or losing. It's about writing a story and having fun.

Well, writing quality increases respect, does it not?

Work ended late, starts early. Unfortunately, I won't be able to compile the list until tomorrow evening.

K-stan

Good tips and advice.

Okey, dokey... all updated.

First off... w00t, I have a sticky. (Thanks, MGH.)
"w00t" in all its forms is strickly verbotten in IC posts, unless a hacker is talking.

Second, it's updated to this point.

Heh, I was going to write something similar, Trez.

Updated

I try and read a sticky on how to become a better RPer, and all I get is the same stuff I get from my English teacher...(FYI, I hate English class. Why should I torture myself in a class I hate over a language I've been speaking for years?)

Good post, just reminds me of school too much...

Just because you grew up speaking it doesn't mean you know how to make yourself understood. Based on a random sampling of the Internet (let alone this forum) I'd say a lot of people are in that boat. There's a big difference in knowing how to speak and knowing how to write. Being able to convey your ideas in a clear, concise manner that doesn't leave your readers bored, frustrated or otherwise eager to skip your post is what this is about.

I hated English class, too. I never did well with English grammar, but with time and perseverence it is possible to learn how to write something that people might want to read.

I'm sorry, I'm not the creative type. I can speak and write English well, read some of my threads to see what I mean. I'm not really creative, though. I prefer to get out an do manual labor instead of writing papers or drawing. I can shoot a gun better than I can write a paper. But that's just me...

By the very nature of this forum, you're dealing with a written medium. If you hope to do well, you've got to follow some basic rules for communication. Complaining that you'd rather go out and do manual labor than sit down and write a creative post seems rather ironic. There's no point to these forums other than to be creative.

This thread (very nicely) attempts to assist you in that process. If you're not interested, don't read. Just don't expect to get much respect, either.

Excellent...!!

:)

I was never a fan of English class myself. However, if basic English command makes for more readable RPs, then I'm all for it. (Since I made this thread, I guess that's farely obvious.)

Thanks for the feedback... this is updated... and Treznor, thanks for covering my back while I worked.

BTW, Kaukolastan, I would like to put forth a minor suggestion of the differences between spoken English and standard/written English...

I'm sorry, I'm not the creative type. I can speak and write English well, read some of my threads to see what I mean. I'm not really creative, though. I prefer to get out an do manual labor instead of writing papers or drawing. I can shoot a gun better than I can write a paper. But that's just me...

I hunt, dress rather preppy according to others, play football and baseball, sing in a metal band and musicals, write stories, etc...

There's no reason to limit or stereotype yourself.

Bah...don't use those damn books for creative writing. Don't let someone else chose your style. Open up...be creative!


I agree. Find your inner passions and use them. Don't let someone else determine how you write, but that's not to say that the work of others should not inspire you and drive you to write better.

Write about what you want to write about, be it character RP, war, romance, gothic, etc. The best way to get respect is to break the mold and be proud of it. Stick to your guns no matter what criticism gets thrown your way.

Agreed. Write what you're best at and stick to your guns. I'm a shameless sports RPer. Sports RPers don't have the best reputation here I believe (I expect the problems forming the Olympics probably haven't helped) but quite a few of them do write excellent humourous RPs which may or may not have a lot to do with sport (usually football/soccer, as the World Cup in this sport is easily the most established and other sports have come and mostly gone).

Incidentally, I'm an economist, statistician, songwriter, sports commentator and psychologist, in (roughly) that order.

K-stan, are you an English teacher or something? Just curious

K-stan, are you an English teacher or something? Just curious


No, he’s not, he’s just an exceptionaly good writer...and very grammatically correct, and rather obsessive ;)

Very nice. I've always considered myself a rather good writer, but it never hurts to get some extra pointers here and there. Thanks.

Dialogue breaks all the rules. You write how the character speaks. You see...

"Vhat?" the man asked in his strong, accented voice. "Vhat do you...vhat ah you doing here?"

...makes a lot more sense than...

"What?" the man asked in his strong, accented voice. "What do you, or what are you, doing here?"

...in dialogue.

Naw, that tends to lap over into unintentional comedy far too often.

It was an example that took me seconds to think of. When done correctly (i've seen it) it really adds touch to it. Especially if the accent is from the country or the inner city or something.

Attempting to find a balanced statement to add to sticky regarding "voice"... will add it soon, so keep debating.

Writing an accent's fine as long as it's understandable and not ridiculous. This is debatable in great literature. For example, in Wuthering Heights, which many English speakers probably read in high school, there is a servant whose "accent" is so thick the reader has to work to figure out what he's saying. Many critics think this is great; I think it's unintelligible and pulls and damages suspension of disbelief. But to each their own. I'll leave it to someone else to show a good example of accent.

Gone with the Wind. The Black characters had an accent/ebonics thicker than molassas. Made it kinda hard to read.

i shall rule you all is no time
have that for respect

i shall rule you all is no time
have that for respect


Did you mean "In time", maybe?....did you bother to read this...you would have learned to proofread

And..dont clutter up stickies...thats such a n00bish thing to do...you dont wanna be labeled a n00b do you...to late

An excellent guide, and one which addressed many of the pet peeves I had last time I played NationStates (The Serene Republic of Andolai, if you're curious). I certainly appreciate the attention to detail. Also, the nature of the advice comes across as gentle, direct, and constructive, as opposed to dogmatic or condescending.

Personally, I believe that certain common errors are forgiveable (Or at least I hope so). I can guarantee with some confidence that I will be accidentally misusing the words "who" and "whom" at various points in the future. The occasional grammatical or spelling mistake is part of human nature. However, it serves both the poster and the reader to attempt to write in as clear and concise a manner as possible.

By the way, its generally accepted that you don't write out numbers unless it can be done so in two words or less...

EX)
100--one hundred
176--one seventy-six

etc...

Be nice to n0obs. :fluffle:

Be nice to n0obs. :fluffle:
yeah were only small :lol:

Everybody, thanks for contributing, and I'll try to compress and add what I can to the lead-post, but there's too much to put it all in without creating a monstrosity. So, I'll probably just add a line telling them to read on. Yeah, I'm a bum like that.

Keep it coming, people!

Thanks,
K-stan

To all you newbs out there, don't be afraid of piping up with questions. We don't bite in this thread.
NOTICE: If anyone bites a newb, I'll have you sedated... then, you will be shot. Survivors will be shot again, ad infinitum.
If you can read this line, or the preceding two sentences, you have changed the forum settings, or you have highlighted the text. You win a cookie.

If you can read this line, or the preceding two sentences, you have changed the forum settings, or you have highlighted the text. You win a cookie.


Where's my cookie?

*hands cookie*

yeah were only small :lol:
Thank you. An excellent example of a common mistake with contractions. "Were" is the past tense of "are," while "we're" is the contraction of "we are." So Good and better meant to say "Yeah, we're only small. :lol:"

We learn by doing.

*Hands Treznor a cookie.

Thank you. An excellent example of a common mistake with contractions. "Were" is the past tense of "are," while "we're" is the contraction of "we are." So Good and better meant to say "Yeah, we're only small. :lol:"

We learn by doing.

actually it's quite common for lazy people to leave out the apostrophe, so Good and better might've intended to put we're, but was too lazy to type an apostrophe.

Thank you. An excellent example of a common mistake with contractions. "Were" is the past tense of "are," while "we're" is the contraction of "we are." So Good and better meant to say "Yeah, we're only small. :lol:"

We learn by doing.
Well in fairness that was just walking into a trap really.

Just to elaborate on my previous statement Seratoah fully endorses the imposition of correct etiquette and language in international discussion.

Use of said language helps ensure that international incidents are not due to mere grammatical misinterpretations.

Pedantry is the death of creativity...speaking as an English Literature degree student in England this can be considered a reasonable viewpoint.

Pedantry is the death of creativity...speaking as an English Literature degree student in England this can be considered a reasonable viewpoint.
This is your first post, so I'm not going to direct you to the amount of sheer abuse of the English language that occurs on this forum. This thread is not a demand for everything to be written in perfect Olde English, but a plea and guide for reasonably understandable writing...

For now, I'll simply let you browse the forum. The next time you spot a thread with the sentence, "i delcare war on yuo the ensine sed no no no yeled the captan we need nukes", you'll understand why this thread came to exist.

This is not my first forum. I've been guilty of some degree of pedantry over the years...But I have no delusions about my own tolerance, I know I'm not a good person. Tolerance is far more important than good spelling.

If you can't understand a person....That is their problem, move on to another thread. Writing legal documents and a thesis calls for good English, typing bullsh*t on a forum does not, to spell check your every post is simply wasting even more time than you are already doing.

p.s Good English is entirely relative to whether you live in England or not in my experience.

Please allow me to make sure I understand your argument properly. After all, I’m not a level 3 English Lit student with a +7 Mace of Tolerance, and I live in the United States, so my understanding of the English language is marginal already.

Right, I think I have it: you’re saying that, by providing this thread, we are infringing on the rights of those ignorant of English grammar conventions to remain ignorant?

You’ll excuse me if I need some time to process this truly shocking revelation; I’d never thought of it in those terms. Just think of all those poor people who, completely unaware of the title, clicked on this thread and had their brains destroyed by looking at it!

The more I think about it, in fact, the more dangerous this dissension ‘nawl-edge’ becomes! My God, let’s quick take Sesame Street off the air! Destroy the grammar textbooks! Let’s get rid of all the schools! Burn books! Burn them!

Face it, mac: this thread isn’t impeding on anyone’s right to remain ignorant. Not only do they have to click on the link to even SEE this thread, they still have to READ the thing to have their bliss shattered forever. This is meant as a free resource; those who want to use it do; those who don’t can have a perfectly pleasant NationStates experience without it. I mean it’s not as if we’re going around NS thumping our English bibles in threads that exhibit poor grammar and calling those who use it stupid.

In fact, I can only think of one person who is invading someone else’s thread to preach at them from a high horse...can you think of his name, Voredonia?

Very nice, Kaukolastan I hope people look at this. About the whole chat acronyms (lol etc.) I think it is fine to use them in OOC text and non-RP, but they don't belong in IC at all... honestly.

Example.

Marine: "Hey, Captain did you read the joke in the newsletter?"

Captain: "LOL, Yeah I did."

Does anyone say stuff like "LOL" when they are talking?...Honestly.
-----------------------------
About signatures, I use a signature/tag which is the Sith code of Honour.
(Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion we gain strength.
Strength gives us power.
Through power we achieve victory.
Through victory our chains are broken.
Our Force shall set us free.)

But, I never tag RPs, and I only tag once per thread, if at all.

Overall, thanks for making this thread.

Nice. :cool:

I haven't been posting much (i.e. hardly at all) since the forum move, but I'll definitely be using this as a guide for future RPs.

this is the 1447457 post eva. it r0xx0rz my 50xx0rz.
*runs for cover*

i have a nuclear bomb. i love star trek. morris breitbart is a loser. i hate morris breitbart. email him and tell him u hate him at e-mail address removed.

Uhh, yes, of course....Well, thats nice...have a cookie!

It's way to long and thought out. I do believe you could have made this alot simpler using a few paragraphs. Barely anyone will read it. Long things that are read may cause your head to feel a little something like this.... :headbang:

Ahem... some responses:

To all who contributed meaningful and constructive comments... thank you, and keep it coming.

And now, to prove that the squeaky wheel does indeed get greased...

Pang Tangian Exiles: I wrote a guide to 1337 early, including several dialects. See it here: The Beginners Guide to Classic 1337 and AOLese. (http://forums2.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=333136)

Jojojaja: See the definition of "Spam" in the TOS. It isn't just for dinner anymore.

Your Mothers Womb: Jesus Christ, I never thought I'd see this, but "to(sp) thought out"? I'll try to keep things monosyllabic from now on. Oops.

Removed.

Thanks, Myrth.

Trans, could you pull that email address from your quote so no one mail-bombs the poor guy?

Thanks, Myrth.

Trans, could you pull that email address from your quote so no one mail-bombs the poor guy?

Oops, forgot that. Also removed.

hi guys, im kinda new but the reason im here is because i wanna kill some bitches!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! thats right you heard me!!!! uuu raw!!! :sniper: :mp5:
:upyours:

No ECC... Just... Just no.

Thanks, Myrth.

Trans, could you pull that email address from your quote so no one mail-bombs the poor guy?

My mistake, I should have checked this sooner... kinda dropped the ball there

my bad

[QUOTE=Terran Individualists]Snip[QUOTE]

You, sir or madam, are off topic. Stick to what's going on in the thread, MMMmkay?

[QUOTE=Terran Individualists]Snip[QUOTE]

You, sir or madam, are off topic. Stick to what's going on in the thread, MMMmkay?

Thank you, I was trying to think of something to say...

I don’t think I’ve expressed my thanks to Kaukolastan for writing this insightful guide yet, so, ill do so now. While I may not have the greatest grammar or spelling abilities ever, I do tire of the blatant ignorance of writing displayed by some nameless people on this forum, and applause to those of you who continue to try and improve writing in any way possible

This is the funniest example I've ever seen of "What not to post." It's pretty mature language, so I'm not putting up the image, but here's the linky:

Grammar Checking Flame (http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2004-11-03&res=l)

hehe...an important lesson indeed...

>snip<...MSWord can come up with some really crazy things, for example, I once had it wanting to change; "By the end of the war several million people had been killed." to; "The end of the war killed several million people." Which clearly do not mean the same thing!>snip<

[OOC: Oh good, it's not just me, then. Just last night MS Word was trying to turn every sentence I typed into a question (such as 'And he went forth unto the land' becoming 'And he went forth unto the land?')...

...and stubbornly would not change the dictionary to English rather than US English. So it was 'correcting' me every time I said 'valour' or 'honour' or 'succour'. Argh!]

Man, I use Office 2003, and I've never had problems like that with it! (Then again, I'm using US English, which has derived enough that it really could be called "American".)

undefinedok i always get respect i am the united states of Nik Kerr how can u go wrong with a nake like Nik Kerr

wow

the end it justifies my means :gundge:

Man, I use Office 2003, and I've never had problems like that with it! (Then again, I'm using US English, which has derived enough that it really could be called "American".)

um....US is American...US = America...etc...

It is the observation of the Nation of Bhullschitzk that this thread was written due to the inferior intelligence of those abiding in the forum thereof.

It is the opinion of the Nation of Bhullschitzk that idiots should be allowed to be idiots in full view of men that we may know by appearance the inferiority of their society and intellectual prowess.

The inability of the representatives of the various nations to form grammatically correct sentences is a sterling guide for gaining favorable business transactions.

So declares the Holy Empire of Bhullschitzk.
"If it's not Bhullschitzk it aint Jack"

It is the observation of the Nation of Bhullschitzk that this thread was written due to the inferior intelligence of those abiding in the forum thereof.

It is the opinion of the Nation of Bhullschitzk that idiots should be allowed to be idiots in full view of men that we may know by appearance the inferiority of their society and intellectual prowess.

The inability of the representatives of the various nations to form grammatically correct sentences is a sterling guide for gaining favorable business transactions.

So declares the Holy Empire of Bhullschitzk.
"If it's not Bhullschitzk it aint Jack"

Hmmm...want more respect on the forums?

Step 1: Have a respectable name...

Hmmm...want more respect on the forums?

Step 1: Have a respectable name...
Step 2: Read the inferior intelligence remark above
Step 3: Bite Me.



Step 4: Wanna buy a watch?

You had best keep an eye on The Darth Alliance. :cool:

It's that God damned phonics they tought(taught) us. It turned out a generation that can't write or speak correctly.

(bold part added in by myself) ;)

Hee Hee!!

(Don't even try to call me on my incorrect sentence structure with the above laugh, nor the argument that it's not a word.) :P

(bold part added in by myself) ;)

Hee Hee!!

(Don't even try to call me on my incorrect sentence structure with the above laugh, nor the argument that it's not a word.) :P
You try writing with your ass at three AM. :eek:

(In my defense, "God damn" was used as an colloquialism.)

...and that is a double punctuation mark you used there... :p

You try writing with your ass at three AM. :eek:

(In my defense, "God damn" was used as an colloquialism.)

...and that is a double punctuation mark you used there... :p

Why I oughta kick yer butt--on Xenos Flares!
This is a minor kick to your arse to post...

Now I'm gonna R-U-N-N-O-F-T !

:confused:

This thread is rather full of spam...I think I'll say something to el modero

http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=352036&page=1&pp=15

Do you think it would be possible to purge this thread of all its stupidity and spam. It's a good idea, full of good suggestions, but it has fallen apart. Kinda like a good actress who now has a coke problem.

It's far from the worst of the stickies, but irrelevant posts have been Merged into this very thread. (For some reason, the split tool ignores deleted posts. Most annoying. They ought to go away too.)

Fris.

Thanks, buddy.