Posted by Rich/Mohican Press on October 11, 1998 at 08:54:45:
Life as Web Hosts! Not all it's cracked up to be, let me tell you! This promises to be a rather rambling post, so let me get to a few other things first ...
Good morning!
New on the Site: We've heard from LOTM knifemaker, Randall King. He'll be putting a site up soon, but in the meanwhile, we've got a couple of photos up on a new Musings Page. Included, is one of Chingachgook's warclub ... one of THE most asked about items of all.
Also, a new "department" ... The Mohican Press MarketPlace, a place you can market your own goods & services right here on the Web Site. We've tried to keep the fees as low as possible. Please contact us if you are interested in putting up an ad. What we have to offer is a very varied group of visitors, from film buffs to re-enactors to students, with traffic that steadily rises. At present, our visitation reaches well over 600 "unique visitors" per day very often. We can't guarantee results, but you will be seen. We also regularly list with over 600 search engines world wide. Check the link on the Opening Page.
The Director's Cut: You've got just about a month now to get your letter to us. We are VERY disappointed in the response thus far. We can only think that not too many really believe it could actually happen. BELIEVE! Anything's possible, and with Michael Mann's Forward Pass in our corner, it just COULD happen. It only takes 5 minutes and 32 cents!! Isn't the POSSIBILITY worth THAT much??? The letter need not be fancy. Keep it short & sweet, if you want. We NEED the numbers!
The Gathering '99: Good things are slowly evolving. Chances for a visit to the River Walk locations, and a big-screen viewing of LOTM are looking good. We've been discussing some program changes, to accommodate these events. As soon as all the details are finalized we'll have it on the Gathering Page, hopefully in a few weeks. And, a volunteer was found almost IMMEDIATELY to design this year's T-Shirts ... The Dutch Trader! Thanks, Ilse!
The Chat Room: We'll be adding a link to the Chat Room right here from the Board soon. We resisted that notion, but it appears it will be best for all to have a place one can easily find it for access. Also, modifying a suggestion we received, just a bit, we'll also soon add a link to The Courier on the Board ... the tie-in has become too great to ignore!
**********************************************************************
On to The WARS!
I can only imagine that the critics of this Web Site & Board will now accuse me of "whining", but I'm going to go ahead with this anyway. Some folks just don't get it!
A lot of what I'm going to say takes place behind-the-scenes, via E-Mail, or elsewhere, on other boards & sites; some has taken place right here on the Board through the months passed. Much, I've previously talked about, forgive me, but it bears repeating. Yes, we could simply ignore it all - we do much of the time - but sometimes I feel it needs to be dealt with head-on.
Without further ado ...
This Board has been the target of pot-shots since its existence. We've had late-night snipers making personal attacks on posters, we've had threats (one legitimate) from hackers, we've had run-ins and fights, been accused of all kinds of God-awful things, been stolen from, bashed on other boards, criticized for all kinds of ridiculous things ... and it keeps on going on & on. We have learned that this comes with the territory; Why? I don't know, but it does. For the most part, it's easy to deal with, but sometimes, whether because of the tenacity of the attacker or the seriousness of the charge, it just doesn't go away. Fortunately, we just LOVE a challenge!
Some people just want this Site, and maybe us, to be what we aren't. Persistant little buggers, too. Like it or not, this is NOT The Eric Schweig Site. Yet, you can find more ORIGINAL Eric Schweig related material here than anywhere else. So, what's the problem? Beats the hell out of me!
After putting up an ES interview last year, along with some mild commentary that DARED to disagree with parts of it, we were blasted by a tiny, but vocal, minority of visitors. Challenged, we were, to do our OWN interview with ES. So, we did. Not good enough. We worked out a deal with Eric to feature his masks, the only NEW work he's been doing. We update it. Cries still, "What is Eric doing?" all over the Net. That IS what Eric's doing!
Now, we're "too strict." Yes, we have had our run-ins. There has been but one (which I have publically apologized for) that was unwarranted. Strict? How many of you have EVER been contacted by us in connection with your behavior on the Board? Our rules ... our SIMPLE rules ... are posted on the Board. Be nice. Stick to the topic. (And, when you think of it, it's a pretty BROAD topic! Much broader than say, one particular cast member, for it INCLUDES every cast member, every film they've done, all the culture, history & social issues relevant to the period, OTHER versions of LOTM, and the creative geniuses behind it all.) Is that STRICT? If someone comes here to cause trouble, we are not afraid to deal with it. I don't see where these notions evolve from, but they do ... and it's usually from the same camp. What axe do you have to grind?
But you know what? Who cares? If you don't like it here, don't post here, if you don't like the people who do, don't communicate with them, if you don't like US, don't read our material. Why though must you publically criticize relentlessly? On our Board, we try to refrain from that kind of childishness, but, I forgot, we're strict. Good. Long-live STRICTNESS! I think, though, that maybe you have that confused with PRINCIPLED! We don't go around to other Sites demanding what they SHOULD be doing! We don't sit here encouraging, by our silence, visitors to blast away at other people & sites. We defend, as we all should, what we believe in. And, how novel, we actually KNOW what we believe in.
Geez, we go out of our way to soothe hurt feelings when things get out of hand, we try to answer EVERY E-Mail we get, we listen to your suggestions and try our best to accommodate (see ES example above), we are free with our links to practically anyone who inquires, we organized TWO DC drives, TWO Gatherings (with MUCH help!), we granted permission to folks who wanted to put in print parts of the Site, we've tried to bring together all the LOTM-related stuff feasible into one central area; much of it original material that consumes long hours of research & writing and many hundreds of dollars in long-distance phone bills ... No, we don't want a medal, it's actually mostly fun, but back off the constant griping. Give us a break once in a while.
We do have REAL problems, you know. Like being contacted by the lawyer for the Mohican Tribe several months ago. THAT was a piece of cake compared to some of you who seem to take derisive pleasure out of harassing us. THEY were reasonable, we talked, we listened, we made the changes necessary to avoid trouble ... just like we do whenever ANYBODY comes to us with constructive criticism. Now, we have the BIA to deal with. I mean that's a problem when you get a phone call from a Federal Agency! The Native American Arts & Crafts Board, under their jurisdiction, claims we are infringing on somebody's rights. Well, it isn't the Mohicans, as we've resolved any troubles with them. We do have Native Americans making items in our Gift Shop (ie: the dreamcatchers & masks). NOWHERE do we represent ANYTHING falsely. The use of the word "Mohican" is, as we've posted, based on the STORY of The Last of the MOHICANS ... some people can't get this through their heads. We feel confident that nothing will come from this, but it's just another hassle. We don't even make money out of this. It all just goes back into the site in one way or another. So, we put all this time & effort (and our OWN money) into this. We do it to SHARE it with everyone interested. But, we get blasted, from everyone from the disgruntled Eric fan to the BIA. We have had enough of the BS. Oh, yeah, we DON'T have a life. Ever try raising seven kids?
So, we ask you ... please, give us a break. If you like what we do, visit, comment, suggest, hang out, have fun, be a part of it. If you don't, stay away, or at least THINK before you talk. We have enough to deal with! Thank you!
Sorry if you're reading this and have NO idea what I'm talking about! That can only be good, as you then know that it isn't directed at you.
Back to MohicanLand! Happy Trails! ... Rich