Vote to Keep or Remove Avatars

[ChuckBluMedia]

Hello Everyone,

In light of a couple threads about it being confusing when we have the "team" avatars as stated by "yankmike" http://members.brokestraightboys.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3647

We will do this by popular vote. Would you like to keep or remove the "Team Avatars". Our designer Steve (scorpio) made these and we really do appreciate it, this voting option will be open until midnight September 30th unless there is a landslide by September 26th.

Remember, this is based on popular votes, what is decided by the majority is how we will proceed. Be sure you are confident in your answer because there is no redacting your vote.

Edit: Fri Sept 23
A compromise which may help:
We will begin to add more avatars to the mix to help with choices if it's voted to keep them; the more options we have the more variety we can hopefully see in the threads. We added the avatars about 6 weeks ago for it being something fun. We saw a few threads about how people thought it was confusing so we needed to know how many like or dislike them.


Example in the attachment.

 

[slimvintage]

Just voted to keep them (I mean "em") even though they don't even begin to represent the current zeitgeist of the forum. Jimmy's on there twice (reflecting the huge amount of investment that management has put into his work for the firm): once as the quarterback for his Team, and once in a Blu love-poster to bolster his popularity, which I don't think anyone on the forum has chosen? Too blatant? Too grim? Too scary? All of the above?

And by far the most popular model of the moment, Colin, doesn't even have a Team avatar. It's like the GOP: the most interesting candidate of all, Ron Paul, who metaphorically doesn't even have an avatar but attracts the most boisterous support (and not really any detractors) is Colin. Colin, the Ron Paul of Broke Straight Boys? So Jimmy's the establishment candidate with the corporate lobby behind him (Rick Perry?) and Colin is the wild-assed, loose-cannon, outrageous, Ron Paul candidate you love because he's so smart and different.

Sorry Chuck. I got up to watch the GOP Faux Debate and nearly went to sleep again watching the moderators throwing that posse of dolts a bunch of talking-point softball questions, and came here, to your thread...

Keep the avatars, read the members' names. Delete the unsubtle "Yummy" avatar and knock up a quickie for Colin in its place.

 

[cumrag27]

My avatar represents the spirit of past times on Broke Straight Boys-1

Just voted to keep them (I mean "em") even though they don't even begin to represent the current zeitgeist of the forum. Jimmy's on there twice (reflecting the huge amount of investment that management has put into his work for the firm): once as the quarterback for his Team, and once in a Blu love-poster to bolster his popularity, which I don't think anyone on the forum has chosen? Too blatant? Too grim? Too scary? All of the above?

And by far the most popular model of the moment, Colin, doesn't even have a Team avatar. It's like the GOP: the most interesting candidate of all, Ron Paul, who metaphorically doesn't even have an avatar but attracts the most boisterous support (and not really any detractors) is Colin. Colin, the Ron Paul of Broke Straight Boys? So Jimmy's the establishment candidate with the corporate lobby behind him (Rick Perry?) and Colin is the wild-assed, loose-cannon, outrageous, Ron Paul candidate you love because he's so smart and different.

Sorry Chuck. I got up to watch the GOP Faux Debate and nearly went to sleep again watching the moderators throwing that posse of dolts a bunch of talking-point softball questions, and came here, to your thread...

Keep the avatars, read the members' names. Delete the unsubtle "Yummy" avatar and knock up a quickie for Colin in its place.

To whom it may concern:

While I do not want anyone to "rain on my parade" as far as choice of team avatars, before we had corpororate avatars for our choosing, each member either had one with a photo or graphic of their own(unique to the individual) or went without an avatar all together. That was a simple solution. I dropped my membership during the time when the "corporate avatars" were first made available. Then, when I returned two months later, I found these generic avatars doubly confusing. I associated each poster's avatar based entirely on the model's picture as opposed to the actual writer of the comments, still thinking the avatars were unique to the member. I would frequently use the wrong name when addressing a reply or making an incorrect assumption of someone based more on the "photo on their avatar" than on their "name".

Just like Colin not having his own avatar, each newbie developing a following will need their own teem and that means demands for new avatars never ends. Personally, I wish we would not use these generic avatars unless the photo/graphic can be personalized by the user. Mostly, just as a means to avoid confusion with two forumites on the same team.


Stimpy

 

[Key-West]

I hope no one would ask me to change my avatar to "someone" less ugly. I think most people see me as a fan of Jimmy but I don't need a "Team Jimmy" avatar to show my support. HOWEVER, that does not mean someone who likes their "Team" avatar should not be able to keep using.

I vote to keep them.

 

[tampa24]

I don't think it's a matter of should we keep them at all or not. People should be free to show support for a favorite model if they like. It's just that if lots of people choose the same models then it gets tedious to remember who's posting.

 

[stowe1]

I'm voting to keep them. The posters name is in quite large print right next to the avatar and frankly, I always look at the name of the poster if it's a team avatar anyway. As we gays continue to fight for the full rights to which we are entitled under the Constitution, a gay website should not be limiting our right to chose. So for me it's simple, we all have the right to choose whatever avatar we want, or avatars of all types are eliminated. We can't get into the Orwellian mode as in Animal Farm and say some are more equal than others.

 

[jasonaz]

I'm voting to keep them. The posters name is in quite large print right next to the avatar and frankly, I always look at the name of the poster if it's a team avatar anyway. As we gays continue to fight for the full rights to which we are entitled under the Constitution, a gay website should not be limiting our right to chose. So for me it's simple, we all have the right to choose whatever avatar we want, or avatars of all types are eliminated. We can't get into the Orwellian mode as in Animal Farm and say some are more equal than others.

I think it's interesting that you used that quote Stowe1, as it is one of my favorite quotes.

I also think this is much ado about nothing. Allow them all,or allow them none, but don't pick and choose. Like everything else, this too, shall pass.

 

[lesit78]

I think the entire discussion and subsequent election are hilarious. So if we vote to lose them, what happens if people save it to their computer and re upload and continue using theirs?

It might turn into an avatar prohibition and bootleg copies may start popping up here and there which may then start new conspiracy theories. "Maybe that's not REALLY Jimmy in the avatar...I think it's really Mark disguised as Jimmy."

 

[mikeyank]

I think the entire discussion and subsequent election are hilarious. So if we vote to lose them, what happens if people save it to their computer and re upload and continue using theirs?

It might turn into an avatar prohibition and bootleg copies may start popping up here and there which may then start new conspiracy theories. "Maybe that's not REALLY Jimmy in the avatar...I think it's really Mark disguised as Jimmy."

You are hilarious, Abe, as is this whole situation.

I made a "request" to my fellow forumites, to use personalized individual avatars, as my brain has trouble distinguishing who the person is behind the corporate team logos. It was only a request, and asked to help me out, and I did recall my friend Stimpy having the same problem. (We are both in the 60+ crowd).

Then Chuck put it up to a poll, to vote if the Team Avatars should be "banned". Then other forumites said this is censorship and as gay people, we cannot stand for censorship, and other's said first they will ban team avatars, and next they will ban all avatars.

This has turned from a friendly request into something like the "Egyptian protesters" or even worse, like Hitler's Germany.

"First they came for the Communists and the Socialists
but I was not one of them, so I did not speak out.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists but I was not a Trade Unionist, so I kept quiet.
Then they came for the Jews but I did not speak out because I was not Jewish.

And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me." Pastor Niemoeller


And this all has happened in less than 12 hours. Speak about an over reaction.

By the way, even though I made the initial "request", I did not vote in favor of the ban either, as I am anti censorship too.

 

[rallen1961b]

Hello Everyone,

In light of a couple threads about it being confusing when we have the "team" avatars as stated by "yankmike" http://members.brokestraightboys.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3647

We will do this by popular vote. Would you like to keep or remove the "Team Avatars". Our designer Steve (scorpio) made these and we really do appreciate it, this voting option will be open until midnight September 30th unless there is a landslide by September 26th.

Remember, this is based on popular votes, what is decided by the majority is how we will proceed. Be sure you are confident in your answer because there is no redacting your vote.

Example in the attachment.

I find it funny that with all the complaints I read about the quality of this site lately(and the jury is still out as far as I'm concerned) the management is worried about stupid avatars. Here's a suggestion, if you like them use them and if you don't then don't. Gee that was really hard to settle.

 

[ChuckBluMedia]

I find it funny that with all the complaints I read about the quality of this site lately(and the jury is still out as far as I'm concerned) the management is worried about stupid avatars. Here's a suggestion, if you like them use them and if you don't then don't. Gee that was really hard to settle.

You are missing the point as to why there is a debate to keep them or not. Go through mikeyank's thread to see why, this is not the first posting about it either, which is why now its up for vote. It's not a problem if anyone would like to take photos from this site and create their own avatars used on Broke Straight Boys, the issue is complaints of too many of the exact same avatar and confusion over who to reply to in each thread.

We did make the "usernames" larger next to the avatar to hopefully alleviate this confusion a month ago. All we want to do is make the forums even better based on the majority that use the forums. After all, this is your website, if we dont appeal to the masses then we wouldn't be here much longer.

We are never able to make everyone happy, but we all honestly try to do our very best.


A compromise which may help:
We will begin to add more avatars to the mix to help with choices if it's voted to keep them; the more options we have the more variety we can hopefully see in the threads. We added the avatars about 6 weeks ago for it being something fun. We saw a few threads about how people thought it was confusing so we needed to know how many like or dislike them.

In fact any designers here are encouraged to make your own and we may add to the mix.

 

[Ms. Kianna]

You are missing the point as to why there is a debate to keep them or not. Go through mikeyank's thread to see why, this is not the first posting about it either, which is why now its up for vote. It's not a problem if anyone would like to take photos from this site and create their own avatars used on Broke Straight Boys, the issue is complaints of too many of the exact same avatar and confusion over who to reply to in each thread.

We did make the "usernames" larger next to the avatar to hopefully alleviate this confusion a month ago. All we want to do is make the forums even better based on the majority that use the forums. After all, this is your website, if we dont appeal to the masses then we wouldn't be here much longer.

We are never able to make everyone happy, but we all honestly try to do our very best.


A compromise which may help:
We will begin to add more avatars to the mix to help with choices if it's voted to keep them; the more options we have the more variety we can hopefully see in the threads. We added the avatars about 6 weeks ago for it being something fun. We saw a few threads about how people thought it was confusing so we needed to know how many like or dislike them.

In fact any designers here are encouraged to make your own and we may add to the mix.

Adding a larger variety would be awesome!

I know that I asked for the "Team Rob" avatar, but that is honestly the worst picture I have ever seen of Rob..........and there are so many great ones out there to choose from.

And we would need at least two for Colin. One with beard, and one without.

 

[SGVBOB]

For what it's worth...

here's my 2 cents worth.......
Case/point: Keep the Team avatars...it is their way of promoting 'them'....NOTHING wrong with that?

How often do you see a gay man with pussy THAT close to his mouth??? Tee hee!!

That being said, I am in agreement with the members that vote to keep the 'individual' avitars, as they are our identity, per se. Those that WANT/CHOOSE TO change it, should have the choice.

Just my opinion!

 

[SGVBOB]

sorry for the 2nd post...

but I think it shows pride that the models use their Broke Straight Boys/College Dudes, avitars, also p.c., lol. THEIR discretion. My whole thinking behind the "Team" thing, is that which you are showing support for that particular model. Opinions welcome

 

[USARick2]

Keep the Avatars

 

[RayJ3MD]

Sweet Jesus boys and girls (?)....here I sit over sixty; try my best not to let a day go by that I don't read the forum but I guess I must have slept a little too long only to wake up to a great big hoopla over avatars and a school on how to do everything through a succession of movies. Now listen, I kissed 60 goodbye sometime ago so have a little pity. I still have to work to live so by he time I get home, eat, find out if Michele O. has told her husband how to keep the world going for one more day, then it's 20 minutes to get up the stairs, 20 minutes to take the meds, 20 minutes to fire up the cpap machine, 20 minutes to find the lube and at my weight, its twenty minutes to find my penis, then I am ready to check in and watch Bobby who must be in Greece working on their economic dilemma it's been so doggone long since I have seen him; but I have got little fellas that I just love and if there isn't anything to watch I'll check the board only to find that we are talking about AVATARS........well, that was a 20 minute excercise getting Bobby on there and that was when he had hair and he'll be my age before I have sense enough to take him off the little training movies notwithstanding, so please I'll be dead in a few years and if you decide that my picture has to go up there the site will crash and no one will be happy......that being the situation, do you think we could let everything alone for awhile and maybe work on some other areas? just saying.....

 

[rallen1961b]

Now that is funny RayJ3MD I know the feeling. They argue about the stupidest things on here some times.

Sweet Jesus boys and girls (?)....here I sit over sixty; try my best not to let a day go by that I don't read the forum but I guess I must have slept a little too long only to wake up to a great big hoopla over avatars and a school on how to do everything through a succession of movies. Now listen, I kissed 60 goodbye sometime ago so have a little pity. I still have to work to live so by he time I get home, eat, find out if Michele O. has told her husband how to keep the world going for one more day, then it's 20 minutes to get up the stairs, 20 minutes to take the meds, 20 minutes to fire up the cpap machine, 20 minutes to find the lube and at my weight, its twenty minutes to find my penis, then I am ready to check in and watch Bobby who must be in Greece working on their economic dilemma it's been so doggone long since I have seen him; but I have got little fellas that I just love and if there isn't anything to watch I'll check the board only to find that we are talking about AVATARS........well, that was a 20 minute excercise getting Bobby on there and that was when he had hair and he'll be my age before I have sense enough to take him off the little training movies notwithstanding, so please I'll be dead in a few years and if you decide that my picture has to go up there the site will crash and no one will be happy......that being the situation, do you think we could let everything alone for awhile and maybe work on some other areas? just saying.....

 

[JLipps4u]

I have seen the avatars and although I have not been here too often in the last 3 months, I think they are a great idea. I vote to keep them. What's more, I'd like to know how to choose one for my use.
Thanks

 

[mikeyank]

I have seen the avatars and although I have not been here too often in the last 3 months, I think they are a great idea. I vote to keep them. What's more, I'd like to know how to choose one for my use.
Thanks

Look at the "New Member Introductions" section in the "General Chat Forum", and you will find that Scorpio has provided short videos explaining how to navigate some of the technical sides of the forum, including "How to change your avatar".

There are all of the "Team" Avatars available, or we can choose one that is specific to us, as individuals. I had complained that my 61 year old brain was having trouble distinguishing the new members from one another, when many had chosen the same "Team Bobby" or "Team Rob" avatar, so for my own eye-brain coordination purposes, I do prefer individual avatars, but we can still choose one of the pre-fab avatars.

I don't want them to "ban" the team avatars, as I am a huge proponent of individual rights, but I respectfully suggest something that indicates your uniqueness and is easy to identify, at a quick glance. But the option is your's.

 

[another1]

Edit: Fri Sept 23
A compromise which may help:
We will begin to add more avatars to the mix to help with choices if it's voted to keep them; the more options we have the more variety we can hopefully see in the threads. We added the avatars about 6 weeks ago for it being something fun. We saw a few threads about how people thought it was confusing so we needed to know how many like or dislike them.

i love your compromise. everyone wins.