Deck Knight
Blast Off At The Speed Of Light! That's Right!
Approved by DougJustDoug
Policy Review: CAP Cycle Scheduling
One problem we do have, however, is the process flow of the forum itself. The CAP project has grown so large and become so complex that we focus only on the most exciting part of the project (building and testing a new CAP) and leaving everything else to be done at a whim and/or in the background.
Right now our process flow looks like this:
1-2 weeks: TL nominations and selecting the Policy Review Committee.
6-9 weeks: Build a new CAP.
2 weeks: CAP Playtesting
? weeks: Policy Review period.
[Repeat.]
In-between all this activity we try to update the analyses of all the CAP Pokemon with almost no externalized planning. Committed CAP contributors just sort of “do their thing” and we update the CAP Website accordingly.
In order to alleviate this I am proposing two solutions. These can be done either alone or in tandem.
1. “What are we doing?” thread.
This works wonderfully for organizing each issue of The Smog before publication. Many of the CAP regulars are already familiar with how it operates. What we would do is have an active list of every aspect of the forum that needs to be completed, and who is currently assigned to do it, and, if possible, what their expected timeframe is.
Pros:
Gives order to the CAP project and allows us to specify what needs to be changed after the creation of a new CAP.
Allows the ability to distribute work evenly among contributors and keep track of how quickly the analyses are being done.
Keeps forum activity at a good pace instead of the precipitous drop that usually occurs after playtesting ends.
Keeps the CAP community at large aware of activity in the forum.
Cons:
Someone active must create and administrate this thread responsibly. [This includes determining the actual structure of the thread and optimizing it.]
The mere existence of the thread may not actually increase the speed, quality, or quantity of analysis.
There may be possible disputes over what is necessary work. [ex. Updating all 10 CAP Analyses after the introduction of a new CAP]
2. Fixed deadline calendar.
This would establish a thread for the discussion of clear deadlines for each element of the CAP project over a long period of time. It would specifically state what work needed to be accomplished by what time. This would give a timeline to each and every element of every process, right down to the time allotted for polls.
Pros:
Creates a very clear expectation for every aspect of the project.
Assists in defining the proper time needed between CAP projects to get in Policy Review and Analysis materials.
Reduces reliance on a single member to be the catalyst for each new project or policy.
Places potential limits even on the topic leader to get everything done in a timely manner.
Keeps forum activity at a good pace instead of the precipitous drop that usually occurs after playtesting ends.
Keeps the CAP community at large aware of activity in the forum.
Cons:
Requires an immense amount of up-front work to build a working schedule.
Extremely rigid and inflexible, making it difficult to assign actual dates to more fluid parts of the process.
Places potential limits even on the topic leader to get everything done in a potentially arbitrary manner.
Policy Review: CAP Cycle Scheduling
In the Create-A-Pokemon Project we’ve managed to crystallize or change a number of policies regarding the creation of CAP Pokemon. We’ve got that process down to a science at this point, where now we discuss ever more specific changes to remove flaws in either direction or execution. The strong topic leader model, more specified concepts aimed at answering specific questions, and less ambiguous stat categorization are all examples of this.If you are not an experienced member of the CAP community, it is strongly recommended that you do not post in this thread.
This thread is intended to contain intelligent discussion and commentary by experienced members of the CAP project regarding CAP policy, process, and rules. As such, the content of this thread will be moderated more strictly than other threads on the forum. The posting rules for Policy Review threads are contained here.
One problem we do have, however, is the process flow of the forum itself. The CAP project has grown so large and become so complex that we focus only on the most exciting part of the project (building and testing a new CAP) and leaving everything else to be done at a whim and/or in the background.
Right now our process flow looks like this:
1-2 weeks: TL nominations and selecting the Policy Review Committee.
6-9 weeks: Build a new CAP.
2 weeks: CAP Playtesting
? weeks: Policy Review period.
[Repeat.]
In-between all this activity we try to update the analyses of all the CAP Pokemon with almost no externalized planning. Committed CAP contributors just sort of “do their thing” and we update the CAP Website accordingly.
In order to alleviate this I am proposing two solutions. These can be done either alone or in tandem.
1. “What are we doing?” thread.
This works wonderfully for organizing each issue of The Smog before publication. Many of the CAP regulars are already familiar with how it operates. What we would do is have an active list of every aspect of the forum that needs to be completed, and who is currently assigned to do it, and, if possible, what their expected timeframe is.
Pros:
Gives order to the CAP project and allows us to specify what needs to be changed after the creation of a new CAP.
Allows the ability to distribute work evenly among contributors and keep track of how quickly the analyses are being done.
Keeps forum activity at a good pace instead of the precipitous drop that usually occurs after playtesting ends.
Keeps the CAP community at large aware of activity in the forum.
Cons:
Someone active must create and administrate this thread responsibly. [This includes determining the actual structure of the thread and optimizing it.]
The mere existence of the thread may not actually increase the speed, quality, or quantity of analysis.
There may be possible disputes over what is necessary work. [ex. Updating all 10 CAP Analyses after the introduction of a new CAP]
2. Fixed deadline calendar.
This would establish a thread for the discussion of clear deadlines for each element of the CAP project over a long period of time. It would specifically state what work needed to be accomplished by what time. This would give a timeline to each and every element of every process, right down to the time allotted for polls.
Pros:
Creates a very clear expectation for every aspect of the project.
Assists in defining the proper time needed between CAP projects to get in Policy Review and Analysis materials.
Reduces reliance on a single member to be the catalyst for each new project or policy.
Places potential limits even on the topic leader to get everything done in a timely manner.
Keeps forum activity at a good pace instead of the precipitous drop that usually occurs after playtesting ends.
Keeps the CAP community at large aware of activity in the forum.
Cons:
Requires an immense amount of up-front work to build a working schedule.
Extremely rigid and inflexible, making it difficult to assign actual dates to more fluid parts of the process.
Places potential limits even on the topic leader to get everything done in a potentially arbitrary manner.