Approved User Spotlight Series

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Skitty

i dont care if i ever come down♪
is a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
I mentioned in the staff chat when this was first announced that I'd be interested in doing a user spotlight series, which would recognize non-staff members for their contributions to PS. SteelEdges mentioned that he'd like something like this too, so he could do a co-op with me or something. I already have some users in mind and we could to multiple users each issue, (2 or 3) to make sure that an issue isnt just about one user and to make sure that everyone who should be recognized has a chance, too.

It would include:

-basic things about them (where they're from, how they found PS, what they like to do in their free time, etc)

-and then most importantly, their contributions to PS, and why they were chosen to be in this.
 

Enguarde

I only play ADV UU
is a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
I don't think i'd find this interesting at all if they weren't extremely prominent (admin, leader etc) or my personal friend. An article should appeal to everyone really in my opinion.
 

Skitty

i dont care if i ever come down♪
is a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
I don't think i'd find this interesting at all if they weren't extremely prominent (admin, leader etc) or my personal friend. An article should appeal to everyone really in my opinion.
It's not for leaders and admins, it's for voices or regular users so they can get some recognition because global staff members aren't the only people who contribute to this site. I don't really see how this wouldn't appeal to everyone, because regular users/voices would love to see if they made it into the user spotlight, or to see if anyone they know did. It also helps everyone to get to know some users on the site.
 

Enguarde

I only play ADV UU
is a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
Yeah I know its not for leaders and admins, but an article given out tot he public should be interesting, I don't want to read about someone i've never heard of who has helped done a few things in a room. i'd want to read about admins, people who really stand out or about a room itself. It shouldn't be written so as to give the voiced a pat on the back, thats what the + is for.
 
I'd rather the user spotlight be for a notable contributor or upper staff member. I doubt this article would gain much interest otherwise. You can go do user spotlights where you focus on multiple contributors, but I doubt just one PS voice would be enough for an article. Would you be OK with either of those Skitty?
 

Redew

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Tbh I don't think it's a huge deal. The Smog's got the Arterview along with the general interview.

But ya I see where you're coming from.
 

Skitty

i dont care if i ever come down♪
is a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
I'd rather the user spotlight be for a notable contributor or upper staff member. I doubt this article would gain much interest otherwise. You can go do user spotlights where you focus on multiple contributors, but I doubt just one PS voice would be enough for an article. Would you be OK with either of those Skitty?
Yes, I was originally going to do a few users, and SteelEdges might do one or two as well.
 

Skitty

i dont care if i ever come down♪
is a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
It's been a while, and I was wondering if we could possibly revisit this? It would feature 2-3 users per article, an explanation of their contributions to the sim (whether it be policy, room work, technical work, art, etc), and then a little bit about them. It would in a subjective way and not like an interview at all. Users would also be able to submit ideas of who they think they should be featured, but it wouldn't be as a poll or anything so we dont have to worry about troll suggestions like kernsy or rohep or whoever being picked. I think that a lot of people would read it to see if anyone they knew was featured, and because it's interactive in the sense that they get to submit ideas for who will be in the next article.
 
A few things:

Who exactly is eligible for this? Is it going to be Room Owners, room staff, who, exactly? This needs to be outlined, even if this seems obvious at first. I'd rather read about Room Owners who have gone above and beyond their call of duty for a room, something like that. Even room staff that do this; either way, it has be someone at least notable and not some random global voice.

That being said, I can see this being the user-version of the Staff interview polls, in which an individual is picked and then it would be explained why they were picked and what they did to deserve it, things of that nature, as you've already outlined. However...

There is something Vacate pointed out a long time ago that sticks out to me:

Not as many people care about random ROs either.
See, we release articles if we know for certain that there's an interest in the userbase for it, or if it's relevant to the PS! userbase in some form or fashion. It's pretty much the foundation and basis behind The Player, after all, and if not many people care about random ROs (or any other peeps that are non-global) being interviewed (or even featured), then there wouldn't be a point in publishing something like this, seeing as it wouldn't generate much interest, despite the relevance.

I'm also going to tag Antemortem and Scene here for further input, if necessary. This seems difficult to gauge for me because in my eyes, it's easier for a regular user to become curious about global auth and what they do and who they really are, then it is to discern whether or not our readers care about ROs they've never really heard of before, or any other random for that matter. Global staff are pretty recognizable figures, which is understandable in why we have staff interview polls. For a series like this, it would have to push out something special (apologies for poor wording) to make the readership care, which is my primarily concern above all else.

tl;dr who is eligible, how would this exactly be formatted in a way that users would be able to submit suggestions and how would you go about with it in a way that people would care/how would it generate interest?
 

Skitty

i dont care if i ever come down♪
is a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
Well, in my eyes, the main group of people who read the player are people who frequent at least one room and know some people, or found it from smogon. I don't think many people who only come here to battle and do nothing else really read the player that much. That being said, I think that the people who would be interested in this article would be users who want to see if somebody they know has been featured, and just to learn more about people on PS. Just being a random RO wouldn't make you eligible, like I said, they would have to contribute in some way to PS. Some ways would be maybe doing things like room interventions like SteelEdges, fixing and making a lot of the cool new battle animations we have like Ascriptmaster, or doing a lot of cool room work in multiple rooms like Crestfall. Also, This will not be an interview. There will be some info about the user besides their contributions and stuff, but it's definitely not an interview. I think it'll generate a lot of interest because people will want to see if somebody they know has been featured, such as their favorite mod from lobby, the person who implemented the cool new XY sprites, or the RO that they love from the room that they go to the most. I'll explain how people can submit suggestions in the introduction of the article, they can PM me here on smogon or on PS with who they want to submit and why. I have really high hopes for this and I don't see why it would have any less interest than most of the articles submitted.
 
Well, in my eyes, the main group of people who read the player are people who frequent at least one room and know some people, or found it from smogon. I don't think many people who only come here to battle and do nothing else really read the player that much.
For the record, I'd refrain from making assumptions about how many views that we have if you don't have any supporting evidence for said assumptions. Furthermore, I'm not sure what bolded statement has to do with your proposal. Either explain further, or just refrain from making large claims like that, period.

That being said, I think that the people who would be interested in this article would be users who want to see if somebody they know has been featured, and just to learn more about people on PS. Just being a random RO wouldn't make you eligible, like I said, they would have to contribute in some way to PS. Some ways would be maybe doing things like room interventions like SteelEdges, fixing and making a lot of the cool new battle animations we have like Ascriptmaster, or doing a lot of cool room work in multiple rooms like Crestfall.
I understand that the examples you've provided are global staff members, but the thing about it is, we already have staff interviews for said users. If we wanted to go further, then it could be said in the introduction what makes Steeledges/Crestfall/Ascript/any other user so important. Also, to what extent would they have contributed to PS in order to merit a nomination, or to be featured in the User Spotlight? This is something I'm genuinely curious about. If you can outline the specific pre-requisites (of course, there will always be some subjectivity to this, but objective requirements are preferred) so we can understand what kind of users would quality for this, then that'd be appreciated.

edit: if possible, then I'd rather global staff not qualify for this since we already showcase them enough in Staff interviews.

Also, This will not be an interview. There will be some info about the user besides their contributions and stuff, but it's definitely not an interview. I think it'll generate a lot of interest because people will want to see if somebody they know has been featured, such as their favorite mod from lobby, the person who implemented the cool new XY sprites, or the RO that they love from the room that they go to the most. I'll explain how people can submit suggestions in the introduction of the article, they can PM me here on smogon or on PS with who they want to submit and why. I have really high hopes for this and I don't see why it would have any less interest than most of the articles submitted.
I realize this is not an interview. I already imagine it in this format (albeit, this is made rather hastily, but whatever)

Introduction
Hello users, and welcome to the first edition to of the User Spotlight series! I'm shaymin, and I'm here to present to you something that might pique your interest. You see, previously (and even currently), global staff members of Pokemon Showdown! have been nominated for interviews, and chosen based on user vote. But what if things changed this time around? The very purpose of this article is exactly that! What I'm saying is, this is more or less about the users for the users. The User Spotlight Series will highlight one user (preferably more than one user as it gives you more content to write about) that has contributed significantly to the sim, and exactly why they've been chosen for the spotlight.

At any rate, let's begin, shall we? But wait! ...I must highlight a few important things first before I get into the meat and bones of this article.

So, how do I make it into User Spotlight?
This is a question that I can definitely foresee more people asking, and while the explanation is pretty simple, the execution of such is actually a lot harder. It's really the clearest example of "easier said than done" that I can illustrate. Anyway, to be featured in the User Spotlight, you must contribute significantly to PS, or otherwise be a very noteworthy user. This means contributing in terms of sprites, artwork, or other such areas, or be a huge policy figure in multiple rooms (or a very note-able one) (pre-reqs to be actually decided and that's what I'm concerned about. If you are too stringent, it is likely that you won't get many entries) The requirements are rather strict, but they're very do-able and not in any sense impossible. If users feel like you deserve a mention in the User Spotlight Article, they are free to send a PM to (insert user(s) here. Honestly, I'd prefer this to be Player staff to ensure maximum objectivity as well as activity with this article; if any other user were to be chosen and they fall off the face of the earth or whatever, then this project stops in its tracks which would not be beneficial in the slightest. If we still get requests from this, at least we can re-assign it)! You can also nominate a user who you yourself feel deserves a mention here, and it will be determined by x if said nominee would deserve a place in this article.

So, in other words, contribute as much as you can to PS! and, who knows, maybe YOU will be the next user in our User Spotlight!

So who are the wonderful people in this month's User Spotlight?

Glad you asked! Without further ado, who are the individuals who stood out to x as a user that should be featured? Well...

(insert user here)!
(short description of why they're chosen, and what they do for PS!)
(closing, have a transitioning sentence here to lead into the next person)

(insert user here)!
(rinse, repeat)

Conclusion
(thank users for their time, etc, kind of add a few extra points here, things like that. Any last minute material not covered by any of the previous paragraphs should definitely be mentioned here).


Comments are in bold as well as italics. If you can iron out the details, that'd be awesome.
 
Last edited:

Goddess Briyella

Banned deucer.
Hi there.

I agree with many of the points made here in regards to what is a good idea and what is a bad idea for this. I agree that this should have as little content overlap with staff interviews as possible; we don't want to defeat the purpose of that by having people get a spotlight outside of that series. However, if this series aims to highlight users who contribute to the server in significant ways, it cannot be denied that many of Showdown's strongest and most prominent contributors are global staff. While I am totally against the idea of all of the users being highlighted by this idea being members of global staff, I don't think having one or two will hurt. There is a significant enough difference between interviewing a user (which often branches off into their personal life, hobbies, how they found Smogon, etc) and bringing light to what they contribute. For instance, I wouldn't be bothered by Slayer95 being mentioned here for his excellent coding and programming work, or Ascriptmaster being brought up here for his technical know-how and recent additions of move animations (though in separate installments).

It's to my understanding that this project is to include 3 or 4 users or so per article, and just because one of those happens to have global auth, I do not think they should automatically be thrown out. I'd be fine with one global staff member at most being mentioned via this project. Please take my thoughts into consideration.
 
Goddess Briyella

I understand a lot of what you're saying, and it makes sense (which is why I made the format that I did earlier, actually! It's so there would be more of a difference). I'm still kind of iff-y on global staff participating, but overall, I see what you mean, and it wouldn't particularly hurt in the long run. To further ensure that the idea is following through the concept of featuring regular users, I also agree with it mentioning at least one global staff at most per article, with the rest being regular users. However, the problem at large is finding users who contribute significantly to the sim, but aren't global staff. I feel these users are generally far and few between to come across unless you're willing to consider ROs who contribute a lot to PS! via how they manage their rooms, which to be honest (and as I already said in staffchan), would severely diminish interest if this were to be the case, so there's that.

The qualifications for appearing as a featured user/in the User Spotlight has to be high enough that people would want to get to know this user and what kind of contributions they would make to the sim as a whole, but not too high as to be nearly impossible for anyone who isn't global staff to attain, which is a fair conundrum.
 

Skitty

i dont care if i ever come down♪
is a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
For the record, I'd refrain from making assumptions about how many views that we have if you don't have any supporting evidence for said assumptions. Furthermore, I'm not sure what bolded statement has to do with your proposal. Either explain further, or just refrain from making large claims like that, period.
Not sure where confusion could arise from that statement, but this article wouldn't really be relevant to people who only come on PS to battle, and since one of your concerns is that this article might not have enough interest or be relevant to people, I said that I think that not many people who only come on PS to battle read The Player. It isn't really a claim, it's my opinion about what demographic I think reads The Player, and what that has to do with the relevancy of my article suggestion.



I understand that the examples you've provided are global staff members, but the thing about it is, we already have staff interviews for said users. If we wanted to go further, then it could be said in the introduction what makes Steeledges/Crestfall/Ascript/any other user so important. Also, to what extent would they have contributed to PS in order to merit a nomination, or to be featured in the User Spotlight? This is something I'm genuinely curious about. If you can outline the specific pre-requisites (of course, there will always be some subjectivity to this, but objective requirements are preferred) so we can understand what kind of users would quality for this, then that'd be appreciated.

edit: if possible, then I'd rather global staff not quality for this since we already showcase them enough in Staff interviews.
Being worried about it overlapping with the staff interviews is a valid concern, but since most of the big contributors to PS are global staff members, how do you guys feel about it being 1 staff member (at most) per article? I'm probably going to have like 3 users featured per issue, and I feel that this is a good compromise since we want to focus on the contributions of non global staff members, but also focus on some of the big recent contributors (which may be a global staff member)

I guess I can try to make a list of some of the ways people could be eligible to be featured:
-Being a lead policy force of a large room or contributing to policy in multiple rooms (For example, Shgeldz might be eligible for all of his work in WiFi, or Blue Kitteh might be eligible for being a driving policy and moderation force in many rooms such as Writing, RP, etc
-Contributing art/sprites etc (For example, princessofmusic might be eligible because of her work with the sprite project, or Ascriptmaster might be eligible because of all of his useful animation fixes
-Contributing largely to PS moderation (For example, sparkychild or Trickster might be eligible because of the countless hours they have spent chatting with users and keeping the lobby in check)
Those are just some examples, but really anybody who works hard to make PS a better place and who deserves to be recognized for it.



I realize this is not an interview. I already imagine it in this format (albeit, this is made rather hastily, but whatever)

Introduction
Hello users, and welcome to the first edition to of the User Spotlight series! I'm shaymin, and I'm here to present to you something that might pique your interest. You see, previously (and even currently), global staff members of Pokemon Showdown! have been nominated for interviews, and chosen based on user vote. But what if things changed this time around? The very purpose of this article is exactly that! What I'm saying is, this is more or less about the users for the users. The User Spotlight Series will highlight one user (preferably more than one user as it gives you more content to write about) that has contributed significantly to the sim, and exactly why they've been chosen for the spotlight.

At any rate, let's begin, shall we? But wait! ...I must highlight a few important things first before I get into the meat and bones of this article.

So, how do I make it into User Spotlight?
This is a question that I can definitely foresee more people asking, and while the explanation is pretty simple, the execution of such is actually a lot harder. It's really the clearest example of "easier said than done" that I can illustrate. Anyway, to be featured in the User Spotlight, you must contribute significantly to PS, or otherwise be a very noteworthy user. This means contributing in terms of sprites, artwork, or other such areas, or be a huge policy figure in multiple rooms (or a very note-able one) (pre-reqs to be actually decided and that's what I'm concerned about. If you are too stringent, it is likely that you won't get many entries) The requirements are rather strict, but they're very do-able and not in any sense impossible. If users feel like you deserve a mention in the User Spotlight Article, they are free to send a PM to (insert user(s) here. Honestly, I'd prefer this to be Player staff to ensure maximum objectivity as well as activity with this article; if any other user were to be chosen and they fall off the face of the earth or whatever, then this project stops in its tracks which would not be beneficial in the slightest. If we still get requests from this, at least we can re-assign it)! You can also nominate a user who you yourself feel deserves a mention here, and it will be determined by x if said nominee would deserve a place in this article.

So, in other words, contribute as much as you can to PS! and, who knows, maybe YOU will be the next user in our User Spotlight!

So who are the wonderful people in this month's User Spotlight?

Glad you asked! Without further ado, who are the individuals who stood out to x as a user that should be featured? Well...

(insert user here)!
(short description of why they're chosen, and what they do for PS!)
(closing, have a transitioning sentence here to lead into the next person)

(insert user here)!
(rinse, repeat)

Conclusion
(thank users for their time, etc, kind of add a few extra points here, things like that. Any last minute material not covered by any of the previous paragraphs should definitely be mentioned here).


Comments are in bold as well as italics. If you can iron out the details, that'd be awesome.
The format you gave is pretty much how it would be set up. I'm fine with player staff being the people who you could PM, but I'd really prefer if I would also be on the list of people to PM because I'm definitely going to keep up to date with these things and the series itself, and unless you guys were planning on assigning someone else to write this (don't see why you would), it would be easier to know who is being suggested and for what.
 

Goddess Briyella

Banned deucer.
If there's any problem with overlap here, it's the fact that so many notable users fall into the category of global Showdown staff member and awesome contributor to Showdown.
 

antemortem

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This is another one of those things that I need to see in practice before I can make a judgement regarding its effectiveness. I like the idea that three to four users would be highlighted per article - throwing in a global staff member (preferably a Driver? no specific reason, just seems fitting to me) occasionally, limit 1, and proceed with whatever format you have in mind as far as the actual article is concerned. I'm thinking that if you have the opportunity to create a Kiln thread with examples of what users you would choose as well as the criteria and reasons you chose them and kind of scripted what the article would look like, it'd be far easier for all of us. If it doesn't work out at that point or we're not convinced that it'll be as effective in practice as it is on paper, we'll just scrap it.

But no sense in not giving it a shot now in the chance that it'll actually work out splendid.

tl;dr I want you to go for it. scene and the rest of us can give comment and thoughts once the project's gotten going. like I said if there's catches, we'll identify them and if they can't be rectified, we'll just scrap it - all the respect for at least giving it a try in the first place.
 
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