Guild of Writers

Nadnerb wrote:Excuse me while I sap all the lols out of the previous post.

In the normal usage of the word, HAX are generally modifications to the game that are not accepted by the publisher or the community, and are usually used for cheating of some kind. Mods, on the other hand, are either entirely new games created by modifying an existing game, or additional features to an existing game that are accepted by the community or publisher... In this case, whether the GoW produces HAX or Mods is a bit fuzzy, since they're generally accepted by (much of) the community, but not yet by the publisher.

Well, err... Modding isn't really defined by acceptance. =P Nor, truly, is it defined by "cheating" =P As their are "mods" for Bethesda games that are usually listed as "cheat and god items" =)

The definition varies. In FPS games, where there are competitive things, and traditional MMOs, like WoW, and other semi-mmo games, like GuildWars (I define it as an MMO, but, many contest that definition). They're called "Hacks". However, Bethesda games tend to be single player.

So, I would suggest the difference lies in breaking the competitive balance of the game, not necessarily "cheating or not cheating", nor acceptance within the community, nor the acceptance of the publisher.

In Uru, we do not have these competitive balances, or where we do (heek, and pellet points), they're not important enough, nor a core feature of the game, such that actually altering them even matters. Not that I don't think there'd be an outcry if a random Age gave someone 99999999999 (or some other ridiculous value), pellet points, or gave them the highest rank in heek, those could, perhaps, be called "hacks", but new ages, and even modifications to Cyan's age, that are typically benign, are, correctly, Mods.

In other communities, Tool Development is usually called that "tool development" rather "Mods" (Perhaps modding tools/modding tool development), even in communities that call most things "Mods".

Perhaps this definition is something we can look at. =)

EDIT: I should clarify, in the "competitive games" like FPSs, and traditional MMOs, I'm referring to changes that break the competitive balance. (the "cheats and god items" kinda thing =P)

Nadnerb wrote:

Aloys wrote:However we can choose to use a different name.

And whatever word we choose will eventually come to be associated with "hacking" and the connotations will follow it.

First we call "retarded" people "mentally challenged", then "special people", and each one of those has eventually acquired the same connotations as the original. It is this kind of avoiding the accurate term to be politically correct that pollutes language and distributes bad connotations to strange places.

I agree, but in our specific community, using the word hacking is really the one thing to avoid. It is late to do that, maybe even too late, but to keep on using that word will certainly not help us.. We should do what we can to enhance our image.

I think we should go all the way and just call outselves Witches, will save a lot of trouble.

Tweek wrote:I think we should go all the way and just call outselves Witches, will save a lot of trouble.

I prefer Spawns of Satan. It looks better on a resume.

It all boils down to that anyone here is going to use the term they are most comfortable with. We can't enforce an official term, so we shouldn't bother trying to figure one out.

Hacker, modder, coder, developer, god, devil, lint sorter, or whatever you feel like calling yourself, I say go for it. As long as we can continue to build our stuff for Uru, who cares what the community at large thinks of the term we use to describe what we do.

The community cares, and that's often the effect you rail against. If you choose (individually) a benevolent and positive term, you'll have to behave and represent yourselves that way or you'll be liars. If you choose a name for yourselves that can confuse, confront, or is sarcastic or fecetious, you'll remove the requirement to elevate your behavior, be part of the community and communicate well. If you don't like the community, you can choose to be witches and behave however you want to behave. You'll have all the freedom you want except the freedom to complain the community doesn't like you. In other words, chosing a word like "developer" won't demean "developer." It will demand the associated behavior or you demean youselves. In other, other words, people tend to live up or down to the terms applied to them or give to themselves.

JWPlatt wrote:You'll have all the freedom you want except the freedom to complain the community doesn't like you.

Oh, I'm pretty certain we would have that freedom too ;)

I know why I hate marketing...

And whatever word we choose will eventually come to be associated with "hacking" and the connotations will follow it.

First we call "retarded" people "mentally challenged", then "special people", and each one of those has eventually acquired the same connotations as the original. It is this kind of avoiding the accurate term to be politically correct that pollutes language and distributes bad connotations to strange places.

Could be me saying that. Political correctness is just changing words, hiding the facts that can't be changed or that those that could do not want to change.
But I'm getting off topic...

It all boils down to that anyone here is going to use the term they are most comfortable with.

I completely agree. I doubt a re-naming would help, and I doubt it would happen. Heck, even Cyan used the term "hacking" in their forum policy update.

Tweek wrote:I think we should go all the way and just call outselves Witches, will save a lot of trouble.

No flashlights allowed at the GOMR...

diafero wrote:Heck, even Cyan used the term "hacking" in their forum policy update.

Then way don't we change our name so that those rules don't apply?

Well, for one thing, that wouldn't make any sense. We're not named the "Guild of Hacking" to begin with and the new rules don't mention "Writing" (or "Redacted", for that matter), so our name doesn't need changing.