Middle Earth Ranger Forum

Awhile back, we discussed the different forms of Rangering that folks were interested in, and Caedmon was kind enough to generate some logos to help us differentiate the pages on the wiki as they developed so that people would know when something was strictly historical, Tolkien-accurate, or based on Ranger's Apprentice or the Emberverse.

We're about two years into this Wiki project, and, frankly...there are darned close to Zero pages that reflect any information on the Ranger's Apprentice books or the Emberverse. The wiki has grown, and the content gets better all the time (as does the content on this forum), so I'm led to wonder...is there anyone that is still interested specifically in pursuing an Araluen or Emberverse Ranger persona to the point where they would develop information/research to post to the wiki? I have no interest in the subjects beyond casual enjoyment of the books, and given the direction that so many kits are headed (being more and more Tolkien- and historically-accurate), I wonder how the general populous of the forum would feel about having the references to Araluen and the Emberverse removed from the wiki.

I, personally, feel that they just don't really serve a purpose in being there, and look a little odd being on a page that so strongly gives off the Middle-Earth vibe...but that's just my two cents. Anyone else?

Hmmmm... It's a valid question, for sure, but as for me, I'm a man who likes options. In other words, I feel like, they're not really hurting anything being there other than maybe adding a little bit of what one might call "clutter" to the page. Still, having them there gives people the option of pursuing those topics and adding content to the wiki based on those pursuits, if they so desire. I daresay there are a few people still hanging around the forums who are more exclusively interested in the RA universe, and rather than taking away their option to contribute to the wiki, I would instead say let's encourage them to do so. But really, in the end, I doubt those sections will ever actually be used much, so if you're inclined to take them down, I suppose you can.

Otherwise, if you felt so inclined, I suppose you could combine the Ranger's Apprentice and Emberverse sections into one big "Miscellaneous" section - basically anything that doesn't fit directly into Tolkien or historical impressions.

Manveruon wrote:Otherwise, if you felt so inclined, I suppose you could combine the Ranger's Apprentice and Emberverse sections into one big "Miscellaneous" section - basically anything that doesn't fit directly into Tolkien or historical impressions.

I was thinking something along those lines, too. Maybe have a section for other interpretations of rangers and take the RA/Emberverse stuff off of the main page.

Any other thoughts/opinions? I agree that I don't want to take away from what some others might find important...but so far, no one seems to have found it important, so I'm wondering at its purpose. Valid points, both of you. Ultimately, I'd like Jack's opinion on the matter before I do anything, since it's his site, after all.

I've never read the Ranger's Apprentice or Emberverse stories. Not that much interested in it.

Yeah, I'd like to know how much of a demand there really is for these other properties...we get little enough traffic as it is, even with Tolkien becoming pretty mainstream for the last decade-and-a-half.
Less on the front page (eliminating clutter) would be fine with me, but I could settle for a 'non-Tolkien, non-historical' section off to the side.

I'm not too interested in Ranger's Apprentice, and I've never even heard of the Emberverse until I heard about it here. I wouldn't be opposed to putting those two on the back burner for a while, but I really think the front page and existing topics should really be touched up some, as well as filled out. It just feels a little...messy, I suppose. And there are some topics with empty sections...clothing/garb as an example.

The clothing/garb section has always kind-of been Caedmon's baby, though I'm not sure why you say it's empty. Even so, I'm planning to add some of my recent research on Jerkins and Surcotes to the mix in that department.

As for sub-topic-ing the RA and Emberverse stuff, I'm starting to see a bit of a consensus. I'll knock around a few ideas in my head, shoot jack an email or two, and we'll see what we can't put together. As for other empty pages...there's a long way to go before we start seeing this look like a complete database...Tolkien's works are extensive, which makes wiki editing exhaustive (though well worth the effort!) Anything you'd like to add, feel free to do so if you're already signed on, or shoot me your information/post it on the forum, and we'll start filling in the holes!

I suppose incomplete would be a better term than empty. What's there is good, but there are things like the underwear and leg section that aren't really filled out. Like we all probably know what winningas are, but people just starting might not. And I didn't know Caedmon was working on it himself.

I'll see if I can come up with a couple things. Chances are I'll have something ready for the food section pretty soon, assuming it comes out right.

After a good deal of comm silence from Caedmon, I went ahead and did what I said I wouldn't, and I removed the off-topic sections from the frontpage. Once the material & cultural database is more fleshed out and we have the blank edges of our map filled in, so to speak (ie. no red links on the main page), we could re-open the discussion of including those topics, or we'll decide we don't need them.

Either way, got some serious frontpage clean-up/re-organization done, so the most pertinent information is closer to the top, easier to find, and not so hard on the eyes. There's still lots of holes to be filled...if you have something you want to add but you aren't signed up to work on the wiki, pm me and we'll talk about getting your content posted.