"Delete" and/or "block" certain events

[Vhale]

Perhaps another option would be to allow people to give themselves flowers. I'd still feel like I was getting a sweet gift from the artists and people could pick which ones they liked.

I wasn't aware we were paying the artists for their work. It looks suspiciously giftish to me. /squints

[angelicdragonpuppy]

But the point still stands. The event is about giving to others, not buying yourself a bouquet.

What if whenever you gifted someone a flower, you got a copy of that flower for yourself as well...?

[Pokemonfan13]

But then if you had a plan for your vase you'd only be able to give what you wanted. So if you were only collecting irises you'd never be able to help someone who was only collecting roses.

[skauble]

But then if you had a plan for your vase you'd only be able to give what you wanted.  So if you were only collecting irises you'd never be able to help someone who was only collecting roses.

Well, no, but you could offset that by helping all the folks saying that they're looking for irises. I'm not saying that I necessarily support the idea, just that I've seen so much demand for pretty much every flower that I think that people who only collect one kind would still be able to find enough people to gift during the week event.

[Fuzzbucket]

As I said further up - the vase never appears until you click on a link connected with the event. So - just don't ! If you are one of the people here who doesn't like certain events - if you see something like that on your scroll around "OMG I might not want this" seasons, come over here (anyone discussing this comes here, so the children barred from forums are not an issue - and see if you like the idea of the event. If you don't - don't click those links. Simples.

 

What I WOULD like to know, though, is if after the event the link to "you have a flower" goes away, as that WOULD then mean you had managed to totally opt out - I have sent a flower to someone who hasn't been here and they have no vase as yet. In a week or so, I shall check, as they will not be back here till March...

[Sannois]

WOW I have never heard so many people complain about something so unimportant! IT IS A GAME PEOPLE! Get over it! TJ does amazing things to keep this game running, it is HUGE! And here is a bunch of selfish winey people complaining about pictures of flowers on the internet. WOW, just WOW!

If this is the worst thing you have to worry about you are ahead of the game. Seriously get over it, I am embarrassed that people would be this petty.

[skauble]

WOW I have never heard so many people complain about something so unimportant! IT IS A GAME PEOPLE!  Get over it!  TJ does amazing things to keep this game running, it is HUGE!  And here is a bunch of selfish winey people complaining about pictures of flowers on the internet.  WOW, just WOW!

  If this is the worst thing you have to worry about you are ahead of the game.  Seriously get over it, I am embarrassed that people would be this petty. 

Or, another way of looking at it might be that for every one person that shares a complaint, a certain amount of people most likely feel the same way but won't say anything. And that can be meaningful because, yes, it is a game but it's also a business.

 

Don't get me wrong, that doesn't make this an overwhelmingly important issue, but if it's something that was easily addressed the customer good will might be more than enough to compensate for a minimal amount of effort. Either way, I would guess that it's probably more helpful, in the long run, if people tended to over share problems and so we all sometimes end up discussing things that aren't all that important, than that people feel too self-conscious or intimidated to share and then we lose out on addressing real concerns. Because really, at the end of the day, nothing has to be done about this, so I'm not sure where the discussion is damaging anything.

 

That being said, to the OP, so if there was an in cave announcement, would a little box at the bottom that said "I'd rather not participate" be satisfactory? That way everyone was opted in, but the option to opt out would be available with the event explanation.

 

Because the badges don't show up for people who aren't around for the event, so it might not be too difficult just to add those opting out into that category.

[Xythus]

The way I feel about DC is that I love the open community; everyone - for the most part - is very accepting of other people's ideas and opinions, and TJ and mods allow us to be very free of what we want to suggest. However, sometimes there are just things that don't need to be changed, like this. I am speechless as to how anyone could be offended by such a harmless event! Valentines day is supposed to be a day of giving, kindness, love. etc. but most importantly, done out of good intentions. I really doubt anyone gave you flowers you don't like just because, but because they just wanted to send a flower to a person because it would be a kind thing to do! It would be great if you could suggest an alternative idea of a valentines day event, instead of just saying how awful the current one is. Besides giving candy, cards and flowers to people, what else is more appropriate for Vday?

 

I fell very ill right on Valentines day, and actually almost did not make it to get the new dragons. I just logged on to get some, and logged off. A day later, I log back in and I finally noticed the vase on my scroll. I clicked it, and lo and behold, I already had at least 20 flowers in there! And wouldn't you know, the majority of them were blue (my least favorite color of flowers). In fact, I have a blue plumeria right in front of my vase, and I'm not too fond of it. But after a few minutes of thinking, I knew the people who sent me them did not intend to give me something I didn't like, but rather, just wanted to send me something this valentines day. So I did not get to control what flowers I got either, even before I logged on!

 

If the people who prepared and worked hard contributing to these events had to sidestep to think about things that may offend a small population of the people, then it would really impede on getting anything done. People will always be unhappy about some thing or another as you can't satisfy everybody.

 

Lastly, to be frank, out of 14 badges, how often do people visit theirs or visits someone else's badges? I won't speak for anyone else, but I never ever revisit event pages after the event. People don't visit someone else's scroll and go "Hey, lets see how much eggs or treats this dude got!", no, generally they go to scrolls to look at dragons and eggs.

 

[Getura]

I guess an option to delete some of those would be nice. I personaly HATE the pink color, even more when it is about flowers. So every time that I see new PINK flower appear in my vase, I want just grab it and toss it somewhere far. I like branches, and it would be lovely if I could keep only red and white of them.

[HeatherMarie]

*sigh* It's not about "it's just a game!". It's not about "a day of giving" and "good intentions". It's not about "how often do you really look at those badges".

 

That's NOT what this suggestion is about. Honestly, I'm fairly shocked at all the negativity towards such a simple suggestion. Users acting like this suggestion is soooo horrible because it's not a big deal, it's supposed to be fun, it's just a game, etc etc. What the heck?

 

As I said before, I'm not criticizing the event, or the flowers. In fact, I specifically mentioned that I *like* some of the flowers. All I'm saying is that maybe in the future, for those users who don't want to participate in this type of event, there could be a SIMPLE, EASY opt-out.

 

That being said, to the OP, so if there was an in cave announcement, would a little box at the bottom that said "I'd rather not participate" be satisfactory? That way everyone was opted in, but the option to opt out would be available with the event explanation.

 

This would be perfect. And simple. And I honestly don't see what all the fuss is about when it comes to a simple suggestion to add a simple opt-out option.

[angelicdragonpuppy]

That's NOT what this suggestion is about. Honestly, I'm fairly shocked at all the negativity towards such a simple suggestion. Users acting like this suggestion is soooo horrible because it's not a big deal, it's supposed to be fun, it's just a game, etc etc. What the heck?

I think it's not the suggestion so much as it's the negative mood that came with it. The first person who proposed a variant of this (over in help, I think?) came off as a real grump and kind of created the association that people who want to opt out of the event are all meanie sourfaces. Which isn't true, of course, but I can see why it colored people's reactions and has led to a lot of knee-jerk "no" responses.

 

Personally I wouldn't mind an opt-out option, so long as it was reversible (in the event that someone accidentally hit opt out when they wanted to participate). That being said, I think an easier (and more fun for everyone) option would be to simply be able to hide certain parts of an event as you please. For example, certain flowers or trick or treats or Easter eggs. It'd let people who disliked certain parts (or all parts) hide or ignore those they disliked, and it'd also let those who DO enjoy the events have more control and customization abilities.

[RainDear]

*sigh* It's not about "it's just a game!". It's not about "a day of giving" and "good intentions". It's not about "how often do you really look at those badges".

 

That's NOT what this suggestion is about. Honestly, I'm fairly shocked at all the negativity towards such a simple suggestion. Users acting like this suggestion is soooo horrible because it's not a big deal, it's supposed to be fun, it's just a game, etc etc. What the heck?

 

As I said before, I'm not criticizing the event, or the flowers. In fact, I specifically mentioned that I *like* some of the flowers. All I'm saying is that maybe in the future, for those users who don't want to participate in this type of event, there could be a SIMPLE, EASY opt-out.

 

 

 

This would be perfect. And simple. And I honestly don't see what all the fuss is about when it comes to a simple suggestion to add a simple opt-out option.

No, that is not all you said. If you had just said, "Maybe we could have an "OPT OUT" button for events." there would not be all this negative discussion. If you really think that's all you said, I suggest you reread the Original Post.

[angelicdragonpuppy]

I'm going to second Raindear that your first post DOES come off rather aggressively, which is not what people like to see when they're for the most part just randomly throwing flowers at people to be friendly. Try rehashing the first post and then adding a poll...? Although at this point moods might be set already, heh.

[HeatherMarie]

First post has been edited. I have a love/hate thing with polls, so I hesitate to add one right now. (And I really am sorry if I came off aggressively. I think, at that point, I was sort of feeding off that first thread, which had a negative tone).

[RainDear]

Thank you for making those changes.

 

The first post made me feel like I had been stomping all over others' scrolls in hobnail boots, stomping eggs, leaving muddy bootprints, and drowning dragons and their owners in unwanted flowers, which made me unhappy and defensive.

 

I have no objection to people who would prefer to not participate in events having a way to say "no thanks". It seems fair to me. It would also mean that those who are having fun would get more cards, flowers, or whatever member gift is offered, because they wouldn't be going to those who didn't want them in the first place.

[skauble]

I have no objection to people who would prefer to not participate in events having a way to say "no thanks". It seems fair to me. It would also mean that those who are having fun would get more cards, flowers, or whatever member gift is offered, because they wouldn't be going to those who didn't want them in the first place.

That's an excellent point, probably one of the best I've heard.

 

I agree with a lot of the people here that this probably wouldn't be used by a large amount of players. But I do know that there are some people who, for whatever reason, don't care for certain holidays. If it isn't hard to give them an opt out then it's nice for them and, as raindear pointed out, a bonus for those who participate because a. there's more flowers/cards/etc. for those who are participating, and b. no one has to worry that their random gift went to someone who wasn't/didn't want to take part.

 

And I know that there will probably be more people posting that it's not a big deal, and I agree that it's probably not, but if it isn't difficult to set up then it's not really a big deal if it's there, either. I don't think that people might use the option because they want to be insulting or mean, it's just a personal choice and I don't really think that it's something they need to be ashamed of. My grandmother died the day after Thanksgiving, and I certainly didn't want to have much to do with that holiday for the next few years. Who knows why someone might not care for something? Opting-out does absolutely zero to detract from those who participate so, IMO, it's more about whether or not it's too much hassle to set up as opposed to it being about something people do or don't deserve.

[Kishing]

Opt out seems like a reasonable feature for these events. A lot of people might not like or celebrate certain holidays, and they're well within their rights not to, for any reason!

 

I was surprised to see this thread at all though, really, because this event by its very nature isn't about designing a floral arrangement, per se. A lot of DC events relate to the spirit of holiday traditions - the Christmas ones involve artistic decoration, while the Halloween one involves Trick-or-Treating (which is always random, right? I mean, when you were a kid you got what people gave you), and the Valentine events follow a similar random theme to real life Valentines. Sure, maybe someone sends you a bouquet or card and it's your least favorite color, or sends you chocolate when they don't know you're allergic to dairy. Ideally the people who care for you will give you what you want, but if not I think you (general you; I certainly do) still appreciate the sentiment!

 

It's kind of gifters to pay attention to what you want, of course. After people's vases started filling up I did check their existing flowers and their posts to make sure the flowers would be welcome... but of course in the beginning I sent flowers I liked to everyone I'd traded or PMed with recently. Seeing this thread, I worry that some of those may have been taken the wrong way.

 

Sorry for the tl;dr, but for me it's about balancing the positive benefits with the negative. Is it worth hurting the feelings of a newbie or an online friend/friendly acquaintance in order to have your vase exactly the way you'd like it? We have full freedom with our scrolls, the Xmas events, our cave settings - I just don't feel the need to have control over the kindly-intentioned gifts people send me, too, and unwanted flowers can be covered up by the awesome people here at the forum if need be. (On that note, Slaskia, I sent you a couple pink and purple flowers just now! If there's anything else you'd prefer do let me know.)

 

Edit: By the way, not addressing you directly with most of that, Marie19R! I see that the suggestion's a good one; I just have issues with any implementation other than opt out entirely.

Edited February 17, 2013 by Kishing

[purpledragonclaw]

I'll throw in my agreement for an opt-out feature. I love these events but I know not everyone feels the same way, and giving them the choice to not participate is fair.

 

 

[Shalarean]

I think I see where you are coming from. While I think these events are rather interesting, I completely agree that an opt-out doesn't seem like it would be too hard to work in, and it really doesn't seem like it's an idea that would cause a lot of extra effort.

 

While I do not believe I would use this feature, I support it none-the-less. Everyone should have the right to choose whether or not they do or do not participate in events.

 

Some people are on here simply for the dragons. My sister is one of them. And the more "events" that occur, the less she accesses her scroll, because she doesn't want to do the events, she just wants to collect the dragons.

 

I love the events, they give me something to do on here, in-between the releases. LOL. But, yeah, it'd be nice if they were optional.

[Sannois]

Adding to the opinions to Opt Out! Seems a fair and easy solution for folks that were unhappy with their flowers!

[Fuzzbucket]

Some people are on here simply for the dragons. My sister is one of them. And the more "events" that occur, the less she accesses her scroll, because she doesn't want to do the events, she just wants to collect the dragons.

Well, just to play devil's advocate here - no-one has to DO anything about any event. She can carry on dragoning and ignore it, even as flowers arrive or whatever.

 

Actively participating isn't the same as just having things thrown at your scroll, which you can ignore if you like.

 

I'm glad I wasn't an artist for this event, though - I might be very depressed by now. I am having a whale of a time, myself

[skauble]

I'm glad I wasn't an artist for this event, though - I might be very depressed by now. I am having a whale of a time, myself

I don't think that the artists should feel bad about the original suggestion of the thread. That was really just a general event related request. That's nothing about the art, and more about how people feel about events or holidays overall.

 

I actually think Valentine's Day is a good example for this because the strong romantic aspect of the holiday can leave people who are having relationship issues - whether the don't have one, they do and it's in trouble, they did and it went bad, or they just feel the crush of societal (and possibly familial lol) pressure about it - can cause some, often temporary, loathing of the holiday. I'm inclined to like anything that involves so much chocolate, but not everyone is as easily ruled by their sweet tooth.

 

I just think that a total opt-out has more to do with feelings about holidays and events as opposed to what is produced for them.

[cerimonster]

I don't think that the artists should feel bad about the original suggestion of the thread. That was really just a general event related request. That's nothing about the art, and more about how people feel about events or holidays overall.

 

I actually think Valentine's Day is a good example for this because the strong romantic aspect of the holiday can leave people who are having relationship issues - whether the don't have one, they do and it's in trouble, they did and it went bad, or they just feel the crush of societal (and possibly familial lol) pressure about it - can cause some, often temporary, loathing of the holiday. I'm inclined to like anything that involves so much chocolate, but not everyone is as easily ruled by their sweet tooth.

 

I just think that a total opt-out has more to do with feelings about holidays and events as opposed to what is produced for them.

This!

 

I mean I personally would be overulled by my sweet tooth too.. But there are people out there who, while they love the artwork, simply don't want to participate for various reasons, not to mention those who simply think it's a silly hallmark holiday >.>