1500 Members - again

RAF Forum has today reached 1500 members... again. The last milestone reached came on May 20 of this year when we reached 1000 members.

It therefore took us a whopping 5 months to attract 500 members.

The last time RAF reached 1500 members was on February 24, 2008 on RAF Classic (old RAF).

If I haven't personally welcomed our last 500 members-here's to you. Welcome to the Ultimate Animorphs Forum: remember to leave your sanity at the door.

Thanks to Nine Out of Ten Vissers for his donation!

Greatfully, our member Nine out of Ten Vissers has donated. This donation will go a far way as this is domain renewal time.

He will now enjoy the benefits of GOLD Members; which of course includes the very popular D-Lounge.

Thanks again NOOTV!

DYK 27: Did You Know?

That "The Invasion", the first book from the Animorphs Series has sold over 2 million copies?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

Thanks to Duff for his donation!

Longtime member Duff has given us our first donation in over a month. This is to thank him for his contribution.

He will now enjoy the benifits given to donators.

New SMF Mod - notify mod

Here are a few of the perks this new notification mod that we added will provide for the forum:

Users may now effectively 'bump' old topics simply by editing their last post. Double posting is no longer required to revive it.

Users will also receive their usual email for subscribed threads in such an instance.

Enjoy!

RAF Store

That's right, RAFians, the RAF store is now up and running. If you look at the store (http://www.cafepress.com/rafians), there are a few different designs, and there are still more to come. They all feature a unique RAF Logo design, consisting of all the member's names, along with the forum's URL underneath.

Now, if you wish to have a different design, let me know, and I can try and make it so, so you can buy just the exact one you want (or the closest you can get). PM me, or post a suggestion here.

DYK 26: Did You Know?

That Richard's online handle / screen-name was Ani_Head back in 2001 when he created 'Richard's Animorphs'?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

2009 RAFawards!

I (esplin) will start taking nominations for the 2009 RAFawards on October first!
As the end of 2009 is drawing near, I figured now was a great time to start up the awards again. Maybe this year we can be a little more planned and organized eh?

Click the title of the of this blog to suggest new awards and help me get the ball rolling!

New Member Position.

Goom has come up with an awesome solution to the "God Rank Problem." Any member who has or obtains the position of "God," and does not like that position (for whatever reason), now has an option to have it changed! An alternate rank, "Elite," has been created for this situation.

If you wish to change your rank to "Elite" once you have reached 5000 posts, please contact any one of our staff members via PM (such as Richard).

Member Ranks:

• Lurker | 0-9 Posts
  

1 Star - Can't applaud or smite. Allowed 10 personal messages.

• Newbie | 1-9 Posts
  

1 Star - Can't applaud or smite. Allowed 10 personal messages.

• Jr. Member | 10-49 Posts
  

2 Stars - Can applaud or smite. Allowed 50 personal messages & Can attach files.

• Full Member | 50-249 Posts
  

3 Stars - Same as Jr. Member. + Allowed 100 personal messages.

• Sr. Member | 250-499 Posts
  

4 Stars - Same as Full Member + Can edit display name.

• Hero Member | 500-999 Posts
  

5 Stars - Same as Sr. Member

• Jr. Xtreme Member | 1000-1999 Posts
  

6 Stars - Same as Sr. Member

• Xtreme Member | 2000-4999 Posts
  

7 Stars - Same as Sr. Member + Can modify custom title

• God | 5000+ Posts (black color)
  

8 Stars - Same as Xtreme Member + 500 personal messages + Can move & lock own posts.

• Elite | 5000+ Posts (black color) -Alternate to God-
  

8 Stars - Same as God Member

• Donators (position lasts for 1 year)
  

9 Stars - Same as Gods + 1000 personal messages + 10 Karma Points + access to D-Lounge

• Gold Member ($50+ in donations - gold color - lasts forever)
  

10 Stars - Same as Donators + unlimited personal messages + 50 Karma Points

RAF: The Animated Series

One of our members, BlueBoi!!!!, Has created an animated series for RAF!

This original series is based on RAF and its members, it revolves around what the forum would be like if it was a virtual world.

It's very funny and cool, other members are even getting involved with it! So check it out by clicking the title of this blog.

-esplin

DYK 25: Did You Know?

At the time of this authoring (April 6 09), Russell, RAF's most active member posted 13406 times?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

The Opinionated Animorphs Book Guide

A member (poparena) recently joined RAF; shortly after doing so, he posted a thread in the RAF Projects board promoting his project: The Opinionated Animorphs Book Guide.

Here's the premise:

Hopefully about once a week (though I can't promise anything with the way my work schedule is) I'll post a detailed look at an Animorphs book with a healthy dose of analysis and an extremly unhealthy dose of bad jokes.

Source - Richard's Animorphs Forum

Watch the video below, and comment either on the video, or on RAF (here).

DYK 24: Did You Know?

That you have to register for the RAF Chat, even though you registered for the RAF Forum?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

RAF is #3 on bing!

Apparently Google has forsaken us; our new favourite search engine is none other than Microsoft's bing.

When searching for "animorphs", RAF is the third entry; only behind the official Animorphs website, and Wikipedia's Animorphs entry. Not to shabby.

September RAF Party is tomorrow!

Hey guys, remember that the RAF Party for September will be on Saturday (12th of September) and Sunday (13th of September).

That's in the next 5 hours.

Be there!

ATTN: Audiobook Actors

If you are an Actor in the Audiobook project, I'm letting you know that chapters 1-10 of Megamorphs #1 are up and prepared for you to upload your audio files. Go here if you don't remember how to do that. The people at the Audiobook project need these files uploaded so they can start putting together the first couple of chapters.

Also, if you aren't involved in the Audiobooks, but would like to be, and you are willing to commit, please visit this Sub-Forum of the RAFprojects board.

P.S. If you have lost or misplaced your copy of Megamorphs #1, you can download it from the eBooks here.

DYK 23: Did You Know?

The Bored Board only counts to your post count on RAF during RAF Parties?


Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

DYK 22: Did You Know?

That at the time of this post (April 6) there were 816 members on RAF Forum?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

RAFchat Meet and Greet on now!!

The RAFchat Meet and Greet is on Now!! Go there and talk if you are a new or old member!

DYK 21: Did You Know?

That the first post on new RAF was created by Duff on May 30, 2008?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

Are you a New Member?

I am making out this blog post to all the newer members out there (older members are allowed to use this too)! First I would like to Welcome you to RAF! This is the Ultimate Animorphs Forum.

I have composed a short list of helpful things that you may want to look at and/or use and/or do, so here we go!

1. Introductions and Departures Sub-Forum

This is probably the first place you should go if you have recently joined, or just want the other forum members to get to know you better! You make your own thread, talking about yourself and who you are! This is really the only way to make sure that all the members have a chance to get to know you. This is a "Sub-Forum" of the "RAF Social" board.

2. Member Profiles Sub-Forum

After you have created your Introduction, you may want to create a 'Member Profile' for yourself. This is your own topic where you can basically make blog posts, post pictures for the forum, answer questions asked by other RAFians in your thread, and more! This is also a "Sub-Forum" of the "RAF Social" board. NOTE: A good example is Richard's Member Profile.

3. Attend a RAF Chat Meet & Greet

This is a great idea for any member, new or old! A RAF Chat Meet & Greet is basically what i see as sort of "Dinner Party" at which the members of RAF can mingle and talk with other RAFians and get to know everyone better. Held in the RAF Chat, it allows New members to meet Veteran members and vice versa. Also, Richard has shown up on occasion so you can get to know the Creator of RAF a little better.

4. Read the rest of the Animorphs Series

If you haven't finished the series (missing books, pages, etc.), then I would STRONGLY recommend that you DON'T enter the Animorphs Discussions yet. You may ruin the ending for yourself and that isn't fun at all. But have no fear, for the eBooks are here! RAF, the original uploaders of the eBooks, has them available for download here. Best part: they are FREE!! Every Animorphs book (also has the Vegemorph book, a parody) is available for download either as PDF or in a ZIP file.

5. Get involved in a RAF Project

There is no easier way to feel included, than to become involved. RAF has many projects on the go, from recording the Audiobooks, fixing the eBook errors, creating Smilies/Emoticons, creating the Animorphs Graphic Novel, and many more. Go here to see the RAF Projects board and get involved in one!

5. GET OUT AND POST

While we do allow lurkers (and have created a member class for such people), we much prefer posters. There are may topics on RAF spanning a very wide range of subjects, so it's very easy to find something to suit your fancy.


Well I do hope this little guide (that isn't finished I bet, and i'll probably come out with a 2nd Edition in the near future) has helped you figure out what to do next, and if you have any questions, don't be afraid to PM me, and ask me!

- Adam

One More for the Road

Soo... it's 1:42 AM and thus technically Saturday where I am...
...but two timezones west of me, it's only 11:42, so I am redeemed. ;)

This Sunday evening I'll be taking my computer up to my dorm, where it will stay the better part of the year.
There's no telling what speed my internet will run there.

That being said, anybody interested in reading banned and censored books needs to check out this website:
http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/bannedbooksweek/index.cfm

Banned Books Week isn't too far away, and I've found myself reading more and more Bradbury as it approaches (and if you get the reference to him in the title of this post, you win a free hypothetical cookie!!), and I've found a few teen books like "The Libyrinth" by Pearl North that address the subject of bookburning in new and intensely interesting ways.

I wonder how many books you all read have been banned somewhere.
Have you ever enjoyed Harry Potter, The Giver, or Where is Waldo?
Have you sat down with your older relatives to hear about Red Riding Hood?
Maybe Judy Blume, Jane Yolen, Ursula K. LeGuin, and Bruce Coville delighted you as a tyke... but I bet you have no IDEA how much of their art has been removed from libraries for reasons that most free-thinking people would regard as perfectly ridiculous.
To Kill a Mockingbird... required reading at my high school: banned.
Fahrenheit 451... suggested reading at my high school, and addressing bookburning: banned.

It's really a sick irony, but books that defend books are most frequently the books removed from public libraries and recommended reading lists.

Oh, and if you've ever enjoyed Orson Scott Card, Isaac Asimov, Eoin Colfer, Herbie Brennan, J.K. Rowling,
or K.A. Applegate...
...then you are automatically a reader of banned books. Those four authors hold rather an interesting distinction in that somewhere on Earth, every last one of their books written under those names (non-pseudonymous) has been banned.
Sometimes people take it so far that they ignore the genre, plot, and quality of a book, and they want it gone simply because of the name printed on the front.

Why, you may as, is Estelore suddenly championing banned books?
Well, two reasons:
1. I spent these past two summers doing volunteer work at the local library. It's impossible for me not to love those books and the knowledge in them.
2. There is enough stupid in the world. Rather, there is far too MUCH stupid in the world, and by removing books, we are removing chances to lose some of that stupid.

Little Scout Finch in Harper Lee's much-contested classic said it about right:
"Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing."

I don't know about you, but I love breathing. I love reading. Heaven help the fool that tries to take that away from me or the people who feel the same as me about this.

Well, it's late. I wish you all a lovely weekend, sweet dreams, and a superabundance of quality reading materials.

Read on.
-Estelore

Thanks to Ash & Nina for their donations!

Both Ash and Nina's donations went through today. I'd like to use this opportunity to thank them for their contributions toward RAF.


Ash is now a Gold Member, and is just shy of #5 on the Donator leader board.

DYK 20: Did You Know?

That there was a board dedicated just to the Animorphs characters on RAF Classic?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

So Begins the End of the Beginning.

Well, folks, here it is: University season (and just plain school for most of the rest of you).
Thursday next I move into what will be my residence for the duration of the coming year, and Monday after begins my semester.

Also, today my router died twice, and tomorrow I'm away with family for a few days, so my communication before I leave is likely to be not-much-at-all. I should have web at the dormitory, but I make no promises.

So, in the event that I am kept from you overlong:
I love you all. You are wonderful to me, and I cannot thank you enough for it.

Blessings and much fondness to you all,
Estelore

Meet & Greet 2

Tonight is the second Meet & Greet. So Everyone get in the RAF Chat from 8:30 to 10:30 pm EST.

DYK 19: Did You Know?

That Richard's Animorphs (defunct) was created in 2001?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

Thanks to AniDragon for her donation!

Long time I haven't made a donation post. Well thanks to AniDragon, I can finally publicly thank an individual for his/her contribution.

She will now enjoy the benefits GOLD MEMBERS enjoy, which now includes access to the Donator Lounge.

Thanks again AniDragon.

RAF Shortcuts

Because I am lazy, I've created these shortcuts for me (and you) to easily access certain pages on Richard's Animorphs Forum.

animorphsforum.com/animorphs
- Takes you to the Animorphs Board

animorphsforum.com/audiobooks
- Takes you to the Audiobooks Board

animorphsforum.com/classic
- Takes you to RAF Classic

animorphsforum.com/digg
- Digg RAF

animorphsforum.com/everworld
- Takes you to the Everworld Board

animorphsforum.com/facebook
- Takes you to the Facebook Page

animorphsforum.com/gone
- Takes you to the Gone Board

animorphsforum.com/login
- Takes you to the login page

animorphsforum.com/members
- Takes you to the member list

animorphsforum.com/party
- Takes you to the RAF Party main thread

animorphsforum.com/passwordreminder
- Takes you to the password reminder feature

animorphsforum.com/register
- Register with the forum

animorphsforum.com/remnants
- Takes you to the Remnants Board

animorphsforum.com/rules
- Takes you to the Rules thread

animorphsforum.com/social
- Takes you to RAF Social

animorphsforum.com/staff
- Takes you to the Staff list

animorphsforum.com/support
- Takes you to the Support Board

animorphsforum.com/twitter
- Takes you to Richard's twitter page

animorphsforum.com/wap
- Takes you Mobile RAF

RAFrecommended Reading Lists

For those of you not in-the-know regarding my day-to-day life, you might like to know that I move into university on 20 August, a Thursday.
That means that after this post and maybe another one next week, it is very probable that I won't be keeping up with my weekly article segments.
All that being said, I've decided that this penultimate (and possibly last) Friday blog post will be about books, since that's what brought me to RAF in the first place.
Specifically, it will be about the books on my nightstand and overhead shelf. I think of them as my Required Reading, since they've spent the whole summer within arm's reach of my bed.
To you, they are my Recommended Reading. There is not a book on this list that I haven't loved in some way. Some of them aren't for everybody, but here they are, just the same:

Ray Bradbury - R is for Rocket ; S is for Space ; The Martian Chronicles ; Fahrenheit 451
Isaac Asimov - The Martian Way ; Nightfall and Other Stories
Jeffrey Deaver - Twisted
Margo Lanagan - Black Juice ; Red Spikes ; White Time
Voltaire - Candide and The Maid of Orleans (one volume)
Herbie Brennan - Faerie Wars (whole series)
Scott Westerfeld - Peeps ; The Last Days
Marcus Zusak - I am the Messenger
Cornelia Funke - The Thief Lord
Sun Tzu - The Art of War
Jasper Fforde - Thursday Next
Alyson Noel - Evermore ; Blue Moon (it's not vampires, so don't write it off as a Twilight-mimic, even if the plot is a little hard to believe)
Orson Scott Card - Ender's Game/Shadow ; Xenocide/Speaker for the Dead ; Ender in Exile ; Shadow of the Giant ; First Meetings in Ender's Universe
Lois Lowry - The Giver ; Gathering Blue ; Messenger
Natalie Babbitt - Tuck Everlasting
Jane Langton - Fledgling
Mitch Albom - Tuesdays with Morrie
Katherine Paterson - Bridge to Terabithia
Rodman Philbrick - Freak the Mighty
Conrad Richter - A Light in the Forest
Caleb Carr - The Italian Secretary
Caroline B. Cooney - Code Orange
John Barnes - Orbital Resonance

Well, I've made this post too long as it is. Like I said, these books individually aren't for everybody, but trust me: there IS something here, at least one book, for every member of RAF to enjoy.
G'day, my dearlings!

-Estelore

DYK 18: Did You Know?

That there was a Birthday Board on RAF Classic?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

Year 1 With Google Analytics

So our first year with Google Analytics passed on the 14th of July.

Here's the breakdown:



Click to download PDF

Are you an Audiobook actor?

If you have expressed interest in acting in the Animorphs Audiobooks, please check your PM inboxes (click here). Jess, who is helping to restart the project, has sent out an important message!!

If you have any questions regarding the Audiobooks, please talk to Jess, or any of the other project leaders: Mr. Guy 36, Morfowt, and WildWeathel.

I look forward to hearing you all very soon.

-Adam

Sakki Deleted Upon Request

'Sakki De Roxea''s request for their account to be removed has been granted.

Animorphs 2.0? - RUMOR

Very interesting stuff:

Some new info on a rumor we posted a few months back, our source (who still wishes to remain unnamed) says that Scholastic seems to be on board with making an Animorphs 2.0 happen. They supposedly had a recent discussion on how to handle the continuity from 1.0, which is the series we left off at.

Please note that we, at Hirac Delest, don’t post every rumor (or any rumor, for that matter) that is given to us (and there are a LOT), unless we feel that the source is legitimate in some way. Saying that, we’re not posting this as an official announcement either, as no official news has been released by Scholastic to confirm this. More updates from our source on this matter will be posted on Hirac Delest as they come.

Of course none of this has been independently verified.

Source - Hirac Delest

Short and Early this week: RAFmusic exchange

In the time I've been a RAFian, other RAFians have recommended to me much music and many bands for my listening enjoyment.
I feel like paying it forward, so to speak, by making a shortlist of bands that, pre-RAF, I'd not even heard-of. Feel free to do the same in comments, if you like.

Lordi - Awesomesauce on cheese fries in the back of a humvee on the moon. Metal.
Basshunter - this music is HAPPY distilled into longitudinal compressions and rarefactions of air.
Nightwish - I do not have the words for how awesome they are. Symphonic metal.
Ayreon - Coolidge. End of story.
Infected Mushroom - I'm still getting used to the idea... :D
Dredg - twenty-seven kinds of epic, whether it's the album or the live-acoustic version.
Freedom Call - where Triumph and Happy meet and spend the rest of their lives riding off into the sunset. Power metal.

I know many of these may not be to your individual taste, but please don't write off one band just because you disliked another band on this list, because none of these really even fall into the same genres as the others.

Have a happy weekend, dearlings! I'll see you about. :)

-Estelore

DYK 17: Did You Know?

That there was a Harry Potter board on RAF Classic that lasted between 2003 and 2006?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

Know the Secret - Animorphs Game - Full Download

I just realized that the Animorphs Game - Know the Secret that is on RAF Downloads, never got the full direct download treatment in all its 500mb glory.


Here it is - Download Here.

Feel free to visit Hirac Delest.

Just a heads-up to anybody who actually reads me. ;)

Folks, just a little heads-up, school is starting fairly soon for me, and I'm not going to promise that I'll make a blog post every week like I have all summer.
At the very least, I'll keep it up to the end of July, as long as my internet stays functional. :)

*hugs* to all of you lovely RAFians. I hope what's left of the year is seriously great for you.

-Estelore

The Fountain

Digressing from RAF stuff. I just finished watching The Fountain (2006) for the 5th or so time. This time I watched it on HiDef 720p.

For those who like a good visual movie a si-fi movie, a good thought provoking movie, and a love story all bundled into one. I recommend The Fountain.

Here are some more images of the movie below.

DYK 16: Did You Know?

That Richard made 10,000 posts back in 2007?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

RAF Audiobook Project needs you!

The site is pretty much ready for work, but we're missing one piece of the puzzle: everyone who doesn't act!

What we need are:
Timers - These are the people who cut together the multiple parts into one single audio stream.
Directors - You direct. More? Fine. These people will be reviewing the actor's work before sending it to the timers.
Managers - Responsible for directing the "flow of traffic" of various tasks to various roles. I can do some of this to start, but eventually we will need others.

I don't think I missed any jobs, but I might add something if I forget it.

If you can do any of these, post with what job you want, and (if you aren't signed up yet) your username for the site. Weathel will get people signed up when he has the chance, but we can start assigning jobs right away.

Thanks for any help you guys can give.

SEE THREAD - >

Thanks to Russell for his sixth donation!

It's customary to thank those who help out. This is the 6th time we are thanking Russell for his donation.

Twitter in your Profile

That's right folks, the option to put a Twitter username in your profile has been added. Click here and then click on "Forum Profile Information" on the left hand side of the screen. Go halfway down the page and there the box will be.

Remember, you can also put in information for others such as:

• ICQ
• AIM
• MSN
• YIM
• Twitter
• Skype

I look forward to seeing people's tweets! For a list of Twitter usernames, or to post yours, there is this thread.

If you are new to Twitter, here are a few usernames you can follow to get you started.

richardonraf - Richard obviously. He usually uses his tweets to tell us about the forum (problems, etc.)
xeroxedfool - Russell AKA Esplin 9466.
cprailfreak - This is me!

Remember, getting started on Twitter is very easy. But if you have any problems, that thread mentioned above would be the place to ask your questions! So lets get your tweets a-tweetn'!!

-Adam

AlothAssassin Banned

Just letting you all know, the member AlothAssassin has been banned from RAF.

AlothAssassin has been banned for constantly disregarding RAF's rules and its staff members, and repetitively making new accounts to bypass bans.

Make sure to follow the rules.

Harry Potter VI

Hey, RAF!
Well, I'm going to see the new Harry Potter movie tonight with some people, and I'll preface the article by saying that I've only read the third book. Books tend to be better than their movies, so I decided at the beginning of it all to refrain from reading the series until after the movie cycle is complete. This way, I'll be able to appreciate fully the movies as they are, without interference of my opinion of the plot.

For this week's article, I'm going to offer a question for you: If you had never read the books, how do you think you would have received the movies?

Please answer in comments, avoiding spoilers if at all possible. (Yes, I know who dies and who doesn't die in the 6th book. There's no avoiding that knowledge. *chuckle* Just please no intimate gory details, okey?)

All my love to you, dearlings. Have a brilliant weekend!
-Estelore

Thanks to Jess for her 2nd donation!

Noticing a lot of donation blog posts lately? I certainly am, and it's great to see our members contributing.

This time it's Jess (now Kit Cloudkicker) who has given us the single biggest donation yet, who has donated once more.

She will get an additional 50 Karma points.

Thanks Jess!

Thanks to Slushie Man for 3rd donation!

Jeff / Slushie Man has once again donated. This is his third time.

Thanks to Jeff!

Thanks to Adam for his 6th donation!

This is the 6th time you're hearing from me saying thanks to Adam for his donation. Yes, our top donator has yet again ensured that RAF won't shut down any time soon.

Thanks Adam!

Thanks to Kelly for her 5th donation!

With her 5th donation, Kelly has been upgraded to Gold Member, and is now firmly #5 on the donator leader-board.

Thanks Kelly!

DYK 15: Did You Know?

That 453 members from RAF Classic were removed between November 28 2003 and November 7 2007?


Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

Thanks to Claire for her donation!

Thanks to long-time member, and Sr. Staff member Claire for her donation. We know how hard earned it is, and on behalf of everyone on RAF: thank you for contributing!

She will receive an additional 10 karma points and all the other perks donators receive.

Donators & Gold Members

In an overdue move, those who donate have been split into two groups: Donators & Gold Members.

Essentially those who donate:
-less than $50 will fall into the "Donators" category. This position will last for a year.
-more than $49 will fall into the "Gold Member" category. This position lasts forever.

Both groups will also have access to a special board on RAF.

• Donators (position lasts for 1 year)
  

9 Stars - Same as Gods + 1000 personal messages + 10 Karma Points + access to D-Lounge

• Gold Member ($50+ in donations - gold color - lasts forever)
  

10 Stars - Same as Donators + unlimited personal messages + 50 Karma Points

-Member groups / Member positions in detail

REMINDER - RAF Party Tomorrow!

We haven't had a proper RAF Party in months because we keep forgetting. Now we won't!

Come out tomorrow July 11 and party like it's 1999.

Oh, how nice!

I've noticed that lately several of our early-RAFgeneration members have been returning and posting, and that the Animorphs boards are getting a bit more action in recent weeks.
If this is a trend as much as the streak of absences and departures was, then RAF may start seeing more and more old and fairly familiar faces on a regular basis.

Oh, and on another, slightly less pleasant note, a few RAFians who email me regularly are having computer issues (not because of me, ha ha very funny), so if you see somebody pretty much drop off the map, that may be why.

Have a great weekend, everybody! ^_^

-Estelore

DYK 14: Did You Know?

That there was an Animorphs Pictures board on RAF Classic?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

View all your topics - new feature!

SMF doesn't have this option by default, but thanks to Goom, we now have that option. If you want to find all the topics a member created, just visit their profile and click on "Show Topics".

To see yours, click here.

Thanks to Aliciania for her donation!

Again I am here to express thanks to fellow RAFian Aliciania for her donation to RAF.

She will now enjoy the benefits that donators do.

Independence Day approaches!

So... is everybody ready to combat the approaching invasion of 17-mile-long alien spacecraft? I know I am!

I'm curious if anybody remembers the worldwide panic and hype that resulted back when the Will Smith movie "Independence Day" went to theatres. A bunch of people thought that the advertisements were public-service-announcements, and they freaked out severely.
The same thing happened again when "The Day After Tomorrow" (by the same director, just so y'know) came out and everybody saw the Statue of Liberty get taken out by an uber-tsunami.
Now there's this "2012" movie coming out... again, the same director... I'm curious whether or not the same thing is going to happen yet again.

Anyway, I just hope you all are ready with your fighter planes, crazy drunk crop dusters, cigars, and malfunctioning missiles. :)

In the immortal words of Jeff Goldbloom, "Must go faster MUST GO FASTER!!!"

Have a great weekend, folks. To those of you celebrating this American holiday, I hope you stay safe and alien-free. To the rest of you, I hope you find our pyrotechnic antics amusing, at least. ;)

G'day, dearlings!

-Estelore

Thanks to Terenia for her donation!

Here's to Terenia for her donation to RAF. As usual I, and subsequently all members and users of RAF wishes to applaud the efforts of our members in coming forward to contribute (monetarily).

Thanks again!

DYK 13: Did You Know?

That RAF's name changed a number of times; including to Richard's Absolute Forum, RAF: Animorphs Forum, RAF: The Animorphs Forum and Animorphs Forum.com?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

Thanks to Cerulean for his second donation!

Hello again fellow RAFians, I would like to thank Cerulean for his most recent donation. This is actually his second time donating and on behalf of everyone who participates on RAF, I would like to thank him for his contribution.

As usual, he will enjoy an additional +50 karma. It's just a small token of appreciation.

I know it's already been said,

but I think it's worth saying again.

http://animorphsforum.com/forum/index.php/topic,3345.msg221063/topicseen.html#new

Anna is right.

I know, this en't the most fawesome blog post in the history of RAF, but... I think maybe we need to have it on a nice, easy-to-access record the fact that there has been a problem.
This is the sorta' problem that doesn't really get fixed without collective co-operation.

*shrug*
All there is to say has been said.
Have a great weekend, dearlings.

-Estelore

RIP Michael Jackson

My idol just died. RIP.

RAF Spam Police Thread Locked

The RAF Spam Police thread has been officially locked. I'm sure many of you will agree with the decision, but even if you don't I hope you can realise the amount of trouble it was causing on our normally peaceful forum. I assure you the decision was not made lightly.

super_sonic receives temporary ban

The user super_sonic has been given a 3 day ban for inappropriate behaviour (and blatantly sexist comments) shown in the link provided. This isn't something I enjoy doing, as most of our members are very nice people. I truly hope super_sonic learns from his mistake when he returns.

Thanks to Adam for his 5th donation!

Adam has donated again! He will enjoy the additional +50 karma for his donation.

Thanks Adam!

DYK 12: Did You Know?

That the domain animorphsforum.com was registered on April 14 2006, but announced one week later?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

Happy Birthday Goom

It is our friendly staff memeber's birthday today: goom. Not only would I like to wish him a happy birthday, I would like to congratulate him on his promotion to the Sr. Staff.

War! *huh yeah* What is it good for?

...Absolutely nothing!

Folks, if you aren't gonna' start an all-out RAFcivil war over something, then why argue and insult and tick off other people about it? Ice it down. We all love RAF, neh? Let's not start taking sides...

...'cause if we do, I'm gonna' take the winning side, and the losing side is gonna' feel purty foolish and self-righteous about it all, just sayin'. ;)

If you don't know what I'm talking-about, then there's no problem at all, and this isn't even necessary.

I love all you folks; I have zero animosity towards any of you. What I DISLIKE is DISCORD. If everybody is willing to just swallow his/her misplaced pride, kindly shut up, and take a nice healthy chill pill, then there won't BE any problem or discord.

Fair enough, I hope?

Have a great weekend, guys. If I'm not on the forum much, it's probably because my router is being a stinker. :P

-Estelore

DYK 11: Did You Know?

That Richard introduced himself (age included, but later removed) officially on July 24 2003?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

RAF Spamming Protection Police

Made up as a group effort by RAFians, RAF now has an unofficial police force!! Inspired by a comment made by Russell / Esplin 9466, I, Adam have created a task force to help monitor the amount of spam that happens, eliminate it, and help identify spammers. We are currently seeking more members, with positions of high seniority still available. We will hold regular meetings via either Skype or RAFchat. To see our thread, click here.

NOTICE: No staff member or Administrator of RAF has endorsed the use of this police, so our little project may be shut down without notice. Also, the RAFSPP does not have any actual authority or power over any member of RAF. We are merely here to create a sort of "Neighbourhood Watch," as one member has said.

Have you ever noticed...

...the similarity between Animorphs and the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers?

Oh, I'm sure this has been mentioned someplace in the forums, but I think it's worth mentioning again.
Look at all the line-ups:

Billy, the blue techno-dude... Ax, the blue techno-dude.
Kimberly, the spunky blonde with 'fashion sense'... Rachel, the- erm- spunky? *shrug* blonde with fashion sense.
Tommy, the brooding outsider who saves their butts in a nasty fight... Tobias, the brooding outsider who does his own share of butt-saving.
Three other characters (with variable names) who line up nicely with the three remaining Animorphs.
Zordon... Ellimist.
*snicker* Okey, maybe I'm pushing it on that last one, but it's a funny image.

Need I point out the use of the word 'morph'?

Well, there you have some food for thought and vague amusement. Have a lovely weekend, my dearlings!

-Estelore

DYK 10: Did You Know?

That Intrepid is the first, (out of two) fully-fledged female staff of RAF.

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

I was just randomly Googling 'Animorphs', and this is what happened...

http://www.yaledailynews.com/articles/view/28010


O_O;....

I made the thread as a joke, and now this.

I'm sorry, but that's funny. And awesome.

Happy Friday, RAF!

All my love,
Estelore

DYK 9: Did You Know?

That at the time of this post, Google had 335,000 results for Animorphs, and RAF is in the top 10?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

Spoilers = NO, please.

I know Michael Grant's Hunger was just published. I own it. I've read it. Not everyone else has, and I'm going deliberately to keep elements of it out of my fan-fic RAFGone.

Spoilers suck; please let's not ruin the books for everybody else, okey? :D

Sorry for the short blog post. :P Early weekend begins now.


All my love,
Estelore

Thanks to Myitt for her donation!

Longtime member Myitt has joined the growing list of persons contributing to the keep RAF alive fund; also known as donating.

You too can help off-set the cost of running RAF, by clicking here, and paying via PayPal.

Thanks again to Myitt for her donation, she will now enjoy the benefits donators enjoy.

Hunger

The Second book in MG's Gone series: Hunger, is out!! Make sure to pick yourselves up a copy! I'm 3/4 through it, so i'm not done yet! But i'm almost there! haha. It's pretty sweet so far, but i'm not going to ruin it for you guys.

-Adam

DYK 8: Did You Know?

That the advertisements you see on RAF go into paying for RAF's expenses?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

Catching Up

Summer has finally hit, and I think you'll notice more activity on the boards from our recently-busy members. Tyler and I are both posting much more often, for instance, and I've seen a couple other familiar faces pop up in their usual places.

Now that I have time to post, I have some catching up to do on all the conversations I have been missing and all the RPG's and fanfictions in which I'm involved. I also need to get back into RAFchat. I suspect this applies also to the rest of the RAFians who were inactive over the past few months.

It pleases me to see that things are starting to come back to life, showing more names from older generations in the Users Online Now section.
Let's keep up the activity, neh? It's nice. :)

-Estelore

RAFparty Reminder

I'm pretty sure no one forgot this time (seeing as how it's RAF's birthday), but just in case, a little reminder that this weekend is the RAFparty celebrating RAF's sixth (it is sixth, right?) birthday. Hope to see you there.

1 000 Members... all over again.

RAF has yet again reached the 1000 member mark.

Adam, 4th time donating!

Adam has donated again!. He is now firmly #1 on the donator leader-board, and will enjoy the additional +50 karma for his donation.

Thanks Adam!

DYK 7: Did You Know?

That whenever you move a thread you get Karma?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

RAFChat... Again.

I certainly hope that everytime RAF Chat gets unused, that I don't have to make a Blog Post, but today I noticed something pretty annoying. So, I opened up RAF Chat, after noticing that Zero people were online. But i noticed that there were also 17 users online on RAForum. I was like: WTF? Especially since half the people online on RAF, are frequent RAFchat users. Its the WEEKEND people, a time when we should have tons of people on RAFchat. I know that some of you are doing your finals, but some of you are in High School, and i know that in Canada, High School exams aren't until June. I don't know if its the same in the USA. Here, I took a screen shot:

So please people, GO ON RAFCHAT. It's just an extra tab to have on your browser. It's there for a reason, and if people stop using it, it's not going to be useful. I don't want to have to make a post like this, just to remind people that it's there. Ok? Thank you.

-Adam
A.K.A. Ell¡m¡st

Thanks to Jess! for her donation!

It is customary to thank those who contribute by donating, but Jess! deserves a special applaud because she has made the single biggest donation to RAF so far.

As usual, she would enjoy all the privileges given to donators, and that warm feeling inside when you know you've done good.

Again, thanks to Jess! for her contributions to keeping RAF alive and kicking...and rocking!

Take it easy!

Moumentai! Hakuna Matata! No worries, no problem, chillax, peace, take it easy, calm down... there must be a dozen ways of telling people to ice it down, but they never seem to take you seriously when you say it, do they?

Let's all take this opportunity to take it easy. Pause for a few moments of your busy day, and just take a deep breath and enjoy living.

While you're at it, have a gorgeous weekend. :)

-Estelore

Thanks to Slushie Man for his second donation!

Jeff has yet again donated. He now will enjoy an additional +50 karma, and a bump into the top 5 on the donator leaderboard.

Thanks Jeff! 

200000 Posts

Michael Grant in Chicago, and other things he said...

So Michael Grant has stated on his YA Lit blog that he will be in Chicago for a book signing at the end of May. Those of you in the Illinois area should go meet him!! lol. I'm pretty sure he's a nice guy, and maybe K.A. will be there too!! Check out the blog post! (click the name of this post)

DYK 6: Did You Know?

That RAF has a Facebook page?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum

RAFMerchadise

Hey Everyone!!

A few member are making merchandise (t-shirts, to be specific) in this thread. We are coming up with some funny quotes to put on the shirts, and i'm coming up with a logo comprised of members names. One problem though, the names are too long! If you have a shorter version of your name that i can put on it, that would be greatly appreciated!! But i'm trying to make it work with the names i got.

So go to that thread and share your funny quotes/slogans for the Forum!!

-Adam
A.k.a. Ell¡m¡st

HUGE Siggys

Ok, ok, I know, we like to show of our gifs and other images we've created/had made for us.

But when is it enough?

With 3 or 4 images in one signature and after adding some text it creates a huge block of space on the screen.

Creating a rule saying that siggys can only be this big is kinda hard. There is a 3 image/text limit but theres no actual size limit.

So people!

Please judge for yourselves, don't make your siggys so big.

-Esplin

It's almost summer!

If you have already started your summer break, then you're awfully lucky. The rest of us, however, fortunately don't have too long to wait. My summer starts for real in about a week and a half.

Comment and tell us: when do your summers start? What are you planning to do during this time? Sorry, Aussies, I know it's going to winter for you. :P

I'm planning to get my garden started, catch up on some karate practises, read as much as possible, clean up fan-fictions and poetry, RAF it up, spend time with IRL dearlings, and play music. :)

RAF Social - Make your thread you.

In case you didn't get that memo, RAF created boards to accommodate what we term RAF Social.

What is RAF Social you ask? Well it's not only the coolest place to catch up on your RAF Crush, or your favourite RAFian, but it's that place you can share your own life's journeys.

Think of it as your personal RAF Blog, or RAF Twitter, or RAF Facebook.

Each member has the ability to create a personal thread in the Member Profiles board, and chat to others about whatever they like. So if you're having a bad day, just post in your thread how crappy it was, and no doubt other RAFians will offer their shoulder. Or did you just go to Disney Land? Post pictures and share the moments.

Just get to know each other & Make your thread you.

http://animorphsforum.com/social

Thanks to Anna for her donation!

Hey guys, me again.
I just want to thank Anna for her donation! She not only enjoys the perks of donating, but she now enjoys that warm feeling inside when you help out.

Thanks Anna!

RAF's Perceived Strictness - Explained

A member recently expressed that he thought RAF was strict. This is the first time in recent memory that someone has categorized this awesome Animorphs forum as such.

The reason why one of our members got this impression is the recent feature that prevented guests from viewing the forum. Let me preface by saying that many other communities require one to join before you can partake. I won't justify this move by the notion that others do it: so RAF should.

On the other hand the intent to force guests to register was one of a privacy issue, and one of an administrative one also. The latter reason will not be expounded on further, but the outcome of this essentially boils down to a better RAF.

As for the privacy issue, any active RAFian is able to identify with this.

Those who publish private information about themselves on our community do not expect malicious individuals to mine their information and publish it elsewhere, or use it in whatever fashion. As admin, I believe I have a duty to protect, as best as I can, the users of RAF.

Presently guests do not have to register to view certain parts of the forum, but don't expect this to stay in effect perpetually.

The member who is of the opinion that RAF is one of the stricter communities then goes on to mention those banned. Personally, I am not sure who he is referring to, but the few members that have been banned warranted it. I am notoriously lenient. In fact each year the ban list is cleared. Those who have been banned from the forum had to be; again to maintain a civil community.

If anyone requires more information on a specific banned individual, feel free to send me a personal message, or if you prefer emails: richardatanimorphsforum.com.

The final issue raised pertains to the RAF Chat. You have to register again in order to access the chat-room.

At one point in time, registration was not needed. Those who were active during this period know the story behind the enactment of a registration system. Firstly, people begain abusing the open system and started to impersonate popular RAFians. Not cool.

The second reason for registration/ login on the RAF Chat was the cases if trolls, and lurkers. Persons began flaming the chat room, and posting random nonsense. Also, because of the openness of the community, members willingly discussed intimate aspects of their personal lives in the real-time chat environment. Anyone could view these discussions.

Now people (I know I do) generally feel more secure as a result of the more moderated environment. Persons can be banned from the chat room if they are being disruptive or otherwise.

The other reason for the member's frustration with RAF is that your RAF username cannot automatically be used to login to the chat room. Indeed this is undoubtedly an inconvenience. The reason for this is that the chat room is located on an entirely different server. The result of this, is that your forum credentials are not on the RAF Chat server.

While the chat room can point to the forum's server, I have decided not to because if the main/ forum host goes down, then the chat would also go down.

With the way things are currently set up, the forum can stay alive if the chat goes down, and vice versa. Better for you, really.

Chat registration is done in 2 clicks. If anyone has problems getting the email that should activate your account, I would be happy to activate for you.

I hope this post has cleared up some issues regarding our perceived strictness. I also applaud the member who brought up these issues.

How I spend my day...

It's Sunday April 19:

7am: Wake up early to watch the Monte Carlo Masters (tennis). At the moment of returning to consciousness I reach for my phone which is alarming. Disable alarm, checks email, Adsense, Analytics and twitter.
During match:

12pm: turn off malfunctioning computer and listens to the audiobook 'The End of Faith'

2pm: finally finished the book. Back to the computer. I then surf the net reading and watching documentations for my own purposes. At the same time I Facebook, RAF and email.

7pm: a friend comes over. We chat we laugh.

9pm: I leave for some Wendy's (only thing I like that's open)

10pm: at that friends; I watch news and eat.

I lose track of time.

There you have it. That's my Sunday. Not really typical, since it is a weekend.

-------

This was supposed to be published on the day after, but forgot to do so.

DYK 5: Did You Know?

That the Animorphs eBooks that now every Animorphs website has, and thousands of persons have read, began when Dace decided to do some scanning?

Now you do.

Richard's Animorphs Forum - The Ultimate Animorphs Forum