=][= SPECIAL PROJECTS - GUIDANCE =][=

[Brother Tyler]

This forum has transitioned from being a place to discuss/develop special projects to being a "bulletin board" of special projects. In this, it is intended to provide visibility of special projects, enabling members to find them without having to perform exhaustive searches.

 

First, it is important to define what a "special project" is. A [normal] project would be something that falls within the realm of normal hobby participation - painting miniatures, collecting armies, playing games, etc. A "special project" is something outside the norm. This includes, but is not limited to, things such as:

• Developing a DIY Chapter
• Developing homegrown rules
• Developing campaigns
• Developing alternate histories
• et cetera

Special projects are generally developed either as individual or group efforts:

 

In an individual effort project, one person holds sole decision-making authority, though other individuals often participate by providing feedback and making recommendations. DIY Chapter creation is a great example of a type of project that is typically an individual effort. Individual effort projects are often conducted in the Blogs, though some individuals may choose to conduct their individual efforts in the Clubs.

 

In a group effort project, while one person typically serves as a project manager, other individuals often have much more involvement. Sometimes, participants develop segments of the project and the project manager provides direction and control, integrating the disparate segments into the whole. Sometimes, participants simply provide feedback and recommendations, with the project manager either arbitrating or using some sort of voting process to make decisions. Ultimately, the project manager determines the methodology to be used. Group effort projects should be conducted in the Clubs.

 

When a special project blog or club is created, the project leader should submit a topic in this forum. The topic title should reflect the name of the project and the body of the announcement should include the URL of the blog or club. In addition, topic content should provide information that allows the staff to add the link to the project to the special project index, helping us to categorize the project to facilitate project searches by members. These announcements will be submitted to the approval queue, where a staff member will review them and approve them for publication, at which point they will become visible to the members of the community. This announcement topic will serve to provide visibility of the topic, allowing members to click the URL as a link to see and participate in the project.

 

Note that it is also perfectly acceptable to post parallel announcements in other (sub)forums if they are relevant. For example, a special project to develop homegrown rules and background for a custom Tyranid Hive Fleet might have an announcement topic both in this forum as well as in the + TYRANIDS + forum. Similarly, a special project to develop rules for a bespoke Orks kill team might have announcements in this forum, the + ORKS + forum, and the + KILL TEAM + forum. Such parallel announcement topics ensure that the project has the appropriate level of visibility and access, while being conducted as either a blog or a club ensures that all work on the project is concentrated in one place, avoiding confusion by having things spread across multiple areas. It is important to note that announcement topics that appear in the Forums won't have as much control in terms of member replies, so project managers will have to review each such topic periodically to ensure that they are taking in all relevant feedback and responding to any questions that may arise outside of the project's actual location. A highly effective method for doing that is to use the Follow function for each announcement topic.

 

Project leaders/participants are also welcome to post replies to the announcement topic when there is a project update. This reply, too, should include the URL to the update. In the case of special projects conducted as blogs, the URL might be to the relevant blog entry. In the case of special projects conducted as clubs, the URL might be to a relevant topic, blog entry, file, or other content in that club. For example, if a project to develop a homegrown codex is completed and the finalized codex is available as either an article or a download (or better yet, both), the link to the article/download could be posted along with an update that the project is now complete. These update announcements, too, will be reviewed and approved by staff members.

 

Tutorials for creating and updating content in the features can be found in the + BOLTER AND CHAINSWORD 101 + forum:

• Blogs
• Clubs (this tutorial is still in development - the link will be provided when the tutorial is published)

 

[Brother Tyler]

Transition Guidance

 

All active (i.e., unarchived) topics in this forum have been locked. The intent is that the project leader will create either a blog or a club for the further conduct of the project. Once that blog or club is created, the project leader should post an announcement topic in this forum. In the case of a special project conducted as a club, the existing topic will be unlocked and moved into that club's discussion forum (if there are multiple forums therein, please identify the desired forum for the topic). In the case of a special project conducted as a blog, the project leader should copy/quote posts in the existing (locked) discussion into one or more blog entries. Once that work is complete, the existing (locked) topic will be merged with the new announcement topic and unlocked.

 

Project leaders of completed special projects are also allowed to create blogs or clubs for their projects, if desired.

 

Projects for which no blog or club is created will be considered inactive and categorized accordingly in the index of special projects.