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| Caves of Narshe Forums > News > Caves of Narshe Turns Twenty (Plus One Day) |
| Posted by: Rangers51 1st August 2017 16:27 |
| I'm late by a day! I'm traveling, sorry. Yesterday's scheduled post continues as if nothing every happened... As of 2015, I'd known life with CoN longer than I'd known life without it. That's also true of my wife, but this post isn't about her (sorry, dear!). There are still a handful of members active around the site for which this is also true, of course, but this post isn't about them either. Or me, come to think of it, so I'm a bit off the rails already. What it is about is that, today, Caves of Narshe turns twenty years old. I long ago stopped making posts about CoNniversary every year, just as one tends to stop treating each new birthday as a huge event as they get older. Obviously, though, this is one of those big round numbers, and that makes it special. CoN, the little website that (sometimes) could, has made it through two entire decades of life, and you're here for it - whether you've been a visitor of the site since 1997, or just signed up today, I want to express my gratitude that you're here reading this now. There's only so much I can reiterate about who we are as CoN, and what we did on the way to this milestone, and honestly most of you who have been around for a while have already read up on http://narshe.me/CoNHistory and get plaudits from the audience for creating and maintaining the site. I love looking at our site traffic numbers and seeing that, even after twenty years and the general gulf developing between small communities like ours and the juggernaut social media hubs out there, that we still get lots of people enjoying what we have to offer. And that's why I'm still here, and I hope that the fact that I still enjoy being here and keeping the gears moving is a part of why you're reading this right now and will continue to visit CoN in the future. The last five years might have seemed very slow for CoN in terms of the community and the growth of the site, but it's worth noting that we released coverage for Final Fantasy V on GBA (and mobile devices and Windows, though we didn't know it at the time) right before the site turned fifteen, and the same for Final Fantasy VI not long after. Last year, we rolled out our coverage for Final Fantasy IX, supporting the original release, mobile, and Windows, to boot. And we're still working, same as it ever was - we've got more content upgrades in the works, some new community contests and games, and hopefully even more to come. I'll be updating some plans for those things in the very near future, so watch this space - for now, come back to the forums and post to pick up a limited edition badge for your CoN account, just as we did five years back. Today we're specifically rolling out some updates to the way things display for you, as we tend to do every five years or so. We've refreshed all the themes a little bit with some optimizations, and you'll likely notice that we've refreshed also the logo that we've had for a decade. For those who still use or miss the old themes, Tiddles has gutted many of them and redone them to be faster and more attractive in today's modern browsers, and we've implemented smaller changes throughout as well. �This may not be the most exciting news for those of you among us who are not web developers, sure, but these updates look fantastic and more to the point prove that we're still here and we're still making things better. Further, in an effort to better engage our users on Facebook, http://narshe.me/CoNFacebook entries. So, come celebrate with us at the forums or on social media. We're always here and ready to talk CoN, Final Fantasy, or anything else, and who knows? Maybe we will be for another twenty |
| Posted by: TheEvilEye 1st August 2017 17:07 |
Happy 20th, CoN!!  Quote As of 2015, I'd known life with CoN longer than I'd known life without it. Jeeze, that's a weird thought. I lurked on here before registering so as of this year I've known the site about as long as not knowing it. As other online social circles came and went, this one has consistently remained and been enjoyable all the way through. Here's to many more years to come of fun in chat, on the forums, and whatever else the future holds. |
| Posted by: AltheaValara 1st August 2017 22:34 |
Happy Anniversary! I checked my journal for reference, and I've been lurking here since 2008, when I first played Final Fantasy VII together with a friend, who linked me to the site. CoN is by far my favorite Final Fantasy site: I check it daily, and plan to be around for many years to come. I love it here.  |
| Posted by: Kappa the Imp 2nd August 2017 03:03 |
| Good job, everyone. |
| Posted by: Zidane007nl 2nd August 2017 09:14 |
Happy 20th Anniversary!  I remember starting my Final Fantasy fansite and that I adopted a chocobo from CoN. Those were good times. A toast to more years of CoN! One of the few old and great Final Fantasy sites that still exists. |
| Posted by: Narratorway 2nd August 2017 17:46 |
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| Posted by: Stiltzkin 2nd August 2017 20:43 |
| Huzzah! CoN can almost legally get wasted! Come to think of it, please do a drunk-CoN makeover next year... I've been lurking since 2011, I think, so I'm a little behind everybody else - but it is the only forum I still consistently lurk on, so I think CoN has to get some props there for something. Long may it continue. Bravo fearless leader! (and bravo CoNtributors too)! |
| Posted by: Cefca 2nd August 2017 21:25 |
| Happy birthday CoN and congratulations on running a site that has lasted so long! |
| Posted by: Galsic 2nd August 2017 23:31 |
Happy 20th, CoN  ! R51, your dedication to your first baby is nothing short of amazing  . |
| Posted by: laszlow 3rd August 2017 04:02 |
| Happy anniversary! I've been lurking since I could use the lab computers in high school, and was playing FF V for the first time (probably 2001-ish?). I didn't join until a few years later. I posted so much that I think I'm still among the top five posters by volume on the site. I eventually joined the CoN, but after a few years kinda (rudely) ghosted to focus on other projects. Regardless, CoN was my my first online community and I'll always hold place for it in my heart. |
| Posted by: TrueBOSS 3rd August 2017 05:03 |
| Happy anniversary and thank you for keeping the site up Ranges. I'm glad I found this site when I did and I've always tried to keep an eye on it when able. I too watched as so many fan websites died out over the years but this place kept trucking. Heres to another great year at |
| Posted by: Death Penalty 3rd August 2017 15:19 |
| Happy CoNniversary, all! As always, it remains a pleasure to still be here with you all - a random group of people from all over the place drawn together by a love of a handful of games barely older (or in some cases, not even!) than our site and kept together by a love of hyperlinks (and also Josh, I guess). Here's to shiny rainbow logos! |
| Posted by: Glenn Magus Harvey 4th August 2017 07:37 |
| CoNgratulations! ...okay yeah that was kinda cheesy. Also I guess CoN is ten years and change younger than me. Anyway I definitely like how there's a dedicated community here, and it's pretty chill -- especially compared to the rest of the internet these days. Y'all were the second forum I joined (about 14 years ago) and I think y'all were a good learning experience/role model to me, generally speaking, when it came to forum decency and rules. In any case, I saw the spiffy new 20th anniversary logo and for the first time in forever, I switched from Foolsglade back to Skyglade. I love that logo. |
| Posted by: ILoveMoombas! 4th August 2017 14:27 |
| Happy 20th anniversary! This site and community have been a big help to me when playing games such as FFVII and FFT. Thank you for keeping it running and growing with great content over the years.  |
| Posted by: Glenn Magus Harvey 5th August 2017 19:38 |
| Wait, how do we get the 20th anniversary badge, or is it not made yet? |
| Posted by: Rangers51 5th August 2017 19:59 |
Quote (Glenn Magus Harvey @ 5th August 2017 13:38) Wait, how do we get the 20th anniversary badge, or is it not made yet? The latter. I've been pretty slow since I got back from traveling. Not even sure who gets it yet. |
| Posted by: Spooniest 6th August 2017 02:24 |
| Happy Belated 20th CoN What am I even doing...? I'm playing through FF4 right now, I remember back when I got the DS version, I came here to use the guides and discovered they didn't cover the DS version  So I went to GameFAQs lolMany happy returns! |
| Posted by: Rangers51 7th August 2017 16:07 |
| OK, I have time for more responses now! Quote (Zidane007nl) I remember starting my Final Fantasy fansite and that I adopted a chocobo from CoN. Those were good times. There's a chance that your site is still listed on https://www.cavesofnarshe.com/chocobo/parents.php , then, a page that bizarrely still exists! Quote (Narratorway) http://i.imgur.com/EjJoKlX.jpg I shared this on our social media because it's great. Not enough candles, though, unless I miscounted... Quote (Stiltzkin) Come to think of it, please do a drunk-CoN makeover next year... Well, I mean, there's Foolsglade. Quote (laszlow) I eventually joined the CoN, but after a few years kinda (rudely) ghosted to focus on other projects. Yeah, I'd been meaning to talk to you about that at some point! Shame be upon you.  Quote (GMH) In any case, I saw the spiffy new 20th anniversary logo and for the first time in forever, I switched from Foolsglade back to Skyglade. I love that logo. I can't tell you how happy I am with the new logo. It was the first thing I did in gearing up for the anniversary, and it fell into place shockingly quickly, especially given that I hadn't been doing branding work much recently. At some point I plan to blog about the process over at my personal site. Quote (Spooniest) I remember back when I got the DS version, I came here to use the guides and discovered they didn't cover the DS version And then you remembered that the DS version is similar enough other than, I seem to recall, in the bestiary, that you came back and used it anyway, right? For real, though, maybe someday.Anyway, I wanted to follow up with a couple things - I haven't had time to start up some of the stuff I wanted to roll out right with the anniversary yet, but I do have some prints of the new lovely logo that I can give out. I've got one 8x10", three 5x7", and ten 4x6" ones laying on my desk, with the rainbow anniversary logo set against a black backdrop and printed in a lovely low-gloss finish. If you want one, you're already in the running if you post at the forums during August. If you follow us on Facebook or Twitter, you can also have a chance at winning one by sharing and/or retweeting our content during August, too. We'll draw the winners at random sometime in September, and that's when we'll give out forum badges to everyone who posted in August as well. |
| Posted by: Spooniest 7th August 2017 18:33 |
Quote (Rangers51 @ 7th August 2017 11:07) Quote (Spooniest) I remember back when I got the DS version, I came here to use the guides and discovered they didn't cover the DS version And then you remembered that the DS version is similar enough other than, I seem to recall, in the bestiary, that you came back and used it anyway, right? For real, though, maybe someday. I came back here because GameFAQs was text only and they also are irritating. The augments and stuff weren't really that hard to catch on to.Cheers on 20 years, and here's to 20 more! |
| Posted by: Rangers51 20th August 2017 14:55 |
Quote (Rangers51 @ 7th August 2017 10:07) At some point I plan to blog about the process over at my personal site. And, should you be bored enough to read such things... https://alvies.org/brain/2017/08/project-de...redesign-part-1 |
| Posted by: Glenn Magus Harvey 21st August 2017 04:38 |
| That was enlightening to read, and also I didn't know there had been more wallpapers posted! |
| Posted by: Rangers51 31st August 2017 19:45 |
Quote (Rangers51 @ 7th August 2017 10:07) Anyway, I wanted to follow up with a couple things - I haven't had time to start up some of the stuff I wanted to roll out right with the anniversary yet, but I do have some prints of the new lovely logo that I can give out. I've got one 8x10", three 5x7", and ten 4x6" ones laying on my desk, with the rainbow anniversary logo set against a black backdrop and printed in a lovely low-gloss finish. If you want one, you're already in the running if you post at the forums during August. If you follow us on Facebook or Twitter, you can also have a chance at winning one by sharing and/or retweeting our content during August, too. We'll draw the winners at random sometime in September, and that's when we'll give out forum badges to everyone who posted in August as well. Last day to get in on this! |
| Posted by: Kame 1st September 2017 03:48 |
| Hard to believe it's been 20 years. I remember coming as a lurker all those years ago looking for fanfic. Happy 20th CoN! :con: |
| Posted by: Quad 1st September 2017 04:07 |
| Uhhh...12:07AM on 9/1...did I miss it? |
| Posted by: Rangers51 1st September 2017 14:55 |
Quote (Quad @ 31st August 2017 22:07) Uhhh...12:07AM on 9/1...did I miss it? I took pity on you. But the randomizer said you didn't win anyway. So enjoy your forum badge. And here are our winners! The 8x10 will be going to AltheaValara, the 5x7s to Kane, Laszlow, and @rev_olutions on Twitter, and I'll be giving out five of the 4x6s to: St Khael, Glenn Magus Harvey, The Amazing Genderless Shiva, JTrigger, and Zidane007nl. I'll be reaching out to everyone today and will give a few days for people to check in and respond, and for those who don't want the prizes or are otherwise unreachable, I'll promote new winners accordingly. We've got more stuff coming today as long as work doesn't crush me. Keep an eye out! |
| Posted by: fatman 17th September 2017 15:25 |
| Well done! Very impressive that this place is still going and is active with so many giving up on forums and using social media in recent years. I may not be here much but I hope CoN enjoys another 20 years. Thanks for keeping it going. |
| Posted by: Rangers51 25th September 2017 17:28 |
| Well, I finally got all of the logos shipped out to folks today. Sorry it took so long - in between collecting addresses and my general unwillingness to go to the post office more than once, it took more time than I'd hoped. Please do feel free to send us photos of your prints once you have them in the obvious places of honor in your homes! |
| Posted by: St Khael 30th September 2017 18:04 |
| Haven't had a chance to frame it yet, but my print arrived! Terra is a little excited to show it off. Here she is! Okay so it's only half the costume, but it still counts. Happy birthday CoN! |
| Posted by: AltheaValara 3rd October 2017 18:39 |
| I moved in with my parents almost five years ago now. During all that time, they had never cleaned off the dresser in my room. Well, we got new mattresses this weekend which necessitated cleaning the rooms. And mom finally cleaned off the dresser! Just in time, for my print arrived today and is proudly displayed on the newly clean dresser. Not the best pick - it's just from my Kindle and I was having q hard time getting a clear, not blurry picture. https://flic.kr/p/Y5Fkox by Althea Valara, on Flickr |
| Posted by: Iain Peregrine 6th October 2017 03:37 |
| CoNgrats! Those physical internet artifacts look amazing! |
| Posted by: Perigryn 13th November 2017 03:57 |
| I'm late to the party on this because, well, family and actor life keep me busy! But honestly, though I'm not as frequent as I once was when I found the site like, what, 7 years ago now? (Actually, whomygoodness I just checked, I joined in 2004!?!? It's been 13 years already!? WOW.) Anyhow, I don't get in here as much, but I like to get back in and pop in the odd quip, and I use the guides now and again for replays (as I don't like guiders for my first time through games) and seriously enjoy how thorough and thoughtfully put together they are. I'm eternally grateful for the amount of work the CoN team has continued to pour into this site. I extremely gratified that you sent me one of the logos as it's rad and I look forward to framing it. I'm so pleased I've been able to give back, if meagerly, by helping with the odd bit of editing, and I will always welcome the request to help again! 20 years is a testament to the warmth of the management and community here, as small sites like this really don't stand out so much anymore, and it's wonderful this one still does. Hearing you plan to implement more growth and changes actually excites me, and seeing another music competition tickles me so. Music is one of the biggest parts of the franchise for me, and is a rock for me in my music library and life. I look forward to coming back here, and guiding my daughter(step) here when she inevitably gets into the Final Fantasy series. She's currently attempting to tackle Super Mario RPG at age 7. I mean... good luck? We just played through it together, but she insists on tackling it herself now that she's seen me beat it. So gratifying. Anyhow, enough gushing. Thank you. |
| Posted by: Rangers51 13th November 2017 14:47 |
Quote (Perigryn @ 12th November 2017 21:57) I look forward to coming back here, and guiding my daughter(step) here when she inevitably gets into the Final Fantasy series. She's currently attempting to tackle Super Mario RPG at age 7. I mean... good luck? We just played through it together, but she insists on tackling it herself now that she's seen me beat it. So gratifying. Anyhow, enough gushing. Thank you. Funny you mention that, as we've got this thread going right now: https://www.cavesofnarshe.com/forums/ipb/in...showtopic=17947 But also, feel free to continue gushing after the intermission. |
| Posted by: Perigryn 17th November 2017 06:03 |
| I'm sure the opportunity will present itself. Also, I looking forward to jumping into that thread! |
