Preaching for pennies.

Written in response to the final episode of All Your History: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dN3VqWJQIZg

End of a great YouTube series on gaming history. And now to share my own thoughts about the show.

1. I know the various people who were a part of the show still have ties to Machinima but to say that the the number of people who disliked the change in the show’s direction is a minority is a HUGE understatement. This is the only time I’ve ever seen an unpopular change in a YouTube series/channel result in:

• repeated downvotes (almost outnumbering the upvotes on a weekly basis which is unheard of),
• endless negative comments (deserved or not and oftentimes removed by Machinima even when comments were informative about the change in the show’s style),
• and a large enough drop in viewership (subscriber count + the effect of poorly liked shows on YouTube which will effect the parent channel) that a series was actually cancelled.

So let me make this clear. I have no negative feeling towards any of the show creators (even Chris Lockey), but saying the dislikes were a minority is being dishonest. Sure it may be a technical minority (< 50%) but it clearly was > 40% due to the like counts and comment ratio (and estimated drop in subscribers), but this group of fans deserve to be labelled as an important part of the viewership. Hell for all you know, the other 60% may be a 30/30 split between positive and neutral making the “minority” an actual majority. So don’t play the PR game and call those viewers a minority. Minorities do not get shows cancelled.

2. As a representative of the quiet masses who were willing to let Season 5 cook for a while before returning, I gotta say that yes, we noticed the change in Season 4. The main reason why many didn’t speak up about the slight change in style was because we saw it as a positive change and it did not deviate from the spirit of the show. As Brian & Brian combo even said, they mostly kept to the same style even though they made a few changes. It is human nature to be quiet and not speak up when changes aren’t bad.

Season 5, on the other hand, did not take a gradual approach. It made a huge change in style from the start which was bad for several reasons. Many of them are actually terrible business decisions so I’m not sure how those changes were approved.

1. Abrupt change with very little lead in will always generate harsh feedback. Unless you’ve tested your changes against focus groups to make sure they are actually positive in the long run, it is a terrible business idea to make such large changes at once. Examples? See any fucking big change to a website, TV Show, comic, etc. EVER. You use Facebook, right? Remember all those times they made huge changes to their UI, privacy settings, etc. and the negative feedbad that caused? Yeah, that is what you should expect. The difference between All Your History Season 5 and Facebook? Facebook does a shit load of testing and even does a small beta rollout to random users over time to fix things before going all out.
2. To cut staff down to one person and expect them to maintain quality is simply a poor business decision. It reeks of cost cutting and greed. The quality of every aspect of the show is guaranteed to go down by doing this so I’m not sure how Machinima expected the show to keep subscribers going into Season 5.
3. If you cut staff, it is generally a safe business decision to stick to the tried and true until changes stabilize. So telling Lockey to go with his style from the start is again, a terrible business decision. Example? I’ve been in 2 companies that downsized. During periods where we downsized, we put any huge features involving major changes to our product were delayed just so we could make sure we can maintain the same quality of our current product. It’s just safe business practice.
4. The changes to the show were across the board – intro, narrator, writing, show content/focus, and production style. If you are going to change everything, you might as well change the title too because that is all that is left of the spirit of the show. This is essentially a new series at this point so using the name “All Your History” is a pretty goddamn poor business decision. You are telling your fanbase to expect one thing while providing a completely different product. NOT SMART BUSINESS!

Seriously, I 100% bet that if Machinima allowed Brian & Brian to continue the show using whatever hypothetical changes they wanted to make, the change in narrator to Chris Lockey would not have been all that negative. In fact, since those two proved they understand the audience, I bet their changes would have worked out in the long run and have had a better chance at increasing viewership (clearly the goal of Machinima). So I’m very curious to hear from Machinima why those two were not allowed to execute their vision for Season 5.

3. I can tell that some of the people previously involved with making All Your History did not agree with the changes either. Of course, their responses are going to be politically safe and not bash the show outright but your feelings show in your responses when taken as a whole. It’s not my place to tell you how to answer questions, but I will say this, “Thank you for putting your heart and soul into the show.”

Bet you didn’t expect that right? Seriously, thank you guys for making the show. Anyone asking you guys to come back are being selfish. Hell, Chris Lockey probably isn’t that bad a guy and even I most likely fall on the “dislike” him side of his polarizing personality. However, it’s not his fault. If there is anyone to blame, I put the blame solely on Machinima for making poor business decisions that anyone with half a brain could tell would lead to the death of the show. So fuck you Machinima!

4. As a response to mainy of the YouTube commenters who are angry at seeing the show end – guess what? Ending the show was the goal of the negative fanbase. After the first few episodes, the responses illicited from Lockey and Talbert, and the realization that the changes were here to stay, negative fans decided that taking the dog out back and shooting it was the most humane thing to do. And that is why the dislikes and negative comments kept rolling in. No one is sorry that the show was cancelled. That was the goal. If you are going to be angry at anyone, be angry at Machinima for all the reasons I stated above. The show was primed for failure and that is what happened.

5. Lastly, I’d like to point out a key “draw in” factor about the show that the creators, crew, YouTube commenters, and really everyone missed. I haven’t seen a single person post this yet. As much as the style, informative nature of the show, narration, and quality were important to the show’s success, there is one other factor that drew in AND kept the current audience. Nostalgia. This is a show about gaming history. One of the things viewers of our type enjoy is reliving games from our past, learning things we didn’t know about them, and hearing about what the legacy of those games ended up being. Current games are simply not going to be as interesting to watch in a documentary as games from the past because nostalgia hasn’t built up and you aren’t going to be able to draw any good conclusions about the legacy of those games.

The fact that no one has brought this up in the final two episodes is a bit disappointing. It makes me think that everyone avoided pointing this out because it would show how big a fuck up Season 5 was because the shift in style ignored this very important “draw in” factor about the series. It is why the style from Season 1-4 was so successful. Keeping an old school feel was essential to providing the type of atmosphere that made viewers feel like they were reliving their past. I feel like this change was something one or two people were itching to say but didn’t for PR reasons (and I’m ok with that). But I feel like this really needs to be said and should be something for the clueless business people at Machinima to think about.

For my final farewell to All Your History, I’ll say one last thing:

“Thank you for being the most informative gaming history show I’ve ever watched. It is rare for a show to be both entertaining and enlightening but you managed to stick to fulfilling those two principles for 4 full seasons. That is amazing and this series will be sorely missed.”

DE rewrites fail due to many obvious reasons – bugs, new workflow, new paradigm, etc. But one of the less obvious failures is that a mature DE has had time to implement features and fixes for various corner cases. Things that effect maybe 1% of your userbase. When DEs go through a rewrite or complete redesign, a lot of those features are tossed aside and labeled as something to be worked on later. GNOME 3 has so far failed at addressing this. Instead they are relying on their Extensions framework as a way to try and rectify corner cases. This is poor, no actually, completely irresponsible design on their part. And this is why.

Corner cases are by definition a problem that effects very few users. The chances of a user within that small percentage being able to design, code, and maintain a solution for a particular use case is so infinitesimally small that it isn’t a proper solution. Then you add in the fact that GNOME 3 hasn’t found a way to not break extensions at each update and you get a 1% of users that cannot function using your DE.

Ok, so 1% is small. No biggie. This is a stupid way of thinking. You have to remember that there are various, sometimes overlapping, groups of 1% corner cases that cannot use your DE. All of these tiny groups add up to a very large percentage of inconvenienced users. Hence why GNOME Shell gets so much flak. You piss off every vocal minority group and offer no help to resolve their issues. Even going to far as to claim some are invalid (shutdown option debacle). These situations can be handled much better (Cinnamon is doing a great job of acknowledging concerns and Unity is at least better at this than GNOME, though not perfect) and until they are, I think GNOME Shell will eventually cause so much fragmentation in Linux DEs that Linux will never be able to catch up to Microsoft or even Apple in popularity. With Steam on Linux coming out soon, we have an opportunity to grain ground in the desktop space but with so many flat out idiots running crucial projects in Linux, I’m afraid we will blow out chance to maximize this opportunity.

Here’s to hoping one of the following groups pulls off a miracle during this crucial 1 year time frame – Canonical with Unity, Linux Mint with Cinnamon, anyone with KDE, and elementary with Pantheon. These are the people I’m pinning my hopes on (and I say this as an XFCE/Compiz user). I hope one of them manages to catch up to GNOME 2′s feature set and overall polish/simplicity this year. If not, Linux will forever remain a non-factor in desktop computing.

I started working for a terrible boss about 3 months ago and have since asked to be transferred to a different department.  Unfortunately, the move has not happened yet and as each day passes, she’s making my life more and more miserable.  Her creativity in how to be a bitch is actually rather impressive.  In a moment of utter frustration (and fantasy), I drafted my resignation letter to the CEO while laughing maniacally inside.  Now if I only had the balls to eat instant ramen for 3 months straight while I looked for another job.  Letter below for you enjoyment.

Dear Mr. XXX,

You obviously don’t know me but I have been working here at XXX for the past 2 years and have decided that if I must go, I might as well go spectacularly.  That is, in part, a reason for this letter.  The larger issue that I hope you will take to heart is how employees are treated here under your stewardship.  I do not write this intending to burn bridges, but if they must burn, then so be it.

Overall, I think that XXX has been a relatively nice place of employment.  It has its flaws, but what organization doesn’t?  And for the most part, my time here has been an enjoyable one.  I have met and worked with a lot of wonderful and talented people, many of whom I can now consider close friends.  However, in the past couple of months I have worked under a certain manager who has had the impressive skill of making me reconsider my life’s course.

I am in no way a hasty or emotional person.  In fact, I think most people would say that I’m almost devoid of that particular side of humanity.   Thus, it is with the utmost mental clarity that I tell you that she might possible be the worst person I have ever had the unfortunate fate of meeting in a workplace environment.

She insults my intelligence, my person, and my work.  She has deleted my work in front of me and told me to my face that what I spent time on was worthless and that she needed to do everything herself.  Yes, my work was subpar, but is it any wonder with such a toxic manager abusing her authority?  I have given it a thorough reflection and have come to the conclusion that I do not have the mental fortitude to withstand her incessant attacks and my work suffered greatly under her “guidance.”  But the reason for this letter is not to give you a detailed account of the sling and arrows I endured.  That would take too long and be too reminiscent of a historical account of the inquisition.  Nor is it my goal to inform you that just as my predecessor before me, so too do I wave the white flag of surrender in the face of such daunting bitchery.

Mine is a nobler goal in hoping that you can change this organization for the better so that you can retain people like me.  I think I have a lot of talent and I believe I can give a lot to the organization.  Everything in my history, including my Ivy League pedigree, attests to this fact.  I did not want to leave, but the structure of the company did not allow me to stay.

Once I realized that I could not handle the abuse, I very quickly asked for a transfer out.  There was no place for me within my division so I looked elsewhere.  Unfortunately, and idiotically, a transfer to another division required a sign off with an endorsement from my current manager.  Talk about not making sense.  Any and all doors close when the hiring managers in the other buildings see a manager bashing an employee regardless of reason or it if is even deserved.  The fact is that this perspective employee comes with baggage and there are plenty of other who don’t.  The reason for rejecting me is pretty simple.

During the process, I was also told by HR to apply to a single position at a time for reasons including “for purposes of ensuring that both your manager and HR are aligned with any applicable and transferrable skills at the right time.”  This logic is flawed on two major fronts.  If my manager’s treatment of me can best be described by a medieval depiction of Hell and has told me to my face that the work I produce is worthless, what makes her insight into my skills worthwhile?  Furthermore, my HR manager has no idea what I do or what my performance is outside of what she hears from said manager.  It’s pretty obvious that they will be aligned and that alignment will not be in my favor.  The second issue is that the statement placed no consideration for the desperation that I was feeling to get out.  Things got worse daily, and since I’m looking regardless, what does it matter if it’s one of ten different positions?

If an employee does poorly, he or she can be fired or disciplined.  If a manager manages poorly, there are no repercussions and the employee either needs to grin and bear it or leave the company altogether.  I have spoken to many people, including those in very senior roles and they have all advised that I find employment elsewhere.  They too saw no way around this ridiculous system.

Is that really the only choice?  Why is it that mangers are not held to high standards for developing those under them?  Why are they not held accountable for doing a terrible job?  Every year there is a review from the top down, but never one from the bottom up.  Those are all pertinent questions to aks, and you also need to wonder how much talent you have lost over the years because of situations like mine.  This is a common problem among all large scale organizations where the employment base is so broad.  Those at the apex are so far removed from the daily grind of those at the bottom that they don’t see these issues.  But know that the issues are there and good, hardworking employees leave while their cancerous bosses remain.

If you do decide to ask questions, I have no doubt that you will receive some rather unfavorable stories about me from the party in question.  Some may be made up and some taken out of context.  Some may even be true because I did lash out immaturely during the height of my frustration.  Regardless of what you may hear or conclude, know that I am not writing to sway your opinion of me.  All I hope for is that you will at least think about holding members of this company accountable for the abuses that they commit while wearing the mantle of management.  I also hope that you will think about a way to change the system so that those unfortunate enough to run into such abuses do not suffer for them.

For a normal individual without any sort of physical abnormalities, body weight is a relatively simple mathematical formula.  Your body naturally burns X amount of calories just by being alive.  Physical activity will add Y amount to your caloric expenditure.   If I is the variable for intake, or how much you consume, then:

If I = X + Y, bodyweight will stay the same.

If I < X + Y, bodyweight will fall.

If I > X + Y, bodyweight will rise.

Weight loss or lack thereof is, in most cases, the manipulation of the above function.  Many people diet, which causes a reduction in variable I.  Many will choose to exercise which is an increase in Y.  Some may choose to do both to maximize their results.  Regardless of which route is chosen, as long as the variables change over a prolonged period of time, results will ensue.

Now the office I currently work at is predominantly female.  As a result, weight loss is a frequently broached topic.  Besides the annoyance of listening to so many body image issues so consistently, I don’t see much harm in this chit-chat.  What really bothers me is the loud declaration and gross exaggeration of facts by the most vocal of those who sit around me.

To put it bluntly, these ladies are on the, shall we say, larger side.  For some reason unbeknownst to me, they choose to raucously articulate their physical exploits at least two or three times a week.  Now I have nothing against fat people.  It’s most oftentimes a choice and who am I to judge how they live their life?  But at the end of the day they are fat for a reason, whether it is a lack of self-control, poor dietary habits, or what have you.  So if they really are running marathons, playing volleyball, tennis, and softball, chances are they shouldn’t be fat.  Hell, I’m in great shape and I’m pretty certain that I cannot run as many marathons and partake in as many sports in the period of time they claim.  Nor do I wake up early in the morning for a “quick” three to five mile jog through Central Park when the weather allows.  That is not a ridiculous distance, but neither is it a cakewalk.

Fact of the matter is, if their activity level is truly that high, then they should be far from the rotund states that I see every day.  I don’t mind if they are fat.  I don’t mind if they want to talk about their exercise routines.  Hell, at the end of the day, I really don’t mind that much if they lie about what they do.  But the line is drawn when they belt out their efforts as if they were Moses on the Mount.  No one needs to hear it and if they really want the rest of us to appreciate the pains they go through for weight loss, at least lose the weight first.  It’ll be more believable.

I think most of my recent griping is going to be focused on the office.  My office environment is slowly shredding my sanity, and the behavior that is leading to this issue is something I can vent about through this blog.  So vent I shall.

Water coolers, the stereotypical gathering place where co-workers gather and gossip.  A place to waste away a couple minutes of otherwise boringly spent time pushing keys and papers at the desk—an escape if you will.  Now there isn’t a water cooler at every office, but people make due.  Kitchens, hallways, whatever the case may be.  People find their own little retreats.  Unfortunately for me, my cube neighbors’ retreat is situated in their cubes.  Cubicles are not recording studios.  Not much acoustic blocking engineering went into their creation.

Now that wouldn’t normally be an issue.  I’m not a touchy guy and I like to think of myself as being pretty laid back.  However, it’s a whole different ballgame when people refuse to speak at a normal conversational decibel level.  The group of cubes right over my rather insignificant cube wall covers an area of a good 200 square feet.  Good amount of space for three but by no means is it acreage worthy of the noise that is generated from within.  They are loud, and for no reason, it’s pretty damn annoying.  That’s strike number one.

The louder things are, the harder they are to filter out.  Regrettably, I’ve never been good at filtering at any level, one of the reasons why I can’t listen to music while I work.  I would start focusing on the song.  The result is that each minute of the conversation is a bullet of information that I don’t want to know being shot directly into my brain.  That’s not even the worst part.  If the topic is not work related, which it isn’t most of the time, then each conversation runs a gamut of a whopping three to five themes—weight loss, shopping, wardrobe, and the occasional trip/special event and celebrity gossip.

I don’t need to know the details of their latest diet or juice cleanse or body image issues.  I don’t need to know where they went to look at x, y, z, why they ended up buying x, y, z and what their plans are for those items.  I don’t need to know what they think of each other’s ensemble on a daily basis.  And for the love of all that is holy, someone please expand their vocabulary to encompass more than the single adjective of “cute.”  Cute does not describe anything.  The use of cute is nothing but a nod of approval, in which case they only need to nod once.  There is no reason that they need to rearrange their sentence four different ways when the only adjective they use is cute.  This particular issue is soastronomical on the annoyance scale that it covers both strikes two and three.

There are so many things in the world people can talk about.  A terrorist just died after a decade long man hunt.  Japan is in crisis.  A handful of European countries are hanging onto their economic lives.  Commodities are out of control.  Gas prices have hit over four dollars a barrel in some places.  There are hundreds of people rebelling across the Middle East.  Hell, Donald Trump is contemplating a run at the White House.  The list is infinitely long.  Why won’t they talk about anything remotely intelligent or important?  At least then I can listen and be educated asto their opinions on some events and issues.

Alas, it is not so.  Instead I’m subjugated to listening to the lowest common denominator of female gossip eight hours a day, five days a week, and every morning my brain wakes up screaming in terror of what waits only a short train ride away.  Let the countdown begin.