17.10.10

TPS is back with new domain



 TPS is back with now new domain: http://thepiratesociety.info

 Officiall statement from new owner of TPS (original thread on TPS Here )
Friends,

Welcome back!

As you've no doubt guessed by now, there have been some drastic changes here at TPS.

We are under new management. This was NOT planned, and it was NOT some sort of hostile takeover. Everything that has been done was done as a last resort to save TPS.

When TPS went down on October 5th, we discovered that the server bills had not been paid in several months. Rather than pay the bills, the go-ahead was given by the previous staff to shut the site down without possibility of return. Working with the hosting company, bubbl3 and pisshivers paid the outstanding balance and took over administration of the servers.

Some Proof:
  • Server.lu asking to fix the negative balance:
  • Server.lu ticket opened to ask for the server contract to be closed: 


  • Server.lu balance with 4 unpaid invoices and our payment to fix the situation: 



As many of you are aware, TPS has experienced plenty of internal turmoil in recent months; many good staff and members alike have been either banned or chased off by a few power-hungry individuals. Whether through neglect, tacit agreement, or outright support, these individuals were not reigned in and essentially ruled with an iron fist banning or alienating all who opposed them. If you questioned their practices, you were "against" them. This obviously goes against everything we've stood for in the past: disagree all you want, voice it without repercussions. You may not get your way, but no one will be punished for their views.

The money was another big issue. Where do we stand on donations? Are we still partnered with so-and-so? How much is coming in? How much are the server bills? Does TPS need more help? Do we have a surplus? Who's handling the money? From now on, TPS is going to be completely transparent about the money. We plan on updating the community about donations, payments, balances, etc.

For these and other reasons, TPS will be running with a small staff, a skeleton crew, for a bit while we figure out where to go from here. Before the downtime, things had become quite bloated and out of control at TPS, and we are working to get back to the TPS that we all knew and loved. A few changes that are readily noticeable are:
  • Transparency.
  • Staff changes. Some of the familiar staff may return, some won't.
  • The Pirate Academy is shut down and the information contained within it will be turned in a Beginner's Guide.
  • Rather than interviews, we will be using a web submission form.
  • The reputation system will be revamped. Currently, we are leaning toward removing reps for invite and possibly going to a Request-Only system; no Giveaways.
  • The NML/LML will be revisited and likely revamped.
  • The Rules will be revised. This is not kindergarten; we don't need or want to babysit.

As far as the .info domain goes, it was the only way to get TPS up and running again. The owners of .com, .org, and .net were either unreachable or uncooperative. As far as we're concerned, TPS was abandoned. This is not some clone of TPS trying to steal members; this is TPS moved to .info. Make no mistake, there are some hard feelings with some of the old staff. Whether those will be mended in the future is difficult to say at this point. We will not drag anyone through the mud, however, and you can see that all names have been left out of this post.

"Back in the day" all ideas, suggestions, critiques, and complaints were welcomed at TPS. We assure you all that those days have returned. Feel free to POLITELY discuss anything and everything.

Again, WELCOME BACK!

1 comment:

  1. is good to see INSIDEBT being updated regularly again.

    ReplyDelete