Since I am Freddy , I agree!

But I realize that, besides welcoming people, directing members to the custom mansions is als important.

I will decide, together with the other admins, about how to reach both targets in the best way.

Hi Freddy - this is from Sherryl199 and Eyeballking -

My grandson, Grayson, just had the BEST (and, in my totally prejudiced opinion) brilliant!! great idea - he said to create a beginner mansion for interested players called Info Mansion - with signs that tell you about MM, custom mansions, how to play them, and a link to the MM from the opening screen - Grayson says that the INFO mansion should be free before you buy the game so you can know about it and understand if you want to play it or not. Grayson also says that in the starting room of the Info Mansion there should be sign out of money or coins that says,  "Press return to read the signs".  The first sign just be exactly where Jack starts, and it should say how to walk and jump. The rest of the rooms should focus on one thing like what lava is and how it works or how eyeballs jump and can be caught by the spiders, etc. He says to tell the people about the Mansion Level Builder and how the mansions can be built there. Grayson says that is the place to explain about the included mansions, custom mansions and the tutorial mansion. I think this is just a very good idea. Grayson likes to build mansions a lot and would like a chance to build the Info Mansion. He would love ideas from other mansion builders, and he would like you to know that he has some mansion coming soon. All this and he is 9!

That seems like a good idea indeed.

However, we shouldn't give away too much. I'm thinking specifically of eyeballs being eaten by spiders: it looks to me, looking at the Help menu in the game, that this is intended as something the player is meant to discover by himself while playing the game. Or the same for burning Medusa heads with torches, this is hinted but not explicitly stated.

(And I use the "tab" key for the BBB's, but it seems I'm the only one with personalised commands).

The idea of Eyeballking is indeed interesting and to keep in mind. But it is about the 'way' of bringing our message(s) to our customers.

First thing, in my opinion, is the analysis. In what way(s) can we make things better? (But they were already good??! Isn't it? )

Now, suppose you are (rather) new. How do you arrive here, at the Midnight Mansion Forums? The most obvious way is, coming from ActionSoft's Midnight Mansion website.

Okay. In the upper left corner of the MMF homepage the Newbie sees: "Welcome guest. Please login or register." Hmmm. That doesn't feel good. Guests are clearly supposed to be able to read all information and downloading all custom mansions WITHOUT any need to login or register. (A request from Vern.) I don't know if we, admins, are able to change this text. I'll try to check it out.

Why is a MM-player visting MMF?
1° Downloading custom mansions.
2° Reading of and searching in the posts.
3° Asking questions or making posts in general.
4° Uploading mansions.

Only for point 3° it is necessary to login or register. I know from at least one listed custom mansion of which the designer never was registered! So, even for point 4°, you do not need to login or register.

I think that the currently most important mistake is, that after clicking on the 'Forums'-tab at ActionSoft's MM-site, one is immediately directed to the MMF-site. For the sake of all Newbies there should be 'something' in between.

At least I'am thinking of the major fork between:
a) going to the homepage for MM-players who want to read or post;
b) going straight to the custom mansions.

For that 'missing link' I have a few ideas. About a) here could come all the needed information about registering, posting etc. And b) would feel perfect if there should be a complete list of all custom mansions and clicking on e.g. 'A Curious Observatory' should start the downloading of it. Or should we ask Vern for an extra tab that links to the custom mansions?

Brings me finally back to the upper left corner of our MMF homepage. If the page between the 'Forums'-tab and our MMF homepage is complete and clear enough, then we may use this free space to inform all guests (including our members) about the attendence of the administrators.

This may be the right moment to appologize me (us) for forgetting to show that info at the current place. Going on holidays is almost always shown, but abscence because of busy-busy-busy or illness has too often forgotten. Guilty as charged.

At last, and not least, also a word about Eyeballking's idea. Speaking only for myself, I think we must avoid to bring stuff in it, that is already in the Tutorial. So, no objection at all against the idea, but before an Info-mansion got created, we, members, need to know for sure about what to put in it.

Comments please-please-please!

Hi Freddy,
You guys are the experts. And experts forget what it feels like to be completely limited in computer skills.  (I'm learning thanks to all of you). But, when I try and get my Real Estate buddies to try your games, they get all flustered as I did, how do I get going.

I don't have any ideas as I am still green....My only suggestion is to make the changes in the Action Soft section, as you have mentioned, because that's were we green newbies have to start.

I was so frustrated by not being able to get someone to help me on this forum page, that I went back to the Action Soft page and was relieved to see a help contact link.

That is how I got to communicating with Vern, poor guy, until he referred my back to  the forum, where as I told him I can't post directly until I am approved, and no one is getting back to me. It was a visious circle.....well, you know the story. 

So, yes, it has to start at the Action Soft page and remember to think like a "Green Newbie"   lolololol