Feed aggregator

just curious about how many of us redditfurs are single. i've been dealing with some odd relationship issues and i have come to the conclusion that i am in fact single. it has been a sad day, haha.

so? how is single life treating you?

submitted by kidinabearsuit
[link] [118 comments]

We're back with another live episode! Xander, Alkali, Pandez & Draggor yap in front of a packed room, and it was a great time for everyone. Wel also have it below on your youtube channel in video form if you prefer that! live dragget show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpZLm0Pe02o Also, be sure to see our standup special with Xander, Pandez & Alkali in the MWFF '14 panel, 3 Headed Monster! The playlist is below! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6J.....m7lWwbLEhwKFuE ep. 104 - MWFF '14 LIVE! - We're back with another live episode! Xander, Alkali, Pandez & Draggor yap in front of a packed r...

Also on https://www.weasyl.com/journal/72366/furaffinity-transparency-drama-part-4 because I cannot trust Reddit not to eat my formatting.

Hello everyone and welcome back to our coverage on the FA drama that's been happening the last few weeks.

What exactly are we talking about today? If you haven't read the previous messages, they are here. http://www.reddit.com/r/furry/comments/2mmfq6/to_anyone_that_uses_furaffinity_this_is_important/ http://www.reddit.com/r/furry/comments/2mtqb4/furaffinity_and_zidonuke_drama_part_ii/ http://www.reddit.com/r/furry/comments/2n4uis/furaffinity_and_zidonuke_drama_part_iii/ This is picking up from after the events detailed above. The goal post of the above was to get Dragoneer to openly detail everything with the community, the concerns around the donation funds and the bits with Zidonuke. He needed to admit he made mistakes and apologize to everyone he was rude to following. The first Reddit post was written on November 18th, it took 12 days to get a response...from Chase. http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/6311970/ >So you got your response, what all are you upset with here? This biggest thing this response is lacking is proof of the donation spending so far. Receipts for the expenditures should be no problem to produce, and there is still problems with "transparency" all over the place. The thing I personally feel is a problem is that Neer is not open with the community, and thanks to some conversations that have gone on from this journal, we can very clearly see this is the case. You might recall that around this time, FA was hit with a massive database flaw that caused problems with notifications being sent out. Rather than put in Read-Only mode, the site was allowed to continue operating even though one of the most basic features was broken. http://imgur.com/a/69SOn This is an album of artists complaining / talking with Yak about the problems with the database and about read only mode. Speaking of transparency, Yak has had no problem talking to the community while Neer and Chase have been mostly silent. I'm sure some of you have heard the quote by now >If Titanic was built like FA nobody would have had to die. http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/6311970/#cid:43362222 The problem here is that Yak has been rude to those asking him questions, and ignoring others. I myself for example asked for the specifics on a particular problem, but I'll detail that later. The point here is that the communication has still been non-existant. Chase has outed himself as our new director. For privacy sake, I will not mention what Chase is known for, but I recommend a google search into that. Chase isn't even doing that well of a job, as outlined here. http://i.imgur.com/ZDTq51L.png , continuing here : http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/6311970/#cid:43433955 ==Donations== The next problem here aside from transparency is the problem with donations. While the money situation still needs better detailing, and requests for receipts posted is not far-fetched, there was still no talk on what the situation is with Jake, their paid donation funded database server that was discovered had not been in use and sitting idle for almost a year. If our donation money is being improperly handled, then there is a huge problem going on. The fun fact is had that server been operational as of now, the notification problems may have been a lot shorter if even there at all. ==Trouble tickets / Ads== Just wanted to toss this into the fray but let me direct you to this thread : https://forums.vivisector.org/index.php?topic=708.0 That thread details problems with trouble tickets better than I can, but the gist is that even those are going neglected. Dragoneer's shouts and twitter feed are full of complains about tickets, including problems with advertising. https://twitter.com/Dragoneer/status/540534808624263168 https://twitter.com/Dragoneer/status/540199755675361280 http://www.furaffinity.net/user/dragoneer/ (shouts) It should be known I'm blocked from viewing any of Neer's tweets at this point. ==Large file sizes when== One thing to bring up to highlight the questionable nature of FA code is a matter of larger file sizes. I'll direct you to first this Trello post. https://trello.com/c/hsundUSx/24-investigate-into-increasing-submission-and-thumbnail-upload-limits Dragoneer mentions here they have some hardware, but it is a matter of code issue. When discussing this, the following conversation happened. http://i.imgur.com/Y4QwVFB.png http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/6311970/#cid:43344302 **(I WANT TO NOTE MAXXMISSIONS WAS NOT TALKING TO ME, THE COMMENT TREE BUG HAPPENED, THEY WERE TALKING TO SOMEONE ELSE ABOVE.)** Yak never responded to my message after that, despite still responding to others. If I'm right, there should be no issue with allowing large sizes. The current file size limit for FA posts is 10MB. ==Personal thoughts== The way I've been watching these events break down, it's very clear to me that there needs to be rampant change in the community otherwise we're going to perpetuate a lot of negative stereotypes on how we treat each other / get treated. Something I see and hear again and again is that FA is a free site, if you don't like it, take off. But myself and others have repeatedly mentioned again and again that this is not the case. Furaffinity is a hub, it is a hub to the fandom, it serves everyone in the fandom, be it artists, writers, watchers, social needs, meet ups, whatever. It's a very important site. The site is free, but the users make it what it is. Without the users in it, the site would be nothing. This affects everyone, the artists trying to make money, new furs coming in to make friends. The website has helped shape the fandom to the places it has gone to for everyone. The problem is that it's run so poorly, and not just in a technical sense, but the management have proven time after time they are not capable of running this site with the respect it deserves. I've given many examples of Dragoneer's conduct in other posts, I've given an example of Chase, and here is an entire album with Yak talking down to the community. http://imgur.com/a/K65qt We have Chase as a director, fetishes aside, is that someone you want in that spot? Is that how you want the fandom to be looked at? This while ordeal is just a mockery to what the Fandom is. Our willingness to bend over and accept whatever is tossed at us. The saddest thing I see here is how willing everyone is to just accept all these problems like the norm, to let people like Neer get away with taking money to fuel a website that has done nothing but lie to us only to keep the fandom alive. When other places / people have proven again and again they want to help and offer better services only to be tossed away. [PERSONAL OPINION AHOY] No matter how you cut it, Dragoneer is not fit to run this website, he and Yak are simply too busy. If not for the problems above, he should step down for his own benefit. These problems are not going to go away, and people are not going to leave him alone. For his own stress, he needs to give this stuff up for a while, let someone else take the helm for now. He does work 12 hours a day at times, he has a busy life, he's not really a bad guy...He just lets the stress get to him. [END] Furaffinity doesn't have to die, but the longer it exists in the state it is now, the longer we allow these horridly dramatic things to persist again and again, the worse the fandom is going to become. submitted by rowedahelicon
[link] [1 comment]

Or maybe we should get a megathread

submitted by mwishosimba
[link] [comment]

submitted by Arpeggias
[link] [48 comments]

(In advance, i'd like to apologize if this is not the appropriate place to announce this. I figured there might be some interest in this community)

Hey, guys! I'm an aspiring video game writer who recently had a falling out with my old project of two years. Too many chiefs, not enough Indians. But not to dwell on that, i'd like to use this as a medium for announcing a new endeavor;

A faction/class based shooter, set in various locations ranging from the Victorian American South to the stars above.

Why am I telling you this? Well, currently our team consists of three. A skilled modeler, Sage, of whom I worked with on the previous project, and a mutual friend of ours has agreed to step in to take on a bulk of the programming. We are very early into development, but with the story taking shape and the models beginning to follow suit, we would like to extend an invitation to any wishing to hone their skills and assist us in most, if not all departments.

The game itself will be created in the Source engine, as a standalone mod of Half-Life 2. We do not yet have any clue of a release date, however we would love to get this show on the road ASAP.

The game itself is slated to consist of 10 classes, fighting for a total of 9 different factions. The factions each have their own behaviors with the opposing ones, their own art styles ranging from Steampunk rebels to retro-futuristic astronauts. Some factions will consist of humans, sentient synthetics (robots), and anthro creatures of many species.

Gameplay will focus around three major points. First, the team will focus on building up their defenses by literally constructing their base around the objective they are slated to defend. Next, the battle will begin, each team relying on themselves to keep their base maintained, soldiers stocked, and to keep the opposing team from doing the same. The goal will be to overrun or annihilate the enemy base, and destroy/steal/sabotage the objective. Hence the game's working title; Build, Battle, Destroy (or BBD for short).

So, are you still here? Good. If you're interested, please contact Sage or I at any of the following networks. We are on Central and Pacific time respectively, so if you do not catch us in time please be patient, as we will get to you as soon as possible.

Sage's FA

Sage's Gamebanana

Sage's Steam

Shep's FA

Shep's Gamebanana

Shep's Steam

We have a lot of plans and hopes for this game, but we are not just going to sit back and hope a game gets made. If you are interested, please be serious about it. We have little to no funding, so much of the game is being made by means of free, but still good programs (Blender, gimp, notepad++). At time, this is purely on a volunteer basis, but we hope that if we find a successful launch then it won't have to be. Thank you for reading this far!

TL;DR: Making a video game that will include steampunk anthros, looking to find some people members to volunteer to lend a hand to our three-man team in just about every department.

submitted by Shepettan_Pride
[link] [41 comments]

I'm thinking about getting a fresh start is a new city, does anyone have a suggestion on a good furry friendly area?

submitted by DesmondHawk
[link] [2 comments]

submitted by The_Otsoko
[link] [29 comments]

submitted by Fenrir74
[link] [2 comments]

submitted by CarnivalOfPain
[link] [4 comments]

submitted by PleaseUseStairs
[link] [1 comment]

submitted by Newfurintown
[link] [16 comments]

Title is pretty much self-explanatory. Give me something to draw, the easier the better ;)

I can't draw too save my life but previous attempts weren't too bad.

Edit: Enough for today, gotta leave.

Requests:

• A goodra.
• Cat in a top hat. I bet he is a cynical cat who plays games.
• NSFW Cat. This one on me ;) [Actually SFW]
• Something shy and fuzzy.
• Chibi and fabulous!. Fabulous and colored by requester.
• Cross-eyed soldier cat, reminds me of my persian cat.
• Asshole professor.
• Vaporeon, after trusting sylveon.

submitted by fa_mirror
[link] [25 comments]

submitted by blue_dingo
[link] [6 comments]

submitted by C_Redfox
[link] [3 comments]

Is there a teamspeak where us furries can speak with out having to go to any conventions?

submitted by BlueWolf77
[link] [7 comments]

Dear Papa Bear,

I hate to send you such a long letter, but I've tried to include all the details you need.

I've been slowly getting into the Furry fandom for quite a few years now (I can't remember exactly how long I've known about it, but it's probably at least 5 years of me looking at it on and off) and only recently have I got the confidence to declare myself as a Furry.

And just so you know, I know the definition of Furry is just anyone who's a fan of anthropomorphic animals, and whilst Fursuiters are the most recognisable part of the fandom (and the first thing I discovered regarding the fandom), they're only one of many parts of it and there's no rule to say you have to be one to officially be a Furry.

Anyways, part of the reason I've only just confirmed my furriness to myself is because it's only been in about the past 3 months that I heard of Uncle Kage. I was turned off all these years because of all of the sexual sensationalism the fandom's gotten from outside media (note a certain CSI episode). But then I accidentally came across Uncle Kage's videos explaining exactly how the press manage to exaggerate the facts, how the original sexualised image created by early conventions became a lasting image even though those cons have since vanished, and that whilst there are sexual aspects to the fandom, it's something only the minority of Furries are into.

It's not that I have any problem with those who enjoy a sexual side to the fandom, it's just that because that's all I saw for all these years, I didn't feel welcome to join in seeing as I enjoy it for other aspects. But once I discovered Uncle Kage, I realised that I could include myself in the fandom without the fear that I'd be the odd one out seeing as I'm not into it for the sexual aspects.

Once I felt free to join the fandom, I started doing a lot of research about it very, very quickly, learning the different kinds of Furry, how it fits into other subcultures, the terminology, typical activities, species and personalities, phantom limbs, other famous Furries... just about anything I could find relating to Furry. I didn't care if it was positive, negative or indifferent, I just wanted to know as much as I could.

This then lead to me discovering this forum page (https://forums.furaffinity.net/threads/130527-Uncle-Kage?s=de8e6476726ab42efa64c98ef8e9b132) that involved other Furs discussing why they HATED Uncle Kage. This, as you could probably guess, shocked me since all I heard about him before was that he was a good man and only did good for the fandom. So, I began to read it.

There seemed to be 3 main points people had as to why they hated him. One was that he's looked upon controlling, which I understand people seeing, but I still stood up for him since he's trying to keep the fandom in a positive light and therefore needs to have this firm-but-fair approach alongside the funny stories and analogies.

The second point was how he likes his wine, which I find to be quite hypocritical since a) the whole of western society seems to enjoy its booze and b) I actually found myself still enjoying him when watching videos of him drunk, even though I usually find videos of other people drunk to be quite humiliating.

So with those 2 general disagreements I had with the other Furries comments, I still found Uncle Kage to be a nice (or at least, enjoyable) guy and a good role model for the fandom.

But then there comes the third reason these people hated him, which was the “rumour” he's got a secret Fursona called Rogue the Megawolf which he supposedly uses for sexual pleasures. So, part out of curiosity and part out of anxiety, I began to research exactly who Rogue was and found his Twitter, FurAffinity and Macrophile pages, as well as what other Furries said about him. It seems whoever this Fursona belongs to has a sexual fantasy about being a giant wolf who destroys buildings and either crushes or eats anything that's alive.

Now, I for one don't care what peoples fetishes are so long as a) they keep in the bedroom and b) no other creature is being hurt. I might not necessarily understand the fetishes, but I don't see a problem with most of them either.

So if this person gets a sexual kick out of wearing a Fursuit, I couldn't care less. Even if it is Kage under that suit, I find his arguments to be in defence of the Furry community rather than his own private life, so I can still tolerate him despite the fact he himself might be in it for the sexual stuff. And the same goes for the destruction element; so long as it doesn't extend beyond either his own imagination or his own property, it's fine by me.

But it's the sexual attraction to “killing life forms” that's causing me grief. I have a strong belief that causing harm to anything with a conscious, human or animal and not oneself, for sexual pleasures is down-right immoral.

I can tolerate people who are into things like age-play because it's not actual pedophilia which involves a child performing sexual acts, but rather the person with that fetish playing the role of the child. And on top of that nobody can literally turn back into a kid, so it's forced into pretending to be in that fantasy.

But with the crush fetish, even if it's only make-believe to begin with, it disturbs me that finding the destruction of life- forms stimulating can quite easily slip into actual torture being performed on other creatures; bug, animal or human. So I can't even tolerate the fantasy because it can go in the wrong direction of not controlled.

And it wouldn't be so bad if it was just any other Furry, as I'd just say to myself "oh well, that's just one bad apple in the bunch and there'll always Uncle Kage to give us the good name". But this particular Furry might be the very being that finally made me feel welcome to join the fandom! And even though I realise that there are plenty of good people in the fandom to look up to, it's the fact that the very person that I looked at as one of the best examples might actually be among the worst examples that's digging into me!

So, I really don't know what to think of him anymore, especially if it's true that Kage and Rogue are the same person. Should I just try and forget the whole crushing thing and keep reminding myself of his efforts for giving the fandom a positive image? Should I let the truth sink in that he's got a fetish I can't tolerate and try to forget that I ever discovered him? Should I somehow convince myself that getting a sexual pleasure out of killing things is somehow OK just so I can like Uncle Kage again?

I desperately want to like him, but I can't work against my morals either. What should I do?!

Yours sincerely,

Charleston (age 20, UK)

* * *

Dear Charleston,

This is a good example that Papabear is surely not “in the know” about everything in the fandom. It is the first time I’ve heard the rumor that Uncle Kage is Rogue. After I read your letter, I did some searching on the Internet but didn’t find any proof there that the two were one. If Dr. Samuel Conway (Kage) is, in fact, Rogue, he is doing an excellent job hiding the fact. It makes me wonder that if Rogue is at a furcon and needs to go to the headless room for a breath of air and some water, why hasn’t anyone said anything? This fact alone makes me think that this is really just a rumor. But, in the spirit of getting the facts, I wrote an email to Rogue on his Tumblr account (waiting to hear back). I also looked at his Facebook page (nothing there to indicate anything), and viewed a number of videos of Rogue.

My policy about such things is that, unless someone can give me hard evidence of this connection, or I hear from Dr. Conway himself, then the Rogue/Kage rumor is just that: a rumor. Even if it is true, then I have to applaud Conway for practicing what he preaches, which is that ones sexuality is a private matter and none of the public’s business. On the other paw, too, if he is Rogue then his sexual fetish is a bit extreme and just reinforces stereotypes of furries being sexual deviants (fascinating, if true, that his other fursona is an easily squashable roach). Again, I’m not going to condemn or defend him without knowing all the facts.

This brings up an interesting point about human beings—especially, it seems, Americans. I’ve noticed an increasing trend among humans that is a pattern of building up heroes only to take them down in a blaze of scandal. Some people who come to mind are O.J. Simpson, Lance Armstrong, Michael Jackson, Bill Cosby, Jimmy Swaggart, and President Bill Clinton. People seem to love to admire talented celebrities and other magnetic personalities. But, over time, they become jealous, envious, eager to kick them down to sewer level so they feel better about themselves. Like lions picking out a sick zebra from a herd, as soon as the media and others discover a flaw, they go in for the kill.

Conway has been put on a pedestal by the furry community because he helped organize and chairs the biggest furcon in the world. He is also an engaging public speaker and works well with the media. I think it is important to recognize what he has done for the furry community. On the other paw, he’s not perfect. I’ve seen him drink and get drunk at MFF, for example, but I defy any furry to say he or she has not behaved poorly at some point in his or her life. I would say he is also a bit of an egotist, but psychologists would point out that egotism is a trait common in leaders (Bill Clinton was a great president and also an egotist). 

I also disagree with Kage about the media. Yes, some journalists prefer their stories yellow, but, being partnered with a professional journalist who thinks furries are way cool, I can tell you that they aren’t all bad. The problem Conway has is that he generalizes a group of people, which is just as bad as saying all furries are furverts. Also, he seems rather condescending to other furries, saying that no one but he should be allowed to speak to the media because only he is smart enough to handle them. That’s the thing that really bugs me. For instance, the recent incident at MFF where a chlorine bomb (of sorts--actually, it was a broken jar) went off in the hotel. Did we see MFF Chair Toby Murono in front of the news cameras? No, it was Kage. To me, he’s rather like the Al Sharpton of the furry community.

But, you know what? That’s fine. Kage likes to take the helm and, for the most part, does a fine job of it.

On to your question: should you forget about the whole thing about Kage being Rogue? Should you, if true, accept crushing as an acceptable sexual kink just so you can like Kage?

Do not pass judgment on Dr. Conway until you are sure that he is Rogue. For now, just as with our justice system, presume him innocent until proven guilty. If, someday, someone proves that he is Rogue, then recognize that we are all human and none of us is perfect (this presumes the opinion that his fetish is a flaw). If you judged everyone harshly for not precisely fitting your ideals of what a good person is, you would end up despising the entire human race and having no friends. Also recognize that, if true, this is part of Dr. Conway’s private life and none of your business. It does not cancel out all the good that Kage has done any more than President Clinton getting a bj from Monica Lewinsky undoes all the good he did during his presidency. Admire the man for what he has done.

When it comes to the sexual fantasy of crushing, you do not have to accept that as okay if you don’t wish to. You can learn to accept people for their gifts as well as what you perceive to be their flaws. If Conway, again, is Rogue, so what? He is not pushing a sexual fetish on you. And, except in his fantasy life, he is, as far as we know, not indulging crushing in real life and is not actually hurting anyone.

The only thing that is really troubling you, then, is the hypocrisy of it all. Like the senator who tries to pass anti-gay laws who is then caught with his hand under the bathroom stall wall, Kage would appear to be an immense hypocrite if he were caught being Rogue. Even if he is not Rogue, it is unwise of him to minimize the sexual aspect of the fandom because it is most certainly there. I myself don’t hide the fact that I enjoy that side of it, but, at the same time, I recognize that the fandom has a lot of other things to offer people and that if you don’t wish to indulge in the adult parts you certainly don’t have to.

Even if there was zero, zip, nada sexual about the furry fandom, people would still make fun of us. I’ve seen newscasters and other people point and giggle. I was at MFF a couple years ago and a couple men at a bar pointed at a furry innocently having fun interacting with a child and called him a “freak.” Why? Because humans don’t like anything that is out of the ordinary. They want everything to be predictable, label-able, categorizable. If white conservatives had their way, everyone would be straight, Christian, Caucasian, work in an office, and, for hobbies, drink beer and watch football. How boring would that be?

Society controls us through shame and guilt. Rogue, whoever he (or she) is, is likewise controlled by guilt to the point of hiding who s/he really is. We are all, in that sense, prisoners in our lives. Matthew 7:1—Do not judge lest ye be judged (ironic I quote the Bible, no?)

Again, I find the bear way the best way—don’t let it bother you. Make of the fandom what you like. Don’t condemn it for its “flaws” anymore than you should condemn other people for theirs. Unless they are hurting you or anyone else, it’s really none of your business. You could also go with Matthew 5:29: If your eye offend thee, pluck it out. In other words, ignore Kage completely and go on with your furry life as you see fit.

What’s great about the furry fandom is that you make it what you wish it to be. Unlike Star Trek, there is no “bible,” no timeline, no preset cast of characters. It is all left to your imagination. Don’t let others dictate to you what your dreams should be.

Nuff said,

Papabear

So I kind have been dabbling in the fandom for about 9 months now, but recently I've really seen how much fun this community is and I would love to meet more interesting and awesome furs!

9 Months ago me: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/13231234/

New look: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/14885676

I recently got all the accounts associated with the fandom I guess including FA (be wary, I do have NSFW art on my page http://www.furaffinity.net/user/tsukunertov/), Twitter (@tsukune101), Skype, and Facebook. I recently went to MFF this past weekend and seeing the giant masses of awesome furs makes me want to really dive in now. I love meeting new people and talking with friends so if you want to hit me up, add me on one of those platforms, or PM me if you want like my Skype or Facebook.

submitted by Tsukunertov
[link] [3 comments]

Hey all!

I'm not a furry, but I want to apologize for the way you guys are regularly treated. I found the news of the chlorine incident at Midwest FurFest disturbing. Even more disturbing was the way it's been handled by the media and received by (in my experience) the gay community. Even some of my most sexually liberal kink-friendly friends had a few jokes (on Facebook) at your expense. I can't help but think that if this event had happened at any regular gay bar across the country, the gay community would be up in arms about such a heinous hate crime; there wouldn't be much laughing. So like I said, although it may not be my fault, i'm sorry; I empathize with you. You shouldn't be marginalized. hugs and scritches

(I don't identify as a furry, but I did encounter the fandom when I was younger and was just starting to deal with my sexual identity. The fandom was incredibly kind and helpful during those years of my life some ~13 years ago. Thanks for that!)

submitted by RegalPlatypus
[link] [51 comments]

submitted by mwishosimba
[link] [11 comments]