Has the org changed you?

[aguelo]

Yup. It changed me.

Now I download more crap from the internet than ever. Including AMVs

[DriftRoot]

Now if the question had been "Have AMVs changed you?" THEN I'd have a different answer.

AMV's are part of the org . I'm not talking about just the forums. I'm talking about the org as a whole.

The .ORG as a whole is not the end-all and be-all of the AMV universe and I'm not going to give it de facto credit for all AMV-related change I've undergone just because it happens to have "anime music videos" in its URL.

But have it your way:

The .ORG changed me because before I came here I was naive enough to think that people who spent an enormous amount of time on a hobby like this would be fun people to associate with. Boy was I wrong. Innocence shattered, I went off and did my own thing for a few years and then came back, having made an AMV and yet having had no .ORG influence during that period of time.

Shattered a-m-v.org innocence was a relatively minor change, though, and pretty much of no consequence whatsoever next to what AMVs have done to me, which basically occurred despite the .ORG, not because of it.

Oh wait: The .ORG has changed me because I now suffer from a strange compulsion to post weird trials and tribulations online, namely in my a-m-v.org journal. And it's all this site's fault.

[Fall_Child42]

I'm pretty sure I now hove VD because of the org.

oh,

and Claw hands.

Not sure where those came from.

[8bit_samurai]

The Org did expose me to a wide variety of music. If it wasn't for the Org, I'd wouldn't have bought a few albums. I could also blame the Org for my current music identity crisis (if ya wanna call it that), but I could also blame my lack of listening to any new music. New to me, at least.

[BasharOfTheAges]

I'd say that the 'Org has helped me (and lots of other people) develop standards to strive towards that we wouldn't have established while mired in the glut of "OMG THAT ROX!!!1" tripe that the youtube-generation calls feedback.

[ngsilver]

Well, without the org I don't think I ever would have really gotten any actual feedback on my videos. Until I found the org I put all of my vids up on Kazaa...

[Qyot27]

I'd say that the 'Org has helped me (and lots of other people) develop standards to strive towards that we wouldn't have established while mired in the glut of "OMG THAT ROX!!!1" tripe that the boochsack-generation calls feedback.

Which makes me even more thankful I got here and matured long long before that site even existed. I'm glad I'm not associated with the thing I consider one of the culprits behind the falling of the next generation's intelligence.

I guess my interest in AMVs and anime in general have made me far more cynical when looking at the state of television and film media, and of making me seem like an old fart when observing popular fads amongst the High School and early college crowd. Then again, that could just be because I've seen how badly things have hit the fan since the 90s ended and I'm just a nostalgic bastard.

Whether a lot of that can be attributed to the .Org or not, I dunno. One thing it has done is that I'm far more critical of technical screwups than I was before.

[SheeGee]

well my personality hasnt changed at all. at least i dont think it has

my knowlegde of editing, music, computers and even my taste in anime has expanded tho. also ive learned different techniques by watchin amvs (tho i havent put them to use )

oh but i have been hanging around my computer more than before. i think i gained like 5 lbs or something in like a couple of months....

[requiett]

Me? No. Although my sex life has ironically improved.

[Arigatomina]

It turned me into an asshole. I'm a little bitter.... I'm more cynical about...

It's funny hearing the old familiar editors saying things in this vein. That's exactly it.
The org challenged me, engaged me, and then it opened my eyes to reality. Sour.

I used to be nice. Really nice. Willing to kill myself if someone asked for my help. I was idealistic and optimistic, wanting to take part and make a difference, if only by showing a friendly face or saying a few nice words. I assumed people were as honest as I was, taking them at their word, face value, all the naive stuff you'd expect from someone who'd just discovered the joys of an online community. It took a few years to wake up, but eventually I got it.

Now I look for hidden motives in everything. A nice comment? They're sucking up for some reason or another. A nasty comment? It's not really about that, more likely some personal grudge that has nothing to do with the video itself. A random hello from an old friend? He must be breaking the ice so he can ask for a favor. A newbie asks for help? He's just too lazy to read the guide. You want feedback on your video so you can improve? No you don't, you want vindication so you can go on making the same crap you've been making. You're saying nice things about her because she's your friend and you're impressed by her work? Liar, you're just sucking up because you want to be in the in-crowd. You prefer oldschool over effect-vids? Yeah, only because you're not good at making effect vids. You actually enjoy your crap vids? Then you have bad taste and should keep it to yourself.

I think I would have stayed nice and naive if I'd stayed off the forum. Now it's too late to go back. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's fun being a cynical asshole, after all. ^_^