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BY ÜBER
Virtual Horse
Ranch is more than just a game. It
is more than just a community. It’s evolution over the years of its
existence proves that it is indeed a changing society, spread
throughout the world. It is a global village, a group of people that
are thrown together with one thing in common: they love horses.
In the years
since its original creation, VHR has
evolved, both in
game play and in social structure. Like any society, new technology is
found, immigration and emigration occur. In VHR, the new technology is
related to new training techniques or new birth caps being found.
Immigration and emigration in the VHR society allows there to be a
continuously changing mix of members, whether the society likes it or
not.
Back in 2003, the
game was brand new. “Everyone was
accepted… No
one really cared if you used chat speak or knew anything about the game
at all. Everyone was really helpful for the most part.” Missing, one of
the older members in the VHR society, recalls her beginnings and the
community that she originally joined. “There were definitely people who
stood out as big helpers and those who stood out as aggressors and
bullies to new members. Since it was a new game, there wasn’t really
social etiquette other than being polite to members. No one was picked
on for bad grammar or spelling, or that nitpicky stuff.”
VHR started as a
small, accepting community. Of
course, in any
society there are some who do not mix well with others, but overall
there were few conflicts. However, since VHR attracted members of all
ages, from the very young school children to the older age groups, the
society grouped into distinct segregations. “In the beginning, cliques
weren’t very big or very obvious,” Missing remembers from her early
days on VHR. “People would have close buddies but usually would branch
out and talk to or help other people with no issues. The volunteer ops
definitely had a strong group in themselves, and were often good
friends with one another.
“Since then, many
people have joined the game and the
player base
is just huge. People definitely have their own cliques and often,
outsiders are not permitted. I think that as a veteran player with a
lot of knowledge, it would be very bad for the game if I were to have
an elitist attitude or kept knowledge to
myself. I
would like to think
that people don't have a problem messaging me with a question. I get
them daily and I don't mind a bit! Lots of veteran players with lots of
knowledge...this brushing-aside of newcomers with questions is a big
concern.”
Not only has
there been a societal shift in the VHR
community, but
game play itself has become more
advanced. “When the game was new,
showing your horses was easy. “Event training” didn’t exist. In earlier
times, it was easy to get into a discipline, whereas now you have to
fight your way in tooth and nail, and you
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BY
SNOWKITTY
This month's Featured
Op is Jellybeanjoe,
or "Jelly"
for short. Nicknamed the "Wibble Wobble Op", Jelly has long exhibited a
fun and creative personality on VirtualHorseRanch, and her humor
definitely showed through her words during this interview.
Jelly
joined VHR in 2003, though, as she admitted, "I only really
started playing... in 2005 to now." She became an Op only two months
ago, describing it as being "lucky".
When I
asked how she liked being an Op, she said, "I like helping
people...I s'pose it's the fact I've met and talked to more people than
before... but that could also be the fact I've become a chat addict."
In addition, Jelly speculated it would be helpful if people - including
older players - would follow the rules. "Sometimes if you've been
playing a game for so long, you tend to forget the rules and do
whatever... Not good when we have to kick your butt for it."
Being an Op
can sometimes be difficult. "Be ready to put up with a lot
of crap," she wrote to players who aspire to become Ops. "Majority of
those you help are nice enough, but there's always a few that decide to
make your life hell. The other Ops are really handy in that case to
help you deal with them and give you a giggle!"
Despite all
the duties that come with being an Op, clearly this hasn't
gotten in the way of Jelly's enjoyment of the game. What could possibly
be considered her greatest accomplishment on VHR is the unbelievable
success of [RP]
Hidden Lie, a horse
that she tweaked as a novice and went on to win over $230 million in
Foxhunting. This Op is a dedicated
player of VHR, saying she likes it
because there's so much to do. "Breeding, eventing, training... and
then you can add |
different
challenges in forms of different breeds.
Takes it to a whole new level." Jelly's
favorite part about VHR? "The
fact that it's not real time based like a lot of online
games...However, what makes me come back all the time? The players.
I've got way too many friends on here for my own good."
I asked
Jelly if there are any changes she wishes would be made to VHR,
but for the most part, she said, she is satisfied. "Not anything
massively... (though) I'd really love the suggestion to designate a
rider per horse, so you wouldn't have to do it during eventing. It
would make my life so much better."
Jellybeanjoe's
short time as an Op hasn't washed away her good nature
or her jokester personality, so a little bit of appreciation is in
order. Next time you encounter her on the forums, chat, or in-game,
perhaps you should thank her for doing the job she's doing as well as
being a good, respectable player of VHR.
"I think a
thanks to all is needed here. Thanks to you... the VHR
community... I dunno how I'd live without you. A thanks to the other
Ops... let's just say you guys can give me a giggle any time and have
opened my eyes to a whole new... er... way of viewing things."
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can
hardly do that without
teaming up with someone who is already "in" on that discipline. It's
tough. I remember, though, that training was so crapshoot back in the
day that I trained a horse for barrel racing and found he didn't do
well, so I stuck him in reining events, and he kicked butt. Now you
have to really get "in it to win it," it's so much harder to play the
game and be successful now than it was years ago. Breeds have now
reached their true birth caps and have reached their full potential,
allowing for modern VHR "Superhorses" that seem to fill their own niche
every time.
“In other
areas, there have been new things added
like skills,
features, stats, the whole deal. For example, the highest stat used to
be Extraordinary. When Nef amped it up and put in the higher stats, the
competition really flared up and the new
stats just blew it all out of
the water. The number of amazingly statted horses exploded. Nothing has
been the same since. New skills (most notably breeding) have allowed us
to create better horses and get the most out of the horses we already
have.
“It's a
different world out there. Some new people
don't have a
clue what the game used to be like. It wasn't always this advanced, and
the game has sort of grown with the players that have stuck around for
years and years. This is why it's so hard to get into the game and
learn it. The complex stuff was added slowly for the old players, but
when someone new joins it's just a whole lot of complex ideas and game
play concepts that they have to take in at once.”
VHR’s
constantly changing game play also relates back
to the
changing society which has been built around it. “Now people generally
hold other members (most specifically new members) to a higher
standard. No matter how new the player is, it is expected of them to
pick up the concepts of the game very quickly, have good horses
quickly, play the game "right" quickly, use reasonably correct grammar
and spelling.
Nowadays
chat speak will get you completely ignored.
When I joined I
hadn't even had the internet long and I'm sure my grammar and spelling
was horrible. No one really seemed to care as long as they could get
the point. But now you pretty much get ignored or made fun of if you
can't spell or use punctuation. In a way this is a good thing, but in a
different way this drives away a lot of people. The community can be
(and often is) harsh to new members. It's easy to find help if you can
spell and are just an ideal person and have played an online game
before, but people new to SIMs and new to the game itself often have a
hard time finding help because no one wants to teach them the ins and
outs of the game, both in terms of game play and etiquette.”
The
relatively fast evolution of VHR can be linked to
a changing
society, as well as always changing game play. Someone, somewhere, is
finding a new way to train, a new way to breed. Alternatively, someone,
somewhere, is also just starting out, with $100,000 playcash and little
to no knowledge on the game. As to the future of VHR?
“The game
has never been and never will be static.
Things will
keep changing, game play will change, new ideas and techniques will
be discovered. The game
will become even more challenging than it is now.
This is one of the most dynamic horse games out there...there is no
end-all-be-all, which is part of the reason people stay so long. You
can't win, but you can't lose, either. That's the only thing staying
the same about VHR. In the future, the game will only become larger,
more complex, and possibly more realistic.
As far as
the human element of VHR, nothing there
ever stays the
same, either. Think of it as high school. People keep familiar faces
around them, but are usually willing to accept other people and make
new friends. All the same, there are those cliques that just close
their doors on others. The future of the players of VHR is bright. So
many new people join every day that the possibilities for friends and
ways to help just increase. I just hope that more people will open
their minds (and inboxes) to new players, but it often seems that the
more established players are only "in" with other established players.
I think that maybe this stratification between the two groups could be
detrimental to the game. But then again, who really knows?”
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BY
JNFERRIGNO
Say whaaat? The
age of designer rats is upon us ladies and gentlemen,
and that’s one more species to bite the dust due to color preference
over health. For those breeders who put their pets above their profits,
cheerios to you!
I, myself have
been a rat owner for a year now, and sport fur coats
from four beautiful boys. When I first started owning rats years ago, I
had four rescued females living in a huge aquarium with a ball, wheel,
and a bed of corn cob because that’s how the pet store told me to do
it. I also fed them a diet of generic rodent food (high in fat), which
is never recommended by any one that knows what they are doing (which I
later found out). Proper rat diet is the number one responsibility new
rat owners seem to over look, assuming that like every other rodent, a
high diet of seeds and scraps wont hurt them. A proper diet of between
16-18% protein is recommenced, with the addition of vegetables and the
occasional treat. Mazuri and Harlan are two easily accessible brands of
food that cater to the dietary needs of rodents.
RATS OWNED BY JNFERRIGNO
I personally
prefer to buy my rats from a reputable breeder, and if any
of you have ever tried to find one, you may know that it can take
months to find a good one that is still active. My breeder created the Rat Guide,
which is an online resource that is used
and referenced internationally by owners, breeders, and even
veterinarians.
For those of you,
who have never owned a rat and are considering it,
this is a great resource. And I can say first hand that I think they
are the perfect small apartment pet when dogs and cats are not an
option. They are also relatively inexpensive, have a short life span of
around two years, do not require complex care, trainable, and a great
first pet for your child aiming to learn responsibility.
BY THE 2ND CAVALARY
THE
ZEMAITUKA
Their origins are said to be unknown, but it is commonly thought that
the Zemaituka
or Zhmud is from Lithuania. The Zhmud is a descendent from the Tarpan
making it closely related to the Polish Konik.
Around the 16th century the Zhmud was combined with many breeds from
Russia, additionally sport horses of Polish descent were combined
into the bloodline. During the 19th century Arabian blood was
introduced, which can be noticed in their dished faces. With the
introduction of Arabian blood, two types of Zhmud emerged: a smaller
more refined pony suited for under saddle, and another more
bulky, stockier pony ideal for draft and farm work. Today
the difference between the two types isn’t as noticeable.
Soon after World War II an effort
was made to enlarge the
size and build of the pony to make it perfect for Riding and Draft
work.
Dealing with Lithuanian conditions they became very sturdy ponies
containing excellent endurance and stamina.
DRAWN
AND COLORED BY JNFERRIGNO
The Zhmud have a
very
willing temperament and is now a multi-purpose breed, due to the cross
breeding with other larger draft and sport horses.
The breeds description describes the
Zemaituka has having a broad muscular
neck, set into a deep chest on a fairly bulky frame. A low set tail on
a sloping croup, with short muscular legs and very sturdy hooves.
However an important thing to note is the breed usually is very
deprived in hock conformation.
Being a decent of the Tarpan gives it the primeval dorsal strip
and dun coloring, but the breed can also come in brown, black and bay.
The Zemaituka is being closer to the taller pony breeds being around
13.2-14.2 hands.
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BY
ALIAS
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August ushers in a new Featured Artist, and this
month we recognize the
one and only Kitt-Cat! At age 24, Kitt has been working on perfecting
her art since age 15.
Following in her
friends' footsteps she logs onto VHR for the first
time and, enjoying it so much, decides to stay. Yay for us!
When she was
younger and working to strengthen her
artistic skills she
says her parents always encouraged her to keep at it because of her
love of drawing. I asked her what her passion was, her answer was, "I
don't really have any passions. I enjoy drawing anything really." I
also asked her what she enjoys drawing most and surprisingly it wasn't
horses. "I love drawing tigers the most or cats because I'm a huge cat
freak."
Everyone has
different style of drawing and they all
prefer their
chosen paths for art. Kitt-Cat herself prefers traditional art, "I love
traditional pencil colored art. It looks so amazing to me." And it
usually does. Each style has their personal attributes that contribute
to its appeal but I myself couldn't love anything more than a great
traditional picture. So who could blame Kitt? "I don't really have a
favorite style, with each image I do I add in new styles to try to make
it better then the last." Among other styles, Kitt also uses some
computerized programs and tutorials as well, "I use PhotoShop cs2 and a
Wacom tablet, as for tutorials, I have looked at many and just took
things I like from them and kind of added a bunch together and also
added my own things to them."
Everyone has
impressions about other peoples work and
we all prefer
different things, I asked Kitt-Cat what her impressions of her own work
are and she said, "Well to be honest, I
had 90% of the work I do so my impressions
are usually that the image sucks and I should try to make
it better. But with my limited time, I
hardly
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have time to try to
make
them better."
Kitt-Cat has some words of inspiration for new and
upcoming artists and
artists who are already established, "To all the new and upcoming
artist even the ones already out there just keep practicing and trying.
NEVER give up because if you don't believe in yourself then no one else
will. Just remember you will always be your worst critic. And every
piece of art work you do is great in it's own way no matter what anyone
has to say." All artists have someone they look up to, learn from or
even just admire, and Kitt-Cat isn't any exception of this, "I look up
to Shewolff, Shewolfgeo, Hazel, and Briggles."
"My favorite piece
of work would have
to be of my dog panda" - Kit Kat
If you have
questions or need any advice about art or
other things
Kitt-Cat has given permission to have them sent to her. So if you PM
her, you can get some help. She only asks that you do not ask her for
free art or anything of the sort that she has not first offered. This
friendly woman has much to offer and I look forward to seeing more
artwork from this wonderful artist!
View more of Kitt-Cats art on her DeviantArt.com
gallery.
http://kitt-cat.deviantart.com/gallery/
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BY JADE
Rev has been playing
VHR since 2004 and says that things have certainly
changed since then. She has also had a brief stint playing Virtual Pups
and Sandbox farms but says that neither of them appealed to her in the
way that VHR does. When asked what she enjoys the most about VHR. She
replied “I love that this game just seems to promote friendship so much
better than other games I've been to. Over the years I've met
extraordinary people who have come to be amazing friends. I met one of
my best friends on chat a few years ago, as well as several close
friends. It's been just fantastic. Also, I love the fact that you can't
win this game; you can't be the best at everything, so there's always
room for improvement, and there's always something to work towards.”
Her least
favorite things about VHR are that it is so addictive and she
would like to see some of the bugs and glitches fixed. I asked Rev what
kind of changes she would like to see with VHR. She said that she would
like to see some of the game suggestions implemented. She would like to
point out that there have been some really good suggestions for the
game recently especially the separation of vet and farrier deeds. She
would also like to see some of the unfinished projects finished.
I asked Rev
what breeds or disciplines most interested her on VHR. She
replied “I've worked with so many breeds that it's a little ridiculous,
and I've tried my hand at almost all the disciplines with the exception
of jousting and gaited, the latter of which I'm training something up
for now. I guess if it comes down to it though I'm more into the
sporting breeds, and the sporting events. ^^' Sky's the limit.”
In real
life besides playing VHR Rev enjoys reading, writing, and
singing in the shower. She also has a very large penny collection. “I'm
an enthusiastic student of English and History; and I nurse a healthy
interest in conspiracy theories/doomsday predictions/the like” says
Rev. Rev also enjoys spending time with her 3 cats Oscar (female, don’t
ask), and her younger brother Little Face Big Butt Featherfoot (Facey),
and her newest addition Montego (Monty). Oscar and Facey are tabby
mixes, and Monty is at least half, if not more, Russian Blue. Rev and
her boyfriend also have a chameleon, named Nasa.
When asked
what her fellow players would be most surprised to know
about her. She stated “Haha, see if someone can figure this out: I'm an
only child, the youngest child and the middle child all at once.”
I asked Rev
how she felt to be chosen as player of the month. She said
it was a big surprise, honestly, but it feels good, and I'm looking
forward to hearing the outcome of the August nominations!
A special
thanks to Rev for participating in this interview.
BY SNOWKITTY
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Should
players use the forums to ask for medical advice from one
another? My curiosity was stemmed from the recent increase of players
on the VHR forums who are asking for advice on medical conditions of
themselves, their acquaintances, and their pets. Naturally, I wanted
feedback.
"No,”
said Oriyana of VirtualPups. “Medical advice should really only
be given by a licensed veterinarian. And even if on the off chance
there was someone qualified to give advice on this game, it is
extremely hard to diagnose a pet over the forum.” Oriyana also noted
that it takes much less time to call a vet for advice than to wait for
responses on the forums.
Akutenshi
of VirtualHorseRanch agreed, saying, “None of us on the
forums are specialists, and [players asking for medical help] could
very easily receive wrong advice that is life threatening… Doctors
first, us second – always safest in my opinion.”
Still,
as many players pointed out, it’s not just a matter of
convenience or even the common sense factor of consulting a
professional. There are many insecurities associated with using the
forums for serious advice.
Take
for example what Cecelia of SandBoxFarm said: “I think that many
players… have been able to help each other in many different ways,
whether is it advice on pet care, horseback riding, or just being there
for someone who is hurting. As for giving medical advice,” she
continued, “I would not recommend it because you do not know the age of
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person who is offering it.”
And,
she added, some people may just be joking around instead of giving
valid advice. “I would take it, though, from a well-known player.”
Players
on SandBoxFarm seemed to be most eager to answer my question,
and one of them – odinsdottir – brought up an extremely good point.
“Orbis Games does NOT need to be held accountable for the unfounded
opinions of players… there is also the issue of sharing medical
histories. It is not only unsafe but an invasion of privacy. There are
many clues as to where we live; discussing the medical situation in our
areas adds another.”
This,
perhaps, is the most compelling of all arguments against the practice.
After
receiving a good amount of feedback from players on all three
games, I have discovered that despite the numerous requests for advice
on the forums, the general consensus over Orbis Games is that it is
safest for players not to seek medical advice, especially if they
haven’t already consulted a professional. As odinsdottir said, “Since
99% of players have NO medical training at all, the answer must be NO.”
When writing Open
Forum, I ask
players on the VHR, VP, and SBF to share their opinions on important
topics that arise within the Orbis Games community.
Responses are on a monthly topic posted in the "Orbis Worlds
Newsletter" category of the VHR and VP forums as well as the "Chicken
Chatter" category of the SBF forum. Responses are received via forum
private messaging. |
BY JANET CANE
When Coral came
to Lifelong Friends, she was emaciated with a puppy
rotting inside of her uterus. The picture on the left shows what she
looked like when we got her and after her life-saving surgeries. Four
of her ten newborn puppies were dead when we rescued them, but we
bottle fed the six that were alive and all survived. Coral and four of
her babies are in loving, forever homes. Two of the pups are still
looking for homes. The picture on the right shows what Coral looks like
today. Please
enjoy this video of Coral in her new home.
It shows a miracle that was made possible by the donations of
compassionate people like you. Please donate now so that we can help
other pets in need.
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