Renderotica

What is going on?!!

I definitely consider the option in mind that Murphy is going to kick in soon... me stirring up drama, and then "poof", good times. Hoping for the best.

But it has been 1 week already.  You know what?  I've been held back way too long, not to mention that "some people" don't want to believe what I said. Frick that...  Allow me, to share my plate of old? ;)

Week 10: SKU => 76007, 76011, 76019, 76025 (always solid "toys" Anamem!!), 76027, 76029, 76030, 76038, 76040, 76041, 76044 (b00bs for the win, hate to see the loss of the academy :/), 76045, 76053, 76055 (yes, ROMFX, yes: us testers?  We got TESTED as well TOO during all this ... and I almost didn't see this coming... )..

Why do you think that I know that SKU #76124 released in week 12 ("only" our top seller Davo, which I was told to always treat the same as everyone BUT..).

TO a certain someone I'd like to say: week 13. 76140.

Pardon the drama (really!) BUT...  This place means more to me than some of you will ever know. And right now?  I forsee a new ThriXXX.

And the reason I say this...  is because, yes, not proud of this, but I got once roasted by "the powers that be" for being 3 days too late in my reports (and rightfully so!)..   because (<= this is the important part!!) : because my actions at that time had impact for sales, vendors and continuence.

I want to believe you new guys, I really do..  but then again...  Surely the "old Renderotica" didn't prioritize not caring about vendors?

Meipe deserves ALL the attention they got, but omg....

And now I'm going here too: why did you guys destroy the subreddit without any backtalk?  See: THAT is how I'm getting most feedback right now: Reddit, several vendors were actually hoping to get featured..  yah, and not the small ones btw, because they had no idea.

One week without updates...   I can only imagine how this loss of revenue is eating up quite a few people.

What is happening?!!!

Wow...they weren't paying the vendor's royalties? Were they trying to kill the community?

Originally Posted by: choppski

Although I do sell comics here, that has not been my concern so much as the products I have purchased. I noticed recently that some older products are no longer hosted on the site (old stuff by Davo) which I was able to find by scouring my old, old, external drives. These might have been gone for ages, though, and I hadn't noticed. Mostly, I was worried that the site was going under, and I feared I wouldn't be able to get any backups of products if I needed them.

I know there is a ton of work to get your bearings, but maybe a more prominent notice on the webpage and/or an email to content makers and customers? Maybe I missed something, but I had to go hunting to find out about the recent changes, and only did so because I was also stunned that there were no new items in the store.

All that said, best to the new management as you work to get things in order. As someone who has been here almost 20 years now, I am hopeful the site has a long future ahead of it.
Best,
Choppski

Hey there Chopski,  long time no see :)  I JUST posted a thread about the "missing products" here: https://www.renderotica.com/community/forums.aspx?g=posts&t=284775

 That should explain things and put your mind at ease that nothing's really "missing" or "removed" :) 

Originally Posted by: ZenMaster3D

First: pardon my harsh wording above, but..  you're lying to yourself if you claim that sites like these don't evoke emotions. HECK, that is your whole business model.

I'm gonna be dead honest?  I don't know what to think anymore.

What I DO know (I have screenshots btw): for a FACT is that the former community manager shared a blog post and.. it was gone: deleted. Here's my problem: the link was still visible in the community setup triggering 404's. I once deleted a blog as well, and I do not recall the same kind of behavior.

From where I am standing it seems very disrespectful towards the powers that were, no matter what you may think of them.

Trust is a factor which cannot be denied in this industry... 

You'll get zero arguments from me on the bulk of what you said. and you are overly correct about emotions, I don't think anyone could try and deny that one.
I will,however, give just a slight correction on one point.

I was actually the former Community Manager and Social Media Manager from roughly 2012 through October 2024 under this very account. I originally started under the name "Teronsuke" before the account name was later changed to "Community Manager" after my departure. As far as I am aware, Ranger Rabbit used this account briefly before creating and moving over to the "Communications" account which he used until the transition.

The person you are referring to was the former Store Manager, not the Community Manager. I make that correction not to diminish or downplay everything she contributed over the years, because she absolutely played a major role in vendor relations, coordinating testers, helping retain vendors, bringing new ones in, and keeping releases flowing consistently. I worked alongside her for over a decade and fully recognize the work and passion she put into the community.

As for the blog post itself, I personally did not see the original post directly on the site, however I did have a copy / paste sent to me, so I do know it existed. I will try to look into why it disappeared and whether or not it can be restored. That said, I also want to be upfront and honest that there are currently a lot of larger issues being worked through behind the scenes to return the site to full operations, so I cannot promise a quick fix regarding the post.

I literally just returned yesterday after being gone since October 2024, so I do not want to speak too heavily on anything that may or may not have happened over the last couple of weeks because I do not have direct firsthand knowledge of all of it. What I can speak for is myself moving forward.

Anyone who remembers me, knows me, (or knows my other names) knows that honesty and transparency have always been extremely important to me, and that has not changed.

I will continue doing my best to keep everyone updated throughout this transition process because at the end of the day, this community only exists because of all of you, the artists, vendors, customers, testers, and yes, even the longtime lurkers. Renderotica, Renderotique and CGbytes have survived this long because you all cared about them, and we recognize and respect that, and of course we care just as much if not maybe even a bit more lol.

We're just as eager to get things stabilized and moving smoothly again as all of you are.

Teron