Freaking Out With The VinylToyFreaks (over toys, that is)
Vinyl Toy Freaks is a spanking "new" toy-forum helmed by Nos4a2 (aka Louie Lanford) and s4ndm4n (aka Matt Beers) = who is currently giving away a Jamungo URFUKT Bud-figure, and all you have to do is (A) sign up as a member to the forum, (B) post a short intro about yourself in the Introductions section, and (C) post comments in at least 10 posts within any of the boards and board sections (dun spam pls) and the dateline for entries is December 20th 2007! Go Now!
meanwhile, i had a quick chat with both Louie and Matt about the ins-and-outs of VinylToyFreaks
/// CLICK HERE TO READ
TOYSREVIL: how did the VinylToyFreak-forum come about? what made you guys do it and when was it launched?
LOUIE LANFORD: Matt and I were moderators of vinyltoyforum.com and wanted to spark some life back into it. We tried a few cosmetic fixes but couldn't get the results we were after so we started fresh. It allowed us to correct the technical glitches of the old VTF and gave us complete control over the feel of the forums. We wanted it to be a catch-all forum for all the artists, toys and people we think make this community great. It was launched just over a month ago but we've been working on it for so long it seems like ages ago.
MATTHEW BEERS: Exactly. In addition to what Louie's said, there were some functionality issues that we were having with the type of board that was used conflicting with IE and we couldn't get that fixed. We knew we were missing a great number of people in the community that uses that browser and we couldn't have that. Starting fresh was the only way to do that.
I don't like the term catch-all, sounds too much like a trash bin or something. What the vision is, is a forum that is not driven by a single entity be it toy company, design individual/team, retailer or customizer, but one that brings all of that together along with the members of the consumer segment of the community. We know it won't be the only forum out there, ever but we do want to strive to make it the "ultimate" forum for toys. I could go on, but hopefully this brief statement gives you an overall idea of our scope for this project. Of course, let's not leave out that we did it because we love toys and people!
TOYSREVIL: it is after all about the toys, IMHO :) - why is it called Vinyl-Toy-Freaks? locked up in the loony-bin for smelling on them new fresh-deboxed vinyls? LOL
LOUIE: First and foremost we are freaks. We love the vinyl toy scene and the art scene that goes along with it. We went through a long, long, long list of potential names and settled on Vinyl Toy Freaks when it seems obvious we were going to need a mascot as well.
MATT: Ditto. (do people still say that today? :S haha)
TOYSREVIL: i still do! (*heh*) ... lemme play the devil's advocate here - why start "another" toy-forum? what do you think makes VTF different from other forums?
LOUIE: I don't know that I would label it "another" toy forum, it's more of a revitalization of an old forum that everyone loved and didn't want to lose. We are trying to be a family friendly site as well, sure we still want to be the immature freaks that we are, but we also want a place where people new to the scene can come to and not be harassed by the elitist few.
MATT: I definitely would hope that will not just become "another" forum for the toy community. Adding to the vision that we partially laid out earlier, we want to be a unique community, made up of all levels of the community, in a sense on a level ground. One of the points made by Louie, is very important here. Louie and I spoke about this, and its important to us and the few of our administrative team that an elitist vs. commoner environment does come about. Far too often, I've seen it stifle the communication on forums and we want to stay as far from that as possible.
TOYSREVIL: oops - don't mean to be ruffling any feathers here gents! ... so features does VTF have to entice a constant-lurker and jaded-forumer (aka. me LOL)?
MATT: Our biggest feature we included in our forum is the group of different sections such as Artists Corner for Toy labels and individual designers, a retailers section and a master customizers section. Each of these features appropriate individuals, such as Erick Scarecrow, Eric Nocella Diaz, Phu.... and many more. These people can use their sections to promote themselves, get to know their fans and interact with them, and they are set up as moderators in their own sections.
TOYSREVIL: how has the response been thus far? are you folks happy what the current status of VTF?
LOUIE: So far the response has been great. We've got a lot of really great artists signed up, the majority of the community from the old VTF has arrived, we've got lots of great contests planned and everyone loves the Flog.
MATT: I think I'm happy with the status at this point. I hope it will pick up with some of the promotions we'll have soon! Let's not forget the current one ending on the 20th of December! (the URFUKT Bud giveaway)
TOYSREVIL: i've always had this silly notion to start a toy-forum myself (ever since my early-1/6th-web'horing days LOL) but one of the considerations was: have a thriving community packed full with collectors, that may eventually run wild and out-of-control (and hence the need for heavy moderation) or a small community of like-minded folks who genuinely wants to "share" (without malice or too much selfishness) = which would you prefer? or does neither ideals exist in this cyber-age? (of coz im taking the extreme stance here :p)
LOUIE: I think somewhere in the middle would be great, sure we have a small community now that mostly agrees with each other but after awhile you need a larger community to expand your horizons. If we sit around talking about the same artists day after day, we'll never get to see the progress of the up and coming artists of tomorrow. When those wild and crazy days arrive, we've got a great crew of mods ready to keep the conversation moving in the right direction and we've got a great bouncer willing to knock the riff-raff around.
MATT: I think that I would like the community to grow, to be as large as possible, but not necessarily in the blink of an eye or anything. If it grows that fast we'll welcome it, of course, but you and I know that its going to take every ounce of our resources to keep up with it.
TOYSREVIL: "resources" - yep, i can imagine keeping a forum running and interesting, and moderating isn't as easy folks think they may be, innit? who really are the freaks behind VTF? LOL
LOUIE LANFORD: I'm 32 going on 13, went to art school on a scholarship and have done nothing with it, during the day I am a graphic artist for a newspaper the rest of the time I am the father of two wonderful girls who remind me constantly that toys are meant to be played with, that art is the most meaningful when it comes from within, and that it's not fair that Daddy has more toys than they do.
MATTHEW BEERS: I'm just a little younger than dirt (40) ;) and am a married father of 4 kids, 3 boys at home, and a daughter living with her mother, unfortunately across the country. I'm a toy fanatic because of its DIY aspects, as I too am an artist. I've been one as far back as I can remember. I had several false starts with school and finally have returned to art school now. I guess I'm a toy designer, though I don't feel like I'm at the level to deserve the title yet, with my boombu collection. I love everything that's creative, for the most part.
TOYSREVIL: cheers for the time and trouble, gents! what's up next for VTF?
LOUIE: A ton of fun stuff. We've got a lot of great giveaways coming up (because everyone loves free stuff!) and some great contests as well. We've got some great interviews with everyone's favorite artists and the Freak is almost ready to come out of his shell and show the world what he is made of.
MATT: But hang onto your toys, we've let the freak runaround the forum a few times and he tends to swipe toys from our members.. We always get them back of course, so don't let it keep you from joining though! :D Come on everyone and join in the fun!
meanwhile, i had a quick chat with both Louie and Matt about the ins-and-outs of VinylToyFreaks
/// CLICK HERE TO READ
TOYSREVIL: how did the VinylToyFreak-forum come about? what made you guys do it and when was it launched?
LOUIE LANFORD: Matt and I were moderators of vinyltoyforum.com and wanted to spark some life back into it. We tried a few cosmetic fixes but couldn't get the results we were after so we started fresh. It allowed us to correct the technical glitches of the old VTF and gave us complete control over the feel of the forums. We wanted it to be a catch-all forum for all the artists, toys and people we think make this community great. It was launched just over a month ago but we've been working on it for so long it seems like ages ago.
MATTHEW BEERS: Exactly. In addition to what Louie's said, there were some functionality issues that we were having with the type of board that was used conflicting with IE and we couldn't get that fixed. We knew we were missing a great number of people in the community that uses that browser and we couldn't have that. Starting fresh was the only way to do that.
I don't like the term catch-all, sounds too much like a trash bin or something. What the vision is, is a forum that is not driven by a single entity be it toy company, design individual/team, retailer or customizer, but one that brings all of that together along with the members of the consumer segment of the community. We know it won't be the only forum out there, ever but we do want to strive to make it the "ultimate" forum for toys. I could go on, but hopefully this brief statement gives you an overall idea of our scope for this project. Of course, let's not leave out that we did it because we love toys and people!
TOYSREVIL: it is after all about the toys, IMHO :) - why is it called Vinyl-Toy-Freaks? locked up in the loony-bin for smelling on them new fresh-deboxed vinyls? LOL
LOUIE: First and foremost we are freaks. We love the vinyl toy scene and the art scene that goes along with it. We went through a long, long, long list of potential names and settled on Vinyl Toy Freaks when it seems obvious we were going to need a mascot as well.
MATT: Ditto. (do people still say that today? :S haha)
TOYSREVIL: i still do! (*heh*) ... lemme play the devil's advocate here - why start "another" toy-forum? what do you think makes VTF different from other forums?
LOUIE: I don't know that I would label it "another" toy forum, it's more of a revitalization of an old forum that everyone loved and didn't want to lose. We are trying to be a family friendly site as well, sure we still want to be the immature freaks that we are, but we also want a place where people new to the scene can come to and not be harassed by the elitist few.
MATT: I definitely would hope that will not just become "another" forum for the toy community. Adding to the vision that we partially laid out earlier, we want to be a unique community, made up of all levels of the community, in a sense on a level ground. One of the points made by Louie, is very important here. Louie and I spoke about this, and its important to us and the few of our administrative team that an elitist vs. commoner environment does come about. Far too often, I've seen it stifle the communication on forums and we want to stay as far from that as possible.
TOYSREVIL: oops - don't mean to be ruffling any feathers here gents! ... so features does VTF have to entice a constant-lurker and jaded-forumer (aka. me LOL)?
MATT: Our biggest feature we included in our forum is the group of different sections such as Artists Corner for Toy labels and individual designers, a retailers section and a master customizers section. Each of these features appropriate individuals, such as Erick Scarecrow, Eric Nocella Diaz, Phu.... and many more. These people can use their sections to promote themselves, get to know their fans and interact with them, and they are set up as moderators in their own sections.
TOYSREVIL: how has the response been thus far? are you folks happy what the current status of VTF?
LOUIE: So far the response has been great. We've got a lot of really great artists signed up, the majority of the community from the old VTF has arrived, we've got lots of great contests planned and everyone loves the Flog.
MATT: I think I'm happy with the status at this point. I hope it will pick up with some of the promotions we'll have soon! Let's not forget the current one ending on the 20th of December! (the URFUKT Bud giveaway)
TOYSREVIL: i've always had this silly notion to start a toy-forum myself (ever since my early-1/6th-web'horing days LOL) but one of the considerations was: have a thriving community packed full with collectors, that may eventually run wild and out-of-control (and hence the need for heavy moderation) or a small community of like-minded folks who genuinely wants to "share" (without malice or too much selfishness) = which would you prefer? or does neither ideals exist in this cyber-age? (of coz im taking the extreme stance here :p)
LOUIE: I think somewhere in the middle would be great, sure we have a small community now that mostly agrees with each other but after awhile you need a larger community to expand your horizons. If we sit around talking about the same artists day after day, we'll never get to see the progress of the up and coming artists of tomorrow. When those wild and crazy days arrive, we've got a great crew of mods ready to keep the conversation moving in the right direction and we've got a great bouncer willing to knock the riff-raff around.
MATT: I think that I would like the community to grow, to be as large as possible, but not necessarily in the blink of an eye or anything. If it grows that fast we'll welcome it, of course, but you and I know that its going to take every ounce of our resources to keep up with it.
TOYSREVIL: "resources" - yep, i can imagine keeping a forum running and interesting, and moderating isn't as easy folks think they may be, innit? who really are the freaks behind VTF? LOL
LOUIE LANFORD: I'm 32 going on 13, went to art school on a scholarship and have done nothing with it, during the day I am a graphic artist for a newspaper the rest of the time I am the father of two wonderful girls who remind me constantly that toys are meant to be played with, that art is the most meaningful when it comes from within, and that it's not fair that Daddy has more toys than they do.
MATTHEW BEERS: I'm just a little younger than dirt (40) ;) and am a married father of 4 kids, 3 boys at home, and a daughter living with her mother, unfortunately across the country. I'm a toy fanatic because of its DIY aspects, as I too am an artist. I've been one as far back as I can remember. I had several false starts with school and finally have returned to art school now. I guess I'm a toy designer, though I don't feel like I'm at the level to deserve the title yet, with my boombu collection. I love everything that's creative, for the most part.
TOYSREVIL: cheers for the time and trouble, gents! what's up next for VTF?LOUIE: A ton of fun stuff. We've got a lot of great giveaways coming up (because everyone loves free stuff!) and some great contests as well. We've got some great interviews with everyone's favorite artists and the Freak is almost ready to come out of his shell and show the world what he is made of.
MATT: But hang onto your toys, we've let the freak runaround the forum a few times and he tends to swipe toys from our members.. We always get them back of course, so don't let it keep you from joining though! :D Come on everyone and join in the fun!
