Non-Disney movie content on UD.com

[Disney-Fan]

So am I the only one that still loves this board more than any other? I've been here for a while and, honestly, save the minor spaz every now and then, this board is one of the best (if not the best) I've ever visited. Where's the love, people?

[blackcauldron85]

Another example of fluff posts is in The Ultimate Disney Awards, many posters posted the congragulate to winner of every single award.

I'm totally at fault for that...I wish someone had said that we weren't supposed to do that...I thought I was being nice...

but I do think the expansion has hurt some of the Disney content. Not necessarily the reviews, but some of the other pages. The TV shows page is woefully outdated, and many of the other pages (direct to video, tv movies, etc) are falling behind too.

I don't think that the outdatedness has much to do with DVDizzy...I'm not sure how long Luke has been working on that, though, but the TV shows have been outdated for quite some time now. I, too, would love to at least see that section updated. And, some movies that recently became Disney Movie Club exclusives are still listed as not on DVD at all.

[AwallaceUNC]

But the things that made me fall in love with this website (primarily the reference pages) are falling by the wayside.

Nothing is falling to the wayside. The reference pages have never been updated daily. Believe it or not, those indexes take a tremendous amount of time to update. I'm sure it's in Luke's plans to get around to the TV Shows page, as many of the other pages have seen updates in the recent past. You may notice when a page hasn't been updated, but I dare say you don't notice when a page has been either. Luke can't do everything at once, though, and it just isn't practical to say to hold off on time-sensitive reviews in order to go through and make a large amount of minor edits to an index.

The UD review team isn't doing <i>more</i> reviews right now because of DVDizzy.com. We're doing about the same amount that we did whenever BVHE was putting out a lot of Disney content on DVD. It doesn't really make a lot of sense, then, to conclude that the "extra" work is keeping other things from getting updated.

Another example of fluff posts is in The Ultimate Disney Awards, many posters posted the congragulate to winner of every single award.

I'm totally at fault for that...I wish someone had said that we weren't supposed to do that...I thought I was being nice...

In my book, coming in to say congratulations is and always has been welcome. I agree with castleinthesky, though, that this year's awards definitely took a weird turn. There were indeed a lot of bizarre fluff posts that went well beyond congratulating and I think just caused a lot of thread-derailing confusion. I get a kick out of the awards, so if I was enjoying them a lot less as a result, I can only imagine that others were too. I don't recall anything you contributed being a problem, Amy. And you're always nice!

So am I the only one that still loves this board more than any other? I've been here for a while and, honestly, save the minor spaz every now and then, this board is one of the best (if not the best) I've ever visited. Where's the love, people?

Nope! I still do! UD is still by far my favorite forum on the web. I think we've all just felt a little frustration over some of the more recent activity and the disappearance of a lot of quality members as a result. Still, nothing I've found beats UD!

-Aaron

[Princess Stitch]

I'm totally at fault for that...I wish someone had said that we weren't supposed to do that...I thought I was being nice...

In my book, coming in to say congratulations is and always has been welcome. I agree with castleinthesky, though, that this year's awards definitely took a weird turn. There were indeed a lot of bizarre fluff posts that went well beyond congratulating and I think just caused a lot of thread-derailing confusion. I get a kick out of the awards, so if I was enjoying them a lot less as a result, I can only imagine that others were too. I don't recall anything you contributed being a problem, Amy. And you're always nice!

Yeah it's not so much the congrats posts, although maybe next year we can have a "hold your applause till the end" rule and congratulate everyone at once.. I was more aggrivated by having to read through 3-4 pages of song lyrics or people flirting with each other every time I wanted to check out who had won the next award. Seemed like people were using the awards forum like a chat room.....

[castleinthesky]

Another example of fluff posts is in The Ultimate Disney Awards, many posters posted the congragulate to winner of every single award.

I'm totally at fault for that...I wish someone had said that we weren't supposed to do that...I thought I was being nice...

You were being very nice to all the winners, which wasn't the major problem. However, ten members congragulating every winner, coupled with all the other fluff non-sensical posts is what really hurt the topic.

[Timon/Pumbaa fan]

Another example of fluff posts is in The Ultimate Disney Awards, many posters posted the congragulate to winner of every single award. Many posts in that topic were irrelevent, were one liners, and didn't make any sense to me. That is just one topic of many that have the same problems. Posts like that have turned many long-time members away from the site, and keep many new members from becoming long time members.

Ah yes, another terrific example. So many of those people burnt the freshness and originallity these awards once had, that there was no point in the whole thing but to waste bandwidth.

Quite frankly, I couldn't care less if we never had another awards ceremony here again.

Oh btw, a big thank you to whoever moved threads like "What Did You Just Eat" threads in the Polls and Games. Hopefully, "The Post Count Competition" can decrease even more.

[2099net]

Another example of fluff posts is in The Ultimate Disney Awards, many posters posted the congragulate to winner of every single award.

I'm totally at fault for that...I wish someone had said that we weren't supposed to do that...I thought I was being nice...

Don't worry. Thread's like the Awards threads are specifically created to engage and build the on-line community we have. I don't see how anyone can object to what we like to call "fluffy" posts in them.

[Pluto Region1]

This may seem inappropriate, since this topic has mainly turned into a discussion about the quality of the forum, but I would like to address some of the members who posted on the first page of this thread about the decline of the website, how they hate the non-UD content, etc.

[rant]This is a business for Luke (as well as an obvious labor of love, but love don't pay the bills) – the DVD reviews drive the website and if there's no good Disney content, then he has to expand. I'd rather have a sister site than NO UD…. Think of it that way. As has been stated, the co-mingling of the sites is temporary and he needs UD to drive traffic to the new site. You guys, for the most part (unless you are a regular donor), use this website and forum FOR FREE – so let's have some understanding and appreciation for this site being here in the first place, instead of all this criticism about what content you want to see. It is a lot of work to run a website like this, in fact, its a full-time job. You guys have been complaining about this site and what you want to see on it like you are in a restaurant ordering from a waiter. Frankly I find it disgusting. He doesn't work for you. He's got this website to run AND he's starting a new one – he's burning the candle at both ends. Your demands are demands on HIS time and let's not forget that. Where is your gratitude? You should all quit bellyaching and appreciate that the site is still here. [/end of rant]

In terms of movies, I was a big "old movie" buff and used to tape a lot of movies on AMC and TCM, and I'm a big film noir fan. So I'll be familiar with at least some of the new site's content, and I hope that it helps THIS site survive the Disney movie slump.

As for the state of the forums, I have been gone on and off so much it probably isn't really fair for me to comment. But I've always found this to be a place of inspiring discussions (discussions I wished I had more time to read and participate in) such as, the restoration quality of many of the releases, was Cinderella over-restored, is the latest release making money, Pixar vs. Disney, are the Disney princesses bad for children, (ok, and now I'm really going out on a limb here, with this one) but I've even come to appreciate how the "what food did you just eat" thread builds comradery and provides a stable thread to come back to time and time again (ok, I hear the laughter in the background, but you get my point). There's even been some really horrible ugly fights on the forums that are still a very good read because of the issues raised (ie, the racism issues that have been raised by one member in particular, the gay vs. hetero/religious discussions etc. Hey, we've seen it all here, haven't we folks?). I've still got my Disney training wheels on due to long absences related to my job issue and probably haven't progressed much past the "moron" stage as far as being an informed forum member goes, but I hope you guys will continue to tolerate my stupid questions into the future... I hope to be back as a regular here in the next month or so. Perhaps if I spent more time on the forums consistently, I might come to a different opinion on the state of it now, but from my vantage point, the forums have always been interesting and a good place to learn.

Why not have some UltimateDisney.com articles that thoroughly examine these topics along with other things? Like, let's say that Aaron Wallace will write an article about "Learning from Disney Films How to Improve Your Social Life", while Kelvin Cedeno writes an article like "Disney and Religion: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly", and I personally wouldn't mind writing "The Little Mermaid: Everything That Is Wrong With This Film". It would bring more to UD besides listings and reviews of Disney DVD. It'd be a great way to bring BACK those in-depth discussions of the forum's glory days, and introduce it to many of our new posters.

Some really positive and constructive ideas.

Now in the past, I have obviously been a cruel critic of this movie, having put my 2 cents on it(a boring and terribly-developed plot, a main character you wouldn't mind frying with chips, a supporting cast you wouldn't mind to have as side-dishes, a bland human cast, an overrated history, unimpessive character animation... these are just the ones of the top of my head, there are enough for me to write severeal encyclopedias to explain why this movie's so flawed) but no one ever has had a "I respectfully disagree" arguement, they just say something like, "OMG!!KJ! Littl' Areil greatets 2D movie EVER!!?@@$# BETTER THAN lal 3D animation crap" or "have you not ever used a Little Mermaid slipcover yet?" And even today, the madness continues.....

I also applaud anyone who bothered to take the time to actually read this long(perhaps unnecessary) rant.

I was truly amazed at the size of that TLM thread - was it up to 65 pages? I think one night I spent 5 hours just trying to catch up in the thread so I could post something relevant (and this was when it was only about 20 pages long, later I gave up!). People were even creating their own TLM slip covers and then arguing over the placement of the characters on them!

[Paka]

This is a business for Luke

Yeah, that was his first mistake right there.

[AwallaceUNC]

Great post, Pluto Region One. I think you've pointed out a few things that needed pointing.

This is a business for Luke

Yeah, that was his first mistake right there.

I didn't see you ing when you reaped the benefits of that "mistake". Honestly, I don't understand the attitude you've taken against UD and Luke in some of your posts or why you suddenly decided to abandon the site and forum, save for the occasional post (why even come back just to say something negative like this?).

-Aaron

[deathie mouse]

Aaron, maybe she's hurt. As am I.

[Pluto Region1]

Aaron, maybe she's hurt. As am I.

Not to go totally off subject, but just a rare opportunity for me to see Paka and Deathie in the forum - I don't know what happened with you and Paka in relation to your hanging out at this forum, but it is good to see you again. Wished you both would post more.

[blackcauldron85]

I just have a quick question- Luke (or anyone who might know), how (and when) will DVDizzy stand on its own feet? Are you thinking of putting an ad on sites like DVDFile or something like that? I'm just curious as to what marketing will be done so people who don't usually visit UD will just be able to go to DVDizzy.com...

(And, selfishly, it's still weird for me to see on the homepage links to non-Disney reviews...but I'm okay with it...)

[That1GuyPictures]

I used to love this site. My problem is when there IS a new title like the Aristocats, we don't have a review by it's release date. Instead we have reviews of 10 other titles that I could read a review of elsewhere.

There are hundreds of DVD websites out there, I only came to this one becuase of it's devotion to the Disney brand.

I love the forums and stuff, but it's always been about Luke's great reviews on other titles. I know the Disney releases on DVD have slowed. That's why it's time to start reviewing older films, new releases and Blu-Ray releases.

As someone who has donated money to this website in the past, I feel that I have the right to say this.

I am also extremely thankful for Luke and all his efforts.
But until Blu-Rays are being reviewed, and there are more frequent reviews of current title re-releases, I will have no reason to visit anymore.

Until Disney and Dizzy are seperated, this website is of little use to me.

[AwallaceUNC]

I used to love this site. My problem is when there IS a new title like the Aristocats, we don't have a review by it's release date. Instead we have reviews of 10 other titles that I could read a review of elsewhere.

Your post assumes that all screener DVDs are received at the same time. They aren't. We review them as they come in. When a review gets published has as much to do with when the screener is received as it does the person writing the review.

That's why it's time to start reviewing older films, new releases and Blu-Ray releases.

Which older films? There are hardly any Disney titles (movie or otherwise) that don't have reviews on DVD. As for Blu-Ray, personally speaking, that's a financial commitment that I as a reviewer am not willing (or even able) to make at the time.

Reviews take a tremendous amount of time to prepare. I would urge you to put yourself in the shoes of those writing them. Your reviewers sacrifice countless hours of sleep and take time away from other important commitments and their social lives to bring you thoughtful and researched analysis that will actually be of some use (and, I might add, for very little reward).

I'd also just like to point out that <i>The Aristocats</i> review was posted in time for its release date, which is an impressive accomplishment, given that it was received virtually last minute. All that hard work deserves to be met with more than a complaint.

It's almost astonishing, the way people talk about our time and money as if they have some claim on it.

-Aaron

[That1GuyPictures]

I myself once ran a website that reviewed DVD's called thebiggerpicture.com
from 1997-2000. I know what it takes to put stuff into a website. I have reviewed several movies and I still receive screener DVD's early of many titles. I am fully aware that Disney usually cuts it fairly close on it's titles that are re-releases.

My complaint is merely that a site called UltimateDisney, is no longer about Ultimately Disney things. I'm very glad that you are happy with the site.

I have a right to complain about things I don't like...and I don't like the direction the site has taken.

I have offered my services as a graphic designer free of charge many times before, but have been denied the opportunity even though the website looks very plain and is very hard to navigate.

I have even contributed a few news stories to the site myself.
I've even donated some of my own money through Amazon.com on several occasions.

I have a right to complain.

I'm dissapointed with the site...and I'm sorry you disagree.
I'm glad you were able to complete the Aristocats review today.
I read a review of it a few weeks ago at another site.

And yes there are catalog titles that have yet to have been reviewed.

I'm sorry that you all aren't financially capable of reviewing Blu-Ray discs yet.

Unfortunately with the HD-DVD format dying a fast death, and Blu-Ray being Disney exclusive, the site can no longer claim to be providing up to date news and reviews on Disney titles. From now on, all titles on DVD are going to be mostly re-issues with little to no changes.

The reviews of the future will need to be about Blu-Ray.
I know that the players aren't that cheap now, but they are still under $400 for most, with some in the $250 range. In 1999, that's how much the average DVD player cost, two years after the release of it's format.

Like I said before, I used to love this site.
And if things change...I'd love to come back.

I just feel like the site has lost it's focus.

I didn't ask for more reviews of non-disney films.
I just wanted up-to-date Disney news that couldn't be found elsewhere
and indepth reviews of the picture and sound quality before street date.

Now, that is the exception, not the rule.

Sorry, if I've hurt a few people's feelings....
I'm just saying that I think the site has lost it's focus.

I also don't think it's right for a Feedback forum to be open,
and then for those who contribute to the site to argue with the visitors.

This will be my last post on UltimateDisney.com,
and it will also be my last visit for quite some time.

Deathie it's been wonderful to chat with you so many times.
It has been wonderful to trade and sell many things on here as well.

Luke and Aaron, this site was and is a great idea,
but you have changed it's purpose, and therefore,
it no longer serves my needs.

Bye everyone!

[Paka]

Fully sympathize with you, dude. The site became a sort of cheap roadside attraction years ago. I too find it rather unfortunate to witness the belligerence displayed by the site's zealots and apologists, especially when legitimate questions are raised.

I'll tell Deathie you said hi. He and I left the site eons ago. I only pop in once in a while because, well - it's just fascinating to watch something deteriorate so... flamboyantly?

[Maerj]

Fully sympathize with you, dude. The site became a sort of cheap roadside attraction years ago. I too find it rather unfortunate to witness the belligerence displayed by the site's zealots and apologists, especially when legitimate questions are raised.

I'll tell Deathie you said hi. He and I left the site eons ago. I only pop in once in a while because, well - it's just fascinating to watch something deteriorate so... flamboyantly?

Welcome back!

[Paka]

I detect a slight amount of sarcasm, Terry.

[PeterPanfan]

I believe Luke, Aaron, and Kelvin(along with the other reviews) work very hard to keep everyone happy. If you even look at the amount of reviews they've done, there are over hundreds. It's rude to come here just to trash this site, after all the work that's been done for us. Luke does this for people like you, not to pass the time away. He has had this site for a while, and I think he added DVD Dizzy to appeal to other members.

I'm grateful for all his work on this site.