COMPLETE: The Dead Account
Oct. 17th, 2021 03:37 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kjorteoIFComp 2021 continues.
So hey, did you know that Telegram messenger has a non-removable dead man's switch that auto-deletes your account if you haven't logged on in X time, presumably to free up space on their servers? You can push back the length of time before it activates in your account settings (I believe the longest you can give it is one year) but you can't disable it entirely.
The Dead Account by Bez is a multiple choice Twine game set up to look like the interface of "Hivekind," a fictitious chat app. Plot beats are played out by reading user bios, reading and reviewing previous flagged messages, and confirming details with users in a group chat. You are a Hivekind employee and moderator, and they just put out a policy update that states deceased users are to have their accounts closed. Unlike Telegram, Hivekind believes in that human touch, so your job is to review messages flagged by the system indicating this user might be deceased, confirm this information with their contacts if so, and then pull the plug on the account yourself. Or you can try to resist with as much wiggle room as you're allowed (but no promises.)
Also, this game was written by a furry, and furries are heavily referenced within (account profile pictures, messages about suiting and attending cons, etc.) so the Telegram connection becomes that much stronger.
So this game hits like an absolute train. Granted, the subject matter is very close and personal to us, to the point that the Hivekind account pages and chatrooms feel authentic and incredibly well put together (the author uses Twine to absolute perfection and the framing greatly enhances the story) so maybe this wouldn't be as heavy if we weren't a part of the scene. Or maybe it would? Death and grief are universal feelings, I suppose, even if the details with which the game paints a picture of these people, not as names on a screen or characters in a story but as people, draw largely from our subculture. I guess that the question of how much this game affects non-furries will be up to the non-furry reviewers to decide; all we can say on our end is oof.
This game does such a good job humanizing (or badgerizing as the case may be) its deceased account that we're mourning him now. On one hand, that's a sign of a well-written story, and is to be commended. On the other, I'm sad now and I need to go sit in a corner and be sad for a while.
... Give your Telegram (or Discord or whatever) friends a hug and tell them you love them. And maybe download local copies of your chat history from time to time.
So hey, did you know that Telegram messenger has a non-removable dead man's switch that auto-deletes your account if you haven't logged on in X time, presumably to free up space on their servers? You can push back the length of time before it activates in your account settings (I believe the longest you can give it is one year) but you can't disable it entirely.
The Dead Account by Bez is a multiple choice Twine game set up to look like the interface of "Hivekind," a fictitious chat app. Plot beats are played out by reading user bios, reading and reviewing previous flagged messages, and confirming details with users in a group chat. You are a Hivekind employee and moderator, and they just put out a policy update that states deceased users are to have their accounts closed. Unlike Telegram, Hivekind believes in that human touch, so your job is to review messages flagged by the system indicating this user might be deceased, confirm this information with their contacts if so, and then pull the plug on the account yourself. Or you can try to resist with as much wiggle room as you're allowed (but no promises.)
Also, this game was written by a furry, and furries are heavily referenced within (account profile pictures, messages about suiting and attending cons, etc.) so the Telegram connection becomes that much stronger.
So this game hits like an absolute train. Granted, the subject matter is very close and personal to us, to the point that the Hivekind account pages and chatrooms feel authentic and incredibly well put together (the author uses Twine to absolute perfection and the framing greatly enhances the story) so maybe this wouldn't be as heavy if we weren't a part of the scene. Or maybe it would? Death and grief are universal feelings, I suppose, even if the details with which the game paints a picture of these people, not as names on a screen or characters in a story but as people, draw largely from our subculture. I guess that the question of how much this game affects non-furries will be up to the non-furry reviewers to decide; all we can say on our end is oof.
This game does such a good job humanizing (or badgerizing as the case may be) its deceased account that we're mourning him now. On one hand, that's a sign of a well-written story, and is to be commended. On the other, I'm sad now and I need to go sit in a corner and be sad for a while.
... Give your Telegram (or Discord or whatever) friends a hug and tell them you love them. And maybe download local copies of your chat history from time to time.
Remember Me?
Date: 2021-12-21 05:00 am (UTC)Re: Remember Me?
Date: 2021-12-21 05:29 am (UTC)We've, uh, changed a bit on this end over the past few years. I imagine just about everything in our current bio is going to be new information and more than a bit of a coming out kind of speech compared to the last time we spoke.
But yes, hello! How about you, how have you been?
Re: Remember Me?
Date: 2021-12-21 05:51 am (UTC)I thought I had changed a lot because my politics have shifted. Goes to show that everything is relative.
I was feeling kinda blue and lonely in the world, and you came to mind as a memory from better times. So I looked you up on your old Tumblr, and then found you here.
Just to confirm, I should ideally call you by the name the Woodlanders and your 3rd person pronouns are they/them, unless I want to specify a particular member. Do I have that correct?
Re: Remember Me?
Date: 2021-12-21 06:14 am (UTC)And hey, one's politics shifting is a change, too. It's relative but that's definitely some news as well.
It's an honor that you were thinking of us (or at least of me, ehehe) when you were feeling down. Hopefully we can help. <3
So, when you're referring to us as a system, it'd be they/them not for gender-neutral reasons but because we're an actual group, and we'd either be the Woodlings or anything derived from me (Celine & Friends, etc.) When you're referring to us individually, it depends on which one you're talking to/about; Sara and I (Celine) are she/her, Kurt is he/him, and Ardei prefers the topic of gender not be brought up. (Ardei defaults to he/him just because going with the default is more automatic and invisible; it's not really accurate but the more accurate terms would be too conspicuous and call too much attention to themselves for his liking.)
Good!
Date: 2021-12-21 06:23 am (UTC)I'd like to catch up in private. Do you have some time? Is there something like a direct message or ICQ-style system around here?
Re: Good!
Date: 2021-12-21 06:26 am (UTC)There is a DM system (hover over our icon, select "Send Message.") Appropriately for the entry you picked to respond to and say hi, we're also on Telegram (