I haven't participated very much this year because I became a widow in March and I am still having difficulties focusing on just about anything, really.

Right now, I couldn't give coherent feedback on anything other than to say that I love the avatar clothes and wish I could get more. However, due to grief, I am not very coherent in terms of explaining what I like and don't like. I'm sorry.

I do know that I like Faenaria very much.

{hugs @Sunny}

I don't think my feedback would be useful either. I like this site, its friendlieness, I like the avatars
I totally missed the last FAD Don't know how this could happen.
As for keeping things interesting, maybe rotate types of events? Like, 1 month a FAD or something other avatar related, next month a story event, and the 3rd month something else?
Otherwise, I cannot really tell how other people are ticking - obviously, I myself am still here

(much love to @Sunny)

I think for content there is not really something missing and all the art is beyond gorgeous, the avatars, pets, clothes etc.
What bothers me (personally!!) is the design and the structure of the forum. I do not feel comfortable there. It lacks love imo ^^ It is kinda oldfashioned, it could be prettier and maybe somehow better organized. I never find what I look for, like atm I cant find the Murder Mystery, it already fell off the front page and all I can think of is to check in my notifs if hopefully I find a link, cus it stresses me to search through the forum when I do not even know in what section to look. There is lots of closed threads inbetween normal and inversed ones, which feels untidy.

I can't really say how it would feel better and I know thats not very helpful lol, but I can say that f. e. the forum at Dappervolk or FR are ones that has what I would call 'warmth'.
And our front page, with two columns, banners, pets, rounded boxes etc. has that too!
Perhaps it has to do with the separating of the posts that makes me feel that, am not sure.
Maybe 'more playful, not so stringent' is what I mean

But that again is just me, so no idea if it is important to others at all!
(and MY lack of participation has to do with RL, not the site )

Life is so overwhelming right now that I don't check in much because I'm trying to deal with teaching both virtually and in-person through a pandemic while trying to take care of my husband who is doing much better, but still has major physical problems after his bout with covid19.
The only thing I can think of site-wise, is that it is still totally unclear to me how I can get a pet. (I have an Amber Talisman, but can't find any information on what to do to get a pet with it. If I go to create a pet, it wants me to upload an image - what image? Am I supposed to design my own? how?)

Oh right, I forgot about this part:
A set of pre-designed pets (1 or 2 per genus?) would be awesome. The first pet you start with doesn't need to be a super-personalized one, it'll be special just by being your first. I think it would make the whole pet creation process less intimidating (the initial blueish PSD is like a blank page for a writer - WHERE DO I START? ).
It could be a pair of PSD and PNG files to download: the PNG could be used directly to follow the upload guidelines without any changes, the PSD for it to provide a starting point from which one can go and add a few details to test out the waters.
This would require a little work from the programmer (basically just download links) and a lot of work for the site designers, sorry

Also, the link to the newbie guide's pet section could be provided on the Genus Codex or the Uploading page as long as the user has zero pets?

I remember having a lot of questions about details of the site that long-term users probably all knew already, and I felt a little dumb for not understanding half of the lingo here Luckily, I'm not too shy to ask dumb questions! But others may be. The site got a lot easier to understand since I joined, but a little more newbie-friendliness could help keep new members?

i took a little bit of time to think about this, being a newcomer to the site - but i remember a lot of names from a previous life (well, it feels that way.)

i'm here for the community and the avatars... they're awesome, and the work that goes into the items is amazing. i subscribe to the threads i do or want to interact with, and i generally just stick with those. i do take a look at the events, but i figured out that i'm not here as much for the same reason it took as long as it did for me to actually sign up - way toooo many logins! (which was only june of this year!)

i have a bunch of other sites that i interact with as well, and some of those are also the same way - interact with the threads that i follow/subscribe to, and that's really it. and that's like three other sites, as well as social media, too. (there's also some places i have log-ins for, but haven't been there in forever....) i just have SO MUCH online content, i don't have time for all of it, so i interact with a little bit of a lot of it. (now, if we can figure out how to have more than 24 hours in a day, there might be something to that. )

so, sounding like a bad cliche - it's not you, it's me.

@Kiwiana @Flederfalle @trystan Thank you so much for the feedback! We're already working on how to handle the issues you brought up and make these areas better. weezee has been working on a new layout for us to make Faenaria feel more fresh and modern so updating the forums is easily added to our to do list!

trystan

...it's not you, it's me.

*sob* You're breaking up with us?!

Lucille

trystan

...it's not you, it's me.

*sob* You're breaking up with us?!

.... i'm sorry, i had to laugh!
i'm not breaking up with y'all! i'm just saying i'm not here all that much because of me.... it's nothing Faenaria did or didn't do

Initially I gave up on this site because the ponies that I had come for weren't there anymore, and there were none that I could get without paying real money. Then I found other sites and settled in on them, and I don't really do a lot on any of my forums but one. Like trystan said, I talk in the threads I know and that's about it. I'm usually on sites for the pets or the avatar. Like, I've been on 'Gaia Online' for years, but no one's seen me say anything, because I'm just there for the login rewards and to play with the avatar. And yeah, I too have SO many sites. That is part of why I never take part in events here. Another part is that I have sensory issues, and can easily get overwhelmed by things (and peri menopause isn't helping).

Don't know if any of this made sense. If it didn't, please forgive me.

Well..to be honest, when I joined I didn't realize that the only way to get a pet was to download a base then color it myself (I have one downloaded but still trying to figure out how to color it)
or try to get one from someone else.
There is really nothing to do here, no mini-games, no eggs, no expansion on the Compendium...the avatars are ok I suppose.
I mean..once you do manage to get a pet then what? No options to do anything with them...I mean, I like to hoard pets (like I do on Pokefarm) but at least I have an option to battle or have a dress-up contest or explorations.

Of course my lack of knowledge on how to use masks in Photoshop or Gimp is a bit of a stumbling block but even having a handful of ready-made pets would be nice
Forgive my criticism..I know you are working hard to make this place nice and I really am aware that it is a challenge to run a site. It is my fault, really, for not having a good grasp on how to do the coloring using layer masks and all..I am not a graphic artist and just do stuff for fun so that is entirely my fault.

While forums are important, they are not the first and foremost reason I join any site...of course I am a relative newcomer and have no knowledge about what this place was like before (or if there was a 'before' )
It's just..once you do get a pet then where does one go next?

I come here every so often mostly because I missed Unifaction and Unicreatures. But I'm terrible at keeping up with anything because I have so much going elsewhere and in my life.

I dunno how to finish all the research stuff because I have everything but the recipes which has nothing listed.

But yeah once you get a pet it kinda just sits there and looks pretty and don't get me wrong I love the one I have, but what the heckie am I gonna do with Genzo?

And since you took out the RP forums, which would have offered a chance to expand on your pets' life had you a section for that and meet other peoples' pets, I usually come around for the games and occasionally enter a contest.

I dunno what to do.

that sounds great! I love the idea of releasing already colored pets.
I haven't been on much because of personal life, and I feel like a lot of people are in the same spot. But I love knowing when things get back to normal I can log back in and come 'visit' with my friends again!
Keep up the good work!

I know I am late to the party, but all those goals sound amazing! Cant wait to see them get implemented to the site!