BattleMaster Community
BattleMaster => BM General Discussion => Topic started by: Azerax on October 05, 2012, 08:45:00 PM
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Greetings all,
When a new person signs up for the game they are sent an activation email. I'd like feedback on how to improve it. What should we add to it? This first email helps set the atmosphere of game and is an opportunity to reduce the new player learning curve.
Currently it is:
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Welcome to BattleMaster,
You have just signed up successfully to the BattleMaster online game.
In order to join the game, please click on or enter this URL into the
address bar of your browser:
http://battlemaster.org/activate.php?token=xxxxx
Your login details:
E-mail: swholmes@gmail.com
Password: xxxxx
In order to leave the game later on, log in as when playing, then
on the first page, look for the red "Delete Account" link in
the top-right area.
(If you did not sign up to any online game, then someone used your
e-mail address to sign up. He or she may also have made a typo. If
this worries you, contact tom@battlemaster.org)
===
Cheers,
Scott
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Well, the first two obvious things that come to mind are links to the forum and wiki.
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Also, a link to Battlemaster Basics (http://wiki.battlemaster.org/wiki/BattleMaster_Basics)
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any other thoughts?
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Details on how to delete one's account kinda send a negative vibe, don't they? He's joining the game, and we are telling him how to quit!
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Details on how to delete one's account kinda send a negative vibe, don't they? He's joining the game, and we are telling him how to quit!
True, but very standard for any signup email.
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I like having that information presented up front and clearly...
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True, but very standard for any signup email.
Wrong. There's usually something regarding if you got that email by mistake, but not specifically deleting ones account if you have purposely made one.
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Wrong. There's usually something regarding if you got that email by mistake, but not specifically deleting ones account if you have purposely made one.
I agree. I think it's quite unusual, and somewhat offputting.
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I know we have people with excellent writing skills - someone take a crack at re-writing this using all the above input please.
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I'll take a crack at it. I really hope we're not sending people's passwords to them as plain text in an email, that's kind of a huge no-no.
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I'll take a crack at it. I really hope we're not sending people's passwords to them as plain text in an email, that's kind of a huge no-no.
Of course we are. How else would they know them? The initial password is randomly generated by the game.
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Of course we are. How else would they know them? The initial password is randomly generated by the game.
Important info! Ok, I'll include something about changing their password then as well. Do they get a copy of the password when they first register?
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Of course we are. How else would they know them? The initial password is randomly generated by the game.
why is there initial password randomly generated vs just letting them choose it right of the start? Just seems like an unnecessary hassle.
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Updated text below. Someone should decide how to sign the email, I left it as the BM community for now.
Hello {First_Name} and welcome to BattleMaster, the team-oriented browswer-based strategy and roleplaying game
In order to complete your registration, please click on or enter this URL into the address bar of your browser:
http://battlemaster.org/activate.php?token=xxxxx
We invite you to read BattleMaster Basics found on the BattleMaster wiki (http://wiki.battlemaster.org/wiki/BattleMaster_Basics). This will help you get familiarized with game mechanics and concepts. If you have a particular question that you cannot find an answer for on the wiki our active forum serves as an excellent venue for interacting with the BattleMaster community found at http://forum.battlemaster.org
Your login details are:
E-mail: user@gmail.com
Password: Password
We encourage you to change your password by clicking Edit Data on the left hand side of your screen after logging in.
If you no longer wish to maintain a BattleMaster account you can delete your information from the game's databases at any time by clicking on the red "Delete Account" link after logging in at the top-right corner of your screen.
Sincerely,
The BattleMaster Community
(If you did not sign up for an online game, then someone used your
e-mail address to sign up. He or she may also have made a typo. If
this worries you, contact tom@battlemaster.org)
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remove the delete account part, I think.
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I am probably in the minority but, as I said before, I like having that information up front. If makes me feel that I am dealing with an honest person. I hate trying online games as 99% of the time I have to dig for a way to delete my account when I discover I do not like it. I dislike having unused accounts hanging around and I dislike having to search for instructions on how to do something like delete my account. To each their own though.
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why is there initial password randomly generated vs just letting them choose it right of the start? Just seems like an unnecessary hassle.
It's standard practice these days. It does two things:
one, it ensures that people have a good password at least once.
two, it makes sure their e-mail address is valid when they sign up. If you give me a bogus mail address, you don't get your password.
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I am probably in the minority but, as I said before, I like having that information up front. If makes me feel that I am dealing with an honest person. I hate trying online games as 99% of the time I have to dig for a way to delete my account when I discover I do not like it. I dislike having unused accounts hanging around and I dislike having to search for instructions on how to do something like delete my account. To each their own though.
I'm also for keeping it, for pretty much the same reasons. Maybe we can find a better wording to express that being a part of the community is entirely voluntary and doesn't bind you if you don't want anymore.
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why is there initial password randomly generated vs just letting them choose it right of the start? Just seems like an unnecessary hassle.
Very simple identity confirmation. We don't like it when people lie about their email addresses.
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Very simple identity confirmation. We don't like it when people lie about their email addresses.
Can't a one time activation code be used. I have seen it as standard practice for application keys or links within the email that activate the account but the sites I go on do not make it standard practice for the initial password to be computer generated. Also with the current generator I doubt anyone but a very few use it because of how long and random it is. If it was still long but random words with a four digit numer it's significantly easier to memorize, or just make the initial password only 8 characters. I use a computer generated password for several accounts on websites but it not as long as the one BM creates as its too long to quickly memorize, IMO.
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Can't a one time activation code be used. I have seen it as standard practice for application keys or links within the email that activate the account but the sites I go on do not make it standard practice for the initial password to be computer generated. Also with the current generator I doubt anyone but a very few use it because of how long and random it is. If it was still long but random words with a four digit numer it's significantly easier to memorize, or just make the initial password only 8 characters. I use a computer generated password for several accounts on websites but it not as long as the one BM creates as its too long to quickly memorize, IMO.
I might be mistaken, but I believe the idea of account activation tokens is actually younger than BM. Also, the passwords we generate are not intended to be memorized.
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It's standard practice these days. It does two things:
one, it ensures that people have a good password at least once.
two, it makes sure their e-mail address is valid when they sign up. If you give me a bogus mail address, you don't get your password.
Also, the passwords we generate are not intended to be memorized.
That's rather contrary to Tom's point one as, if you don't memorize a password, then unless you are planning to copy and paste every time from email, it kinda needs to be memorized. Also, if the passwords are simple being used to confirm emails, and this is inferring on ban's post not Tom's, then the passwords need not be as long as it is to merely confirm email addresses.
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That's rather contrary to Tom's point one as, if you don't memorize a password, then unless you are planning to copy and paste every time from email, it kinda needs to be memorized. Also, if the passwords are simple being used to confirm emails, and this is inferring on ban's post not Tom's, then the passwords need not be as long as it is to merely confirm email addresses.
I believe the intended flow is - you get email, paste password and log in, change password.
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I believe the intended flow is - you get email, paste password and log in, change password.
Which is the same as a activation code but with this you have to change password. It's just an added hassle as every time they don't change password they have to paste it or if they change password right it seems like you are having to do unneeded administrative work when you first start which gives a bad first impression IMO, though did the old email explicitly tell them to go to Edit Data to change password? I am asking because I recently referred someone to BM and they asked me to change their password for them, though I don't know if its just because they were busy atm or not.
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It's standard practice these days. It does two things:
one, it ensures that people have a good password at least once.
two, it makes sure their e-mail address is valid when they sign up. If you give me a bogus mail address, you don't get your password.
I would like to suggest that we do this for the forum. My protests were due to the hassle but if they are joining the forum, they won't quit BM due to a minor hassle. The pro side to this is it should prevent the creation of spam accounts though it won't help with the multitude that already exist.
To mods: Yes this is off topic in a thread with a purpose but don't delete this if you are so focused on modding this, move it to the thread under "This Forum"
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I would never use a password that was e-mailed to me. Even for a game. I always dislike working with people or organizations that send my password via email As I understand it BattleMaster:
Sends a randomly created password to a new player
This password is used to verify that provided email addresses are valid
The password can be changes at any time
Changing your password does not cause it to be emailed to you
Aside from this initial password, passwords are not sent via e-mail
With this In mind, I think that explaining how to change your password upon the first log in, and even recommending it, is a good idea. Further, I think it would be cool if the game required new players to select a new password as they log in the first time. I think it would also be great to tell players up front that, aside from this initial password, BattleMaster does not send user passwords via email. It would certainly make me feel better.
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I would like to suggest that we do this for the forum. My protests were due to the hassle but if they are joining the forum, they won't quit BM due to a minor hassle. The pro side to this is it should prevent the creation of spam accounts though it won't help with the multitude that already exist.
We have much less direct control over how forum signups are handled.
We can probably implement something like this, but it means finding or writing a plugin for SMF that will do it. We can't just straight-up change the code.
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Updated text below. Someone should decide how to sign the email, I left it as the BM community for now.
Hello {First_Name} and welcome to BattleMaster, the team-oriented browswer-based strategy and roleplaying game
In order to complete your registration, please click on or enter this URL into the address bar of your browser:
http://battlemaster.org/activate.php?token=xxxxx
We invite you to read BattleMaster Basics found on the BattleMaster wiki (http://wiki.battlemaster.org/wiki/BattleMaster_Basics). This will help you get familiarized with game mechanics and concepts. If you have a particular question that you cannot find an answer for on the wiki our active forum serves as an excellent venue for interacting with the BattleMaster community found at http://forum.battlemaster.org
Your login details are:
E-mail: user@gmail.com
Password: Password
We encourage you to change your password by clicking Edit Data on the left hand side of your screen after logging in.
If you no longer wish to maintain a BattleMaster account you can delete your information from the game's databases at any time by clicking on the red "Delete Account" link after logging in at the top-right corner of your screen.
Sincerely,
The BattleMaster Community
(If you did not sign up for an online game, then someone used your
e-mail address to sign up. He or she may also have made a typo. If
this worries you, contact tom@battlemaster.org)
Addition: (after: excellent venue for interacting with the BattleMaster community found at http://forum.battlemaster.org)
We also encourage you to 'like' our Facebook page located here: http://www.facebook.com/BattleMasterGame.
Minor edit:
If you no longer wish to maintain a BattleMaster account you can delete your information from the game's databases at any time by clicking on the red "Delete Account" link after logging in at the top-right corner of your screen.
change to:
Battlemaster respects your privacy and as such you have full control over your entire account. You can manage your account settings once you log in.
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I dislike it when sites encourage me to like them, friend them, plus them, vote for them or any other such thing. Feel free to let me know you are on Facebook, twitter, G+ or whatever but do not tell me you 'encourage' me to like you. To be fair, I tend to get a bit prickly about these things though.
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How about just making a simple statement of fact: "If you like us on Facebook, you will get our updates about game events and momentous happenings in the game."
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That sounds spiffy!
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Current proposed version:
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Hello {First_Name}, and welcome to BattleMaster, the team-oriented browswer-based strategy and roleplaying game!
In order to complete your registration, please click on or enter this URL into the address bar of your browser:
http://battlemaster.org/activate.php?token=xxxxx
We invite you to read BattleMaster Basics found on the BattleMaster wiki (http://wiki.battlemaster.org/wiki/BattleMaster_Basics). This will help you get familiarized with game mechanics and concepts. If you have a particular question that you cannot find an answer for on the wiki our active forum serves as an excellent venue for interacting with the BattleMaster community found at http://forum.battlemaster.org. 'Like' us on Facebook to get our updates about game events and momentous happenings in the game. http://www.facebook.com/BattleMasterGame.
Your login details are:
E-mail: user@gmail.com
Password: Password
We encourage you to change your password by clicking Edit Data on the left hand side of your screen after logging in.
Battlemaster respects your privacy and as such you have full control over your entire account. You can manage your account settings once you log in.
Sincerely,
The BattleMaster Community
(If you did not sign up for an online game, then someone used your e-mail address to sign up. He or she may also have made a typo. If
this worries you, contact tom@battlemaster.org)
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looks good to me.
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Tom - can you give this your approval? Once approved I'll create an feature/change request for it.
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I'm also for keeping it, for pretty much the same reasons. Maybe we can find a better wording to express that being a part of the community is entirely voluntary and doesn't bind you if you don't want anymore.
The "Delete" link is VERY obviously on the player's page. And the game does not spam players with daily or weekly messages. If he doesn't want to play anymore, the game's not gonna punish him (such as by spam) or anything.
I really don't see the point. I have never seen such elements in a sign-up letter. A link to unsubscribe to email notifications, for sure, but not to completely delete the account.
This is a game, not some contract that requires a termination clause...
My two cents.
Edit: to be clear, I like the new formulation.
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The "Delete" link is VERY obviously on the player's page. And the game does not spam players with daily or weekly messages. If he doesn't want to play anymore, the game's not gonna punish him (such as by spam) or anything.
I really don't see the point. I have never seen such elements in a sign-up letter. A link to unsubscribe to email notifications, for sure, but not to completely delete the account.
This is a game, not some contract that requires a termination clause...
My two cents.
This.