Guest Report post Posted May 18, 2002 Hey guys, I have been reading for ages now and have never been inclined until now to post. I have been following the Smarks/RS for years now since the days of Scott, Don and Aaron and Adam and through the days of Jay, Justin, Scotsman and the likes. Now you guys claim you want to start an independent site and wash your hands clean of the Smarks, well if you really want to do that you need some damn originality. Naming yourselves "TheSmarkMarks" is just pathetic. Its a total ripoff of the site you are trying to "not be anything like" and you are just using an elongated version of the Smarks name. You heavily use the word "rant" on your main page which Scott Keith coined and everyone else ripped off. Your news updates are exactly like Jays only not nearly as good, your Raw recaps are just like Scott's only flat and unorginal, can't anyone do anything on their own anymore without copying anyone else's style? There is some good stuff on the site but if you don't try and carve out your own nitch rather than following someone elses (just ask the new SHooters) than things will fail. Most of us still love the Smarks and read it at it's new home on 411 so we don't need another one. Be original and maybe you will be suprised. BTW, are you looking for writers? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest The Vanilla Midget Report post Posted May 18, 2002 lol, love it how you run down their site, then your last word is, "so you need writers?" ROFL! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest TheDames7 Report post Posted May 18, 2002 In response to your diatribe, I'd simply like to point out a few facts. When the posters of this board first decided to make a site to rise from the ashes of the old Smarks, we held a vote for the new name of the site..becuase we like democracy dammit! It came down to 2 names....SmartMarks.com & VanillaMidgets.com. VM lost out by a couple of votes, so the posters chose the name. As for originality, we have been trying VERY hard to come up with distinct material for the site, in terms of not ripping anyone off, sounding like other recappers and other things like that. However, we've only been up for a little more than 2 weeks and we are still trying to find our niche. I think eventually, we will and you'll see the difference in our work. When we first had tryouts for writing slots, we received a TON of material that was SK-like & the sort, and we asked them to try and fix that, because we don't want to be unoriginal. Honestly though...how many ways can you retell something without it sounding the same? As for searching for new writers....we've got more than enough at the moment. Personally, I like hearing good & bad things about our site, it lets everyone know what we should be working on, so for that...I thank you. Dames Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Tony149 Report post Posted May 18, 2002 When the posters of this board first decided to make a site to rise from the ashes of the old Smarks, we held a vote for the new name of the site..becuase we like democracy dammit! Personally, I like hearing good & bad things about our site, it lets everyone know what we should be working on, so for that...I thank you. Dames, you're the "board dictator". You should't be saying that stuff because you wouldn't want "them" overthrowing our regime. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest TheDames7 Report post Posted May 18, 2002 I'm waiting for everyone to trust me, just so I can turn on them and be an EVIL OWNER~! just like everyone else in wrestling these days... Dames - "Listens" to his "Fans" Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Report post Posted May 18, 2002 Naming yourselves "TheSmarkMarks" is just pathetic. Its a total ripoff of the site you are trying to "not be anything like" and you are just using an elongated version of the Smarks name. I'm inclined to agree. While it DID come down to the people's decision overall, the name is so derivitive of TheSmarks and so unoriginal, that I don't see exactly why anyone would choose it over VanillaMidgets; a relatively clever in-joke that only those who strongly follow wrestling would get. It would make the dictators look like bitches, but I would have overridden the decision, especially if I was trying to carve my own identity for a site. I was a big fan of something like TheGlassCeiling or Workrate (the latter I failed to bring up, I think, and don't know if anyone else ever did). But ease up a bit. The new site hasn't been opened for that long and is still in the forulative stages. And really, how many wrestling sites are ultimately different anyway? With so many out there, singular opinions become a melted mass of thoughts with others, and it really turns into more of the same in the end. And while I'm not completely sure, I think the Vanilla Midgets section of TSM is an area for guest columnists to contribute stuff, if you're interested. I'd do it myself, but I'm horrible at writing articles or putting opinions into such. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest TheDames7 Report post Posted May 18, 2002 If I had my druthers....it would have been ThisIsWorkrate.com. What could we have done though? "Fuck your vote, it doesn't matter to us!!! If you don't like it, leave?" That definitely wouldn't work. Anywayz, lets face it, TheSmarks being a subsite at 411 really isn't getting the attention that it used to and is updated maybe once or twice a week. I still go to it, but I think what we've started here can grow into something really special and hopefully better than the original site. Dames Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest The Vanilla Midget Report post Posted May 18, 2002 hell, the design is certainly better than the old site, it is *very* cool! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest areacode212 Report post Posted May 18, 2002 hey, thanks I just updated the design slightly, and it should be implemented sometime soon. There are a couple of things that were in my original design that couldn't be put in. But now that I'm out of class (until summer starts), hopefully admin & I can figure out how to put them in. Yeah, I pushed hard for vanillamidgets.com for the same reasons mentioned, but some people thought it sounded like a porn site (which probably says more about them than the name), or that it sounded dumb. But hey, what can you do? It's all in the past, and I've gotten used to the new name. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest treble charged Report post Posted May 18, 2002 your Raw recaps are just like Scott's only flat and unorginal, can't anyone do anything on their own anymore without copying anyone else's style? The thing with that is, everyone who writes for the new site spent tons of time reading Scott Keith's stuff, and probably just learned that style by osmosis. Give them time, they should come around. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Report post Posted May 18, 2002 Yeah, I pushed hard for vanillamidgets.com for the same reasons mentioned, but some people thought it sounded like a porn site (which probably says more about them than the name), or that it sounded dumb. But hey, what can you do? It's all in the past, and I've gotten used to the new name. I'll get used to it eventually. It'll no longer be an issue so long as the writers are able to put out great content and forge some identity different from the rest of the internet wasteland, and hopefully instead of TheSmartMarks being a second thought to TheSmarks, it'll end up the other way around. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest areacode212 Report post Posted May 18, 2002 By the way, the subject of "Rants" has come up between goodhelmet and myself, but I couldn't think of a suitable replacement ("columns" is boring). So if anyone can suggest a cool-sounding synonym, let me know. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Report post Posted May 18, 2002 Bitching. Or maybe a gimmicky name. I would say "Worked Shoots" but it sounds somehow wrong to me, yet I think it'd be a perfect name for a feature on a wrasslin site....probably a better name for a single column anyhow. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest AlwaysPissedOff Report post Posted May 19, 2002 Your news updates are exactly like Jays only not nearly as good, your Raw recaps are just like Scott's only flat and unorginal, can't anyone do anything on their own anymore without copying anyone else's style? Okay, now that I've got the time, I'm gonna expound on this. Jay never originated the opinionated news update and just because mine look similar to his DOES NOT in any way mean I'm copying his style. Furthermore, if the heads of this site didn't think that I wasn't good enough, they never would have chosen me(or JHawk) to do what we are doing for the site. Like it's been said before, the site is not even a month old and to expect everything to be fresh, new, and original is wishful thinking given how almost all opinions on the net are mostly the same. And besides, like Dames said eariler in the thread... Honestly though...how many ways can you retell something without it sounding the same? That says it all right there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest RetroRob215 Report post Posted May 19, 2002 I was also about to say bitching. I remember Scott Christ once suggested calling them "seethings". Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Report post Posted May 21, 2002 Again guys, I just checked out the site and you all gave your thoughts on the PPV and called it "The Roundtable" which has been a trademark of 411Wrestling for like three years and counting now. Next time I would suggest you try something a little different. the DVD stuff rules though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest goodhelmet Report post Posted May 21, 2002 Actually, IGN used the roundtable as well before they were shut down. If you're gonna accuse us of stealing, get the right site. Sheesh. Seriously, I like the idea of different perspectives in one article after the PPV so we changed the roundtable name (which I wasn't happy with in the first place) but kept the article up. Also, HayesMullet, I agree with many of your points but we are open to suggestions!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest admin Report post Posted May 21, 2002 Well nothing keeps us from having multiple domains. thesmarks.com had 3 domains that all went to their site. We could get the others and forward them to here. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Some Guy Report post Posted May 21, 2002 I don't really like the name "Smartmarks" and I voted for Vanilla Midgets, but does it really matter what the address is? It's not a big deal to me. The quality of the work on the site is pretty good from the little that I've read so that's all that really matters to me. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Goodear Report post Posted May 21, 2002 I find it funny that wrestling people think they invented the art of summary and round tables. Granted, I'm a weird person and all but I think these things predate Scott Keith by just a hair. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest RetroRob215 Report post Posted May 21, 2002 Yeah, didn't King Arthur have a roundtable? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest alfdogg Report post Posted May 22, 2002 Wow, just what we need, another whiny troll. Just after we got rid of Best Buy, too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Report post Posted May 23, 2002 I think when we can start getting more traffic over to the main site by word of mouth because of the columns and people give us feedback on the columns things will come together. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest treble charged Report post Posted May 23, 2002 I don't think Hayes is trying to be a whiny troll. I mean, come on, he's only posted twice, and both in this thread. I think he's just trying to help the site so it's not just seen as a rip-off of theSmarks. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest alfdogg Report post Posted May 23, 2002 I don't think Hayes is trying to be a whiny troll. I mean, come on, he's only posted twice, and both in this thread. I think he's just trying to help the site so it's not just seen as a rip-off of theSmarks. Well, he could have been a LOT nicer about it instead of flaming like a jackass. It's almost as if he went to every wrestling recapper to see if they made something the same, then comes here and flames everyone for it. That's why I said that, because he reminded me of Best Buy, who would look for ANY reason to flame someone. I guess it was a little harsh of me, though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Report post Posted May 23, 2002 Wow, just what we need, another whiny troll. Just after we got rid of Best Buy, too. afdogg shut up. You accuse everyone of being a troll dude. I think thesmartmarks.com was a bad name to choose since we are trying to be different.....I loved the VM name. Too bad..... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest goodhelmet Report post Posted May 23, 2002 i agree about the name but just try and channel the spirit of brian pillman and not scott keith when referring to the site. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest alfdogg Report post Posted May 23, 2002 afdogg shut up. You accuse everyone of being a troll dude. You have to admit he was being an in his first post. But you're right I'll stop. No hard feelings, man. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest alfdogg Report post Posted May 23, 2002 Let's be at PEACE. btw, Anglesault used these first and gave me the place to find them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest areacode212 Report post Posted May 23, 2002 Where are they from? Girl in the Crowd's board? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
