User blog:Cartoon44/Year of Unity - Where We Are Now/A New Era

Hey guys! As today marks the half way point of 2016, I thought it would be the perfect time to discuss the past, present, and future so far regarding the Year of Unity. I also noticed we haven't had a lot of updates on this year, besides the occasional maintenance posts, so I'll try and sum up what I've got (so bear with me if this seems like a news post for a bit) as well as fill you guys in with what's to come for the remainder of the year.

Community Team Changes
Being the most recent topic, I'd first like to acknowledge the recent demotions over the past few days including Sci, the official last wiki bureaucrat, and Bry and Jack, our two last chat mods. While these three users  served a great purpose, inactivity was a huge concern for each of them individually. Alongside that, and in knowledge of Sci's upcoming departure, we felt that along with demoting our only crat, it would not only be the decision we would have to make, but also a final decision to remove the bureaucrat position as a whole as well. In the end, both the bureaucrat and chat mod status were decided unnecessary.

​Wiki Improvements
Due to some recent comments (besides CaT - not faulting the guy here) on the current condition and state of the wiki, updates have been made to several areas of the wiki, navigation, and help pages. The grammar page has recently been updated and completed, and there are still some that need improvement including particular new user resources.

However, I'd also like to make note that although we the admins want the community to understand we have a lot on our hands and are not too appreciative towards complaints, we still gladly accept requests, comments and concerns with the wiki. It may not be in our attention at the moment, but it may also be that we simply haven't seen it yet, so if there is something that needs to be updated or edited upon, we would love help from the community by informing us on anything that is noticed.

Alongside that, I would also like to comment upon the great work the wiki has been making towards clean up. Ever since our achievement of getting the wiki spotlighted across Wikia had been accomplished, the pages requiring further categorization category has been left empty nearly a majority of the time, which is a drastic change from only two years ago or so. I do realize this may sound repetitive coming from me, but be as it may, this is a big achievement that I think needs to be pointed out. Obviously there is still work to be done, including the article stubs as well, but even that area has drastically improved. You guys have not only helped maintain a clean and healthy wiki, but you have helped contribute to the goal of Year of Unity itself.

​Wiki Additions
As for additions, while not many, there are some noticeable new features that I think are worth mentioning, as well as some that deserve to be spotlighted.
 * Main Page Polls - A creative addition to the main page that will soon be added that will be updated weekly.
 * More User Resources
 * More Frequent Support Group Meetings
 * Updates On Current User Resources
 * CaT Gazette - An inside wiki newspaper hosted by the one and only BTFFeline. It is definitely worth signing up for to keep in touch with the latest wiki changes, series announcements, and news if you haven't done so already.

​Year of Unity In Check
This past year, I've seen occasional struggle within the community, but overall, I think we've managed to bond closer together as of late. It was a month or so ago that we had some people considering leaving the wiki, and almost 6 months or so since the events in the beginning of the year that distressed the community. But especially since then, we've managed to heal as a wiki and become even stronger. Despite what couple of events may have occured that unbalanced the community, little to no bans or blocks have been made and user conflicts have greatly reduced. As I mentioned previously in this blog about clean up, we as a wiki managed to unify together and make those achievements happen. I mean, guys, we managed to get spotlighted across Wikia TOGETHER. How great is that?

I have also taken to notice a bloom in numerous collaborative services, projects and events which is also a quite clear sign of support for everything said in the previous paragraph.

However, as always, there is still room for improvement. Summer is here, and that leaves gives perfect time. There's one half of the year left, and even though we've improved, I think we can still do better. If you guys have any ideas or suggestions on more ways to unify the wiki, please feel free to comment and discuss.

The New Era of Ben 10 Fan Fiction Wiki
As the title reads, the new era of Ben 10 Fan Fiction Wiki is here as we know it. Although Sci may no longer be crat, we as a wiki can still carry on and keep improving. What goals should we aim for and strive for? What other changes would you like to see? Is this the longest blog post I have ever written?

We the community define Ben 10 Fan Fiction Wiki. Everyone plays a part - everyone has a role. If we can all fulfill them to the best of our ability, then we can certainly reach whatever goal we strive for.

Thanks guys!