User blog:LordTBT/News:Redwall Wiki 2010 Release - 5 Years Online

Redwall Wiki celebrates 5 years online

For the past few years now, on our birthday I've put out a press release with an overview covering the events of the previous year.

However this year, I'm taking a break from that format to discuss the Redwall Wiki, past, present and future.

Today marks our fifth year on the internet, which is quite a milestone in terms of online time. I'm very proud to see that this website has not only been around for this length of time, but continued to excel, advance, and grow with each year.

Over the course of our brief history, many large Redwall websites have either been abandoned or shut down.

Since I've been the lead administrator of this site, I've interacted with many of the people behind Redwall, cover artists, illustrators, even Brian Jacques himself, and it has truly been a privilege. I feel fortunate to have been in contact with these people.

This website has come a long way in regards to interface design. While the Wayback Machine isn't perfect, this is essentially what the Redwall Wiki main page looked like in February 2006.

A few weeks back, our host Wikia announced forthcoming skin changes, which are to be mandatory. Pretty much nothing in this new skin was negotiable, with many requests/features/etc. from myself and others shot down entirely. Needless to say, are we happy about the skin change? No. Will Wikia continue to be our host in the future? It is indeed hard to say right now.

On November 3, 2010, the new skin, codenamed "Oasis", will be unveiled across Wikia. Every wiki will be viewed with this look. Right now though, you have the option of switching back and forth between Oasis and Monaco, the current skin.

Recently, I've been hard at work redesigning the site to comply with Oasis, given that the look is so different. It hasn't been easy, but we have a product that works for now. If you would like to experience the new Redwall Wiki for yourself, simply go to your Preferences, select the "skin" tab and choose "New Wikia Look." I've tried my best to provide the same color formatting as Monaco so that no one is confused.

Given that this new look will be the look in only a few short weeks, I recommend everyone read Wikia's guide about it. It explains how the skin will work.

Additionally, given the popularity of last year's first official art contest, I absolutely believe we should have a second annual art contest! Details about that will be up soon.

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this website in some way over the past 5 years. It's meant a lot to us, and we only hope to grow bigger and better as the years continue.