Should I rewrite the main site frontpage?

[MKSheppard]

Just a clarification here: I am asking for suggestions about the frontpage because the frontpage generates the first impression, and first impressions are important. Hence, I want to rewrite it in the very near future. Also, I'm just plain bored with it, since it's been unaltered for many years now.

Keep imperial recruiter bit, but change it to working against the Borg
or Dominion, and assume the Feds are already conquered; archive
the OLD page for all of us who want to read it.

[Alyeska]

Just a clarification here: I am asking for suggestions about the frontpage because the frontpage generates the first impression, and first impressions are important. Hence, I want to rewrite it in the very near future. Also, I'm just plain bored with it, since it's been unaltered for many years now.

So, while your various creative suggestions about the whole site are appreciated, they're not something I'm planning to act on right now.

In that case make the frontpage neutral on the debate. Use things that would entice both people in. Maybe a glory shot of an ISD and either a Sovereign or a Constitution Refit.

[Sea Skimmer]

You should rewrite it to be "history" orient with the page talking about how the Empire defeated the Federation long ago. After all the vs. debate essentially is history among the realm of the rational.

[Vympel]

I'd like to see the forces of the Republic integrated- the prequels have added a host of awesome new equipment, armaments ships and fighters that deserve their own place, outside of the TPM/AOTC revelations pages.

[Darth Wong]

I had a preliminary rewrite drawn up when I posted this, but alternate suggestions would be appreciated:

Welcome!

Do you have what it takes to become part of something greater than yourself? Do you have what it takes to serve the Empire? To help maintain peace and order throughout the galaxy? To stamp out the forces of evil and chaos that threaten the fabric of our society? If you do, then there is a place waiting for you in the new Imperial Armed Forces Extra-Galactic (EG) Guard.

Why join the Imperial Armed Forces EG Guard? There are many reasons to join, from the comprehensive benefits plan to the knowledge that you are helping fulfill your civic duty by keeping the galaxy safe, the opportunity to discover new worlds and new places, and the advanced technical training that you can carry into a rewarding civilian career after your term of service ends. We also offer cash incentives for joining, and our popular Relocation Program, where you can have your family relocated to a Core world of your choice, with instant planetary citizenship and all moving expenses paid for, courtesy of the Empire.

Meet Specialist Jarren Korr [insert picture here]. Jarren Korr has had a diverse and rewarding career in the Imperial Army with a distinguished service record. In the recent uprising on Fornax, his squad was pinned down by enemy fire from a nearby pillbox. Jarren Korr exposed himself to enemy fire in order to launch a thermal detonator at the target: an act for which he received a commendation for valour. Now, Jarren Korr works with the EG Guard's alien contact division. "It is incredibly rewarding work. These aliens have been living for hundreds of years without hyperdrive, without decent pan-galactic travel, without even simple necessities such as droids and bacta. By bringing them into the Empire, we bring them not just civilization, but hope for the future. It can be hard work; you will always have people who oppose change, even positive change such as the Empire brings. But the rewards are well worth it."

Pre-Emptive Defense is more than just an Imperial doctrine dating back to the discovery of the Kerenos sector wormhole. For the EG Guard, pre-emptive defense is a way of life. It is a philosophy which guides our actions and informs us of our duty. Every member of the EG Guard knows this. And even now, after successfully assimilating the EG region's human "Federation" into the Empire, that duty remains. Eternal vigilance.

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Star Wars vs Star Trek

Are you ready to join the Empire's EG Guard? Or do you just want to read a bunch of articles on Star Wars and Star Trek military hardware? Either way, this is your site. Despite the somewhat facetious "Imperial Recruiter" introduction, this site actually attempts a serious (or at least, as serious as possible given the subject matter) military comparison of Star Wars and Star Trek.

So how do you compare Star Wars and Star Trek military hardware? Well, there are lots of ways to approach this, and not all of them agree. My approach is to look at the hardware from an engineer's perspective, which is only natural given my personal background. However, there are numerous approaches, and surprisingly enough, people even disagree on what constitutes true Star Wars and/or Star Trek. So if you want to learn how to look at Star Wars and Star Trek military hardware, check out the following articles:

Star Wars vs Star Trek in Five Minutes: if you're the kind of person who buys Cliff Notes in order to save time, this is the link for you! I hope you'll eventually take the time to read more of the website, but if you don't have the patience for it, just go here.

Canon: what is "true" Star Wars and Star Trek? What can be considered "evidence"?

How to Analyze the Evidence: ground rules and a description of the two most popular approaches for analyzing sci-fi.

Sources and Abbrevations: a list of sources and common abbrevations found in typical Star Wars vs Star Trek online "discussions", also known as "violent arguments" [Merge Sources and Abbreviations pages into one]

Site FAQ: Get your questions answered here.

[Insert webring graphics here]

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Misc

A note on accuracy: all calculations on this website are somewhat imprecise, compared to real-life scientific or engineering work. Our observations are of a rather preliminary and imprecise nature, and we can't perform experiments to test hypotheses. Therefore, all calculations on this website should be treated as "back of envelope" calculations, and while individual calculations may employ greater precision, the resulting conclusions should be treated only as order-of-magnitude estimates. For example, if the figures show that one weapon is 50% more powerful than another, that should not be treated as conclusive evidence of superiority because the difference is too small. But if they show that it is a hundred times more powerful, then that would be fairly conclusive.

Tech notes: This site was born on August 1, 1998. It was originally written using Netscape Composer, although I mostly use OpenOffice nowadays. Further editing was done with kwrite, vi, cooledit, Wordpad, or whatever else was handy at the time. My image-capture methods include PowerDVD (for capturing stills from DVDs) and an HP 4570c scanner. I currently use Gimp for almost all of my image processing work.

For Best Viewing: This site has been verified to display properly on current versions of Internet Explorer, Netscape/Mozilla, Konqueror, and Opera. It also works with minor glitches on Mosaic, and even Lynx. This site is best viewed at 800x600 or above, although it does work at 640x480 ... sort of. You will also need JavaScript for some of the pages (in particular, all of the "calculator" pages).

About the author: My name is Michael Wong, I'm married with two children, and I'm a mechanical engineer (University of Waterloo, Class of 93). Visit my home page!

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Legal Stuff

Star Wars® is a registered trademark of LucasFilm Ltd. Star Trek® is a registered trademark of Paramount. This site is not associated with LucasFilm or Paramount in any way. It is not the intent of this site to infringe upon the intellectual property rights of either LucasFilm or Paramount.

Although the site has some facetious overtones, it is still nonetheless an academic discussion of Star Wars, Star Trek, and real science. It is intended to entertain but also to educate and to encourage scholarly debate. Furthermore, no income of any kind is derived from the operation of this website. Therefore, this site's use of Star Wars and Star Trek images and information qualifies as "fair use", or "fair dealing", under the provisions of international copyright law.

Obviously, it's a work in progress. But if anyone has any suggestions (or even an example of a whole different approach I might try taking), I'm open to it.

On the one hand, the people who argue that removing the Imperial Recruiting bit have a point; it is easily misconstrued as an intention to be unfair in the analysis. On the other hand, the people who argue that it adds personality to the site have a point; do we really need just another site that says "Welcome to my Star Wars vs Star Trek site?"

[Stravo]

I think the rewrite is great, if you like add a small blurb from a recent alien 'recruit' essentially a shell shocked Starfleet officer made to see the light or something similarly funny.

I would also try to add small blurbs on the races we've seen more of since your initial page - like freedom from an alien race of shapeshifters who treat their soldiers like disposable tools. *A sidewise glance at a stormtrooper and a nervous cough.*

[SirNitram]

Personally, I'd use that.. And add a 'WHAT THE FLYING FUCK WAS THAT?!' link in the page for a more 'realistic' introduction.

But I'm clearly certifiable.

[Sea Skimmer]

What the hell is "Imperial Armed Forces EG Guard" suppose to be?

[Sarevok]

The rewrite does not look as good as the original. It was the original site that got me interested in the Star Wars vs Star Trek. The recruiting theme realy worked. It brought so many people in this debate.

[Publius]

If you're interested in black humour, you might consider adding part of Captain Kirk's opening monologue to the Recruiter section ("seek out new life", "explore strange new worlds", &c.). Also, if you're interested in a bit of authentic (if obscure) Star Wars lore, you might consider adding the image of the unnamed Major-General seen in the Star Wars Holiday Special, who may be the Empire's version of Big Brother (whether he exists or not, he is the public face and voice of the Empire, addressing Imperial citizens on Tatooine and Kashyyyk).

PUBLIUS

[Patrick Degan]

Style the front page in the manner of British war propaganda from 1893-1915. The idea advanced here to photoshop Darth Vader's image into a stylised representation mimicking the famous Lord Kitchener poster from the First World War is a capital notion and should be adopted.

[Tribun]

Couldn't you have a poll in here?

It would make things much easier and the overview will not be lost so quickly.

[Praxis]

Looks pretty good but i'll miss the Darth Vader picture...

[justifier]

I like the rewrite, you should definatly have a Vader/Uncle Sam poster centered at the top of the page and get ride of that godawful mini-scroll on the left side of the current page. Just make the links on the side of the page, the scroll is just plain ugly. And in my opinion the Jarren Korr bit should be moved to another page, maybe you could have a whole page of bios with Fed officers, stormtroopers and such.

[El Moose Monstero]

What the hell is "Imperial Armed Forces EG Guard" suppose to be?

Extra Galactic, if that's what you meant.

[PainRack]

I think Patrick Degan idea is cool. Using the traditional Imperial propganda, the spreading of enlightenment, the "white man burden", that should be cool


Alternatively, how about using something akin to those short entries in the begining of the chapters found in Frank Herbert Dune? Perhaps something like


Chapter 1 from the official history,"It was a crusade"
In the tenth year of the New Empire, contact was finally made with our lost human brethen. In a desire to spread the word of the Emperor enlightment, a expeditionary force was gathered at Yaga Minor and dispatched to what has since become the Kerenos wormhole. Yet, the crusade, then and now met with much dissension in the Imperial court.
The council of moffs memorial thus stated.
The First Emperor had accomplished but half his great task before his untimely demise. As of this moment, the Empire has finally been reunited, yet, our country is weak and it is a most critical moment for us. Still, ministers are not remiss in the capital, and loyal and devoted soldiers sacrifice their lives afar, for they still remember the special kindness of the Emperor and wish to show their gratitude to him by service to the Empire. Therefore it would be indeed fitting that we should extend ourholy virtue to glorify his virtuous memory in the stimulation of the will of your purposeful officers. We should not lose yourself in the pursuit of mean things, quoting phrases to confound the eternal principles of rectitude, and so preventing the future glory of the Empire.

An massive sent by Admiral Kanos further clarified the position.

"Although fate is superior to human, yet success depends upon human effort. Now as the technological difficulties of the Federation are not as those of the Rebellion, while the the misery of the people of the Federation exceeds that of the dwellers in the Ssi-ruuk. Our armies are stronger than ever before, and if we miss this opportunity to bring the whole universe under one rule, but continue to weary our army with continual watching and cause the world to groan under the burden of militarism, then our efficiency will decline and we shall not endure."

Ultimately, his Emperor advisor and brother, Jacen assailed support for the expedition with the decree.
Formerly Grand Admiral Kranos explained his plans confidentially to Your Majesty, but did not lay them before the court. The result has been much debate and conflict of opinion. In every project there are pros and cons, but in this the arguments are mostly in favor. The worst that can happen is failure. Since last autumn the proposed attack has become generally known, and, if we stop now, the Federation can only grow stronger, reach out and bond with their neighbours and fortify their systems as well as the wormhole. Then the wormhole cannot be assaulted. Hence next attack will also fail."


And so, the Emperor sent a single word via holonet.
"Go."
[/i]

[Rye]

What the hell is "Imperial Armed Forces EG Guard" suppose to be?

Something to do with the Empire's presence in the Milky-Way galaxy i would have thought, paving the way for the information on the borg or romulans or what the galaxy-scape used to be like maybe.

[Kuja]

Huh. I actually like it. I wonder if we could tinker with the Imperial Insignia and make a logo for the EGG.

[FTeik]

Keep the recruiter.

Why we won against the Federation.

Accompany [insert name] through our historical reports, that explain in great detail how our glorious forces brought the light of imperial civilisation to the backwater regions and primitive species of the milkyway ... .

Participate in the liberation of the people of the Alpha-Quadrant from the communistic and over-centralized UFP ... in our new holo-parks.

Now that we, the Imperial Expeditionary Division of our glorious Emperor´s Starfleet move on against the Borg, the Dominon or the entire Andromeda-Galaxy (take what sounds best to you) we want you, YES, you to join us.

...

[TurboPhaser]

I agree, drop the 'Recruitment' thing. No offense, but its tad geeky.

Though most would disagree, i think just presenting the facts and letting people make up their own mind is the way to go.

[Ghost Rider]

I like the new recruiting bit...does actually lend a better feel to the site and the current state of things.

[Darth Wong]

About the Imperial WW1-style recruiting poster idea:

http://bbs.stardestroyer.net/viewtopic.php?p=822783

[Eleas]

I had a preliminary rewrite drawn up when I posted this, but alternate suggestions would be appreciated:

<snip>

My god, you've turned them into the US!

[FTeik]

I had a preliminary rewrite drawn up when I posted this, but alternate suggestions would be appreciated:

<snip>

My god, you've turned them into the US!

Why not, its a nice parody on the obsession of patriotism and loyality to the government.

[Darth Yoshi]

I like Nitram's idea of having a recruitment page, with a link to a more serious intro to the site.