Karagin
07/05/17 11:33 PM
72.176.187.91
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Funny they posted that they had been hacked and folks shared the crap out of that on Facebook, so which is was the site hacked (yet again), is it a transition to a new site, or was it sever maintenance? I ask this because when I contacted them via Facebook, they tell oh hey check out our site, but wait it's being moved to a better server so you got to wait till then was their answer to my question about Demo Teams.
So this shoddy acting here sounds more like Palladium Games then it should...just saying.
Karagin
Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
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Akalabeth
07/06/17 12:47 AM
64.251.81.66
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Yeah. Someone said it was hacked, then someone heard they got hit by a ransomware virus and were being held to ransom, now its just a shitty server?
Maybe the idea of Ben Rome are finally coming to pass:
https://twitter.com/bhrome/status/865348894875582469
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GiovanniBlasini
07/06/17 05:37 AM
75.80.182.44
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That doesn't say new site, it says new server. If their old server asplode, that could explain it.
Member of the Pundit Caste
"Which side are we on? We're on the side of the demons, Chief. We're evil men in the gardens of paradise, sent by the forces of death to spread devastation and destruction wherever we go. I'm surprised you didn't know that." -- Col. Saul Tigh, BSG2003
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Karagin
07/06/17 06:36 AM
72.176.187.91
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Either way they are not being honest about things or forth coming and again this speaks a lot about why folks think the game is a dead one. How hard is it to say they are having issues both external and internal and working to fix them? Hell 80% of us have stuck with this game since BattleDroids and are still here enjoying it. So really all CGL needs to do is be honest and stop the silliness cause this "shadow" running (yes bad pun) doesn't help the image or out look of Battletech or the other games of theirs at all.
Karagin
Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
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Wrangler
07/06/17 08:39 AM
66.87.125.149
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Give how small the company is. I am not totally surprised. It took the a long time get a new ???? shop. Forums are important but the company hyper focus is making the game. It just to bad they are not able grow enough to be able have q slightly bigger staff to maintain other stuff like the website better.
When it hits the fan, make sure your locked, loaded, and ready to go!
Edited by Wrangler (07/06/17 08:40 AM)
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ghostrider
07/06/17 02:57 PM
66.74.61.223
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If they are like most companies, they are drawing paychecks larger then they should be. Then going along standard lines, most hire others to do the work then get upset when little gets done, even though they stepped out of production of things. Yes, this is generalizing them, and it could very well be they are not drawing the six and seven figures out of a company that only makes five figures.
I suggest this as most people I have seen that worked for others, then started their own business tends toward stupid behavior like this.
And one last thing. They would not want anyone knowing they were hacked or otherwise compromised.
People tend to worry about buying anything from them with credit cards and such. That information can lead to others losing their financial stability as they tend to have fraudulent charges showing up. Even stupid things like customers names, addresses and even were deliveries go could lead to other issues. One time of simply saying send the bill to my new address, and not being the real person could lead to alot more problems.
A small company has a harder time coming back from issues like this then walmart or target.
As a little joke, the childs new car comes before security software. Hell, even the weekend party does.
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Akalabeth
07/06/17 05:34 PM
64.251.81.66
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Five figures? What, you didn't hear?
Back in 2010 it was revealed by Catalyst that an accounting review revealed that 850,000 dollars of the company's money had been "co-mingled" with one Loren Coleman's personal account through transfer by both him and his wife. This revelation came about when a bunch of shadowrun freelance writers discovered they weren't getting paid what they were due.
http://www.catalystgamelabs.com/2010/03/17/catalyst-game-labs-press-release/
Quote:
While we wish the review had only uncovered positive news, we also discovered our accounting procedures had not been updated as the company continued to grow. The result was that business funds had been co-mingled with the personal funds of one of the owners. We believe the missing funds were the result of bad habits that began alongside the creation of the company, which was initially a small hobby group. Upon further investigation, in which the owner has willingly participated, the owner in question now owes the company a significant balance and is working to help rectify the situation.
More about it:
https://geek-related.com/2010/04/17/catalyst-games-defiant-criminals/
Did Coleman ever pay this back? This "embezzlement", because that's what it is under most people's definition. I seriously doubt it. So whenever someone on the main forums says "Yeah I wish Battletech had a huge pile of money so they could do product X", just imagine how big a pile 850K would make. Imagine how many extra full time staff that could pay for. It could for example pay for two full time employees at 60K a year for 7 years.
Edited by Akalabeth (07/06/17 06:09 PM)
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Karagin
07/06/17 06:33 PM
72.176.187.91
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Do Palladium and CGL have the same person giving them business advice cause this sounds an awful lot like what Palladium went through and hasn't fully bounced back from yet.
Karagin
Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
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Akalabeth
07/06/17 09:59 PM
64.251.81.66
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Dunno much about Palladium except that I'm still missing half my Robotech Tactics figures. They've rotated out the mouthpiece on KS but much the same is being said as has been said the last year or two
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GiovanniBlasini
07/06/17 10:59 PM
66.87.130.71
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Karagin, what is your source on CGL's statements on the site?
Member of the Pundit Caste
"Which side are we on? We're on the side of the demons, Chief. We're evil men in the gardens of paradise, sent by the forces of death to spread devastation and destruction wherever we go. I'm surprised you didn't know that." -- Col. Saul Tigh, BSG2003
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Karagin
07/07/17 12:13 AM
72.176.187.91
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My source, a Facebook IM they sent me when I ask about Demo Agents in the Austin Waco area. Also on the Facebook page Battletech customs and painting folks have posted the news about the hacking.
And Akalabeth, they keep trying to say the same thing on the PG kickstarter for Robotech that folks can see through the BS by the second sentence.
Karagin
Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
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Karagin
07/07/17 12:17 AM
72.176.187.91
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If I can figure out how to add photos to these posts I will share the screen shot.
Karagin
Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
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Akalabeth
07/07/17 02:28 AM
75.155.167.106
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Quote:
And Akalabeth, they keep trying to say the same thing on the PG kickstarter for Robotech that folks can see through the BS by the second sentence.
Yeah, I saw some of those comments. Until they show some 3d renders of the models I suspect everyone will keep singing the same tune
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Frabby
07/07/17 03:13 AM
79.224.103.164
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Why the fuss?
To me it seems like good business practice to keep the buzz going and to keep internal problems to yourself.
The BattleTech forum is a fantastic site but it's also a free fan service that CGL aren't obliged to provide. They aren't getting paid for this. And they don't have to answer questions, especially when it's not about their product.
I remember that Loren Coleman/Frank Trollman chaos. The Shadowrun community went full Torches & Pitchforks over it, the BattleTech fanbase was much more Wait and See.
And the whole "scandal" died with a whimper.
Something happened. But I've never been able to glean from the internet what really happened. But I have a hard time taking Trollman's mix of accusations, conclusions and hyperbole at face value.
Catalyst stated there had been "a co-mingling of funds". That's nowhere near stating Loren Coleman had somehow taken the amount named by Trollman, or that the money had even been there in the first place. We only "know" what people with an axe to grind have said, and that was more opinion than fact.
BattleTech is alive and well. No point in bashing CGL.
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Akalabeth
07/07/17 05:44 AM
75.155.167.106
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Quote:
The BattleTech forum is a fantastic site but it's also a free fan service that CGL aren't obliged to provide. They aren't getting paid for this. And they don't have to answer questions, especially when it's not about their product.
No, the Battletech forum is an echo chamber where dissenting voices are warned and banned while moderator&admin shills defend the company and support abusive behaviour against anyone who speaks out.
Quote:
I remember that Loren Coleman/Frank Trollman chaos. The Shadowrun community went full Torches & Pitchforks over it, the BattleTech fanbase was much more Wait and See.
And the whole "scandal" died with a whimper.
The Battletech fanbase has taken a 'wait and see' attitude with every aspect of Catalyst and the game is about to "die like a whimper' as well. Virtually no innovation. Apparently zero playtesting on major products like Alpha Strike or the myriad of broken rules like Quirks, TacOps optional rules. Outdated game. A laughable 3000 pages of "core rules". Information spread across multiple products.
Quote:
Something happened. But I've never been able to glean from the internet what really happened. But I have a hard time taking Trollman's mix of accusations, conclusions and hyperbole at face value.
Catalyst stated there had been "a co-mingling of funds". That's nowhere near stating Loren Coleman had somehow taken the amount named by Trollman, or that the money had even been there in the first place.
You admit to not knowing and then argue that the amount is less than is claimed. This despite the CGL press release calling it a "significant amount".
Quote:
We only "know" what people with an axe to grind have said, and that was more opinion than fact. BattleTech is alive and well. No point in bashing CGL.
People who don't get paid for their work generally do have an axe to grind.
Quote:
No point in bashing CGL.
Zero print products this year, continual complaints about the storefront, rulebook and introductory boxed set out of print.
There are plenty of reason to bash this company for its failures with the battletech line.
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Karagin
07/07/17 06:53 AM
72.176.187.91
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They need to do something, we have a new FLAGS in Killeen, they are about 6 months old and I popped in, nice place, saw they had good mix of stuff, so I wonder into their miniature area and they have Warhammer, Pathfinder etc...hell even Dystopian War stuff, but not a single BT product. So I go ask the owner, he is like well I want to, but no one plays it any more and they aren't printing anything and so why care a product that doesn't appear to be supported...I point out that IWM still supports and pushes new miniatures for the game and he is comment back was and I quote "it's not worth my shelf space to carry something that isn't supported on the same levels as 40K with a VISIBLE and VIABLE front end that people can see and touch and know that they are getting something for their money".
So with the change in platforms of the CGL boards, you know the ones they operate for free, where you know the fans talk and share and act like small children, yeah those do mean something, and if CGL would push their Demo Agents to host games and IF CGL would actually do some advertisement about the game and push a could of products a month, both the PDF and dead tree format and link things together ala the 40K model, funny how with that game system you can almost always get the starter stuff without an issue and their super cool stuff is the hard to find vs CGL where the cool stuff can be found but the starter stuff is out of print or on back order odd that...
And for awhile Battletech had novels...then poof those went away, and you can tell that once you cut things that show off your product folks will not notice it, the die hards sure we know it's there and alive but it's kind of like that old dog, lies there only moving when it has too. Other wise folks think it's dead cause well they haven't seen it move in ages. 40K has new novels out every few months, their big push currently is the Hersey setting, folks are eating it up and yet no one seems to try and follow the example and do something similar, hell Battletech can easily borrow for the model and run with a similar event that they plan out and offer tons of stuff for, the Civil War in the FedCom could have been used or even the silly WoB attack on everyone could have been better modeled and used to push more products and get folks back into the game as well as allow the older eras support like Randal was giving them, which seemed to be popular enough.
CGL needs to do something, this world wide event, as poorly promoted as it is, might be the push needed, but with the server down and the lack of effort, yeah I don't see it going well if at all. And really right now CGL is starting to act like Palladium Games where "glowing" look isn't from the products but from the amount of backtracking and finger pointing and down right silliness as to the direction of the games and company. It comes down to this, either their main games, Battletech and Shadowrun are important to them still or they need to cut the chaff and focus on one or the other and stop diluting their efforts with all the other stuff.
And as said above I do have to agree the CGL ran/offered boards are indeed an echo chamber, where the mods are good friends with the folks putting the game out and can't seem to realize that nothing is perfect and fans will complain and offer ideas etc...but any word or comment that goes against the party line and boom you get banned. Hate to say this but there are plenty of evident postings here on Sarna that show just how folks who at one time or another who were connected with the folks running the game took their friendship and position to levels that ego got in the way of thinking and attacked anyone who didn't just jump and say wow great job over everything. Folks notice stuff like that and many will walk away.
Karagin
Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
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ATN082268
07/07/17 11:09 AM
69.128.58.222
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I quit posting on the official Battletech site about 5 or 6 years ago because of moderator bias. It was pointed out by other people on the official forum and by me to TPTB, that one of the main problems of the official forum is that posts that get warnings/bans were always removed, so the proof of what violated the rules disappeared. I suspect that if all the posts were left in place (except for stuff like spam or pornography) that the number of warnings and bans would drop significantly. And if they wouldn't drop significantly, then why not leave the posts in place?
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Akalabeth
07/07/17 01:35 PM
75.155.167.106
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And the bias is front and centre on a daily basis. One of the forum rules is to be constructive and actually contribute to the discussion, but one of the BMasters, Kit, posts 50% utter nonsense. Any discussion where someone speaks out all he will do is ridicule the person, and yet he remains on the board. His forum signature apparently even celebrates his nonsense.
The most recent example of bias of another nature though is in the 10th release thread where a guy named Ramseti was expressing some concerns, and sure enough in comes worktroll defending the company. If Ramseti continues to argue his point do you think he's going to escape without a warning? Do you think the person on the either side of the discussion will do so? The best outcome is that the thread gets locked and no one gets a warning, the more probable outcome is that Ramseti does and no one else because to be one dissenting voice means you're a "troll" and just causing problems.
Moderators & Admins should recuse themselves from any and all discussion about the company or its products & services.
That said, I think it's too late. Most of the people on that board seem cynical about the line. Forum activity seems to be way down, people either banned or just left. Most of the "general discussion" is just rolled into one big thread, even the super big news about a new line director got rolled into that one thread. Even were they to change it would be too little too late.
Edited by Akalabeth (07/07/17 01:37 PM)
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Wrangler
07/08/17 08:58 AM
24.34.162.106
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For some reason, the server move announcement has disappeared from Twitter....
When it hits the fan, make sure your locked, loaded, and ready to go!
Edited by Wrangler (07/08/17 09:00 AM)
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Karagin
07/08/17 10:00 AM
72.176.187.91
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They can't seem to be straight forward about things, I do understand it looks bad if they admit to being hacked, but at the same time hiding it is just as bad.
Given how poorly they run their forums, and yes again many of the same folks in charge over there have attacked folks here and if Nic still has the older postings up those attacks can be found, it's no wonder all they have at the main forums is the rabid fanboys who drool when they are told.
The Battlecrops model of paying for canon stories and such AFTER you join the club was a bad move across the board and when it came time to drop that they didn't, they just tossed a store front on it to sell new game books and older stuff.
All in all I am wondering why TOPPS haven't came in and set things straight.
Karagin
Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
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Cray
07/08/17 01:07 PM
67.8.226.169
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Hey, folks, general moderator comment: there's a lot of valid criticisms in here, and that's cool. But please take a moment to police your word choices when you start talking about people at the root of your criticisms. Pointed terms like "rabid fanboys" tend to snowball into more anger and specific name calling, which leads to violations of rule 1.
No biggie at this point, just keep things on an even keel.
Mike Miller, Materials Engineer
Disclaimer: Anything stated in this post is unofficial and non-canon unless directly quoted from a published book. Random internet musings of a BattleTech writer are not canon.
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Wrangler
07/08/17 01:26 PM
75.147.0.106
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Cray, have you heard anything about if their still going move to a new server?
When it hits the fan, make sure your locked, loaded, and ready to go!
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Karagin
07/08/17 05:42 PM
72.176.187.91
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Would over zealous fanboys be better wording?
Karagin
Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
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Karagin
07/08/17 06:22 PM
72.176.187.91
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So I did a Google for the BattleCrops store for Battletech, since no other link would even open and got this:
BattleCorps:/
battlecorps.com/
This site may be hacked.
Shop BATTLESHOP! Shop now for the all of your BattleTech product needs! ... Renew here! Click here for features and pricing for BattleCorps.com!
First option via Google and Webroot and AVG both tag it as may have been hacked...so I am going to trust to the theory that there is more going on then CGL has made public.
Karagin
Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
Edited by Karagin (07/08/17 06:30 PM)
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ghostrider
07/09/17 02:19 AM
66.74.61.223
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If this is true, then CGL might no longer be producing anything new for a while.
Not only the loss of their store security, but what if they lost all their information for things like new products, or even old information? Some companies are not good about backing up their sites and such.
And for those that did shop at their store, or knows someone that did. Make sure they keep a good eye out on their accounts that were used for such purchases. Shouldn't be needed to say it.
And tell them DO NOT believe any emails coming from the company. I would suspect they will be getting asked to confirm their account information like the credit card numbers, as well as other personal information. Just a precaution.
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Bad_Syntax
07/09/17 01:45 PM
70.122.170.173
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*Surely* they have a backup. Maybe not from this week, but *surely* there is one from at least a week or two ago.
I did offer to host a server with unlimited bandwidth for a free a few years ago, as well as my 20+ years of IT experience with securing more important sites like match.com, but it fell on deaf ears 
I'm sure they'll fix it, but if they have to start over from scratch that'd be very unfortunate.
But, if that does happen, maybe I can become un-banned for a few days 
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Karagin
07/09/17 02:28 PM
72.176.187.91
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I doubt they have anything backed up and from stuff I am seeing and reading else where on the net, this isn't going to go away and the internal issues at CGL are even crazier then the FASA days. Being sure that CGL will do anything is like betting on the 10th horse in a race, sure it can and could possible win, but odds are it's not.
And as much as I hate to say it, the game is sinking, I watch GW put out tons of stuff and they just did a big new release of things that sent everyone in fits and rushing to damn and buy it all at the same time, PLUS they have novels out in different formats and they aren't scared if one isn't a top seller, they still put them out unlike CGL. Then even Palladium Games, yes I know they are like the bottom of the gaming company world but even they have new stuff coming out and have updates and even with their asinine mess they have made of the Robotech Tactics Tabletop game kickstarter, they are at least doing something, where as CGL puts out some PDFs and one new novel and never can seem to update their main website pages but hey they will be at Origin and GenCon and they will spend tons of money on glossy artwork in the rulebooks and...yeah one would think that they could see that they need to get their house in order, fix the issues, fire or remove the folks who are holding things back and move forward with things to the point that the gaming world sees that BT is alive and kicking not rolling around cough and gasping and having seizures.
Karagin
Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
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Karagin
07/09/17 02:30 PM
72.176.187.91
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Unbanning from the main BT forums at CGL...yeah, I have been living with the threat of permanent life time ban over there since Warner and his cohorts were the ones running things, so yeah nothing has changed on the nepotism that prevails there.
Karagin
Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
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Cray
07/09/17 07:40 PM
72.189.109.30
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Quote:
Would over zealous fanboys be better wording?
Rule 1 is about not insulting the person, so try to avoid applying adjectives to people. Discuss events or behaviors rather than people. For example, "I was put off by the overzealous behavior of the fans on the CGL website," would work.
Mike Miller, Materials Engineer
Disclaimer: Anything stated in this post is unofficial and non-canon unless directly quoted from a published book. Random internet musings of a BattleTech writer are not canon.
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Cray
07/09/17 07:53 PM
72.189.109.30
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Patching together a couple of posts:
Quote:
Not only the loss of their store security, but what if they lost all their information for things like new products, or even old information? Some companies are not good about backing up their sites and such.
The CGL website is not involved with writing. I'm currently reviewing and fact checking one new product about [sooper sekrit stuff - shh non disclosure agreement], and writing another Touring the Stars planet mini-book. The only issue I've run into is that the official email address I'm supposed to send fact checking notes to ain't working, but I'm having no issue communicating by other routes.
I mean, the CGL website problems didn't hit Facebook, GMail, or...ooph, old memories, whatsit called...telegraphy? telephony communications? Something like that. 
Quote:
Cray, have you heard anything about if their still going move to a new server?
Something about "in progress, send fact checking comments to email X.ycom". Otherwise, nope, haven't heard much. But it's not like the website is critical for writing, or even involved in it.
Mike Miller, Materials Engineer
Disclaimer: Anything stated in this post is unofficial and non-canon unless directly quoted from a published book. Random internet musings of a BattleTech writer are not canon.
Edited by Cray (07/09/17 08:01 PM)
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