INDEPENDENCE FLEET AUGUST 2003 NEWSLETTER

*******************************************************
Table of Contents:
-Introduction
-Newsbits
-Award Winners
-Logo Contest Results
-Interview with Rear Admiral Steven McCloud
-Video Game Review
-Closing Comments
*******************************************************

Fellow IDF Members:
Well we have concluded another month under great circumstances. The hurdles that we had previously encountered have been taken care of and everything is running extremely well. I would like to take this moment to say that we couldn't have done it without any of you, and that I would like to dedicate this newsletter to each and everyone of you, the members of this fleet. You are what makes this fleet survive and without we wouldn't be able to have such a great organization. I thank you all... and now to the fun stuff

Vice Admiral Felicity "Slash" Dragonetti
Director of Fleet Development
Independence Fleet

*******************************************************

NEWSBITS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

---Anniversaries---

Forgot to mention last month that the Washington celebrated it's 2 year anniversary on July 4th!

The Liberty celebrated it's 1 year anniversary in IDF on August 1st, and 2 years as a sim also on August 1st. The Liberty originally was IDF's first expansion sim ever. In March of 2002, the Liberty left the fleet. On it's one year anniversary, the Liberty rejoined the fleet as a new sim and under a new registry number.

---IDF Website---

The IDF website now has NO POP-UP ADS! Or ANY ads for that matter!! Who Hoo!
http://www.angelfire.com/trek/independencefleet/

Admiralty Bios are up on the IDF website for all who are interested in viewing them (except for McCloud's and Griffith's)

Award Definitions and Award Nomination Submission rules are being put up on the website on the Fleet Documents page

---New Newsletters---

DSE's first newsletter was sent out on August 1st. DSE is also the first division to get a newsletter going, though there are rumors of the other divisions (at least SO) also starting newsletters.

New sim newsletter launched August 1st: MINERVA MONTHLY

---Milestones---

IDF saw it's 20,000th post on August 1st!! (I'll try to track it down for when the newsletter goes out.)

UC hit 2000 on July 18th, posted by Kiara Rodale.

The Excalibur passed 2900 posts, and will hit #3000 in the Month of August

---Record Breakers---

New fleet record Most Posts for a sim! USS Conqueror not only broke the fleet record for most posts in one month, it also broke the 400 mark! 442 posts in July, what a feat!

New fleet record Most Posts for an Individual, breaking her own previously established record, Kiara Rodale posted 110 posts last month on the Conqueror. It might be good to note that this feat was only possible because her crewmate(s) posts so much as well, specifically one Lt. David Timion who posted 100 himself.

---Miscellaneous---

Rear-Admiral McCloud is stepping down from DD of the DSE Division to Captain and becoming CO of the Excalibur again. His reasons are explained in this month's interview.

*******************************************************

AWARD WINNERS FOR JULY 2003

Best Story Post:
SB10: Terrh Ullho, Post #1662
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Starbase10IDF/message/2126

Best Character Post:
Patriot: Ens Doohan Park., Post 1344
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/USS-Patriot/message/1876

Funniest Post:
DS15: Lieutenant Venrir Kaesora, Post #820
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DeepSpace15/message/1055

Genesis Award:
Patriot: Capt Logan and Ens Olera, Post 1331
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/USS-Patriot/message/1856

MVP:
GWB: Lt. J.G. Thomas Hallet
It's always hard to choose an MVP-and after a lot of thought I came to the decision that Hallet deserved it since he not only crafted this great mission but, helped get the new simmers into the "flow". He was out of touch for a while for the month of July, but it isn't the fact of how many posts he contributed but rather how he helped incorporate everyone into them.

Most Improved Player:
DS15: Ensign Michael St. Martin
His improvement in less than one month is more than I've seen in simmers over three or more. He joined not knowing even all the basics of writing, and absolutely nothing about simming. He not only put to use improvement comments he got, he asked for them to be given so he could improve. In the beginning he was asking for others to give him direction in his posts, now he's quite confident in posting his own ideas. He can even handle being involved in the current story, or doing things with just his own character and NPCs when he's not. While he's still learning how to write others' characters he's been doing joint posts to overcome his lack of experience/skill in this area. 13.3 posts

Outstanding Simmer:
Excalibur: Lt Barnes.
Not for quantity of posts, but for effort, has posted 6 times this month., whilst being on active duty in the Gulf. In the middle of a hostile environment, Lt Barnes finds the time to post. And add a positive influence to the mission. Demonstrating his commitment to the ship and his fellow simmers.

Rookie of the Month:
GWB: Ensign Katagh, CMO.
This Klingon ensign has shown a great start in simming on the Bush. He jumped right into the mission, and the fact that there is a small language barrier, him being Dutch, has not let him falter from his dedication. This constant interest had him posting more then everyone even the CO, and his posts are improving in quality. Another contribution he has made is recruiting five friends to the Bush. All of which are promising simmers.

Recruitment:
Ensign Katagh with 5 recruits, GWB

Most Posts:
Commander Kiara Rodale, 110, Conqueror

*******************************************************

THE RESULTS OF THE FLEET LOGO CONTEST

Well, I was very impressed with the logo contest. We had many entries, and many many people voted. We have two logos that stood out in the results of the contest. Before I announce the winner, I would like to thank everyone who participated, I was very impressed with everything entered. We definitely have some graphic talent in this fleet. And now for the winners:

Logo A is going to be our official logo. This was the blue logo with the liberty bell. This logo was created by none other than our very own Admiral West. (No names were given during voting so the logos were completely anonymous). This will become the official logo of the fleet.

Second place is a logo that we might use for a possible banner exchange or something similar. This was Logo I. (The oval shaped American Flag with Independence Fleet wrapped around it.) This logo was created by Dex. A crewmember of the USS Goliad.

We thank everyone for their submissions. If you would like to see the logos again (written descriptions are included under them) please go to the following site:
http://www.angelfire.com/trek/independencefleet/possibleSymbols/descriptions.html

Also please send any questions/comments/quandaries about this contest to me (Dragonetti) at poisonwake@yahoo.com

Vice Admiral Dragonetti

*******************************************************

INTERVIEW WITH REAR-ADMIRAL STEVEN MCCLOUD

Interviewer: I would like to welcome Rear-Admiral Steven McCloud. I hear you have some news for the DSE Division.

McCloud: Yes, I will be stepping down as Director of the DSE by the end of August and return to the rank of Captain and CO of the Excalibur. I have a lot of real life projects going on right now that prevent me from giving the position the attention it requires.

Interviewer: Who will take over that position?

McCloud: I really don't know. I think that the Admiralty will probably pick someone to take over or may just open it up to anyone interested. It will be up to them.

Interviewer: You became a member of the Fleet in December of 2001 is that right?

McCloud: Yes, that's correct. I started as an Ensign and Chief Engineer of the Patriot.

Interviewer: You were promoted twice on the Patriot and won her first awards.

McCloud: I think I won rookie of the Month, Most posts and MVP while I was there. Then a friend said, "You should ask for your own ship. You'd make a good Captain." So I talked to Admiral Star about Command and was given the Excalibur.

Inteviewer: When were you promoted to Commodore and made Director of the DSE?

McCloud: That was in November of 2002 I believe. Then in December, I was promoted again to Rear-Admiral.

Interviewer: To what do you contribute to your promotions?

McCloud: I think I was promoted because of my interest in seeing the Fleet expand and grow and my willingness to help out.

Interviewer: The Excalibur has thrived with you at the helm for the past 16 months.

McCloud: Yeah, we've done alright. Over 2700 posts, 4 posting titles and 28 Fleet awards in 16 months is much more than I expected when we first started. She has a great core group of simmers that have kept things going very well.

Interviewer: So why then did you step down as CO?

McCloud: For a couple of reasons. Some personal, real life situations had come up that will not allow me the time to both Command a ship and be Division Director at the same time. So I opted to step down as CO of the X and put a little more time into running the Division. I was still on the X helping Captain Tolbin, but my main focus would be helping the DSE grow along with the Fleet.

Interviewer: What are some of the things you had planned for the DSE?

McCloud: Well to start, I plan to put out a Division Newsletter. I hope to have the first edition out on August 1st.

Interviewer: A Division Newsletter?

McCloud: Yes, it was actually Captain Griffith's idea when he was my Deputy Director. He is now the Division Director of the SOD, and I'm sure he plans on doing the same for his division.

Interviewer: Why a Division Newsletter?

McCloud: For a couple of reasons. Communication being the prime reason. I feel that if more people know what's going on, the more they will become involved, thus helping the Fleet grow. Along with having fun, we can all be proud in what we have built here. The Independence Fleet has been around for two years now and with everyone's help will be around for a long time to come.

Interviewer: What else do you have planned?

McCloud: I will be starting a recruitment drive within the next week or so. There are ship's that are operating on 5-7 crewmen. We have many ships in the Fleet that have crewmen that are on more than one ship. More people, means more growth, new ideas, making it easier for the COs to keep their ships from becoming slow or weak. I would very much like to see the ships that were recently decommissioned, brought back, but not at the price of weakening the ships we already have.

Interviewer: What do you think of the current restructuring of the Fleet?

McCloud: It was long overdue. Things were not looking too god for the health of the Fleet. Things and people were spread too thin. I think the poeple that we have currently in Command are doing a great job, refocusing, and getting things back on track.

Interviewer: Then you think the Fleet has a bright future?

McCloud: I think it's bright, yes, as long as we all work together to keep it looking that way. I think that the more people become involved, the better things will get. As the old saying goes, "Many hands, make light work." One person trying to run this whole thing, just isn't the way to go. A broader command base will only make things easier to handle. And as the Fleet grows, it won't become a chore to keep it up.

Interviewer: Sounds like you have a great love of the game.

McCloud: I do at that, but I don't like to do things half way. I like to put 110% into everything I do. If your not willing to do that, then the games not worth playing. At least for me. I have been watching Star Trek since it first aired in the sixties. I have learned a great many things from Gene Roddenberry. I would like to think that some of those lessons can be learned by the leaders of our world today. Sorry, I'm getting a little philosophical here.

Interviewer: That's OK Mac, we all do from time to time. Well, our time is about up. Is there anything you'd like to add before I let you get back to work?

McCloud: Yes, I'd like to say that it has been great to be part of the Fleet over the past couple of years. I would also like to welcome Captian Krol and the crew of the Minerva to the DSE. I'm sure you will enjoy being part of our Division.

Interviewer: Well thanks again for taking the time to visit with us Mac. Until next month, bye for now.

*******************************************************

VIDEO GAME REVIEW

The highly anticipated "Enter The Matrix" game is now out for XBOX, PC, Gamecube, PS2, and just about any other console a game can be made for. The breathtaking graphics and new video footage are state- of-the-art and can only be supported by the best of the best on PCs. The game allows you to fight everyone from programs of Civilians, Security, and Police who get in your way, to SWAT Team Snipers, the Undead, and the shockingly difficult Agents. Enter The Matrix is rated E for Everyone, despite the obvious violence in the game, because instead of blood and gore, which most games now have, the game shows a circle of Matrix code when you defeat an opponent. You can be one of two characters: Niobe, or her First Officer, Ghost. The game is different for each character, which you will see if you start two separate games, one with Ghost, and one with Niobe. They both have their own special moves, assignments, and tips given to you throughout the game. The game centers around you, the not-so- important characters, so that you don't go through the exact things you saw in the Matrix: Reloaded movie. There are helpful video clips throughout the game, which show you parts of the movie from a different perspective, helping you to better understand the movie as you go through the game. The awesome assortment of weapons, hand-to- hand combat, bullet-time moves, things that can only be done to bend and break the rules of the Matrix, and even some driving thrown into the mix, make the game that much more interesting and challenging. This is a must-have for all the Matrix and gaming fans out there who love a good game with kick-butt graphics, your favorite characters, and challenging missions to complete. After playing this game, the Matrix _will_ have you.

~Captain Nara Treniek

*******************************************************

CONCLUDING STATEMENTS

A special thank you to all that helped with the newsletter. MacCloud for the interview and news. The fleet for the logo contest. All the award winners, and voters. And Captain Treniek for the review!

Well, that concludes another newsletter. I hope you all have enjoyed reading it as much as I have enjoyed putting it together here in my PJs. (YAY for lazy days). With schools and colleges returning soon, I hope we maintain the same greatness we have established for the fleet. This is for all of you. I thank you all for reading and participating in a great game. Happy simming ( : !

Vice Admiral Dragonetti

*******************************************************