[casual_games] IMPORTANT: Upcoming changes

[Dave Rohrl]

Hi all,

I'm sending out this email to let you know about some important changes
that are coming up for the IGDA Casual Games SIG and to get the community
talking about how to manage these transitions.

The *FIRST *big change is that the IGDA Board has asked all SIG's to move
off our current pairlist email servers.  The ISP that is currently managing
these listservs charges the IGDA a monthly fee for each mailing list, and -
given the great free alternatives that are out there - it's not a place the
IGDA really wants to put money at this time.

The IGDA Board is recommending that SIG's establish Facebook groups to
allow their members to communicate, schedule events, etc.  The Steering
Committee debated this; some members were in favor of migrating to
Facebook, but some other members of the Steering Committee felt that a
LinkedIn group would be a better home for the SIG's communications given
LinkedIn's more professional bent.  The Steering Committee is willing to go
either way based on the preferences of the SIG membership but we need to
here from you.  Which leads to discussion question #1: GIVEN THAT THE
CURRENT SIG MAILING LIST WILL BE GOING AWAY FOR COST REASONS, WOULD YOU
PREFER TO SEE TI REPLACED BY A FACEBOOK GROUP OR A LINKEDIN GROUP?

The *SECOND *big change involves my own role in the SIG.  I've been
associated with the Casual Games SIG (paradoxically) since before it
existed.  In 2002-2003, I edited the Production & Design section of the
Online Games SIG White Paper and served on the Steering Committee
2003-2004, before the Casual Games SIG split out of the Online Games SIG.
I took a break then rejoined the Steering Committee in 2007 and have been
chairing it since late 2008.  For those of you keeping score at home,
that's a long time.

The SIG has changed a lot over that time, as have a variety of things in my
life.  After giving it a good deal of thought and some long discussions
with IGDA Board Chair Brian Robbins, I've decided to resign as the Chair of
the Steering Committee.  I would like to make transition effective in
February 2012.

As part of this transition, the Steering Committee wants to call for an
election for new Committee members and a new Chair.  Unlike the elections
of the last few years, we would like to see the new Steering Committee
members elected by the membership at large rather than by the outgoing
members of the Committee.  Alfredo Chaves and Joel Johnson of the current
Steering Committee will be heading up an Elections Committee.  They will be
working to recruit new Committee candidates, circulating statements,
counting ballots, and announcing results.  Expect to hear from them before
the end of the year. This leads to big discussion questions #2 and #3: ARE
YOU WILLING TO CONSIDER SERVING AS A MEMBER OF THE SIG STEERING COMMITTEE?
and WHAT DO YOU THINK ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS THE SIG SHOULD BE DOING
IN 2012 AND BEYOND?

I hope we'll see a great wave of new candidates bringing fresh energy and
vision to the SIG.  The SIG has a long history of cool, interesting, and
relevant initiatives that have contributed a lot to the community.  Being
on the Steering Committee is a great way to give back to the community and
make a lot of really valuable contacts.  I know it's been great for me over
the years.

I will stand as a candidate for the Committee this year, but will not stand
for election as Chair.  If elected, I will remain on the board for one more
year to advise the new Chair and do what I can to sustain the podcast and
question of the week initiatives.  Over the course of that year I will look
for new leaders to transition those initiatives to.

I would like to thank the SIG and the Steering Committee for the
opportunity to serve in this role.  It's been a fun and productive time for
me, and I look forward to seeing the SIG continuing to do great things
under new leadership.

Sincerely,
Dave Rohrl
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