ErikH2000
Level: Legendary Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2794
Registered: 02-04-2003
IP: Logged

We had a disaster with the last Illumination. Due to some flaw in our system, maybe half of the people on the Illumination mailing list were delivered redundant e-mail messages. Some people got as many as 18 messages that all said the same thing. And to make matter worse, I regrettably chose to title the newsletter message "Bulk e-mailing is good". Bulk e-mailing can be good, unless you screw it up like I did.

Jamie Jones and I are working now to fix the system. I would appreciate very much a number of volunteers to participate in one or more bulk-mailing tests. In fact, I need a whole bunch of people--maybe 30 or so. We need to try our bulk-mailing system out again and it is far too risky to run against the entire Illumination list again. I'm sure we caused a bunch of unsubscribes already.

So if you don't mind the possibility of getting tens of redundant messages delivered to your inbox over the next few weeks, please send an e-mail to erikh@caravelgames.com and put "I love bulk e-mail" in the subject line. That's all you have to do. I'm not even going to ask you later what mail you received (we can see who is receiving too many messages on our end). You'll just be put on a temporary testing list that we'll use in July. All of the messages will have subjects prefixed with "BULK E-MAIL TEST", so you can even add a filter to delete them automatically if you want.

So send erikh@caravelgames.com an e-mail with "I love bulk e-mail" in the subject line.

-Erik

____________________________
The Godkiller - Chapter 1 available now on Steam. It's a DROD-like puzzle adventure game.
dev journals | twitch stream | youtube archive (NSFW)

silver
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 915
Registered: 01-18-2005
IP: Logged

should I be on this test list if my problem is the opposite: that I got zero copies of the email?


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coppro
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 1309
Registered: 11-24-2005
IP: Logged

In

Jatopian
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 1842
Registered: 07-31-2005
IP: Logged

Email sent.

____________________________
DROD has some really great music.
Make your pressure plates 3.0 style!
DROD architecture idea generator

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[Last edited by Jatopian at 07-06-2007 03:05 AM : clarity for eytanz]

ErikH2000
Level: Legendary Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2794
Registered: 02-04-2003
IP: Logged

silver wrote:
should I be on this test list if my problem is the opposite: that I got zero copies of the email?

Yes, please.

The zero message problem is also important, btw, just not as important as the redundant message problem. If we don't solve redundant messages, we simply can't send out the Illumination by e-mail.

-Erik

____________________________
The Godkiller - Chapter 1 available now on Steam. It's a DROD-like puzzle adventure game.
dev journals | twitch stream | youtube archive (NSFW)

Bombadil
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 523
Registered: 06-01-2005
IP: Logged

Count me in

Briareos
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 3516
Registered: 08-07-2005
IP: Logged

I'd love to join, but I'm going on holiday to Italy from this saturday to next sunday so I'll not be able to react to any problems...

____________________________
"I'm not anti-anything, I'm anti-everything, it fits better." - Sole
R.I.P. Robert Feldhoff (1962-2009)

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[Last edited by Briareos at 07-04-2007 09:24 AM]

Krissan
Level: Delver

Rank Points: 89
Registered: 04-08-2006
IP: Logged

Getting spammed makes me feel important, so of course I've sent the mail

____________________________
Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut. - Ernest Hemingway

NiroZ
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 1302
Registered: 02-12-2006
IP: Logged

Briareos wrote:
I'd love to join, but I'm going on holiday to Italy from this saturday to next sunday so I'll not be able to react to any problems...

All they need is addresses to send it to.

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[Last edited by NiroZ at 07-04-2007 11:06 AM]

AlefBet
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 979
Registered: 07-16-2003
IP: Logged

Briareos wrote:
I'd love to join, but I'm going on holiday to Italy from this saturday to next sunday so I'll not be able to react to any problems...

Based on what Erik said, I think the only "problem" you'd have to react to personally is cleaning out a few dozen messages from your inbox once you get back.

I'd be fine with participating, by the way, except that I don't want to defraud myself with the required subject line message (and "love" is way too strong a word for me to pen in this instance).

____________________________
I was charged with conspiracy to commit jay-walking, and accessory to changing lanes without signaling after the fact .

++Adam H. Peterson

Briareos
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 3516
Registered: 08-07-2005
IP: Logged

AlefBet wrote:

Briareos wrote:
I'd love to join, but I'm going on holiday to Italy from this saturday to next sunday so I'll not be able to react to any problems...

Based on what Erik said, I think the only "problem" you'd have to react to personally is cleaning out a few dozen messages from your inbox once you get back.

Ummm... I'm pretty sure they'll want to have feedback about when how much email arrived...

____________________________
"I'm not anti-anything, I'm anti-everything, it fits better." - Sole
R.I.P. Robert Feldhoff (1962-2009)

Tuttle
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1548
Registered: 02-22-2003
IP: Logged

Nope:

ErikH2000 wrote:
That's all you have to do. I'm not even going to ask you later what mail you received (we can see who is receiving too many messages on our end).

eytanz
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2708
Registered: 02-05-2003
IP: Logged

No, Erik said explicitly that they don't need that, because they can tell how much mail was actually sent per person.


____________________________
I got my avatar back! Yay!

Briareos
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 3516
Registered: 08-07-2005
IP: Logged

eytanz wrote:
No, Erik said explicitly that they don't need that, because they can tell how much mail was actually sent per person.

Errr... oops.

Well, count me in then. Just promise me not to flood my 25GB of space that I have left while I'm away, okay?

____________________________
"I'm not anti-anything, I'm anti-everything, it fits better." - Sole
R.I.P. Robert Feldhoff (1962-2009)

silver
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 915
Registered: 01-18-2005
IP: Logged

well, then count me in


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UrAvgAzn
Level: Smiter

Rank Points: 468
Registered: 04-15-2006
IP: Logged

I'm in.

Keep posting,

____________________________
"The leaf, still green, must someday fall.
Such grief, such joy, to live at all."
- T.A. Barron, The Lost Years of Merlin

Dex Stewart
Level: Smiter
Rank Points: 355
Registered: 01-19-2007
IP: Logged

So am I.

jamie
Level: Smiter
Rank Points: 365
Registered: 04-15-2005
IP: Logged

silver wrote:
should I be on this test list if my problem is the opposite: that I got zero copies of the email?

There were some other issues that stopped some messages being delivered - these have now been sorted out. If you send me your email address to jamiej@caravelgames.com then I'll have a look through the logs to see why yours didn't get through, and whether it's due to a problem already fixed.

Cheers

____________________________
#f3i2g# Disclaimer: I'm Welsh, left-handed, and stupid. #f3i2g#

Banjooie
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1645
Registered: 12-12-2004
IP: Logged

Um, sure, why not.

silver
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 915
Registered: 01-18-2005
IP: Logged

you know what, ignore me. I just noticed there's a "subscribe to caravel.net news" checkbox on the profile page. I don't remember it being there, but it wasn't checked. so that explains the zero illuminations.


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Monkey
Level: Master Delver

Rank Points: 190
Registered: 03-21-2006
IP: Logged

"I love bulk e-mail"
That tells you: I'm in!

____________________________
lurking

gamer_extreme_101
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1939
Registered: 03-07-2004
IP: Logged

silver wrote:
you know what, ignore me. I just noticed there's a "subscribe to caravel.net news" checkbox on the profile page. I don't remember it being there, but it wasn't checked. so that explains the zero illuminations.

Well, it's good to know I wasn't the only person this happened too. I can't figure out why the status of that box changed though....

____________________________
--That guy with a million different aliases since he doesn't like this name anymore.

Elfstone
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1285
Registered: 03-01-2006
IP: Logged

Erik, I have just e-mailed as a volunteer.

____________________________
Winner of: Novice Architect Excellence 2006.
FAPCA - Technical Design Excellence in Layout and Aesthetics

jamie
Level: Smiter
Rank Points: 365
Registered: 04-15-2005
IP: Logged

Elfstone wrote:
Erik, I have just e-mailed as a volunteer.

wooh! someone who read the original request correctly ;-)

____________________________
#f3i2g# Disclaimer: I'm Welsh, left-handed, and stupid. #f3i2g#

eytanz
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2708
Registered: 02-05-2003
IP: Logged

I'm hoping the people announcing participation above have all also sent emails...

For what it's worth, I signed up yesterday, but didn't announce it here.

____________________________
I got my avatar back! Yay!

ErikH2000
Level: Legendary Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2794
Registered: 02-04-2003
IP: Logged

I have a decent number of e-mails on-hand, but would definitely like more. I think you can expect messages in the tens, but not hundreds, and only in July. And as I've said before, you don't need to do anything at all as far as feedback. So if you are interested, please send an e-mail to erikh@caravelgames.com with the subject "I Love Bulk E-Mail". In the interests of saving time, I won't be replying back to any e-mails.

Our first problem is reproducing the redundant delivery behavior. Jamie has been running tests where he sends a bunch of e-mails to himself, but he didn't get any redundancy. It might be necessary to use the list of people that "Love Bulk E-Mail" to create the right timing and state conditions. And it might be necessary for that list to be very large too. So the more e-mails I have the better.

-Erik

____________________________
The Godkiller - Chapter 1 available now on Steam. It's a DROD-like puzzle adventure game.
dev journals | twitch stream | youtube archive (NSFW)

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[Last edited by ErikH2000 at 07-06-2007 05:46 AM]

Alneyan
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 622
Registered: 07-06-2004
IP: Logged

Would you like multiple addresses per spam... erh, per person? (I suppose I'm not the only one here who has more email addresses than there are atoms in the whole universe)

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[Last edited by Alneyan at 07-06-2007 10:34 AM]

ErikH2000
Level: Legendary Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2794
Registered: 02-04-2003
IP: Logged

Yes, please. Multiple addresses (as long as you are the only person reading mail at those addresses) are good. Please just send them to me at erikh@caravelgames.com.

-Erik

____________________________
The Godkiller - Chapter 1 available now on Steam. It's a DROD-like puzzle adventure game.
dev journals | twitch stream | youtube archive (NSFW)

Yellow_Mage
Level: Master Delver
Rank Points: 267
Registered: 05-19-2004
IP: Logged

eytanz wrote:
I'm hoping the people announcing participation above have all also sent emails...

For what it's worth, I signed up yesterday, but didn't announce it here.

Same. I saw this topic in the early hours when it first appeared and posted an email promptly. I was sort of expecting people to reply to this topic and probably not read it properly. Didn't expect to give any feedback because he knows who's replied, and I'm eagerly awaiting the junk emails. So the excuse left for this reply?

BUMP! (beats a temporary sticky...)

____________________________
"Sit and daydream, and watch the changing color of the waves that break upon the idle seashore of the mind." - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

coppro
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 1309
Registered: 11-24-2005
IP: Logged

ErikH2000 wrote:
Yes, please. Multiple addresses (as long as you are the only person reading mail at those addresses) are good. Please just send them to me at erikh@caravelgames.com.

-Erik

What if it's a redirect to the same address (like my sourceforge address)?