Thank you Argonath

[Teddy]

The world I live in today is a lot different than I would've expected 10 years ago. In 20 days I will be 22 years old. It was exactly 10 years ago that I started down a very bad two year path. I began drinking at 10, got into drugs at age 12. You can say the American education system failed me as I quickly fell off the system. As I said it was two year journey which if continued on to this today I'd most certainly be in prison.. or worse dead. What happened? What changed? I'm not really sure what clicked but I found a local recreational center called the Boys and Girls club which I started doing volunteer work so I could graduate. I hated children at the time, honestly couldn't stand them.

However that view quickly changed and I became a different person. Rather than being someone who would just get high all the time after school I'd be helping the local community. I got my hands on my first computer as a reward for turning myself around. What would I do first? Obviously download some violent games and play with others. I first found Argonath by random, VC:MP was the server. I can remember few, people like Marco who really inspired me to keep playing in a RPG setting rather than DM (since VC:MP at the time was mostly DM servers). It was after a few months of playing that I really got curious of how things worked "behind the scenes". I began researching different things and came across the concept of computer programming. I was hooked. I was absolutely fascinated by the idea of code and being able to write machine instructions and have actual results.

This began the start of a long-term hobby venture into the world of technology. I first learned PHP and made my first website before I was 15. That isn't much these days since kids learn code as young as 6. Which is absolutely fantastic. By the time I was 18 I had learned a handful of languages as well as more concepts of computer technology. Today I know nearly 16 programming/scripting languages now and have worked for international academies, banks, and lawyers. While I don't use all of those languages, I  use them in a new found love for knowledge. I spend my time researching random topics which have no real purpose other than simply to know them. Hey, never know, some of it might come in use one day. Understanding programming gives you a different view, an engineering view, to the world we live in and damn.. it is an exciting view.

Now to the point. Many people think of Argonath as just a place to come and have fun. Which I don't disagree with. The community is amazing, the people here are just as amazing. Each and everyone of you, if you realize it or not are apart of something larger than just database entry on some remote server. You are apart of an amazing community. Which I can honestly say has made me who I am today and has effectively helped save my life from one which would be a very dark road.

TL;DR:
As I grow older I hope I continue to learn more. I just wanted to say Thank you to Argonath and the community for the time I've had, and the time ahead. For those who have recently joined, strap in for the ride. For those who have been here for a long time, I tip my hat. Got questions? Ask.

[Tovenaarke]

Nice view. To be honest Teddy, I didn't linked you to drugs and alcohol early happy B day!

[iMunna]

Good read Teddy. Thought I'd quote myself as well.

It was March 2010 when I gave my first attempt at Argonath. Allow the following emoticon to express my emotion when I first clicked on the server:

I felt lucky to have found such a great community like Argonath. The players, administrators, and developers were everything you could wish for within a community. They were helpful and cheerful just like a best friend that I never really had in real life. Within a week I had met unique and uncommon great people that are rare to find in real life. I won't mention any names because each and every single player in this community deserves and is responsible for receiving my credit for providing to me the greatest and loveliest times at Argonath.

Argonath has not just been a gaming community to me, it has been a teacher. Argonath has taught me to always see things in a different positive perspective. Argonath has taught me how to treat officers, criminals, and citizens when its comes to real life situations. Argonath has taught me to be respectful to peoples beliefs and way of life. Argonath has taught me to accept people for who they are, and who they aren't. Every day has been adored and appreciated by myself for it has taught me new ways of having fun with the game, instead of struggling with it.

When it came to the bad times like being abused by cops or getting death matched by new players, I learned total self control of myself. I learned to stop, take a deep breath, and teach the guy to have fun with this game, but respect other players too. When it came time that I felt I couldn't control myself, I left the game, took a break, then came back and had some fun. Sure, I've made multiple mistakes in my past, but I have learned multiple things from them and not making the same mistake twice.

The one day I was invited into Inferno 9 changed my experience at Argonath greatly. I was invited into a group that serves to protect Argonath and respect all of the groups at Argonath. Inferno 9 isn't the only group respecting this idea, all groups at Argonath at some point or or all the time have respected Argonath and cared for the community as much as Inferno 9 has. Though there have been troubles in the past within and outside all groups, they always get resolved quickly.

There are so many great and positive things and ideas to learn and interpret within this community that I could go on and on about them. But there is one negative thing I wanted to point out that has been increasing within the community greatly. The idea of trolling in game and on the community is destroying what we stand for. It not only sets a negative mood for the targets but also for the person who is trolling. I wanted to ask these trolls privately to stop, but I have decided to ask them here. So please, think twice. Is this really what you want this community to become? A big troll pool? Please improve community by improving yourselves. If you have lost faith in the improvement, don't express it by destroying the community even more. There is always room to improve and each and every one of us can work to improve it. How? By logging on every day at Argonath and posting positive and constructive posts every day.

I wanted to conclude this letter of thanks by once again thanking each and every single player at this community for everything they have provided to me during my experience at this community. Please note that this isn't a good bye letter. It is a letter to inform all of us of the positive and negative things within this community and how we can improve them. This letter is to inform all of you that I will be increasing my activity in game and on the forums just to express my gratitude towards everyone for our accomplishments as one community.

We are Argonath, one community, one people. May this community strive to become the greatest of all. I feel sadness for players in other communities and servers who haven't been able to experience Argonath for themselves. I hope to see those people join and experience what we experience every day. And that experience is, Argonath.

[Allison]

It's certainly amazing what being in this community can do, especially over the 7 years I've been around. It's helped me pass through some stressful times in my life, and I've even gotten a few friends I'd like to be able to meet someday (or annoy to death, like SugarD ;D). My knowledge of programming, and overall internet usage increased tenfold since I first joined. I put a lot of that credit to Argonath and letting me strive to my goals. I've attained most of them, but not all quite yet.

I too have to say thanks to Argonath for all it's been and can be.

[eymas]

Amen to all.

Early happy birthday as well 

[Fruity]

It's such a strange and surreal concept when you think about the journey other people have had in life and how we've all ended up here as friends. Quite beautiful.

[Hess]

WTF, I thought this was a goodbye topic at first D:

It's fantastic to see how your life was turned around by some positive decisions made in dark times, and how that has shaped who you now are. It has been great knowing you over the past few years and we have had some good memories here.

You have put so much into the community and allowed it to continue growing through your knowledge, skills, time and effort.

Some people may think that spending all this time developing for a gaming community for free is a waste of time, however the skills, knowledge and practice you can gain through doing this stuff is priceless and can lead to many opportunities.

I can personally relate to some of what you said, as Argonath has helped me grow as a person as well. I began learning how to script for MTA:VC some years ago when a lead scripter by the name of "Mex" was willing to teach me the basics about scripting. I have since learned a few other languages and am now doing web development for a living, including for large online businesses and government websites. I know that opportunities will continue to arise as I gain further experience in somewhat challenging (at times) environments. And this all began with my hunger to explore scripting in Argonath.

People underestimate the impact that online communities have on their life, and don't really think much about it. However, I know many people who have now made real life friends through Argonath, and regularly meet up in real life. Myself included. It is quite surreal meeting up with someone who you met online, and quite remarkable when you think back to when you first met them as "just another player/user".

I could continue with more examples of how Argonath has impacted my life, but I've said the main ones.

So yeah, with that I also say, Thanks Argonath.

[Dadial_Singh]

 :rage:intreasting

[Axison]

Happy early birthday man, i'd also like to thank Argonath because they are the reason i got interested in programming... So ye thanks

[Mikal]

 

[Mikal]

^ I meant that in a non sarcastic approving way just to say.

[Spike.]

At first I thought you were going to leave. I would kill you right after, jkjk .
The topic is a really good example of how powerful this community can be, and that will stay around until there is no more of us left. 

[Dadial_Singh]

Argonath rocks

Whenever i see SAMP i just recall only one server that is Argonath rpg

[Chris Collin]

At first I thought you were going to leave. I would kill you right after, jkjk .
The topic is a really good example of how powerful this community can be, and that will stay around until there is no more of us left. 

[Frank_Hawk]

If you continue to work hard to combine your technical skills in a practical context - you will be highly sought after once you graduate and look for a role in technology boasting what you did in this community. Keep doing what you are doing and if you need advice from another technology professional, do not hesitate to ask.