Ivan

Quiet you. I've been working on something like that to teach myself mysql and php. It's nowhere near prime-time yet though.

Caution: Geek Soap Opera ahead I can only speak from a non-mod point of view. So someone else will have to fill in the insider details. Back in the good ole days (when Minimates were three inches tall), the AA boards were a nice place to hang out. AA employees read and responded frequently. Donna, Adam, and Manny posted often. Even Digger was around a bit. But as the boards grew, AA involvement diminished. Trolling increased and many members were biting. So somehow (at AA's request or Tim's, I don't know) Tim became a moderator. Prior to this AA did all the mod work. Things seemed happy again, trolls were being smited, offensive images were being deleted. But AAs involvement never went back to the earlier levels. Somewhere prior to the 2003 convention season Tim(Picard) and Greg (Ulan Aruk) form the AACC as a way for people that can't go to the conventions a chance to get the exclusives. For your $30 annual fee you got your choice of a Yellow Shirt Kirk, Peter Parker/Mary Jane, or Ultimate Spidey/Gray Hulk and a couple blank Minimates. (Details via The Wayback Machine) The response was more than the AACC was expecting. I don't remember the time frame, but the kits were seriously delayed. In that link it mentions you might get a grab bag that "could contain any number of items found at the Asylum." This implied people could receive prototypes or test shots or something cool, but instead people got paper clips and rubber bands. He was trying to be funny, but making jokes around upset people only makes them more upset. The only thing I remember people getting in the 'grab bag' that wasn't office supplies was a Darth Maul watch. Not a popular item. After a while there were complaints about info being withheld so that it could be put in the newsletter, and other assorted grumblings. Things really started to decline when they started taking orders for various exclusives. I think you could buy the Yellow Kirk, the Minimates, and the C3 Stealth Batwing. This was the time Tim's daughter had pregnancy complications and he disappeared (understandably) from the board. In his absence, nobody stepped up to handle the problems. Orders went unfilled, questions unanswered. Eventually new mods were brought in, and there was this whole AAOL thing that I never fully understood. Also around this time Tim started his Quixotic quest to save Enterprise. It appeared that he was abandoning the club in order to make a name for himself. There was some bad blood between Tim and Greg, and Greg stepped down from his involvement in the AACC. FatHeadCookies (Mark?) took up the load of filling all the orders and unshipped membership kits. Brandon was working on the newsletter. Greg posted a way for disgruntled members to file complaints against the AACC through PayPal and USPS (citing mail fraud). Tempers flared. Eventually the AACC was closed down, but the AA boards went on. Either the board software or the hosting couldn't handle the load and 'Service Unavailable' became ubiquitous. (This might have been occuring while the AACC was in its death throws, I'm not sure.) Tim came back and tried to fix it... by deleting 70% of the posts on the board! He claimed there was a back-up, but the posts were never restored. So that board was brought down and Tim started hosting another one on his server (70.85.44.56) Things are little fuzzy for me here (I ducked out for a while in protest of the lost data), I think this was where Brandon was controlling the show. Geek Soap Opera indeed. Anyway, that's how I remember things going down, but I have a memory like sieve. So if anyone has any corrections, please post them.

Kirby! You're back. How was the Big Easy? Did Shanester catch you stealing his 'mates?

Ooh, can we have a newbie translation tool?

Wow, thanks to all who voted for me. Now all the the little headless Frodos, Sams, Merrys and Pippins know their cranial sacrifices were not in vain. Too cool. Thank you to Ady and JL for running this (anyone else?), everyone who made an entry, all the members, all the lurkers, all the cute widdle wabbits hiding in their hidey holes, and all those who dare to dream about creating their own rocket-packs to soar through the clouds, for they... they shall one day rule us all.

It sounds like a coding bug. Perhaps someone sent you a PM, then deleted it before you could read it. Then the counter that holds how many unread PMs, was improperly decremented. That's my only guess. (Take it for what you will, because I've never seen the back-end of an Invision board )

You made it to Minus World! Congratulations. Unfortunately, our princess is in another castle.

No, not (necessarily) that easy at all. Ask the Marvel Legends variant hunters, or the Hot Wheels guys if they can get Target employees to bring a fresh case of stock out to a full shelf. And as much as they strive to be, not all Targets are the same. (i.e. Not all scanners have keypads.)

As long as that employee has a price-scanner-gun/mobile-terminal/PDT-thingies with them, that's how it is supposed to work, but employee apathy or ignorance might be a hinderance. Since the F4, Iceman, and GSXM packs share the same DPCI the PDT won't tell them exactly what Minimates are in the stock room. The only way to know which case breakdown they have is to open it up. They'll only do that if there is enough room on the shelf to put them out. Good luck.

Yeah thanks, that's the DPCI number. I should have a receipt with a couple F4 packs on it around here somewhere to compare against. If anyone wants to see if their Targets have Minimates in the back, just punch that number into the self-scanners and it should tell you. Not all Targets have scanners have the 10-digit buttons though, but if you ask a red-shirt they should be able to look it up on their PDT hand-scanners and tell you the same info.

I haven't seen any of the "new" stuff at my Target, so I've been tempted to purchase the remaining F4 packs then return them once the GSXM stuff is actually on the shelf. The only thing holding me back is the thought of tying up that much money in Minimate futures, err merchandise. Does anyone know the DPCI for these packs? Is it the same as the F4 because these are part of the rolling restock? The self-scanners at my Targets will indicate if there is any backstock. Maybe I can cajole the lone friendly team member into digging them out of the back if I show him that the shelf is empty.

And yet another last minute entry. Curse my poor time management skills. All hail Lance Lewis, Space Detective. For a while there, I thought I was going to be the only one without a Marvel or DC cover. It's nice to see all the variety sneaking in under the wire.

Absolutely. Ulysses S. Grant vs. Robert E. Lee Abraham Lincoln vs. Jefferson Davis William Tecumseh Sherman vs. Stonewall Jackson Monitor vs. Merrimack I know, I know, old, tired joke. I'll be quiet now.

What? Someone is stealing my material? And I do mean my material. I'm entitled to it you see. Back in the day I worked retail, and my nametag was basically a printed piece of paper in a shiny plastic casing. So I took the initiative and rechristened myself Vinz Clortho (the Keymaster of Gozer). I would ask random customers if they were "the Gatekeeper." None of them were. Yeah, I didn't last long there.

So it is decided. The inevitable hellfire shall come upon this land with a vengence and fury not known since the third reconciliation of the last of the Meketrex supplicants. Many Shubs and Zuuls knew what it was to be roasted in the depths of the Sloar that day I can tell you.

Oh folly, my hopes are dashed. After seeing your login name, I assumed it was a thoughtful commentary about the ever-increasing rage in our anti-eco-politco-society concerning the lack of tightly curled hairstyles on the members of a current group of musically-inclined individuals. Your name alone has the power to convince those petulant masses that violence only hurts their cause, only hurts those who they wish to save. Alas, the disenfranchisement of these followers shall continue to grow (if you change it), threatening to destroy all that has been accomplished by those who have come before. I imagine that Ady would be able to change your name with a simple PM request and perhaps a minor contribution of a few pence in the donation bin. I must ask you, do you really wish to alter it? Do you desire all the trials and tribulations of all those who have toiled throughout the preceding centuries to be lost in the violent churnings of revolution? Think of the bloodshed. Think of the loss. ...all because you selfishly wanted to change your name. Have you no honor?

Hmmm, a project for this weekend... Make sure to take pictures or you don't get full credit on the assignment. Just don't let anyone see you. A grown man getting caught sneaking a camera into a Toys R Us bathroom is pretty much guaranteed a non-trivial amount of jail time.

It's still uncertain, I think. Chuck said he would have to go back and check out the matrix to find out. Haven't heard anything since. I did open the case (not a sealed case) I bought and came away with two Lilliths, both P1 versions. No conclusions there, just take it for what you will.

I realized I bought a case of these from AFX a while ago, and decided to let it go to another member. EDIT: Wait, now where'd you go Amazing.JL? EDIT 2: Oh there you are. EDIT 3: Post deleting makes Ivan look insane... so much the better.

Oooh good idea. I have some socks I need to get rid of.

Excellent! Now I can make a Minimate version of that Pantone Kubrick set. (All those Twilight Frodos are safe, for now.) Thanks for breaking the news Deadpool.

All the extra hands make for a crowded avatar, but I think they look good in the larger image. So I thought I would share. I'm not sure if 'revolt' is the right caption ('rebel' maybe?)... I'm not even sure what I'm revolting against (whadda ya got?)... I guess it's just time for some all-around, good-natured revolution.

I had no idea that 'Obey' image would get so much play. Too cool. I've always been a fan of the clean, simple look of the blanks. So these customs are right up my alley. They look great, very well done.

Ladies and Gentlemen, it's time for Pick Your Own Jokeâ„¢. Joke 1: Whoa, what porn movies have you been watching? Joke 2: A prehensile penis would be rather fantastic, wouldn't it?. Joke 3: 88.5 mm? Even I could star in that movie. Thank you, thank you. I'll be here all week.

Thanks guys. Can I enter that pic in the Covers Contest? Spider-Man must have taken his pants off and run around half-naked at least once. Right? And if he hasn't, why not? I demand Peter Parker's ass! No wait, that doesn't sound right at all. Anyone willing to do a GIS for 'nude Spider-Man'? I'm not. ...at least not while at work.