Haba
Harbinger of Decline
RPGCODEX, TITS THREAD - The current implementation of post feedback at RPG Codex has been a long-standing source of confusion. Dubbed as "Button Parade" by a prominent community patron Haba Knyllarman, the Facebook -inspired like-button functionality has been taken to a new extreme at the Codex forums. Currently sporting 44 different publicly available buttons to express various emotions, such as "Butthurt" and "Deus Vult", the Button Parade has replaced normal communication to many of the forum goers.
Despite the general outrage at the loss of the widely acclaimed "Brofist" functionality, the administration has been adamant in their pursuit of Button-based communication. The motivations of the shadowy RPG Codex management in implementing such feature have been widely debated. Speculations for the conductor's reasoning have ranged from Brofist market manipulation to sheer malice. Today, through the efforts of our investigative journalists, we have finally uncovered the true motivations of the Codex dictatorship.
The parallels between the above quotation and the current situation at RPG Codex are increasingly apparent. Whether driven by a true desire to more effectively communicate with their fellow autists or inspired by the potential prize money awarded for such high-tech solutions, one thing is clear - the button parade is yet another experiment in enabling communication for autistic people.
While this is a great leap towards unravelling the mystery, several pieces of the puzzle are still amiss. Has Sam "Taluntain" Hyde completed his gold-plated toilet yet? What is the authenticity of Cleve "DarkUnderlord" Blakemore's mensa membership? And how does "Star Stable" connect to all of this? Stay tuned, the investigation continues.
Despite the general outrage at the loss of the widely acclaimed "Brofist" functionality, the administration has been adamant in their pursuit of Button-based communication. The motivations of the shadowy RPG Codex management in implementing such feature have been widely debated. Speculations for the conductor's reasoning have ranged from Brofist market manipulation to sheer malice. Today, through the efforts of our investigative journalists, we have finally uncovered the true motivations of the Codex dictatorship.
Rob Laffan wanted nothing more than to help his daughter Sadie communicate her needs. Sadie, who’s on the autism spectrum, is nonverbal and would grow understandably frustrated when she couldn’t tell her parents what she wanted, needed or felt. When she learned to use a picture exchange communication system (PECS) board — a tool that resembles a picture book and allows many nonverbal people to point to what they need — communication became easier. But PECS boards can still present challenges — for one, the person using it has to physically be able to bring the pictures, even if they’re on a tablet, to another person. Also, if in book form, the pictures are easily lost or damaged, especially when a child is using them.
Laffan, a student at the Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) in Ireland, came up with a solution: “TippyTalk” — a touchscreen communication system that takes a PECS board to a computer, tablet or phone and then transfers the pictures to text messages.
“TippyTalk enabled Sadie to communicate with me even if I wasn’t in the house, even if I was in a different country,” Laffan told Engineers Journal. “When I am in college or when I am away I get texts from her telling me how she is feeling.”
The first screen that pops up when Sadie, now 5, goes to use TippyTalk shows two pictures: one of her dad and one of her mom Emily. After she selects who she’d like to communicate with, she’s offered more than 260 images that range in wants, needs and feelings. When Sadie then touches, for example, a picture of an apple, this text is sent to whichever parent she’s selected: “Hi, I’m hungry, may I have an apple?”
“It was intuitive enough that she knew exactly where she was going. When she saw her pictures, she saw what she wanted,” Laffan told UTV Ireland. “She was able to touch the button and the text was sent out to my phone.”
SOURCE: http://www.heart.co.uk/style/dad-invented-an-app-for-autistic-daughter/
The parallels between the above quotation and the current situation at RPG Codex are increasingly apparent. Whether driven by a true desire to more effectively communicate with their fellow autists or inspired by the potential prize money awarded for such high-tech solutions, one thing is clear - the button parade is yet another experiment in enabling communication for autistic people.
While this is a great leap towards unravelling the mystery, several pieces of the puzzle are still amiss. Has Sam "Taluntain" Hyde completed his gold-plated toilet yet? What is the authenticity of Cleve "DarkUnderlord" Blakemore's mensa membership? And how does "Star Stable" connect to all of this? Stay tuned, the investigation continues.
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