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| Newsletter #21 |
3:55 AM ET on 1/5/13 by Jay Soester |
Newsletter #21 is now available. It covers the new league survey, the six games available, our first Super Bowl Pools, updating game results, and it has an update about the NHL lockout situation. Please use this thread or with any questions about the newsletter.
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Sections:
Main, Fantasy Games, Keeper Leagues, Money Leagues |
Tags:
Newsletters, Review_Survey, League_Survey, Website_Features, League_Features, ASFL2_Website, ASFL2_Fantasy_Games, Unofficial_Games, ASFL2_Membership, Sign_Up, Unofficial_Games, Bonus_Points, ASFL2_News, Rules, Games_Available, Fantasy_Golf, NFL_Playoffs_Pickem, Fantasy_NFL_Playoffs, Fantasy_Hockey, Premier_League_Pickem, Fantasy_Tennis, League_Message_Board, Keeper_Leagues_Fantasy_Hockey, Game_Results, Money_Leagues_Super_Bowl_Pools, Randomized_Super_Bowl_Pool |
| 2013 League Survey |
2:32 AM ET on 1/3/13 by Jay Soester |
In a throw back to the earlier days of the league, I've put together a survey that I hope everyone will participate in. I've set up a database to catch the submissions to make determining the results (and subsequently, announcing them) a lot easier.
The sections with a light blue header and the section titled, "Membership Levels" are incredibly important (and the mini-section in between).
You can submit the survey again after the first time, simply use the same password. If you have any questions feel free to reply to this thread.
I pray to get a newsletter out Thursday before it's too late for Fantasy Golf, but I'm not remotely optimistic.
The first deadline of the Fantasy Golf season is 5 AM on Friday (roughly 26.5 hours away as I type this). If you're not already in one of our groups, please join: ID- 829/Password- 123456. Don't forget about NFL Playoffs Pickem and Fantasy NFL Playoffs as well.
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Sections:
Main, Fantasy Games, ASASFL, Money Leagues |
Tags:
Review_Survey, League_Survey, Website_Features, League_Features, ASFL2_Website, ASFL2_Fantasy_Games, Unofficial_Games, ASFL2_Membership, Sign_Up, Unofficial_Games, Bonus_Points, ASFL2_News, Rules, Newsletters, Games_Available, Fantasy_Golf, NFL_Playoffs_Pickem, Fantasy_NFL_Playoffs |
| Happy Fifth Anniversary |
11:56 PM ET on 11/14/12 by Jay Soester |
You may have noticed that I'm listed in the "Happy Anniversary" box on the right side of the page.
On this day five years ago, I began work on creating a league that had been bouncing around in my head for a few months after having to give up on the ABL due to time constraints. My idea was designed to not require as much time, but potentially involve as many people. I originally got into crappy geocities website making with themed fantasy leagues across the draft sports. I was going to return to that and include every game Yahoo! offered. After consulting with those who used the website in the past I decided to run with the idea. A sign up form was together by the end of the day, rules sorted out within the next few days and unofficial games ready within two weeks. I'm sure most I consulted didn't realize the extent to which I meant "all" at the time.
I soon realized I could add to the list of games by including games on the league message board (the Standings & Playoffs Pickem games) in an effort to get people to use the league website more regularly than just to check the game and overall standings. After a few seasons, I realized in order to make anything out of the league I was going to have to move every game onto the website from Yahoo! and after figuring out the language I need to learn to make that possible, I've been working at it ever since.
Last season I had this to say in the anniversary article, "The website has improved exponentially each season from that point forward. I hope to continue that trend through the next four years with all games on the website within the next 5-10." I have a hard time believing that first sentence continued this past season. Beyond College Football Pickem, CFL Pickem & and a method to make it easier to keep bonus points updated behind the scenes (which I've been trying to find the time to fix the front end of for months now), there hasn't been much progress too much progress.
The lack of progress was mostly due to an unforeseen series of events in my personal life leading to the Help Needed thread. On top of what was originally posted, I've since come back from a weekend attending a wedding with my ex in the greater NYC area (as joyous as it sounds) to discover I was burglarized, with my laptop being the primary item taken. I also had about $10,000 conned out of my be a family member who used his father's death and funeral as the ruse to get the money. And lastly, I've seen my aunt taken a turn for the worse in the last month, though she has bounced back some in the last week or so. All of that has taken up time I otherwise needed to work on new features or money I could have used to invest in some improvements and/or someone to help carry the workload. I've had to take up a lot of overtime in my day job (which, oddly enough, today is the one year anniversary of) to help try to recover some of the money that was taken until I can otherwise receive it, which may not happen for months yet if not longer.
While my ultimate goals for the league haven't changed, the timetable may have to. Once I've earned back a decent chunk of the money that was stolen, I hope to register the website as a company of some kind. From there, I hope to be able to hire and/or invest. Currently, I'm lucky if the league breaks even from month-to-month as the ad revenue has steadily decreased and was never much to begin with (an average of about $5/month last year) and I don't have the time to invest in putting together Money Leagues for the draft games. As a result, I may look into beginning to charge membership fees as early as the 2014-2015 season (two from now and beginning 13.5 months from now, at the earliest). It wouldn't be much ($5, $10 at most until all games are on the website), could be alleviated by earning bonus points (X amount would be worth $Y off your membership fee), would vary by the amount of games you participate in (including a free level), and would result in concrete prizes for overall rank and/or Champions League result.
I hope to put together a league survey closer to the start of the new season covering everything from potential membership fees to improving games already on the website to thoughts on moving games to the website that are still on Yahoo! and to improving activity across the league.
Thanks to everyone participating, without you we couldn't have made it this far.
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Sections:
Main |
Tags:
League_History, ASFL2_History, Website_History, Anniversary, ASFL2_Anniversary, League_Message_Board, ASFL2_Fantasy_Games, Website_Features, League_Features, Sign_Up |
| NHL & NBA Playoffs Assignment |
11:26 PM ET on 4/24/12 by Jay Soester |
I'm looking for some help on an NHL & NBA Playoffs Assignment that's designed to help me test things out before setting up an NHL and/or NBA Playoffs Fantasy Game on the league website as soon as possible. The first draft for the assignment took place on April 12th, a day after the NHL playoffs began. I'm looking for at least six members to help me set up a draft prior to the NBA playoffs beginning and prior to the NHL's second round starting.
You can participate by sending a list of at least 60 (NBA) or 108 (NHL) players (making sure to account for any players that haven't been guaranteed of being in the playoffs or next round yet) or by replying with a draft time that works for you. While I'm not optimistic that my schedule will work to sort out a live draft in the next few days, I'm hopeful six other members can pair up at a given time. I'll also need help setting up a basketball excel file similar to the one for the NHL game that has relevant player stats for all players that can be drafted. Giving a list and/or participating in a live draft is worth at least 3 BP while helping with the file can be worth five or more.
For more information please read the first post of the thread and the most recent. If you have any questions, please reply to the thread.
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Sections:
Main |
Tags:
Assignments, Bonus_Points, NHL_Playoffs_Talk, NBA_Playoffs_Talk, NHL_Talk, NBA_Talk, ASFL2_Fantasy_Games, ASFL2_Testing, League_Features, ASFL2_Drafts |
| Happy Anniversary |
12:52 AM ET on 11/14/11 by Jay Soester |
You may have noticed that I'm listed in the "Happy Anniversary" box on the right side of the page.
On this day four years ago, I began putting together a website for an idea I had been floating around in my head for months- a return to my geocities roots in creating a themed fantasy league. Only this league wouldn't be about scoring within a single game, it would incorporate scores from all games to determine the winner. I consulted with Tim and, a few days later, asked around to those who had been a part of this website in the past with enough resulting interest to put the idea in motion. A sign up form was together by the end of the day, rules sorted out within the next few days and unofficial games ready within two weeks. I'm sure Tim didn't realize the extent to which I meant "all" at the time.
The website has improved exponentially each season from that point forward. I hope to continue that trend through the next four years with all games on the website within the next 5-10.
Thanks to all who have participated in our various games over the years and to all who interact with other members via the message board. Without your use of the website, the league couldn't exist. Hopefully I can continue to entertain everyone for the foreseeable future.
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Sections:
Main |
Tags:
League_History, ASFL2_History, Website_History, League_History, Anniversary, ASFL2_Anniversary, League_Message_Board, ASFL2_Fantasy_Games, Website_Features, League_Features, Sign_Up |
| Farewell, SSSS |
11:58 PM ET on 11/12/11 by Jay Soester |
I created the original league that occupied this website, the American Simulation Football League on January 2nd, 2002. I was 14 at the time. Two others helped me create the league, one of which is still around (Tim Schneider), the other vanished a few months after the league began. Given the ages of those involved, the dynamic and culture of the league (and the second league on this website) was a bit different compared to the current environment.
Back then, there were only two points of interaction between league members, AIM (which members were required to have...and was actually, socially relevant at the time) and the league message board. Plenty of good-natured ribbing between those who cheered for rival teams and other inside jokes developed, with the Stupid Shit Said Section (SSSS) evolving from the general culture and camaraderie of the message board's membership.
The SSSS began when Tim posted a conversation he had had with another league member on AIM in which the other member proceeded to look like an idiot. Those type of threads would be prevalent on the SSSS through the end of the original ASFL and into the ABL era, but slowly the section evolved to include stupid humor from around the internet. Viral videos were posted, addicting games with dumb concepts, stupid news from around the world, and hilarious pranks from around the internet or even within the league.
With the league's culture having changed and the SSSS's use having dropped drastically, I've decided to retire the SSSS and merge all threads into the Free Range section on the league message board. But before I do, I wanted to bring back the best in a decade of stupid humor. I asked Tim to give me his favorite threads from the ABL message board and I've included my own favorites from the nearly ten year run as well. All external links open in a new window. If you're easily offended, I don't recommend most of them.
Read More
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Sections:
Main |
Tags:
Internet_Talk, League_Message_Board, Humor, League_History, Website_History, Website_Features, League_Features, Website_History, ASFL1, American_Simulation_Football_League, ABL, American_Baseball_League |
| New Feature: Site Search |
11:24 PM ET on 10/24/11 by Jay Soester |
The league website now features a new search feature which lets you utilize a custom google search to look for anything, anywhere on the website, including the message board.
Hopefully the navigation bar at the top of the page is enough for you to be able to move your way around the website, but if you're having a hard time finding what you're looking for, you can now search for it.
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Sections:
Main |
Tags:
Website_Features, League_Features, Features, ASFL2_Website, ASFL2_News, League_Info, ASFL2_Talk, Website_Navigation |
| Keeper Leagues Bid System |
9:58 PM ET on 7/4/11 by Jay Soester |
The new Keeper Leagues Bid System is now available.
The new system is designed to allow for me to easily see member qualifications when determining who to give out available Keeper Leagues teams while also allowing those applying to see what they're up against and what's available. If you already have a team, you aren't obliged to submit a bid to keep the team; so long as you submit your players for the coming season, you'll still have it. Those already participating can use the system to bid for a team in a higher division, however.
The introductory page explains what criteria are used to give out teams.
The bid page automatically gathers the relevant information for all current ASFL2 members then allows the bidder to denote a preference for all teams by division. The roster for each team can be see via link from the team name or up to four can be see on the bid page. A bidder can also choose to denote his preference to be placed in each division beneath the team section.
The final piece of the system is the bids list page. The page features a list of bids received which includes a breakdown of the number of bids for a team in each division, the latest update of each bid and the number of bid updates. The page also features a breakdown of the likely availablity of each team and the number of times it has been bid for specifically.
This message board thread is available to ask any questions you may have about the system.
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Sections:
Main, Keeper Leagues |
Tags:
Keeper_Leagues_Bid_System, Keeper_Leagues_Sign_Up, League_Features, Website_Features, Keeper_Leagues_Fantasy_Basketball, Keeper_Leagues_Fantasy_Football, Keeper_Leagues_Fantasy_Hockey, Member_Movement, Games_Available, League_Designations, ASFL2_Website |
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