Torin Golding: Running ROMA
From ROMA Scribae
[[ This is the first part of a submission for Archaeolog archaeology blog (archaeology.org), but was too long so was much much cut down for the first part of an interview Torin did there. The uncut version here gives a good creator’s history of ROMA. ]]
Torin Golding: (January 2009)
"ROMA has grown organically. Both the Citizenry and the physical build have made ROMA a success. We have a very strong and very dedicated core group of Citizens who step up and dedicate their time and effort (and money through rentals) to the sim. The most flourishing ones approach the sim as a shared effort, and not as something to try and dominate or control. It truly is a thriving community where people have met and made very good lasting friendships (and a few romances). Some come to roleplay ancient Romans in this setting (and plug into our open-ended roleplay system), but most come to enjoy the attractions and socialize. Part of the centralized control has enabled me to encourage people to keep drama (a SL epidemic, particularly in social sims) to a minimum. I am not slow to boot from my creation those I feel are causing discord. Early on, I also saw the need to create an explicit ‘code of conduct’ for all visitors to the sim. The Romans allowed me to call this list of rules ‘The Twelve Tables’ of ROMA."
"Groups like the ROMA Senate and the ROMA College of Priests allow some Citizens to indulge in their niche interests such as philosophy, politics, and religion. Several real-life nationalities beyond American are also visible in the ROMA Citizenry, particularly Swiss, German, Italian and French, but national segregation is not an issue, and the contributions of so many people around the world has meant that ROMA feels truly like an international community."
“Apart from the core Citizenry, I have been invaluably assisted by my two Estate Managers, Angelia Rees and MajorMatt Matfield. Angelia was one of the earliest regulars in ROMA. We struck up a friendship and she distinguished herself as a wonderful organizer. As a real-life Pagan, she was instrumental in setting up the ROMA College of Priests, and soon became to key coordinator of monthly festivals in the sim. MajorMatt became a regular in the sim and became a valuable volunteer in many of the ROMA groups he belongs to. We reached a point where there was so much management of the sim to do, that Angelia and I could not do it all ourselves, so we unanimously agreed MajorMatt would be a perfect addition to the management team. They are complete stars, willing to donate their very valuable time to help ROMA run smoothly. We have never met in person, or even talked to each other with anything more than the text chat of SL, but we have developed a very close friendship and working relationship.”
"I’m continually tweaking with the build and adding new attractions, and my building and scripting skills have increased exponentially since my adventures on the Mainland. ROMA and the Transtiberim sim provide a space where I can both be creative and educate people about so many different aspects of ancient Roman culture. The Subura and Ostia settlement are set aside to allow the Citizens to do the same, and apart from builds dedicated to ROMA groups, Citizens have also created on their own working reconstructions of ancient Roman latrines, a fullonica, a gymnasium, temples, and other educational structures."
"Since ROMA has been in existence a few other Roman themed lands or builds have appeared on the grid. Most come and go quickly, and a few have even been fly-by-night scam machines. The CDS Roman sim has persisted, but has never grown much beyond a residential sim (although they also have added a second Roman themed land to their estate). A few combat-oriented sims have arisen, trying to input the ‘game’ aspect into SL. Periodically they have contacted me to try and join or associate ROMA with their sims. I have always refused. ROMA’s self-contained, singular vision would be lost if simply attached to another sim. It is also an expensive thing to run which I do not want to risk by turning over to unknown individuals. I do not run ROMA as a money-making venture, so promises to ‘increase my moneymaking potential’ fall flat. And many persons are only trying to get their hands on our singular and strong community, another thing I have no desire to simply turn over wholesale. We currently market ourselves as the “Original Roman Themed Attraction in SL”, and fight a constant battle against being confused with other similarly named or themed sims."
