Articles - Interview with Gridstream

Interview was made on April 18 at 0:00 RST by Trgeorge, with both parties using AORC. Veldron was first contacted about this talk during his attempt on new GridStream Production' streaming record and while he showed instant interest, we decided to give him time to rest before doing it.

AOU: Ok, for starters, congratulations on new streaming record. Announced 60h was just to much at the end? (Taken from announcment on http://www.gridstrea......ventinfo.aspx?id=157)

Veldron: Heh, thanks for the congratulations. It was quite a bit tougher to do than I imagined. I never promised more than 50 hours, though. I knew better than to do that having never done more than 41 hours before. I hoped I could do more, but as the 50 hour mark arrived...it was pretty clear I was out of gas. It was a lot of fun, though!

AOU: Why would anyone, or maybe more specific, you submit himself to such ordeal?

Veldron: That's what my psychologist asked me recently. Okay, just kidding. Seriously, I do understand it's a rather strange thing to do. Since I started DJ'ing with GridStream Productions, I've always enjoyed doing long shows and a playful competition started up amongst DJ's on who could outlast the other. I enjoy the challenge of doing a marathon, and I really enjoy DJ'ing for the community. The listeners get into it and show a lot of support for us. I don't know that I'll do any more marathons of that length, but I certainly have enjoyed them.

AOU: So the public response was totally positive?

Veldron: Definitely! The AO community doesn't need too much of a nudge to come together for a social event, even something as weird as a DJ going for 50 hours straight. They're an amazing community. I was really humbled by the support from all the listeners. I couldn't have gotten through it without the positive support.

AOU: Staying awake for 50h is a strain for both body and mental abilities. What aided you, beside community? Coffee, energy drinks, cold showers? And what effects did you experienced?

Veldron: I actually wasn't cursed with heavy eyelids as much this time. It was actually the feeling that there were twin daggers in my kidneys that made going over 50 hours not an option. Apparently, kidney pain is a pretty common side effect of sleep deprivation...and, not one I care to really experience again. LOL As for what aided me, I hit a few energy drinks and took one quick shower during a long song. Other than that, it was the support of the listeners and Kirasha being here to take care of me that pulled me through. It's amazing what a man can do with a good woman at his side.

AOU: I'm sure she'll appreciate this praise . You used term "competition" earlier. Even with friendly ones, there are usually rules. Care to explain them?

Veldron: I don't think we ever really established anything "official" as far as rules to such silliness. I think it was generally agreed by all the DJ's involved in doing marathon shows that naps were pretty much not allowed. Aside from that, there were no real rules. The toughest thing about doing a marathon is finding the free stream time to attempt such a thing. It takes a lot of unselfish DJ's to step aside from their show to allow for something like 50 hours straight.

AOU: Even with your musical preference, isn't it hard to stream so long? At least without repeating songs. I'm sure wishes come handy, but none has every requested song.

Veldron: What...you're suggesting that I DON'T have every song that folks request? Okay, true enough. And, I allowed myself a few repeats during the 50hours, but I do have quite a bit of music. And, the listeners do a pretty good job of mixing things up with requests. I never closed out the request lines during the marathon, and I never ran out of good stuff to play. And, yes...the metal does help keep me going.

AOU: Do you expect any attempt on new record? Dynamiks' last one was 43,5h. Those that stayed awake for prolong periods of time know that extra 6.5 hours is a lot.

Veldron: It's hard to say. The length is getting to the point of insanity. I imagine someone might give it a shot, and if they can beat it, they definitely deserve some serious props...or a straight-jacket.

AOU: Some might even say 50h is a waste of time, to put it mildly. Beside sleep, there were probably some other sacrifices. Now that's all over, do you have any regrets? How do you feel about usual streams? We see burn-outs from leveling every day for instance.

Veldron: I never think of DJ'ing as a waste of time. Not one bit. I love bonding with the listeners. My only regret is that I feel like I might have hit my limit on this one. I don't want to do a marathon if I'm not keeping the listeners entertained with a quality show. The last few hours was rough, so I feel like I probably hit the limit of what I'd want to do. I just can't ever see myself tiring of DJ'ing, though. I've been doing this for nearly three years now, and I still get excited every time my weekly show comes around. In fact, those that listen to GSP often know that I'm often the first to kick a playlist and go live on a weekend. DJ'ing is a passion, and it's something I could never equate to a levelling grind.

AOU: Speaking of leveling, if my information is correct, you actually gave up on gaming (alto anticipating Conan). And yet, GSP is rather specialized form of radio. Did you ever attempted to broaden your audience?

Veldron: I wouldn't say I gave up on gaming, but I admit that I've been on a bit of an extended break from levelling my main in Anarchy Online. I still get the alt bug from time to time, though. As for broadening our audience...we're very dedicated to Anarchy Online. It's where GridStream Prodiuctions was born, and the community keeps supporting us. And, yes...I'm very much looking forward to Conan!

AOU: So with 4th year GSP party on May 19th, ever expanding list of DJs and surviving competition, there isn't any plan to establishing similar service in Conan?

Veldron: Heh, I KNEW you were going to ask me that. That seems to be the million dollar question as Conan nears. Honestly, GridStream Productions isn't prepared to announce any official decisions regarding Conan and our involvement with it at this time. I know many of us plan to play it, but as for how the station will or won't change with Conan's release. Well, I guess everyone will just have to wait and see. I do know that we intend to continue to support Anarchy Online for the forseeable future.

AOU: GSP cooperation with FC seems more or less spotless. You even have them listed as partners. No wonder questions like that are expected. But how does that actually work in-game? You contact them and ask if they are willing to provide rewards for various competitions? Or they contact you and say "Hey, we have some cool stuff, give it away"?

Veldron: Funcom has always been generous enough to approach us with such things. They're just cool people. It was great meeting members of Funcom at Dragon*Con 2005. We've always had a wonderful relationship with them, and getting to meet some of them in-person was fantastic. GridStream Productions has nothing but respect for Funcom and everything they've done to foster a great community. They're good people.

AOU: But even with all that, there were some awkward situations. Like MMO Radio incident or Dust Brigade killing member of audience. Non of those incidents were FC 's fault, but it can leave bitter taste in mouth.

Veldron: That sorta thing is just the nature of MMORPG's. It just shows how good a job Funcom and ARK does that more problems don't occur. I've been around enough MMORPG's to know that Anarchy Online is a rare breed in that respect.

AOU: I'm sure community helps too. What's the largest amount of listeners GSP had? I know that at 4th AO anniversary you had at least 8 high ql and 4 low ql channels running.

Veldron: That was probably our peak for listener count. I'm honestly not sure what the final tally was that weekend, as it was pretty nuts (and a lot of fun!). Hundreds! Let's just leave it at that.

AOU: GSP is organizing their party quite in an advance. Do you expect any similar turn-out then?

Veldron: I doubt we'll get that high for it. That Funcom event had a lot of advertising involved with it. Still, we're hoping for a nice crowd to help us celebrate! It's going to be a fun weekend to be sure.

AOU: I'll take that as prediction . With yours RP background and degrees in journalism and communication, I always wondered why GSP never attempted to cover some event of that nature. Kinda evolve in a news station.

Veldron: We've certainly covered events of that nature in the past. We've been involved with the Council of Truth and Omni-Pol roleplayed events. We've certainly had a lot of fun with PVP events like the tournament Funcom sponsored for their anniversary party. We'd love to do more events of that nature, but it'soften a matter of knowing about it ahead of time and "events" in MMORPG's are often spur of the moment. Still, if we're ever asked to come out and support a roleplay event, it's definitely something we look forward to. You mentioned my background a bit, and being a former sportscaster out of college...doing play-by-play for the PVP tournament was both humbling as heck and a heckuva lot of fun.

AOU: It was also a bit confusing, but I guess some names were a bit hard to pronounce and some fighters short-lived. Speaking of fights, I stumbled on your city the other day. Since I have only teamed twice with someone carrying GSP tag under their name, I assume most DJs and dancers have dedicated chars. So what's the use for city? And how is upkeep collected?

Veldron: You're being kind by calling it "confusing". Believe me, it was tough to call that event. We often couldn't see the names at all, so it was generally a guessing game based on trying to keep up with battle spam. It was good fun, though! As for the city, it's something we keep around for social events. Many of us in GSP are gammers too, and we enjoy the amenities of the city. The upkeep on that spot is pretty cheap, so we lucked out. We're able to cover the bills. We just wish we could use that amazing club in our city more often. It's too difficult to invite folks in there to party!
(GSP City upkeep costs about 20 mill/month, so it isn't just pretty cheap, but makes that patch of land one of cheapest on whole of Rubi-Ka)

AOU: I understand the limitations. Player needs AI expansion for start. And location isn't as handy as Reets or Baboons. But Baboons also have it's limitations. Would you care to speculate why FC didn't include AI whompas to any of Clan bars? Or that wouldn't be desired - story wise (AI whompas is easiest way to get in opposing faction city)?

Veldron: I honestly have no idea why it wasn't included. As a player who has always preferred Clan for roleplay purposes, I will admit that the Clanners don't have the best clubs on Rubi-Ka. Maybe they were just wanting to provide access to the more utilized clubs. It's hard to say.

AOU: GSP is Clan and Dancers are Omni. This is, according to Tarryk I think, due to different benefits/options you get from organization forms. What are those benefits/options? And what is Dancers's primary purpose?

Veldron: Actually, the GSP Dancers are Clan on RK1 also. And, both orgs are Omni on RK2. The main reason for this was due to the problem of recruiting neutrals (you can't GO neutral). So, that's just how things worked out.
Veldron: As for the purpose of the GSP Dancers...well, they started on their own. It was just something the community got behind and they've been invaluable. They support GSP by helping out the DJ's and the listeners. They are, in many ways, GSP's most supportive fans. We really appreciate what they do for us and for the community.

AOU: To wrap this up, any final words of wisdom for your audience? Or possible challenger to the record?

Veldron: I'd just like to thank AO-Universe for showing interest in GSP and doing such a great job for the community of Anarchy Online. You guys are fantastic! I also want to thank the GridStream Productions listeners for supporting us so much. And, if anyone out there would like to see what GSP is all about, check us out at www.gridstream.org today! (blatant plug) As for words to a possible challenger of the DJ record...good luck! I'm pretty sure I'm done with any marathons...though...I've been told...it's wise to never say never.

AOU: Thank you for your time. I'm sure that with excellent service, community will continue to show support.

Last updated on 12.07.2011 by Khuri
Article written by Windguaerd
Do you have questions about this article or found an error? No comments yet - Please login first to post a comment.