I think we’ve all, by now, noticed that the Ultima Dragons website — udic.org — has been less than fully functional for a while now, to say nothing of the fact that it’s more than a bit dated. The site and server are kept online by Fallible Dragon (if memory serves), but Fallible himself has been essentially impossible to contact for many years now, and he never furnished access to the site for anyone else…not, at least, at a privilege level that would allow updates thereto to be made.

Which is why Cranberry (or, as you may know her, Cran or Gallara) has put forth a proposal:

Dragons, it’s time. I’m about to unveil one of my UDIC projects that’s been percolating for quite a while.

Four years ago this coming Tuesday, I registered the domain ultimadragons.org. I already had ideas for what to do with it: A useful, up-to-date, responsive website for the Ultima Dragons, that would include a complete list of all known Dragons and the ability to connect all members, no matter their social medium of choice. Not every Dragon is on Facebook (or Twitter or Discord or Reddit etc….) and many of us have been scattered since Usenet days (reorg anyone?) and some verily since Prodigy. There are over 16,000 of us total. Where is everyone?

I’ve put a bit of work into compiling a new directory. I started with the Grand Roster on udic.org, originally compiled by Monomolecular. I added information from other UDIC memberlists posted to Usenet over the years and even Prodigy lists going as far back as 1992. I’ve restored quite a few entries that got glitched off at times. Some entries had vanished entirely or roughed in using inaccurate or incomplete information. (Even the Roster disclaims it is not all accurate.) So I’ve researched all the Dragon names and join dates I could find and have compiled what I believe to be the most complete list we have. I’ll welcome any proof that I’ve made mistakes too, but I didn’t change anything without very good reason! I have a 146K text file documenting all my updates and changes.

In the hopes of finding some of these long-lost members, I sent out a few (thousand) e-mails a couple years ago inviting folks to the little 25th anniversary shindig or at least back to the UDIC fold. Some were no longer interested, and that’s okay. I made a note not to bother them. Some didn’t know there was a Facebook group. Some aren’t on Facebook, but would like to stay in touch with other Dragons. Some didn’t even realize the Ultima Dragons were still around – and some of these made it to the party! I’m determined that every Dragon who wants to should be able to participate and not get separated again.

Holding the party and sending out Dragon loot, and then moving to New York, did keep me awfully busy for the last 2+ years. But now I have picked up work on the site again and we may be as close as a month to official launch. (Don’t hold me too closely to that. 😉 ) Umbrae Dragon has devoted a boatload of his spare time to coding the site; Sorceress, our logo designer, has contributed to the aesthetic; and as of late Enchantress, Goldenflame, KittyKat, Oblivion, Singing, and Tailrace have helped test out what we have so far. They can assure you we really do have a site we are working on. 😀

In the meantime, if you would like to help support my efforts, I’ve set up a Patreon to defray hosting costs and such: https://www.patreon.com/gallara. Not asking for much, but I am avowed to contribute to the club in all the ways I can and chipping in a few bucks helps me tremendously. If a new site sounds potentially useful, consider signing up for the Patreon! You’ll get other bonuses too. There’s already a post for the $5 backers about a project that I haven’t told *anyone* else about yet.

At any rate, I think a lot of Dragons will like the new site. My plan is to keep it current and collaborative – it will never be the domain of only one Dragon. I hope it can continue long after I’m gone: The UDIC is not just about one Dragon’s website. It’s bigger than any of us. It’s all 16,000 of us together, and the unique and wonderful impact that our club has had upon its members and the world. May the Ultima Dragons live on forever.

If that sounds like an idea you’d like to get behind — to, say, support in some way — then might I suggest you click on over to Cran’s brand new Patreon page. Dropping a few coins in her virtual tip jar every month will certainly help her achieve the goal of rebooting the UDIC’s online presence at a new domain.