No, thanks.) I don't have enough time.

Doc said he intends to start a giveaway that's just like the old one, but with a few minor changes, when he has the free time to devote to it.

My 2c on this:

1. Yes, I think we do.

2. I don't think the rules need much of a change. There weren't any big problems with the rules as they were. There were actually more problems with people not reading the rules but that is a problem that can't be fixed by changing them.

3. I think we should consider heavy automation here. Read that as: Writing a webapp that does the job. I'd be willing to help on that front, if the giveaway is going to be handled by a team rather than a single person.

4. As I've already said in 3., I'd be willing to be part of a team and do the technical stuff if we agree to automate the giveaway considerably. Writing a webapp once is not a problem but I certainly wouldn't have the time to do everything by hand like zeogold and finkleroy did. But I can certainly see myself as part of a team consisting of Doc, me and maybe one or two more trustworthy people.

Heavy automation could indeed make things a lot simpler and faster. It will allow to introduce new features, like individual request cool-downs for users, instant and scheduled keys availability, direct access to donation functionality for benefactors, etc.

But it might lose some vibes of forum interaction. And the more complex system is, the more testing and maintenance it will require. Therefore, I suggest to automate only selected processes.

A community giveaway should be as... human as possible, so any automation should be just behind the scenes, with no visible effects. And even then, there's a certain feeling generated by knowing that it's a hands-on process by a community member (or a few).

And will continue to firmly oppose anything other than the first-come-first-served rule here, and having a set time when the "cooldowns" reset for all also seems a part of this kind of giveaway.

If someone else wants to start up a replacement Community Giveaway I'm fine with that. Otherwise I will start one in a few months time.

In my version a new month for claiming games would start on the 1st day of the month after I post a message announcing the month has officially begun. I would do this at different times of the day to make it fairer to people in different time zones.
There would be two different days in each month for any donations to be added to the giveaway - the 1st and the 15th. No games would be added on any other day of the month. The limit would remain at one game per month.

It would still be first come first served. To nominate someone to receive a game you would have to wait until the 3rd day of the month and the 17th respective of when the batch of games were added.
I know that some people would not be happy with this but it is for a good reason. I feel it is unfair for an early poster to miss out on a game they really want and believe that they have legitimately claimed because someone who posted just before them both claimed a game and nominated someone else for one at the same time, effectively reserving that title for someone to receive at a later date.

Edited requests would be denied, no exceptions. You may only request one game at a time, no list of titles you would want to receive. Any post with multiple requests on it would be denied. If you make a typo just leave it as it is. If you changed your mind you would have to make a new post to request the game you now want.

Anyone requesting a game that I don't recognise as part of the community would have to show me where they have been active. Only active community members would be eligible to participate, no donating games to fast-track yourself into contention. That is not what I consider being an active part of the community.

Fully agree with everything.

I'm good with waiting a few months for Doc0075 to manage the community giveaway.

That sounds entirely fair Doc. Agree 100% with "no fast track" (which is wide open to abuse, eg, where one person with 10x 'sock-puppet' accounts buys 10x cheapest £0.49-£0.99 games they can find then tries to 'flip' them for 10x £10-£30 each games and walks off with £100-£300 worth of games... I also think the "one request at a time" (no ranked preferences) is a good idea.

I think the real key is going to be to minimise ongoing burden on the giveaway administrator / maintainer where possible. Key maintenance and PMing them out obviously needs to be private, but things like researching community participation of someone new / quoting the rules to someone ineligible (eliminating the need for the maintainer to keep posting "That game is not on the list. Please read..." each time), keeping track of requests if you're away on holiday or saving the world with Penfold ;-) is certainly something other members here can help with.

I like Doc's rules. For the record, the only reason I had a way to get around being an active member of the community is because I didn't feel comfortable expecting everyone to be one. Hell, I'm barely an active member of the community. Just take a look around the forum and you'll likely see why.

Agree with everything. All sounds fair.

If I understand this correctly, then you'll be announcing a new update on the 1st and another one on the 15th of each month, but on different times of the day. Won't this kill the unpredictability of when an update will drop and make everyone be here on these two specific days?

I know that this is different from the non-GOG giveaway in the way that any update won't have 100+ keys, and probably this is a way for you too have more control over the time you spend on the giveaway.

Sounds great to me, I like the rule change ideas, mainly the fact that new games will only be added on the first and 15th so people know when to expect it.

That was the best giveaway ever. Must have been a nightmare for Doc to manage, but I loved how it brought the community together and made a lot of people to interact with each other. And I still remember you character and the crazy stuff you came up with. :)

My all-time favourite as well.

There's one complication with that: time sensitive GOG freebies (daggered keys). Maybe an exception to those?