The Palantir Private Preview Program

[Kehleyr]

The Palantir Private Preview Program is currently accepting applications!

Ask yourself this:

• Do you gain a sense of pride when you file bugs, knowing that you've helped us improve the game by doing so?
• Do you have a few hours of free time a week that you would like to devote to helping us test LOTRO?
• Do you enjoy seeing things in an unfinished state and watching them develop?
• Do you like the idea of possibly having an influence on how those same things turn out in the end?
• Can you keep a secret (no matter how many bribes of <insert favorite vice here> you may get)?

If you answered 'YES' to all the above questions, then Palantir may be the place for you! We would love to have you on board, getting your virtual hands dirty with our new and upcoming content, and telling us what you think!

What is Palantir?

The Palantir Private Preview Program is an invitation only testing program similar to a Beta Program but much smaller in scope. While Beta Programs are generally organized to test large Expansion Packs, participants in the Palantir Program test everything in between, such as the quarterly updates.

How does Membership Work?

Participation in the Program is scheduled for 6 month batches. When you are accepted in the Program, you are Member for 6 months as long as you keep your account and participation (on both Live and the Preview Program) in good standing. (Disciplinary actions taken against your Live account will affect your participation in the Preview Program.) Your membership may extend beyond 6 months if we feel the population on the server and the resources of the Preview Team can handle it, but as long as you are an active and constructive participant it will not be less than 6 months.

When your membership expires you are welcome to apply again after another 6 months has passed. Keep in mind not all re-applicants will regain access - it will be dependent on the needs of the Program at the time.

Requirements of the Palantir Private Preview Program

• Must have a valid VIP or Premium subscription in good standing to The Lord of the Rings Online
  
• Must be at least 18 years of age
• Must be able to interact with the community in a mature and constructive manner
• Must be able to communicate well through forum posts and bug reports
• Must have a strong command of written English
• You must accept the terms of the Private Preview Program Non-Disclosure Agreement, the full contents of which will be provided during the registration process should you be accepted to the program

See the next post for more details and how to apply!

Palantíri: The Stones of Seeing - powerful crystalline globes that enabled their users to witness events and communicate with one another over great distances

The Palantir Private Preview Program Team

[Kehleyr]

Things to Consider Before Applying:

• Participation in the Preview Program should enhance your LOTRO Live experience, not replace it. If real life obligations or hobbies (including playing on Live) take up the majority of your spare time, the Preview Program may not be right for you.
• We have an extremely aggressive development cycle, and only a short span of time to test the content. For this reason we need players who are strongly committed to helping us improve the game with little or no reward (other than our undying gratitude). If you feel you will not be able to regularly participate on the server, this program may not be right for you.
• Do you get a sense of accomplishment by reporting bugs or participating in forum feedback? Even if the suggestions you make or the feedback you give is not directly acted upon or implemented, you should be able to feel you have contributed just the same.
• The Preview Program is focused on testing the content currently in development and as such you are expected to provide feedback on the requested topics. This is not an opportunity to bypass the Live forums with a personal campaign or as an attempt to directly communicate with developers about irrelevant topics. If you’re not interested in helping us improve the content we are currently working on, this program is not right for you.

If you think the Palantir Private Preview Program is right for you, we encourage you to apply! If you do not think you’re right for the program but would love to give your feedback, we encourage you to post to these boards with your ideas. Everyone who plays LOTRO matters to us, whether you are in this program or not.

How to Apply

Please send an email to lotropalantirpreviewprogram@standingstonegames.com. In this email, please include the following information:

• Your Real first and Last Name (please do not provide nicknames)
• Your Username for LOTRO (this is the account name you use to log in to the LOTRO launcher)
  
  • NOTE: If you have multiple subscriptions under this username, please provide the Subscription Nickname of the subscription you would like to use
  • If you have multiple Accounts, please only apply for one of them. We are only granting one subscription to Palantir per player at this time.
  
  
• Your Live Forum name (the name that displays on these boards) tied to the subscription in Bullet 2
• The email address registered to the LOTRO Live account provided in bullet 2.
• An explanation why you would like to participate in the preview program.

***Assure this information is sent via email only. Please do not use Private Message or apply through this thread.***

If you are accepted to the program, you will receive an email with instructions on how to get started. Applications will be reviewed on a regular basis, with invitations sent to accepted applicants shortly thereafter.

Please note the Palantir Program is run completely by Quality Assurance. OCR and Customer Service cannot assist you with this program, so please keep all communication in this thread or through the email address given above.

If you have any questions, see our FAQ below, send an email to lotropalantirpreviewprogram@standingstonegames.com, or feel free to post to this thread. Please do not ask questions regarding the program via Private Message.

[Kehleyr]

Q: So how does this work if I was on Palantir before?

A: If you were part of the Preview Program prior to July of 2012 your account has been 'retired' - that is put in holding. If you would like to be part of the program again, you may send us an email asking to be reinstated.

This does not have to be a full-fledged application, just a statement of the required information and your desire to be part of the community again.

Q: Why can’t I apply unless I’m 18+??? I’m more mature than a lot of adults I know!!

A: We don’t like the age limit, either, but it’s a legal matter that we cannot bypass.

Q: Will a Mac client be available for testing?

A: Yes! If you're a Mac user we would love to have you on board helping us test this client.

Q: How soon after applying will I know if I got in or not?

A: There is no set time limit. A post will be made in this thread when Application Acceptance Emails have been sent. That is your cue to check the email address you have registered with myaccount.turbine.com and see if an Invitation has been sent to you. If you did not get an email, then your application was not accepted this round.

Q: I have a few infractions and even a little ban or two in my forum history. Can I still apply, or am I doomed?

A: People make mistakes, we understand that. Explain the situation as part of your application and we will take this into account.

What we are looking for is a community that can participate and interact with other people without resorting to insults and misbehavior to get their point across. Palantir is about being a safe place to state your opinion where others can be free to agree or disagree and not have to suffer consequences for it.

Q: If I have previous beta experience with LOTRO will that affect my chances in any way getting accepted into the Preview Program?

A: Unless you behaved in a less than constructive manner in that program, we can't see where it can hurt.

Q: Would I get a ported character, autoleveled character or a character to start from scratch?

A: The answer is 'yes'. All those choices are available to you. The Eyes and Guard Tavern, which you will be familiar with if you participated in any of our Beta Programs, Stress Tests, or on the Preview Servers, is usually open full blast 24/7. You can autolevel characters or start characters from scratch. We also offer character copies from the Live servers.

Q: If I do not get accepted the first time I apply, should I bother to reapply? If my original explanation wasn't enough to get me in, maybe I could include additional information and be accepted later on?

A: Yes, we definitely encourage this. We have had several participants that applied more than once. If, upon hindsight, you think your application may have been lacking, by all means revise it and try again. What we don’t encourage is submitting the exact same application each time. We do read every application, and if we deny acceptance the first time it's submitted, it will be denied again.

Q: My (spouse/roommate/cat) doesn’t want to apply to Palantir, but I do. Can I tell my significant other(s) that I'm playing on Palantir?

A: We pretty much expect that people you live with or significant others are going to be aware of your participation. You have to make the call as to whether you can trust these people to keep that information to themselves, or use it against you.

While we aren't going to ban you if your housemates/companions learn you are on Palantir, if some confidential information was leaked and it was traced back to you then yes, it will affect you.

This is a choice only you can make.

Q: But WHAT IF! Say my significant other was to log in on my Preview account and then on their OWN [Live] account say things about Palantir. They technically hadn't agreed to the NDA, so would they be held responsible for it?

A: Another party knowing about your participation is one thing. Those parties having access to your account is entirely another.

YOU are held ultimately responsible for maintaining the security of your Preview account. So you would be held responsible for the leak. Depending on the severity of the leak, the other party may also suffer repercussions to their own Live accounts as per the Violations Section of the Forum Guidelines:

19. Posting, reposting or linking to, any information, including but not limited to spoilers, screen shots, and videos of materials covered under a Non-disclosure agreement."

Q: Why should I bother with Palantir? I’ve been on Bullroarer and other Turbine Beta programs – I’ve filed bugs and offered feedback and nothing was done. Clearly no one listens – it’s just a huge waste of time.

A: This is one of those questions that is difficult to answer because we can’t tell you the ins and outs of how things are prioritized or addressed here. All we can tell you is this program works – we’ve seen it work – and while it may not seem like it on the outside, all decisions are made with the best intentions for the game in mind.

Not all bugs you report will be fixed before the patch goes to Live. Not all feedback that you offer will be acted upon or implemented. However, this does not mean any of it is ignored or considered a waste. We have a schedule, we have to prioritize. Sometimes we make the right decisions, sometimes we don’t. But we all have the same goal – to make LOTRO the superior experience it deserves to be.

Q: How long would I be a tester if I was accepted?

A: Six months from the date you receive your acceptance email.

Q: How thoroughly is forum post history reviewed? Is it like a brief glance at the last 20 or so posts? Just wondering... cause as someone with 3000+ posts, not all of them can be "high quality" or whatever the criteria you guys use is.

A: We take a sampling of your posting as well as consult with the Online Community Representatives.

Q: Why no F2P members? Way to punish us, Turbine. Don’t we matter, too??

A: Of course you do. We simply do not have the resources to open the program to the entire LOTRO Community at this time. If, as time goes on, we find that we do we will explore the option of bringing in our Free to Play members as well.

If you have a question that is not answered here or somewhere else in this thread, feel free to post or send an email to lotropalantirpreviewprogram@standingstonegames.com. Please do not Private Message us with questions regarding the Program. We will not answer questions regarding this program through PM's.

In the meantime, just because you aren’t part of Palantir does not mean you cannot voice your opinion. These forums are here for you – use them!

[Lethareth]

One question... does the NDA for this program expire after your 6 months is up, or are you under the NDA forever? Basically, after your 6 months are up, could you tell people you were part of the preview team or no? Just wondering.

[Raven-EU]

A Non-Disclosure Agreement will (normally) stay active until whatever was covered by it is no longer confidential. Any good NDA will contain a clause that states the criteria for release. I'm sure this one does as well so if you get an invite, make sure to read through the NDA *carefully* before accepting.

IMPORTANT: If you have questions regarding the NDA *after* getting an invite make sure to not break the NDA by going here (the Forum) to ask about it.

What does this mean. Well, for starters; if you've seen anything (new content, new skills, new tech, whatever) that hasn't yet been released in the game then you're still under the NDA. Did you obtain any kind of information (statistics, cap values, plans, currency changes, whatnot) while in the program that is not available to the players, then you're still under NDA.

[Kehleyr]

One question... does the NDA for this program expire after your 6 months is up, or are you under the NDA forever? Basically, after your 6 months are up, could you tell people you were part of the preview team or no? Just wondering.

Because the Preview Program never ends, neither does the NDA.

Once you have agreed to the NDA, you must never disclose any content or interactions you experienced as part of the Program, even once you have left it.

We encourage you not to mention past participation in the Program (for your own sanity), and should you do so it will prevent you from being accepted again should you reapply.

[Lapislazzuli]

What if someone sent in an application this summer, while palantir was closed? Is that still valid for the next round?

[djheydt]

Kehleyr will reply conclusively, but the rule used to be that once you submitted an application it remained on file essentially forever.

I submitted mine about a year ago; Kehleyr, I'm still ready and willing, if you ever want me.

[Kehleyr]

What if someone sent in an application this summer, while palantir was closed? Is that still valid for the next round?

Ah, good question. My apologies for not addressing this in the FAQ!

All applications we received previously have been archived. If you wish to participate, you will need to file a new application now.

[Crell_1]

Thanks for finally providing an opportunity for Premium players to join the program! I hope the rotating member program turns out to keep you continually provided with fresh, actionable input!

You may wish to link to the new PPP thread in your signature instead of the old one.

[Thoronthor]

I think this is an exceedingly bad idea.

You will end up with a fresh batch of testers every 6 months that have absolutely no clue what is expected of them or how the devs prefer to receive their feedback, or what they find important.

I bet there are palantir testers out there who have been testing for years, have had an immeasurable impact on the game and have built a good rapport with the developers.

Now those people are basically being snubbed and their seasoned critique and experience with the game being traded in for people probably just interested in getting a head start on the newest raid or knowing what to stock up on for the AH.

When I have a job I don't need to have an interview and hand them my resume every year just to keep it.
There is no way this will help the quality of the game, just make it even more susceptible to the mood of the moment and the hypes of the day.

Well good luck with it anyway, I for one can't be bothered with a testing program where I put in my valuable time and then get tossed out after six months because it is someone else's turn on the merry go round.
Is this program to test the game or to give everyone a turn to feel important?

If you worry about too many applicants, just pick the absolute cream and ensure yourself a successful testing program. Keep those that do the most bug reporting etc and drop the rest to make room for fresh blood. Don't throw out the baby with the bath water so to speak.

just my honest opinion, not meant to offend.

[Beastnas]

I think this is an exceedingly bad idea.

You will end up with a fresh batch of testers every 6 months that have absolutely no clue what is expected of them or how the devs prefer to receive their feedback, or what they find important.

I bet there are palantir testers out there who have been testing for years, have had an immeasurable impact on the game and have built a good rapport with the developers.

Now those people are basically being snubbed and their seasoned critique and experience with the game being traded in for people probably just interested in getting a head start on the newest raid or knowing what to stock up on for the AH.

When I have a job I don't need to have an interview and hand them my resume every year just to keep it.
There is no way this will help the quality of the game, just make it even more susceptible to the mood of the moment and the hypes of the day.

Well good luck with it anyway, I for one can't be bothered with a testing program where I put in my valuable time and then get tossed out after six months because it is someone else's turn on the merry go round.
Is this program to test the game or to give everyone a turn to feel important?

If you worry about too many applicants, just pick the absolute cream and ensure yourself a successful testing program. Keep those that do the most bug reporting etc and drop the rest to make room for fresh blood. Don't throw out the baby with the bath water so to speak.

just my honest opinion, not meant to offend.

While I understand where you're coming from, I think it's better to look at the program as a privilege rather than a right. Their program, their rules.

[Thoronthor]

While I understand where you're coming from, I think it's better to look at the program as a privilege rather than a right. Their program, their rules.

I don't think you do understand where I'm coming from.

And just because it's their rules I am not allowed to question those rules? have a civilised discussion about them?
I'm not a Turbine basher but I also don't blindly tow the line when they make a mistake, in my opinion anyway.

[EuroChump]

I don't think you do understand where I'm coming from.

And just because it's their rules I am not allowed to question those rules? have a civilised discussion about them?
I'm not a Turbine basher but I also don't blindly tow the line when they make a mistake, in my opinion anyway.

To make the assumption that they are making a mistake suggests you are making an assumption about what they are trying to achieve.

From personal experience working in the software industry the most efficient testing teams (faults/cycle) are the longest serving most stable teams with the most dedicated and motivated testers who tend to have the depth of knowledge to spot problems quickly and to concentrate on the most important faults (I look on this from a purely fault finding technical perspective).

If Turbine/QA are looking for a higher turnover of players through palantir then the logical conclusion that follows should be that fault finding is not the primary aim of the program - rather than that Turbine are making a mistake.

If we can make the reasonable assumption that the staff hired by Turbine have some idea what they are doing, then it is highly likely that someone in charge of QA has made this change because it does actually meet the primary goal of the program.

We all have our own pet priorities and preferred ways of running things, but I think that the previous quote sums it up best:

Their program, their rules.

[ThistleRose3]

Its great to see that premium players can now perticipate in the PPP program. Thoronthar, I think you are missing a very big problem that I ran into in Beta and that is burn out. Testing the same thing over and over again for months on end can really lead to intense burn out. I personally think that taking a six month break from testing to allow a new group of players a chance to provide imput is a good thing. Kehleyr is not saying that if you were in the old program you cant ever be invited back, just that you need to wait a short time. If your feedback was truely that invaluable you should have no problems getting invited back in April.

[Saelyth]

Are european players eligible for this as well or it's only for NA players?

[swattz101]

I can see both sides of this. Players who have been around for a while and have a good rapport with the devs and the ability to find and report bugs are a good thing. On the other hand, fresh meat to be able to see the things that us old people might miss, is also a good thing. And as ThistleRose3 mentioned, the possibility of burnout.

While I think a good balance of both is what is really needed, +Kehleyr has been running this program for quite a while, and know what her QA team needs, and what the devs and higher ups are looking for. Hopefully the changes will be good for the game.

Speaking on the 6th month thing, I would think a year would be about right. Basically from now until the West Rohan xpac comes out, then start with a new team. Who knows, it's probable that the 6months is a moving date.

[LeppardUK]

Perhaps a compromise would be that only Premium players have the 6-month terms as testers. Have a certain amount of spots, like half, reserved for VIPs and the rest for Premiums. The Premiums keep switching every 6 months, so Turbine always has fresh people testing and the experienced VIPs provide stability.

[Apukjij]

is the PPPP including us Mac users?

[Kehleyr]

is the PPPP including us Mac users?

Another very good question. However, I don't have an answer for it at this time!

Let me ask some questions and I will post here with my results.

[Kehleyr]

Are european players eligible for this as well or it's only for NA players?

The program is open to all players with a valid VIP or Premium subscription, regardless of global location.

If you can play our game, you can apply.

[Thrabath]

I wonder what the goal is of this program;

If it's mostly a preview program, then this change makes sense. If the main goal is finding bugs/ changing game mechanics based on player feedback/ improving the game quality this change makes no sense in my eyes, since you will probably lose a lot of experienced testers who know how to give feedback, what to test etc.

I'm afraid this won't improve the quality of the game concerning bugs and that is something I'm not happy about, especially when the number of bugs seems to increase every major release (which makes sense, since the quantity of code increases with every update);

The fact that you guys had to delay RoR because a couple of things didn't work as good as hoped/expected makes me wonder if reducing player testing is a good idea;

I've seen suggestions on these forums about waiting with buying xpacs till it's released for a couple of months so most of the bugs/issues are solved and I really love this game, but I am moving to this position more and more.

Bottom line: I'm curious what the main goal of PPPP is, previewing or testing

[Thoroval]

Q: So how does this work if I was on Palantir before it shut down for RoR?

A: If you were part of the Preview Program prior to July of 2012

If I'm reading this correctly, this means that the preview program shuts down prior to expansions? If this is so, then the program has been closed for the past 4 months (July through November 1st)? I always thought the program was a permanent thing that was up year round.

I have much more free time during spring/summer (especially summer) than I do fall/winter so I was considering applying for a 6 month stint at some point next spring. Since I expect Turbine will have another expansion coming out next year, I suppose that if I was accepted I could expect my 6 months to actually be only about 2 months if the program shuts down for that beta? Just wanting to have realistic expectations.

[Thoronthor]

To make the assumption that they are making a mistake suggests you are making an assumption about what they are trying to achieve.

From personal experience working in the software industry the most efficient testing teams (faults/cycle) are the longest serving most stable teams with the most dedicated and motivated testers who tend to have the depth of knowledge to spot problems quickly and to concentrate on the most important faults (I look on this from a purely fault finding technical perspective).

If Turbine/QA are looking for a higher turnover of players through palantir then the logical conclusion that follows should be that fault finding is not the primary aim of the program - rather than that Turbine are making a mistake.

If we can make the reasonable assumption that the staff hired by Turbine have some idea what they are doing, then it is highly likely that someone in charge of QA has made this change because it does actually meet the primary goal of the program.

We all have our own pet priorities and preferred ways of running things, but I think that the previous quote sums it up best:

but

What is Palantir?

The Palantir Private Preview Program is a testing program similar to a Beta Program but much smaller in scope. While Beta Programs are generally organized to test large Expansion Packs, participants in the Palantir Program test everything in between, such as the quarterly updates.

They say themselves it's supposed to be a testing program, not just a preview program. Where is my assumption? Well beyond the assumption that this information is accurate.

But you're right, if testing is not the primary aim of this program than this does make sense and I stand corrected.
However, I would then request what I quoted above be altered to reflect the actual goal of the program, so everyone can be on the same page.

[Kehleyr]

If I'm reading this correctly, this means that the preview program shuts down prior to expansions? If this is so, then the program has been closed for the past 4 months (July through November 1st)? I always thought the program was a permanent thing that was up year round.

I have much more free time during spring/summer (especially summer) than I do fall/winter so I was considering applying for a 6 month stint at some point next spring. Since I expect Turbine will have another expansion coming out next year, I suppose that if I was accepted I could expect my 6 months to actually be only about 2 months if the program shuts down for that beta? Just wanting to have realistic expectations.

We tend to close down during a Beta period so the Beta Coordinator can focus on the Beta program. It just makes sense to keep things concentrated to one location. Other than that the program never shuts down.

Should your time with us be interrupted by a Beta program or other unforeseen circumstances we will make adjustments to accommodate your participation time as best we can.