In order to unite the scattered tribes of the PPC into a more perfect union - or just because I've always been quite fascinated by the idea of large numbers of people working together on something like this - I propose a Mega-project. Not a mega-crossover (we've had a bunch of those) but a project. Something we haven't done before. Something we can look at afterwards and say, "You know what? We made that. We're pretty awesome when we work together."
I have a few proposals, arranged in rough order of preference. They mostly consist of everyone doing a little thing, and one person (me) doing a lot of background work to integrate it.
-A PPC Community Choir: My definite favourite. This would involve everyone who can recording themselves singing the same song (I'm thinking the one written by Gary Barlow and Andrew Lloyd Webber for the Queen's diamond jubilee - I think it's called 'Sing', and it's a really nice song), at the same speed (ie, to a recording), and sending it in to me. I would then mix them all together and create a choir effect. If possible, this would involve some people also sending videos of themselves singing it, so a fair number of those could appear (likely multi-panel'd, so not just one person at a time).
I think it would a) sound very impressive (the 'I can't sing!!1' aspect would be drowned out - and I'd only use your best bits, so you wouldn't even need to record it all), b) be easy for everyone else (it would take literally ten minutes), and c) ... just be awesome. But yes, I came up with alternatives.
-The PPC Community Poster: You know those mosaic things where a bunch of tiny pictures make up one huge image? I have a program that can make those. If everyone sent in a picture of themselves, I could make them come together into something bigger - probably a picture of the SO, this is the PPC after all, but something else if people prefer.
-The PPC Community Choose-Your-Own-Adventure: This would be very easy to do with a wiki (either as a subset of The Wiki or a standalone): create a start page, create two dead-link options leading off it. The next person chooses which one they want to follow, clicks, and (if the page doesn't exist) writes the next part of the story. It builds up a CYOA that never has to end (though it can), and which builds itself. The reason I don't particularly like this one is that 'let's write a story together' is not something we've never done before - and it doesn't immediately give the impression of a community working as one.
-The PPC Community Spiderweb: This is the one I could actually just about do by myself (if I had all forever). Make a chart which draws links between every agent of the PPC, and everyone they've shared a page with. It could also, theoretically, be done with authors who've written together, but that would be very sparse. Boarders who've met or chatted is another option, but the former would be almost nonexistent, while the latter might as well be designated 'Everyone---Everyone else'. I quite like this in principle, but a) it's story-related again, and b) not everyone in the Community writes missions, so it would be exclusive. On the other hand, I may have to make one for my own cast of reprobates already.
So... are any of them appealing to anyone? You can probably tell which I'm driving for, but I know some people get distraught at the thought of their voice or miniscule portrait appearing on the Internets (they eat your soul, you know), so I came up with alternatives. And if they don't appeal - can you think of anything that does?
hS