FreshMeat - EA Newbie - (RUNNING)

[llamabeast]

There have always been people on the forum who would only play network games, and others who would only play PBEM, and most people don't mind too much. There are advantages to both setups.

Here are some advantages to PBEM:
- It's easier to see the game status from the website than by logging into the game, particularly if (a) you're at work, or (b) you've already half-completed your turn, so you can't connect to the server without your turn being uploaded and there being some danger of hosting occurring using your incomplete turn.
- It's easier to play multiple games at once; you don't have to either keep on retyping the host address/port number, or setting up a load of different shortcuts to dominions each one specifying a different host and port number
- It's easier to keep backups of past turns, since they're kept in your e-mail by default. This can be pretty handy to look at old messages/events, or even just for fun to watch the history of your game
- It is possible for someone other than the owner of the computer to easily admin a game; Dominions itself is rather hard to control smoothly from elsewhere while it's running, while the LlamaServer has the Admin Options interface. I think this is actually fairly key.
- In case of a glitch, e.g. temporary loss of internet access, a PBEM server is much less badly affected than a network server and doesn't need human attention to resuscitate

These are all reasonably minor issues of course, but then again so is the time taken to use PBEM. If you are using a decent mail program (e.g. Thunderbird, or presumably Outlook Express though i haven't used that for some years) it's a matter of moments. I would say when I get a turn e-mail, I will have the game open in literally 5 seconds (since Thunderbird remembers which folder you save your attachments to, and I don't save that many apart from dom3 files).

If you use webmail on the other hand, I can imagine it would be a bit more annoying.

[Renojustin]

Thank you Llamabeast!

Although I do have to say that points 1 through 3 are a bit of malarky there, since

1) in the two network games that I've played, both had an independent internet page dedicated to turn status

2) typing in the host address and port number is easier than sending attachments and/or moving files around into save folders with webmail, and

3) all it takes is the desire to save a turn and it's as easy as point and click.

Points 4 and 5 are exactly what I was looking for, however. Thank you for taking the time to explain the advantages of PBEM to us.

[llamabeast]

Cool, glad that was helpful.

2) and 3) I guess are very much subjective, in particular I never could be bothered to save my old turns before so I find that helpful, but you're right that it's a fairly trivial task. As for 1) - good point, I had forgotten how far the network games have come since I last played one and the status pages and notification e-mails they have now are very cool.

Incidentally if anyone is using an e-mail account they have to check via a website, I highly recommend seeing if you can get Thunderbird or some other e-mail program set up, they make everything vastly easier.

[Executor]

I don't either have anything against network games, only typing in the host address and port number, that really bothers me becouse I have a habit of always checking the status, but I do prefer PBEM becouse It's easier for me not having to check both my mail and then network and like Ilama said it takes literally 5 seconds to attach the file,
But I'm good with either so whatever you decide is fine by me!

And I think it's easier if you need a sub for a few days you just forward the turn, and you can see what the sub did, or didn't do...

[effeDom]

well damn, now if you look at this last page its all just complaining (of stuff thats already been resolved from previous complaining)...
renojustin, really, i dont enjoy the idea of playing with you in this game anymore at this point. i am going to ask that you leave this game and the reasons i think are justified:

1) i had already gotten some private messages warning me of your habits and had said i would keep an eye out but that otherwise i really didnt think anything would be a problem. I didnt think it would be a problem.

2) ever since your first post here you have complained about something. I even changed settings a bit just for you. nobody else wanted to change anything. on this same subject, i will say that discussing/complaining a setting is quite fine, i even asked people to do so, however it got a bit "nit picky" from you, wanting specific settings then saying if they werent EXACTLY that way, it was unfairly favoring me/my play style. which is absurd. furthermore on this subject, your requests at first were quite fine i must add...you gave good reasons etc and it was constructive, however every post thereafter became more and more demanding (changing the hosting server i think takes the cake) to change the game the way you wanted it.
finally resulting in you even trying to "logically debatefully force" us to change hosting server.

3) as far as hosting server, really, i am up for anything. HOWEVER, since this thread was started, certain things were set in stone. llamaserver is hosting, thats set in stone. EA for example, thats also set in stone. its a newbie game, that as well...set in stone. there are certain "attributes" if you will to games that people setup that are sortof, you know, the whole concept of what that game is going to be. coming along and wanting to change these 'attributes' is idiotic (read: non-logical.

4) this reason is i would say my main motivation for asking you to leave, and that is, you are not a newbie. because of the whole non stop complaining i decided to investigate what some of those other players had told me in PM and read up a few other game threads they pointed me to where you had gotten into some issues with players as well. i learned 2 things from this. a) getting into issues isnt new to you, but more importantly, b) you have played alot of MP and obviously with 380+ posts youve been active here awhile. this game is dedicated for those who havent played MP much and havent been here awhile.

these things i have all stated from the very beginning, and repeated myself numerous times.

thank you for your contributions, they have, in fact, been constructive. i will look into network hosting later. i dont agree with your more or less one-sided favoring of network games, though i do agree that, given a perfect world with a perfect network server (that adds perhaps some backup stuff and functionality that would try to match the bonuses of playing PBEM), then network playing would be obviously superior to non-network. as another player has said though, and as ive read on these boards more often than not, network games tend to not be reliable.
maybe one day ill set one up, with a hosting server. for now, no.

conclusion to all this nonsense that i didnt want to type:
this game isnt for you, and theres nothing negative about that, i just think its quite obvious.
when im not a newb so much myself it will be interesting to play a game with you, youre obviously an active player who is quite into all the workings and balances of the game, and want to make games run better/efficiently etc (which is good!) so until that time, ciao...
this game, i repeat, for everyone, is for newbies who dont much have a clue. its not going to be any important game, and no it wont be going towards hall of honor/fame whatever its called.

lets get playing everyone