First off, if you're on Windows, MS's telnet is total complete c***. If you're playing from a Linux system, then the shells are perfectly fine -- they support color, local echo, etc, without having to set any command line options. MS telnet can do some of them (local echo mostly, no color) but has to be done every time you open telnet (can't save the changes).
Second, a lot of folks like to automate simple tasks. Gold drops on the ground everytime you kill a monster? Write a zmud or gmud trigger to get the gold so you don't have to each time. To get to the healer you have to recall then walk 3S, 2W, 1N? Write an alias in the client to do that for you.
Finally, some of the clients support auto-mapping so you if you're the type to map or a particular quest really needs one to get by, you don't have to mess around with pencil and paper near your computer (and risk losing the maps too during a desk cleanup).
Mr. Bushnell has a selective memory.
Outlaw (the Sears version was Gunslinger) featured a pair of gunfighters trying to shoot each other. They looked human, as much so as anything could on an Atari 2600.
Linux Journal interview with Alan where his work on AberMUD basically gets creditted as why he got involved in Linux: http://www.linuxjournal.com/article.php?si d=5045
Somewhat lame MUD Planet interview with Alan: http://www.mudplanet.org/interviews/index.p hp?p=al an_cox&t=Alan%20Cox
Re:MUD's need to innovate
on
Saving MUDs?
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· Score: 1
The point that you're missing is MUDs are text-based. As soon as it's not text-based, it's no longer a MUD. While you might consider it "attitude", where would cars be if motorcycle users dictated the features cars needed to support? People who have to have a picture in front of them are not who we cater to. As soon as people stop reading in favor of movies and television only, I suppose MUDs will die out completely. As long as we have people who want to read and use their own imagination, we'll have players.
You'll also note I never complained anywhere in my posts that MUDs are dying. I have however complained that this assertion is being made with nothing to back it up. In fact, I've been hearing "MUDs are dead!" for the past 3 years. I haven't noticed it yet. My MUD has more players now then it did 3 years ago.
Re:The Mud's Codebase
on
Saving MUDs?
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· Score: 1
www.kyndig.com has lots of mud codebases and snippets for download. They might accept an entire "unwanted" MUD.
Re:MUD's need to innovate
on
Saving MUDs?
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· Score: 2, Insightful
We don't want graphics. If we did, we're be working on some of the open-source MMORPG engines at SourceForge.
Part of the point of a MUD is that it is in text. Yes, when MUDs first began that was about the only choice. Now it's part of the charm for those who still play. The graphics are limited by the video card of your mind and the people who build for the MUD, not by the hardware of your system.
Re:Price?
on
Saving MUDs?
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· Score: 2, Interesting
Could you provide some basis for your statistics? I've been mudding as a player since 1989 and as an admin since 1994 and do not ever remember there being more then 10K muds in existence.
Re:Downfall of muds....
on
Saving MUDs?
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· Score: 2, Insightful
A) Home DSL connections work great if you go with an ISP that has no trouble with you running game servers (www.speakeasy.net).
B) My Envy-based MUD has gotten tons of new players over the last 2 years, most of them from high schools. One person finds the game, others seem him or her and beginning playing. There's usually a 2 week "AOL Chat Room" period where you have to break them in a bit to get rid of the offensive names and the "lolz!1!!1!1" syndrome.
C) No argument about the profiliferation of shitty MUDs. I don't think MUDs are dying at all, contrary to the top-level post. The good MUDs are still there, just hard to find.
I question the premise, actually. www.mudconnector.com has 1,927 MUDs listed. Nearly daily in the MUD Promotions forum someone announces they're beginning a new MUD. Certain types of MUDs do seem to be in decline but as a whole we're still thriving and we're getting a lot of new player interested in the highschool grades.
Sadly, my nearest Toys -r- Us put the doll section right next to the action figure section where they hide the Stikfas so I don't have much choice in the matter.
Many people redefine "killers" to be any person who engages in grief play. In MUDs and other MUD-like games, these are usually people who indulge in player-killing for the sheer sport of being annoying. Other ways to grief play include destroying or hording items needed to complete quests, spamming communication channels with gibberish or swearing, etc. It's pretty clear that the/. trolls you mention are grief players who can mostly be lumped into the killer category.
For the individual who truly wants to see Natalie Portman petrified and covered with hot grits, they're a "dark socializer" as they want to talk about their obsession and no one around them wants to hear it.
Should have checked the book site first, he's mentioned by the publisher as one of the "case studies". In any event, perhaps I've saved a few people some shekels and given you the URL to a site that has a number of interesting papers on multi-player online games, focusing on MUDs primarily.
If anyone cares to read the original article discussing the types of MUD players (which does translate to other online games), Richard Bartle's paper "Players Who Suit MUDs" can be read here:
This is the source of "reduce killers to increase achievers" and such. I haven't had the chance to see this book yet to verify if they give him the proper credit for his research, however.
Re:Arcade games were a FAD
on
Lucky Wander Boy
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· Score: 2, Insightful
Arcades were/always/ full of freaks, they're just no longer/your/ freaks.
Slashdot Mirror
Except here we don't have Qwave or Munkit and people can mod smacktards down . . .
I think you meant Mercthievia. Hope that helps.
There's a few reasons for that.
First off, if you're on Windows, MS's telnet is total complete c***. If you're playing from a Linux system, then the shells are perfectly fine -- they support color, local echo, etc, without having to set any command line options. MS telnet can do some of them (local echo mostly, no color) but has to be done every time you open telnet (can't save the changes).
Second, a lot of folks like to automate simple tasks. Gold drops on the ground everytime you kill a monster? Write a zmud or gmud trigger to get the gold so you don't have to each time. To get to the healer you have to recall then walk 3S, 2W, 1N? Write an alias in the client to do that for you.
Finally, some of the clients support auto-mapping so you if you're the type to map or a particular quest really needs one to get by, you don't have to mess around with pencil and paper near your computer (and risk losing the maps too during a desk cleanup).
Note to moderators: you should read all posts before moderating. I didn't deserve the +2, I feel like I'm a karma whore now.
Note to self: read all posts before posting duplicate information.
Mr. Bushnell has a selective memory. Outlaw (the Sears version was Gunslinger) featured a pair of gunfighters trying to shoot each other. They looked human, as much so as anything could on an Atari 2600.
Linux Journal interview with Alan where his work on AberMUD basically gets creditted as why he got involved in Linux:i d=5045
p hp?p=al an_cox&t=Alan%20Cox
http://www.linuxjournal.com/article.php?s
Somewhat lame MUD Planet interview with Alan:
http://www.mudplanet.org/interviews/index.
The point that you're missing is MUDs are text-based. As soon as it's not text-based, it's no longer a MUD. While you might consider it "attitude", where would cars be if motorcycle users dictated the features cars needed to support? People who have to have a picture in front of them are not who we cater to. As soon as people stop reading in favor of movies and television only, I suppose MUDs will die out completely. As long as we have people who want to read and use their own imagination, we'll have players.
You'll also note I never complained anywhere in my posts that MUDs are dying. I have however complained that this assertion is being made with nothing to back it up. In fact, I've been hearing "MUDs are dead!" for the past 3 years. I haven't noticed it yet. My MUD has more players now then it did 3 years ago.
www.kyndig.com has lots of mud codebases and snippets for download. They might accept an entire "unwanted" MUD.
We don't want graphics. If we did, we're be working on some of the open-source MMORPG engines at SourceForge.
Part of the point of a MUD is that it is in text. Yes, when MUDs first began that was about the only choice. Now it's part of the charm for those who still play. The graphics are limited by the video card of your mind and the people who build for the MUD, not by the hardware of your system.
Could you provide some basis for your statistics? I've been mudding as a player since 1989 and as an admin since 1994 and do not ever remember there being more then 10K muds in existence.
A) Home DSL connections work great if you go with an ISP that has no trouble with you running game servers (www.speakeasy.net).
B) My Envy-based MUD has gotten tons of new players over the last 2 years, most of them from high schools. One person finds the game, others seem him or her and beginning playing. There's usually a 2 week "AOL Chat Room" period where you have to break them in a bit to get rid of the offensive names and the "lolz!1!!1!1" syndrome.
C) No argument about the profiliferation of shitty MUDs. I don't think MUDs are dying at all, contrary to the top-level post. The good MUDs are still there, just hard to find.
I question the premise, actually. www.mudconnector.com has 1,927 MUDs listed. Nearly daily in the MUD Promotions forum someone announces they're beginning a new MUD. Certain types of MUDs do seem to be in decline but as a whole we're still thriving and we're getting a lot of new player interested in the highschool grades.
For the stock quotes or the sig?
See other note on location of Stikfas's. Even so, you should open your mind more often.
Sadly, my nearest Toys -r- Us put the doll section right next to the action figure section where they hide the Stikfas so I don't have much choice in the matter.
They're in the stores again now. You need to get out more.
Many people redefine "killers" to be any person who engages in grief play. In MUDs and other MUD-like games, these are usually people who indulge in player-killing for the sheer sport of being annoying. Other ways to grief play include destroying or hording items needed to complete quests, spamming communication channels with gibberish or swearing, etc. It's pretty clear that the /. trolls you mention are grief players who can mostly be lumped into the killer category.
For the individual who truly wants to see Natalie Portman petrified and covered with hot grits, they're a "dark socializer" as they want to talk about their obsession and no one around them wants to hear it.
Should have checked the book site first, he's mentioned by the publisher as one of the "case studies". In any event, perhaps I've saved a few people some shekels and given you the URL to a site that has a number of interesting papers on multi-player online games, focusing on MUDs primarily.
http://www.mud.co.uk/richard/hcds.htm
This is the source of "reduce killers to increase achievers" and such. I haven't had the chance to see this book yet to verify if they give him the proper credit for his research, however.
Arcades were /always/ full of freaks, they're just no longer /your/ freaks.
Except he really WAS Deadpool - he just never was Wade Wilson.
Now he's some kind of half-mix of Deadpool, Swan, and who knows what else.
I was equally annoyed when Marvel ended Ghostrider 2099.
But did they have a pile of old dead switches and routers in front of it with the grass growing up through the cases?
I work for a company in the Detroit area that is on UUNet, we've also been having slowdowns and stops all day long.
Sorry, Bruce, but being part of the solution makes me feel like a cultist.