Forbin_Project
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Quote:Originally Posted by Memphis_Bill CopypastaOriginally Posted by HolyCrusader777
Why don't they just close the 2 lowest member servers like I think Conan and Warhammer did? Which are the lowest CoH servers anyways?
Why server consolidation is not a good idea.
Welcome to the forum. You have posted one of the oft repeated suggestions, "Consolidate the servers."
Disclaimer
Yes. This is a cut and paste reply that I keep handy, as well as a quick bit of instruction on how to search. Neither are meant to cause fights or to be insulting. The search instructions are in, not just because forum rules say flat out to search, but to help you and anyone else reading this use the search tool effectively.
The body of the cut and paste reply is the way it is because we've seen these arguments numerous times before. They're a summary of the salient points that come up each time. They are not here to insult you, make you feel stupid or otherwise "bring you down a peg." Instead, they are meant as instruction and information. Please read through the points and the explanation behind them to see the issues that are commonly brought up in response. They may not always match your suggestion 100% - in fact, you may have explained around one or two of them - but they're there for consideration and refinement of your idea.
Yes, I do look forward to the time, with some of these suggestions, that someone not only addresses all the points, but does so exceptionally well. It'll probably be added to the end of the cut/paste reply, with credit. For now, though, read and consider the points. They really are just there to help you, and move discussion along to help ideas evolve.
If you're going to see this and say an "evil forum vet is just shooting down your idea," or "You think you're the last word because of your post count," you're wrong. Heck, if you say the second, you've just worried more about my post count than I have in the last four plus years. Tongue-in-cheek comments in here are meant as hummor, not put downs.
TL,DR section.
First, my stock answer, one which I stand by and repeat with all due fervor. HELL NO.
Searching effectively
1. Click on "Search" up at the top of the forum.
2. On the left, under "Forum(s) to search," select "Suggestions and ideas."
3. On the right, Keyword Search Terms. This is probably where your problem was if you did search. Try the following, exactly as typed:
+server -pvp -"re: "
This will search for anything with "Server" in the title, including Servers, Combine Servers, Consolidate Servers, and The Server At Mcdonalds Is Rude. it will eliminate "PVP," so you won't see PVP server requests, and the -re: portion of it removes replies, so you'll see the root of every thread that comes up, letting you see just how many threads there are on this. (The last helps for other subjects, as well.)
4. Click the "In subject" radio button. This is a search, not a cute blonde in a bikini. Here, you want to ignore the body.
5. Leave Username Search blank.
6. Date range, Newer Than, change the 1 to a 3, and the time to Months.
7. Result format doesn't matter. Click on "Submit."
As I try this now, (12/3/08,) we have:
Consolidate Server
Server Stats RSS Feed
$server modifier ofr chat
Fix the forum server
Earlyissue server
Merging low population server
Combine slow server
Server status
Global chat on the Character and Server Screens
Rated M server
Add Ponies, Nerf Vills, merge Servers, PistolMelee
Server Visiting
Display Central Time on Server Status Page
Ignoring the smartalec reply, that's three full discussions about this topic.
You should have read one of them if (inevitably) something similar comes up in your search.
Now, on to the topic at hand....
Why server consolidation is not a good idea.
1. Just because YOU like living in New York City doesn't mean I can't like Kansas.
Yay, you love having huge lag spikes as you get near the black market/wentworths and a busy broadcast. Congrats. Enjoy Freedom. Some of us - many of which you will get replies from with this subject - like *low population* servers. If we *wanted* to be on Freedom, we'd *be* on Freedom.
I have characters on Freedom. I rarely play them (and actually moved a character OFF of Freedom to finish leveling it to 50) because *I DON'T LIKE FREEDOM.* I dislike the banality of broadcast, the high percentage of *horrid* teams I've come across there, the lag around any gathering point- and I've got a decent connection and system. For much the same reason, I typically startin Galaxy City instead of Atlas Park - I don't *want* to log in to a costume contest with several 50s spamming powers and nonsense arguments in broadcast.
Some of us *like* nice, quiet servers.
2, Kansas, part 2.
In addition, servers have their own personalities. No, I don't mean that literally, there's no AI to worry about if you start hearing "Daisy, Daisy" over your speakers or headset. Freedom's a crowded mess. Virtue is the RP server. Pinnacle is the "Drunk" server. Others have specific communities, such as those from Australia/NZ, Europe, etc.
3. "I only saw one other person. World of Conancraft has eleventy billion!"
So what?
We don't run around camping spawn points in this game. People are in missions. People are spread across many zones. Search on a map or do a /whoall and you'll miss those in missions, as well as those who are, for whatever reason, on /hide. Your "search" there didn't give you a full picture, not in the least.
I understand the "feel" of things being "not very populated," but take a good look around when you're in game. Typically, you don't really have a lot of visibility. Standing in steel canyon, there could be multiple, full 8 person groups surrounding you, and it's likely you'd never see them. We have buildings, walls, architecture, trees and more limiting our visibility. Yes, it can make you feel more alone... but that's rarely the case. Add to that that the population is spread between many, MANY zones, most quite large, and among two sides... well...
4. "I put up my LFT flag and nothing happened!"
Learn to search. Don't just wait. Form a team yourself.
5. "I AM SPARTACUS!" No, not any more.
Remember logging in and seeing all those slots? Everyone has those - some buy more than the base 12, you get an extra one each year, you could have a total of 36 on any server. Everyone does. Every one has a character with a unique name. Maybe not a *good* name, but a unique one. Every one has a character with a unique name. Maybe not a *good* name, but a unique one.
Now merge servers. Suddenly, CoolBlasterDude from server 1 is getting merged with CoolBlasterDude from Server 2. Who gets to keep their name? Nobody has been able to answer this with any degree of satisfaction. Add a number? But I am NOT CoolBlasterGuy1. And what if the name's too long? Does the older character keep it? What if they're not as active?
People are *VERY* attached to their names. They are, quite obviously, part of their character.
6. "This Is SPARTA!" Sorry, Sparta exists already. You are GenericSG 8734 287 9798.
What else has a name? Supergroups. And I can *guarandamntee* that the same name is in use on multiple servers. Sometimes it's 'branches' of the same SG, sometimes it's coincidence. But with *everything* involved in an SG - from its identity and reputation on the server, to everything stored in the database about what it owns, what its base is like and such, this would be a disaster in the making. And no, auto merging them when the servers merge, even if they have room to, is not an option.
This, of course, assumes that they *CAN* move supergroups as a unit. More than likely, it'd just be a mass character move, with bases, prestige, anything stored in bases and all SG affiliations just gone forever.
7. "I am... where'd Spartacus go?"
Remember all those slots? Well, you start with 1/3 of the available ones. You can buy up to 36 total (24 on top of the ones you get initially.) Now, what do you suppose would happen if you merged two servers, and someone has, say, 20 characters on each? Not unusual. In fact, before those extra slots, I had *filled up* several servers. Do those characters just disappear? Do they move? Free move to another server sounds great, right... well, except you now kick them from their supergroup, remove them from their friends lists and more. This makes for angry and unhappy customers. Or rather, ex customers.
8. I will play where I damn well want to. And you can too.
And that should be blunt enough. If I want a crowded server, I'll go to Freedom. If I want an RP server, I'll go to Virtue. I do NOT want to be shoved onto another server I *don't* like. If I wanted to go there, *I'd be there.*
If the server you're on isn't "busy" enough for you, you have two options that won't bother anyone else.
(A) If it's low enough, reroll. You have a ton of character slots for a reason.
(B) If you don't want to reroll, server transfers are available, and relatively cheap. They also finish fast - you should be up and running and being spammed to join someone's SG on the new server in a few minutes, in most instances. So YOU can go to the server of YOUR choice without screwing ME over.
9. "It'll free up server hardware for Freedom!" No, no it won't.
Freedom, because of the load it tends to have, already has more resources dedicated to it than other servers. And ALL of the servers have been upgraded multiple times. The servers are not allocated exactly the same. The servers that handle less of a load have less dedicated to them. So this argument doesn't fly.
10. DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Last but not least (at least until better points come along to be added,) server consolidation is widely viewed in the industry as an MMO going on life support. No, we don't have WoWs numbers (and you should actually pay attention to when and how they got those.) They're an abberation in the MMO industry. COH has had and does have a very successful, sustainable population even at its lowest points, so there's no economic need to combine anything. The flip side of that, of course, has been suggested above - you crowd people together, break up their SGs and friends lists, cause characters to go missing and poeple definitely *will* quit, both out of annoyance and a sense of "The game is almost dead!"
In conclusion....
As stated before, when it comes to server consolidation... HELL NO. -
Quote:Originally Posted by SlickRiptide
What would you like to do with the pocket lint?
Previous iterations of this topic have turned up players in their sixties. Seem to be more of them as time goes by. In another decade, we'll have a whole crop of "seniors" who were amongst the first wave of MMO's and who think nothing of playing online games for entertainment. When that happens, age may become unremarkable.
Off topic but I look forward to being 80+ years old deaf and embarrasing the youngsters when I play my music loud . . .
I like big butts and I can not lie
You other brothers can't deny
That when a girl walks in with an itty bitty waist
And a round thing in your face
You get sprung . . . -
Quote:Originally Posted by Westley
What are you talking about Forbin, we all know that you're ALWAYS flaming.
I've always felt I was a lesbian trapped in a mans body.
. . . Wait, the tongue emote is probably the wrong one to use. 
That's better.
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Quote:There was a link posted a few weeks ago but I don't remember the thread or the name of the person who provided the link.Originally Posted by Frosticus
No not at all, I used to write press releases. So I have an understanding of the difference between lying and otherwise.
They may very well be at record highs and from the sounds of it you guys are experiencing huge numbers. All I can do is speak for my personal gameplay experience. If the numbers were released tomorrow that said we have 200k subs all I could say is that they aren't playing anywhere near me...
At any rate, anyone have the link to where they recently said numbers are up and did they give an indication of what "up" means in terms of tangible numbers?
Please remember that we aren't denying that the number of people online at any given time has dropped, we're just pointing out that the drop doesn't automatically mean that subscriptions are down.
Peoples gaming schedules have changed. This happens every september, and whenever a new game gets released. -
Quote:Originally Posted by Grey Pilgrim
I believe he meant most people that use those. He's been arguing against using anecdotal evidence as well, so I doubt he was trying to argue that most players use hide, since that would hard for any player to prove.
I don't think anyone is pretending that a lot of people ARE using hide. They're just saying you don't know how many people are hiding when you do a search. It is a fairly common practice, however (I know a lot of posters and friends in game that do it fairly often).
Thank you again Grey.
I think I should just make a bind that thanks you automatically. heh heh. -
Quote:First I didn't get flamed because of the fact that in my first post I confirmed that there are in fact less players online this time of year, and I pointed out the reasons why that is happening.Originally Posted by Captain_Photon
Hm? Someone did it before you? I guess I missed that. Aha! You're quite right, I hadn't noticed that.
On the other hand, Forbin didn't go for the all-caps, and, for that matter, wasn't the one asserting that subs are down when they aren't. So I suppose we'll call this one a wash and move on to other things.
Secondly they didn't flame me for my use of color and font size because that was being used to emphasize a sentence on the screenshot Prez provided, and not something he had said. I could have reposted his pic and circled that sentence, I chose the easier path.
Thirdly they didn't flame me because I was merely pointing out that the tool he was using to get his data was innacurate and not suited to base his argument on.
The closest thing I made to a flame was when I commented that he didn't know what the term truncated means. A comment that wasn't colored nor had the font size changed.
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Quote:Another reason it's a great idea to play on multiple servers are the global channels. I can't count the number of times I was playing on one server when I got asked on one of my global channels to join a team on another server.Originally Posted by Machine_Man_X
This is really the key for lower population servers. Global Channels. Pretty much everything I do that is not solo starts from one of the server channels I'm in. TF's, Badge hunts, GM hunts, Mission teams, whatever. If all I went by was Broadcast, then I too would think there was nobody home and I'd get bored quick.
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Quote:Hold on NG, just for clarification, I adore women in all their forms and flavors.Originally Posted by Nethergoat
this thread has taken an odd turn.
Maybe the mods should sticky an official misogyny thread for y'all to wallow around in?
Now if Eisregen had said it was a guy on the bike I would have said the same thing. My reaction to the story has nothing to do with the sex of the cyclist. It in response to an idiot deliberately riding a bike into a crowd of people and risk causing someone physical injury just because he or she is in a bad mood.
What if it was your grandmother the cyclist knocked down and she broke her hip? The elderly are surprisingly brittle and use public transportation a lot. Would you accept the excuse that she was in a bad mood then? -
Quote:I would ask just to be sure but I'm guessing GUESSING! that a break would have to be an entire billing period. That is to say a month. But that's just a guess.Originally Posted by Grey Pilgrim
How does that loyalty thing work? I'm reading it as you have to be active from Aug. 15th to the end, but I really hope not. I had to let my account lapse for a few weeks while we dealt with some money issues, but now I'm good all the way through April. As of April next year, I will probably only have 3-4 weeks of none paid time in over 14-15 months. But I don't get in and have a badge for that? Bummer.
I know they announced it earlier... just feels lame that you had to be active for ALL of that time. But I am grouchy from grading today, so maybe that's the problem. Heh. -
Quote:Thanks Grey.Originally Posted by Grey Pilgrim
Ding! Ding! Ding! And this is why I tell my students to use ACCURATE and SPECIFIC evidence in their papers.
I have to say yet again that you can find teams easily in CoX. Maybe you won't get an 8-man team begging you to join them right away, but the people ARE out there. Most of them are just not wanting to lead a team for whatever reason, or are waiting as well. Be smart and snatch them up. Make friends, join an SG, use your server's chat channels. You WILL find people, and you WILL be able to be on and/or form teams. Easy: just takes you being a little proactive.
And that doesn't even count the many times I just want to solo for a bit and get tells from more than one team. You still can and will get asked to join teams.
And for the record I didn't flame anyone. I merely pointed out that the /search feature is truncated, and advised that Prez will get more postive responses if he doesn't base his arguments on innacurate information.
Yes one of the truncations in the search feature is that it doesn't list more than "X" names, however it also doesn't list the names of people using /hide, nor the people that are on the other faction on the same server. At best the /search feature only gives us a partial list. -
Quote:I like the way you think! Sadly I'm too shy to go that far.Originally Posted by Razoras
Then I could have stomped on her throat and while she struggled to breathe through her crushed larynx I'd slit her wrists and let her exsanguinate! Screw her for having a bad day and being irresponsible because of it and having the nerve to whine! I had to move out of her way!
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Quote:Slash CommandOriginally Posted by Master-Blade
That number at the bottom of the Search list shows you how many MATCHES to your search results that were found. When you /hide from searches, you can not be a match because you are not included in the search.
Your results are truncated to 50 names when there are more than 50 results to your search. People who use /hide from searches will NOT show up on that list, will NOT count as a match and will NOT count in that number at the bottom. To test this, simply narrow your search results to a specific zone or lvl range instead. You'll see that number match exactly how many people are shown, once your search results are less than 50.
/hide
Brings up a window that asks the user what they would like to hide from.
Hide Options
- Hide and block all Invite Options
- Hide from Tells (Private Messages)
- Hide from Global Chat Channels
- Hide from Global Friends
- Hide from Server Friends
- Hide from Supergroup
- Hide from Searches
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I was getting on him because his evidence is grossly inaccurate. Players don't have access to the tools that show the actual number of people online at any given time.
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Quote:Screw subtle. I would have made sure the little ***** and I collided and we both went down. Then I'd have insisted on being taken to the hospital and made her pay for the medical expenses. After all I'm a disabled vet and I couldn't get out of the way of the reckless cyclist in time. In fact your honor I saw her deliberately aiming for people and laughing as they struggled to get out of her way.Originally Posted by Red Valkyrja
Personally, I would have been more subtle, but the results would have not been, she would have been eating pavement. Helps that, like Zek, I myself am female and there's no social stigma against one woman hitting another.
Short story: An old roommate of mine got suspended from school for punching a girl in the face, several times. His reason for doing so? She hit him in the head with a baseball bat. Why? Because he had hit a home run during the baseball game they were playing. -.-
I agree with Eisregen, if she wanted to be a selfish, thoughtless, and reckless *****, she needs to understand that there are consequences that come with those actions. -
Quote:It was:Originally Posted by Red Valkyrja
And a miniseries (which I enjoyed) and a radio program (which I've not listened to, yet.)
A radio comedy
A TV miniseries
5 books
A computer game
DC Comic 3 part series
The Movie version
LP record adatations
and numerous stage show versions
Oh and thanks to everyone that has repped me since I shared that rep comment. I just thought it was funny and I wasn't expecting you guys to do that. I really appreciate the support. You guys and gals all rock!
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Quote:And just what was the point you were trying to prove Prez? That you don't know what the term "truncated" means. Because you seem to keep overlooking that vital piece of information on the screenie you took.Originally Posted by Prez1
Just so you know, I took the screen shot to prove a completely different point if you had been reading.
184 matches found (This list was truncated)
The next time you want to try to prove a point it might be best if you first take the time and make sure you understand what the evidence you are using actually means. -
Quote:That's not negativity that's maturity.Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
Wow... Maybe I really am that negative
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ROFLMAO! Oh this is priceless. Earlier I gave my age by referencing the Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy.
Quote:To my intense amusement I find that I've been neg repped for it.Originally Posted by Forbin_ProjectI'm the answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything.
So while we all laugh at the rep troll, and mock him for being so clueless, would anyone care to let him know what the answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything is so he knows how old I am.Quote:Pointless post by a narcissist
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Damnit I hate doing math. Let's see . . . 77, 87, 97, 2007, 2008, 2009 . . . carry the 1 . . . divide it by the square root of the bicentennial . . . ask Deep Thought to double check my numbers . . .
I'm the answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything. -
Quote:Server loads are lower because they have been upgrading the servers. What used to send a server into the red doesn't have the same impact anymore.Originally Posted by cyberdude
Hmm.....I was in the Ritikki War Zone most of the time......Also, what is this new SSK feature you talk about? I need to really do some catching up. Also, I noticed that server load before on Freedom was always yellow to full, now I noticed server load on all servers to be low.
Also, what's new in the new patch?
Personally, I am playing Champions online to check it out and still like COH better......
As others have pointed out not only are we experiencing the normal back to school dip that happens every september, Champions went live on 9/1, Aion started beta testing, and D&D online just went free to play.
Please remember that this dip in players online doesn't mean subscriptions are down. It just means they are doing other things for a little while. -
Quote:Originally Posted by Dark_Respite
I know according to the sparse info out there on the Internet, IF this film were ever to get made, supposedly it's going to focus on the Rikti War. If done properly, I agree it could be quite cool. But I wonder if there might be other stories in the CoH canon that might be better suited to a movie, assuming we actually want plot, and not just Michael Bay explosions and the more-than-occasional T&A shots.
(And before anyone makes the comment, we could probably have BOTH plot and the aforementioned explosions and T&A shots. But plot should fit in there somewhere.)
A few folks have said they'd rather the movie NOT focus on the Phalanx, and instead focus more on some of the lesser-known heroes. (Or as a couple people suggested, have a contest to see whose heroes/villains make it into the movie.)
What do you guys think?
(And for that matter, should it be animated? CGI? Live action?)
Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite
I think the story should be about this hottie that makes videos for a game she plays and suddenly <insert plot device> finds herself as one of the heroines in the game.
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Quote:Oh and this EMPHATICALLY!!!Originally Posted by Zekiran_Immortal
I strongly suspect, having been a fellow forumite with you all these years (good god it's been 5 years...) that it's people who cannot grasp criticism versus attack.
Do you ever have anything positive to say = most likely, "why aren't you agreeing with my idea"? even if said idea is filled with naive assertions and impossible desires.
Positive as usual = may be... "I'm going to try this well-beaten dead horse out for myself and see if it rides the way I want it to".
Seriously. Sam? Swear to god you're one of the most clear, intelligent, informed and gracious people on the forums.
Don't ever change.
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For what it's worth Sam I think your one of the most respectable people on the forums.
I saw the following play out in another thread, and I think it's a good example of what's wrong with the rep system. Names have been changed in an attempt to preserve anonymity. (I have no doubt if this gets read by the person I'm quoting then I'll start getting dinged.)
Quote:I don't neg rep people out of petty vindictiveness. I do so with the intent that keeping their rep low will either leave them in the red, or cause them to disable it to hide their shame, so that others viewing their posts can easily ascertain whether the post in question should be bothered with.
Now personally I don't see how the attitude expressed is anything but petty and vindictive. The individual isn't dinging someone because he or she disagrees with a post. It's being done solely to make someone else feel bad and make other people look down on them.
Later in thhe same thread:
Quote:Did it ever cross your mind that you get negative messages daily because you annoy the hell out of your fellow gamers with useless threads and posts?
Quote:I hope you noticed that I signed my neg rep hit for you. I don't want you thinking I'm just another anonymous meanie head.
As it turned out the person in question was under the mistaken impression that the OP was in fact another poster with a similarly spelled name. An apology was given . . .
Quote:On my way to work I realized that I had confused you with (poster with similar forum name to OP). My apologies for that.
but to me it rang hollow when this was said.
Quote:I gave negative rep for starting a thread about an existing topic. Confusing (the OP) with (person with similarly spelled forum name) was irrelevent.
When I see things like that I'm reminded of the adage about how power corrupts. -
Quote:Originally Posted by BlazingBlue
What servers have the highest and lowest populations? I predict that Freedom would have the highest, but not clear on the others. Oh, and no, this is out of curiosity.
Freedom and Virtue have always had the highest in that order. -
Quote:I wonder if the OP is the guy that gave me a neg rep point for a post I made over a year ago.wmvOriginally Posted by Kitsune Knight
Wow, a >year necro post?
And I seriously hope you're joking. Except I unfortunately think you're probably serious.