Steve Schacher

Of course, a "dirty trick" (although it's legal, it is "gamey") is to go to a debris field and hunt down cargo that contains the upgrades that you want. If you don't find the items that you want, switch to Tacops and then back to the bridge. The cargo containers will be randomly regenerated. I picked up my maximum upgrade items in all categories except the Trellis this way. Then bring your shuttle back, start your engineers on replacing the equipment, dock at Galcom, and let them finish the job. Total time: half an hour (maybe). Total cost: 0. I say that it is legal because it uses no playmods, cheats or anything else -- only what's in the game. I say that it's "gamey" because things were obviously not meant to be this way. Cargo containers don't just materialize and de-materialize like this. This is a fluke in the programming that tried to randomly generate the contents of debris fields. The trouble is that it re-generates the field every time you switch out of bridge mode and then back in. BTW, after trying this a couple of dozen times, the asteroids starting zooming in and out every few seconds. Very curious. I guess you could say that debris fields are where black market trading takes place. Traders dump their cargo there and others pick it up. You don't see traders going in and out (this probably wasn't the original intent), but you could probably surmise that this is what is going on). [This message has been edited by Steve Schacher (edited 10-01-2000).]

It's that soylent something-or-other, right?

Unbeknownst to all but a very few, the party is really a diversion -- a devious plot. As the Supreme Commander lounges alongside the pool, sipping a 200 year old brandy and observing the activity in the water, a team of crack Insurgent operatives are, at this very moment, circumventing the new security measures at GalCom headquarters. Rumors of a new, secret upgrade of some software project have spurred intense interest in the various factions of power across the universe. The goal of the Insurgent commando team is to steal this new software, assess its capabilities, and prevent Galcom (and the Supreme Commander) from expanding its power and influence, and (dare I say) use it to control and manipulate (and torture?) the hapless inhabitants under its protective umbrella. Just one more combination to crack... Only one more door to open... [This message has been edited by Steve Schacher (edited 09-28-2000).]

Always looking to start a fight, a bunch of Gammulan goons arrive, shouting the centuries-old battle cry, "Less Filling...!" [This message has been edited by Steve Schacher (edited 09-28-2000).]

I guess I'll be the designated driver at this party. If the Earthcom police see any ships bumping into things out there, they'll be sure to pull you over and check your BAC! And no illegal contraband, you hear? How much is bail these days?

From the command summary: CTRL-S will request a tow.

quote:I would have to believe that like the breakthrough of 2919, this assumed breakthrough in age control would also have to be quite recent Naahhh... It must have been from 1000 years of free prescription drugs for the elderly...

I always felt that "old" is defined as: the day after the warranty runs out. For people, this would be at age 18, the day that Mommy and Daddy are no longer legally responsible for your actions. An anecdotal story: about 8 or 9 years ago (I was 32 or 33 at the time), I attended a triple-bill concert -- New Order, Echo and the Bunnymen, and a group that I can't even remember the name of -- at the Greek Amphitheater in Berkeley. During the show, a group of kids sitting behind me tapped me on the shoulder and asked, "We were just wondering. What is it about a concert for young people that attracts someone from your generation?!?" The first concert I ever attended was Kiss in 1976 at the Hollywood Sportatorium in Florida (my high school years) and I've been going to shows ever since, but that day in Berkeley I was of another generation...

I've lately been spending more time in Tacops. I trust my officers more now (and I still have a long way to go with them) so I give general BC orders and let my crew handle the details while I switch to Tacops, lock onto my ship and zoom in real close. Then I use the mouse to rotate my viewpoint while I watch the space battle unfold. If you're sure that the enemy is no match for your ship, then just sit back and enjoy the computer animation. I love watching good space battles on TV and in the movies, and this is as good as anything else that I've seen, and it's always original, too!

What I was saying was that engines are just power generators. Something else drives the ship by getting its power from the engines. So you can write about both the engines and the drives. Forget the physics. If you don't like Einstein's universe, then make up one of your own.

quote:What prevents a car from going faster. It can't go faster because the engines won't allow it to I've been away from this thread for a while, but let me offer another idea here. It's not the engines, it's the drives (which you haven't mentioned yet). The engines are just power generators -- they don't move the ship by themselves. A car can't go faster because (friction and gravity aside) the drive train that converts the energy from the direction of spin on the motor down to the axles and the direction of rotation on the tires cause a loss of energy at each diversion point. You notice how on manual transmission cars that the motor always spins between 1000 and 4000 rpms no matter what gear you are in, but in high gears the car goes faster? The same with bicycles -- you pedal at the same rate but higher gear ratios cause the bike to go faster. So, how will your engines feed you ships drives? This is the principle that energy cannot be created nor destroyed -- it can only be converted from one form to another. In any reaction, there will always be a certain amount of energy lost as heat (friction again -- notice how hot your tires are after a drive?), so a machine will eventually slow down and stop.

Crashes on game saves are fixed by updating your mouse driver to the most recent driver.

Are you using any of the cheats? Last year, in an infamous incident on my part, I discovered that a playmod that increases the repair times of stations caused my battlecruiser to continue firing on a station after I captured it. It makes me wonder if your stange station behavior is also the result of a playmod.

quote:Heh, maybe if I score here, she'll let me upgrade my phonograph collection to CDs. And just when you finished upgrading from 8-tracks, too...

Great book -- didn't see the movie. The book was written 2,500 years ago. Some people say that it was actually a resume of a Chinese general who goes from kingdom to kingdom looking for a ruler who needs to defeat somebody. Others think that it was written by several people over the centuries. The book is a treatise on how to use an army effectively. The chapter on spies is the last one (IIRC). My copy is footnoted by other Chinese scholars who comment on the various interpretations of the passages based on different meanings of the symbols used in the text. In the 1980's, many corporate CEO's read the book. Very interesting reading.

quote:I guessed you missed out on a RP from awhile back Yes, I did. I have some catching up to do. quote:the best thing you could do, for GALCOM, at this current point in time would be to join the ISS Fleet whose numbers are rather low. Tempting offer... I'll consider it. quote:Welcome to the BC Universe Steve! I read the faq and (quickly) browsed the RP forums. I am looking for some interactive feedback. BTW, I been around here for a couple of years, just hadn't gotten into fleets or RP yet. quote:there is no asset switching in multiplayer. So, even if you are commanding a ship with support crafts, you cannot switch from them. So if you have a carrier, cruiser or transport, or even commanding a station, you cannot switch from the asset. OK, this is going to take some getting used to. What you're saying is, I can no longer even dock with my shuttles. Shuttles can be used to cargosweep and tow, but how do I then deliver the towed ship to the station if I can't switch to the shuttle in order to dock? What if I need to buy emergency repair supplies because my BC is too damaged to make it on its own? Or is my mindset still stuck on single-player? [This message has been edited by Steve Schacher (edited 08-30-2000).]

Question: If an Insurgent, a Galcom, and a Gammulan walked into a bar, and the Gammulan picked a fight with the Galcom, what would the Insurgent do? Would (s)he: a) put aside their differences and fight the common Gammulan enemy, join the Gammulan to defeat the Galcom at all costs, c) stand back, watch the Galcom and Gammulan fight it out knowing that the winner will come after him/her next, or d) flee?

I just saw the posts on the fleet database, and I guess that the time has come to belly up to the bar and declare myself. There were just too many little decisions that I had to make, like what to name my ship (I know that now) and what to name my character (still having trouble with that one). I also didn't know what the time commitment would be, what with life and all that... Anyway, I've been reading the files and faqs, tea leaves and tarot cards, and I can't make up my mind. I was, at first, leaning towards being a independent, but where's the fun in that (and I don't want to lock myself into something I can't get out of later on)? I like the front-line stuff, but who doesn't? The roll call currently has nearly everyone in Galcom, which I guess is natural since if the insurgency had everyone then they'd be the establishment, right? Undercover Ops might be cool, but I'm afraid that the new cloaking device will give me too much of a tan if I keep it on too long. I haven't really explored the ground-pounder side of things yet, but my heart is in the stars (although an away-mission or two is always possible). The Insurgency has a mid-life-crisis sort of appeal, as the women these days seem to go for the bad guys (except for my wife who, fortunately, won't be reading this). So, I don't know... I've always been bad in cafeterias too -- just too much to choose from... I need a little help. I don't want to miss out on any of the action. Which fleet should I join?

Optical mouse. My old ball mouse always got gunked up. Wasn't there a motion-sensing glove that people were speculating about, about 5 years ago? It was supposed to track your hand shape and finger motions, IIRC. Also, how do you think BC3K would play on VR devices like Virtual I-O's I-glasses? Would the views be totally immersive or would my head explode after 10 minutes?

OK. I gotta watch more closely next time...

quote:...this occurs during the ÔÇÿprep for combatÔÇÖ phase... Once they have completed these actions, the Marines then proceed to the shuttles or transporter for deployment. I guess I'm being overly slow this morning... If I recall my Perscan correctly, if I order off-duty marines to shuttles, they go straight to the shuttles. If I order off-duty marines to prep for combat, then I see them prepping for combat. When they are ready for deployment (done prepping), I get a message from the officer. So, If I want an armed marine to fly shuttles, I have to first order them to prep for combat, then wait for them to finish, then order them to the shuttles. Just ordering the off-duty marines to shuttles will not, by itself, prep the marines for combat. Am I correct or incorrect?

I have a newbie question from an oldie: I've always sent some of my better marines to pilot my shuttles, but I've been prepping them for combat first. After I get the "marines ready for deployment" message, I then order them to their respective shuttles. Question: Does prepping them for combat make them better prepared to fight off intruders trying to steal the shuttle or am I just wasting my time?

Rattler, How many arms/hands/fingers do you have? It sounds like you're playing "Twister," not BC3K.

I use my MS Sidewinder Freestyle Pro, with 17 programmable buttons to control the ship in combat. I have buttons programmed to: enable ECM, match target speed, fire weapons, afterburner, roll the ship, target enemies, dock, set FP target, target ships, etc. I will use the keyboard for minor commands, like switching to Tacops or playing with different views. I used to do most combat manually, but now I let the AI do most of the work. Hey, I have 117 crewmen -- they need to do something!! Also, I want them to improve their AI, and they won't do that unless they are in AI mode. I like to do combat from the bridge view, but I will use Tacops when traveling across several regions. If enemies appear, I will switch to the bridge view. A quick tip: If you use Navitron to set a destination (or FLY TO a priority target that is several regions away) and then try to target an enemy that you find enroute, and you find that your ship wants to keep flying to its original destination, the best way to clear out the old destination is to halt the ship, then ATTACK/NOTHING(DISABLE) (the entry down at the bottom of the list. Pressing the ALT or CTRL-ALT doesn't clear out your FLY-TO target. [This message has been edited by Steve Schacher (edited 08-04-2000).]

You're right that it probably isn't hacking. It's more likely to be a "denial of service" attack, where the perpetrator tries to clog your system and prevent you from using it.