I am fairly new to SINS and am already working on maps and modding. I have experience in modding Microsoft's "Freelancer" which is very quirky and labrythine but the problem I am having here is using the forum suggestions.
You have stickied posts documenting no longer present features or processes, mixed posts covering several generations of the game with no distinction made when they have been made obsolete by game development, broken links to external utilities--several of which are bugged or not fully functional...etc., etc.
Can we retain an archive of the current forum and start with a clean slate so all the knowledgeable people here can post relating to the current game status and not have it muddied in with all the old postings and references? It's obvious the game is much more mature now and it would help new players jump in.
Areas I have had issues in on the forum have ben code snippets and instructions that relate only to older versions of the game, incomplete explanations, dated posts, some of the bin utilites made by others not working properly and overall a confusion of references to some things obsolete, some still relevant and others no longer present. Not trying to be detailed here just pointing out the broad scope.
Great community, no griping--this is meant as a constructive suggestion.
Thanks
Yeah, in general the actual sticked posts are quite out of date. However, in the (admittingly numerous) following posts the correct information is most likely present... somewhere. Finding recent threads or making your own is probably the best way to get accurate information on specific questions.
I hate the fact that the "quote" button only works in IE and Firefox. So when I'm using my MAc or my iPod Touch in Safari, I can't quote posts
Also the times of the posts update very slow on the forum home page. There's so many problems with these forums I won't even bother saying them all.
Yeah, someone needs to do a general clean-up of the stickies.
@the OP- you could also go to http://danmangames.com/forums/index.php. It is the site of the famous (or infamous?) mod 7 Deadly Sins (colloquially "7DS"), made by DANMAN3712 himself.
The site is home to modders for several games, including: Sins of a Solar Empire, a now complete Fallout 3 mod, and an in-the-works Dragon Age:Origins mod.
generally, i agree that these forums are extremely poorly maintained and presented...
but... a good idea would be to look at the dates of the posts for an idea of how relevant the info is, or else go to the modding forum and use fan made utilities etc... with IC/SD usually the best utilities are made by the fans...
The forums could definitely use some improvement. They're functional, but not as slick as other forums I've used. I guess I'm also not a huge fan of the color scheme. I really think that very light blue or very light grey makes a better forum background color.
So long as the text is readable, I really don't care what the colour scheme is. Just be certain to be mindful of people who are colour-blind.
My main point is it is counter productive (for example) to have a multiple stickied explanations that have fragments of instructions that aren't compatible of how to do a specific thing.
Another example is I hand coded the interstar connecting stars and planets following the directions in several forum posts which basically went, "Do this..oh wait...do this too..no, that's the wrong version..uh..here's the right way to do it" until finally I found a thread that ended with the correct example...and then I discovered Galaxy Forge does it for you (despite forum posts saying it didn't).
It was a "merge" of player understandings from the time of the first beta to the present (with several people posting incorrect descriptions to boot) and no references to the fact that it was not mostly current information. Thikngs like this make the forum close to unusable for the new player.
i generally agree with you that having old data is useless...
but really, if there is a post from 2-3 years ago talking about how to do something... it really shouldnt be a stretch for you to realise that those instructions would be outdated... take some of the responsibility and figure out what is useful or not, just like anything on the net there isnt much accountability and the best thing is to rely on yourself
also, considering how IC/SD will most likely ignore this thread as re-doing the entire forum will cost them time and money with very little returns, its probably not worth your time either
Sigh..archiving (and still leaving accesible) is not difficult or time consuming at all. Neither is beginning a new forum and having the old point to it.
Yes, I have a brain. But things like you have one pertinent response dated a year ago, a comment on that reponse dated a year later and then an updated comment six months later--all discussing the first post of the more than year old thread and with no other posts detailing the information mentioned there.
The game and forum would benefit from a forum that highlights the developed game rather than generations of outdated beta tester comments. I am sure there are lots of people who would agree to populate a new forum or even major thread with sub topics if simply asked and given an outline.
It's meant as a constructive suggestion--it's easy to sit back and explain away the need but that doesn't help. I'll do fine--I'm a smart boy but I am actually thinking of new players who get motivated to step out for the first time..
I say we could start a partner forum for clan wars and stats and questions, etc. the usual.
and they are most likely still unwilling to do it, what does that tell you?
im agreeing with you, but im warning you that it more than likely wont happen for a while
im not a part of IC/SD or anything like that, but from experience in these forums, this is my opinion.
I had noticed afew threads where players with lots of contributions were consolidating and culling their posts on certin topics. Would be great if Stardock did an official thing but players could do this to a great extent. I'm not one of the big posters and wouldn't know where to start myself.
Maybe a directory page in the wiki to actually useful forum posts by category--sor of like the yellow pages for example?
If anyone wants to make an up-to-date version of one of the user-written modding stickies that is no longer maintained by its author, just do it and send me a PM about it and which one it will replace. There's not really any point though in removing those threads that may not be entirely current (but are still helpful) when there's nothing to replace them with.
I'll agree on the above--I don't want a "blank" forum but it would be great if original posters could redo some or update the current ones. There is an "edit" button
okay, a bit of a reality check here.... you are asking people to go through all their old posts and change everything they've referenced to reflect current/new data... and they're not even getting paid...
are you insane? seriously, like i said, use a bit of initiative yourself and look at the dates of the posts to see whether the data is accurate or not. and if there is a broken link, PM someone for a working one...
sure, there are some things that could be made stickies, but the arrogance of you asking people to clean up the forums for you when you can use a bit of common sense instead is staggering
I sense a disturbance in the force...
I'm simply putting it out there. No one has to do anything they don't want to and I am not demanding and waving signs in protest. It would be helpful if ANYONE (obviously not you) would do anything in this direction. Maybe some smart modder will see this and say, "Hmm...I might do that!" or maybe someone at Stardock will go, "Hmm...maybe we can do something." Bottom line is, if no one does nothing, nothing gets done. Can't hurt to bring it up and hear any constructive ideas people have to say.
That's the sort of thing. Even creating a new subforum or the like might help.
And in answer to your query Rez, no I am not insane--are you in anger management? People repeatedly posting responses that are negative and inflamatory and contribute nothing to a thread are typically called *cough* trolls. Maybe start your own thread on "the futility of suggesting change" or perhaps "How to stop billy goats from crossing your bridge.".
and name calling makes you that much better? im not trying to start a fight, but i am getting this massive sense of petulance from you... like someone going to a mod page and screaming "why isnt this mod done yet" or "i dont like that ship make it different" and then not contributing and sitting back waiting for it to be delivered to them on a platter...
except in this case, the solution is easy, use some common sense and fix the problem yourself by looking at dates. i said in my first post
i gave my constructive points, and i stated the reality of the situation. the fact you thought my posts were negative shows all the more that just because im telling you what you dont want to hear, you are going to be petulant and sit back and ask other people to re-write posts from ages ago so that you dont have to use your head as much.
Thats my problem. If people want to fix their posts, fine. if you want to start a new thread asking all the questions you need answers to, then pm'ing Kryo to sticky it for other peoples use, then fantastic, and i applaud you. But asking for it to be delivered to you on a silver platter is immature and childish. There is some more constructive comments for you. do something about it, dont demand it be done for you.
I'm going to try and make a partner forum. Got room for another domain on my account. soasecommunity.com, soaseforum.com, any suggestions? For the style, follow:
http://www.rockettheme.com/phpbb3-styles
and check some of them out. If you have a strong preference, PM me about it or just reply to the style you like best. If you want to help out, mods are going to be needed.
Again, the chances this hypothetical forum would go ANYWHERE depends on three main things:
1. How well this forum is introduced to the Sins community
2. Content and design, mainly content
3. Whether or not Diplomacy will take off.
forums go boom
Yeah...hard to start a new thing but if you fill a niche is fun to do. There is the wiki here and then the forum. Each contains a lot of helpful information but it is randomly organized and quite often not complete. I think SINs appeals to younger as well as older players so the boards might not be quite as mature in presentation as for some other games.
I worked on an open source game some and had success with a web site because when I came into the community there I noticed there was no simple "1...2...3" type set of instructions and while there ws a tone of information on technical things, there was almost nothing for a "green" player that helped move them up the ladder. The entire community was mostly 20-40 year old programmers and they had developed and played the game for years. So I set a very simple site up and it ended up being very popular for a long while--just tips for new players in down to earth language and very simple things about network setups and firewalls--but in plain english with easy to follow examples.
I can't imagine all the categories you could put in a site for SINs--a lot to cover. One thing that would help a lot (for me) would be step by step on the basics in an easy to find section for the different categories.
Maybe topics like: Network Connections, Impulse Issues, Version Compatibility, Game Styles, Strategy Tips, Templates and Scripts... the list can go on--only without the two off topic, incomplete or incorrect instructions for every right one.
Old sales adage, "Customers want simple, fast and fun". I'll be happy to chip in where I can. Let me be an admin and I'll be the first to ban Rez (just kidding). I'll check out the link and PM you.
dominion looks pretty good
I liked dominion too...and here's an example of exactly what I am talking about.
Some one started this http://sinsmodding.dreamhosters.com. It's relatively new but it has definition and is starting fresh on a specific topic. Very helpful.
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