JavaScript ain’t Java

[drew]

About coffee.

I once bought raw coffeebeans. Beans that were not roosted.
I had a frying-pan that I did not use so I roosted them there.

Un-roosted beans? You want to be careful around them. I recommend bourbon.

Cheers,

Drew.

[greenseng]

Good coffee. Your speaking my language!

I'll try and speak yours a little better.

On this board lately everyone is talking about the scale of things. How big are the ships, how big are the planets, how fast do the ships go, what are the distances involved, all in this game compared to what the numbers should be in reality.

I've been making the joke that "when I have issues of scale" in reference to my coffee maker and that I use vinegar to remove the scale- the buildup of minerals from boiling water. Same word, different meaning, that's the joke(or the attempt at the joke).

Most people write english so well on this board that I forget that it is not a first language for them. I salute you all and canadians are not bilingual for the most part(except in quebec where it's quite common because french is the first language for many there.)In the future I will remind myself that my humor might not be translating well or even be shared.Oh well...

Well... I am born in Sweden. And I think that if you have to deal with both english and swedish, then it is a good strategy to be born in Sweden and learn english, than the other way around.
Swedish cannot be an easy language to learn if you compare it to english. English seems to be more ... "logical". At least it seems so to me.

When we talk about the scale of things: the size of ships, planets... distances, speeds... it can be an interesting discussion.
But.. that has already been pointed out... Oolite and Elite were not really meant to be simulators. At least not simulators that mirrored and reflected our ordinary universe.
Something we maybe should be rather thankful for.
But if we take a small step outside the logical science and changed some subtle constants - doesn't have to be very much - we could probably end up in a universe that would not be so far from the universe in Oolite.

In "First Encounter", a rather well-known computer-game, I rather fast noticed that an interesting fight between ships, it was just to forget about.
In a "discussion" between two light ships it was the first hits that ended the comparisment of ideas.
If we had two heavier ships it was the amount of shields.
But the idea of pure fighting was gone.

Not that I am very much of a fighter. Something that becomes just so obvious when I see a fight that my son is involved in. It looks like magic to me.
But we are what we are. I am a trader and a miner. Other people may be fighters.
And if you are a trader then... what you don't have in your hands - you have to have between your ears.
A good, strong ship is of the essence. A ship that can handle some hits. And good weapons too is always a good idea.
And sometimes a good strategy will be rather handy too.

Maybe the discussion should be more about something that maybe is referred to as balance.
In Oolite, specially when it comes to the "classical" ships, it seems to follow an almost mathematical formula.
The amount of speed and energy, multiplied ( or added ) to the amount of cargo capacity, should be held constant.
Which means that if you, for example, increase the speed then the cargo capacity must be decreased.
This will of course create some problems for a trader, as when he finds a good trading ship and fills it up with goodies, he suddenly notices that he has become a sitting duck.

If he surrounds himself with some light and good fighters, then he might have a good chance to come home alive. But if he is a lonely wolf...

It took me some time to find a good trading ship. And finally I found one - among the oxp_ships.
It is named " Boa Clipper " and has a good cargo capacity but will still be able to "bite back".
But it is rather expensive. At least for a beginner.

We all start with a Cobra. And it is a very good combination of a fighting and trading ship.
Then I invested in a Python. Much more trading-resources but... ohh sooo slow. Don't even dare to speculate about an Anaconda.
I held on to the milk-routes. Strangely enough I met my first Thargoid there. But there are probably an Universal Goddess that keeps her eyes on stupid and inexperienced traders.
Afterwards I picked up the remaining Thargons. Didn't know that to shoot them down increases the score and still pays a lot.
But.. in the beginning it is the credits that is of the essence - not the score. That comes later.

Then I tried a Python ET. A step in the right direction. Things started to clear up a bit.

Finally I got my Boa Clipper. I just love it. Ohh.. what a diamond for an innocent trader. It is sooo fun when the pirates think that they have a small white rabbit on the hook... just to be aware of that it suddenly has been transformed into a lethal black panther. It always fills me with... let's say amusement.

But there are probably other ships too...

[greenseng]

In HTML, the noscript element contains content that’s only used if JavaScript is disabled or not supported by the browser being used. The content of the noscript tag is ignored if JavaScript is off, and the content of the script element is ignored if JavaScript is on.

I think you have that last line backwards...

Indeed. But apart from that, it was a nice and accurate explanation.

Indeed it was, even if I must confess that I first became a little, well.. let's say puzzled.
But then I think I understood its hmm.. "spiritual" meaning.

[greenseng]

About coffee.

I once bought raw coffeebeans. Beans that were not roosted.
I had a frying-pan that I did not use so I roosted them there.

Un-roosted beans? You want to be careful around them. I recommend bourbon.

Cheers,

Drew.

Bourbon is a brilliant idea.

[CommonSenseOTB]

Greenseng, you have a good common sense way of thinking about things. Good to have you aboard.

If you are bored go tell mandoman you heard he needed a good solid frying pan and does he still need it!(and then duck)

[greenseng]

Greenseng, you have a good common sense way of thinking about things. Good to have you aboard.

If you are bored go tell mandoman you heard he needed a good solid frying pan and does he still need it!(and then duck)

I know. But I think I pass. I am probably not fast enough.

[Switeck]

But we are what we are. I am a trader and a miner. Other people may be fighters.
And if you are a trader then... what you don't have in your hands - you have to have between your ears.

There are also vastly different styles of fighters.
Hit-and-runners, with fast ships that either never get close or don't stay close long.
Snipers that will either overheat their laser/s or kill their target/s before they get within 15 km.
Knife-fighter types that like to get in really close.
Mid-rangers, that like some distance from their enemies but not so far that they have to be an excellent aim sniper.
There are others, more varied than this...and beyond my ability to quickly describe.

How they fight doesn't always describe WHEN they fight. Some go looking for fights, while others typically avoid them. Others just let come what may.

How a player treats random traders -- are they ruthless to score a few extra cargo pods, and slaughters traders...so long as no police are around?

A player need not wear just 1 hat (such as "trader" or "fighter") or even wear only 1 hat at a time.

[Cody]

A player need not wear just 1 hat (such as "trader" or "fighter") or even wear only 1 hat at a time.

We all have our different combinations of 'trades' and 'styles' out there... and our own individual 'codes of conduct'.

[greenseng]

But we are what we are. I am a trader and a miner. Other people may be fighters.
And if you are a trader then... what you don't have in your hands - you have to have between your ears.

There are also vastly different styles of fighters.
Hit-and-runners, with fast ships that either never get close or don't stay close long.
Snipers that will either overheat their laser/s or kill their target/s before they get within 15 km.
Knife-fighter types that like to get in really close.
Mid-rangers, that like some distance from their enemies but not so far that they have to be an excellent aim sniper.
There are others, more varied than this...and beyond my ability to quickly describe.

How they fight doesn't always describe WHEN they fight. Some go looking for fights, while others typically avoid them. Others just let come what may.

How a player treats random traders -- are they ruthless to score a few extra cargo pods, and slaughters traders...so long as no police are around?

A player need not wear just 1 hat (such as "trader" or "fighter") or even wear only 1 hat at a time.

Many times I think it is a question about the "mood" I am in.

In certain moods I use the aft view and use it to take down the smaller ships until it's only the big boy left.
Some shots at him and he usually finds it better to leave the stage.
Or my lasers are over-heated.
In both these cases I slow down the speed and turn the ship around and have access to fresh lasers.
Much better than Elite where the cooling system goes for all lasers.
And I will soon get my reward - a lot of cargo.

But if the adrenalin-level is high...
There will of course be a total different approach.
Much more chances are taken.
But the nervesystem works in a different way.
You have an access to an overdrive.
Your teeth are growing.
But usually it ends strangely well.
But not always. Hrrmm...
Parts of the mind are not as clear as they should be.
The typical sign of a high adrenalin-level.

[greenseng]

A player need not wear just 1 hat (such as "trader" or "fighter") or even wear only 1 hat at a time.

We all have our different combinations of 'trades' and 'styles' out there... and our own individual 'codes of conduct'.

Sometimes I wonder if I am really me in the game.
Or if I take the chance to be someone totally different.
How much the quote: ... well, after all.. it's just a game...
Is affecting me.

A rather interesting thought...

[Smivs]

I'm me , in the game, or at least the heroic me I'd like to be if I really was commanding a starship.

[Cody]

It's the immersion factor... without that, a game is just pretty pictures.
Elite had that immersion factor, as does Oolite... in spades!

[greenseng]

I'm me , in the game, or at least the heroic me I'd like to be if I really was commanding a starship.

I'm not so sure about myself. Love the freedom a game offers.
But... I think that many times I am doing exactly what I would do in reality.
Too many times, I think.

I mean... I am fighting a pirat that actually started the fight.
Suddenly he says: - Please stop shooting. I have a problem here with the ship. ( Or something like that... ).
Okay. I stop and leaves the stage.
Then he suddenly starts to shoot again.
I always feel very, very naive.

[greenseng]

It's the immersion factor... without that, a game is just pretty pictures.
Elite had that immersion factor, as does Oolite... in spades!

Immersion... hmm.. a new word again. Will be good at this language in time.
Guess it means level of absorbtion. That ones focus and concentration increases.
But.. I'm not sure. The web is rather foggy when it comes to this word.
Intuitively I would see it as how much the game "sucks" you in.
How much it stimulates the inside... hmm... "movie", in lack of other words.

[DaddyHoggy]

It's the immersion factor... without that, a game is just pretty pictures.
Elite had that immersion factor, as does Oolite... in spades!

Immersion... hmm.. a new word again. Will be good at this language in time.
Guess it means level of absorbtion. That ones focus and concentration increases.
But.. I'm not sure. The web is rather foggy when it comes to this word.
Intuitively I would see it as how much the game "sucks" you in.
How much it stimulates the inside... hmm... "movie", in lack of other words.

Immersion - the ease of which the "suspension of disbelief" occurs. You know you're not really flying a spaceship, but the game "sucks you in" (as you correctly guessed) and you begin to believe in the universe (or indeed Ooniverse) and accept it for what it is. The breaking of that immersion occurs when something untoward happens that makes you think "oh no, that's just wrong" (for this particular ooinverse).