Interplanetary "Finances"

[RyanHoots]

I have hacked my savefile before. I love how it's all in XML, a format I read well.

There's something I never thought I'd see: "love" and "XML" in the same sentence.

XML sure isn't simple (and it's horrible in the context of OXPing), but it's robust enough for me.

[Wildeblood]

I have hacked my savefile before. I love how it's all in XML, a format I read well.

There's something I never thought I'd see: "love" and "XML" in the same sentence.

XML sure isn't simple (and it's horrible in the context of OXPing), but it's robust enough for me.

It was simple once, it was meant to be simpler and it could have been much simpler and still done its job in the context of the WWW. Unfortunately someone introduced Tim Berners-Lee to the concept of "namespaces", he thought that meant another use for his URI invention, and none of his hangers-on at the W3C had the guts to say, "No, Tim, no."

Then some idiots came along and thought XML would be an appropriate format for data storage and transport. All that gave us was nonsense like plist files and endless tiresome debates about whether guaranteed extra bloat was better expressed as <extraBloat>guaranteed</extraBloat> or <guaranteed>extra bloat</guaranteed>*. It is illustrative that Ian Hickson and his collaborators have rebelled against XML in their pursuit of "HTML5", and even more illustrative is the way all HTML5 web browsers nowadays handle <kitchenSink>arbitrary elements</kitchenSink> (not a damned namespace in sight).

But yes, it is good that nearly all the files are in a format that can be edited with a simple text editor, and the devs have resisted any temptation to obfuscate them unnecessarily.

* <bloat><extra guaranteed="true" /></bloat> is the correct answer. Compare the beautiful and elegant: * {bloat: extra} - CSS is good, XML is bad.

[Alex]

I never hacked my save file untill well after being Elite with a few million in the bank.

Simply because I never knew I could. Even then I probably wouldn't have. Cheating really spoiles a game for me, speacially when the game is one player.
Where's the 'game' then??

Must admit though, Now I go in and change my legal status before entering a military station system or seedy bar system.
Only when I need to get maintenance from military or new contract from seedy bar.
Otherwise I don't worry about my legal status.
I let whoever challanges it, worry about that.
Gal has no imunity in these situations. I never 'suppliment' my cargo when they are around and never fire first, just LAST.

To note on another current thread;
This is a huge reason for the addictability of this game, the shear diversity of play.

[onno256]

I also don't hack my savefile. I have however modified my Caduceus Alpha so bits stopped getting shot off.......

Greetz,
Onno.

[Dragonfire]

Hey, DH, you'll be happy to know that I took your suggestion, and I'm playing with just the income I'm getting. That goes for fuel, maintenance, missiles and energy bombs, war bonds, and any other equipment. You were right - it adds a nice element to the game. I dropped myself down to 10 K (less than I had earned legit by this point), and I'm now over 30 K. (Though I did take a dip into my "personal savings" for two super-expensive pieces of equipment I had forgotten to get earlier on, and I plan to pay that back shortly.)

[DaddyHoggy]

Hey, DH, you'll be happy to know that I took your suggestion, and I'm playing with just the income I'm getting. That goes for fuel, maintenance, missiles and energy bombs, war bonds, and any other equipment. You were right - it adds a nice element to the game. I dropped myself down to 10 K (less than I had earned legit by this point), and I'm now over 30 K. (Though I did take a dip into my "personal savings" for two super-expensive pieces of equipment I had forgotten to get earlier on, and I plan to pay that back shortly.)

(It is/was always a very cleverly designed game - I think its is easy to forget just how clever or beautifully balanced it always was)

[Dragonfire]

I kinda realized that when I noticed that the thrill of coming into 500 creds had gone away...I celebrate each credit earned, now.

[DaddyHoggy]

I kinda realized that when I noticed that the thrill of coming into 500 creds had gone away...I celebrate each credit earned, now.

By Jove, I think he gets it...

[Dragonfire]

Yup. I still don't see anything wrong with starting with more, tho...I wouldn't have the time or patience to GET to this point before I would lose all interest in the game. But getting here and dropping back down in creds...that I can get into.