Progress < 0

Just to let ya'll know, I haven't forgotten to put everything up, just been busy with stuff.  My dad killed himself a week before father's day (over his wife, though alcohol and prescription drugs were involved), and my mental capacity to focus on, well, anything has been pretty pathetic.  However, I did update the BTE site with the 4 new 3145 TRO's, so as of today, they are 100% updated, including fluff data and images.  Even though I won't be doing BT stuff for a while (alpha strike and/or IO *may* change that) I will be keeping the database updated.  I spent too much time on it to let it fall behind.  If you see any broken PDFs or stupid quick strike sheets let me know, 6000 is just too many to check manually :)

I blew $3200 on the Robotech Kickstarter, and am now anxiously awaiting the miniatures.  The Palladium game sucks so horribly though, not sure how any game they make from their RPG could do anything else.  But at least I got the miniatures coming finally! 

In other news:
- I started converting the 5th Frontier War to PC.  Got quite a bit done in 1-2 days, then got unmotivated again.  It was a prototype for some interfaces for my eventual full scale strategic game.
- Lots of work making robotech tactics cards, but nothing final yet.  Feel free to look at them at http://goodsects.gotdns.com/rrt.  Also made a character generator at http://goodsects.gotdns.com/rrt/zcg
- Got RemoteFX working on my server, allowing me a Hyper-V windows 7 installation that I can RDP to and play games on.  Pretty cool, not great, but pretty cool.
- Lots of issues with my car, but its still cheaper to fix an old one than buy a new one... by a lot.
- Spent too much on various kickstarter projects and games.

Anyway, I'll eventually get focused again... eventually.

When Alpha Strike comes out, I may go tweak my quick strike cards to support any changes they made to the system.  I will however continue to use computers to determine best factors in each range band, instead of the stupid method they use now which unbalances some units quite a bit.

I still check the forums occasionally, but I come across threads like this and I'm like "why the hell did I write the best infantry platoon designer out there, if nobody uses/remembers it?!?!?!"... then I remember that was a good reason for my interest waning in the first place.

Oh well, enjoy your summers.

Exodus

Well I got my official answer of 'no', and though I accept it, some of their logic was kinda hypocritical IMO.  Oh well, This blog will be dying as soon as I get all the resources together for anybody who may be interested.  I'll post a note letting people know when I'm done with updates.... if anybody wants to take it over email me.  If new page views drop below a couple a day I may just delete it.

For those who have some development skills, I wrote everything in vb.net and it could all be converted to C# rather easily.  Here is a list of stuff I was working on, that I will not finish, as well as various other things I'll be putting up... space permitting:

• Aerotech game, using DirectX, top view.  Most of the code has been written, some stuff remained for the map interface as well as turn sequencing.
• Infantry Platoon Builder.  I actually already released this.  It could use some more polish, and probably some errata, but it is the only utility I am aware of that'll let you create infantry platoons.
• Mech builder.  This utility allowed you to build mechs, industrial mechs, superheavy mechs, and LAMs.  Needed a GUI.
• Vehicle builder.  This utility allowed you to build support vehicles and combat vehicles of all types currently in the game.  Needed a GUI.
• Character builder.  This allowed you to make characters.  I did much of the design, but needed to put in some of the newer career paths.  Needed a GUI.
• Building Builder.  This let you create structures, mobile structures, and combine those together into a single base.  Needed some of the base merging code, as well as a GUI.
• Aerotech Builder.  This let you build jumpships, warships, dropships, space stations, small craft and aerospace fighters.  Again, needed a GUI.
• Battle Armor Builder.  Just that, again, no GUI.
• Protomech Builder.  GUI.
• Counter maker.  This made counters from Quick/Alpha strike statistics.  This was so you could play a game without needing any record sheets, allowing for much larger games.  
• Random system generation using the rules from Explorer Corps, as well as the new test IO rules.
• My BTE site, that pulled up all the units in the game, printed record sheets, created Quick/Alpha strike sheets, etc.  You can view this by going to http://goodsects.gotdns.com/bte
• Record sheet creator.  This created the record sheets in TRO 3063, which were far more accurate than those on the BTE site.
• Battle simulator. Basically enter an average terrain to hit and movement modifier, and any 2 units, and it'll run through a thousand iterations to figure out which one is best.
• Cartographer.  This was done a while back and released to download, never really finished as I was waiting for HBHK to come out to finish the data.  Volt took over the data entry for system coordinates.  The next version was going to use XNA... oh well.
• Tool to view the maps in Megamek, dynamically change their hex theme, released.
• Icon creator.  This created the unit icons based on those in Strategic Operations.  Mostly worked, but I had some questions that never got answered and it stalled.
• Website die roller site
• Tool to take a list of systems, and print out a big-honking hexagonal map for playing larger games.
• Player finder site
• Application to rip data from ISAtlas.com
• Application to rip data from Masterunitlist.info
• Much of a program that'd let you basically play megamek in real time (those kinda graphics, but real time and online, not turn based).
• A lot of work on the succession wars game I was planning, basically a game allowing you to be a house leader and control every unit.
• A full database in excel with every single unit every produced in battletech, with book/page references, as well as all data needed to recreate their TRO or inputting into Megamek or a designer.  I also have links to their images, both record sheet and TRO.  The file is about 11mb in excel and has 5759 entries.  I have links to the MUL if it exists on it.  Not everything has the TRO text data, about 40%, but many things have no TRO data so the number may be higher.  There is also a file that is needed by this one that has all the equipment in the game (it will need updating based on recent errata).  This includes everything you need to design units, and if made modular enough (not like SSW, HMP, or MML) it can be extended without new code whenever CGL adds some new technology.
• Much of the work for an online record sheet tracker you could use on your phone or tablet, instead of printing.  It'd keep track of your units, the BV at any given point, as well as the time/costs for repairs.
• A daunting amount of data entry for battletech I've done over the years.  Not only that, but many various ideas thrown in there as well.
• An absolutely huge amount of battletech stuff.  From graphics, logos, house rules, basically just huge amounts of things I've downloaded off the web over the last 20 years.  It totals about 22GB, and I don't believe has anything "illegal" in it, though it does have lots of art from the game.
• I have purchased everything in the game PDF, and since I won't be using them anymore there is just one of you who I'll send them too.  I have about 15GB in that folder.
• I will be putting together an absolutely huge amount of BT stuff (maps, books, novels, mostly miniatures) out for sale soon.  I'll start with craigslist as I *really* (and I can't stress that enough) have no desire to box up dozens of boxes of miniatures and stuff and take them to UPS stores for delivery.  I'll accept pretty much anything in trade if your local, and would love to do some form of donation thing... maybe some big BT fan is down on their luck, or knows some non-profit that wouldn't mind selling them all.  I'd give it to them freely.  Maybe I'll take them all to Origins and give a miniature to everybody who walks in the door or something (well the first thousand or so)... though I'm not sure I'll go.  I just know I have zero desire to mail them out, don't need the money, and have zero desire to have them anymore.

Anyway, I'll get most of that stuff zipped up into big files, perhaps torrents, for those of you who want the data, as soon as I get a round to it and parse it for IP infringing data.

As for me?  Well I'll be withdrawing out of the Battletech community.  I won't say forever, but I can't imagine getting my mind changing.  I was devoting some work to Federation and Empire, but the interest there is extremely low.  I figure I'll either just decide to design my own game, find some new game to devote my free time to, or just work on a couple enterprise level products for companies that would allow me to retire early.  I dunno yet.

I'm not, in any means, leaving the web or disappearing all together.  I'll still have my 16 year old yahoo email account, and will always answer it even if it is about Battletech (like questions on all the stuff I listed above).  I'll always help anybody who asks, as it is my idiom, I simply won't be actively trying to support the community anymore.  I'd be find helping out for anybody taking over my code so the BT community can finally get some decent design software.

I'll probably leave my BTE site up for a while, until it starts to suck up too much CPU or space.

So, unless somebody wants to pay me, 20 of you get together and hound me daily for new software, or Herb/Randall ask me nicely to write them some software.... I'm done, sorry to have disappointed a few of you who stuck around.

Download links coming soon...

24,853 views

One last shot!

2 things, one stupid, one important.  Stupid first.

I have to stop chatting and having interactive communication online.  Facts are that many people can't understand "where I'm coming from", and online people have a tendency to get VERY defensive, VERY quickly.  Ironically, they are the first to use the term "Troll", when most Trolls are just "trying to get a rise out of you", and you let them by referring to that term.  I have to avoid these situations, I think very differently than anybody I've ever known, and not many people can understand my points.  I have to remember this, and like everybody I feel sometimes my opinion is important, I think it is better if I just avoid voicing it in a forum where people are in their homes, and not likely to accept anything they don't already think is truth with anything but aggression.  

This blog is ok, though I may piss people off sometimes, it isn't really interactive, and most people don't bother posting.  *I* don't get mad at people online really, it makes me feel bad that people can get so irate over words, but it is *very* hard to get me "pissed off", just ask my wife ;)

Anyway, the important thing now, for the .5 readers that are still reading ;)

I am giving Battletech one last shot.  In the next few days, I'll write the official Forum folks apologizing for breaking their rules (2 times I referenced politics, 3 times mentioned I was bringing things to a LGS to sell, so I wasn't banned for being a douche or anything) to see if they will enable me again.  I'll be nice, and cordial, and ask in a serious manner.  The reason is, I'm a form of vampire online.  I have time, skills, and desire to do all sorts of things for various games.  However, I have to have feedback to keep going.  If I don't have, well, a fan club, of people giving me input and anxiously awaiting some new product I'm working on, my mind starts to think "why would I write this for just me and 2 other people?".  The official forums are really the only place I can find enough supporters of Battletech to "keep me fed", for lack of a better saying.  I know I'm in some way mentally deficient for this requirement, but I also like big boobs, and can't seem to control that either...again, ask my wife ;)

So, I'll ask if I can be re-enabled.  Upon doing so I should be able to have enough support to finish my web based unit (*every* type of unit) editor, record sheet generator, cost/availability/year validation stuff, online record sheet tracker, Quick/Alpha Strike converter, my Cartographer, etc, etc... 

But if they say no, which is totally ok and understandable, I'll zip up all my Battletech stuff, throw it online for ya'll to leech, and walk away.  I'll sell about 80% of my miniatures (regiments worth) on ebay, starting for $1 (I don't need the money, and they suck up space).  I'll stop checking the forums, stop keeping up with current Battletech events, and maybe even try to back away from miniature based gaming.  It'll be a rough transition, but I can then start writing non-game type software for corporation server monitoring, which though less fun, is by far more profitable.

On a side note, if you know exactly who I should contact at CGL it'd help.  I'll post the end result whenever I get an answer, and will always answer my emails.

RS 3075 Done! (and other musings)

533 pages, wowza, but I've updated all the entries.  Luckily, the second half went far faster than the first, with lots of battle armor/protomechs that are quick to update.  I also kinda slowed down on verifying some data, so there may be some updates from the most recent RS 3075 that were not in previous versions.  Sorry, but they should turn up if people actually start using the site.

Speaking of.  This kinda amazes me.  I read the official forums, and it is amazing how many people are asking for stuff that I have on my site.  Not only are people not telling others about it, but the people searching apparently aren't using google, which my site comes up pretty fast as.  Heck, google "goodsects WHM-6R", or any mech you like, and see how quick you can see the results.  It seems that nobody is spreading the word of all the work I've done, and its discouraging to think I'm only doing this for me, and a couple of my readers, and *I* don't even play it anymore.  The speed of my development is directly proportional to the number of people asking about it.  While I appreciate the few of you who do occasionally comment and visit the site, it just seems there aren't very many folks.

That being said, my "fuel" for development of my Federation and Empire assistant (aka a Cyberboard replacement) is running out, and interest in that has waned as well, so I haven't touched the code for it in I think a month now, even though it was 90% on its way to an alpha release.  Not saying I won't finish it, but again, without that much interest, I get bored and move on.

I have started playing with XNA, which I may be able to port some of my code to and it *might* speed up, but will require DirectX.  This would mostly affect my mapping program, but could also affect anything game related I do.  If I get some more interest I may write a top down, 2D, real time version of megamek that lets you drive around a persistent planet, with other folks, and fight out battles.  Who knows where that'll end up.

Ok, back on track to this site.  Now that I've finished updating my data I am going to start working on a completely NEW site.  I'll copy/paste a lot of the same stuff, but will be starting from scratch.  I'll make it a bit more modular so I can more easily make a few updates.  I've since also figured out a better method to create a dynamic easy to update database which I'll implement.  I'll also fix many of the bugs, and get record sheets for *ALL* units working (with hexes as an option, but circles default) using the same methods I made for the fan made TRO 3063.  This includes updates to all the Quick Strike (soon to be Alpha Strike I think) cards that I've made, and options to use canon data or my own calculations that are far more accurate (as computers so often are).

My current plan, of course subject to change:

Phase 1:  Recreating the search and search results pages

Phase 2:  TRO views of everything

Phase 3:  Record sheets

Phase 4:  Quick Strike style sheets

Phase 5:  Creating the user interaction stuff, like creating accounts and saving unit lists

Phase 6:  Unit validator (enter in your stuff, it makes sure years/costs/BV/availability is correct)

Phase 7:  Online unit designer. It'll be ugly, but it'll be better than *anything* else, and allow construction of *every* type of unit within the game, including things like mobile structures, bases, and even characters

These may be done at any time, depending on mood:

Phase A:  Add support for planets/systems, much like the IS Atlas

Phase B:  Redo the Cartographer app, hopefully HBHK will be out and Volt will be kind enough to shoot me all the updated data

Phase C:  Real time version of megamek, but with you only having a single unit.

Data Entry

Just a minor update, looks like I'm heading towards updating Battletech again.  However, the Robotech Kickstarter may end up halting any progress for a while... maybe.

I've entered in every unit from every source now, except I still have yet to finish the RS 3075 533 page record sheet book.  I'm about a third done.  Soon as I finish updating that, I'll start working on the new site.  I'll move over my new code for record sheets and design validation, and hopefully by that time errata will be good on quick strike so I can update the code for those conversions.  I'll have an option to see *MY* conversions, or CGL conversions.  I'll have both as I know the CGL version will stick with BV, and the two don't match up the same as they do in regular Battletech.  I'll be using the superior power of a computer to calculate the best damage at every range band, to give more realistic damage breakdowns.  I'll also allow different divisors, so you can do a 1:5, or 1:1, or 1:20 if you so desire.  I'll also include a system to scale up to division strength.  To do this I'll just average stuff up.  For example, say you want each maneuver element to be a company with 3 sub-elements, each being a platoon.  This way you can fight out a battle 4x as large in the same time.  I'll average up the values for each lance, remove things that don't apply to 50% or more of the lance, and sum them up so it looks like a single mech now, but is really the combined value for a lance.  I'll do the same thing all the way up to division levels, meaning each unit is a regiment.  

I'll also add support for creating lists, and *try* to get support to track your damage on a tablet/PC/phone so you can finally stop killing trees or eating through grease pencils.

Anyway, still probably a couple months out, but at least I'm doing something with Battletech again!

Robotech!

It is finally on kickstarter!!!  Go give them some money here!

I was really tempted to do the $3600 thing, but wasn't sure of what Gloval's Report has in it... maybe I'll upgrade later.

As it has only been up a few hours, and already has $15K out of the $70K they wanted, I'm pretty darned sure this will get funded.

I just hope the game itself is great.  $260 for 70 or so miniatures is a great deal, and they are all in Battletech scale!

Unseen no longer!

$100 for a Marauder on Ebay no longer!

Woot, I'm super happy today!

Slight Progress!

I went through and entered all the units for TRO 3145.  I also extracted/named the images from the RS 3075 update, as well as XTRO 1945.  So I've actually done some BT work for a change!

I started digging in to redo my code that creates BF/QS data.  My version I think was far superior to the published version, as I had a computer doing things like "best case" calculations at every range band, giving stats more in line with the regular game.  However it wasn't very modular.  I'll be redoing it totally, but after perusing the BT forums that I am still banned from, it looks like they'll be doing some updates to the way stuff is calculated.  So, I'll be delaying any work on it until that is done.

I'm also thinking of a BF/QS play aid for phones/tablets.  It'll be a website, not an app, so it'll work with everything.  It'll be very similar to the Ogre War Room app out there, but have QS/BF data instead.

I also started tinkering with making a mech game.  There would be 2 scales at first.  There would be a tactical scale, where each counter is 1 mech/tank/platoon, and a strategic scale where each counter is from a company to a battalion.  They would be separate combat systems, but I will try to make them work together.  All the data needed for play will fit on a business card.  I initially tried to make it a 5/8" counter, but I wanted a bit more uniqueness than those counters could hold.  I can release little business card sets for various divisions or special units, and you can use the same counters that come with the standard game.  I will use BT for inspiration, but the game will play a bit more like QS.  I'll do an impulse system for movement, as the you-go-i-go system has some major flaws, and this will speed up movement as you only ever move a hex or two at a time.  I will have sensor rules, that will be extended quite a bit from the AEP/ECM rules in BT.  I'll have more unique factions as well, and units will be unique between them.  Anyway, still tinkering with the idea and base design.  If I come up with something solid, I may kickstarter it or just find an on-demand publisher.

If what I'm currently working on for Star Fleet Battles/Federation & Empire falls through, I'll get back on the Battletech bandwagon.  I've learned a lot doing it, and could knock out a QS computer version pretty quickly now.