Yes, NationStates 2 is one step closer to a baying public! Those who applied to be on the beta now have a chance of taking part in the game in its (still early) stages. Remember that the game isn't finished yet and new features are still being added.
A random five hundred applicants will be given keys to access the game. Remember to make sure you register with the e-mail address in your NS1 settings or you won't be able to use the nation name you (presumably) registered. Those, like the dunce I am, who already made this mistake will have to wait for the admins to fix this for us.
Gradually, more people will be invited until the open beta is launched. Then, soon, the game will be complete, excepting the odd enhancement and bug fix every now and again.
NationStates 2 Blog announcement
I've created a nation called Meticulous Care until I can get Sirocco. I'll maybe post my views and comments on NS2 within the next few days. In the meanwhile, check out the new NationStates 2 FAQ. It is very exciting.
19 August 2008
14 August 2008
NationStates YouTube Video Round-Up
NationStates, being a text-based game, does not exactly lend itself to the creative thinking that goes into making YouTube videos.
Nevertheless, there are those that have tried.
Cordova - A Memory: I am not entirely sure what all this is about, but the sad mournful music accompanied by pictures of handsome young men, various images from NationStates, forum posts, and other random images gives an effect which is oddly hilarious.
Hitler vs. Raiders: your founder can't help you now.
NationStates Issues Commentary: this is genuinely interesting (to me at least), one of our users, Kushin Los, has decided to document the progress of his nation on video camera by reading issues aloud and evaluating his decision. It's rather odd to hear something you've written being recited by a complete stranger half a world away. Check them out, just don't expect the video to be as interesting as the audio.
I've set up a thread in the Got Issues forum for anyone wanting to comment on these videos.
Nevertheless, there are those that have tried.
Cordova - A Memory: I am not entirely sure what all this is about, but the sad mournful music accompanied by pictures of handsome young men, various images from NationStates, forum posts, and other random images gives an effect which is oddly hilarious.
Hitler vs. Raiders: your founder can't help you now.
NationStates Issues Commentary: this is genuinely interesting (to me at least), one of our users, Kushin Los, has decided to document the progress of his nation on video camera by reading issues aloud and evaluating his decision. It's rather odd to hear something you've written being recited by a complete stranger half a world away. Check them out, just don't expect the video to be as interesting as the audio.
I've set up a thread in the Got Issues forum for anyone wanting to comment on these videos.
NS2 Name Reservation
If you worried that you might not get your favourite nation's name for the eagerly-awaited sequel, then fear no longer - we have name reservations. Simply follow the instructions on the link in the middle of your nation's spotlight page and make sure you're using the e-mail address you want to confirm your reservation in your settings.
You can find more news on this with these links:
NationStates News
NS2 Weblog
Also, you can join the discussion about the NS2 reservations in the Technical forum.
You can find more news on this with these links:
NationStates News
NS2 Weblog
Also, you can join the discussion about the NS2 reservations in the Technical forum.
09 August 2008
Sisters Of NationStates
Two posts in one day! Who'da thunk it.
OMAC Industries, which owns NationStates and is developing NationStates 2, has also acquired some other games which I thought I'd mention here. I'm neither encouraging or discouraging anyone to play these, just sharing some information about the other gaming sites in the OMAC 'family'.
First off, the two Swirve games:
Earth: 2025, a contemporary nation simulator which first rose to prominence in 1996 or so. In it you can build alliances, wage war, and other numerous national management things. They also have forums.
Utopia is more of a fantasy-orientated nation simulator, in which you can be a specific fantasy race (elves, dwarves, etc.) and ally with or wage war against other 'kingdoms'. Their forums can be read here.
The most recent acquisition of OMAC's is a game called Trukz, a 'trucking simulation' where you take the role of a lorry driver, transporting goods from one place to another. Their forums are here.
Trukz was invented by Kevin Marks, the creator of Cyber Nations. I'll let that sink in for a moment.
In other news, NationStates has been, quite frankly, ripped off by the makers of a FaceBook application called Nations. Not so much as an 'inspired by'. It's rather similar to the whole Scrabulous affair (if you don't know about it, look it up).
I'm not aware of any intent to complain officially about the application, and there probably isn't any need to do so. We'll just have to wait and see what happens.
OMAC Industries, which owns NationStates and is developing NationStates 2, has also acquired some other games which I thought I'd mention here. I'm neither encouraging or discouraging anyone to play these, just sharing some information about the other gaming sites in the OMAC 'family'.
First off, the two Swirve games:
Earth: 2025, a contemporary nation simulator which first rose to prominence in 1996 or so. In it you can build alliances, wage war, and other numerous national management things. They also have forums.
Utopia is more of a fantasy-orientated nation simulator, in which you can be a specific fantasy race (elves, dwarves, etc.) and ally with or wage war against other 'kingdoms'. Their forums can be read here.
The most recent acquisition of OMAC's is a game called Trukz, a 'trucking simulation' where you take the role of a lorry driver, transporting goods from one place to another. Their forums are here.
Trukz was invented by Kevin Marks, the creator of Cyber Nations. I'll let that sink in for a moment.
In other news, NationStates has been, quite frankly, ripped off by the makers of a FaceBook application called Nations. Not so much as an 'inspired by'. It's rather similar to the whole Scrabulous affair (if you don't know about it, look it up).
I'm not aware of any intent to complain officially about the application, and there probably isn't any need to do so. We'll just have to wait and see what happens.
Of Avatars And Paedophilia
Absolutely not in combination though!
I've been doing little NationStates-related things this last week due to RL difficulties. I'm poor, living costs in Aberdeen are high, jobs are ludicrously thin on the ground, my rent's been increased, things in my flat keep breaking, and my loan application for the coming year was pitifully small because the application forms are as easy to follow as a VCR instruction booklet that's been translated from Japanese. I've got a lot of phone calls to make in regards to this.
Anyway, the forums have undergone some more changes, the most immediately obvious one being that not only mods may have avatars now. Is this a good or a bad thing? Well, there's a discussion concerning it in Moderation. For us mods it's another thing we'll have to police, so players should try to restrain themselves from using anything offensive.
Also, the NationStates 2 forum has been expanded to have the same subforums as NationStates 1. This is a strange move by OMAC since no one's actually played the game yet. The big question of course is do we really need two General forums? God forbid!
The Paedophilia thread in General has, understandably, caused some controversy as to whether we should be allowing our users to discuss such a harrowing subject. Last time we had a thread on this we suddenly attracted a number of pro-paedophilia posters who were unnerving and unwanted to say the least, so we stopped that thread in its tracks. This time round, however, the debate seems to be progressing with actual reasoned discussion without users agressively trolling on the subject (both advocation and condemnation) which I'm pleased about. We will not support a thread that devolves into the promotion of paedophilia, obviously, but we see no reason to stop people from talking about it.
To put things simply, we're OK with people debating whether it's excusable to like children sexually, but we don't want our users debating about whether it's excusable to act upon it because it's not, and we don't want that sort of thing on our forums. It doesn't sit comfortably with our policies and attracts people we have no interest in attracting.
I'd like to say more issues are on the way, but until I've got past all the financial difficulties I'm facing, I can't do anything.
I've been doing little NationStates-related things this last week due to RL difficulties. I'm poor, living costs in Aberdeen are high, jobs are ludicrously thin on the ground, my rent's been increased, things in my flat keep breaking, and my loan application for the coming year was pitifully small because the application forms are as easy to follow as a VCR instruction booklet that's been translated from Japanese. I've got a lot of phone calls to make in regards to this.
Anyway, the forums have undergone some more changes, the most immediately obvious one being that not only mods may have avatars now. Is this a good or a bad thing? Well, there's a discussion concerning it in Moderation. For us mods it's another thing we'll have to police, so players should try to restrain themselves from using anything offensive.
Also, the NationStates 2 forum has been expanded to have the same subforums as NationStates 1. This is a strange move by OMAC since no one's actually played the game yet. The big question of course is do we really need two General forums? God forbid!
The Paedophilia thread in General has, understandably, caused some controversy as to whether we should be allowing our users to discuss such a harrowing subject. Last time we had a thread on this we suddenly attracted a number of pro-paedophilia posters who were unnerving and unwanted to say the least, so we stopped that thread in its tracks. This time round, however, the debate seems to be progressing with actual reasoned discussion without users agressively trolling on the subject (both advocation and condemnation) which I'm pleased about. We will not support a thread that devolves into the promotion of paedophilia, obviously, but we see no reason to stop people from talking about it.
To put things simply, we're OK with people debating whether it's excusable to like children sexually, but we don't want our users debating about whether it's excusable to act upon it because it's not, and we don't want that sort of thing on our forums. It doesn't sit comfortably with our policies and attracts people we have no interest in attracting.
I'd like to say more issues are on the way, but until I've got past all the financial difficulties I'm facing, I can't do anything.
31 July 2008
OpenId On NationStates
I have to be frank and admit I'd never heard of OpenId before now, but those who do know about this handy internet device can learn more about its NationStates application here. There's also a discussion about it in the Technical forum.
In other news, the forums have some new member titles which has prompted a long discussion. I think the new titles are vastly superior to the old ones, though I'd have preferred there not to be any postcount-based titles and just call everyone 'member'. But the hordes of the General forum probably feel differently.
I've also involved myself with another two small enhancements of NationStates. One is related to the description of a nation's population. Once your population goes over one billion, it's described as massive, when it starts out it's referred to as tiny, and there's a bunch of others too. Well, I thought, since we now have nations pushing twelve (thirteen?) billion, it's high time we revised those descriptors. So I edited the code and sent it off to the admins. If the boss approves, we'll see some new descriptors, and some new parameters for the old ones.
The second feature is something that was suggested to me by e-mail by one of our players New South Hell. It also deals with descriptors, but more specifically the ones following 'renowned/remarkable/notable for its' on the spotlight page. Like this:
The Holy Hippocracy of Sirocco is a massive, economically powerful nation, renowned for its compulsory vegetarianism.
NSH sent me a whole bunch of ideas for new descriptors. This was something I'd actually been planning to do for a while because it's a very easy enhancement to add to the game. NSH did all the hard work though, so why not use it? I refined the list and added the appropriate code for the admins and sent it off. If anyone else would like to submit new ideas for new descriptors, I'll be very happy to compile a new list for submission to the admins. Just send me an e-mail at sirocco@nationstates.net
I don't know when we'll see these changes. Keep an eye out.
In other news, the forums have some new member titles which has prompted a long discussion. I think the new titles are vastly superior to the old ones, though I'd have preferred there not to be any postcount-based titles and just call everyone 'member'. But the hordes of the General forum probably feel differently.
I've also involved myself with another two small enhancements of NationStates. One is related to the description of a nation's population. Once your population goes over one billion, it's described as massive, when it starts out it's referred to as tiny, and there's a bunch of others too. Well, I thought, since we now have nations pushing twelve (thirteen?) billion, it's high time we revised those descriptors. So I edited the code and sent it off to the admins. If the boss approves, we'll see some new descriptors, and some new parameters for the old ones.
The second feature is something that was suggested to me by e-mail by one of our players New South Hell. It also deals with descriptors, but more specifically the ones following 'renowned/remarkable/notable for its' on the spotlight page. Like this:
The Holy Hippocracy of Sirocco is a massive, economically powerful nation, renowned for its compulsory vegetarianism.
NSH sent me a whole bunch of ideas for new descriptors. This was something I'd actually been planning to do for a while because it's a very easy enhancement to add to the game. NSH did all the hard work though, so why not use it? I refined the list and added the appropriate code for the admins and sent it off. If anyone else would like to submit new ideas for new descriptors, I'll be very happy to compile a new list for submission to the admins. Just send me an e-mail at sirocco@nationstates.net
I don't know when we'll see these changes. Keep an eye out.
24 July 2008
OMAC Interviews Max Barry
Check it out: http://blog.nationstates2.com/2008/07/q-and-a-with-ma.html
In other news, the world page buggered up today because the 'featured region' feature glitched. The randomly chosen region that turned up was deemed inappropriate, so we renamed the region causing a giant error message to distort the page. Ah, c'est la vie.
In other news, the world page buggered up today because the 'featured region' feature glitched. The randomly chosen region that turned up was deemed inappropriate, so we renamed the region causing a giant error message to distort the page. Ah, c'est la vie.
23 July 2008
More Forum Work
The changes to the forums are becoming more obvious now with the introduction of ads right in the middle of every single thread. I'm using a Firefox browser which blocks ads, so I'm not affected too much, but of course there're a lot of people who are. Here's some threads where the new changes are being discussed:
Wilgrove's NSG thread
Chaotic Nightmare's Technical thread
Rambhutan's open letter to OMAC
The general consensus is that the ads are obnoxious and in-your-face, interrupting the narrative flow of threads, especially the ones in the roleplay forums. But if we're going to have OMAC pay for the expensive hosting of NationStates and its forums, not to mention the development of NationStates 2, then I think it's something we're going to have to put up with. Oh, and the ads sometimes link to very inappropriate material. If you see any of these ads, please report them to Jolt.
If you really can't bear the ads then download the Firefox browser here.
NoScript and AdBlock are the best add-ons for blocking online adverts I am told.
Finally on the subject of changes to the forums, if anyone has anything to suggest to the Jolt admins about what they'd like on the forums, or are coming across any bugs, then I recommend this forum: Suggestions/Bugs/Feedback
Feel free to comment your opinions on this blog too, I rather miss knowing that anyone reads this thing.
Remember that many changes are forum-wide and can't actually be forum-specific, like the member titles. You know, the annoying descriptors like 'Pimp' and 'Honorary Spam Forum Owner'. Any changes to those happen to all of Jolt's members, not just us. So remember that what you want may not be possible.
Also, NationStates 2 now has its own great big forum for everyone to have fun with, as I subtly mentioned in my last post.
In other news, two of the seven new World Census rankings have appeared, which I'm pleased about. For those who missed them, they were 'Laxest Drug Laws' and 'Most Godforsaken'.
There is also a new issue.
Wilgrove's NSG thread
Chaotic Nightmare's Technical thread
Rambhutan's open letter to OMAC
The general consensus is that the ads are obnoxious and in-your-face, interrupting the narrative flow of threads, especially the ones in the roleplay forums. But if we're going to have OMAC pay for the expensive hosting of NationStates and its forums, not to mention the development of NationStates 2, then I think it's something we're going to have to put up with. Oh, and the ads sometimes link to very inappropriate material. If you see any of these ads, please report them to Jolt.
If you really can't bear the ads then download the Firefox browser here.
NoScript and AdBlock are the best add-ons for blocking online adverts I am told.
Finally on the subject of changes to the forums, if anyone has anything to suggest to the Jolt admins about what they'd like on the forums, or are coming across any bugs, then I recommend this forum: Suggestions/Bugs/Feedback
Feel free to comment your opinions on this blog too, I rather miss knowing that anyone reads this thing.
Remember that many changes are forum-wide and can't actually be forum-specific, like the member titles. You know, the annoying descriptors like 'Pimp' and 'Honorary Spam Forum Owner'. Any changes to those happen to all of Jolt's members, not just us. So remember that what you want may not be possible.
Also, NationStates 2 now has its own great big forum for everyone to have fun with, as I subtly mentioned in my last post.
In other news, two of the seven new World Census rankings have appeared, which I'm pleased about. For those who missed them, they were 'Laxest Drug Laws' and 'Most Godforsaken'.
There is also a new issue.
20 July 2008
Forum Work
There's been a little rejigging of the forums. At the bottom of the screen is a list of all players viewing forums, a counter of how many are viewing each individual forum, and even those viewing the same thread as you. It's quite nostalgic, reminds me of the pre-Jolt days, though the mods' names aren't green this time. We're just plain black. Like civilians. Ah, I jest. Thread displays are now a bit more customisable, and you can send little messages to forum users directly by clicking on their names in the forum. You can even befriend them. Aww. I have a feeling that, as a mod, being able to receive messages directly from anyone clicking my name on the forums may either be really useful or bane of my thread-prowling life. But I survive well enough with the same sort of thing happening on NationStates with telegrams. Out of all the mods, I'm the one with a link to my nation strewn about the site most. Now, moving on, the NationStates 2 forum is missing... oh my god, it's gone! It's the end of days! What will we do now?! Oh, wait. There it is. In a new home.
If you want to discuss these latest developments, check out this thread by Ifreann.
If you want to discuss these latest developments, check out this thread by Ifreann.
17 July 2008
New World Census Rankings
After some brainstorming I designed some new world census rankings for possible addition to NationStates. I am pleased to announce that [violet] has coded (and enhanced) most of these and put them in for me. So keep your eye on the World page. There are seven new rankings that could crop up any day.
General Forum Purge
At some point in the near future, a great whopping bunch of posts and old threads are going to be excised from the General forum. So if there's anything you want to save then direct your attentions to these threads:
Tell us which threads you want archived here.
Comments and discussion goes here.
In other news:
I did a quick tally and I have edited 113 issues and written 4. So out of the 230 issues NationStates has at the time of writing, I'm responsible for over half of them. Go me!
Tell us which threads you want archived here.
Comments and discussion goes here.
In other news:
I did a quick tally and I have edited 113 issues and written 4. So out of the 230 issues NationStates has at the time of writing, I'm responsible for over half of them. Go me!
12 July 2008
Behold: The Tourism Industry!
About five weeks ago, I went through all the old issues fixing as many typos and bugs as I could find (I'm 99.99% sure I found all the bugs) and on top of that, added a new feature to the game. It's only recently that players have noticed the new feature which is, of course, a new industry. Yes, along with the other seventeen industries, NationStates now has a tourism industry which is a very important business in many parts of the world today. I reckon this addition will maybe make players think twice before choosing particular options...
There is no World Census ranking on the tourism industry yet, but there will be soon. In the meantime, if you have any requests for other World Census rankings you'd like to see then send me an e-mail, telegram, or whatever and I'll consider it.
In other news, in startling (and slightly maddening) contrast to my own failure to garner any interest in an NS meet, the New York NationStates Meet is progressing in leaps and bounds. If you're in the area, check it out.
Oh, and I've put a new issue into the game, NationStates' two hundred and thirtieth no less. Enjoy!
There is no World Census ranking on the tourism industry yet, but there will be soon. In the meantime, if you have any requests for other World Census rankings you'd like to see then send me an e-mail, telegram, or whatever and I'll consider it.
In other news, in startling (and slightly maddening) contrast to my own failure to garner any interest in an NS meet, the New York NationStates Meet is progressing in leaps and bounds. If you're in the area, check it out.
Oh, and I've put a new issue into the game, NationStates' two hundred and thirtieth no less. Enjoy!
07 July 2008
02 July 2008
The NS2 Beta Is Here!
As of Monday, the beta for NationStates 2 has launched, and I'm afraid that's pretty much all I'm allowed to say on the subject, except that there's a post about it on the NationStates 2 blog.
I've had a grand total of zero replies on the Scottish NS meet so I'm thinking it's not going to happen. It's a shame but I guess everyone lost interest.
This is also the blog's three hundredth post. Not bad.
I've had a grand total of zero replies on the Scottish NS meet so I'm thinking it's not going to happen. It's a shame but I guess everyone lost interest.
This is also the blog's three hundredth post. Not bad.
29 June 2008
NationStates 2 Beta Approaches...
I think everyone's excited about the latest post on the NationStates 2 blog. Those fortunate individuals chosen to be testers should remember how privileged they are and not leak information to anyone, and those who aren't testers should be responsible enough not to hassle those who are for details.
Moving on, to those interested in the Scottish NS meet I have sent telegrams so please reply. Anyone interested should let me know what time would be best for them (from 27th July onwards to August) and where would be best for them (Aberdeen, Dundee, Glasgow, or Edinburgh). Also I'd like to know where you would be prepared to go to if your favoured city is not ultimately chosen.
Those who frequent the World Assembly will notice two changes. There is no longer a Bookkeeping category and there is no [repeal this resolution] button on the first WA resolution by Maxtopia.
In regards to the first change, I thought it was high time we removed it because we never came to any agreement as to what the Bookkeeping category should cover and so we've just been deleting any proposals submitted under that category. This is both a waste of our time and highly confusing for our players. Perhaps at some later date we'll reintroduce the category but only when we know what it's for.
The reasons for the second change is rather obvious, we can't let the resolution founding the World Assembly be repealed because that would completely undermine an entire section of the site and a great big chunk of the gameplay. We were never sure what we'd do if everyone had voted against the resolution to begin with, but thankfully that didn't happen. Before now we'd been deleting these repeals which, again, was a waste of our time and confusing for the players.
A lot of people have been complaining of problems with the forums. All I can say is bear with us for a while: we're hoping to have it resolved soon.
Moving on, to those interested in the Scottish NS meet I have sent telegrams so please reply. Anyone interested should let me know what time would be best for them (from 27th July onwards to August) and where would be best for them (Aberdeen, Dundee, Glasgow, or Edinburgh). Also I'd like to know where you would be prepared to go to if your favoured city is not ultimately chosen.
Those who frequent the World Assembly will notice two changes. There is no longer a Bookkeeping category and there is no [repeal this resolution] button on the first WA resolution by Maxtopia.
In regards to the first change, I thought it was high time we removed it because we never came to any agreement as to what the Bookkeeping category should cover and so we've just been deleting any proposals submitted under that category. This is both a waste of our time and highly confusing for our players. Perhaps at some later date we'll reintroduce the category but only when we know what it's for.
The reasons for the second change is rather obvious, we can't let the resolution founding the World Assembly be repealed because that would completely undermine an entire section of the site and a great big chunk of the gameplay. We were never sure what we'd do if everyone had voted against the resolution to begin with, but thankfully that didn't happen. Before now we'd been deleting these repeals which, again, was a waste of our time and confusing for the players.
A lot of people have been complaining of problems with the forums. All I can say is bear with us for a while: we're hoping to have it resolved soon.
25 June 2008
Possible NationStates Meet In Scotland
I've decided that since we've had all the UK NationStates meets in England, to which is too far away for me to travel, it would be prudent to organise my own Scottish one. So, anyone interested should check out this thread and let me know if you'd be willing to come. Once we've got a sizeable number of people (anything bigger than three would be good enough I think) we can start deciding the all-important where-and-when of things.
21 June 2008
OMAC Buys Jolt
Gadzooks! I, along with everyone else, was very surprised to hear about the sudden takeover of our forum hosts by the people developing NationStates 2. Either OMAC have much more investment than I previously suspected or Jolt was much cheaper.
So what does this mean?
Well, it explains why there was no hurry to go shifting our forums somewhere else because they're exactly where they're supposed to be. It also means we should see the improvements we've long been waiting for - better controls, better interface (i.e. one that works) and at long last we should be able to free up all the old account names so that players can create nations with the names they want instead of being told that they were reserved by someone who maybe played for a few days many years ago.
If we do get this then all nations that died more than a year ago and weren't deleted by moderators (too much potential for confusion) will have their names unreserved. That was the old plan anyway, things may be changed this time around, we'll just have to wait and see.
The second big change we've all seen is the great big advert at the top of the screen, and obviously I'm not talking about the ads for Max's books. Some may see this as a sad departure from the whole ethos NS had as this wee site created by an author wanting to sell his books without the usual corporate influence, but NationStates is expensive to host and it's perhaps surprising that this hasn't happened before now.
Just remember that the ads are about cost limitation, not turning NS1 into some sort of money-making machine. I think if we were given the choice between a pay-to-play NationStates 2 and a free NationStates 2 with some adverts (which will probably/hopefully become a bit more targeted at some point - I think we've all seen 'The Naughty Button' whatever that is) then most would pick the latter.
In other news, my computer has collapsed again and if I can't get it fixed I'm going to have to wait until autumn before I can (possibly) get a new one. All in all this means I will have less time to moderate and edit issues. It also means that I can't come on to IRC. Sorry 'bout that. In the meantime, I've put a further three issues into the game. The whole 'save up a bunch and then release' thing will just have to wait for another time. Enjoy!
So what does this mean?
Well, it explains why there was no hurry to go shifting our forums somewhere else because they're exactly where they're supposed to be. It also means we should see the improvements we've long been waiting for - better controls, better interface (i.e. one that works) and at long last we should be able to free up all the old account names so that players can create nations with the names they want instead of being told that they were reserved by someone who maybe played for a few days many years ago.
If we do get this then all nations that died more than a year ago and weren't deleted by moderators (too much potential for confusion) will have their names unreserved. That was the old plan anyway, things may be changed this time around, we'll just have to wait and see.
The second big change we've all seen is the great big advert at the top of the screen, and obviously I'm not talking about the ads for Max's books. Some may see this as a sad departure from the whole ethos NS had as this wee site created by an author wanting to sell his books without the usual corporate influence, but NationStates is expensive to host and it's perhaps surprising that this hasn't happened before now.
Just remember that the ads are about cost limitation, not turning NS1 into some sort of money-making machine. I think if we were given the choice between a pay-to-play NationStates 2 and a free NationStates 2 with some adverts (which will probably/hopefully become a bit more targeted at some point - I think we've all seen 'The Naughty Button' whatever that is) then most would pick the latter.
In other news, my computer has collapsed again and if I can't get it fixed I'm going to have to wait until autumn before I can (possibly) get a new one. All in all this means I will have less time to moderate and edit issues. It also means that I can't come on to IRC. Sorry 'bout that. In the meantime, I've put a further three issues into the game. The whole 'save up a bunch and then release' thing will just have to wait for another time. Enjoy!
08 June 2008
Hyperlinks For All And Sunder
Hello, working on plenty of new NationStates issues, about ten in all, three of which are just about completed, only requiring some fine tuning. I'm really quite pleased with the haul I've got from this batch. I'm going to save them all up and release them in one go rather than let them go one by one like I usually do. Why? Just 'cos.
Yesterday we got hit by a spammer who went wandering round some of NationStates' larger regions leaving obscenely long spam messages, but that's been sorted now. We then had our tasklist spammed. Apparently we're all gay.
Anyway, got some interesting links for you guys and gals:
An Amazing Regional Map of the International Democratic Union courtesy of Domnonia. It's really quite an impressive piece of fictional cartography.
Blast's Vexillogical Shoppe courtesy of Jeuna who's taken place of 1 Infinite Loop as the benevolent flagmaker, dispensing his art to those who do not have the wherewithal to create their own.
A potentially interesting discussion about NationStates on mobile phones can be found in the Technical forum. I'd like to see what people think about that.
The World Assembly is voting on its first repeal just two months after being founded. I'll try not to get emotional.
If you're ever stuck for ideas on issues, check out this site: WikiLeaks.org
This site is just brimming with government corruption, and shady dealings. Perfect for budding submitters of the next daily issue.
Finally, if anyone reading has ever wanted to watch someone play Castlevania while relating pithy discourse, then check out the video series 'Let's Play Castlevania' produced by our very own GMC Military Arms.
Yesterday we got hit by a spammer who went wandering round some of NationStates' larger regions leaving obscenely long spam messages, but that's been sorted now. We then had our tasklist spammed. Apparently we're all gay.
Anyway, got some interesting links for you guys and gals:
An Amazing Regional Map of the International Democratic Union courtesy of Domnonia. It's really quite an impressive piece of fictional cartography.
Blast's Vexillogical Shoppe courtesy of Jeuna who's taken place of 1 Infinite Loop as the benevolent flagmaker, dispensing his art to those who do not have the wherewithal to create their own.
A potentially interesting discussion about NationStates on mobile phones can be found in the Technical forum. I'd like to see what people think about that.
The World Assembly is voting on its first repeal just two months after being founded. I'll try not to get emotional.
If you're ever stuck for ideas on issues, check out this site: WikiLeaks.org
This site is just brimming with government corruption, and shady dealings. Perfect for budding submitters of the next daily issue.
Finally, if anyone reading has ever wanted to watch someone play Castlevania while relating pithy discourse, then check out the video series 'Let's Play Castlevania' produced by our very own GMC Military Arms.
03 June 2008
Code Fixes
Some people will occasionally notice that no matter how hard they try they just can't get their economic freedoms to go up, or they can't get their nation to change category, or whatever. Well, I think I may have your salvation, though I wouldn't bet on it.
Over the years, some issues code has slipped in that was faulty and some that has now become defunct. The problem was that these bits of code would get stuck in a nation and then stay there with no way for the player to get rid of it. To put it simply: if your nation got a faulty bit of code that, say, lowered economic freedom, then you'd never be able to raise your freedoms much afterwards. You'd be able to raise them somewhat, but that bit of code would still be dragging them downwards.
But no longer! I compiled a list of the code and handed it over to Pythagosaurus who has done some magic and created an automated system for dispelling the code. When a nation logs in, all the faulty code will be wiped (if present). Eventually, NationStates should be free of all of it and that will be cause for celebration.
A side-effect of the purge is that many nations, particularly older ones, may see their freedoms suddenly spring up or plunge. Don't worry! It's all part of the healing process. After this, your nation will be untarnished and you'll be able to mould your nations to a much more successful degree.
Many thanks goes to Pythagosaurus for making this possible!
Over the years, some issues code has slipped in that was faulty and some that has now become defunct. The problem was that these bits of code would get stuck in a nation and then stay there with no way for the player to get rid of it. To put it simply: if your nation got a faulty bit of code that, say, lowered economic freedom, then you'd never be able to raise your freedoms much afterwards. You'd be able to raise them somewhat, but that bit of code would still be dragging them downwards.
But no longer! I compiled a list of the code and handed it over to Pythagosaurus who has done some magic and created an automated system for dispelling the code. When a nation logs in, all the faulty code will be wiped (if present). Eventually, NationStates should be free of all of it and that will be cause for celebration.
A side-effect of the purge is that many nations, particularly older ones, may see their freedoms suddenly spring up or plunge. Don't worry! It's all part of the healing process. After this, your nation will be untarnished and you'll be able to mould your nations to a much more successful degree.
Many thanks goes to Pythagosaurus for making this possible!
NationStates Advertising Board
While region-browsing I came across a rather interesting little region called the NationStates Advertising Board.
If you want to advertise your region but can't be bothered with the tedious (and frankly obnoxious) spamming of the feeder regions then you should definitely check this place out.
If you want to advertise your region but can't be bothered with the tedious (and frankly obnoxious) spamming of the feeder regions then you should definitely check this place out.
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