DGA where should it go? (for everyone who has partaken and run dga)

[neotheo]

Darwin is on the internode DSLAM upgrade list so we will have local routing and annex m. This is all DGA will need to host a local game server for CS clan matches/wars and stuff like that.

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=1414951&p=37#r732

Alice Springs has local routing now. Pinging from ASP Telstra adsl connections to darwin based ethernet/shdsl connections has a round trip of 20ms.

[Unseen]

End of the day DGA has to offer what sitting at home in my jocks cant.

I can play games drink piss and sleep in my own bed, without the headache of packing up my pc and lugging it too another venue.

Not a negative comment, but more so there needs to be something (beyond face to face) that a Lan can provide that sitting at home cant. Figure that out, and the numbers will grow again.

[Bald Eagle]

Just got gamers underground, even though I am not attending DGA that frequently anymore, I will still like to make a contribution. This is constructive critisism, but some of you may not take it too kindly, but please, hear my word.

1. Don't play WoW at a LAN, this is one of the reasons why I am not attending, and this is the same reason for some of my other friends. If your going to play a net game, stay home, before you give me shit about the games we play being net BUT also LAN, this is true. But the beauty of a LAN is the atmosphere, competativeness (terrible spelling) and the fact we get 0 ping and no one from the outside world can join our servers, and also to meet up with friends and meet new people.

2. I have noticed the water mark on the DGA website says "last edited Jan 17 2011" This is pure proof your just copying and pasting the timetable along with the contests, and may I also point out Dragon that's also why people keep asking you "Is there a SCII 2v2 comp?" and Im one of them, dont get shitty with them when that is on the website.

3. STICK TO THE SCHEDULE! Even if there are prizes and giveaways on the timetable, but cant be done at the LAN, thats fine, just host a tournament for the fun of it. Another reason why I don't come along.

4. I have no clue what happened to the whiteboard we used to have, or maybe Im oblivious, do poles to see what games people have installed or have, even though some games can be pirated and given to people, its still VERY time consuming into the night.

That's all I have to say, please note I AM VERY WILLING TO HELP WITH THE LAN!!! Whether its setting up or organising the timetable of games, Thank you for reading and plz take on board on what I said

[Bald Eagle]

And PLZ tell me if there are some facts I may have misinterpreted or somewhat false

[Wishful Thinking!]

I agree that WoW is one of the most played games at DGA along with other games very much alike, I'm up for alot of Q3A/CSS Action. I host an online server for Q3A (have ever since 2007 with a pause in it while I moved to the rural area) - When I lived in Knucky's Lagoon, only 5 kilometers away in Karama players got 160ms, and I'm very much aware of the ATM Packets coming from Adelaide, and on 3G Wireless it's worse becuase it can stay in Perth for 6+ months at a time, and ping to a sydney server is 180ms and over, and locally can be 250>320ms, but no longer being on 3G that is not a problem for me (They finally put a CMUX/ISAM 2.7 kilometers from me, which has 18 kilometers of fiber back to the Noonamah exchange), Ping now (for locals and southerns) are lower than ever before, what used to be 130 for players in SA is now seeing 75/85 while Bald Eagle from Fanny Bay to Acacia get's a nice 100-105ms where before was 160+. however having said that Xolares has joined my server from Palmerston and get's 180-200ms (caused by population overflow at the exchange so I was told)

I have asked about and even researched about ATM Routing, but there were no signs of getting Internet routed from Darwin anytime soon, so we too could have <30ms over the 60 kilometer distant across town, Maybe then my Gaming NT Q3A Server would be more successful.

[sneak]

End of the day DGA has to offer what sitting at home in my jocks cant.

I can play games drink piss and sleep in my own bed, without the headache of packing up my pc and lugging it too another venue.

Not a negative comment, but more so there needs to be something (beyond face to face) that a Lan can provide that sitting at home cant. Figure that out, and the numbers will grow again.

I think you hit the nail on the head.

Things that make me want to go to a LAN:

1. Social aspect of seeing gamers that you haven't seen IRL since the last lan.

2. Competitive play with very low ping and the ability to yell and cheer across the room.

3. Showing off your PC and looking at other peoples rigs.

I don't know what your current strategy is but I think you need to be recruiting 15/16/17 year olds who haven't been to a LAN before. That's how old my friends and I were when we got into LAN gaming.

I haven't lived in Darwin for years but I will be heading back up there soon and wouldn't mind getting involved.

Over the last 18 months I have been to a few LANs in brisbane and here are some things I noticed:

1. Tightly run and well organised schedule.

2. Projector showing schedule, basic info, current round/game info and intranet site address.

3. Intranet site with schedule including version numbers and patch files, DC++ client download and instructions, and other general event info to save the organisers from repeating themselves 1000 times.

4. DC++ for file sharing.

5. There was always an organiser who was "on duty" at the time and not playing any games.

[Lothar]

I have asked about and even researched about ATM Routing, but there were no signs of getting Internet routed from Darwin anytime soon, so we too could have <30ms over the 60 kilometer distant across town, Maybe then my Gaming NT Q3A Server would be more successful.

I am pretty sure you have seen this mate http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archi...4951#r28391366 but as soon as the nextgen backhaul gets lit and these dslam's are installed you will get local routing I am sure.

[Wishful Thinking!]

yeah I saw that.

Noonamah Exchange isn't mentioned. However, I don't see why it would be still routed from SA, While (to be), Palmerston only 15 kilometers down the Stuart highway towards town gets locally routed, so I think the Noonamah one will get upgraded too. This would give the northern territory so much more opportunity to do more things.

[Lothar]

I would imagine telstra would purchase to use some of the nextgen rollout also. So they in theory would do local routing cause in the end it is cheeper for a lot of packets.

[Wishful Thinking!]

yes, they would be insane not to have apart of it. Let's hope Gilard can stay in power long enough before an election is called, and Abbot get's in, and stops what is currently done, and just use that.

I read around 25Th November 2010 that a crew of 19 men are on their way to Darwin from Tennant Creek rolling out fiber, wonder how they are going with that at (I think) 2KM/day

[Fool32]

I agree with Bald eagle points, wow at lans is shit because half the people didn't want to play lan games.

Need an organised competition of some sort. The main reason I came to my first lan was because of local competition (SC2), but any good lan game. I remember the days of AOE2, GTA CS - games that you can hear to screams of your enemy and him bashing his keyboard.
I think the major problem is getting a game of some sort organised and running. Even when we play that Warcraft ship game, at like 2am, takes about a 1hr to get everyone to want play it.

I love the guys at DGA and work you put in and I guess at the end of the day its hard to get everyone to agree on a game

P.S file sharing another reason to attend.

[Wishful Thinking!]

I agree with Bald eagle points, wow at lans is shit because half the people didn't want to play lan games.

Need an organised competition of some sort. The main reason I came to my first lan was because of local competition (SC2), but any good lan game. I remember the days of AOE2, GTA CS - games that you can hear to screams of your enemy and him bashing his keyboard.
I think the major problem is getting a game of some sort organised and running. Even when we play that Warcraft ship game, at like 2am, takes about a 1hr to get everyone to want play it.

I love the guys at DGA and work you put in and I guess at the end of the day its hard to get everyone to agree on a game

P.S file sharing another reason to attend.

Q3A is always an option - I spent the following day digging out detailed statistics for each player. It would be great to have a CTF/TDM in it, as we've only ever done FFA due to lack of interest

[craZy C]

Firstly to the current and past organisers I commend you - been there done that and fully appreciate where you are coming from.
Being of the old school, as several of us are, I can safely say that what primarily took me away was the lack of ground level support combined with simply growing out of it.
The few that got heavily involved were ridiculed by many yet those few continued to try and put on the best event possible that culminated in an EVO. The comraderie (spelling) is what really made the Big DGA lan's of the past. Clan wars got the adrenalin pumping.

Trying to please everyone simply cannot happen but what it did do was lead to better Lans, that is until I believe the pandering to the wishes of others got out of hand.

It got to a stage that if some of us were not sharing massive movie or game collections bitching would start, if servers or infrastructure failed or wasn't up to scratch again the bitching would start.

Solutions : No crystal ball here.
I would begin by returning to the old school way and modernize it.
Set up an intranet, limit leaching and time frames for leaching.
Set up a projector with real time information and in-game play.
Prepare your Lan several months out with 1 Major tournament (squad based) and 1 major single player.
Set up ranking rounds via your server idea to determine seedings.
Photos, Photos and more photos - i noticed the website does not have any there anymore ??

Now I understand that these things may have already been attempted in 1 way or another but you have to stick to your game plan and do not deviate to pander for others, there opportunity will come next lan.

As Kurt said what can I do at DGA that I cannot do at home with less hassle. Many of us now have children, mortages or like me are just too dam old to be bothered anymore.

Maybe have a Back to the Future Lan and get all the Old School Crew back together to kickstart DGA again. The Syndicate, TOB, Screaming Buckets just to name a few..... check out the Archived DGA Forums here and you will see what I mean.

[Bald Eagle]

Yes, I think scrambling up teams is somewhat shit. I mean c'mon who deosn't like to be on the same side as their friends, I think games like counter-strike: source are perfect for gettin a team together and thrashing everyone. It's what I miss from DGA, the competetive atmosphere, bring it back. The vibe was pretty good with DGA, but it died, I will attempt to bring along several friends to the next one and see if we have any success

[Wishful Thinking!]

Yes, I think scrambling up teams is somewhat shit. I mean c'mon who deosn't like to be on the same side as their friends, I think games like counter-strike: source are perfect for gettin a team together and thrashing everyone. It's what I miss from DGA, the competetive atmosphere, bring it back. The vibe was pretty good with DGA, but it died, I will attempt to bring along several friends to the next one and see if we have any success

+1
And Q3A