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![]() THE MOTH WEAPONS SURVIVAL LIFE ON TITAN DOWNLOADS SITE SERVICES LINKS ONLINE PLAY OFFLINE CHALLENGES ![]() |
INTRODUCTIONThe first thing you need to consider when hosting an online game is what version of Hardwar you wish to host. Only the newest U2.03 upgrade offers the "Dedicated Server" option which makes managing a contiual world possible. Some people, like myself, don't have computers powerful enough to run Hardwar's patched versions, but most players do. After you decide on a version and whether or not you want to run a dedicated server or just a quick, unsaved online game, just follow the instructions below. Make sure to post your IP address on the bulletin board. The only real difference between running a regular and dedicated game is which radio button you select when the game starts up. There's really not too much to hosting an online game. Most of the technical functions are done automatically by Windows DirectPlay drivers and HardWar itself. The Host of a game is extremely important because he's making the world that others will play in. You will be selecting all of the options of the game. You will also have to post your game information as described below. These instructions center primarily around Hosts connecting with an ISP like Prodigy, Worldnet, Earthlink, etc. IP Addresses and Game Times.These are the two biggest factors for hosts and players. An IP address is the unique Internet address of your computer when you are connected to the Internet. It is a series of four numbers separated by 'dots' (example: 138.43.92.233). The problem with IP addresses is that, if you use an Internet Service Provider, your IP address changes every time you log on to the service. To find out what your current IP address is just go online and then run WINIPCFG.EXE from your main Windows directory. The program will present a lot of connection information, but we're only interested in your IP address. I use a simple piece of freeware called IP Assisstant to find my IP address. You can get a copy of this or similiar freeware at most download sites. The problem with declaring a time for a game is that your fellow gamers will live in different time zones around the world. It can get confusing calculating the differences between time zones. To solve IP and time problems I suggest using the bulletin board on this site. A host would post a message saying he is currently hosting a game and giving his current IP in the message. Players can read these messages and write down the IP to join his game. Detailed instructions are below and there are plenty of expamples on the bulletin board . Another problem that crops up for hosts is that your ISP may close your connection, without notice, if there isn't any online activity for a certain period of time. It might be some time before another pilot shows up so you need to keep your connection alive with some sort of pinger or faker. I use and prefer the shareware Alive and Kicking. Alive and Kicking is sponsored by advertising which you can remove by registering the software. It's very lightweight as far as RAM is concerned and I've had no problem at all with it. It's about a 2MB download. Once installed you just need to run it and maybe minimize it to the system tray. It auto-detects your online connection and starts mimicking online activity so your ISP won't cut you off. Alive and Kicking and similiar software can be downloaded from several download sites. Hosting Step-By-StepHosting an online game means that you must set up the 'Network' options of the game and post your IP address where others can see it: like my bulletin board. It's also a good idea to mention what options you have enabled and whether or not you want players to use the God Hangar. Each individual player can activate God Hangar according to his game configuration.
Write me an e-mail and tell me how things went. Who killed who and all that. I'm going to start posting the results from exciting games. Don't be discouraged if you don't get a good response to your game or connectins are bad. Keep hosting whenever you can and eventually you'll have some games worth remembering. |
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