<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" http-equiv=Content-Type>
<META content="MSHTML 5.00.2614.3500" name=GENERATOR>
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=#ffffff>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Ya I was being a pain on purpose. I actually
have no problem personally running the linux client, but I do know 3 people
who currently play a lot who would not, and 3 <BR>more people who have
played a bit who also would not use linux. That is 6 to 1. I
also know at least 20 other people who would probably take a look (I'm
working on <BR>them) but again only if it was a) windows client, and b)
easy to install. 26 to 1 then. These people are great gamers with not much
interest in operating systems or in figuring out how to install software -
they just like to play games. One of my friends who is playing asked
me about the Java MapEditor...you see where this goes. This is why I think
that it would be a very great boon to the game to have a windows compatible
client.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I also think it would not be worthwhile to maintain
a separate windows client - so I agree that the best thing would be a
single cross-platform client (GTK, SDL whatever). I agree so much
that I think private windows clients would probably be a bad thing (I see
the effort that Michael Toennies is putting into C:D that could be going into CF
- not that that is wrong - that's the system, but it is still split
effort). Having a separate development for other platform clients
almost guarantees that they <BR>will always be either behind the main
development stream and always be <BR>holding things up, or they will go off
somewhere, mutate or die. There have been three win clients I know of, all
out of date now, and this indicates to me that this approach does not
work.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I certainly don't want progress on the server to
halt to support old clients, but this tough beans attitude towards a
windows client is troublesome since it is alienating to a whole segment of
players who have no alternative. (is there any idea how many people are
using DX client?, MIDs poll shows it is 26% of their players, but I have no way
to make an accurate prediction from that - is there a way to report on this
from the metaserver?) The feeling I get from reading these forums is that a
windows client is something people maybe don't want to have (or possibly
have to deal with anyway). It probably isn't planned that way, but it
amounts to the same thing. I know CF was a unix game, and if that is
what it is to be then that's fine, but currently it isn't a unix only
game. I was, in my snarky way, making the point that you will loose these
people to other games if they cannot play - likely they will not
return.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I certainly don't expect you to do this - develop
or maintain other<BR>clients. I have not yet contributed a speck of code to
CF (although I am trying to work on some stuff), I wouldn't tell anyone
what they should contribute. Somebody should do it however, and
the only way it will get done is to make mention of it- often, maybe even
make it an priority item. The fact is that if it is made a priority it has
a better chance ofgetting done (If people want it to be done...) I can
understand wanting to have concrete evidence that work was being done on a
windows client before delaying updates to the server code, but if you are
proposing changes that will cut off a third of your players (again
extrapolating from the MIDs poll - really should get more info on this...), it
should be highlighted in the proposal - contingency plans made for it (a
server for windows client?). I wanted to flush this out into the open,
since I think the client is the most important part of the game, and players are
the life blood. I also think it is a great game or I wouldn't be bothering
sticking my nose into this.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Anyway hope I didn't offend. I know it was
just a proposal - I was responding to the proposal. (I would like to get
away from multipart monsters too...)</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>-TM</DIV></FONT></BODY></HTML>