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From: reiher@ucla-cs.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.games.frp
Subject: Re: Forming our own gaming system?
Message-ID: <4596@ucla-cs.ARPA>
Date: Sat, 30-Mar-85 21:21:43 EST
Article-I.D.: ucla-cs.4596
Posted: Sat Mar 30 21:21:43 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 1-Apr-85 03:49:52 EST
References: <1179@reed.UUCP>
Reply-To: reiher@ucla-cs.UUCP (Peter Reiher)
Organization: UCLA Computer Science Department
Lines: 41
Summary: 

In article <1179@reed.UUCP> greg@reed.UUCP (Greg Stein) writes:
>
>One of the advantages we have over companies is that, for
>the most part, only a couple people design the system.  We
>have an entire world full of people (sort of) who could
>contribute their best ideas.

I would think this a disadvantage, as we would be very likely to produce an
incoherent gaming system.  Many people feel that about the only good creative
work ever to come out of a committee was the King James Bible (and many people
will only subscribe to that statement to the extent that this version of the
Bible is literature, not theology).  Personally, I think that one or two 
well-informed, talented designers stand a much better chance of designing a
good system than do 20 or 30 well meaning, perhaps even equally well-informed
and talented people.  

I think a format much more likely to produce good results would be to have
one or two people with a large amount of time on their hands bring up topics
for discussion, request people's advice about how to design that portion of
the game system, and then make up their minds on their own.  This method gives
the benefit of the net's experience but does not risk producing an incoherent
potporri.  Of course, we need one or two folks with ample free time...

>	One of the major things to overcome is where the
>discussions are to be held about this thing.  Should it
>all be over mail on over net.news.frp?  Mail could get
>pretty cumbersome maybe, but a the newsgroup would solve
>that.  Although, some people on the newgroup may not be
>interested, and mail would solve this.  Personally, I
>don't know how hard it is to create a newsgroup, but that
>would be most ideal.  

Actually, I doubt if many net.games.frp readers would object to seeing this
sort of thing.  Clearly, the right way to go if you're really interested in
doing this is to start out in this newsgroup and see how much traffic is
generated.  If there's lots of traffic and people start to object to its
clogging up the newsgroup, then it's time to investigate a new newsgroup.
-- 
        			Peter Reiher
        			reiher@ucla-cs.arpa
        			{...ihnp4,ucbvax,sdcrdcf}!ucla-cs!reiher