Xref: utzoo rec.games.frp:1764 comp.sources.wanted:2760
Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!rutgers!ames!ucbcad!ucbvax!hplabs!pyramid!prls!philabs!jam
From: jam@philabs.Philips.Com (John A. Murphy)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp,comp.sources.wanted
Subject: Re: programs for frp
Message-ID: <3061@briar.Philips.Com>
Date: 15 Dec 87 18:49:06 GMT
References: <2305@k.cc.purdue.edu> <9867@ut-sally.UUCP> <7236@sunybcs.UUCP>
Reply-To: jam@briar.philips.com.UUCP (John A. Murphy)
Organization: Philips Laboratories, Briarcliff Manor, NY
Lines: 39

I in no way want to discourage anyone from tring this but I ran into
several problems with this.  A PC is figured to be better becuase few
people have mainframes at home.  Some of the problems I ran into were:

How much information do you store?  You can't store everything you would
like to.  It somehow is easier to organize on paper.

How much information do you display?  The screen gets very small all of a 
sudden.  Menus work but make play tedious.

Players do not like computer interference because the DM must sit there
and concentrate while looking at the screen and typing to get the
appropriate screen or bit of info.  

Something as simple as a dice program leaves much to be entered.  How many
dice, what type, do you want it to automatically subtract hit points from
someone you're swinging at?

If a characters stats change or they loose some equipment are you going to
make a note of it?

I worked on this program with my sister on and off for a year and we did
a fair job of dealing with these questions but it still was not very
playable.  Things often times happen too rapidly fto keep banging on
the keyboard.  Where you put the actual computer and keyboard is also 
a hassle.  Is it important that the players not see the screen?

Non-game time programs like NPC, whether, or town generators I found
to be a great assistance but the only game time program I ever found 
playable was one that me and the players could both look at and all it
showed was game time.  Hit the space bar for a minute, h for an hour,
etc.  It would also roll all the dice in the world if I felt like
entering it but time was the most useful.

I would also like to see what non-game time programs people have written.

Murf
-- 
jam@philabs.uucp