Lock your rooms!

hongkongwargamer

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Not if you think of the "rooms" on VASL as tables. Calling them "rooms" is the stretch. They have no walls. No ceilings. Anyone can walk up to them. As for expectations, I expect people to walk up to my table. It's part of the fun. The fun part about standards and expectations is there are so many to choose from. -- jim
Yes.

I have "met" the last version (SpongeBob?) as well but still .. anyone and everyone is welcomed to my VASL room as long as I am not playtesting (that's the only time when my VASL room is locked). In most cases I am on Discord audio, so I am happy for folks to join there as well 'cause it's tough to watch without hearing the chatter.

It's a game and as such, the more the merrier!
 

Vinnie

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Yes.

I have "met" the last version (SpongeBob?) as well but still .. anyone and everyone is welcomed to my VASL room as long as I am not playtesting (that's the only time when my VASL room is locked). In most cases I am on Discord audio, so I am happy for folks to join there as well 'cause it's tough to watch without hearing the chatter.

It's a game and as such, the more the merrier!
I can't persuade my regular partners to moveto Dischord audio. It is better for viewers.
 

RandyT0001

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If you have an open door policy playing VASL then I advise saving the game often. If there is an accident or visitor sabotage the effects are diminished.
 

Jazz

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If you have an open door policy playing VASL then I advise saving the game often. If there is an accident or visitor sabotage the effects are diminished.
Doesn't everybody do this anyhow?

Am I the only one who is cynical about the quality of Internet access?
 

Sparafucil3

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To me, your attitude represents another very good reason to lock the room as SOP.
And you strike me as someone who doesn't get out to tournaments very often. I am comfortable where I am. -- jim
 

Tater

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And you strike me as someone who doesn't get out to tournaments very often. I am comfortable where I am. -- jim
I’ve been to a few...the environment is nothing even remotely like VASL. In particular, no one at a live tourney can walk up, f#%k with your game, and remain totally anonymous.

IOW, your analogy of VASL and tourneys is preposterous...nothing at all alike other than playing ASL. More like an excuse to be rude and inconsiderate of people playing on VASL. Which is why I always lock the VASL room...to avoid vandals and now also the rude.

But, the choice to lock or not is up to the individual...neither option is good or bad in and of itself.
 

Sparafucil3

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I’ve been to a few...the environment is nothing even remotely like VASL. In particular, no one at a live tourney can walk up, f#%k with your game, and remain totally anonymous.

IOW, your analogy of VASL and tourneys is preposterous...nothing at all alike other than playing ASL. More like an excuse to be rude and inconsiderate of people playing on VASL. Which is why I always lock the VASL room...to avoid vandals and now also the rude.

But, the choice to lock or not is up to the individual...neither option is good or bad in and of itself.
I will leave speculation as to who is rude to the readers of this thread. -- jim
 

Sparafucil3

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And if I said oxygen was good for you I wouldn’t be surprised if you held your breath till you died. ??
I certainly would want to know your sources first. Of course, if it makes you feel any better, I am sure you would react the same were to tell you the need first. -- jim
 

RRschultze

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Not if you think of the "rooms" on VASL as tables. Calling them "rooms" is the stretch. They have no walls. No ceilings. Anyone can walk up to them. As for expectations, I expect people to walk up to my table. It's part of the fun. The fun part about standards and expectations is there are so many to choose from. -- jim
I totally concur re the table point, when I play VASL and people pop by to look, don't have a problem with that, unless they pick up the pieces and rock off!
 

witchbottles

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one item to recall in the "ask first" question could be to recall when in the development frame of VASL one first became acquainted with VASL.

I learned about it in the 2.0 version days. Back then all inet access was dial up. Sometimes from very slow modems. there was no auto-sync when you entered a room, you had to physically sync with one of the players and then you were basically, looking over his shoulder. you could see his concealed units, the other guys units were just stacks of "?"'s.

with the fact that a slower CPU and/or a slower dial up modem could drag down the speed at which a VASL server game processed moves and text (there was no VOIP), syncing meant a real concern in slowing down a game was possible. So etiquette was expressed by Rodney K (who hosted the server back then), to please ask before syncing with an ongoing game.

For those of use form VASL 2.0 to VASL 4.0 version time frames, that remained a constant, and became a habit of etiquette.

As the VASL program began to really evolve with newer computers and faster net access speeds and the rise of VOIP's, with the 5.0 version forward, cycles came into the programming that allowed and still automatically allow, syncing once someone enters the room.

for those of us used to the old "ask first" policy, we still do - and it is understandable that from time to time those used to that habit may be annoyed when someone does not follow the older etiquette graces.

I only typically lock a game if its a playtest. Those are usually with gentlemen's agreements in place for confidentiality. so they remain locked.

otherwise, I just do as Jackson noted above and keep a logfile running during the game.

YMMV of course.

KRL, Jon H
 

zgrose

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AFAIK, most of the lag with respect to sync'ing, is on the client machine that is processing state and not the server or the other machines. If you play larger modules like Space Empires, you can sit there for a minute or two while everyone else is just fine due to all the piece bootstrapping. Having a 3rd party observer side would be a nice addition to VAS(SA)L though.

(edit) Although now that everyone (most everyone?) does voice chat, I personally find sitting a VASL room wondering if anyone is active personally VERY boring. :)
 

Larry

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You can always log your gameplay. If someone disrupts the game, it is a matter of saving the log and playing it back to the point of disruption.
 

Tater

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Playing VASL on Saturday night...we were just getting started so hadn't locked the room yet...some (unknown to any of us) guy pops in without asking. We let him know we are going to lock the room and request he leave. He never responded to any appeal. So we all vacated the room and open a new room and locked it immediately. When we brought the game back up we noticed some ? counters had been removed and counters had been moved. It was easy to spot because it was the first player turn and we hadn't even started the rally phase.

Once again confirming my decision to always lock the room.
 

Tater

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Not if you think of the "rooms" on VASL as tables. Calling them "rooms" is the stretch. They have no walls. No ceilings. Anyone can walk up to them. As for expectations, I expect people to walk up to my table. It's part of the fun. The fun part about standards and expectations is there are so many to choose from. -- jim

I realized something...you can't "lock" a table...but you can "lock" a room. So the real stretch is calling them "tables"...they clearly have virtual walls and the only way in is through a lockable virtual door. When the room is locked...you can see who is in the room (windows)...but nothing else.

As such, the proper, polite, reasonable thing to do would be to ask first...before entering a room (locked or otherwise) to which one hasn't already been invited.
 

Sparafucil3

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As such, the proper, polite, reasonable thing to do would be to ask first...before entering a room (locked or otherwise) to which one hasn't already been invited.
And you can't have a "room" without walls and a roof. Calling a VASL "table" a "room" is a stretch. But as you said, if I told you breathing was good for you, you would hold your breath just to disagree. -- jim
 

witchbottles

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And you can't have a "room" without walls and a roof. Calling a VASL "table" a "room" is a stretch. But as you said, if I told you breathing was good for you, you would hold your breath just to disagree. -- jim
as a side note, I have yet to come across an ASL player who is offended or butt-hurt because a VASL game room was locked. I have, however, met several players who are at least annoyed, if not outright perturbed, when someone comes into an unlocked VASL game room and starts monkeying with the pieces or rolling dice in the VASL chat frame, etc.
 
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