I was playing a game of UniBall. A new player joins, which is evident because he's sliding all over the place. No problem yet. He then innocently asks how to pass. And then he is met with replies of "hit ALT-F4", "type this", and so forth. I ignore it for now. A few minutes later, that same player asks how to play as the goalie. And he is met with much the same replies. However, the major comment that got me mad was "boot him", from several of the players currently in the game.
This is so despicable. This is SAD. Think - where would you be if someone just booted you right out of the game as soon as you joined, because you were a "newbie"? You would be NOWHERE. You would go off, thinking that the game sucked, that the players sucked, and that wherever he got the URL for UniBall from sucked for listing it. Guess what? You would be RIGHT. The way that a rather large percentage of the players act right now is unbelievably caustic, insulting, and mean. I don't really care if those players are new, or if they have been playing this game since the beginning of time. If you are going to say something as STUPID as "hit ALT-F4" to a new player, DON'T SAY ANYTHING AT ALL. You don't have to be helpful to the new players, but there is NO reason for you to tell the player to do something like hit ALT-F4. If you must say something, say "F1 for help". There, you've done your good deed for the day.
BTW, the argument that "anyone who is stupid enough to hit ALT-F4 deserves to be knocked out of the game" is one of the most EGOTISTICAL arguments ever. Not everyone has the same computer knowledge as you do. Most people COULD CARE LESS about that stuff.
They just want to have a good time. Let them have it. The fact that some players would go around trying to SCREW up someone elses playing experience shows just how sad that individual player is. It's a computer game. It is entertainment. Why is there such a need to get so worked up over something so trivial as a new player on your team? You don't like it? LEAVE. Play a different UniBall game. Or play a different game entirely. Don't ruin other players' fun.
Next. People who continuously ask "is the server up?" in BRChat need to learn to read. The messsage that greets you when you join is still up as of this writing (May 16, 2000). And it says, "You want to know if the server is up? Type /status or /server." FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS. "But what if the server is down, but the chat one says it is still up?" Go do something productive, and check back every so often, using the actual game client to try and connect. "But BRChat is meant for people to chat about stuff related to UniBall!" Good for you. This is a rant. It is my own personal opinion.
In the same vein, the people who ask "when will the server be up?" will ALWAYS get the same response from me. It will be to the effect of "it will be up when it is up." If it was possible to forsee when will the server be back up, do you really think that it would be hidden from you? If so, please go to your local psychologist and tell him/her that you are paranoid. Thank you.
Finally, messageboard posts. Some of the replies that posters get to their topics are childish. "You are a <expletive removed>" Good for you! You've just confirmed that YOU are STUPID by posting that reply, and have nothing better to do than reply with STUPID messages. Example: RaZa's topic on the messageboard was "Paying for Uniball". It had good intentions. Yet it still managed to get a stupid reply. I won't mention the name - if you are interested in finding out who it was, look yourself. At least it was only one reply out of eight replies in total. However, not all topics are good. Some are just pointless. "WHY IS THE SERVER DOWN? THE SERVER SUCKS! MY MODEM IS FASTER!" is a generalization of some of the more ... worthless topics. I won't delve any further into this.
If you made it this far, you should get a slushee. Here, have one. <hands reader a slushee> Enjoy.
If you would like to submit an rant. Please send them to line@uniball-central.com. If you have images in your document, please keep the images small and correct any spelling or grammar errors you might have before you submit it. Don't forget to title your rant and don't forget your name!
Computers are magnificent tools for the realization of our dreams, but no machine can replace the human spark of spirit, compassion, love, and understanding. Louis Gerstner
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