The Dink Network

Hey, I'll make a new thread for more attention!

Steam post

Ok, ok I love a gaming community and I've published several server solutions for games here in the past, Minecraft survival and TF2 events. It's been some years and it may be time for it again.

There are some problems that made me quit before. I don't have the time to manage server settings and requests from users, could take hours and I don't like shutting down the server for people all the time to apply the changes. The source server software is of doubtful quality.

I can't always monitor the games. If someone misbehaves, cheats or trolls another user, me as an admin may not be present. Even with a mod or two, they won't always be present either for a server this size.

I like having a service that people enjoy though, but it was too much work. Waking up, server had crashed for odd reasons, settings reset, stuff happened that I can't control like the web provider's dns settings has changed etc. making the server flip (at least source).

But to hell with all problems, Instead focusing on narrowing them down. I could fire up the server for DN-only weekends of competitions/casual play. If and only if there is enough interest from the DN about playing on the servers. Enough comments/+1/votes about it in this thread and I will consider having it on some weekends and post events on this Steam group. Only vote yes if you are interested in joining and playing yourself. I could also use some of the more active gamers as mods on the MC and TF2 servers if this passes.

Games are TF2, DN Minecraft, ?Counter Strike?, ?Dota2?

Why didn't you post this in my new steam thread?

And if you're worried about mods not being around enough to monitor games, I could help out. I'm pretty much around all the time. Proof being that you can almost always see me in the lurkers, I'd assume.

It would be buried and far down the comments list so I made a new thread to settle this question once and for all. A mod, great!

Well, I'm hoping my thread won't get buried. redink1 might still be willing to sticky it and partner the group for that social media revolution thing.

Ok, he can remove this thing when it is over.

+1

I can help out with server if you need. I have a counter strike server too if you need. Just holla.

Regarding servers, this is what I told yeoldetoast in the Dink Chat -

"<Skorn> I have this idea for the DN team fortress 2 map.
<Skorn> We make a building based off the dink network with various rooms made as reference to the site and dmods and shit and there's a noncombat room for coco, dukie, big ted, and others or something."

What do you think? Awful as shit idea or the best idea since the invention of polluting as hell factories?

I don't play Team Fortress myself, but it sounds like a good idea and I'm sure Dinkers who play the game would enjoy a Dink-inspired map. And adding a room for dead Dinkers, especially in the shadow of the recent events, would indeed be a nice gesture.

SourceSDK Hammer has got to be the worst map editor I've ever used.

Anyone know how to make maps?

EDIT: Added this thread to mine. I guess we'll use the v3 thread for everything else until another specific discussion arrives we can have in another thread or whatever.

For organization's sake. And not have 80,000 topics in one thread. And stuff.

I have an OpenTTD server running now. For those of you who don't know, OpenTTD is a free software transport network simulation game in which you build trains, buses, ships and aeroplanes.

Currently I am running the beta version which you can download. I recommend starting with making a bus network by following this tutorial.

The server should pop up in the list under the name "Totally Legit Dink Server" if you want to play against other people. The password is "smilestein".

Basic Idea of a DN server map.

Not sure if you can have Doom style rotating sprites in tf2, though. Sprite placement is for decorative purposes for the picture only. The actual map should be structured more like a level you can hide and use to your advantage with hills and other shit or whatever.

If we can't do rotating sprites, we should at least design the buildings, trees, and whatever else close enough to the game's sprites.

...iplaydink

As for the map borders, I dunno. Both sides should definitely be enclosed by some hills or something. The skybox could be any random crap we find on google images. Hell, we could make our own that is half red sky and half blue sky for each side of the map.

Or we overhaul the hell out of my map or do something entirely different. Map's just a basic idea.

EDIT: This isn't so bad I guess

EDIT2: Some pictures

I don't really feel like making the map. Anyone want all the files? Maybe we can all work on it. Just make some crap, send it to someone, make some crap. Whatever.

Alright, so Hammer is probably the worst editor I've ever used.

Any ideas for a game we could make a map for? yeoldetoast suggested Minecraft, but we'd need bukkit and bukkit is dead due to some asshole DMCAing it.

So that's most of the modding community gone for that game. Smart move.

Excluding source games, what other free or widely owned games could we make a map for?

Here's the the map I was working on for Team Fortress 2. It comes with all the shitty textures I did too, if you want to try your hand at it. Just open it in the Hammer tool found in your TF2 directory and place the texture folder in materials.

Minecraft is an alright idea. We could probably simply use a survival island seed and make some buildings. Totally up to you if you want to leave for the mainland to get something you can't find. But then bukkit's gone and there's nothing I can do if someone destroys the island or a creeper shows up.

There are bukkit alternatives worth checking out like Spigot... But dangit, I want bukkit back!!

I was told that apparently, Mojang had bought bukkit and nobody but them knew, so modders were essentially working for free as they didn't know bukkit was no longer a community thing. I don't know when this was, but since everything seems to go downhill when Microsoft touches it, I'm assuming this is Microsoft's fault. And you know how they love cheap workers - free ones must be making them have orgasms left and right.

As for spigot, if it has protection commands, a currency, and warps, it should be fine to start with. If not, we'll just have to all hope that none of us are planning on destroying the map.

I'm thinking a normal survival map enclosed by fencing and towers with beacons. Of course, you can leave that enclosed area and build somewhere outside of it. I just hope it's not super far if I'll want to enclose it too or use that area to expand the already existing one.

Me and toast are working on a Minecraft map that will be the entirety of the original game's map.

It involves code stuff I don't want to get into because I might create a super unstable Skynet instead, and slowly progressing textures with a painting I can't get to work.

If you're wondering, I made this map to use as a painting for the Hall of Heroes or whatever in wherever it will be in the map.

Someone help, I don't do good in these personal situations. I'm afraid I might upset the pixels.

Also Toast's laptop exploded into a firey blast that lit up half the wherever he is. Everyone send him expensive replacements with bionic arms or something.

bump