SpawnPoint

Well it's nearly that time of the year again.....

I'm on vacation starting a week on Monday (30th). I'm taking my good lady to Corfu for 15 days of sun, relaxation, drink and no work.......yay!

Can't wait. Good news is it's the same place we were last year and from the emails we've received it's still the same staff there so it's going to be like meeting long lost friends.

Even better is it's got wi-fi internet access so i can log into the forums and keep an active role whilst sitting in the sun by the pool :D

Can't wait.................

Ok,

So over the last couple of months i've taken my eye off the Spawnpoint ball so to speak.

I haven't been spending as much time on the spawnpoint servers as I used to....

I feel kinda guilty about that to be honest as, unfortunately, clan matters overcame spawnpoint matters.

Well not any more.......

I'll be back on server and Steam Friends as much as I used to be to answer any queries and questions you may well have.

See you on server soon.

Someone once asked if I ran Spawnpoint? Someone else once asked if Spawnpoint paid me for all the work I do for them.......

Well see now here's the thing.

I don't run Spawnpoint and to be honest don't want to either. Have you seen how busy Labec (Tony) is on a daily basis? How often do you see him playing on server? That guy does a ton of work behind the scenes with the development guys and gals making sure everything we take for granted runs smoothly.

As for getting paid....Well yes I do :eek: but just not in any hard currency you could spend :lol:  I joined this community as it seemed the right thing to do at the time. I was granted admin on the UK Assault (not because I asked, but, because someone spotted me and liked my attitude on server).

It progressed from there. I'm not young and don't try to come over as such or as a smartass or as being better than anyone else. I post on the forums when I've got time. I help out as much as I can. It doesn't cost anything to divulge knowledge. It's how I would hope others would help me out if the roles were reversed.

I've noticed in my time here, that, I'm having a good effect on others on the forums and in the servers. Other community members take the time to answer others queries and admins on servers are taking a "leaf" from my admin book and therefore helping the community to grow and flourish. 

I'm asked, by many, on a daily basis for help and my opinion on situations that develop. I don't expect payment for any of this ( I'd LOVE a bumper sticker, actually 2 as i've 2 cars....) As I feel it's only fair to give back something to the community that has allowed me to play and admin, for free, as they do.

I guess what I'm saying is that, Spawnpoint has become like my second home and, as such, deserves all the respect and such I can give it. So, the next time someone on server or on the forums asks you a question, take the time to help them out.....You never know you might just become the new me :)

Ok so a number of people have asked why admins (and me in particular) keep changing my "in game" name to something other than Raven.

A lot of players make a mental note of admins and admin names and watch for them connecting to the server. They act "good as gold" and all innocent (adhering to the rules etc etc) when admins are about.

Admins should change their names on a pretty regular basis and make sure you use some "fun" characters as well. I've personally been mistaken as 4 or 5 different admins from time to time and some people reckon all 5 alter egos are different people.

Also sometimes it's good to just change your name to something strange. Hit record and just play for an hour or so. It's quite enlightening what some "good" players and admins alike actually get up to when they don't think admin or other admin are on.

Also a word of advice to admins changing their "in game" names........remember your "steam friends" name too ;)

Now here's a word of warning to any "sneaky" players who keep a list of admins Steam ID's handy and check from time to time in case an admin is on. Some of us have more than one Steam ID. I use my second account to keep an eye on "Guest Admins" to make sure they're obeying the rules and such. Its great having a non-admin account because ma_admins and status doesn't give the game away.

Also, because it's a different Steam ID it's not like you show up on Steam Friends LOL

So i suppose what this really means is. BE AFRAID BIG BROTHER MIGHT JUST BE WATCHING YOU Muahahahahaha

Well it's snowing quite heavily here at the moment.

Our head office in Belfast is closed to allow the noobs to go home early and I'm watching the snow start to lie on the ground.

It got me wondering. I've seen other countries get feet of snow and everyone takes it in their stride (snow blowers, snow chains and plows and such). I've even been in Norway at winter and, even though the snow is piles up either side of the road and pavement (sidewalks) the actual tarmac is clear and dry.

Our country really sucks when it comes to winter survival. The slightest snowfall and people forget how to drive, how to stay warm, how to keep roads from icing up.

I'm looking at emigrating to Spain sometime in the future (we've a villa at Alicante) but every time i see the snow and chaos it causes in this country it's getting higher up the calendar.

Hopefully I can take the kids skiing soon, that's one good side of all this white stuff.

So i've just completed all my christmas shopping.

Everything is bought, wrapped and hidden from both the kids and Debbie :)

It's great to be organised for a change.

I think i'll go into town next weekend and just walk around with a smug grin on my face as I watch all the last minute "panic buying"LOL

It's bl@@dy freezing here too. Its 28F and, whilst we've lost the snow it's way to cold to go outside for long.

Ok,

So I've been suffering from "Man-Flu" for the past week or so and it's starting to wear me down.

Debbie is a pharmacist so I've got all the latest "cold and flu" remedies and stuff but to be honest it's a tenacious bu**er and doesn't want to give up without a fight.

I can cope during the day with the aches and pains but it's quite scary waking with a jolt during the night as your brain tries to tell you that you can't breath through your nose any more as it's clogged and no matter how hard you try if you don't wake up you're gonna die really quickly.

It's also slightly "disconcerting" to play CSS when you struggle to hear anything at all through "flu clogged" ears.

Roll on the weekend.

From today's news: -

"THE Tartan Army scored an amazing victory in Georgia - before a ball was even kicked.

Citizens of this impoverished country have taken the travelling fans to their hearts for lavishing disabled children with clothes, toys and cash.

Locals turned out at Tbilisi Airport yesterday morning to welcome around 300 Scots with a medley of traditional folk songs. And by the time the day was through, Georgian TV was broadcasting special news programmes about the generous visitors from afar.

The Tartan Army's impact came as the national team prepared for a match which could see us make it to the Euro 2008 finals.

We've already beaten France and Ukraine to top the qualifying group. If we beat Georgia tonight and France draw with Lithuania, we've qualified. France could only end up with the same points as Scotland - and our two wins against the World Cup finalists mean we go through. If both France and Scotland win tonight, we need just a draw in our final game - at home to World Cup winners Italy next month.

Yesterday, though, the focus was on Georgia - and the Tartan Army made an immediate impact in the country.

Denis Keefe, Britain's ambassador to Georgia, joined Scotland fans at a gift-delivery event for First Step, a day centre for mentally and physically disabled youngsters. The 49-year-old diplomat said: "I think this is fantastic. These guys might be here for a football match but they are really helping to put Scotland on the map. "Everything I had previously heard about the Tartan Army is true. They are brilliant ambassadors for their country."

Several dozen travelling supporters got in some early practice at First Step, on the outskirts of Tbilisi. They played Scotland the Brave on their pipes and encouraged the kids to beat the drum for their country. Musician Craig Shepherd, 36, from Edinburgh, said: "It's been a privilege to come here and share a little bit of Scotland with the kids."

The Scots watched a five-a-side football match involving the squealing youngsters and later attended a barbecue at the centre with Ambassador Keefe. A hospital linked to the centre will receive baby care equipment costing £15,000 thanks to the generosity of the Scots. Mum Nana Zakareishvili explained that until her 17-year-old son Mishiko was 14, he had nowhere to go during the day. Nana, 35, said: "When First Step opened, he was able to come to school for the first time. I am very satisfied because he is learning skills and is happy to go to school every morning."

And people wonder why the Scots fans are loved all over the world when we travel.

I'm still just trying to figure out how I can explain to Debbie that if we qualify for Euro 2008 i'm gonna be in Austria and Switzerland for a week or so before we go to Corfu for our vacation LOL.

Come on the Scots!!

Well i'm just getting ready to head to our National Stadium to watch Scotland in their crunch Game against the Ukraine!

We're currently top of the qualifying group with 3 games to go and a point ahead of Italy and 2 ahead of France with 3 games left to play.

56000 Scots all singing "Flower of Scotland" is going to really get the adrenaline pumping and my heart racing.

It's funn, because at the start of qualification no one gave us a hope in hell of qualifying as we had the current World cup champions AND the runners up in our qualifying group but here we are, top on merit and aiming to stay there.

I must admin i'm really, really proud to be Scottish at the moment and, hopefully, with luck we'll get a result today and move onto Wednesdays game against Georgia knowing another win will see us qualify!

I'll be on later, probably the worst for wear and totally hoarse.

Good luck to both England AND France in the rugby world cup finals later today although in true Scots fashion I hope France win ;)

Well it's official i've broken my thumb.......

Had a bit of an altercation with a stillage of profile at work on thursday and caught my thumb under it. Hospital yesterday agree it's busted :(

Ever try to play CSS when your left thumb is splinted straight? I've had to bind my space bar to my mouse button 5 so i can jump about lol

Takes a bit of getting used to but its better than nothing at the moment. 

I've broken fingers before but it's amazing what you find you struggle to do without a thumb!

Ah well at least the painkillers are strong, and coupled with beer i'm happily numb this weekend LOL

I haven't been on server as much as i'd like to have been recently.

Things in my "normal" life are fairly hectic. 

Work's really busy at the moment and, if things continue in that vein then i'm in for a bonus at christmas (it should go a fair way to paying for the kids presents). 

With the new football season having commenced in Scotland my saturdays and a few mid week evenings are spoken for. I'm a pretty fanatical follower of my team and go to every game home and away no matter what the weather or how far the journey is.

We recently played in the UEFA cup qualifiers which led to a day trip to Gothenburg, which was enjoyable as i'd never been to Sweden before. We lost :( but hey, at least we qualified and it was a great trip all the same.

I'm starting to feel old as my eldest daughter is sitting her standard grades this year at school and it seems only yesterday that she first started any sort of school at all.

I guess it has a bearing on my gaming time as well. I'm taking more of an "interest" in the kids and we're spending some quality time together now that they're old enough to appreciate certain "fun interests". 

I had them skiing on Sunday at the newly opened indoor ski arena about an hour from our home and i'd forgotten how much fun falling on your butt in snow can be LOL.

Hopefully as the next few months leading up to christmas progress i'll be able to devote more of my time to once, once again, patrolling the servers 7 or 8 hours a night. Until then you're just gonna have to get used to me only being on for 3 or 4 hahahahaha.

See you on the Assault servers soon.

Rob

Ok so i finally got my New Sharkoon Majestic 5.1's.

They ARE a hefty piece of equipment but not any bigger or heavier than the Medusa 5.1's i'd killed.

The set up on pc is almost identical to the Medusa's complete with the same demos and sound field set up.

I have to admit to being disappointed at first as, when first installed, the sound on CSS was god awful :( However, i installed the latest drivers and "expirimented" with the individual settings and volume controls and must now admit to being really impressed.

The bass set up even has in-built vibration which is a really weird sensation at first use but becomes a really nice bonus feature to them. the sound is deep and clear for being a USB headset and the volume control allows you to set tem up to "accentuate" certain sound fields.

I  swear that these can do nothing but improve your ganing as i can hear things on server that were previously unheard. The sound quality is excellent when gaming, listening to music or watching dvd's and the in-built pc graphic equaliser allows you to set these up to suit your media.

The mic is small and unobtrusive and can be removed really easily should you not wis to use it.

I hope they last up to the abuse they're gonna take as i've a feeling i'm gonna grow really fond of these babies.

I'd highly recommend them to anyone who's looking for a new (fairly inexpensive) gaming headset. 

Well I've killed my 5,1 Medusas :(

After 2 years of continuous use they finally bit the dust and died. The volume control went well haywire and either went FULL BLAST or mute.

So i've had to go and buy a new set. Looked all over and finally plumped for Sharkoon Majestic 5.1 (New V3) with external sound card including high end amplifier, vibrating bass and inbuilt mic.

I get them on Tuesday so meantime have to use a crappy pair of Plantronics.

Anyone use the Sharkoons?

   

Well it's that time again.

The team I support is playing in the UEFA cup on Thursday night and i'm heading for the return leg in gothenburg Sweden two weeks thereafter.

Now this got me thinking. What's the furthest you have gone to watch your team, where was it and why?

Yes paragraphs finally work LOL

Well, do you?As a Spawnpoint Support Staff member I visit a fair few servers during my gaming sessions. I note that there are a fair amount of nice console messages that appear at various times that lay out rules etc for players information.The Assault rules messages are a point of example. "Do not Upper Vent Camp" and "Do not Glitch" spring to mind. Why is it then that admins are constantly having to "discipline" players for not following these rules? Do players either a)not read them or b)just choose to ignore them?These messages are there for a reason. Please take close watch of your screen for both these messages and admin messages. It would be unfortunate if you were to be either kicked or banned for not paying attention to these messages. 

Counter-Strike is the most played online FPS game ever - yesterday, today and no doubt tomorrow. Countless people have wondered why this is, and just as many have written articles on the subject. This may be simple curiosity, or it may be that they hope to repeat the same success by using their theories. Either way, people have come up with different ideas each time. This little article represents my own thoughts on the subject. The most common answer to the CS success story is how every round and every game is different - my idea is just the opposite. It's the familiarity and similarity of every round that provides the game with a kind of "Just one more round" factor, making you want to keep on playing until you collapse from lack of food/sleep/porn. Think about this. If you win the round, if you kill everyone and have a perfect game, are you fulfilled and can you now leave the server happy in the knowledge that you have reined supreme? Nope, 'fraid not. Getting you to keep playing a game when you’re winning is easy, because everyone loves winning and to get the chance to do it again is too good to pass up. Losing however, getting you to keep playing when you suck is something different altogether In Deathmatch, you die and then you respawn instantly. However, when you go back to where you died the person who killed you will be long gone. In CS, things tend to work differently. Maps and gameplay follow a pattern that the Terrorists start at one side and the Counter-Terrorists at the other. This makes the game much like acting out a defined set of moves each time with very slight changes. So, when you get killed one round you have the desire to extract revenge and do better next time. Since you’re going to get the chance to do the same thing all over again next round, you stay put in the server - even if it means wetting your pants. As the rounds continue to come at you, you have the opportunity to learn what your enemy is doing, the opportunity to outsmart them, and above all else the opportunity to beat their ‘xxxx ass’ down. It all kind of follows the age-old cliché of "Tomorrow is another day", though in this case "Next is another round". This round will be different, you saw what they did last time and you'll be ready for them this time. You'll do better. You'll win. As long as the enemy doesn't do something different this time of course, which they inevitably will - giving you once more the same effect at the end of the next round, and so continuing the endless cycle and addiction. Just one more? Not likely. Of course there are other things that affect people's enjoyment of the game, the fact it’s a team-game for one (although a lot of the time you wouldn’t know it). I remember playing 1.6 and getting completely immersed in the game because it felt as if you were part of something every time you played. You weren’t just a lone warrior killing people for no reason; you were part of an elite squad sent out to save the hostages (or stop that from happening). There was a great sense of fulfilment when you saved the life of a teammate by killing his attacker just before he fired the last fatal bullet, and that was a feeling not acquired by deathmatch. Unfortunately however, the community appears to be in such a state that I haven’t felt that feeling in a long time. Saving someone’s life goes unnoticed, and usually all you receive are calls from that person saying, "HEY, THAT WAS MY KILL!" All the team spirit has left, with only kill-hungry idiots remaining. This for me is the reason 1.6 is loved by so many people, and many consider it to be the best of all the CS versions – not because it was more balanced or it was actually better, but simply because the people were still nice and there wasn’t any paranoia. Anyway, I digress. Counter-Strike is loved by thousands of people and each of them no doubt have their explanations for why they like it – and I'm sure it's a combination of things. So tell us why you like the game...

I'm Back!! Just recently back from vacation to Corfu in Greece and what a brilliant holiday it was. Greece is going through a heatwave and temps ranged from 40C to 50C at the peak time of 3pm. Luckily the hotel had copious amounts of beer and it was brought to you as you requesed it! We spent 2 weeks lounging by the pools, drinking beer and getting really tanned. The hotel also had internet so i was able to check in once or twice to keep in touch. I'd recommend Corfu to everyone as the scenery is fantastic, sea is reall blue, beer and food is great and the locals are really friendly. We tried to book again for next year but the hotel is FULLY booked for next july :( Ah well back to Spain again.    

Killer sandcastles more deadly than sharks?

Ok,

I was playing 167.17 yesterday and, as you may be aware, all weapons are available to use there. There were guys (on both teams to be honest) taking all sorts of abuse from players for using the Auto-Sniper rifles.

Now that got me thinking, are they really the "noob cannon" everyone makes them out to be?

They don't have the stopping power of an awp or the maneuverability of the sniper rifle. Whilst being able to let off a fair volume of ammuition in a short space of time i've noted that, whilst the first bullet is fairly accurate, if you hit the fire button and "spray and pray" then chances are you'll miss and end up dead.

Up close they are god awful as "no scoping" is a lot harder with this than the sniper and to try to stay scoped to shoot a closing enemy is virtual suicide.

They cost a fortune in gaming terms compared to some and have the tell tale "bang" that gives their position away moreso than the awp.

So, to my original question. Are they overpowered killing cannons that should be restricted or a fairly standard and expensive gun that most peple wouldn't buy anyway?

Well its coming up to holiday (vacation) time again and i'm off to Corfu in the Greek Islands for 2 weeks of sun and relaxation in 3 weeks.

Now it got me thinking as to why people decide where they actually go on their holidays and what are the deciding factors that lead you to the final decision.

See we have a villa in Spain just down from Alicante on the Eastern Coast and have been quite happy to go there for the last few years. It's in an up and coming resort and every time we go more shops, bars, clubs etc have opened. It's our place so it's home for us and we know all the neighbours and locals quite well. I'd have been happy going there again.

However, as this is probably the last time our eldest daughter is going to be coming with us, we (Read the 3 women in the house lol) decided to go somewhere else. She chose Corfu as it's supposed to be nice, hot and sunny.

It's costing a small fortune compared to Spain and it's probably not going to be as "relaxed" as it's a strange place, strange surroundings and I can't speak Greek lol.

So where are you all going and why?

Is it my imagination or are more and more players willing to try and argue it out with admins on servers these days?

Is it the fact that they resent authority or just the fact that because they are playing a "cyber game" they reckon they can argue rulings with little reprise?

Well here's a quick word of warning. Bickering and disputing decisions made by admins on server usually doesn't get you very far. Most admins are chosen by Spawnpoint as being fair and level headed.

Politeness costs you nothing. A new steam id will cost you around $20.00 ;)  

I'm always asked on server why we have our strict swear filter and no porn policy.

Some people seem a bit "put out" that we are trying to instigate a "family and child friendly" community.

They argue that as the game shouldn't be played by these people we shouldn't be making the servers and site to suit THEM.

What people seem to forget is that these "children" are the next generation of Spawnpoint players, admins and staff!

These players ARE Spawnpoints future and I cringe when I hear grown adults (I'll use this term loosely) either abusing or making fun of these kids.

They're going to play somewhere and i'd prefer it to be here! So the next time you swear blindly on the server or are thinking of spraying your "adult themed" spray take a minute to ask if you'd like it to be your kid / future kid who heard or saw it.

Our rules are there for a reason and that reason is "the future". Please conform with them all thank you.

Well i've gone and done it lol

I've finally become a member of [B.o.D] who anyone that plays the UK Servers will know all about.

I thought my days of clans and matches were past me but the guys are well fun to play with and with the new server and web site are going places in the CSS world.

Now just because i'm wearing my new tags doesn't mean i'm gonna change my "impartiallity" when adminning the servers.

Badgers for the win!

 

I visit a lot of servers on my daily "rounds" and often see players "stats whoring" on many of the maps on CSS. This got me thinking about my gaming style.

I must admit than in my earlier CSS days i used to worry way to much about stats and ranks and K/D ratios and such. I was upset if my K/D ratio on Assault dropped below 2.0 and uses to spend way too much time on server trying to achieve and keep top 10 status.

However, I honestly got to the stage where it was no longer any fun playing the game as I would spend round after round camping choke points or such like knowing full well that other players would die by my hand.

I also reckon that I probably drove many a newish type player from the server as, as you are probably aware, when you first start out playing a game if you get your @ss whipped every round you're gonna bin it and find pastures new.

All the above changed radically when i was offered the position in the Support Staff on here though. Due to the new responsibilities I found my rank dropping and my K/D ratio also falling as i had to jump to spec etc to watch / record hackers and cheats.

I found myself chatting to newbies (Mr Noob on 167.17 springs to mind) and trying to teach them the basics on gameplay and console commands etc to the detriment of my own gaming. I find myself swapping teams to try even the sides in both numbers and experience and try to get others to do the same.

I now get much more enjoyment and satisfaction from my time on-line now knowing that I'm trying my hardest, not to become Number 1, but to make both my, and other players gaming experience more enjoyable.

Perhaps if other "stats mongers" would take a step back and look from "outside the box" and try to help guys and gals who are obviously not as skilled as themselves then the game would become better for all of us.

Remember CSS is A GAME and meant to pass some time and be FUN.