Patching Alternatives

**fathernitwit** · #1 02-21-2006, 03:56 PM

We are posting this poll to get a feeling for how the community stands on the future compatibility of eqemu. Nothing is garunteed to come of this, we are just putting out a feeler about a third alternative to the way things have been done. This being making eqemu compatible with the EQ Titanium client that comes on the CD, so anybody could play by getting ahold of the EQ Titanium CDs and doing a fresh install. Its always possible that they remaster the CDs with a different client, but we believe it is unlikely.

kouhei · #2 02-21-2006, 05:09 PM

I think its a good idea. I bought the that version and still have the keys and cd's. Thinking about I have 6.0 client, 6.2 client and also live on my HDD. If you did go that route. Would you make it so they would be able to use it on 6.0 servers or 6.2 servers?

**fathernitwit** · #3 02-21-2006, 06:06 PM

6.0 is officially not supported by the devs anymore (there has been over 60000 lines of changes since then), anything we do will only be based on 6.4+.

Belfedia · #4 02-21-2006, 09:46 PM

I do not think that to use "TITANIUM" is a good idea for the community eqemu.

People distribute backpatch for titanium in the place of backpatch for last 0.6.4 version... I see future post asking TITANIUM's Links in place of backpatch ...

Forget Live's chase is forget Everquest's upgrade.

I would like to say much more things on this subject, but my knowledge of English is not strong enough.

sesmar · #5 02-22-2006, 12:07 AM

I personally think that going with a fresh install from the CD would be a good idea but I can also see the downfall of it. As Belfidia said, instead of asking for a backpatch yes people would now be asking for these files, however, no matter what choice you make people are still going to ask for the client files. This is just going to happen either way. My other concern regarding this would be availability of the Titanium package. Sure right now you can buy it for $20 bucks, but what about in 6 months when they come out with another new expansion and then release an all new package deal. Or how about in a year, will the Titanium package still be available for those that want to buy it?

As for the good things, as long as the Titanium package remains available this would allow for the community to grow even more. No longer would people have to worry about patching at the right time. The Devs could then just stick to fixing old bugs, implementing new features and making a really solid emulator. Not having to worry about chasing live and what is broken now that it has been made compatable with live agian.

As for new features and things that get added with the new expansions I personally have not played any of the new expansions past LDoN and actually never made it to some of the content from before this even, so I do not care if the newer stuff ever gets implemented. I would be happy with just getting everything up to PoP working but that is just my own opinion on this.

All I am really trying to say is under the right circumstances I think that using the Titanium package for client compatablilty would be a great Idea. Well whatever you do decide to do I say, keep up the great work and thank you for providing all of us with a great emulator so far.

killhand · #6 02-22-2006, 02:55 AM

I think the best way is keep fixing bugs so we all get a better emulator. In this months of not live compat, devs got tons of things fixed that were broken for a long, long time. They even fixed bards!!

Dr Zauis · #7 02-22-2006, 04:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by killhand

I think the best way is keep fixing bugs so we all get a better emulator. In this months of not live compat, devs got tons of things fixed that were broken for a long, long time. They even fixed bards!!

I agree..I think that if a person is not patient enough to wait for live compatibiliy(And in the meantime read/study/ect..about emu.)then they should not be be here. This is hard stuff for a noob to understand and the purpose is NOT so a player can play for free. In fact its much easier to collect cans on the side of the road to pay SOE and play EQ live.

klinzhai · #8 02-22-2006, 12:27 PM

I don't want to pay SOE because they have truly ruined a game that could be great with a few small changes.

I want to start a server with a small number of players, make 'named' NPCs only spawn once (well, take them out of the game after they die the first time), but drop all their loot when you finally kill them and make a world where you truly work through everything together. I have a small group of friends who would love to see this come to fruition and I can't run around telling them to go to backpatchers or whatever. I'd rather simply be able to tell them to go out and buy Titanium or whatever and then play in a world that's scaled for that smaller group of players.

Everything really started falling apart at PoP (Hello... killing your own deity without consequences?!?!) and it never really got any better. I loved pre-PoP EQ, but when everything just started to be exclusively about loot and killing stuff with no consequences (or effectively no consequences), the game was on a quick slide to "who can kill x critter and get y loot".

Nothing personal to the rest of the community, but I want to play a game where I'm trying to accomplish something with my friends and not compete with 4000 (or even 400) other people trying to do the same thing on the same server. Not to mention the whole problem with never really encountering anyone else in the game, since everything might as well be completely instanced for all anyone does anything together or with other people around any more.

Shadow-Wolf · #9 02-22-2006, 12:51 PM

Stopping on titanium would be an excellent idea, for those who got patched and for new members.

Belfedia · #10 02-22-2006, 01:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shadow-Wolf

Stopping on titanium would be an excellent idea, for those who got patched and for new members.

Hum i think you don't understand something
If they work on the Titanium package, nobody have the correct patch, and all people must buy titanium package (old and new). I have 2 everquest bought, i don't want buy one more for a six month package release...

**fathernitwit** · #11 02-22-2006, 02:39 PM

well lets face it, theres not a ton of people around, most people are around because they found a back patch, and will do so again. At least would be a legal alternative that we could officially support.

As for the avaliability of titanium over time... theres still tons of copies of eq platinum selling on ebay frequently...

Lordlemur · #12 02-22-2006, 03:10 PM

First, I would like to personally thank FatherNitwit and everyone else who has been milling about with complex solutions to all of Sony's complex problems. While there can not be legal tech support for back patching on this site I would like to point out 2 major reasons why the switch to a pre-packaged sony product would create the same quagmire, even though it might grow the community.

First and formost, any prepackaged Sony product will infact use client side communications that are not concurrent with the latest version of EQEMU. I have been 3rd party to some discussions on how to fix various issues, and I can only imagine how FatherNitwit would manage to reinvent the client server communications and encryptions yet again. Aside from his metal well being this has a HUGE impact on the player base. It takes alot of time to dryroom the encryption. That means that even if there was a client in his hands right now, he wouldn't nessicarly be able to push a client to the community quickly. In that time no visable progress will occur. He does have a life after all, and it's not like we pay him.

Secondly, There is no guarentee that Sony didn't have the foresight to actully produce a client that militantly protects it's self. While I don't think that Sony has much foresight, it is not out of the relm of possibilities that they would be sneaky. After all, Sony really doesnt' care for us. I could envision 2 schemes that would make it hard to make a client hackable.

First, rootkits that work with a key and a checksum. If you don't know what a rootkit is it's probably a good thing. Let's just say they could, as other companies have, install code that sinks deep into windows (or worse bios) and changes rules slightly. Say for example that they alter it so your eq client isn't the same as the version number stored on their server then eqgame.exe will not proceed past patching without eqhost and loginserver.ini returning a valid checksum. If these checksums aren't correct it purges your eq directory and prompts you to re-install. It may be quasi-legal, but worse has been done.

Second simply hardcode the loginserver.ini and the eqhost.txt into eq.exe. If it can't be edited, it's really not the big an issue for a game in the end of it's lifecycle, but it makes our lives very poor.

Imho the changes to EQEMU since I started have been very welcome. I would rather have a fully functioning world then a buggy one with more people. EQEMU has real progress, and that's something Sony only lied about on boxes and press releases.

I am

Lemur
Sumlek <50-something Monk> PEQ ~ The Grand Creation 0.6.5

Belfedia · #13 02-22-2006, 03:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fathernitwit

well lets face it, theres not a ton of people around, most people are around because they found a back patch, and will do so again. At least would be a legal alternative that we could officially support.

As for the avaliability of titanium over time... theres still tons of copies of eq platinum selling on ebay frequently...

Everquest Titanium isn't very present on warez site... to young for a too old game i think.

If it was just for say to new player, Yes you can play if you buy Titanium, np
make it, but don't hope stop backpatch/warez asking :(

That sure this is a legal issue, but I think about future debates : " kind I have already everquest why oblige me has itself to repurchase it... Have interests on the sales of Sony?" (It is excessive I know, I dramatize:p).
I prefer send 200$ to eqemu devs than 20$ to sony

But the true question is How is the titanium pack ?
I have a platinium pack and without patching is'nt very usefull (that just install of all extension but need patch for fix client).

**fathernitwit** · #14 02-22-2006, 05:10 PM

Keep this in mind: I would not have posted this thread if we did not feel it was a very real and viable option. Theres nothing different or special about what comes on the titanium CDs.

I wouldent expect to see eq CDs on normal warez sites, beings that sony will let you download the entire thing for free... why bother.

klamath · #15 02-22-2006, 10:55 PM

Won't you be able to make it up to the files that sony lets you download ? and when they let you download more of game simply update to that ?