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+---- Thread: Swamp Dog introduction (/showthread.php?tid=75)
Swamp Dog introduction - swampdog - 06-20-2015
Well since Snapman did such a great job introducing himself, I thought it would be a good idea to introduce myself as well. My name is James, but I usually go by Jimmy. I am 27 years old and have lived in California my whole life. I am currently enrolled in college and am seeking a science degree. I have known Snapman for 15+ years and spent much of my teenage years enjoying playing Half-Life 1 mods regularly until I turned 19. I took a break from video gaming from 2007-2012, so I missed a lot of stuff that happened in that time. I started working with Snapman over the internet again in the Summer of 2012, and with his help I have been actively learning more about computing technology since. Snapman helped me get into learning Linux, internet security, hardware profiling, diagnostics, programming, and hardware/software repair. I am now a novice (hoping to become advanced) user of linux and am actively seeking to find more ways to integrate linux usage into my daily life (so it stays fresh in my mind...I can't stand forgetting this stuff).
The way we started off was just by wanting to get the GangWars community together to schedule games. I started diagnosing and repairing things here and there for the GangWars mod, which lead into the idea of supporting old HL1 mods that desperately need the support. I was complaining to Snapman regularly about how Valve basically dropped support for HL1 mods and the GoldSource engine altogether, which to me was a big mistake on Valve's part. I watched the Half-Life 1 gaming community die slowly due to lack of organization and/or support from outside (coders, network admins, developers, players). I really wanted to figure out how to get bots running in GangWars the way I want, so I looked into every bit of information I could find about it. When doing this research, I realized that Snapman and I were actually doing the service we believed that was necessary to hopefully have the Half-Life 1 community thrive to it's greatest potential at this point in time (2015). We decided that we wanted to start a gaming community centered around the idea that we need to support gamers, server admins, and developers all around because the mods have been developed but no one is playing them. No one was playing either due to lack of servers, lack of players, lack of developer support, or a combination of those issues. The first thing Snapman and I did was come up with a plan to set up servers for HL1 mods that have no servers for people to play. We realize that not many people play these games anymore, so we would actually need to reach out to the old players in order to revive the once popular mods. The GangWars community came up with the idea of scheduling games so that we could get everyone in the same place at the same time to play. While we have yet to actually fully implement this service for the Half-Life 1 community, the foundation groundwork has been laid for others to schedule games for whatever mod they wish to play. If anyone needs any help organizing a game, Snapman and I would love to help by either hosting servers, recruiting players, communicating with mod developers, or customizing scripts to suit the needs of people who want to play the mods. So far, we have been able to make some contributions back to the Half-Life 1 modding community by running servers in the US, Canada, and Netherlands. It is our desire to actually keep the Half-Life 1 mods alive as long as people want to play them, and hopefully eventually we can expand to support many different types of game modifications outside of Half-Life 1. We appreciate all the help we have received so far and we hope that people continue to support this cause. We hope people support this cause so that all the time and energy put into developing these mods will not go forgotten. If it wasn't for the time spent to develop these mods, there wouldn't be the mods we love to play. So, we want to help developers see that their games are being played if no one is playing them currently. It is sad to see a work of art like a mod not be fully appreciated for the effort made by developers to create such a game. We appreciate and understand what it takes to create these mods. It is not easy and it takes lots of time & energy. If you care to participate in this gaming community, there are many ways you can help (even if you are just an active member on the forums here). Thank you for making what we are doing a possibility and a reality. Snapman and I are having fun providing the services we intend to provide. We are hoping that after this gaming community grows and becomes more successful that it will eventually sustain itself, by the community and for the community. Snapman and I aren't going to be around forever, so we are trying to do everything we can to pass on what we know to the next generation of gamers so it hopefully does not get forgotten.
On another note, I am going to be attending school again this Fall (2015). I won't be around as much once I start school back up, so if anyone needs anything from me I will do my best to help when I can.
I do diagnostic work, mostly. I have been gifted with the ability to analyze and diagnose problems with hardware, software, and networking. If anyone needs any help diagnosing problems, and potentially finding solutions, I am glad to try to help with my knowledge and skills when I can.
While I am interested in video gaming, I am even more interested in using computer technology to help clean pollution from water, air, and soil. I particularly appreciate the Half-Life goldsource coding, because it has helped me become more familiar with Artificial Intelligence (AI), computer generated physics engines, code formatting, code compilers, and computer logic. I enjoy just about every aspect of Half-Life 1, basically.
So, hopefully after working to help set up the gaming community here there will be a self-sustaining service that can be provided for players, server admins, and developers alike. It is up to you to participate with us if you wish for this community to reach the max potential. We want you to help us, and we are grateful for all the effort made on behalf of other gamers so we could get this far. Thank you again.