QueerRudie

OK- Got all the way through to the last screen (Checkout) and the 'game exchange coupon' box is ticked... But no place to input the data for the coupon in there! R.D.

Yup- got the e-mail for the coupons- Is the system for using them in the store setup yet? I.E. does that aspect need to be tested? (I'm at home with a rather nasty infection- and off the grid for a few days- so able to do work on things like that right now) R.D.

Looks good to me- Three coupons generated in five minutes or so- R.D.

Points system is working OK- Did 9 uploads in 12 minutes- and logged 180 pts along the way- Coupons generated works as well- Got 15.00 in coupons in my account listed! Just a thought: Perhaps we need to consider something along the lines of a 'daily limit' to uploading files- I.E. no more than 5 per day or such- it might work to prevent the 'get something for nothing' crowds out there? R.D.

I can give it a go- I'm at home today- R.D.

OK: Let us remember something about Vegas... It's always changing. What people are assuming here is what they have seen/read about the previous parks (MGM Grand Adventures, Wet & Wild) and not what was ACTUALLY given the causes of their demise: In the case of MGM Grand Adventures, it was mismanagement as well as failure to account for the higher-thrill tastes of the average LV patron. Having been to GA quite a few times over it's years, only once did I see the park with less than ideal capacity- and that was on a 115 degree August day. During the holiday periods, the park was packed- often to beyond capacity, and with hefty lines for just about every ride in the park. Simply put, the park was successful- but was drawing too many people from the Casino at the wrong times. The land underneath the park was needed to grow the property- and that spelled doom for the park. Not success, but rather: Utility of the land. The same could be said for Wet & WIld. The park was nearly always at capacity during it's heyday, and was very popular with both strip guests and the locals. However, in the 90s when the Land Grab began on the north end of the strip, we could see the end in sight. The park's land was too valuable to be kept as a water park- as a large-scale casino could have been built on the site easily. Once again, it wasn't a failure of a park- but rather, the land the park was on was too valuable for that use. The site that is proposed for the new park is small- but consider that the AdventureDome has less space than that overall- and with just as many height restrictions in place. Don't expect a 400 ft. tall coaster, or a pair of 300ft. tall S&S towers. I'd bet good money that the proposed park will be based much like a FEC would be- only with more adult tastes in mind for the rides. R.D.

Welcome to TPR, accelerate- Your park looks great all over- I love to see people playing with RCT 2 in this format- it's clean, bright and has a good look to it. R.D.

10 in progrees- will complete by EOD tommorow- if at all possible- R.D.

Sounds good about the Tutorials- I like the idea, as well as the different products we can build around it. BTW: I'm in SF for the next few days- (have to take care of BF for V-day; I'll be checking in and out of my e-mails as twere-) R.D.

I really think this is a great bit of news for SWSD... and loooong overdue. Not the tallest, nor the fastest- but a very dynamic layout that looks like there's a few good pops of g's in the right spots, and some fluid banking. Kudos to SWSD for their new 'baby'- and I can't wait to ride it! R.D.

OK- Now I feel reallllly old... I too remember going to Egghead- and getting my first copy of SimCity... and SimAnt, and SimCity2000.... Patches and trainers- excellllent. Perhaps even a split-off category for Custom Scenery and Custom rides. Agreed on the TPR-Sanctioned rides/games contests. As for a contest idea: I've been thinking about this. I'd like to setup a 'test' run of a TPR-Sponsored game- a very basic RCT2 game (If the format works, it could be used for RCT3 as well as NL in 'concept' at least). The basics of the game are this: A basic park space is developed, and the contest-candidate must build a park based upon the specifications of the game. TPR gardens challenge: Robb and Elissa want to have the happiest place on earth, where Fluffy fluffy bunnies filled with medicine and goo are nowhere to be found. Build a park with XXXX rides and XXXX booths/food, and make it something they would like. You may (use/not use) Custom scenery. You may (use/not use) Custom rides. Your park may (be functioning/be static), The rides must be (realistic/full of imagination) and should contain an XXXXX(type of ride), an XXXXX(type of ride), and an XXXXX(type of ride). Elissa has stated that she wants an XXXXX to be her own personal TOGO coaster, so she wants an XXXXXX to be built. Your submissions must be loaded into the TPR Games Exchange by XX/XX/XXXX at 12:00. In order for you to compete, you MUST have the following title on it: [A.J.'s great idea for contest naming here]. You must also post a picture when you upload the file, and you must give us details on how you came up with the ideas. The XXXXXX parks will be then voted on by the TPR members, and the one with the highest number of votes will win... A SACRED TPR BAG OF CRAP! (insert TPR Gardens link to exchange where it is loaded) Good luck- and start building! - Now mind you, this is an -early- thought. Replace the XXXXXs with whatever is thought possible (I.E. number of rides, etc) and change the wording to fit the need of the contest that months, and all that's left is to come up with the basic format for the game level. Once the contest is then finalized, it can be moved to the front page, and advertising within the forums can begin- not to mention using the Social Media sites for promotion- a win-win situation. If it's OK with all- I'd like to go ahead and setup this format- if you have any ideas for refinement and changes, I'm open to it- But I think this is one of the easier things for us to be able to setup without too much difficulty all around. R.D.

I just spent a small mint on a new laptop to be called D.O.A.... WAAAAAHHHHHHHHH (And as much as I like the idea of Wii... not so good with some of the games) BTB: Exactly- and I couldn't agree more. If anything, we, the game forum mods etc. need to create a 'test' contest concept- I.E. put our ideas into one big pile, and sort it out to make a working concept- and then see what we need to tweak, remove, add to make it a sound, user-friendly and most importanlty, TPR-Friendly contest. I've seen quite a few good ideas bantered about over the past few days in here. I do like the idea of doing split CS/noCS for the RCT games contests- and judging them accordingly from there. That way, we don't end up with a bias towards one or the other, and those who use CS can show off their skills. In addition, we might consider using the 'voting' systems to open up the contest for viewing by the whole group- not just the Games Forum people. Robb- Would it be feasble (sp... I've not had my coffee this morning) to post a contest like that on the FP? And then tie it into Facebook, etc?- That might be able to make a more visible approach to the contests- and drive traffic as well. R.D.

Very interesting look at Ferrari World- and I'm now not so sad I missed it on my last trip to Dubai... Amazing... The park isn't even three months old, and it's losing it's letters... Or is this the Chinese knock-off of Ferrari?\ Amazing TR, though- and good to finally put a face on Dubai Dave- R.D.

Dateline RLP: San Mateo. After Ginn E. Pigg opened, the park experienced a surge in traffic, and I decided to add another attraction. Introducing: Galloping Gopher, a GCI wooden twister with low-to-the ground elements, tunnels, and a station fly-past element. The ride itself was originally concieved to be a junior coaster, but I really didn't get a ride I was satisfied with. So, I expanded on the original ride concept, and made a larger and more family-oriented, yet still thrilling attraction. OK, OK, I hear the complaints now. Why Galloping Gopher? Well, to keep the continuity up of Ginn E. Pigg's world, I didn't want a name that clashed with Ginn E. Pigg, which sits opposite of Galloping Gopher. Wildcat was too repetitive, and the idea of having a 'ride' that could eat a Guinea Pig, well, that just didn't fly with me. 3 GCI Millenium flyer trains grace the course of this particular wooden coaster, and with plenty of speed, hills and curves, it's sure to thrill everybody. Enjoy, as I'll be on Hiatus for the next week while I go home to San Francisco. R.D. SCR32.BMP A first look at Galloping Gopher. This is the first drop, and the ground curve element. SCR33.BMP The completed Galloping Gopher layout, before scenery/theming is added. SCR34.BMP The brake runs are covered, and the track for the flyby of the station is enclosed. Additional structure is added. SCR35.BMP Trees are added in, a tunnel is added, and part of the ride is ready for testing- SCR36.BMP And HEEERE they go- A train of happy people takes the plunge on Galloping Gopher!

"OHHHHHHHHHHHH FUUUUUUUUUDDDDDDDGGGGGGGEEEEEEEEEEE" R.D.

PG 12 done- I'll be working on 10 over the next day or two- (I'm headed home to SF for the weekend; I'll try and see where it leaves off after that) R.D.

I do like some of the challenges and contests I've seen posted as of late- but after going through the forum during the files downloads, so many of them drop into oblivion before they even get started. What might be a good thing to think of for the contests is to come up with ones based around track design (I.E. NL/RCT3) where a given criteria is set beforehand, and let our people come up with their best submissions within a set of guidelines. Custom Scenery vs. non-custom scenery would also be something that has to be addresssed as well- as that seems to be the #1 question in all of the contests. With regards to RCT/RCT2 parks (although I really haven't seen much life to RCT in the past few years) a pre-set park should be created for that- also with specific guidelines and patterns- and the same rule for NCS/CS applying to it. A public voting system might be a good thing- I.E. what's been done in the photoshop contests so far. If we should choose to do a ratings based contest, some sort of judging guidelines would be necessary- to avoid people spiking ratings in favor/against a particular park or design. (I don't know if everybody remembers the fiascos at Ultimate Coaster when it came out -and the intentional ditching of rides due to evil people- but that's something that we need to prevent- ) Coupon's contest does look interesting- a lot of people were generated quickly, and as far as I can tell, it's got a good feel to it. I'm keeping my eye on it to see if that method would work on a larger scale (i.e. a TPR-wide type contest). R.D.

And this is where I have to say that sometimes their idea of 'superior' isn't quite in line with reality- and in some cases, the average level of people playing RCT/RCT2/RCT3. I can understand somebody going to great lengths to make a park beautiful- or for that matter, any other thing a piece of art. But in all reality, NE's panel has a basic stance of "Oh, well I can make a building perfect. Since you cant, You're crap. Go Away." That is the -LAST- thing I'd like to see here at TPR. I can appreciate the parks where detail is first and foremost. But I'm also one who plays RCT/RCT2/RCT3 in a more simple, refined pattern. For every 'park with ultimate details' we'd showcase, we need to be sure to have a park that's basic- Not a 'crap' park per se, but something that isn't so over the top. R.D.

I like this idea- The idea of getting people interested by/via Social Media has worked very well for other places. The idea of putting a 'Spotlight' on a RCT/2/3 or NL track/park/player each month could really drive some traffic out there, and get people into the forum AND the exchange. Ex: "This month, we feature our TPR RCT2 player _______________ ' and then link them to the park/person/game on the exchange. Thus, flow-through to the exchange, more publioity for the forum and potentially people uploading more files. The ratings system could be used there to partially determine who could be the 'spotlight' of the month- but we have to be careful with it as well. I've noticed at other sites (NL comes to mind, as did a few other now 'defunct' sites) there could be a level of cruelty and bitterness over how the ratings are done. In some cases, there were jerks who'd score perfectly good parks low, and awful parks higher- and thus with the right number of 'nos' to yesses' were able to manipulate the system towards their favor. While I don't think initially we'll have a problem with that (Considering most TPR members are pretty decent people), there is a possibility this could sprout roots here- and that's something that makes me a bit nervous. Structuring the contests right is a good thing. The TPR "Monthy MIcros" is something I've watched for a bit now, and it is starting to generate some buzz. A monthy contest would almost have to be a must I think- and it needs to be something that people will enjoy playing, won't become too repetitive, and is easy enough that we can get a lot more people involved in it. As I've been doing the file transfers, I've read a few of the contest in the past, and very few of them were completed- as Robb (and MCJaco) has said, they often were poorly planned, or so complicated Einstein would have had issues figuring them out. Another .02 from me- R.D.

Hey- I did start thinking about this a few days back- and perhaps a feature for the future- Right now, we've got categories for NL, RCT/2/3, etc. How about a section that could make it easier to place files for contests? As far as contests go, I'd like my first to be a March Madness sort of contests: Basically, No Custom Scenery RCT2 vs. Custom Scenery RCT2- in levels all the way down to a 'championship' game level. As for promoting the exchange: That's where we're going to have to be innovative. I know that once it's setup, we need to remind people to post there- and perhaps have an ability to link from the exchange to the Games forum- that way we (in theory, mind you) should not have to chase down files that get posted in the forum- and can generate more traffic for the Exchange- Confidentially, though, I think NE has started to really anger people with their systems of rating things; we might be able to draw traffic off of them- and use the TPR exchange as a more neutral place for the most part. As for using Facebook/Twitter/etc. Announcing contests, programs and such are a good way of doing things. I've seen more good stuff from TPR's postings than anything else so far. YouTube might also be a place to put up the 'winning' game entries for NL projects (I.E. a POV). For now, my .02 worth- but I'm always thinking (perhaps TOO much) about what to do next- R.D.

Dateline: RLP San Mateo... As I've been working on the RLP properties- including a new park beyond the RLP San Mateo property, I've begun to refine and make some basic changes to RLP:SM. First, I went back and re-started this park, simply as I wasn't happy with what I'd started the game with, shop and scenery wise. The basics of the park are unchanged, as are the coasters, but I've done some 'cleaning up' and re-theming of parts which will reflect in this update. As I've noted a lot of people have been asking for my scenery skills to be more 'complete', I've gone through on a few of the attractions and added more thing such as walls, hedges, and some other elements I've not done in the past. It's not that I've gone back on my simple style, but rather, because I wanted to try new things. In addition, I'll be releasing the tracks for some of the coasters in this particular park for public consumption as well- so enjoy! R.D. SCR17.BMP Here the 'revised' park shall begin- as the park's basic layout and ride assortment hasn't changed at all! What you see in this pic is the construction of Turn Of The Century. SCR18.BMP The top of the lift and the turnaround. SCR19.BMP A look at the back side of the 'hill runs' over the block brake. SCR20.BMP Let's get Screwed. The ToC's layout is finished, and ready to be tested. SCR21.BMP Turn Of The Century is finished- and the park is ready to open up. SCR22.BMP A train of happy people goes inverted! SCR23.BMP An overview of the park's first Phase. SCR24.BMP The park has been built out for future expansion. The first generation SkyRail monorail is added to help take some pressure off the existing park till the next major expansion can be completed. SCR25.BMP Mr. Mouseburger has ordered the construction of Ginn E. Pigg's World first. He's also instructed the RLP chain to add a Ginn E. Pigg world to all parks. Here's the Carousel and Circus. SCR26.BMP "WHEEET! WHEEET! WHEEET!" Yes, folks, it's the return of Ginn E. Pigg's Farm Adventure. SCR27.BMP Coverings and scenery are added to the Carousel and Circus attractions. SCR28.BMP Ginn E. Pigg's Farm adventure has grown rapidly. Part of the scenery is now completed. SCR29.BMP The wheat field is added, as is garden groves. SCR30.BMP The finished Ginn E. Pigg's adventure. SCR31.BMP An overview of RLP:San Mateo at the end of Phase II construction.... But who's that over next to Ginn E. Pigg? It looks a LOT like Michael Boodley... American Revolution.TD6 The American Revolution: A Schwarzkopf Shuttle Loop, optimized for capacity and thrills. Turn Of The Century.TD6 A re-creation of the Turn Of The Century from the Mariott's Great America Parks.

NP at all- 15 done, will start to work on 12 later on, finish tommorow- R.D.

Pg. 16 done. Will start 15 tommorow (First day of my vacation) Go PACKERS! R.D.

Pg. 18 done. It appears that 17 has been spoken for- so I'll start on 16 next- (GO CAPS: Caps 3, Pittsburgh 0.) GO GREEN BAY! R.D.

pg. 19 down, starting 18. (Caps 2: Penguins: 0) R.D.