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Topic Summary

Posted by: Erik L
« on: April 30, 2020, 05:32:08 PM »

Tutorials/How-to's/etc. should be posted in the C# Tutorial forum.
Posted by: sloanjh
« on: January 14, 2016, 06:57:12 AM »

I want to ask about how something works in the game.  Where should I ask?
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90% of the time, you'll want to ask questions in The Academy (or in Chat, if it's chatty :) ), rather than in Mechanics.  The reason for this is that Mechanics is where Steve posts and discusses rules changes, so we try to keep the thread count low.  A good rule of thumb is that if you're asking questions like "How do I do X" or "How does X work", then it belongs in The Academy.
Posted by: sloanjh
« on: March 14, 2010, 07:43:40 PM »

"I've got something I want to add to the FAQ - how do I do so?"
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Feel free to post additional items to the FAQ if they meet the following criteria:

1)  You know the answer to the question.  If you don't know the answer, then the question probably goes in The Academy (it can move to FAQ after it's been answered).
2)  The question is actually asked frequently, i.e. you've seen it go by a few times.

When posting into the FAQ, please think about if the new item already goes in an existing thread - if so, then please add it as a reply to that thread.  If it doesn't belong in an existing thread, then please think about what general category of questions it belongs to and use that as the topic for the thread.  The goal here is to avoid having ~100 threads with individual threads among which will be difficult for new users to find answers to their specific questions.  For example, rather than starting a new thread titled "Why can't I make a fighter class design?" there's a whole thread about "Fighter Questions".
Posted by: sloanjh
« on: January 24, 2010, 01:30:58 PM »

"I've got this cool feature I'd like Steve to add to Aurora - how to I ask for it?"
"There's an aspect of the interface/game mechanics that I want changed because it's a pain to use - how do I ask for the change?"
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Pretty much the same answer as for bugs.  First, read the FAQ and search the backthreads.  This is particularly important if you're a new user - many of the decisions in Aurora were made after much discussion, and you'll make a much better impression on people if your suggestion shows that you've done your homework.

If you still feel it's a useful suggestion after doing your homework, you should post into the current "Suggestions for N.M" thread in the suggestions forum.  This thread will typically be stickied (at the top), and will have a number that is the next unreleased DB version, e.g. 5.0 if 4.92 is the current version everyone is playing.  The story is the same here as for bugs - this is the only suggestion thread that Steve is guarenteed to review before he does a release; any suggestions made in other threads run a high risk of being forgotten by Steve.

Occasionally, an experienced user will start a new thread in the Suggestions forum.  The criteria for this tend to be that it would be a major change to the game, and that it is likely to spawn a lot of discussion - the idea is to keep the discussion isolated from the main suggestion thread.  This should be done very rarely, though.
Posted by: sloanjh
« on: January 24, 2010, 01:17:59 PM »

"I recently started playing Aurora, and think I've found a bug/exploit.  Where should I report it?"
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First, you should read the appropriate FAQ/Tutorial (and maybe do a quick search) to make sure you aren't misunderstanding the intended behavior.  In particular, if you started running the program and got errors right away, then you should read the "Getting the game to run" FAQ - you probably have an install or settings problem.

If you still think it's a bug and are a new user (only been playing for a week or so), please do not post into the Aurora Bugs board.  Instead, you should post an "Is this a bug..." question into The Academy.  Many of the issues that new users think are bugs are actually "features" that are misunderstood.  If it really is a potential bug, then someone will ask you to post it into the Aurora Bugs board.

If you're an experienced user, there should be a thread with a name like "Official v4.9 Bugs Thread" for the version that you're running - please post your bug report into the appropriate thread for the DB version you're running.  For example, if you're using 4.92, then you should post into the v4.9 thread.  Please do not start a new thread - Steve can't track a lot of threads, so if you report a bug somewhere other than in the "official" thread it's likely to get lost.  Also, please read the "Bug Reporting (Please read before posting bugs)" thread (stickied in the Bugs forum) before posting a bug for the first time.

Two things to keep in mind:
1)  When reporting an error message, there should be a title somewhere on the pop-up box that says something like "Error in XXX", where XXX is the function name.  It is very important to include that name along with the error itself, otherwise Steve won't know which function is failing.

2)  If the error is repetitive and probably due to NPR doing something weird (or some other mystical interior workings of the game), then it's a good idea to save a copy of the DB so that you can send it to Steve if he asks for it.  There's an FAQ on saving games.  Note: please do NOT post Steve's e-mail to the boards if someone asks for it - he doesn't want to be targetted by spambots.
Posted by: sloanjh
« on: January 24, 2010, 01:03:34 PM »

"I just installed Aurora, and can't get it to work.  What should I do?"
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First, read the "Getting the game to run" FAQ.  If you don't find your issue there, post into the "Installation Problems" thread in The Academy.  Be sure to mention which OS you're using.
Posted by: sloanjh
« on: January 24, 2010, 12:58:30 PM »

Roadmap FAQ for which posts go where.

NEW USERS:  In general, please restrict your posts (including bug reports) to "The Academy" for the first month or so, until you get a feel for what goes where.  Aurora is a complicated, ever-changing game, and it takes everyone a while to get up to speed.  As such, it tends to generate a lot of "new user questions" about the basics of the game.  The Academy is the board that's intended to get new users over this hump, leaving the other boards able to answer more advanced questions.   Experienced players are generally very happy to answer even the most basic questions, so don't be shy about asking what might feel like a stupid question.  That being said, it is expected that you'll make at least a small effort to find the answer on your own before asking a question.  Read the appropriate tutorial(s), look in the FAQ, do a quick search for a keyword or two in the search box in the upper right corner - it shouldn't take more than a minute or two.  If you think you've found an answer but aren't sure, don't feel shy about posting an "I think this is the way it works - am I correct?" question - the way the game works changes over time.  And if you didn't find an answer after giving it a little bit of effort, feel free to ask the question of the community.

A few common new user mis-posts (discussed in detail below):

1)  Starting a new thread in Bugs, rather than posting to the official thread for the current version.
2)  Starting a new thread in Suggestions, rather than posting to the official thread for the next major version.
3)  Asking a question in Mechanics, instead of The Academy or Chat.
4)  Asking a question to which you don't know the answer in FAQ, rather than posting it in The Academy.
5)  Logging a bug that is actually new-user "pilot error" or a known feature, rather than asking about it in The Academy.
6)  Not giving enough information when logging a bug to the Bugs thread, rather than reading Steve's stickied post with bug-reporting instructions.

Welcome!