Cptn Moose

"Who are these people and what the heck are they doing?" Does that sound familiar? It's usually the first thought people have when they discover the STSF and Starfleet Academy. Don't worry, before long you'll be exploring strange new worlds, and going boldly with the best of them. But it does take a little practice to learn your way around. Here are a few basic tips to help get you started. First, you have to come in order to play. Everyone is welcome to play in the Starfleet Academy simulations, regardless of experience. This is where you learn to sim. Come as often as you'd like, without making prior reservations. The games designated as 'advanced sims' are reserved for players who have 'graduated' the academy. This will not happen until you have simmed several times, and have repeatedly demonstrated an understanding of the rules and a comfort level with the simming conventions. The Starfleet Academy simulations are held in the Holodeck chat room at www.stsf.net. You will have to register a screen name at www.stsf.net's Message Boards and you use that name and password to get into the Holodeck. You can get into the chat rooms from any of the stsf.net pages, by clicking on "Chat Rooms" at the top of the page. Another way to get there is from the Message Boards where you can click on Live Chat at the top right corner. A Game Master (GM) is the host of the sim. There are usually two GMs in charge of any given sim. One GM is responsible for assigning posts. The other GM serves as Captain and directs that evening's mission. When things are ready to begin, you will be told which of the Gms to contact for a post. Send them a Private Message (PM) stating that you would like to play, and let them know it's your first time. They'll make sure you get assigned a position you can handle. Be patient when waiting for a reply. That GM may have just received up to 22 other messages just like yours, and it takes a little time to answer each one. The more messages they get, the longer it takes to get the sim started. Messages asking if they got your request, telling them you want a different post, or thanking them for letting you play should be held until the sim begins. The other GM serves as Captain < Co >, and has two different jobs. First, they post the mission and direct the action of the story. Next, they are also responsible for evaluating the players. The GMs decide who (if anyone) will graduate that evening and be invited to play in the advanced games. A certain amount of aloofness is required to perform both jobs, so don't try to attract the Captain's attention. Instead, play with the other cadets in your department and bring your ideas and developments to the attention of your department chief. Although you may not have spoken to the Captain since the game began, have faith that they are watching you. < Eng2 > Why do all the players put these abbreviations before their names? < CEng > To let everyone know which post they are playing. The players change from sim to sim, but the posts remain the same. There are four departments that run a starship: Security, Engineering, Medical, and Science. Each department has a chief < CSec >, < CEng >, < CMO >, and < CSci >, and a varying number of assistants < Sec1 >, < Sec2 >, < Sec3 > etc. The numbers of the assistants do not indicate rank. < Eng3 > and < Eng1 > both have equal responsibilities and both report to the < CEng >. If the dept. chief has to drop out of the sim for any reason, one of the assistants will be asked by the GM to assume the chief spot. That assistant will change their post and begin to use the chief abbreviation, but no one else needs to change. In fact, it works against you. If the GM has been watching that great player < Sci2 > all evening, they may not realize that this same player is suddenly < Sci1 >. Positions on the bridge vary by post, < Tac > for Tactical, < Helm > for Helm, < Ops> for Operations. These posts report to the First Officer < Xo >, who serves as dept. chief for the bridge positions. The other dept. chiefs also report to the Xo. The "Chain of Command" is one of the most important rules in simming. This means that you only play with your department chief and others in your department, unless the chief assigns you to do otherwise. The captain will give you orders through the dept. chief, and you will report back to the captain through the department chief. This is necessary for two reasons. A chat room during a sim can be a very busy place. You can get dizzy trying to read everything that is being said. The chain of command means that there are only three to six people you need to pay attention to: the two GMs, your department chief, and the other players in your department. This makes it easier to play. The chain of command also makes the game "possible" to play. No one can play creatively when 23 other people are talking at them all at the same time. And you would never be able to share ideas if you had to communicate them to all 23 people at once. Because the Xo can focus on the four dept. chiefs, and the chiefs can focus on their assistants, it makes it possible for all 23 people to work together and create a story. This is the point of simming. Once you've played for awhile, you will notice that the sims where you have the most fun are also the ones where everyone follows the chain of command. So now, you've requested a post from the GM, and you've found the other players in your department. What's next? That's entirely up to you and your imagination. Every mission will present opportunities and challenges for you and your fellow cadets. Remember though, teamwork is everything. Hang tight with the others in your department and you won't go wrong. And always feel free to PM the GM who gave you your post if you have any questions. Good luck, and happy simming.

Thank you all. My wife kidnapped me early Friday and whisked me to Las Vegas. We got back late last night, so sorry I haven't acknowledged the notes before today. It was odd being there with her and without you all or the Trek exhibit ... but I managed to persevere ;-) Have a happy Thanksgiving everyone. Moooose

I've recently been confronted by the fact that Mrs. Robinson doesn't look so old to me anymore. So now that I've crossed the line into "that" generation, here are some parental tips for the recent Academy graduate. 1) Get a job. It's very easy to get caught up in the excitement and forget one of the most basic facts of simming: this is a game about people at work. Most new arrivals have a tendency to find their quarters, get their pets settled in, go have a physical in sick bay and flirt with the medical staff of whatever sex they happen not to be. They chalk this up to 'character development'. But the next week comes and they're no more at ease with the crew than they were the week before. This is because they're jobless. Your job is the foundation for your character, which is why one of the first questions you're asked after you graduate is "what post are you interested in?" What do you know? How do you know it? What can you do better / worse than everyone else? Mission Briefs are sent out every week, and they always describe your upcoming job. When you draft your first bio, your parents, siblings, embarrassing secrets, etc. are only relevant in relation to how you do your job. There's plenty of time to develop your family story later. Becoming a work-a-holic for your first few weeks will ensure that you're involved in the action right away. Spend your first few sims learning your job. Learn someone else's job while you're at it. The two toughest posts to play in a sim are Xo and Counselor. This is because they have administrative jobs. There's little for them to do during a red alert except watch everyone else play and comment on it to the Captain. You'll notice that the really good players in these roles will find ways to fill in where the assigned crew is missing. 2) Play with others, don't play with yourself. The point of getting together once a week is to exchange dialogue. No matter how compelling your personal story is, you will quickly get bored if there's no one to share it with. Use the face time to interact with the other players, and create situations you can't make up on your own. Use your logs to explain how you feel about the interaction. There are other uses for logs, but this is a good place to start. Make it easy for others to play with you. There is a tendency for players to start every sim sitting in the lounge, sipping drinks and looking forlorn until someone comes to talk with them. Unfortunately, most people will assume that if you're sitting alone, you have a dramatic reason you're exploring. They won't crash your story without an invitation. The same holds true if you start the game in your quarters every week. To reinforce point number one, your job will cause you to get involved with others or for them to need something from you. It is the easiest invitation to come play that you can issue, and the easiest one for other players to extend to you. 3) Raise your hand to be called on. There is a specific behavior demonstrated by new players who don't think they fit in that I once dubbed "Kataran Syndrome." The Katarans were an android race from the planet Katar. One day, after feeling particularly ignored by the crew, the Kataran player retreated to his quarters and systematically dismantled himself. The fact that no one stopped him just reinforced the player's feelings that no one wanted him around, so once the android was in pieces on the floor, the player left for good. Ironically, we all watched him do this, thinking he was 'character building' by demonstrating a Kataran maintenance procedure. No one knew what he was up to, so no one knocked on the door to his room to stop him (re-read point #2). Because no one stopped him, he thought no one cared. It became a self-fulfilling prophecy. The point is, if you're feeling left out and you want to play with someone ... ask. If you feel uncomfortable asking, send a PM to the Captain or First Officer and tell them you're not sure how to get involved. You have to be responsible for your own fun. 4) You'd better shop around. "My momma told me ..." Help me fill in the lyrics from the old song. "Try to get yourself a bargain, son, don't you be sold on the very first one. Good looking girls are a dime a dozen, try to find one who's going to give you good lovin ..." I'll stop singing now. The cats are complaining. Have you noticed that in space, everyone is gorgeous? In spite of this being a game about work, personal relationships abound. Everyone seems to be in a hurry to find a date. I've never understood this myself, especially since I can invent the perfect date in my logs anytime I want. But as Old Navy lady Carrie Donovan once said, "I don't have to understand 'blue jeans', because everyone else does." I do understand, however, that it's difficult to separate in-character from out-of-character personalities even if you've known a specific player for a long time. I've seen many uncomfortable out-of-character situations develop between players whose in-character relationships have failed. Once you start dating or marry another character on your ship, you have suddenly limited yourself. You can't be spontaneous on a shore leave because your character would spend all their free time with their beloved. You can't volunteer for a life threatening mission without being prepared to write the log of the "don't do that again" fight when it's over. And heaven help you if another player joins the ship whose playing style is more compatible with your own than your mate's is. No one takes being dumped in their fantasy life very well, no matter how secure they are in real life. In order to fully explore and develop your simming style, keep as many options open for your character as you can. 5) Eat right and exercise. Not really. I'd never recommend that. But just like your health, the enjoyment you get from the sim is directly related to the effort you expend. Not everyone can come every week, or is going to spend all their free time writing logs. But players who interact with the other players, attend regularly, write logs, and think about who their character is, what they've done, and what they're going to do next week, will ultimately have more fun than the players who don't. 6) Free advise is worth the price. Now that I've said all this, I must point out that I've been simming for years with many advanced players who follow none of these rules. And they're still having a wonderful time week after week. Everyone has their own style. Noel Coward always advised that you should break rules often, but never if you didn't know why they were there. Here's to you, Mrs. Robinson.

My targ ate my post.

Of course he will ... he's a Scorpio.

I'm a Scorpio. Too many of you know me personally for me to deny any of Snoopy's allegations towards my people.

I'm sorry, but for me, Star Wars jumped the shark when they revealed that Leah was Luke's sister. As a funny side note, my brother missed that fact when he saw "Return of the Jedi" twenty years ago, and almost swallowed his tounge when he heard it for the first time at the end of 'Sith'. He's probably the only person on the planet for whom that was a surprise ending.

Things from the "Extreame Makeover" blooper real that you'll never see.

Isn't that a wierd feeling. Many years ago, I started my first advanced sim on the same night as another player. It turns out we both lived in the Chicago area. Finally, after several months of wondering if we'd passed each other on the street, she invited me to a concert in which she was singing. When she sent me the flyer, I discovered that she was performing with someone else I had known for years. So we actually had a mutual reference before we met in person. A few months later, one of the guys on the ship was coming through town on business. She had arranged to meet him, and at the last minute came to her senses and invited me along. This way, she didn't have to meet him alone. A few months after that, one more crew member came to town. We went to meet her and discovered that the brought her mother-in-law with her. MIL was a good sport, listening to us spout Trek-babble all night, but it was a smart thing to do. Neither one of them had any idea what type of wierdo's we were going to turn out to be. No matter how friendly and honest we all seem online, please be cautious if this thread starts getting you into "let's meet" conversations. Use the same precautions that you'd use meeting any kind of stranger. Tell people where you're going, meet in a public place, and bring a friend or two along. Believe it or not, not everyone is as they represent themselves around here. Moose (the beautiful, young blond girl with nice shoulders)

My favorite was Wrath of Kahn. My least favorite was Final Frontier. I didn't think First Contact was a good as everyone said it was, although I liked it alot. And I enjoyed Nemesis more than everyone told me I would. : )

I'm from Chicago. The closest person that I've met is 1 1/2 hours away (name omitted to protect the innocent), but I know there are others in the area. In the old days, about 1/3 of the Arcadia crew either lived out here, or had a reason to cruise through town often. Other than Shore Leave, I don't see as many people face to face as I used to. As fun as this topic is, please be carefull about how much personal information you reveal about other members. : ) I would let folks reply on their own rather than "outing" their home locations.

Happy Birthday, old man. And thanks for making me feel young for another year. ;-) Moosethusela

Thank you for the kind wishes everyone. You all started a day early, and I couldn't quite figure it out until I realized that Fred is on the other side of the International Dateline. It was my birthday there before it was here. So in true Sci Fi fashion, I got birthday greetings from the future. Thanks everyone. Moose

I certainly hope so. We've got plenty of room for everyone. Bring 'em on. : )

Are we talking about the same Vegas? This is the city that's designed for tourists. Sure, they'd like you to gamble, but there is nowhere on the planet that's easier to have a cheap vacation. a) Hotel and airfare for three nights / four days is often under $500, always under $600. b ) You don't need to rent a car. Other than to and from the airport, you can get almost everywhere for $1.50 monorail ticket. c) Almost every hotel has something spectacular to do for free: lions at the MGM, white tigers and an exploding volcano at the Mirage, the Chihulley glass exhibit at the Bellagio, the choreographed fountains at the Bellagio, the statues that come to life at Ceasar's Palace, the circus acts at Circus, Circus, the laser light show over Freemont Street, etc. etc. etc. Just to walk around and see how some of these places are decorated is astounding. And if you want to spend a little money, there are at least a 1/2 dozen roller coasters, countless 3-D motion simulator rides, trips to the top of the eiffel tour, gondola rides, etc. etc. etc. I haven't even gotten to the stage shows (ranging anywhere from $30 to $130 a seat), the shopping, and the nice restaraunts if you're so inclined. d) Some of the cheapest restaraunts in the world. Where else do you find an all-you-can-eat prime rib buffet for $5.95? There is plenty of inexpensive things to do if you get tired of spending time with the people and need to move. However, you are correct that Shore Leave is all about spending time with the people. This is usually why we either don't leave the pool, or once we sit down in Quark's Bar we end up sitting there all day munching on "Holy Onion Rings of Betazed" The biggest complaint anyone ever has is that we didn't do enough.

If they had done that, then I probably wouldn't be able to tease you about your spelling and grammer mistakes. ;-) But seriously, robots and telescopes are fine, but a manned mission to the moon is the first step towards going anywhere else. And it's a step we haven't taken in 30 years. If they start now, we won't make it to the moon until Kroells is thirty. If we wait until Iraq and Katrina and possibly Rita are behind us, then we may loose another decade or two on top of that. Who's to say that this isn't the start of something better. Wouldn't a mission to Mars be better off starting from a moon colony with full fuel tanks and food larders? What would a super-telescope mounted on the dark side of the moon be able to reveal? I'm not saying that Nasa is planning these kind of things now, but they'll never be possible if we don't lay the infrastructure, and that means making routine trips to the moon. If NASA starts the project now, they'll be ready to go when someone comes up with a really good idea as to why we should be there. Moose

All right boys, put the guns back in your pockets where they belong and give it a rest. No offense to anyone, but I have yet to meet a member of this forum who is so naturally entertaining, that they've earned the right to rain (not my first word choice) on someone else's parade just for sport. If this thread annoys you, simply don't read it and go find something else to do. And please take the "who's going to beat up who" discussion somewhere private. Thanks, Moose

First of all, Congratulations to all of our Aegians. 10 years is an outstanding achievement. I've started a thread over on the startrek.com message boards, asking for folks to contribute one of their favorite moments to the thread. It would also be nice to read about some of those here, but please pop over to startrek.com and share your stories with the world. What was your favorite story? What was the funniest thing that happened to you? Who were the friends you made? Our longevity is one of our strongest selling points, and this is a wonderful opportunity to share with the Trek world at large exactly why we hang out here. I can't think of a better way to honor the Aegis on this eventfull occasion. Congratulations again all. Moose

Laura Bush wasn't sure if her Secret Service escourts truly understood the word 'incognito'.

Things were never quite the same in the valley once the Jolly Green Giant started taking side jobs.

Even Scotty was stunned by Bones' choice as to where to insert the meat thermometer.

No matter how nice they said it looked, no one really liked Picard's new toupe.

Paris> It's a pleasure to finally meet Tuvok's acting coach.

Paris> Tuvok, we'll never reach a compromise as long as you see every issue in black and white.

I don't think that's true. Individuals may grow more liberal as they age and mature, and their priorities change. But mankind as a whole has not been growing steadily more liberal through the centuries. Permissiveness goes in waves, and I guarantee 21st century America would appear absolutely prudish to an Ancient Roman. Inter-racial couples are commonplace in America today thanks to decades of racial awareness that many people fought hard to achieve. That same awareness doesn't exist yet in South Africa and other countires. It has nothing to do people mellowing over time. I think if America were discovered today, instead of 600 plus years ago, the thing that would change how the country was settled would be technology. The thought of forming a Second Continental Congress to receive a reply to a letter sent out one year previously by the First Congress, is ridiculous by today's standards of communications. Some of the behavior by the explorers and colonists might have been slightly different if the eyes of the world were on them instantly, and if it took six hours to get here from London. But I don't think people are fundamentally different today than they were then. There are still people trying to exploit Antartica.