All Custom levels uploaded

BIGZIPZ · Post by **BIGZIPZ** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 12:16 am

I have created a little php program and downloaded every .lev file from this forum. I have created a 130Kb Zip file containing the full 160+ levels.

Useful for;

People who have had problems with levels and are facing the prospect of downloading each one individually again

Backup purposes in the event of problems with the originals

Those wishing to download the file should check out:

http://www.geocities.com/hcclanuk/

Thanx

LinkyNStoof · Post by **LinkyNStoof** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 4:37 am

Also a friendly reminder that it's a good idea to periodically backup everything under the RTW folder, including the custom folder.

LinkyNStoof · Post by **LinkyNStoof** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 4:41 am

BIGZIPZ wrote:http://www.geocities.com/hcclanuk/

btw, I should warn you in advance that Patrick (aka Midnight Synergy)might not like that. I remembered him once saying that the forum was purposely set up to only allow registered users (not guests) to download custom levels. By posting the backup levels on your site it allows others to circumvene the setup.

...But I'm not Patrick, so in the meanwhile, keep the link up.

BIGZIPZ · Post by **BIGZIPZ** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 4:55 am

its only there to help people who lost the levels.......... theres no conspiracy.....

this forum is certainly the most unique one i visit

everything i do / post seems to be a big bad deal :/

BIGZIPZ · Post by **BIGZIPZ** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 5:06 am

this button i added to my internet explorer is a life saver

reg entries required:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Extensions\{F2771660-ABCD-3586-DCAB-40E294C13737}]
"ButtonText"="RTW Forum"
"MenuText"="RTW Forum"
"MenuStatusBar"="RTW Forum"
"Clsid"="{1FBA04EE-3024-11d2-8F1F-0000F87ABD16}"
"Default Visible"="Yes"
"Exec"="http://pcpuzzle.com/forum/index.php?sid ... dcce8c5157"
"HotIcon"="C:\locationoffile.ico"
"Icon"="C:\locationoffile.ico"

Not recommended for newbies

this is only for real lazies like me who hate using the favourites menu

BIGZIPZ · Post by **BIGZIPZ** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 2:03 pm

thanx to everyone who sent me a message supporting the url, was a nice suprise to open my email to be greated with a message telling me i have private messages in the forum.

thanx to Ramonda too, very kind words

Bearsland · Post by **Bearsland** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 2:27 pm

BIGZIPZ wrote:...this forum is certainly the most unique one i visit

everything i do / post seems to be a big bad deal :/

I totally agree with the first part of this quote.

This forum has members of many ages who all have a common love; this little Wonderland game. This forum was setup for those people to show their love of the game; to share custom levels; game experiences and to help out others with problems.

It is also unique in that it has no foul mouthed kids spoiling it for everyone with useless spamming of every other thread; something that is present in just about every other 'net forum I visit. Midnight Synergy has set up no moderators here on this forum. Why? Because they are not needed.

Yes, there has been the odd 'spat' and member disagreement, but usually it's just 'handbags' at 50 paces' and then everyone just moves on.

I don't agree with the second part of this quote. However, it might have been a better idea to have first asked Midnight Synergy for permission to take the members' levels off-site. In saying that I'm delighted that you made the offer and that you have had some support in this action.

Also, there is no need for the massive screenshots that you are posting with your levels; we'll all see the level when we open it. Some people do post fun screenshots, but they don't have to be so 'in your face'.

Why not just leave the registry hacks and screenshots out and just concentrate on what it is you do best; posting great Wonderland levels, they are wonderful puzzles. It really is what you do best.

And stop feeling sorry for yourself.

Just my tuppence worth.

~OB

BIGZIPZ · Post by **BIGZIPZ** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 2:46 pm

Also, there is no need for the massive screenshots that you are posting with your levels; we'll all see the level when we open it. Some people do post fun screenshots, but they don't have to be so 'in your face'.

I guess you guys dont like preview pics?, reason I put pics on is same for levels I make for any game/forum, be it Marble blast, Lost Idols, Diamond Caves or Blip - so you can get an iea if you like it or not, surely its just the same as posting a textual synopsis (which almost all do) yet you can see what the words are referring to! urg

BIGZIPZ · Post by **BIGZIPZ** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 2:51 pm

I don't agree with the second part of this quote. However, it might have been a better idea to have first asked Midnight Synergy for permission to take the members' levels off-site. In saying that I'm delighted that you made the offer and that you have had some support in this action.

Sorrry this is all foreign to me, Im just not used to being in forums that work like this, Ive done a similar thing in the past for Chain reaction (great game - shame the company dispanded) and for Marble blast, and there was never a problem, in fact the mods thanked me for providing a one stop backup for people who loose the levels. If course now the MNarble blast gold people have gotten there act together and have a single zip file avalable with all the levels in (which I got credited for the idea)

Post by **Midnight Synergy** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 3:37 pm

Thought I'd weigh in...

Personally, I don't have any issues with what BigzipZ has done - it's a great service, especially given the rate at which levels are coming out now. It's also good for newcomers who can get all levels at once...

As I mentioned before, our direct involvement in the forums is going to decrease over time - it's a place for the community to meet and ensure that there's at least one place to share levels, and I trust you guys and gals to work together to make this the place you want it to be (which, I think, is happening already).

As to how to handle the amount of levels, there are several ways this forum could go... I'll just throw out some options and ideas (I have no real preference) and let you guys discuss it.

- leave it exactly the way it is, thank you very much

- have users create off-forum sites for levels (similar to what BigZipZ has started). Some of you PHP-experts might even have fun doing something with a voting system, "most popular" lists, thumbnail screenshots, photo/message of the level creator, etc. Obviously such a "fan" site is effort - not sure if there are budding (or professional) webmasters out there who are looking for an outlet for their html skills?

- take all levels from time to time and post them as a Level pack. With BigzipZ's permission I could for example use his Zip files and post them as level packs, say monthly. Or some of you might have the levels nicely sorted as well (by user name, or perhaps by category) and I could post those once a month as an update. If categories are to be used you folks would just have to think and decide about appropriate ones.

- Split the forum into several sub-categories for levels ("For Kids", "Medium Difficulty", "Hard Difficulty", "Experimental Levels")... the pro of that is obvious, the con is that there's more forums to check - and there will be many levels that fit into several places (and people might end up posting their levels in the "wrong" categories).

- etc?

As I said, just some ideas. Obviously nothing _has_ to be done. And again, please understand that our involvement would be minimal. I can happily setup the forum for a "split", if you wish, or do the monthly level pack backups, but we wouldn't be involved in tabulating/listing/rating/reviewing/etc incoming levels. Not that it wouldn't be fun.

In another thread someone pointed out that we wouldn't do too many updates/changes/etc since they wouldn't be worth the money/time (which makes us sound like capitalistic swine - which, really, we're not! Trust us!). I think the "better" way

to think about the amount of our involvement is this: Given that time is limited, which would you, the users, prefer - that we spend our time playing and managing custom levels, or working on the next game for you to play?

This was a long post - and will be followed by some silence in order for you guys to take the time to discuss this, if you wish.

Cheers!

Post by **Midnight Synergy** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 3:40 pm

Oh, and I'll add one more comment (or rather, request). Myself, I would prefer if people didn't add screenshots when posting levels - and that's purely for selfish reasons: I do regular backups of this forum in case of disaster, and if levels are posted with lots of images, it increases both bandwidth (think of the modem users!) and the database backup size.

Ramonda · Post by **Ramonda** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 3:56 pm

Midnight Synergy wrote:Oh, and I'll add one more comment (or rather, request). Myself, I would prefer if people didn't add screenshots when posting levels - and that's purely for selfish reasons: I do regular backups of this forum in case of disaster, and if levels are posted with lots of images, it increases both bandwidth (think of the modem users!) and the database backup size.

An alternative if Bigzip wants his screenshots would be for him to host the image on his site and include a url. This would keep bandwith down for both backup and modem users.

Ramonda · Post by **Ramonda** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 4:11 pm

Midnight Synergy wrote:Thought I'd weigh in...

Personally, I don't have any issues with what BigzipZ has done - it's a great service, especially given the rate at which levels are coming out now. It's also good for newcomers who can get all levels at once...

If I were a newcomer, I would definitely love being able to get a zipped package.

While we could all vote on which is most fun, I think that the results would be relative. I do like your idea of maybe have a kid level forum if the creators think that they will continue making them. As a grandparent my game buying is geared as much towards usability by children as by myself.

mpetva · Post by **mpetva** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 6:16 pm

Hi BigZipZ & everyone else,

I have been coming here since the boards started and I normally just enjoy reading the posts and downloading all the custom levels.

BigZipZ has been a great contributor to this site from his first day here in Wonderland with his levels, and I certainly do not have any problems with what he has done. I am sure he only meant to help (just basing this on my gut and his previous posts) and I am sure as a newcomer it takes time to figure out what is and isn't quite right for this particular board.

So give him and everyone else who is new to here a break and try not to cramp any styles. It's nice to see people try new things to help, and if it is not something enjoyed, than a friendly note to let our creative wonderlanders know that, I feel would be quite sufficient.

I have not seen anything here that was really not acceptable. But I know that I am reluctant to post on any board because I am a bit apprehensive about reactions from others. We don't want to scare people away, we want to welcome them and enjoy the benefits of all the neat levels created by so many here. And most of all we want this community to grow and expand so as many more can enjoy this terrif Wonderland game.

PS: as for the screenshots etc, maybe they could be downsized and the filesize can be reduced for free here (this works great, I use it all the time in building my pages and sites) http://www.spinwave.com/crunchers.html

Keep up the good work/levels BigZipZ & everyone and always remember:
"Reach for the Moon,
If you fall, you still fall among the stars"

mpetva

LinkyNStoof · Post by **LinkyNStoof** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 8:07 pm

BIGZIPZ wrote:its only there to help people who lost the levels.......... theres no conspiracy.....

this forum is certainly the most unique one i visit

everything i do / post seems to be a big bad deal :/

Seems like Patrick okayed what you did, so don't worry about what I said.

(Personally I have no problems with someone doing regular backups for me

But it does remain a fact that other people can now download the backup without registering for the forum, and since I'm not clairvoyant, I can't tell in advance what Patrick would say about that. I was only saying what he might think.)

Dianna · Post by **Dianna** » Mon Mar 08, 2004 8:27 pm

Thanks for the zipped levels, BIGZIPZ. Haven't needed it yet, but downloaded it anyway -- might come in handy. You're a great addition to our Wonderland family, kiddo. Keep up the wonderful work!

SM · Post by SM » Fri Jun 16, 2006 3:42 pm

I always prefer downloading levels as a pack rather than single levels at a time. I'm very grateful for you thoughtful people's kindness presenting it as a pack like this. That way if one level is too hard for example, we don't have to go back to the forum and pore down the list to find another we might like.... rather, just scroll down to the next level!

I think I should perhaps do some penance for this laziness so I'll just say your name fast 10 times in a row

Really .. THANKS SO MUCH - I am enjoying the pack I just downloaded - for the hours of great fun, and of course to all the great custom level creators too!

Many, many thanks to Midnight Synergy too for their graciousness and expertise and what they're doing for the community so freely!

VirtLands · Post by **VirtLands** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 9:42 pm

Thanks BigZips,
Just downloaded your large "RTW_Levels_19_April.Zip" file.
I can imagine how painfull it must of been staying up late gathering all those
409 levels.

Dear wonderland people,
On the topic of bandwidth and database size usage,
I recommend that we try some image hosting websites.
This would be an efficient and high-tech way to display
level screenshots,... and we're all fond of level screenshots.
( yes we are.

)

List of Image Host sites: http://www.free-webhosts.com/free-image-hosting.php
PhotoBucket: http://www.photobucket.com/
ImageShack: http://www.imageshack.us/
WebShots: http://www.webshots.com/

There's BBCode help:
http://pcpuzzle.com/forum/faq.php?mode=bbcode

MidNight Synergy wrote:Oh, and I'll add one more comment (or rather, request).
Myself, I would prefer if people didn't add screenshots when posting levels
- : I do regular backups of this forum in case of disaster, and if levels are posted with lots of images, it increases both bandwidth (think of the modem users!)
and the database backup size.

Gen · Post by **Gen** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 10:33 pm

For those of you that do not know about Mette's website, she has all 5000+ custom levels, backgrounds, models, textures, and houses in a format that can be downloaded. She updates the site at least once a month. Just go to this link, scroll down to find the address to her website.

http://www.pcpuzzle.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2360

mette · Post by **mette** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 11:08 pm

Thanks Gen

And I'll just add: The page has just been updated

Mette

All Custom levels uploaded

All Custom levels uploaded

Re: All Custom levels uploaded

my 2 cents worth

Thank you BIGZIPZ

Bandwiths and databases...