A little levity: "computerized FRPG"

[Bob Bradlee]

People have been playing chess by mail for as long as there has been mail.
Before that chess moves were sent by horseback, good help was easier to find back then :)

Most of the CPM and early DOS BBS's had a range of games that were based on one game step per day 
so everyone could log in sometime during the day and make their move..

At one point back in the early 90's we had 1500+ BBS's networked by modem exchangeing e-mail and 
games packets two dialups a night or more if you were a star and not a point.

It was something to look forward to each day ..... In a stepped time game, everyone moves at once, the 
attacker has no clue what the defender has done untill both moves are recorded. Both sides get the same  
information new every morning and have all day to respond with their move. A supprise defense can be 
very humbeling to an agressor. The best part was they were people on the other end and not bots so you 
could curse them out and chat as the game progressed over the weeks and months.

It was what we had to work with 25+ years ago, which is the only thing keeping it any where close to being 
on topic. Here in columbus 15+ years ago we had 12 386x16's running netware over thin net with a 
mixture of modems tossing mail and games packets every night from midnight to dawn some nights.

There was computer night life before the internet.

Bob


On Thu, 5 Jul 2007 12:46:18 -0700 (PDT), Chris M wrote:

>> Interesting details on an obscure use of rented
>> computer time! :^)

> I'll say. I still can't fathom though how engrossing
>a game can be when decisions are spread out over so
>long a period of time...


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