However....
Seriously though, I have thought about the problems of late, and wondered myself how to make things clearer as to avoid confusion and misunderstandings there. I was thinking that perhaps a webpage outlining some guidelines might be a good idea. It never occured to me to create an intro window. It's a far superior way to go about it, and I applaud the effort.
Now to the 'however' part
The window clearly states "Ask before engaging". Can't get any clearer than that right? Here's where it breaks down.
A1 is *still* an FFA field. Upon entering the TA, I asked if y'all were now getting permission to fire before...uhm... firing. Everyone was like, "Naahh - go ahead and engage".
Fine, same 'ol. Right? Problem is now, with this message instructing people to be granted permission, yer gonna get some newbie upping from A1, get his arse shot ta hell - and point directly to the new message window and screaming bloody murder.
Here's the gist as I see it. The ROE (rules of engagement) have evolved and developed as they now stand because it's *natural*. Vulching is looked down upon because it's bad form. Ackstarring is frowned upon for the same reason. etc. etc. AND - People fire on sight because you simply CANNOT expect them to enter into negotiations before every squeeze of the trigger in the middle of a FUR! That's just common sense.
Now the confilct arises here because for whatever reason - THE FFA FIELD IS NOT BEING LEGITIMIZED. *Acknowledge* that it exists! Keep the part about not bothering anyone, keep the part about asking permission. But ADD one line saying "A1 is a free for all - you go there, you take your chances - have fun!"
The regular FFA guys will police the odd infraction as they always have.
The message window is a GREAT idea, but I think it will only add to the confusuion if what is being implied is not what's actually taking place.
I just can't understand why one single field, an FFA field, cannot be allowed to co-exist within the multitude of other fields that can (and are) being used for training purposes. If you seriously want people to abide by the rules, if you intend to police these rules, then you are effectively closing down the FFA field, as it is simply impossible to abide by them.
[This message has been edited by Nash (edited 04-25-2000).]