Hi, guys.
I quit playing WB a while ago because my dial-up connection deteriorated below acceptable level. I actually kept my account with WB open for 6 more months hoping for connection to improve and for my money to contribute towards the cause. Only when I despaired on both counts, did I cancel it. Had to retire from 416th RCAF - a great bunch of guys, I was the third member and left them with almost 30 after a year ;(
Since HTC team revealed itself, I've been lurking on this board and downloading every version, even though the off-line play is not much fun. I've also tried to entice other people to join AH, though it is a bit difficult to give a demo without having an account.
Finally I've moved into the area of Brooklyn where DSL is available and I've got a DSL installed. I am going to open an account shortly and try to get some nice people to join in with me. I want to get some advice on setting it up and do it right the first time, because screwing up in front of the perspective customers is the worst advertisement I could think of.
I leave in Brooklyn. I have a DSL line by Covad, ISP service is provided by Juno. My ping times useing WB setup utility is inder 100ms. I am going to buy a router/firewall device (most likely the Lynksys Etherfast Cable/DSL Router). That device will probably perform some kind of a address-translation so that I could use several computers on my internal network but only have one IP address assigned to me by ISP provider. I am not sure yet wether that address is static or dynamic - is it important? My concern is that apparently AH traces the accounts by the IP address. Will dynamic address assignment or address translation interfere with it? Also my next-door neighbour may use internet through my network and, hopefully, join AH with me, so we may need two accounts (trial to start with) coming from the same(?) address. Will that pose a problem?
Could you please tell me if my setup is going to work, what do I need to know and watch for? Any experience you have with any of the aforementioned components - Juno, Covad, Router/Firewall, Address Translation, Firewall, etc. Will AH work with them?
If any of your explanations can be used by less concious people to create multiple free 2-week trial accounts, you may want to e-mail them directly to me at mikeko_ny@yahoo.com - just to avoid the temptation.
Also, is there a way to deactivate a paying account for couple of months and then restart it again, using the same handle - in case someone cannot play for a while but does not want to pay $30/mo for maintatining a favorite callsign?
Also, I need a good rig. I can build a PC myself but would rather leave it to a professional. Any advice on getting a high-end system for gaming? More specifically, which vendors would you recommend based on the personal experience (Alienware, GamePC, Falcon, etc.)?
Thanks, hope to see you in the arena soon.
miko--