My Corner of the Interweb

No help.

Mood: Tired and hungry.
Music: She Makes My Nose Bleed, Mansun
Game: World of Warcraft, Planetside, Call of Duty, Auto Assault Beta.
Book: 722 Miles, Clifton Hood.
Muffin: Raspberry-Nectarine.
Punchline: None.

OK...so the migration from the NT4 server to the Windows 2003 Server isn't exactly a piece of cake. For some unknown reason, there's no clear path for a small business running NT4 Server with a single PDC to migrate to a Windows 2003 without physically upgrading the OS on the existing box...which, as you could probably guess, isn't exactly an option.

Fortunately, I've decided that I could just create a new domain, and simply join all the client machines to the new domain. Not a quick exercise...but it beats the hell out of creating new boxes to promote and demote, running various BDCs in various stages, or installing NT4.0 on my new fileserver, making it a BDC, upgrading to 2003, then promoting it to PDC. It's ridiculous. How could Microsoft not see that there's probably thousands of small businesses running NT4 who just want to buy a new fileserver with 2003 on it and move all their stuff over? Whatever.

Now, I want to talk about BFRs. Battle-Frame Robotics. In other terms, Mechs, VTs, or big chicken walking tanks with huge guns. BFRs are Planetside's term of choice, and they are WAY too much fun. You can load them out with your choice of anti-armor, anti-personnel, or anti-air weaponry for the pilot position. You could also choose an anti-BFR shield drain weapon (which I'm not brave enough to use...you need to be up close and personal...) and an NTU drain device which is great for attacking bases, but not much else. For the gunner position, you have a choice of anti-armor or anti-personnel. This is the primary version of the BFR, and depending on the side you're on, the weapon loadouts change somewhat, as do the armor thicknesses.

The BFRs aren't particularly fast, but they do have wickedly powerful shields, and some serious armor. If you're any good, you can take out things from a distance, and if your gunner is any good, he can handle dishing most of the damage while you drive and do cleanup and make sure you're not getting killed.

A group of BFRs together is a laugh riot. With all that firepower, and people choosing different loadouts, you see all sorts of maneuvering tactics such as blocking or landing cover fire, or just chasing off things you can't deal with right now.

Of course, there's the big old downside. In a BFR, you are unquestionably the biggest target out there. People see that kind of a threat, and you become a bullet magnet. While the shields absorb a lot of abuse, extended concentrated firepower is pretty much a deathknell for these things...you can't run away fast, and they don't maneuver very well. If you can't get away by firing on 'em and running, you're pretty much toast. And a MAX or infantry running around under your legs is hard to get to by yourself...you can occasionally deal with 'em, but they can be real pains.

The other problem is that once you lose a BFR, you can't get another one for a set period of time. You can only spawn a BFR once every 25 minutes or so. Of course, if you have a good run in a BFR, and you've been running around for a half-hour having fun, if you get killed, you respawn, and you can get a BFR right away...but it's a rare day when you can survive serious combat for 25 minutes straight. I'm just not that good at it yet.

Anyway, the gang seem to be enjoying running in BFRs as much as I do. Maybe we'll get a few of 'em as a group, and we'll alternate gunning and driving, and just be mechanized madness. In any case, it's definitely making Planetside my game of choice the last week or so....

Posted by Glenn at August 9, 2005 01:38 PM