Musician Archive

<P>Please check out the Entertainer correspondent's (vfvs11a) post regarding the abolition of afk macroing at:</P>
<P>http://forums.station.sony.com/swg/board/message?board.id=entertainer&message.id=2408</P>
<P>It concerns all of us. Below is what I put in the thread.</P>
<P>As a Master Entertainer working toward Master Musician, I totally agree with Kyorlana. I am always at the keyboard (Minus grabbing a drink or when nature calls), but I've used the macro system to write some kick a$$ songs. You spend 4 hours to get the timing down just right and string together the flourishes so the cheesey unflourished basic riff doesn't come through so you have a song of nothing but flourishes that go really well together. I've done this with a number of songs and always get compliments when I play them ("I can't believe that was songname. That sounded so cool.") Granted it eats up 3/4 of my action bar each time I play one of these songs, but the reaction of the crowd is worth it. I could not care less about afk players, they do not concern me. They are easy enough to boot from a group if it gets to be too much. My concern is if SOE eliminates afk macroing, are they going to do it in such a way that prevents good songwriting through macros by the rest of us? I do not want to have to memorize the order and precise timing of 30-50 flourishes to play the same songs I've already written using macros just because a few of you entertainer/musician/dancer elitist snobs have a problem with afk players. Simple solution is to refuse to group with them or kick them from your group if they go afk for what you consider to be an unacceptable length of time. Please also read your Entertainer Correspondent's admission to afk macroing which can be found at: </P>
<P>http://vnboards.ign.com/message.asp?topic=54637108&page=1</P>It's the post right after clo1_2000 by Archangel. Check the signature block and compare it to the first post in that thread. How much friggin hypocracy can we stomach? Has this stirred you up? Has it got a reaction? GOOD! That's what an entertainer does...gets a reaction from the crowd.

For what it's worth, relatively few people put this issue in their "top five" in my mega-thread on "Top issues for musicians." One reason may be that there are already in-game tools for dealing with AFK macroing. One can kick the offender, or use /start and /stop to foil them. If a macro-er chooses to play solo, then of coursehe or shecan macro, buthis or herexperience is greatly reduced solo.

Nonetheless, as your Correspondent, I of course am interested if there is a groundswell of support for change on a particular issue. Is there on this one? Post in this thread, fellow musicians, if you think this issue is a top-five issue for musicians, and if so how you would suggest addressing it.

Cheers,

NewJedi (a/k/a Ricky Starwalker, Master Musician, Chilastra)

I too macro songs

I spent hours playing note in combo's to find the best sounding ones then I keep the song and play it for people

this is not UNATNEDED MACROING where your trying to just gain exp's while sleeping going to the movies or anything else

this is defently what the macro function was for

while my song is playing I wave to people smile to people nod and other emotes I can do and still be roleplaying playing a wind instrument

when I get the string insturment I will finaly be able to talk and play and maby even sing

its not bad to set up a good string of flourish and play it and be there thats what it is for

it is wrong to set up[ macros and leave to go out with friends

I have been at the keyborad every second sometimes when Im sitting regaining my action I go to the bathroom or get a drink but when im playing i am there

there is a diffrence between macroing and UNATENDED MACROING and people shole know that one is good and the other wrong

it cheapens the profession when anyone can get it in a week

thanks

fay still working on knowladge 4 after 3 weeks

You cannot get it in a week. It takes at least 2. And those are probably 12 hour days at the keyboard.

- Weibacca
Master Musician and Entertainer
Kaadara, Naboo, Bria

If the correspondents views are a reflection of the ingame community's views, then he's doing his job as I think he should: passing along the majority of player's concerns to the Devs. It doesn't matter if he himself macro'd. It matters if more than 50% of the playerbase doesn't like AFK macroing.

I recently spent every waking moment F-Keying and attended-macroing my way to Apprentice Musician, yet I have no problems with those that use the /afk-macro system. Some folks (powergamers) may have the free time to dedicate 30+ hours of practice a week, but some folks (casual players) can only put in an hour or two a night at best. Getting 4-6 points of MUS XP a riff (flourish) will take them months to achieve what the we can in a week. Having the macro helps those folks keep up with their "friends" in game. There's nothing more disappointing than when their Group switches over to some master lvl song and leaves them out of the fun, standing in their corner playing solo-starwars1. hehehe

Let's lighten up and drop the pretentious nonsence that /afk macro users are beneath our association. Let's all just get together and jam, like friends.

pause /2000

/say Don't be a macro-snob.

If the correspondents views are a reflection of the ingame community's views, then he's doing his job as I think he should:

So lets ask ourselves. Is he representing the common sentiment. So let's hear it musicians:

afk-macroing: for/against

AFK-Macroing.. for..

How the HELL are they going to filter AFK-Macroing out?

They're just gonna be lame and delete all macros with /flourish in it...

AFK-macro'ing... I am FOR

As I said in another post, everyone that uses any kind of macro gets hit with the nerf and the AFK'ers will just find a 3rd party program, if they already aren't using one now. I myself, might start using a 3rd party program, if macro'ing is nerfed greatly, so that I can retain some of the macros I already have.

Caspearious Shalerock
Master Entertainer and Master Musician
Coronet, Corellia (Tarquinas)

I don't mind it if it's done in a secluded spot or a person's home, but I do mind it if it's done in a group or Cantina. When a person comes into a cantina they expect to be entertained and like to know there is a person sitting at the keyboard working the character that is entertaining them. I'm a Master Entertainer and Master Musician and nothing makes me madder than getting a person in the group and 5 minutes after they get in it they turn on their macro and you don't see them again for hours. During that time they are getting tips they have not earned while someone who has been there the whole time has gotten hardly any tips, plus some of the patrons are trying to talk to these people and getting no responce whatsoever.

If I see that a person in my group is not responding to customers I will try several times to get their attention, if I can't I will boot them out of the group. On our server there is a blacklist. If a person is in a group at the cantina and AFK macros constantly we give them a warning by e-mail. If they get caught doing it again they are given a second warning, the third time they are caught they are put on a blacklist. Believe me when I tell you, the word spreads like wildfire throughout the galaxy and those on the blacklist are shunned from all groups. They might as well change professions because nobody is going to let them in their group.

Like you need a group to steal tips. I usually make more tips solo then in a group. Why, because I can play any song I want, and people will listen to me rather than a jumbled group of low level musicians. Do I join groups, sure. I think it is nice to help other musicians get the xp to master. Do I care one way or the other about people being at their keyboard or not, nope. The afk just alleviates the camp syndrome that has run over from EQ. Endless repetition is not fun for the majority of people.

Against.

Not against macroing, but AFK macroing.

An easy functional definition would be:

• Any macro that refers to the ui toolbarSlot (or whatever it is) to create a loop


• Any macro over X commands long (15? 20?)

I'm for and will be for forever because I don't trust the devs to properly handle the situation that I can already handle find without them. I'd rather have AFK macro'd musicians then no macro'ing at all.