Boxing setup

[Grey]

Yo booboo I see a picnic basket!
The average EQEmu player is smarter then you think and dumber then you give them credit for.
I prefer key-mapping and manually checking that my assists went off.
Non win7 machine I use taskbar commander to lock and rename/track my boxs.
Rare is it that I click into the wrong toon.

[Wrinkly]

The average EQEmu player is smarter then you think and dumber then you give them credit for.

I'm claiming purenoobness for this one. I really don't know the community at all but I'm quite positive there's a lot of dev's hanging out here somewhere, and wherever they aren't there's a lot of oldschool EQ players.

Also I had a pretty good look at EQPlayNice today and WinEQ2, the only video I could find for Everquest wasn't very helpful in displaying its capabilities, I guess I'll have to try the 7 day trial.

[Windstriker]

There is an interesting program that allows you to use the same mouse/keyboard on two computers as if it were another monitor but I havent dabbled with it.

I use InputDirector ( http://www.inputdirector.com/ ) to work, play EQ and other games and it works very well. I have used Synergy in the past but ID seems to work better for EQ. It allows you to run multiple computers with one single KB and mouse, so clicking on different toons across computers is very easy.

~Micah

This program looks amazing, however after reading the Imput Director Features and Retnaburn's Thread, I wonder if this program is allowed. Anyone know?

[Bomb]

Also I had a pretty good look at EQPlayNice today and WinEQ2, the only video I could find for Everquest wasn't very helpful in displaying its capabilities, I guess I'll have to try the 7 day trial.

You don't have to pay for these, its free. Think the pay service mainly only helps for things like ISBoxer etc... im not sure exactly what you gain for paying for the sub for wineq2/eqplaynice but its not necessary for their main functionality.

[Kuldiin]

Does EQplaynice require much configuration or do you just run it? Ive it running in the background and dont see anything to configure...

[Brontu]

its pretty much does its thing - if your running WinEQ you can edite the eq play nice options not sure if theres a INI file or something for the straight eqplaynice exe tho.

[Deadspirit]

Quick note -

If you buy Lavish's eqw and run it on a computer that your not listed on as the administrator then you need to right click the the eqw desktop shortcut and run it as administrator. That will allow the program to patch.

[Netharius]

There is an interesting program that allows you to use the same mouse/keyboard on two computers as if it were another monitor but I havent dabbled with it.

I use InputDirector ( http://www.inputdirector.com/ ) to work, play EQ and other games and it works very well. I have used Synergy in the past but ID seems to work better for EQ. It allows you to run multiple computers with one single KB and mouse, so clicking on different toons across computers is very easy.

~Micah

This program looks amazing, however after reading the Imput Director Features and Retnaburn's Thread, I wonder if this program is allowed. Anyone know?

Hi Windstriker,

From what I understand, the spirit of the rule concerning multi-boxing is that it's allowed provided commands are triggered on the boxes manually by the player, and that any 3rd party tools used to automate that process are forbidden.

While the server rules don't expressly state that, there are two important rules that Retnaburn did overlook:

1. "# Telling a GM how to do their job is also not acceptable..."
2. "Policy and Rules subject to be changed and updated at the host or gm's discretion..."

Having served as a volunteer GM/Server admin for other games, I can assure you that the attitude of the player in question goes a long way in determining how the GM will respond on item 2. In Retnaburn's case, he could have gotten a lot further by simply responding to the GM in a respectful manner, he should have tried first to understand the GM's position, instead, he sought first to be understood, and preceded to make a spectacle of himself publicly on the forum (see also "...No drama. Be mature").

Given that Micah recommended Input Director, I'm sure it would be ok to use, but if you're ever unsure about any rule, your best bet is to PM a GM.

Personally, I box 4-5 characters on 1 PC with no 3rd party apps just fine - it's a lot harder than using a 3rd party tool, and takes a lot of practice and concentration, but it's very fun and feels weird when I go back down to box ... (I always feel like I should be swapping windows and hitting another key somewhere )...

[donnavin]

i run 3 usually,
rogue
paladin
cleric

and then always keep the option of addind in a bard or wiz. no programs involved with me either.

couple tricks though, first intent go get a coth clicky. i haven't trusted autofollow in level 6 or so. but over time i've gotten very effecient about running my crew where i want them, in what order, ect. manifested destiny. you want coth, but get good at running them individually imo.

next i run my boxes from 2 different clients and in smaller resolutions than my screen. key here is to always have parts of each box viable. so if im on my rogue cutting poeple, i can in one easy scan of my desktop see cleric hp/mana, tank target and is he attacking, all kinds of stuff. i leave a little corner of my occasional bards widows visible always so i know when his songs are failed. it's pretty key in my boxxing groove. the reason for 2 clients is so i can keep 1 toon (usually cleric) with a smaller resolution. it's all about your visual cues.

last thing? practice. practice, practice, practice, and then practice. that means start doing stuff. if your not dying, your not trying hard enough. pulll bigger, try for boss mobs, then try bigger pulls with boss mobs inside. get really ambitious on your thf projects. then figure out how your crew is about to pull it off with the busted up mouth front he curb stomping you just recieved. were all here to have fun...right?
read through your spell lists/disciplines/aa's all over again. i swear to you, probably everyone one this server had pulled up a characters spell book before and said, and i quote, "oh wow, i should have been using that. how long has this been here?"

that may seem like it strays from the original question. but i think many would agree that the key to boxing is something like this: it doesn't matter if you use programs or anything its all the same. when my crew is running, im ready to respond to anything. i know 5 different ways to do it, and i know which one i need depending on what just happened. familiarity is absolutely key

[Netharius]

i run 3 usually,
rogue
paladin
cleric

and then always keep the option of addind in a bard or wiz. no programs involved with me either.

couple tricks though, first intent go get a coth clicky. i haven't trusted autofollow in level 6 or so. but over time i've gotten very effecient about running my crew where i want them, in what order, ect. manifested destiny. you want coth, but get good at running them individually imo.

next i run my boxes from 2 different clients and in smaller resolutions than my screen. key here is to always have parts of each box viable. so if im on my rogue cutting poeple, i can in one easy scan of my desktop see cleric hp/mana, tank target and is he attacking, all kinds of stuff. i leave a little corner of my occasional bards widows visible always so i know when his songs are failed. it's pretty key in my boxxing groove. the reason for 2 clients is so i can keep 1 toon (usually cleric) with a smaller resolution. it's all about your visual cues.

last thing? practice. practice, practice, practice, and then practice. that means start doing stuff. if your not dying, your not trying hard enough. pulll bigger, try for boss mobs, then try bigger pulls with boss mobs inside. get really ambitious on your thf projects. then figure out how your crew is about to pull it off with the busted up mouth front he curb stomping you just recieved. were all here to have fun...right?
read through your spell lists/disciplines/aa's all over again. i swear to you, probably everyone one this server had pulled up a characters spell book before and said, and i quote, "oh wow, i should have been using that. how long has this been here?"

that may seem like it strays from the original question. but i think many would agree that the key to boxing is something like this: it doesn't matter if you use programs or anything its all the same. when my crew is running, im ready to respond to anything. i know 5 different ways to do it, and i know which one i need depending on what just happened. familiarity is absolutely key

Great write-up Donnavin!

You hit on a couple of key items I forgot to mention, specifically, having separate clients with different resolutions. The CotH clicky is a wonderful thing, and I spent many a night in North Temple of Veeshan killing Lady Mirenilla to get it to drop .

Ofcourse, there's always the donor item if you have a little cash to spend.

The other option is boxing a Mage like I do, and that helps out a lot! Especially if you have a CotH clicky and the mage . Being an SK, I can skip some of the trash by running through, FDing, then CotH clickying (is that a word!? Is it now !!) the rest of the crew down.

Anyway, great to see more people boxing au naturel