The Org's beginnings

[Martok]

This is a random question for TosaInu or whoever else can answer this:

How long as the Org been up and running now? I didn't officially become a member until early 2002, but I know that I had been reading threads (in both the Shogun and Medieval sections) long before that. I want to say that this site was first established around the time Shogun was released (maybe even earlier), but I can't remember anymore.

[Mikeus Caesar]

I read somewhere that the .Org was set up about a year or so before Shogun came out. And i think Shogun was released in 2000, which would mean the .Org has been running since '99.

[edyzmedieval]

Nokhor is the oldest active member, from April 1999....

[Martok]

Thanks guys. That's kind of what I thought, but I wasn't sure.

[TosaInu]

Founded by Dan in April 1999. The first forum was Echelon iirc.

[Orda Khan]

........And I think you will find that your Forum Administer's join date is much earlier than July 2002 too


......Orda

[Martok]

........And I think you will find that your Forum Administer's join date is much earlier than July 2002 too


......Orda

Heh. I hadn't even noticed that before. Members like you and TosaInu have been around so long, it's rather strange to realize my avatar shows I joined up before you guys, when I know that's not really the case.

Also, I just have to say WOW. I had no idea the Org has been here (in one form or another) for so long. I mean, I know it's been around for a good while now, but I didn't realize we went *that* far back! For some reason, I always had it stuck in my head that the site wasn't up until around the time Shogun was released, as opposed to being open over a year beforehand.

A big toast to TosaInu and the many, many other good folks here at the Org who not only got this site started, but have helped it grow and thrive as well!!

[barocca]

i dredged this up from an ancient thread

===================================================
Only 2 of the current staff here ever got to talk to Dan the Creator before he vanished,
for the rest of us Dan is a myth, an urban legend,
spoken about in hushed tones around the camp fires late at night, a means to scare new patrons into behaving appropriately,

so here is the Org's Creation Theory

In the beginning was the community,
and Dan saw the community was without form,
Dan said let there be firmament in the midst of the community,
and Dan made the firmament,

and Dan said let all the knowledge within the community be gathered together into the firmament that all may share,
and Dan saw that is was good,
and Dan said let the firmament be called TotalWar.Org,
and it was so.

[Afro Thunder]

No, that's silly! Everyone knows the community slowly and gradually evolved from a jumbled, disorganized, primitive mess into it's current highly-advanced and developed condition. Of course, this took quite a lot of time for this to happen.

[Mongoose]

Did you know that your great^567 grand father played"Sonic"?

[King of Atlantis]

i dredged this up from an ancient thread

===================================================


In the beginning was the community,
and Dan saw the community was without form,
Dan said let there be firmament in the midst of the community,
and Dan made the firmament,

and Dan said let all the knowledge within the community be gathered together into the firmament that all may share,
and Dan saw that is was good,
and Dan said let the firmament be called TotalWar.Org,
and it was so.

I didn't know the org had such an epic history.

[sapi]

No, that's silly! Everyone knows the community slowly and gradually evolved from a jumbled, disorganized, primitive mess into it's current highly-advanced and developed condition. Of course, this took quite a lot of time for this to happen.

Sometimes i wonder if there's been much improvement in the colosseum :)

[Shadow]

I read somewhere that the .Org was set up about a year or so before Shogun came out. And i think Shogun was released in 2000, which would mean the .Org has been running since '99.

Does this mean that the forum is not originally created for total war discussion but something else, if so what is it?

[Martok]

Does this mean that the forum is not originally created for total war discussion but something else, if so what is it?

The Org was established six years ago as a fansite for Shogun Total War (which at that point wouldn't be released for another year yet). So yes, the forum was essentially created to discuss the TW games.

[barocca]

No, that's silly! Everyone knows the community slowly and gradually evolved from a jumbled, disorganized, primitive mess into it's current highly-advanced and developed condition. Of course, this took quite a lot of time for this to happen.

ah - an evolutionist :-)
B.

[The_Doctor]

What happened to "Dan"?

Does he still post here?

[Drisos]

I thought this was the first thread:

https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=1

see the 't=1'

[Craterus]

Who are the two people that got to talk to Dan the Creator?

[Drisos]

Who are the two people that got to talk to Dan the Creator?

Good question. I think one is 'Nelson' as he is one of the longest time members. The other one I really don't know, also because the join date isn't always correct. maybe tosa himself?

[barocca]

that post is quote old

Tosa is the last one left here now...

[edyzmedieval]

Let's ask Tosa if he knows were Mr. Dan is....

[edyzmedieval]

Who are the two people that got to talk to Dan the Creator?

Obake maybe, and maybe also Nokhor....

[Martok]

What happened to "Dan"?

Does he still post here?

No one really seems to know what happened to him (and those few who might know, clearly aren't talking ). I believe he dropped off the radar quite some time ago. In fact, I think he was gone before I even stumbled onto this place--at the very least, I don't think he was posting anymore by the time I joined up.

[Orda Khan]

In fact, I think he was gone before I even stumbled onto this place--at the very least, I don't think he was posting anymore by the time I joined up.

Correct

.....Orda

[TosaInu]

There are Dan conversation logs in TosaInus database.

Last time I spoke to him was April 2003 when the domain name had to be renewed.

I don't recall Dan to be posting much in his days either. Here are some posts: https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=774 https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=20

Note that this forum doesn't contain every post ever made at org. The posts from some old boards are lost (first was an off-site I think, the second may be too odd and the third was lost due to host move). A year and a half of speculation and other interesting posts are gone, including many Konnichiwa...Ja mata

[Puzz3D]

As I recall, Shogun Total War missed its release date by at least 6 months and possibly almost a year. It was released in mid June 2000. A demo had been out for quite some time before that. Tosa and Kraellin figured out how to make new maps for the demo using the undocumented map editor and later Rob wrote a program that allowed these map to be translated into a form that could be used in the full release game. Several of these maps became big favorites of the multiplayer community.

I remember when Shogun was released that membership registration at the org had to be suspended for quite some time since the system couldn't handle all the people who wanted to join. I got in under that wire, but Obake didn't and he had to wait a month or more to register.

By late fall 2000 there were over 100 players in the multiplayer foyer every weekend, and that contined until MI was released in late summer 2001.

[TosaInu]

Maps made with the undocumented map editor from the demo could be used just like that in the demo, the full game and it's extension pack WE/MI.

Rob made the very useful mapflattener. This tool zero-ed all heightdata in maps. After a re-texture job, his flat Totomi map became a fresh 'green' template. Much easier to create new work on fresh paper instead of using old yellowpages and phonebooks. Almost all maps I made after the release of Robs tool were made from this template. Green was shipped in the expansion pack and became known as iron board.

[edyzmedieval]

Maps made with the undocumented map editor from the demo could be used just like that in the demo, the full game and it's extension pack WE/MI.

Rob made the very useful mapflattener. This tool zero-ed all heightdata in maps. After a re-texture job, his flat Totomi map became a fresh 'green' template. Much easier to create new work on fresh paper instead of using old yellowpages and phonebooks. Almost all maps I made after the release of Robs tool were made from this template. Green was shipped in the expansion pack and became known as iron board.

What do you mean?!

"Green was shipped in the expansion pack and became known as iron board".
The map?!

[TosaInu]

The map was called iron(ing) board in the expansion pack, first patch iirc.

[ToranagaSama]

Note that this forum doesn't contain every post ever made at org. The posts from some old boards are lost (first was an off-site I think, the second may be too odd and the third was lost due to host move). A year and a half of speculation and other interesting posts are gone, including many Konnichiwa...Ja mata

This is truly sad. I can recall some of those ole overly long overly detailed ;) Grognard threads. H I didn't even know what a Grognard was until I stumbled onto the Org.

Hmmm...

I wonder if the Org's creation in relation to Shogun's release is some sort of record? A whole year or more before the game was released. Gotta be a record for the times.