You need to the command "cmd" into the run dialog box in order to access the command prompt Just type ipconfig into that to find out various IP information.

I put my computer together myself, but when it came to MP Sins, I just could'nt get it to work. Thanks to a very helpful tech in the lobby, and the fact that my roommate does Lans/routers for a living, I can now play MP Sins easily, both hosting and joining. But I hate to think about what I'd have done without all the help.

Learning to drive a car before you buy a car is one thing. But, having to work on the engine after you buy a car is quite another. . .

The command promt is not Run, to get to the command promt you need to look through the start menu for the application called ... "Command Prompt." I don't remember what its under in Xp, maybe "Applications" or "Microsoft"

Well, you still check your engine oil and refill it when necessary, you change tyres according to season and check their air pressure, you know how to change your wind shield wipers when they're used up, don't you?

Checking your router configuration (especially when setting it up the first time) isn't any different from browsing through the owners manual of a new car... And once you're already there, you really, REALLY should click through each configuration menu just once to see if there is anything that might leave your system vulnerable. Including things like port forwarding, NAT, DMZ, etc...


Martyr: German, and yes, the avatar is from WH40K.

Holy Firestorm, that was not my intent. My point was this:

MOST of the requests for help (both polite and rude) usually gets on reply linking Monk's Tutorial, and before the person can respond 2-4+ replies from people with no intention of helping BLASTING the person asking for help (some of the people who ask for help DONT deserve it and act like Trolls and i acknowlage that). Usually in borderline language/tone. Any perseaved "attack" was not on the people who post the link to Monk's Tutorial (or Monk himself, i thought i made sure to praise him for his help in my previous post - Quite frankly i dont understand why he does spend as much time helping, He does more than ANYONE here (paid or not), both in troubleshooting and in covering as many threads (people) as possible) My Issue was with the people who are the 2-4+ replies who act like they are helping just to Bash you and take out there own issues on you.



GENERALLY true, however its preatty close to a Stereotype. I acknowlage tho people who want to play an Online RTS are the ones that should/could know. The real cause for this issue is the prevailance of "plug and play" technolgy that dosent work and just creates the illusion that is all you have to do to get the perifial to work (printers, wireless keyboards, ROUTERS) people buy a router and they are TOLD by "professionals" that it will work just like that. But it dosent. They are not "idiots who have no right to be online" they just dont know for themselves and trust what they where told. They are not stupid just misinformed. Gullable at worce.



I agree and agreed before my original post. However i do think the issues are "alittle ahead of the curve" compared to the current norm of idiot friendly online games for the past 1-2 years where you could play battle.net using a can and string as an ISP.



And for this i can only thank you, it was your tutorial that allowed me to host my first game last night. But i could definatly see some people needing to be walked through it, 2-5 years of the computer industry purposfully trying to get PCs into the hands of people that dont want/need them, combined with the "plug and play" mentality and STUPID sales reps has well... created a community of people that think they know more than they do (most of us).



No, but they are the ones to be forgiven for being immature or inexperianced.



Good for you! that was constructive, now the irony... McAfee at full settings does not interfere with SINS on MY computer. However it should. personally "if you DONT

use norton or mcaffee (or other legit program) you deserve everything bad that happends to it, its almost... wait it IS that simple."


?



I didnt say it was, my point is they are an intended part of this community.



This is what i ment earlyer, with the industry focused on doing this for years... can we really blame the consumer anymore?

I didnt mean to attack anyone and at the very least Monk. I just wanted to make the point to all the people that help and "help" that please be more accepting and less insulting. Every help thread i read is over 60% bashing.

And to those of you who are frustrated, dont DONT take it out on the person helping you, and saying "the game is crap" dosent help. Its ok to think the game is "lacking" or "not perfect", but if you feel the game is garbage and you lost $40 dont come here, just click uninstall and go torrent something.

So again I apologise if anyone felt they were "attacked" unfairly.

PS - (Cuz i know Monk was waiting for it) Monk, I have seen you use the analogy "Did you get a car and not learn how to use it?" or something along those lines relating knowing how to operate a car to, using a computer. so i ask "So you have a car that you use regularly, do you know how to fix or modify it???" Just as not everyone knows how to fix or modify the car they use, not everyone knows how to fix or modify the computer they use. I am not trying to start an arguement (maybe an intellectual debate) i just like analogies...

@ lathorien

Since I cannot comment with regard to your replies to other people's quotations, and I believe that you and I understand each other's point of view now; I will simply comment with regard to the now "infamous car analogy"...hehe

I do actually know (believe it or not) how to fix/modify my car.    I own (among other vehicles) a VW Jetta GL which I have personally done more to than my mechanic (he's done less for more money...  ). Of course I'm not talking about completely rebuilding the engine. I went to my friendly local Canadian Tire store and bought the HAYNES manual for my car. That's how I know what I know about my car.

My guide to SINS networking is free!   


the Monk

P.S. I also know how to fly helicopters so maybe there's room for "aviation-analogies"?    A black-mark on an aviation medical as a result of injuries sustained in a bad motor vehicle accident is the only reason I never completed the "commercial" portion of my ticket (pilot's license). I am still able to fly privately and anyone with a "deathwish" is a welcome co-pilot....hehe

As far as being "blasted" for posting threads of this type, let me simply point out that while the more polite people (if any such exist) don't deserve it, posters of threads such as this one ("Fix Multiplayer" in caps, uh-huh...) bring it on themselves. Its unfortunate that a side effect of this is to carry over the counter-assault to others, but its also a facet of human nature. Remonstrate with the people who attack the polite individuals, but don't bother attacking the (oh so human...) mindset being it. Save your breath for battles you can win.

If you have ROUTERS eg.


Linksys, D-Link, Netgear....etc, etc.


Why not go to THEIR websites, AND/OR read the manuals that came with YOUR ROUTERS! For those that do not realize, a router IS a FIREWALL which BLOCKS any and all ACCESS to YOUR computers. Think of ports as locked/unlocked doors in a house. You must unlock them(port forward) in order to allow your buddies to come in and play. Now there are ways to "break in" to these doors (hackers use them...port analysis, trojans, keyloggers etc etc) but for the most part the entrance to your computers are closed shut.



With that being said, your ROUTERS HAVE THEIR OWN IP's which you must access to port forward(unlock the doors needed for access to your game) Check manufacturer sites instructions on what these IP's are....then it's fairly simple point and click from there.


For those who complain about "never had this much trouble in MP before".....IF YOU are trying to HOST ANY game nowadays, YOU WILL have to PORT FORWARD your router/firewall. If you just wish to join in a game...no problem, you just join.


With that being said, most FPS's among others, have there OWN webservers eg Ubisoft, EA, etc etc....which means THEY HOST the games which you can join, and most of the time will not have to mess around. ( eg. Battefield, Rainbow, etc.)



Long story short.....


Go to YOUR ROUTER manufacturer sites and read up on how to port forward them....you will all be laughing at yourselves when you discover how easy it is.



   


As

I don't - I'm just not an idiot when I run software (oh look, Super Hot Keygen.exe on a Russian site! hurf durf!) and don't click on spyware banner ads. I have a basic router firewall in place and it takes me less than five minutes to forward a port. Perhaps you shouldn't be running resource hog applications with unfriendly UIs marketed to people that don't know anything about computers? I think a lot of blame lies with those programs, not with the game itself.

@Car.
Still have to buy insurance, change the oil, tire pressure. A car is alot more work if you actualy take care of it, then a port forwarding on a router.

@OP.
Personally I'm ok if you can't figure it out. There are plenty of tutorials, sites, and people who are willing to help out, people like you who don't know much about this. But, you spent your time being alittle bitch. GG hope you don't get it figured out.

As to programs that can run this. They are free. https://secure.logmein.com/products/hamachi/vpn.asp?lang=en
Is a free program that allows you to LAN over the internet. Back in beta when ironclad first came online I talked to the devs. and showed them this and they had no problem with people using it.


@everyone else

If your looking for a hamachi network and people to play against, I recomend you register on the forum. www.binarydeli.com
18+, Ventrillo and forum provided.

This game isn't marketed at people 14-23? =/

no there a give-in, you dont have to market to them (joke)

With the Car analogy i was just pointing out that just cause you are casual in your computer usage/knowlage your not an idiot. And you shouldnt have other drives to tell you to get off the road if you cant change a set of brakes. But you will have alot more problems with you car/PC if you dont learn for yourself once you get the car/PC.

My uncle taught me the same way as you learned i imagine Monk. If you dont know something, take some time and go figure it out, research, read, talk and listen. he (my uncle) has no professional school certificates but is practically a professional in many things he taugh himself (computers included). To bad you couldnt buy a Hayes book for Vista or Linux or....

@Carbon

I was just playing off of his quote, no your not an idiot if you dont use them, my point is your not an idiot for using them. Any PC that is used by more than one person (un-computer-friendly spouse, children, friends) its not a bad idea. Because some people will go "WoW! Free copy of

Grrr! you got me so distracted by you adding PS to your posts if forgot to PS MY POST!!! Damn you Monk.... damn yous...

I am sorry, maybe I am just an idiot, but why this is confusing me is because I don't know what program to open in order to access my port-forwarding. Technologically I am usually fine, but when it comes to internet and networks I am left behind.

I guess the only two questions I have are these:

1: HOW do I access my port (i.e. which application do I open? control panel?)

2: how do I change the settings from there.

I have done tons of searching, and have not found how to simply access my port (whithout buying a $30.00 program.)

thanks for your help

@ Lathorien : If you talked less, you would make a fool of yourself less.

Check your PMs Onyx.

Alright, so I got into cmd prompt, feel kind of silly for not knowing that. I can bring up my IP and default gateway, but I am still unaware of how to access this in order to change my port forwarding, which are the steps 3-4 listed on the_Monks specific guide to sins.

Little information as to the stuff I have managed to figure out after finding "cmd."

I own a Linksys wireless router, model WRT55AG. I normally don't use this. I got it a few years ago when I had a friend living with me so we can both use the internet, when he moved out I stopped using it. Through the ipconfig I was able to find my (cable modems?) IP address and default gateway, I read on some tech forum that to access it's router I just had to punch the gateway number into my browser, this did not work for me, all I get is a "timed out cannot find this web page" message. I have COX cable and the modem they gave me is a scientific atlanta / webSTAR. I then decided to try out the Linksys router, so my internet is going into the modem, then the modem is connected to the router, then the router to my computer. I was able to access that, and through that I have turned off my routers firewall and upnp as per the_Monks SoaSE guide. I went to the status page of this router, it lists the original IP/gateway which I get when just using the atlanta modem, on the setup page it lists the seemingly generic 192.168.1.---. I am assuming that the 192 is just kind of something that identifies the brand of router, and the other IP/gateway is something which is more concerned with my computer specifically.

This is where I get lost, I cannot find the options for port-forwarding on the linksys options. I cannot access anything if I am not using the linksys router. If there is some simple thing that I'm missing any advice or friendly pointer in the right direction is appreciated. ^^

Take a screenshot of your router options.

Morg,


This is a page explaining how to set up your ports....(Linksys.com forums)




Please go here:

WWW Link


To everybody that does not own a linksys: go here as well, it's pretty good info, and gives you a good idea of what you're looking for....you will just need to go to the websites of whatever manufacturer your router is and essentially do the same thing.


Just remember, routers have their own ip address to access the config screens, after you get to that point, it's a cakewalk.   



As

@ morgenday

If your router (the linksys you've stuck in there now) has a WAN IP (you can find this on the router's status page) that is on the 192.168.etc. subnet then your actual cable modem (the device from COX) is also doing NAT. If so you'll need to be able to get on that cable-modem to make changes that I can guide you through, however I would suggest you contact me via PM or xfire (the1monk) so that I can get you on my TS Server to "talk" you through the steps.


the Monk


By the way, since this thread began as a "complaint" and everything that needs/should be said on that subject has been voiced, I will no longer check this thread for replies (I have too many threads, in too many forums on my list as it is...   ) Either contact me directly for clarification of my guide(s) or post in one of the existing "stickies" in the "Technical" forum.

Damn edit time outs....


That article was written in 2006...but there are no real differences in forwarding (other than firmware enhancements, driver updates, and new routers)

So, there may be some slight changes with some newer routers or routers made by other companies, but it's basically the same as it has always been.



AS

@ Lathorian's first post

That is pretty much exactly how I feel.

@ The Monk

Your attitude and dedication to helping people get this game working is awe-inspiring. Thank you.

@ StarDock / ICO

Are you still holding to the line that my claims of the majority having unacceptable MP problems are "ridiculous"? BTW where are you guys in this thread? If The Monk wasn't on this board - in his volunteer capacity - god help us all.

@ Everyone

For the record, after following all firewall "procedures" and forwarding my ports, I am now able to play now without disconnecting, but am still unable to host.

In my experience, many other players are still having these problems, judging by the amount of people dropping during games.

Before the tireless MP defenders start jumping all over me, let me state this:

Many gamers don't visit forums and will have no idea how to fix their MP issues that they are having. That is the status of the majority of consumers. You cannot change their intelligence level, their engagement level, or anything about them. IronClad/StarDock has only two options: Recognize that this constituincy represents a "silent majority" of their customers and do EVERYTHING they can to turn this MP trainwreck situation around for the sake of their reputation, OR say "Forget it, we only care about the customers who are intelligent enough to read a forum and port-forward, etc." (which, BTW, can take the form of ignoring or minimizing the issue).
Which is the more ethical decision? Which is the smarter business decision?


REMEMBER - I love this game to pieces - I play it every night and think about it quite a lot.... that's probably why it hurts me so much that the MP component isn't a home run.

Yes, we are. We can see exactly what's going on with the ICO server which is how we know.   It's just that those who won't setup their home networks properly make lots of posts complaining (with titles designed to draw attention), which makes it seem like it's a major issue when it's not.

We're very appreciative of the_Monk's helping people sort out how to deal with setting up their routers (you'll note we have stickies to assist in networking stuff already). He's the man.

We're working on improving things further with the networking system for 1.04.  The 1.03 update will contain more ICO improvements.

Thanks for responding!! Networking improvements on the horizon?!!! Then I can't wait for 1.04!!!

I'm still hoping Ironclad and Stardock will get a system that will allow us people who CANNOT (as opposed to will not be bothered to) change their networks. I am behind a LAN in my apartment building and I cannot host...or join since most games are passworded. I hope there is a workaround for this problem soon or the community picks itself up by the boot straps and starts hosting mostly public games.

This is a great game, but I've already uninstalled it. I will install it again, when 1.03 comes out with AI improvements for SP...but then I'll uninstall it until I am convicned I can play MP reliably.

*fires up Sword of the Stars*

i was wondering if i WAS alone, i dont want to start an issue, just nice that i was right in thinking i was representing more than just myself. However i apparently did not word my FIRST post very well.



Thank you, That was all i wanted to know..