[Hollow Tool]

Right, I was not thinking of cubes.  I was for shapes like this:

That is just cones with the point cut off and another cone cutout to make a crescent.  It is a relatively simple shape, but still too complex to hollow as easily as a cube could be.

 

One way of avoiding the problem of hollowing out too much material would be to only apply the material to the shape after the cutting and hollowing was done to define it.  Then a person would never need to have all the resources to fill the interior of the shape.

[Hollow Tool]

One feature I would like to have when building is a hollow tool.  The program I have been using to design concepts for my ship has this and I have found it very useful.

 

Basically, it removes all voxels from the interior of a shape, leaving the outside surface as an empty shell.  It does this even with complex shapes created by adding and subtracting simpler ones together.

 

This would be very useful in Dual Universe, since eliminating any unnecessary voxels would reduce the resource need to build a construct.

[Ecumene Member State Recuitment Post]

Hello ParagonOne and welcome.

[A Long Introduction Long Overdue]

I did read the whole thing and I found it very interesting.  Thank you and welcome.

[Happy Holidays All]

Happy holidays and good wishes for the new year.

[[CSYN Contest] Picture this [CLOSED]]

I was having some problems with my account, which is why the previous post of this picture now appears as Guest_Ben Fargo_*.

 

The problem has been fixed, so please, ignore that post and consider this my entry.

[Hello]

My account has been fixed.  I should've waited one more day.

[Introduction]

Welcome to Dual Universe.  Like you, I really enjoy seeing what people create.

[Customizable Cockpits]

I would also like cockpits to be as customizable as possible.  If a cockpit is composed of several parts, then even with a few variations of each one, that quickly allows for a large number of possible combinations.

[Defunct Probes]

If such probes where used, they would have been considered failures at the time the arkships were launched.  Using the same propulsion, they could not exceed the speed of light.  That would also be the limit for the speed of any information they sent back.  To anyone on Earth, they would searched at most about fifty light-years away and it appears any suitable planets are much farther away.

 

Of course, the probes still could have been launched, since no one would know what they would or would not find.  Once they were sent out, they would keep going, even after the Earth was destroyed, so there could be some near the arkship's destination.

[Hello]

Hello.

 

I've been here for several weeks, so it's time I got around to introducing myself.  If the name I tried to reserve is approved, I'm Ben Fargo.

 

I'm very excited about DU.  Everything I've heard about it agrees with my concept of what an MMO should be.

 

My goal in DU is to build a ship, a small to medium sized cargo vessel.  For the ship, I've started an organization called the Blue Moon Crew.  Unlike a lot of organizations, which are corporations or empires, it will be much more limited, just the crew of this one ship.  Every member of the crew will also be a co-owner of the ship.  So far, I am the only member, but ideally I would like to have about three to five people in it.

 

I'm also a member of the Cinderfall Syndicate.  The Blue Moon will be an independent ship, not part of any fleet, but that independence will be based on developing strong relationships with other organizations and players. It will need facilities for building it, then cargo to carry, places to dock, protection from pirates and probably many things I have not thought of yet.

 

If the Blue Moon Crew sounds interesting, please consider joining.  If you've any questions about it, I'd be happy to answer them.

[Voxel Doors]

There are different ways doors could be implemented in DU.  One is what I call an element door.  This is one element that forms a complete door and frame.  Another way, which I prefer, is what I call a voxel door.  With this method, both the door and the frame are primarily made of voxels with a few small elements to handle opening and closing.

 

As an example, imagine we have a slider.  This is a small element, probably one voxel in size.  Each one could look like a coil, to represent using mag-lev technology to connect the door to the frame.  Several of these would be attached to the frame in a row to from a track.  Several more sliders would be attached to one edge of the door.  When the two groups of sliders were placed face to face, they would anchor the door in place, but allow it to slide back and forth.

 

There would also be a control unit to operate the door.  This could be another small, one voxel sized element, that might look like a touch panel.

 

The primary advantage of voxel doors is that they allow a large amount of variety in doors.  If there was just one element door, then every door in DU would look the same.  There could, of course, be more element doors, but each one would be another project for the development team.  With voxel doors, the same pair of elements could be used to make doors of any shape or size.  Some might slide to one side, some might go up and down and some might split and move out from the middle.  Adding one more element, such as a hinge, would allow even more variety.

 

Once these elements were in the game, they could be used for more than just doors.  The sliders and touch panel, for example, could also be used to build an elevator.

 

There are two requirements to make this possible.  First, voxels must be small enough to make a reasonably sized door.  From the examples of building I have seen in the videos, the voxels in DU do appear to be small enough.  The other is that voxels must be able to move next to each other without causing collisions.  Especially in a space game, large gaps between the door and the frame would not be acceptable.  I do not know whether the technology DU uses would allow this, but I hope it does.

 

[[Novawrimo] Parting Gifts]

This is my entry into the Novawrimo contest and also the backstory of my character, Ben Fargo.  I hope you enjoy it.

 

PartingGifts.pdf

[Fan Art Wallpaper of the Core Unit]

Both are very good, but to me, the core shows up better in the lighter one.  If it's possible, I would suggest having a darker background with a little more light on just the core itself.

[Departure]

I marked this story as non-canon because it is not consistent with the lore bible that was released today.  Specifically, I assumed the first arkships would depart long before  they did in the actual lore.  I intend to work on a new version of the story that does follow the lore.

[Departure]

Barren functionality, that is what Ben thought as he sat and waited.  A mismatched collection of chairs lined the walls, while a double row of them, back to back, filled the center of the room.  There were no pictures, no plants, no tables covered with out-dated magazines.  The agency had neither the time nor the money to acquire such things, but few people cared.  Most of them, like Karilynne, were too focused on their phones to notice what was missing.  Ben had not bothered to take out his own phone.  He had too much on his mind, so he just stared at his wife and wondered what the future held for them.

 

"Benignus and Karilynne Fargo, please, come to Room C3.  Benignus and Karilynne Fargo, come to Room C3."

 

Ben stood up and looked at his wife.  "We better go.  Shouldn't keep them waiting."

 

Karilynne tapped her phone a few more times, then slipped it into her purse.  "No, suppose not."

 

---

 

As the couple entered the room, the woman behind the desk smiled at them and waved them to a pair of chairs facing her.  The tag with the UN logo clipped to her jacket identified her as Roberta Stuart.  As soon as they were seated, Stuart said, "No use making good news wait.  Your applications have been approved."

 

Ben grinned widely, "We're going on the arkship!"

 

Stuart nodded, "Yes, you'll be leaving in two weeks.  I know that's not much time to take care of your affairs here, but we had a couple unexpected openings, and well, you were the best suited for them."

 

Ben grabbed his wife's hand, still grinning.  "We've made it.  I can't believe we're going."

 

Karilynne smiled back at him, but her forehead was wrinkled with worry.  "We need to tell her, Ben.  To see if it'll be alright."

 

Stuart narrowed her eyes and asked, "If what'll be alright?"

 

Karilynne put her other hand on top of her husband's, so she held his between her two.  "We just found out a couple days ago.  I'm expecting...we're going to have a baby."

 

"Oh...."  Stuart shook her head slowly.  "I wish I could tell you that wasn't a problem, but the truth is we just don't know what affect cryosleep would have on a pregnancy.  It's unlikely the baby would develop normally and it would be an unacceptably high risk for you, Karilynne."

 

Ben sat in shook for a few moments, then said weakly, "We can't go?"

 

Stuart hesitated, then said, "You can still go, but we'd have to terminate the pregnancy.  There's enough time and if you decide on that, we can make all the arrangements for you."

 

Karilynne wrapped her arms protectively around her belly and cried out, "No! You can't do that to my baby!"

 

Stuart looked at the woman, then at her husband who was sitting speechless.  "I know this difficult.  I can give you one day to think it over, but no more.  Come back tomorrow and let me know what you've decided."

 

---

 

Ben was sitting at his drafting table, looking through his sketches, plans he had made of spaceships, some practical, some more fanciful.  Karilynne walked up behind him and looked over his shoulder.  She said gently, "You really want to go, don't you?  We can apply for another arkship...after the baby's born."

 

Ben shrugged.  "The way things are going, I'm not sure there'll be another arkship.  Even if there is, I doubt someone who's rejected their first offer'll get another one."

 

"Then we'll just stay here.  Maybe it won't be so bad."

 

"There's no future here.  We're living on a doomed planet."

 

Karilynne grasped his shoulders.  "But it won't be destroyed in our lifetimes...or our baby's.  We still have time to live out our lives here."

 

"On world with no hope?  What kind of life will that be?"  Ben swiped his arm across the table, scattering his drawings to the floor.  "How long do you think we can hold on to civilization here?  You see it already...the people who don't care about anything...who do whatever the feel because nothing matters to them any more.  And it'll only get worse.  Do want to live like that...raise our child like that?"

 

Karilynne turned her husband around to look into his eyes.  "Our child doesn't have a choice.  Our child'll live here or not at all.  So, I don't have a choice either."

 

She stopped to fight back her tears, then continued, "But, you have a choice.  You can still go."

 

"Without you?"

 

"Yes, without me.  Because you love me."  Her tears started to stream down, but she went on, "If you stay, you'll resent me...resent the baby.  You'll say you won't, you'll try not to, but I know you...I know it'll happen and that'd be the worse thing I can imagine."

 

Ben stammered, "But...you and the baby...you'll be alone."

 

"Mom and Dad are still here.  They'll take care of us.  We'll be alright."  She reached behind her neck and unclasped the chain she wore around it.  On the chain was a round silver pendant with a blue turquoise crescent set in it.  "Take this...so you'll remember me."

 

Ben took the pendant and studied it.  "Isn't this the one your Grandma gave you?  I...I can't take this."

 

"You have to.  I promised Grandma I'd keep it safe...and there's nowhere on Earth it'll be safe anymore.  But, with you, it will be.  So ten thousand years from now, when you get to your new world, look at it and think about me and the baby."

 

Ben closed his hand around the pendant and held it close to his chest.  "If I leave now, I won't know the baby's name...or even if it's a boy or a girl."

 

Karilynne smiled at him.  "She's a girl and her name'll be Lunette."

 

"The doctor's told you she's a girl?"

 

"My heart told me.  Just like it tells me you need to go to that far away star.  And like it tells me no matter how far away you are, you'll always love me."

 

Ben took her hand and said softly, "Mine tells me that, too."