I received the following letter from John today and he requested that it be posted to all Forums for him. I think I'm lucky to have received it, I had a problem with my mail for the past 3 weeks. I've lived at the same place for over 10 years and discovered my mail was being returned to sender! The Post Office told me they had a new postman on my route and he didn't "notice" my name on the mailbox...
"Many Thanks, Folks, from tiltjlp !!!
Your special Holiday CD arrived in time, on December 23rd, and I couldn?t have been more surprised or impressed. 15 Flipperless tables, 13 of them originals, is astonishing, and should give me plenty of challenges and loads of fun. The two recreations are both outstanding. Bendigo, with Guys & Dolls, has surely became a master of the EM, hasn?t he? And Leon?s 4 Belles is everything I?ve come to expect from Leon. Seems as if IRPinball is still working their magic.
Special thanks go out to Rockinghorse and Anthias, for getting the idea for this wonderful CD. It?s nice to realize I made a good enough impression on them so they wanted to repay me. I guess when you try to be a friend, sometimes people do notice. Probably what means the most to me is that they both are still making Flipperless tables, even if I?m not around to browbeat them about it.
Once I opened the CD, the surprises continued, with all those posts, and even a few letters, even a short one from my Aussie pal StevOz. But maybe the biggest surprise of all were the two Flipperless tables by Wrenchien. I especially like High Seize, but where are your release stories, Wrench, which were always at least as good as the tables themselves?
Rather than trying to list everyone who added a table to the CD, and upsetting someone who I might miss, I?ll simply say that I appreciate the time and effort involved making each table. But I will point out a major problem with some of the tables, which I have griped about right from the start. There are some tables which have no way of being identified as to who the author might have been.
I can?t understand why anyone would make a table and not let us all know it?s theirs. But some have no author?s name on the game itself, nor is the Table Information filled out, at least with a name and contact information. And the Script doesn?t give a hint either who the culprit might be. So just maybe to fill my time, and in case I ever do return to VP, I?ll go though the tables on my HD, see which ones have no identity, and claim the best of the lot as my own, and end up with loads of tables to my credit. In other words, always identify your work. Or if you?re too ashamed of your table, keep working on it until you?ve made it the best it can be, and then put your name on it. You work hard on your tables, so brag a little.
As for me, I?m slowly working on one last bagatelle recreation, but since I only spend a few hours three times a week on the computer, I can?t even guess when I?ll finish. I still test all of the tables Druadic is busy working on, so my interest in both VP and pinball is alive and well.
I?ve figured how to start saving up some bucks, and if my plans work out, I should be able to move back home of Cincinnati Ohio probably by late Spring of 2005. Once I do, I?ll at least have an e-mail account again, and if I can come up with a laptop, I might even make it back online, too. Along with that, I?ve just gotten a Voice-to-Text program, and once I master it, I?ll be able to do a lot more writing.
My arthritis has become so severe, that I can hardly type at all without a lot of serious pain. So, before too long, I might be able to write more articles for TMOF site, and relay a message or an occasional post through JPH. But what I wonder about is that if I do eventually return to the VP scene, will I find the same old infighting and flame wars, or will there still be any members left at all.
Many of you have applauded my efforts while I was active, but one person shouldn?t be able to make that much difference. Why not try doing with I tried to do . . . be friendlier and offer help whenever you can, even before it?s asked for. Be supportive of everyone?s efforts, even when a table isn?t exactly your cup of tea. But most importantly, offer both encouragement and some suggestions whenever possible, especially to newer authors. The results might just surprise you, with not only better quality tables to play, but an overall friendly attitude on the forums.
I hope I haven?t ruffled any feathers, since I?m simply making a few suggestions, not trying to tell anyone what to do. But if a forum with thousands of registered members only has 50 who are really active, it should make you wonder. I heard the complaint that four forums were just too many to keep track of. But maybe if you visit just one or two every day and rotate your visits, you?ll have a better idea about what?s going on in the entire VP community. I?d really like to see a strong, cooperative, active VP community if and when I finally do return.
Health wise, my legs and circulation have improved quite a bit, but I do have a number of other problems. My spinal injury has deteriorated more, and makes walking a chore. My hips and knees also cause me trouble, as does my arthritis. But my medications go a long way in easing my pain.
I didn?t tell you all that to get any sympathy, but so you all realize that there?s no way I can return to VP until I finally get back home to Cincinnati, and get a laptop. That might take a 1 ½ years or even a bit longer, but if it?s at all possible, I?m going to do it. So, instead of simply marking time until I make my way back there, stay busy working on tables, help each other out when you can, and cooperate with one and all.
Now, if anyone would happen to want to drop me a note, or send me a table to test, or have any questions about the finer points of making either Flipperless or Bagatelles, here?s my address.
tiltjlp
John L Patton
2432 Kennon Ave
Norfolk, VA 23513-4317 "
"Many Thanks, Folks, from tiltjlp !!!
Your special Holiday CD arrived in time, on December 23rd, and I couldn?t have been more surprised or impressed. 15 Flipperless tables, 13 of them originals, is astonishing, and should give me plenty of challenges and loads of fun. The two recreations are both outstanding. Bendigo, with Guys & Dolls, has surely became a master of the EM, hasn?t he? And Leon?s 4 Belles is everything I?ve come to expect from Leon. Seems as if IRPinball is still working their magic.
Special thanks go out to Rockinghorse and Anthias, for getting the idea for this wonderful CD. It?s nice to realize I made a good enough impression on them so they wanted to repay me. I guess when you try to be a friend, sometimes people do notice. Probably what means the most to me is that they both are still making Flipperless tables, even if I?m not around to browbeat them about it.
Once I opened the CD, the surprises continued, with all those posts, and even a few letters, even a short one from my Aussie pal StevOz. But maybe the biggest surprise of all were the two Flipperless tables by Wrenchien. I especially like High Seize, but where are your release stories, Wrench, which were always at least as good as the tables themselves?
Rather than trying to list everyone who added a table to the CD, and upsetting someone who I might miss, I?ll simply say that I appreciate the time and effort involved making each table. But I will point out a major problem with some of the tables, which I have griped about right from the start. There are some tables which have no way of being identified as to who the author might have been.
I can?t understand why anyone would make a table and not let us all know it?s theirs. But some have no author?s name on the game itself, nor is the Table Information filled out, at least with a name and contact information. And the Script doesn?t give a hint either who the culprit might be. So just maybe to fill my time, and in case I ever do return to VP, I?ll go though the tables on my HD, see which ones have no identity, and claim the best of the lot as my own, and end up with loads of tables to my credit. In other words, always identify your work. Or if you?re too ashamed of your table, keep working on it until you?ve made it the best it can be, and then put your name on it. You work hard on your tables, so brag a little.
As for me, I?m slowly working on one last bagatelle recreation, but since I only spend a few hours three times a week on the computer, I can?t even guess when I?ll finish. I still test all of the tables Druadic is busy working on, so my interest in both VP and pinball is alive and well.
I?ve figured how to start saving up some bucks, and if my plans work out, I should be able to move back home of Cincinnati Ohio probably by late Spring of 2005. Once I do, I?ll at least have an e-mail account again, and if I can come up with a laptop, I might even make it back online, too. Along with that, I?ve just gotten a Voice-to-Text program, and once I master it, I?ll be able to do a lot more writing.
My arthritis has become so severe, that I can hardly type at all without a lot of serious pain. So, before too long, I might be able to write more articles for TMOF site, and relay a message or an occasional post through JPH. But what I wonder about is that if I do eventually return to the VP scene, will I find the same old infighting and flame wars, or will there still be any members left at all.
Many of you have applauded my efforts while I was active, but one person shouldn?t be able to make that much difference. Why not try doing with I tried to do . . . be friendlier and offer help whenever you can, even before it?s asked for. Be supportive of everyone?s efforts, even when a table isn?t exactly your cup of tea. But most importantly, offer both encouragement and some suggestions whenever possible, especially to newer authors. The results might just surprise you, with not only better quality tables to play, but an overall friendly attitude on the forums.
I hope I haven?t ruffled any feathers, since I?m simply making a few suggestions, not trying to tell anyone what to do. But if a forum with thousands of registered members only has 50 who are really active, it should make you wonder. I heard the complaint that four forums were just too many to keep track of. But maybe if you visit just one or two every day and rotate your visits, you?ll have a better idea about what?s going on in the entire VP community. I?d really like to see a strong, cooperative, active VP community if and when I finally do return.
Health wise, my legs and circulation have improved quite a bit, but I do have a number of other problems. My spinal injury has deteriorated more, and makes walking a chore. My hips and knees also cause me trouble, as does my arthritis. But my medications go a long way in easing my pain.
I didn?t tell you all that to get any sympathy, but so you all realize that there?s no way I can return to VP until I finally get back home to Cincinnati, and get a laptop. That might take a 1 ½ years or even a bit longer, but if it?s at all possible, I?m going to do it. So, instead of simply marking time until I make my way back there, stay busy working on tables, help each other out when you can, and cooperate with one and all.
Now, if anyone would happen to want to drop me a note, or send me a table to test, or have any questions about the finer points of making either Flipperless or Bagatelles, here?s my address.
tiltjlp
John L Patton
2432 Kennon Ave
Norfolk, VA 23513-4317 "